Many years ago before chess became popular all over the world, Africa’s wise men where already setting up their strategies on boards and playing games even the most advanced computers today would take weeks to solve.
These were not just time pass activities – these were the tactics for war strategies, calculation techniques and real life lessons which have been learnt centuries ago.
Let’s talk about some of these highly intellectual games
Meet Oware, the Game of Stars
For more than 3,000 years now the minds in the heart of West Africa have been held captive by the game known as Oware.
Also known as the game of stars in Ghana, this simple game whose requirements include seeds and wooden boards possess mathematical securities which are to date challenging even the most advanced computer scientist to solve or decode.
The game involved strategizing say several moves ahead – just like at chess, but with added twist – you move for your opponent . This unique mechanic teaches a profound African philosophy: linked to your success is your competitor and all his resources.
Royal Game of Ur and Its African Relation
While people all over the world are familiar with Egyptian senet, only a handful have heard about gebeta, an Ethiopian game that is somewhat similar to Royal game of Ur. – Similar to shuffleboard, Gebeta is a game that is played on a wooden board that contains rows and pockets; such a game necessitates such sophisticated gameplaying that some of the elder Ethiopians claim that it “takes 40 years to learn.” There are traditions that many a games turned into several days affair with many a hours being spent on pondering the best move.
The Game That Saved Lives; Bao
But the most interesting is considered to be Bao, this game is so complicated that it was used as a mediator between tribes in the East Africa. Tanzanian chiefs would historically prefer to arbitrate Bao matches rather than warfare. The game’s complexity is raging: players have to look through tens of potential moves and build incredibly complicated stabs and shields.
Tournament players of the modern types consider it to be more sophisticated to play and stating that in relation to several captures, Bao is far more complex than a chess game.
Modern Revival in the Digital Age
Now, it seems that these old games are now brought to life in places that one wouldn’t expect. Several developers in the Silicon Valley are developing AI for such games and are often surprised by how complex African board games are for artificial intelligence.
A few games have such rich strategic depth, for instance, Oware that computers can hardly defeat human beings who are masters in the game.
More interestingly, what can be seen is how these games embody African philosophy. In contrast with chess, where winning is complete when all opponent’s pieces are captured or they surrender, many African board games are a reflection of balance, a sustainable management of tangible and intangible resources, which seems almost apropos in the modern world.
The Next Move
As the world increasingly seeks alternatives to screen-based entertainment, these ancient African games offer something profound: the opportunity to work in tendency’s deep strategic level while being involved in one of the humanity oldest joys – games.
Even for a chess grandmaster, who wishes to explore new fields of battles or a layman who has just developed the curiosity to look at different ways of formulating problems, Africa’s traditional board games present an intellectual journey that has been waiting for a million odd of years to happen.
Ready to play? Your move.
