IMPULSE #6 – Board Games

This impulse was not based on a single event, but on several moments over the past months. I played a lot of board games with friends, and some of them stood out more than others. Not because they were the most complex or competitive, but because I genuinely enjoyed the worlds and stories behind them.

While playing, I started to notice that many board games create narrative experiences in subtle ways. Even without explicit storylines, they invite players into specific settings, roles, and situations. This made me realize that board games can be understood as interactive storytelling formats, which connects surprisingly well to my thesis topic on narrative UX and interactive storytelling.

The following games are the ones I played most recently and enjoyed the most.

Catan

In Catan, players arrive on an island and gradually build settlements, cities, and trade routes. There is no written story, yet the game creates a clear sense of exploration and development. Each round feels like a small chapter in the process of colonizing and shaping a new world. What I liked most about Catan is that the story is not told directly, but emerges through interaction. Every decision (where to build, whom to trade with, how to expand) contributes to a unique narrative. This is similar to Narrative UX, where users do not just receive a story but actively shape it through their actions.

Ticket to Ride: Europe

This game creates a narrative through movement and geography. By building train routes across European cities, players experience a journey rather than a static game board. The visual design of the map, the cities, and the routes makes it easy to imagine travel, connection, and progress. I enjoyed how the game subtly encourages storytelling through its structure. The routes feel like personal travel stories, even though they are based on strategic choices. This connects to interactive web storytelling, where navigation and structure influence how users experience a narrative.

Sky Team

Sky Team is a cooperative game in which two players work together as pilots to land an airplane. Compared to the other games, the narrative here is more direct and intense. Every move feels meaningful because it affects the outcome of the landing. What fascinated me was how the story emerges from tension and collaboration rather than from text or visuals alone. The game shows how constraints and roles can create strong narrative experiences. This is similar to interactive design, where users often experience stories through tasks, challenges, and decisions rather than through traditional storytelling formats.

7 Wonders Duel (with Pantheon Expansion)

In 7 Wonders Duel, players build civilizations, construct wonders, and compete across different historical and cultural dimensions. With the Pantheon expansion, mythological elements add another layer of meaning and atmosphere. I liked how the game creates a sense of historical progression and symbolic depth without explicitly telling a story. Over time, each player’s civilization develops its own narrative through strategic choices. This reflects how interactive narratives often unfold gradually, shaped by user decisions rather than predefined plots.

Why This Was an Impulse for My Research

Playing these board games made me realize that storytelling does not always need words, scripts, or linear narratives. Instead, it can emerge from systems, rules, and interactions. The stories I experienced were not written beforehand; they were created through play.

For my thesis, this impulse is important because it shows that Narrative UX can exist beyond digital media. Board games function as analog examples of interactive storytelling, where users co-create meaning through interaction. This perspective helps me think differently about how stories can be designed in web experiences, not as fixed narratives, but as frameworks that invite participation. In this sense, board games became more than just entertainment. They offered insights into how interaction can generate storytelling, which directly relates to my research.

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