In today’s world with advanced technology, new and improved games come out on the app store, which gets thousands, if not millions, of downloads. Games like Clash of Clans, Candy Crush Saga and Boom Beach soared to the top of the charts and changed the dynamic of how people interact with each other through gaming. What happened to the more simple times of Scrabble, Candyland and Sorry? 

Board and card games have the ability to bring people together through fun and conversation. Not only do they keep a conversation going, but the time shared playing can turn into blissful memories. These games can become competitive, but that keeps the games the most interesting to play. 

During the holidays, many families come together through games. Often, families forget that they don’t have to go all out and get new games for their gaming systems, but rather find older games in a cabinet that they may have forgotten about. 

Innovation is becoming more and more extreme. There are now games such as virtual reality and the Nintendo Switch that are purely based on technology and animations. Children and teens are largely attracted to these games, and some adults are unsure of how they too can play. Times are changing as well as who we spend it with and how we spend it. 

There are some that only bond over television and phones, but many have ignored the fact that there are other things to do besides rely on technology. There are many new games that are related to phone games or tv shows. Heads Up by Ellen DeGeneres, Temple Run has its own board game and there are games based on TV shows, such as one that is trivia about “The Big Bang Theory” are all prime examples of games based on pop culture. 

The amount of games to play as a group are endless as the way we interact with each other changes. Not many people want to sit down and play hours of games, but even a quick card game such as UNO can really be fun for families. 

Without board and card games, no other games would have been able to evolve into what they are today. Scrabble first came out in 1938 and without the game Scrabble, the app Words with Friends would have had no inspiration to create its game. In fact, many board and card games have become apps, such as poker, Yahtzee, Solitaire and more. 

“Personally, board games haven’t been prevalent in my family recently, but when I was younger, my family made an effort to play games with us and I think that it built a stronger bond,” senior Noah Valles said. 

Getting people back into board games will bring back the special bonding times that many people have lost due to busy schedules. Technology isn’t the only form of gaming around because board games are still good in quality.