TableTop Day at Labyrinth Games

You guys may remember Labyrinth from DC Geeks' podcast chat with them a few weeks ago.

By Samantha Tynes

So many games, so little time.
(image via Labyrinth's site)

I almost walked past Labyrinth the first time I went there. Hardly a five-minute walk from the Eastern Market metro station, it’s an unassuming front with colorful letters painted over the door and a large front window displaying stacks of family-friendly puzzles. I thought I had missed all the fun when I got inside, there were only a few people milling about the front half of the store checking out some of their many very cool, and very challenging wooden puzzles. But the buzzing hum of far-off conversation and that special kind of oppressive heat that comes from shoving too many people in a small area let me know otherwise.

Going down the stairs, the back half of the store was packed from wall to wall with people chatting, laughing, playing their old favorites, and testing out new ones on whatever flat surface they could find. People were huddled around tables, sitting on the floor, and one group even repurposed a shelf display for their own makeshift gaming space. I could tell when I walked in halfway through the event that the place had been bursting with people since it started earlier that day. The staff was friendly, knowledgeable, and still very upbeat and chipper despite (or because of) the mass of board game enthusiasts that had taken over to celebrate TableTop Day.

Even the US Antarctic Program's Amundsen-Scott South
Pole Station joined in (via TableTop Day's FB page)

International TableTop Day is the brainchild of Geek and Sundry’s popular YouTube series, TableTop. Watching Wil Wheaton and friends sit around and play a game didn’t sound like how I wanted to spend my internet time, but the series does grow on you. Some episodes are better than others, yes, but it does not pander to “mainstream” geek and games. They cover gateway games, like Munchkin and Settlers of Catan, to a little more serious, but still casual, games. It’s an entertaining and popular introduction to board games for people that may be looking to break out of Monopoly territory.

In addition to the wide variety of games to demo, there were prizes and swag to be had. The fine fellows at ThinkGeek provided items for a raffle every hour (I won an Alien chestburster; now it hangs from a lighting fixture, its sole purpose to startle visitors), and the demo team from Steve Jackson games had all kinds of Munchkin goodies to hand out. North Star games and game designer Dave Chalker were also there wandering about and promoting their respective games, giving everyone a chance to play and chat with them. Chalker’s game, Get Bit!, is definitely worth a check out and was featured in an episode of TableTop. It’s a fun and quick pick-up game to play when you have some time to kill. A few of us even got a sneak peak at the new Ascension expansion; only a few days before it’s release but hey, it was still a preview.

Labyrinth wasn’t the only place around the metro area that was celebrating. Victory Comics in Falls Church and Looney Labs up in Bethesda also hosted some festivities. TableTop Day’s first celebration was met with enthusiasm and widespread support throughout the area. It was a great opportunity for people to get out to their local gaming shops if they hadn't before, meet others, try new games, and support their community. I sincerely hope the trend continues and if you didn't get a chance to get out this year, definitely mark it down for next.