Fifteen puzzle

Square Space

Not so fast, Wordle. The Fifteen Puzzle, a challenge that inspired poetry, has obsessed fans for more than a century.
Schoolchildren in Soweto, South Africa

Kids’ Games in South Africa

Formal education in language and music is important for children, but as one scholar found, so is their own play involving gesture, slang, and pop songs.
Barbie dolls

Should We Really Stress Out about What Kids Play With?

Today's parents may feel concerned about their kids' obsession with electronic games, but adults have always been suspicious of new kinds of playthings.
Marbles Reflecting a Rainbow Background

Losing Our Marbles

For decades kids across the world played with marbles, creating their own games and slang. So why did such a popular game go suddenly extinct?
Kids gaming in the library

The Grand Old Tradition of Gaming at the Library

Visit your local public library today and you may find rows of kids playing computer games, or even a couple of Xboxes. Gaming at the library is a tradition that goes back to the 1850s.
Scrabble game

Codifying What Counts as a Word in Scrabble

Alfred M. Butts first created a word game called Lexico (or Lexiko) for his family in 1931. His business partner renamed it Scrabble.
Mansion of Happiness board game

Gamification, Then and Now

Nineteenth-century board games help to map public morality, from religious virtue to upward mobility.
Mahjong players

Making Sense of Social Gaming

What do social gaming habits reveal about the lives of those playing?
Playing go in the garden

Games of Artificial Intelligence

Chess and artificial intelligence have been matched almost since the beginning of AI research, but now there's a new game in town. 
Backgammon game in progress

The Erotics of Backgammon

James E. Doan reveals the sexual innuendoes and double-entendres based on Backgammon.