Board Games

Room ^SorryBoardGame1 by Amaving [POTATO]

Functional dice and cup in the Lounge. They are also available from the Palette.

Dice set for tabletop role-playing games from the Palette.

Similar to other Tabletop Games, many board games can be played in Rec Room. For many board games, players have already created specific Custom Rooms, for example, using the Gaming Table and Meeples. However, the rules are usually not checked automatically, but players have to agree on them.

You can find other Rec Room players who are interested in playing board games on the official Rec Room discord (channel #meetup).

Playing Board Games in Published Custom Rooms

Board games in Rec Room are played in #Community Custom Rooms. Some players have already created and published custom rooms for several board games. Common room tags are #boardgame and #tabletop, which you can search for on rec.net. In Rec Room, you can enter these rooms via the Play menu of your Watch Menu.

Some examples are: ^RecParty2018, ^ChutesNLadders, ^Monopoly, ^DnDBasementV2, ^ANightOfDnDBeta, ^TableTopSimulatorBETA, ^ChessInThePark, ^GoRecRoom, ^RecCheckers, ^Reckgammon, ^Recversi

These rooms usually include everything you need for playing the specific game, e.g., a board, game pieces, dice, markers and note pads or sticky notes, etc. However, there are a few useful tips to consider:

• Before pulling the trigger to pick up a game piece, make sure that the correct piece is highlighted with a green silhouette.
• If the room isn't using Meeples, then instead of dropping game pieces onto the board, push them slightly into the board, i.e., move them a bit into the board and only then release the trigger. This lets them stick to the board such that no one can accidentally push them over.
• When rolling dice, make sure that they bounce at least twice for reasonably random results. Or use cups (or buckets) for rolling dice, which also stops them from rolling off the table.
• As with playing board games in real life: play fair, agree on rules, and try to help everyone to enjoy the game.

Creating New Custom Rooms for Board Games

Creating (and publishing) Custom Rooms for board games usually requires you to become familiar with the This Room Menu of your Watch Menu, the Palette and the Maker Pen. This can be a bit overwhelming; in particular, if it is your first time using the maker pen. Thus, take your time and don't expect that everything will work as you expect it to work. If you have questions, don't hesitate to ask other players in Rec Room, on reddit or discord.

Playing on Gaming Tables

Small Gaming Table (set up for checkers) and (large) Gaming Table (set up for Halma)

There is a large and a small Gaming Table and appropriately sized meeples for them in the Palette. See the article on the Gaming Table for tips on how to customize gaming tables and meeples.

Playing on the Checkered Playfield in the Park

Room ^BauhausChess for playing chess on the playfield in the Park.

Many games can be played on checkerboards, e.g., chess, draughts, etc. (see the list on boardgamegeek.com). In Rec Room, most of these games can be played on the checkered playfield in the Park by creating a Custom Room and creating the required game pieces with a Maker Pen. See the room ^BauhausChess for an example.

Some tips:

• Since the checkered pattern is quite large, the pieces should be about human size.
• The cloning function of the Maker Pen can be used to create many identical pieces. (But note that the maker pen has limited ink, thus, you cannot make more than a few dozen pieces, depending on the complexity of the pieces.)
• To avoid that pieces are pushed over by accident, all pieces should be pushed slightly into the ground when placing them such they cannot move without being picked up.
• The Maker Pen can also be used to build staircases, ramps, or large boulders for players to overview the game.

Creating a Game Board

Room ^GermanKnightChessM

You can also create a game board with the Maker Pen. This allows you to create many different game boards in many sizes and locations. See the room ^BoardGaming for examples.

Some tips:

• Use the snapping, group, and clone functions of the Maker Pen to create and position the tiles of the game board. To save ink, create the whole game board without ever going to "Play" mode.
• Once the game board is ready, activate "Play" mode and use the edit function to freeze it such that players don't accidentally pick it up. Also freeze any other objects from the Palette (e.g., tables) that players might accidentally pick up.
• The cloning function can be used to create many identical pieces.
• To avoid that pieces are pushed over by accident, all pieces should be pushed slightly into the game board when placing them such they cannot move without being picked up.

Games Without Moving Your Opponent's Pieces

Connect four; image by Red Drummer

Some games don't require any player to move (nor remove) any of their opponents' pieces. For example, Connect Four, Battleship, Mastermind, Halma, many races like Snakes and Ladders, etc. If you know enough about Circuits and game Roles, you can use pickup restrictions to limit players' ability to pick up pieces. An alternative option is that all players use their own Maker Pen and keep their pieces in "Edit" mode (the default mode in "Advanced" mode) such that the other player(s) cannot accidentally push them around nor pick them up.

Some tips:

• Use the clone function of the Maker Pen to create many identical pieces.
• In "Edit" mode, objects don't fall down but just float in space, thus, you don't need to worry about any supporting structures, etc.