Beware: BrainKing.com may cause a severe drop in work productivity

Author: nivabef

“You look so sleepy today!” said the receptionist as I slumped into my office at 8:30. I contemplated admitting that the reason I was so tired was that I was up all night playing games of Backgammon, Ludo, Halma, Chess and my personal favorite, Froglet with dozens of online opponents. Instead I just shrugged, walked to my cubicle, clocked in and immediately typed BrainKing.com into my Internet browser.

I was introduced to BrainKing by a fellow online boardgamer who goes by the screen name “Hannelore.” At first I was intimidated by the huge menu on the left of the screen and the dozens of different games hosted on the site, most of which I had never heard of. I wanted to see all the site had to offer and had no idea where to click first. I started a game of Crowded Backgammon with Hannelore, who assured me that I’d soon get the hang of it.

Hundreds of games later, I am severely addicted. BrainKing is a turn-based site, meaning that you take your turns at your convenience and don’t have to actually be online at the same time as your opponents. However, if I can catch a quick-playing opponent online we will often finish a half or whole game in one sitting. If just playing fun board games wasn’t addictive enough, the site also offers discussion boards, tournaments and fellowships, which are clubs where members can join in even more discussion boards and tournaments. And to ensure that you will never, ever work, sleep or go outside for fresh air again, the beloved site creator, Filip Rachunek, who goes by the screen name “Fencer,” has recently introduced “action points,” a system in which you earn points for playing on the site. The top points earners each month win prizes to reward them for giving their lives up to BrainKing.

I am currently in the middle of about 350 games. That sounds like an insane amount of games to be playing at once until you look further and realize that there are some players with literally thousands of games being played. Rachunek has definitely found a way to tap into people’s love of competition, games and wasting time and has created something that people find irresistible. Honestly, who needs sleep when you can play Checkers with people halfway across the world?