Social Gaming During Social Distancing
A BOOM ZOOM™
I am surprised how many people have asked me about social board gaming in the time of social distancing. That sounds like the title for an article – but it is a pretty exact expression of a lingering thought: will people really get together the way they used to?
The concept of adults playing social-interaction games is a relatively new one. Just to be clear, I am not talking about two people sitting down and playing chess, or a group of three studiously engaging in Scrabble. I am talking about a group of people with the sole intention of laughing and having a good time. A group of people enjoying each other’s company.
Sometimes we forget how to do that. The weight of politics, and the news, and health, and finances just bears down on us. I’m not sure if there are more of these weights than there used to be – or if it is really that I have grown just a little weary from carrying them all for so long.
Regardless, just the process of “letting go” has become somewhat routine. Dinner with some friends. A glass of wine, or two. And a chance to talk. Increasingly, even the talk part of the routine is weighty.
And now social distancing shakes up our social snow globe and leaves us a bit confused. I want to spend time with my friends, but we aren’t going out for dinner. I want to have a drink and joke around with others, but clinking glasses on Zoom doesn’t have the same silliness it had at the beginning. After all, at this point I know their political views, and I have already gotten regular updates on each of their astoundingly smart, incredibly cute grandchildren (hey, these are my friends).
I require some social interaction. I have already completed NetFlix. The end of the Internet is in sight. I need to laugh with my friends! Man is a social creature – isolation is not natural!
Okay, now that I’ve got that off my chest, let’s talk about Social Gaming. The antidote to isolation. Think back to the evenings where a small group of friends played Pictionary, or Taboo, or even Charades. Those are all social-interaction games. The games are lubrication for rusted socializing. They just make it easy to laugh and hang out with each other. To escape the world of reality and its weights for a couple hours. Those games facilitate a casual good time between friends.
The question now is how does social gaming happen in this time of social distancing?
Turns out it is not as difficult as everyone thinks. Many of us are already having socially distanced dinners with four to six people in our homes. Masked arrivals followed by bumped elbows and an understanding of “just stay over there.” Four to six people? Perfect. Break out the trivia board game – time for a laugh.
Alternatively, for those more concerned about risk issues, we are happy to introduce you to: A BOOM ZOOM. You already know how to get together on Zoom. Pull in three or four couples for a Zoom. Grab a drink and some popcorn. Game Night for Boomers is about to start.
Divide into two virtual teams. For the sake of easy description let’s say it’s Men vs. Women. Whoever owns the game is the host. The host will be the only player reading the questions. But everyone on the BOOM ZOOM will be giving the answers. First the Women. Then the Men. Back and forth. Easy to keep track of, and hilarious as the Men lose badly. (Hey … I’m a married guy.)
The same sense of absurdity comes out. The same laughing. The same singing. The same remembering.
We may be living in the time of social distancing – but we can still enjoy being together over the simple pleasure of a social game. Okay Men, ”What was the name of that finger string game the girls all liked?”
– Brian Hersch