Portal:Games

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A game is a structured type of play, usually undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator sports or games) or art (such as jigsaw puzzles or games involving an artistic layout such as Mahjong, solitaire, or some video games).

Games are sometimes played purely for enjoyment, sometimes for achievement or reward as well. They can be played alone, in teams, or online; by amateurs or by professionals. The players may have an audience of non-players, such as when people are entertained by watching a chess championship. On the other hand, players in a game may constitute their own audience as they take their turn to play. Often, part of the entertainment for children playing a game is deciding who is part of their audience and who is a player. A toy and a game are not the same. Toys generally allow for unrestricted play whereas games present rules for the player to follow.

Key components of games are goals, rules, challenge, and interaction. Games generally involve mental or physical stimulation, and often both. Many games help develop practical skills, serve as a form of exercise, or otherwise perform an educational, simulational, or psychological role. (Full article...)

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Golem Arcana was a tabletop miniature wargaming game developed and published by Harebrained Schemes for iOS and Android devices. The game combines physical miniatures on a game board with a mobile app that much of the gameplay takes place in; the physical pieces and the app communicate through the use of a Bluetooth stylus. Several elements of the game, including special abilities and optional missions, exist only within the app.

Golem Arcana was funded through a Kickstarter campaign that launched in September 2013 and went on to raise over $500,000. The game was released just under a year later, on 13 August 2014. Both studio co-founder Jordan Weisman and executive producer Ray Winninger had extensive experience developing both video games and tabletop games, and one of their primary motivations in creating Golem Arcana was to merge the two gaming types. They also sought to create a more social experience than could be found in traditional multiplayer video games. (Full article...)

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...that the 2005 World Series of Poker Ladies Champion (pictured) had been nominated for an Academy Award in 1994?
...that Bruce Webster was so burned out from writing the computer game SunDog: Frozen Legacy for the Apple II, that he gave up programming for four years?
...that the chess Grandmaster Wolfgang Uhlmann is one of the world's leading experts on the French Defence?
...that Dungeons & Dragons, an album by Midnight Syndicate, is the only official soundtrack to the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game?
...that the video game Scarygirl puts players in control of a young girl with an eye patch, a sewn-shut mouth, and a hook-capped tentacle for one arm?

General images

The following are images from various game-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Han dynasty glazed pottery tomb figurines playing liubo, with six sticks laid out to the side of the game board (from Board game)
Image 2Students using dice to improve numeracy skills. They roll three dice, then use basic math operations to combine those into a new number which they cover on the board. The goal is to cover four squares in the row. (from Game)
Image 3Mamluk playing card (king of cups), c.15th century (from Card game)
Image 4Typical MUD interface for God Wars II (from Role-playing game)
Image 5The modern German board game Catan is printed in 30 languages and sold 15 million by 2009. (from Board game)
Image 6Ancient Egyptian senet game board inscribed for Amenhotep III with separate sliding drawer, from 1390 to 1353 BC, made of glazed faience, dimensions: 5.5 × 7.7 × 21 cm, in the Brooklyn Museum (New York City). (from Game)
Image 7Senet, one of the oldest known board games (from Board game)
Image 8Patolli game being watched by Macuilxochitl as depicted on page 048 of the Codex Magliabechiano (from Board game)
Image 9 Men Playing Board Games, from The Sougandhika Parinaya Manuscript (from Board game)
Image 10Two Qataris playing the traditional board game of damah (from Board game)
Image 11The Mansion of Happiness (1843) (from Board game)
Image 12Hounds and jackals (Egypt, 13th Dynasty) (from Board game)
Image 13Royal game of Ur, southern Iraq, about 2600–2400 BCE (from Board game)
Image 14An adventurer finds a teleportation portal while exploring a dungeon in the role-playing video game Falcon's Eye. (from Role-playing game)
Image 15The Card Players, 17th-century painting by Theodoor Rombouts (from Card game)
Image 16The number of board games published by year (1944–2017), as listed on BoardGameGeek. Expansion sets for existing games are marked in orange. (from Board game)
Image 17A fantasy LARP group (from Role-playing game)
Image 18Tug of war is an easily organized, impromptu game that requires little equipment. (from Game)
Image 19A group playing a tabletop RPG. The GM is at left using a cardboard screen to hide dice rolls from the players. (from Role-playing game)
Image 20Chinese mother-of-pearl gambling tokens used in scoring and bidding of card games. (from Card game)
Image 21The Card Players by Lucas van Leyden (1520) depicting a multiplayer card game (from Game)
Image 22Association football is a popular sport worldwide.
Image 23Historically, card games such as whist and contract bridge were opportunities for quiet socializing, as shown in this 1930s magic lantern slide photo taken in Seattle, Washington. (from Card game)
Image 24Playing Cards, by Theodoor Rombouts, 17th century (from Game)
Image 25A selection of pieces from different games. From top: Chess pawns, marbles, Monopoly tokens, dominoes, Monopoly hotels, jacks and checkers pieces. (from Game)
Image 26Preferans, a trick-taking card game version popular in Croatia (from Card game)
Image 27Young girls playing a board game in the Iisalmi library in Finland, 2016 (from Board game)
Image 28Backgammon is a game of skill. Strategy can give players advantages, but there is also an element of chance. (from Game of skill)
Image 29A ball-in-a-maze puzzle requires fine motor skills. (from Game of skill)
Image 30Parcheesi is an American adaptation of a Pachisi, originating in India. (from Game)
Image 31The board game Monopoly is licensed in 103 countries and printed in 37 languages. (from Board game)