When we think of “gaming”, what immediately
comes to mind is usually video games – the digital side of gaming. Rarely do we ever consider analog gaming. Well, to be fair, video games are more
popular than card games and board games nowadays. I myself haven’t played much multiplayer
tabletop games. I’ve only encountered the basics – Snakes and Ladders, Monopoly,
UNO, and the like. Nonetheless, I’ve
been aware that, despite its relative obscurity, tabletop gaming is a hobby
that can generate great excitement. So I’ve
held some fascination for it.
That’s why I became immediately
excited when I learned that a new anime like Houkago
Saikoro Club a.k.a. After School Dice
Club was coming out last fall 2019. The
subject matters that anime has explored have been impressively diverse and extensive,
and thus, anime has been able to constantly serve as a means for me to become more
informed and interested on certain topics – from sports to professions to subcultures
to activities to life skills to whatever. Thus, I found
After School Dice Club to be a perfect
way to learn more of analog gaming, specifically the real-life games that
originated from Germany (apparently, the most famous ones came from this
country).
The anime follows a group of high
school girl friends who play board, dice, and card games after school (hence,
the title of the show). They are: the
timid introvert Miki Takekasa, who initially has no idea what friendship and
fun are; the bubbly but clumsy Aya Takayashiki, who has just moved into the
area; and the class rep Midori Ono, who has been a board game aficionado since
she was little and the one who introduced the other two to tabletop gaming. Later, the tight-knit trio would be joined by
the easygoing and analytical Emilia, a transferee from Germany.
The concept of a hobby or
activity bringing people together isn’t anything revolutionary. It’s actually been done-to-death in
fiction. Nevertheless, it remains an
endearing aspect for After School Dice
Club because the execution is heartfelt.
But, with the kind of show that it
is, its most important objective should be, of course, to showcase the featured
games in an investing manner. Unfortunately,
it doesn’t always succeed in this. On such
an instance, it’s either the game itself isn’t really that great or it just
fails to hype it up. But in the times it
does succeed, especially when it manages to connect the games’ elements with the theme
of the episode’s storyline, it’s quite emotionally satisfying.
In addition, the production value
is quite good, so the visual presentation is pretty and solid no matter what. Thus, even in the episodes where the games
don’t impress or stir, watching it never gets tiresome.
In the end, After School Dice Club isn’t necessarily a remarkable anime. But I still found it a heartwarming, pleasing
watch overall. For even though I didn’t
have any preexisting fondness for the games it focused on, I could still relate with the ideas
of gaming, nerdery, fandom, and passion, which the show amiably depicts to be
inherent in those games.
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