On Sunday I attended the first ever Strategy Games Festival at the London Mindsport Centre in Hammersmith. 🇬🇧

When Great Minds Come Together

The Festival was organised by John Foley and Brigitta Peszleg from ChessPlus and Fransesco Salerno.

ChessPlus, is an educational organisation that offers chess, plus other games. Follow them on social media, visit their website where you’ll find excellent courses, online discussion groups, events and articles.

Fransesco Salerno is a Hive game expert and teaches the Abstract Strategy games course at the Imperial College London. It’s a collaboration I’ve been waiting for and it did not disapoint!

Hive 🐝

Fransesco was busy teaching the award winning game of Hive throughout the day. I managed to find some time with him. I loved the insect images on each Hive tile, the tactile feel and unique moves of each insect. Fransesco is a patient teacher. 😉

He’s also England’s top Hive player and plays Hive simul games with those that dare to. Hive is a game with depth. Master the moves first and then it’s time for strategy. Definitely one I need to return to.

A brilliant schedule

The event was an unprecedented gathering of games experts and teachers. Whatever level or background you had in games, there was challenge and guidance for all.

Wander around, pick a game, workshop, or enjoy the game designer’s panel discussion.

The morning kicked off with a presentation by John on 8×8 games. It’s always wonderful to see LogiqBoard in action, perfect as a demoboard. ❤️

Planning ahead is advised because of the range of talks and games that were on offer. I actually prioritised four games to focus on, Shogi, Oware, Hive and the chess game Folky. To my surprise, time flew by and I managed two out of the four games on my list! This is what happens in game flow, you get lost in games…😯

And the favourite is… Folky!

I now have a new favourite chess mini game called Folky created by Petr Doubek. It was a pleasure to hear from the creator himself.

I sat across a game designer and we explored the game together trying to figure out the rules and secrets of the game. (A designer and a primary school teacher learning and dissecting the game from our own perspectives was fun.)

Petr popped by all the tables and then joined our board. I got to play the man himself, delving deeper into Folky and his story. To have this 1:1 time and small group guidance made the day really special.

Petr told me about the Folky tournaments back home in the Czechia. He has a website where you can play Folky: http://www.folky.cz

Blind Folky

Petr also shared a Folky board for the blind and visually impaired. Yes, I now loved Folky even more! ❤️

Folky to the test

If you’re a teacher I’m going to share more about this game very soon.

It’s the perfect chess variant for the primary amd secondary classroom. I’ll also be adding some mini problemsolving tasks and exploring the game with year four, five and six this Friday. Petr, I hope its okay to replace the pawns with some gems or stars. ⭐️ Looking forward to this…

The Mindsports Cafe

After my Folky session I popped downstairs for a quick drink and to say hi to the lovely staff.

It was here where I met the lovely Curran, keen to add to her repetoire of games. We exchanged favourites and she was curious about Folky. The teacher in me invited her to a table. We played Folky, Halma and Othello. She loved all three. We also played a cool little game called Abalone. Metallic shiny spheres had to be ‘pushed off’ the board with specific rules. I imagined a large size version of this game for schools, it would be a knock out game!

Curran was also keen to take games back to her work place where the card game Uno was the popular choice.

Can anyone show me Shogi?

We were about to head over to the Shogi table for a lesson when I was called upon by John. (The Shogi games expert just appeared like a genie, did he sense us?)

The Shogi and Go room caught my attention from the tour a few weeks ago. Both Rita Atkins (LogiqBoard cocreator) and I were interested in the large wooden board on display. I also loved the Japanese wall art.

Chess, Shogi and Go Queen

It was great to see Natasha Regan. Natasha is an England International player in chess, Shogi and Go. She is an author and commentator for chess and chess boxing. Her son plays Bridge for the England team. The Bridge table was very popular at the festival with players enjoying two versions of the game.🥊👑

What makes a good festival?

As you can see fun was the theme of the day. Festivals should be welcoming, a place to meet old friends and new, a place where it’s okay to wander alone or bring buddies.

