Andrea “Liga” ligabue: Cosa Bolle in Pentola ? # 24 - Claudio Gelosa

Hi gamers

as promised I’m trying to hurry up covering most of the new Italian designers before Essen. I would like also to try to post some First Impression before the fair, but I’m not sure to able to do it. Claudio Gelosa is really a new designer: his first game is Esagek a nice abstract game I have played for the first time last week end in ModCon and it will be ready for Essen.

The game is simple, nice and funny (far away on the abstract side, so not really the kind of games I’m used to play) but I have tested only one of the different way you can play Esagek. Anyway, Claudio was so kind to release me this interview and so here we are!

I’m now trying to catch Paolo Mori (UR - WyG) and Sartoretti (High Voltage - Post Scriptum).

[Liga] Hi Claudio, nice to have the opportunity to interview you. I know almost nothing about you so, please, tell us something about yourself

[Claudio] I’m 40 years old, I’m married and I started my “adventure” in the world of games just few months ago.
Since childhood I had fun organizing games and events for friends of mine; I was known for my “treasure-hunt” and some games I designed behind the Monopoly board.
Blending my computer studies to this game passion I started to create games more logical (I discovered few months ago they are called Abstract).

More or less ten years ago I had the idea of Esagek, a game with seven spinning hexagons, but my job (in Italy and abroad) make me so busy to keep it in a drawer for long time; I had just the opportunity to fine tune it playing with friends and creating several additional “versions”.

At the beginning of 2006 I had the chance to know the existence of a new world: the game one, reading on Internet about “Ludicamente 2006” (a game fair in Mantova); thanks to Marco Camurri I showed there a first prototype of Esagek to check whether it could like other people than relatives. Thank God the feedback was more than positive, both by the fair visitors and by the other exhibitors; so, my wife and I took the decision to go ahead in developing and improving it.

[Liga]Nice story. I hope you will have time to walk around in Essen. It will seems you to be entered in the Wonder Land . And now, Cosa bolle in Pentola ?

[Claudio] So far I’m quite busy trying to self-produce Esagek, in few days I’m going to prepare 200 Alpha Version boxes I would like to introduce during the Spiel 06 in Essen (n.d.r. Only 200 ??? I think we have to run fast to have the possibility to grab a copy!)

In the mean time Esagek has been selected for the final phase of Premio Archimede 2006, a quite important prize for unpublished games (I have to say I feel a bit excited).

[Liga]Only 200 boxes for Essen are quite a low number. Anyway, it could be enough for an Alpha Version. And projects for the future ?

[Claudio] I’m investing my efforts looking for the best way to distribute Esagek, I had some contacts with professional people in the game business and I’m waiting for reply; I know there are hundreds game authors in the same situation, nevertheless I believe in the Esagek potentialities because I never seen a game like this.

[Liga]Good luck. I’m not an expert of abstract games so I really can’t foresee the future of Esagek. Finally, the 10 game you like to play most ?

[Claudio] I know I’m going to disappoint who is reading; unfortunately I discovered the real games only few months ago, I knew just Chess, Risk, Monopoly and few others.
Even if I have to admit I like to play cards and any other game gives me the possibility to spend funny time with friends of mine.
So, I’m not able to enumerate 10 games, but I can list the features I like in a game:
easy to learn, not to long to play, amusing for every number of players, leaving chances of victory to the presumable defeated player too, to stimulate the mind enjoying the soul and the fantasy

[Liga]Thank you for your kindness Claudio. See you in Essen and I hope to reach your booth soon, before the 200 copies of Esagek will run away. Good play and good luk!

© 2006 Andrea Liga Ligabue

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