Phl faces Czech Republic in a spygame
In celebration of “International Table Top Month” in Manila, an exhibition match between Team Manila and Team Czech Embassy was held earlier this month. It was an occasion where the audience was able to witness a live competition, displaying excellent and clever use of wit, between spymasters in a globally-successful Czech board game famously known as Codenames.
Created by board game publisher Czech Games Edition in 2015, Codenames tests players’ insight and intellect in “contacting the right agents” through one-word clues. Two designated spymasters know the secret identities of the 25 agents, while their teammates know the agents only by their Codenames. The teams compete to see who can make contact with all of their agents first.
This mindboggling game of word association, deduction and team play is popular all around the world since its release and has found its way to the hearts of Filipino gamers. In recognition of this, Czech Games Edition teamed up with a Philippine company, Gaming Library, to promote Codenames: Philippine Edition, a localized version, infused with the colorful and quirky aspects of Filipino culture.
Prolific Czech board games genius, Vlaada Chvátil, is the author of Codenames. In 2016, it won the Spiel des Jahres (Game of the Year), the most prestigious game award worldwide. Since then, it has reached 17th place in ranking of games of all time in BoardGameGeek, an online forum and database for board gaming. In some three years, Codenames has seen more than 30 language and national editions.
The exciting promotional gaming event ended with Team Manila claiming victory over Team Czech Embassy, spearheaded by no less than Jaroslav Olša Jr., Czech Ambassador to the Philippines.
“We are pleased to have a role in strengthening the relations between the Philippines and the Czech Republic, and we’re doing it the best way we know how – through gaming,” said Gaming Library’s chief meeple Hans Kenner Fernandez.