Festival guides should scoop up the curious players, shy players and teach, showing the exciting world of games, the joy they bring and mental challenge each game provides! Make it inclusive for all ages and abilities.

The Games Experts Assembled like the Marvel Comic Super Heroes

There were so many experts in one place. If you’ve ever witnessed a conversation between two games experts you’ll know how magical it is. Think ‘games philosophy’ and brilliant minds! 🤯

Connections and Networking

Another sign of a great festival are the connections you make. Make friendships, collaborate on future projects or end up at the pub for drinks!

I was introduced to an educator from Acton, west London, keen to bring chess and games into her setting at a school for children with autism. The benefits of games are huge and change depending on the skillset of the teacher.

Why play strategy games?

Strategy games develop problem solving skills, arithmetic skills, concentration, shape and space skills, planning, decision making and strategic thinking.

They can be used as a tool for communication, developing memory, resilience, flexible thinking and more.

I’m going to finish with 3 ‘wow moments’ from the day.

Wow Moment 1

As I sat for a moment with Natasha Regan she/we were offered a glorious opportunity to a watch a piece of film about to be sent to ESPN in America. Etan Ilfield, of the Mind Sports Olympiad, had given us a sneaky peak of an underwater chess game between superb swimmers and chess players. They would make a move, swim to the surface and repeat.

Etan’s commentary was clear and captivating. I felt privileged to have seen this!

Wow Moment 2

I met the wonderful David Parry. David is deeply passionate about bringing games into schools. I agree with David in that that these strategy games are mind sports and have a place in schools. They’re part of teaching children how to think. I think all schools should have strategy games clubs.

David explained that he knew some excellent teachers who teach games and chess and would connect us.

I sometimes feel like a lone ranger, the only primary teacher waving the flag for chess and games in England. And I’m not talking about private schools, private schools showcase chess.

Social media can be a lonely place but I know I’m not the only one teaching games. Chess has never been so popular in schools and beyond, it’s booming like many countries around the world. I look forward to finding my teacher tribe and reaching more teachers.

Wow Moment 3

My final wow moment was the realisation that the game of chess is tangled up with so many deep emotions.

I met the second person this month afraid to play chess because they didn’t want to lose. They played as a teen but weren’t yet ready to return. This is why strategy games and mini chess games are so important. Think of them as stand alone games or a stepping stone to chess.

I met someone a few weeks at a chess and wine night who also felt the same, they had played in London competitions as a teenager and didn’t feel ready to return to the game. They left the chess and wine night without playing. A sad moment.

Guilty

I also have delayed playing games and chess for myself in the real world, beyond the classroom. I’m not sure why but I know my reluctance wasn’t necessary.

The chess and strategy games world are welcoming and most, if not all are without judgement. They’re just happy to see others play and enjoy the beautiful game. It’s that simple.

So if you’re one of these people don’t hesitate. There is nothing quite like playing across a board and connecting with another human.

Children’s Games Festival, yes please!

I hope this is the first of many games festivals and look forward to the day we have a children’s games festival. Hammersmith is lucky to have such a hub for the community. For more photos and info check out:

https://strategygamesfestival.com/

Next steps:

School workshops?

If you’re a school or setting and interested in a games workshop or training do get in touch with the ChessPlus team where John and Brigitta will decide which ‘Avengers’ (superheroes of the games world ) to assemble and bring the magic of strategy games to your setting. And maybe like the Marvel superheroes, games have some power in saving the world! 🦸‍♂️🦸‍♀️

Chess Fest is coming!

Don’t forget to check out the weekend blog for my Folky lessons on Fridays and Chess Fest in Trafalgar Square on the 13th July. I hear some Avengers will be there too. 🤫

Master the games before you teach

Since Sunday I’ve been learning Lines of Action, a fab 8×8 board game shared by John and available on LogiqBoard . Practise on playstrategy.org , a platform shared at the festival. You can find Oware and more!

Here’s a fabulous flyer for the Mind Sports Olympiad and picture of the Ancient Greeks playing a strategy game…

Hari 😉 x

Ajax and Achilles playing a game, Amphora by Exekias, 320 BC