Elaine and I had a short, 8 day break based in Toulouse and
stayed in a studio apartment near the
city centre. We have visited this area of
France many times, exploring Cathar castles etc., but we had never spent time
in Toulouse itself, just flying in and out of the airport. This time we did not
hire a car, but instead opted to use the excellent public transport network. We
naturally took with us a few games to play in the evenings. On our first day we
explored the city and tried to get our
bearings. Down near La Garonne we
spotted a shop, ‘Sabretache’, selling wargame figures and various boardgames,
so we went in for a look around. The wargame figures were nearly all 54mm and
beautifully painted. We ended up talking boardgames with the owner in a mix of
English and French (Elaine has very good French, I have none). Elaine asked if
there was a boardgame cafe in Toulouse and it turned out there was one just
around the corner.
That evening we visited the cafe, ‘Les Tricheurs’ (www.lestricheurs.com).
The cafe had a reasonable selection of games (all with French rules) and we
pondered what to play. It was still early so we chatted with the owner and she
recommended the game ‘Lost Cities’ (or ‘Les Cites Perdues’). This is a 2-player
game with simple rules, where players play cards in ascending order against 5
potential expeditions. You score the face values of the cards minus 20 for each
expedition you undertake. In addition there are bonus cards (x2, x3, x4) for
each expedition, which must be the first cards played against that expedition.
The game is played over 3 rounds, and a round ends when the deck of cards is
exhausted. A very simple mechanism, but hugely enjoyable and requiring a
surprising degree of tactical thinking. After a couple of games, we decided to
finish the evening with a game we know and love; ‘Sushi-Go’. We had a fun time
and resolved to return latter in the holiday (which we did, playing more ‘Lost
Cities’, plus games of ‘Hey, That’s my fish’ and ‘Carcassonne’; which was rather
appropriate considering the region of France we were staying in.
It would appear that boardgaming is very popular in Toulouse
and the surrounding area, because we found 2 more games shops in Toulouse
itself, ‘Tire Lire’ and ‘C’est le Jeu!’, and were told of another gaming bar in
a different part of the city. There was also a ‘Carcassonne’ tournament advertised
taking place in Carcassonne itself. Whilst we were in Castelneudary, we noticed
another boardgame convention being held there that weekend! So, all-in-all, the
South West region of France is a hot-spot for anyone who enjoys boardgaming, in
addition to being a beautiful region with wonderful food and wine. Highly
recommended!
I enjoyed this post, Mark! Can you describe the business model for "Boardgame Cafe?"
ReplyDeleteHi Jonathan,
ReplyDeleteEssentially a boardgame café is a café (or bar) that provides tablespace that enables games to be played by customers on site. The business provides a range of games at the café/bar (usually in the range of 50-200 different games) that the customers can choose from. Thirsty Meeples in Oxford must have over 200 games on their shelves. The business makes its money from the beverages and snacks etc. sold, plus sometimes a table rental fee. The price of the beverages tends to have a small mark-up to ensure a reasonable profit margin. From my experience, the games provided ensure a good number of customers (particularly in university towns/cities). In addition, many games cafes/bars hold games events and evenings, featuring new games with the designer in attendance. The staff generally have a good knowledge of many games and can provide a summary and tutorials for new players. I think the model can work very well, and suggest you search online for such a café/bar in your neck of the woods.
Mark