Some of us have been playing games for years, others only a few months. What we share is our love of games, all kinds. We play social games and strategy games.

SF Games was begun not as a games group but as a social group with games. We feel this contributes to the longevity of the group (celebrating 16 years in July 2011), and the continued enjoyment by members year in and year out.  It has also helped the group become diverse group (a wider age range and a better balance of men and women) than most other games groups. 

SF Games is free to attend, but please buy something at the cafe. Bring your favorite games to play if you have them. Be prepared to learn a new game. Come early or you might not get into the early games!  Don't know how to play? We'll teach you. 

If you are late, hang out until you see a game end. In most games you're welcome to sit at the edge of the table and watch until the game ends. Be sure to introduce yourself. Since our main group runs 5 hours, you will be able to get into a game if you wait until the next break. Most people can get in 3 games during the evening.  

FAQ

1 - Who Attends? 
All kinds of people of all ages, male, female, straight, gay, bi come to SF Games. (SF Games has always been a queer-positive group.)  Anybody who can play games is welcome to attend. 

2 - What Kinds of Games?
What we play depends on who comes and what they bring. Generally, games can be divided into two groups: social games and strategy games. 

Social Games: These are for people who like lots of conversation and laughs, where having a good time is more important than refining your game-winning strategy. Examples of social games we play (or have played) are Taboo, Set, Fluxx, and Apples to Apples. Feel free to bring other social games.  

Strategy Games: Among the more common popular strategy games we play are Power Grid, Puerto Rico, Settlers of Catan, and Acquire. We also have been known to play Samurai, Air Baron, Illuminati, Caylus, Carcassone, Princes of Florence, Ra, Scotland Yard, Ticket To Ride, etc. As you can tell, we're hot on the various German style board games (aka Eurogames) and members are always bringing new ones.  

Card Games tend to be focused on these ones using traditional decks, though to be honest, we don't play a lot of traditional card games. We tend to play games that use special packs such as RoboRally, San Juan, Bohnanza (a German bean collecting game), and Coloretto (a color matching game).

We are not inclined to play Magic the Gathering or other collectible card type games. We also do not play long-form (more than 3 hour) games, though people from our group do meet independently for these kinds of games.  

3 - Does SF Games Meet This Week?  
Yes. This is probably the most frequent question. Yes, we meet rain or shine, including most holidays unless. Get onto our email list to be sure about holidays.

4 - Do You Play This Game?  
Don't ask us if we play a game -- come by and bring your game and see! Also, if we're not playing your favorite game, feel free to learn a new one or if you brought your favorite game with you, please encourage others to play with you!

Take The Games Poll!
Which games are the most popular? Why do you play games? This poll has been running for several years. You may be surprised at some of the results of this extensive survey. Take the poll and look at what other people had to say! It's free.

Take the Games Poll

History of SF Games
SF Games was founded July 5, 1995 by David Kaye, a community organizer who also founded the group now known as the QuickTricks bridge club, and is co-founder of the Pacific Center in Berkeley.  He has also produced the weekly Music Box Series live music series in San Francisco as well as other events.  

In The Press!
What they've said about us: