Postcards From Berlin #18: The Gaming Café

By Jeff Allers
August 1, 2007

German word of the month: Ludothek (game library)

(Author’s note: This is the first article in a two-part series on Berlin’s “brick and mortar” alternatives to chain department stores and the Internet).

As with my favorite German board games, I always have much more that I would like to do in Berlin than is possible with my allotted actions and resources. Because of the capitol’s divided history, there were duplicates of everything in the east and west, and even now the city has scores of museums, no fewer than three opera houses, numerous concert halls, and plenty of alternative venues showing the cabarets and political satires for which it is famous.  And though it’s changing, Berlin is still probably the most inexpensive capitol in the western world to experience all of these cultural events. If only I could find the time. I finally stopped buying “Tip,” one of the city’s best biweekly cultural magazines, which listed absolutely everything that was going on in Berlin each day, because it was simply too depressing to constantly read about all the things I was missing.

Tip has since tried to narrow the choices for its increasingly busy readership, however, by running a series called “The 14 best things to do in the next two weeks.” One of its recent recommendations was an unassuming board gaming café in the heart of East Berlin’s new alternative scene.

The Spielwiese is located in Friedrichshain, one of Berlin’s most popular alternative café districts.


The Ludothek “Spielwiese” is the brainchild of Michael Schmitt, who, together with his wife, Inike, came up with the idea four years ago after their first daughter was born and their regular gaming group disbanded. “We didn’t really know what we were going to do with all the games we had collected,” he joked.

Michael was raised in a small town near Heidelberg, and, like many Germans, grew up playing board games often with his family. He explained that each Christmas his parents would buy a new game to play during the holidays, and that even “sometimes three or four generations sat around the table and played games together.”

His enjoyment of games continued into college in Passau, where he studied Cultural Science, Business and Political Science. He also met his wife there, and after finishing their studies, they moved to Berlin where they’ve lived for the past ten years.

Our paths crossed last fall when I was looking for a new location for our weekly gaming group. Our old café had closed its doors, and we were meeting in a church café for which I had the responsibility of opening and closing—something which became more difficult to do consistently after my twin sons were born. Günter Cornett had just heard of a gaming café opening down the street, and I visited it as soon as I could. It wasn’t long after I met Michael that I knew the Spielwiese would be the perfect place for our group to meet.

Designer Bernd Eisenstein tests a prototype with Spielwiese owner Michael Schmitt and a youth named Paul.


The bright, remodeled shop with its retro design fits in well with the surrounding neighborhood, one of the most popular alternative café districts in Berlin. A half-dozen square tables cover the hard-wood floors, approximately 800 games fill the shelves from floor to ceiling on one wall, and a coffee bar offers light food and drink at the other end of the room. One can buy new releases here, but the real draw is being able to play any number of games in the café for as long as you want for one Euro per person, or to rent a game for 2.50 Euros per day (with children’s games costing only one Euro per day). It’s the renting or loaning out of the games that makes the Spielwiese a “Ludothek.”

The word “Ludothek” comes from the Latin word for “playing” and has a similar function as a public library, which, in German, is called a Bibliothek. Michael explained that there are many Ludotheks in Germany although the greatest number are located in Switzerland, where Ludothek workers are actually recognized with a title similar to that of a librarian. In Germany, however, Ludotheks are usually part-time or non-profit endeavors, sometimes as part of a local library, he said. Most belong to a national organization, of which the Spielwiese is now the only commercial member. “They changed their membership requirements for me because they liked my concept so much,” he said.

Michael’s concept, combining a Ludothek with a game store and café, has become a hit with casual and serious gamers alike. Locals make up the largest portion of his clientele, but other customers come from all over Berlin and even the surrounding towns to play, rent or buy games. In seven months of business, his databank lists over 600 customers who regularly buy or rent games from him. “Lots of tourists also buy games from me,” Michael said. A group of Danish gamers visited the Spielwiese a few weeks ago as part of a yearly pilgrimage. “They found me on the Internet and gave me a list of about 30 new releases they wanted to buy,” he said.

On sunny days, customers can take the games outside.


Of course, the number of customers on any given day can vary tremendously. “Every day and every week is different,” he admitted. “I haven’t found any pattern yet.” Sometimes, weather can be a factor, but there has surprisingly not been a let-up in business so far during the warmer summer months. “I’ve heard people say that gaming is mostly a winter activity, but my business doesn’t confirm that,” he said. “Many people even meet here to play games before they disappear to the clubs at midnight to dance.” Still, his 32 seats inside and outside are full enough during the week that Michael is already thinking about expanding.

And thus far, he’s been able to succeed with a minimal advertising budget. His unique business plan has garnered media attention from major Berlin newspapers, magazines, and radio and television programs. More importantly, though, word of mouth has provided the biggest results. “My customers do the advertising. I get many, many new customers through recommendations from my regular customers.”

Michael’s real advertising begins when a potential customer, often a curious passer-by, enters the store. His attention to their needs, respect for their wishes, and advice are what keep them coming back—and when they do, they bring their friends. “Many of my customers have told me that it’s easier to talk with me because I take their needs seriously,” he said. “In other stores, the employees either have no idea what they are selling—such as in department stores or large chains—or they talk about the games in a way that the casual gamer can’t understand” such as in some of the other hobby stores, he said.

Another game store owner, Juergen Kerber reads directions with designer Hartmut Kommerell, who brought his children.


Though online game sellers pose real problems to many “brick and mortar” game stores, Michael says it doesn’t really compete with the services he provides. “The ‘game geeks’ buy from their favorite online shop anyway, while the people who need advice or want to try the game out first before they buy come to me.” He said that those who come in for advice or to try out the games in the café usually support his store by purchasing the games from him.

Michael usually buys his games through the main German distributor, Heidelberger, but he has also tried to network with publishers at the Essen and Nuremberg game conventions and has received some free games directly from them. Once a year, the German Ludothek organization provides him with some games as well.

In addition to the large library of games that players can try before they buy, Michael also holds special events to draw in new customers. Thursday nights, he sets up a Nintendo Wii with a video projector for his lone foray into the world of computer gaming. Tuesday nights, he and his wife offer a multiple-course murder mystery dinner party for eight people who reserve a place in advance. And on Monday nights, our group of game designers and play-testers meet to refine what will hopefully be among the future offerings on the Spielwiese’s shelves. Other events, such as a regular Werewolf night hosted by Berlin designer Andrea Meyer, are being planned, Michael said.

Michael shows Matti Schroeder how to box with the Nintendo Wii.


In a country that is slowly learning how to encourage entrepreneurship, it is exciting to see Michael taking big risks to follow his dream of making a career out of his hobby. His decision to work in a completely different field than what he studied at the university, with no previous experience in running a small business or a café, is certainly a sign that Germany’s economic climate is changing. Though he admits it is still not easy getting all of the required permits, his business is already at a break-even point after half a year, with an almost equal balance of income through rentals, game sales, and café business. I can only hope that his success will inspire more small business development—and creative concepts in board game businesses—around the country.

© 2007 Jeff Allers

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Aaaaaarrrgghhh!  I want to live in Berlin! Posted by Scott Tepper on Aug 2, 2007 at 03:47 PM | #

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