The Best Old Games #1: Games of Ancient Civilizations
This post marks the beginning of a series of thematic selections dedicated to the best computer games of the past. However, the selection "The Best Old Games" #1 will be special: it is dedicated to real games, even though you can now play them online. I delved into history and discovered how citizens of ancient civilizations entertained themselves and what is playable today. I present to you games that have reached us through centuries and millennia. They are not just games; they are artifacts of a distant past that occupied a significant place in the lives of sages, commanders, nobles, and even monarchs. Play them and you too — touch eternity.
Renju
When it originated: 7th century AD
Where it originated: China
The ancestor of tic-tac-toe and five in a row. Renju resembles a more complicated version of tic-tac-toe. There are two participants in the game: the first plays with black stones, and the second with white. Players take turns placing their stones on a 15×15 cell board. Whoever aligns 5 stones of their color in a row first wins. At the same time, you need to prevent your opponent from doing the same. In fact, this is far from all the rules; renju has many rules and tactics, which you can find out more about on the game's Wikipedia page. Various championships are held for renju — from regional to world championships. Tired of classic tic-tac-toe? Try its ancestor.
Interesting fact: Renju is compared to chess, as in renju a "four in a row" is akin to check, and a "five in a row" to checkmate.
Chess
When it originated: 5th-6th century AD
Where it originated: India
The most famous but not the oldest game of antiquity. Chess, like backgammon, has its own fascinating history. As for backgammon, that’s for later, but for now — here's the story of chess. In the 18th century, to impress Empress Maria Theresa, inventor Wolfgang von Kempelen created a chess-playing robot known as the "Mechanical Turk." This remarkable mechanism was allegedly able to play chess on its own. But in reality, it was controlled by a chess player hidden inside the apparatus. The deception was revealed in 1827 during a match in Baltimore when, due to overheating, chess player William Schlumberger emerged from the "Mechanical Turk." His escape was noticed by two boys watching the match from a neighboring roof. So this time, the trick failed.
Interesting fact: The phrase "check mate" in Persian translates to "the ruler is dead."
Backgammon
When it originated: 5th century AD
Where it originated: Persia
Though the first prototypes of backgammon existed over 5000 years ago, backgammon in its modern form first appeared in Persia in the 5th century. According to legend, sly Indians, hoping to assess the wits of the Persians, sent them their pride to decipher — chess. The Indians thought the Persians would not be able to figure out chess on their own. But the Persian sage Bozorgmehr managed to quickly unravel the mystery of chess. The Persian response was swift. Soon, Bozorgmehr sent the Indians his own invention — backgammon. Unfortunately for the Indians, they didn’t find their Bozorgmehr, so they finally figured out the rules of backgammon only after 12 years. Whether it’s a fairy tale or a historical fact — we’ll never know, but since then, backgammon has been known worldwide. Fortunately, thanks to the internet, you can grasp the rules of backgammon much faster than the ancient Indians.
Interesting fact: Backgammon reached Europe in the 12th century thanks to the Crusaders.
Go
When it originated: 3rd century BC - 3rd century AD
Where it originated: China
Go is an extremely complex and incredibly deep strategic game. The main task of go is to capture more territories than your opponent. Inventory — a game board and two sets of stones: white and black. Mastering the game is easy; becoming a master is difficult. Success in this game requires exceptional tactical-strategic thinking, intuition, and the ability to read the game. Go masters plan their game dozens of moves ahead(!). It’s no joke; ancient Chinese commanders modeled battles on go boards. The game itself was considered one of the four arts of a cultured person. Military leaders and nobles of ancient China respected go. And today, you can appreciate the game of Chinese commanders yourself. Just Google it.
Interesting fact: Go is considered one of the most complex board games in the world, surpassing chess in this regard.
Marbles
When it originated: 3000 years BC
Where it originated: Indus Civilization
This is not a game but an attribute of a whole bunch of games. Behind the strange name hides a small ball. In ancient times, the first versions of marbles (made of stone and clay) were used for various games. For example, you could throw a ball trying to knock your opponent's balls out of a circle. Or throw balls at an improvised target. A stone, a column, or a hole in the ground could serve as a target. Nowadays, the uses for the marbles are no less. But what’s more interesting, marble balls were used not only in ordinary games but also in ritual acts. And among the materials used for making them is bone. What a toy made from remains.
Interesting fact: Archaeologists find marbles all over the world, and the ball itself is one of the oldest and most universal toys.
Dice
When it originated: 10,000+ years BC
Where it originated: North America
The dice familiar to everyone also have a very long history — one of the longest histories known to mankind. Findings in Iran suggest that six-sided dice with dots appeared as early as the 3rd millennium BC. It’s important to note that these are strictly the prototypes of modern dice. If we delve into the history of dice, it turns out that the very first gaming dice appeared even before the advent of writing(!) and were used for divination. Such dice differed significantly from modern six-sided cubes with dots, as they were ordinary bone phalanges of hoofed animals. Over the last 12,000 years, dice have evolved from ritual gaming pieces to modern dice used in various board games. One thing remains unchanged — their popularity: both in ancient times and today, dice are used worldwide.
Interesting fact: It is known that the Romans relied on Fortuna during a throw — the goddess believed to be responsible for the throw.
P.S. In April of this year, it was reported that American archaeologist Robert J. Madden from Colorado State University proved that the first dice are over 12,000 years old(!). This means that dice existed during the last Ice Age(!).
Keywords: best old games, top old games, old computer games, best computer games