Victory Points Essays
Every month, Board Game Academics highlights a scholar, professional, or enthusiast representing the diverse communities that make up the world of tabletop gaming. Essays will explore the intersection of gaming and professional and academic life, the live experience of gamers across a range of different topics and more. Our goal is to highlight and elevate voices that represent the voices and experiences that make up the tabletop gaming community.
Interested in submitting an essay to Victory Points? Read more about our submission process and what we’re looking for.
February 2025
The Social Paradox of Gaming and Introverts
Matthew Makak
Board gaming is as much an extroverted activity as an introverted one, and that paradox is interesting to explore. Board games are deeply social while also being a reserved experience (assuming one plays more than only solo-driven board games). Further, board gaming is an activity that builds connections, friendships, and a sense of identity. These three facets of the human experience can be difficult to develop and maintain, especially in the face of adulthood.
December 2024
Finding Safety in Blood on the Clocktower’s Community of Liars
Mel Gomez-Erickson
Social deduction games have been around since the 1980s. I remember playing Mafia in the cafeteria during lunch in middle and high school back in the early 2000s. Later, in college, my friends introduced me to Shadowhunters. As an adult, I found Werewolf, Among Us, Goose Goose Duck, and Town of Salem. Each new game I learned was more fun than the last, and social deduction quickly became one of my favorite gaming genres. There is something about the combination of using logic and social dynamics to find the “bad guys” that appeals to my mystery-loving side in a way that many other board games do not…
