Every Christmas the same question comes back: what to choose for our children? Behind the rush for gifts lies something deeper: the way in which families experience relationships with children, shared time and the freedom to imagine. “Game is fun and well-being: if it’s not done in the family, where should it be done?”, he states Francesca Antonacciprofessor of game pedagogy at the University of Milan-Bicocca. «It should not serve to educate skills or emotions. The game must entertain, bring people together, create bonds, support solidarity and collaboration. While playing, you argue, but this is also the beauty of it: you learn to overcome the conflict, an exercise that prepares you for life.” Antonacci reminds us that the game is a relational space: «A board game, unlike a solitaire game, is a relationship engine: it teaches you to respect your opponent, to experience healthy competition and to find balance between the participants».
The idea of an “intelligent” toy doesn’t convince her: «If it doesn’t entertain, it becomes another task of the performance society. Children don’t need games that require skills, but freedom. We need to listen to their inclinations, not impose educational models.”
After years of digital domination, videogames remain central, but something is changing. «They should not be demonized. Many favor real connections: kids who play online then meet in person and become friends. However, adults must choose them with a grain of salt, respecting the age groups. Often, unsuitable titles are given away.” Video games, the teacher specifies, «they can have a strong educational value: they require ethical choices, strategies and collaboration. They are not mere pastimes.” A similar value is attributed to role-playing games, which are fundamental in adolescence. «They allow you to use your imagination, collaborate and experience the group. There is no competition but relationship. It is the same logic that we should recover in sport, when it stops being a game and becomes just a performance. The competitive culture excludes the less good and damages friendships. Sport should remain a language of sharing.”
Even board games «are precious right from primary school. We should go beyond the usual classics and discover the many new, more creative and inclusive titles: there are thousands of new ones every year. Better to turn to specialized shops, where you are advised by those who know the product. Game books are also good, if age-appropriate.”
I criticize the opinion on construction sets that are too restrictive: «Some packages, with too many instructions, limit the imagination. They are programmed to build something already decided. Better are the free ones, made of wood or colored materials, which stimulate invention and creativity.” What about genre games? «They no longer make sense. Girls and boys must choose what attracts them. We live in a society where there are mothers who are neurosurgeons and fathers who look after their children: play must overcome old stereotypes.” Finally, there is the world of adult players: «They collect miniatures, play chess, cards or video games. It’s a positive sign: playing is a way to stay alive, train intelligence and sociability.” The final message is clear: gaming is not consumption but a shared story. «Once upon a time it was played in the community, today it is played in shopping centres. We should return to a game that is more narrative than expense, more encounter than performance. Because” – concludes Antonacci – “it is the simplest and most profound way to experience oneself and to learn to be with others”.
