JAC Cultural Games Day!

On 2 December 2016, JAC held its inaugural Cultural Games Day. Members learned and played games related to Japanese culture, namely Go, Shogi, and Riichi Mahjong while enjoy a fun and entertaining evening after their final exams. where they can immerse themselves in Japanese culture while mingling and interacting with each other. For those who missed the games, here’s a short description of each of them for your reading pleasure!

Riichi Mahjong, also known as Japanese Mahjong, is a variant of the traditional Chinese game of Mahjong that focuses on strategy, and professional tournaments are held regularly in Japan. Riichi Mahjong adopts completely different rules and playing styles, and there are more than 8000 Jansou (雀荘) in Japan where people can rent a table to play Mahjong. Riichi Mahjong has also been featured in Japanese media, with popular manga and anime such as “Saki” focusing mainly on it.

Thinking hard about which tiles to discard…

Go, also known as Wei Qi in Chinese, is the oldest board game played today. It has orders of magnitude more possible moves than international chess, and was created as a teaching tool by an ancient emperor to teach discipline, concentration and balance. The game spread to Japan in the 7th century, and in modern times, the game is widely played not just Japan, but all over the world. In Japan, there are even television channels dedicated to Go and schools that teach the game to aspiring Go professionals. The rules of Go differ slightly from that of Wei Qi, notably in the scoring system, which completely changes the tactics and strategies that players use to win.

Learning from a master

Shogi, also known as Japanese chess or the Generals’ Game, is a two-player strategy board game reminiscent of other chess games. It is a popular chess game among families in Japan, and differs from international chess and Chinese chess due to its ‘drop’ rule, where captured pieces can be replaced on the board as one’s own. It was brought into Japan between the 10th to 12th century, and was slowly modified into its present form.

For those who missed the event, fret not! Join us for our JAC Christmas Party on 23 December! More details can be found at the sign-up form here:
http://tinyurl.com/jacchristmasparty