The Port of Gdansk has its own board game!

Buy, sell, ship, establish business relations – just an ordinary day at the Port of Gdansk, and at the same time, a board game scenario. It is one of very few professional port-themed games in the market.

The Port of Gdansk game – “On the Wave of Success” (Na Fali Sukcesow) – is the result of a year and a half long cooperation with the recognised board game creators Grupa MV Marcin Ropka, whose previous games include “Alien Artefacts” (Artefakty Obcych; 4 language versions, 15,000 copies), “Taste of Poland” (Polskie Smaki; 2 language versions, 2,000 copies), and “It’s your turn” (Twoja Kolej; 3 language versions, 3,000 copies).

Until recently, there was only one port-themed game which mattered in the board game market – “Le Havre”, created by the well-known and respected Uwe Rosenberg.

– The game has enjoyed huge interest already at the testing stage, during various board game conventions and meetings. This is not surprising, as there used to be just one game of this type focused on the maritime theme on the global market. Not only our employees, but also the Port’s business partners all over the world will be presented with a copy of our game. We are going to publish it in three language versions: in Polish, English, and Chinese – explains Patryk Felmet, Marketing Director at the Port of Gdansk Authority.

The aim of the Port of Gdansk game is primarily to educate and raise awareness of the way in which one of the most important enterprises for the Polish economy functions. It was created in cooperation with and according to the guidelines of the Port’s employees. The scenario, graphic design, and all the other elements are unique – they were developed especially for the Port of Gdansk and are not based on any other board games.

– We believe that playing is the best way of learning, and disseminating knowledge about one of the largest ports in the Baltic Sea is of huge significance to us. The Port of Gdansk is carrying out intensive CSR activities. We are among the largest employers in the Pomerania region, our activity impacts Gdansk, the region, and the entire country, which is why corporate social responsibility is so important to us – explains Barbara Kaczmarek, CSR Specialist at the PGA and an initiator of the idea. The game will soon be on sale.

Its creators have carried out a number of tests in more than 40 internal and external test groups. The Port of Gdansk game was played during the 2018 Pyrkon convention, weekly TnT group meetings in Krakow, during the Planszowki w Spodku event in Katowice, the 2018 Falkon festival, and the Gradakon event.

– It does not matter whether you come from Gdansk, Sopot, Gdynia, Krakow or Wachock! The Port of Gdansk is an amazing game that will appeal both to those just starting their adventure with contemporary board games, and those for whom it will be yet another title in their board game collection. I really do recommend it – says Lukasz Stanczewski, a board game blogger.

The Port of Gdansk game was launched during this year’s Planszowki na PGE Narodowym event at Warsaw’s National Stadium. The first portal to present the game concept and their impressions after playing was Grasowanie.eu.

rel (Port of Gdansk Authority SA)