The Insane Rise of Solo Board Gaming (The Untold History)

Описание: The Insane Rise of Solo Board Gaming (The Untold History)

Are we past the Golden Age of solo gaming… or is it just the beginning?
From the chambers of a French princess in 1697 to today’s sprawling epics like Mage Knight and Spirit Island, this is the untold history of how solo board gaming rose from quiet puzzles to a global community.

In this video, we’ll explore:
🎲 Peg Solitaire and the birth of solo gaming
📖 Gamebooks and the rise of narrative adventures
⚔️ Ambush! and the invention of solo AI
🃏 How card Solitaire conquered the world (and Windows PCs)
🌍 The pandemic push that made solo gaming mainstream
🤝 And how today’s creators and players are shaping the future together

Whether you’re a veteran solo gamer or just discovering the hobby, this video will show you how we got here—and where we’re going next.

👉 What’s YOUR favorite solo board game? Drop it in the comments and let’s keep building this community together.

🔔 Subscribe to Solo Gaming Spotlight for more solo board game reviews, top 10s, and deep dives:

#BoardGames #SoloBoardGames #TabletopGaming

Note: I tried to include as many clips from different board game creators as possible that fit within the narrative. If a video clip caught your eye, I’ve listed the games and the channels below. Go check them out — you might just find your new favorite content creator!

Peg Solitaire
-Robert Darke
-Michael Collinson
Isaac Julienne

Ricochet Robots
-Board Game Geek
Sentry Box

Onirim -Tom Teaches

Slay The Spire -Totally Tabled

Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective
-3 Minute Boardgames
-Shut Up & Sit Down

Chronicles of Crime
-Watch It Played
-Drive Thru Games

Paperback Adventures
-Nights Around A Table
-One Stop Co-op Shop

Barbarian Prince
-Marco Omnigamer
-Lone Adventurer
-The Dungeon Dive

Sleeping Gods -Watch It Played
7th Continent -Roll for Crit

Choose your Own Adventure -Trixon-W
Fighting Fantasy -3 Minute Board Games

Tainted Grail
-The Dice Tower
-Gaming Rules!

Viticulture
-Lower Slower board gamer
-The Rules Girl

Ambush!
-Unexplored Games
-Aaron Plays
-Geek Gamers
-Jim Lederer

Pandemic
-Tabletop Duo
-Well Played Board Game Cafe

Spirit Island
-RTFM
-Meet Me At The Table

Massive Darkness 2
-Dale The Casual Gamer
-Learn to Play Games
-Board Game Co

How to print and play
-Party Meeple
-Solo adventures with Livi

Zombie in my Pocket
-Board Game Blitz
-Mad Lab Designs

Under Falling Skies -Slickerdrips

Iron Helm -Game Knight

Carcassone -Geek & Sundry

Agricola -Before You Play

Puerto Rico -Board Game Bollocks

Lost Ruins of Arnak
-The Gameboy Geek
-The Brothers Murph
-The Grouchy Nerd

Terraforming Mars -Light Ranger Games

Everdell -Tim Chuon

Friday
-Bored Online? Board Offline!
-Rahdo
-Quackalope

Maquis
-Boardgames Bourbon
-Learn This Game

MageKnight
-Box of Delights
-Modern Cardboard
-Getting Games
-Azure Death
-Off The Shelf Board Games
-Rolling Solo
-The Discriminating Gamer
-Meeple Mountain

Spirit Island -Broken Meeple

Too Many Bones -No Pun Included!

Aeon's End -Dice & Dragons

Robinson Crusoe -Paul Darcy

Unbroken
-Simply Solo Playthroughs
-Wargamer Dad

Navajo Wars
-Marco Omigamer
-The Players Aid

Halls of Hegra -No fluff gaming with John LaRuffa

Scythe -Failroad Express

Nemo's War -Solo Gamer's Club

Anachrony -Table for One

Wingspan -The Cardboard Herald

Gaia Project
-Jay Plays
-Ready Steady Play
-Shelfside

Imperium Horizons -Sir Thecos

Isle of Cats -Man vs Meeple

Calico -Crimsonboardgames

Isofarian Guard -@Kosterix123

Hostage Negotiator -Rob's Gaming Table

Final Girl
-Jucchee
-Solo Board Gaming Knight

Kinfire Chronicles -Canje Studios

Like I said I did my best to try and include as many creators clips as possible into this video. Some creators I wanted to add but ran out of narrative are:
-Actualol
-Board Game Hangover
-Tabletop Turtle
-Ant Lab Games
-The Board Game Garden


and yes, some I accidentally added twice and didn't realize until making this list. Oops.

0:00 intro
0:19 The Princess and the Pegs(1687)
1:39 How Peg Solitaire Works
2:58 Peg Solitaire's Legacy - Ricochet Robots
4:15 Card Solitaire Takes Over The World
6:16 Puzzles, Crosswords, And Sherlock Holmes
7:38 The Rise of Storytelling (1980's)
9:02 The Gamebook Revolution
10:47 Ambush! and the birth of Solo AI(1983)
12:45 The Internet & the Print n Play Revolution
14:29 Variants & House Rules Keep Solo Alive
16:10 The Breakthrough - Friday(2011)
17:49 The Masterpiece - MageKnight (2011)
19:40 Survival & Historical games(2012/2013)
20:25 Automa Factory plus Kickstarter
21:56 The Pandemic 2020-2023
22:59 Creators & Communities
24:47 Full Circle