In my youth, boardgames weren’t just entertainment – they were a doorway to imagination. Years later I rediscovered that same spark in the modern boardgame renaissance. This is the story of how it all began – and how it lead me to the Congress of Vienna.
In my youth I discovered that boardgames, for me, are more than entertainment, they are an experience. An experience that evokes unique feelings. It excited my imagination in a similar way that books did, but at the same time there was so much more there, thanks to the physical aspect. Components like tokens, cards or dice which you could touch and which represented something real, like a bridge between reality and imagination.
I recall creating elaborate boards/maps in the end of my notebooks at school, and then trying to figure out how players can interact with whatever I placed there.
At some point I got into role playing games. With a group of friends we explored dark realms of The Old World and later Forgotten Realms. That was an extraordinary discovery, I realized that imaginary adventures are something that can bond people in a very unique way. Some of the friends I’ve made then last until this day, and it was over 25 years since we started.
Then life happened. So for many years I was out of the hobby. But the feeling stayed, always deep inside.
I rediscovered boardgames about 10 years ago and got sunk for real this time. I discovered a plethora of new, unique, evocative, visually stunning games that started to pop up back then. I’ve noticed some of them do something truly unique – they combine mechanics and interweave it with the theme in a unique way that enhances both. That was extraordinary, and I’ve noticed that this is what creates an amazing experience for me.
Obviously, at some point I started thinking about creating something on my own (but that is common in this hobby). However I needed something truly unique and special that would inspire me. And I knew from the start that if I will create something it needs to allow players to travel into the world of my choice, to ignite their imagination to the levels they might have not experienced before, and definitely I needed to make sure that theme is well integrated into mechanics and vice versa.
And then I discovered a historical book about the Congress of Vienna. And the rest of my story you can actually read in the previous entry.
Now I’m fully committed to turning this game into reality.
It’s a long road, with its share of obstacles ahead, but I’m already too deep into it, so I know there’s no turning back.
And there are still so many stories to tell.
So hey – thank you for being here, and for being part of this journey.
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