The Serious Topic Of Rewiring Generation Alpha From Online To In-Person Play Starts With A Beautifully Crafted Spatial Strategy Game That Sparks Smiles
The simple pleasures of being a kid should include playing outside, spending time with family and friends or engaging in creative pursuits. No where does it say watching TikTok, waiting for “likes” on a post or being alone, a lot. What ever happen to sitting around the kitchen table, plotting the next move on a board game with BFFs or mom and dad? One game maker, FOROS ($39.99), hopes to disrupt the appeal of children playing online to sitting across from parents or pals in a friendly banter.
FOROS was invented by the founder of KEVA Planks, Dr. Ken Scheel, after identifying a desire for a simple, beautiful tabletop game to use as an icebreaker with people (of all ages) who prefer games with easy-to-understand rules. It might just be one of the many antidotes to today’s anxious generation.
Generation Alpha, those born between 2010 and 2024, experienced the allure of the iPhone or tablets from infancy. They are the younger siblings or cousins of Generation Z (Gen Z) born between 1997 and 2012. Access to the internet via digital devices and social media exploded as their childhood advanced. Loss of play time, plus an interest in online activities, created a generation of kids who moved from play-based to phone-based childhood.
So says the NYT best-selling author Jonathan Haidt, PhD., in his book The Anxious Generation. Among many factors making kids depressed and lonely is the limiting of children’s ability to engage in unstructured play. Hence parents are reducing opportunities for them to develop resilience, face challenges, and learn from failures.
From the Virginia workshop of the Doren Toy Company comes FOROS, the ideal game to combat those emerging feelings yet so simple to play. Rule #1: place four wooden game pieces in a row up, across or diagonally. That’s it! Like the game of tic-tac-toe, there’s a strategy that forms the more one plays with wins and losses that are easy to rectify in the next round! Smiles and success emerge as play is done face-to-face with no time limits, no supervision, just open-ended exploration. Sounds like a simple childhood pleasure.
“Yes, playing games, but not electronic games,” explains Dr. Scheel. “Our manual games require face to face interaction. Games, by their nature, facilitate interaction and conversation. But all games are not created equal. Games like FOROS work well because the rules are super simple, so the play begins immediately rather than reading through dry rules.”
“The simple rules also provide a non-threatening entry level for any player,” he emphasizes, “so they are likely to feel competent early and want to keep playing. Once the ice is broken with a little play, children are more likely to continue talking and interacting after the game. The same dynamic works with grandparent and grandchild dynamics.”
Playing with a phone requires one finger and eyeballs. “Playing a game that requires moving game pieces, reaching, adjusting, thinking and talking,” reminds Dr. Scheel, “makes interaction pleasant, valuable and easy. It is a recent development in the course of human history that these ordinary activities have been lost by many people and now need to be re-cultivated.”
As a wonderful bonus, tucked away with every FOROS board game is a chance to explore FOROS Art! It’s a novel way for anyone (at any age) to discover or rediscover the joy of creating. The game pieces are made from beautifully finished maple that readily becomes lovely abstract sculptures and designs – even in the hands of the novice. People who may not feel artistic, find that they have easily created a pleasing design simply by stacking or arranging the contrasting colors of the cubes and cylindrical game pieces.
“The anxious generation is a huge problem that won’t be solved overnight,” continues Dr. Scheel, “but it can be overcome one child at a time if adults will think strategically and make the effort to set up circumstances and activities for healing and growth.”
FOROS offers endless replay-ability with fast rounds, unique 3D gameplay, and a mix of strategy and fun. Find the game online at Amazon and on the Doren Toy Company site, ForosGame.com, as well as select specialty stores.
FOROS • Ages 6+ • $39.99
Available at Amazon or ForosGame.com
This handsome, durable wooden board game boasts three ways to play. The Wall™ is the simplest game. Stack as high as you dare. Stonehenge™ is a circular twist inspired by ancient stones. The Grid™ grows in three dimensions for the greatest challenge of all. Each boxed set includes an 8 x 8 x.25-inch double-sided playing surface: 48 wooden playing pieces and a booklet with tips for bonus activities including solo challenges and suggestions for artsy creations known as FOROS Art. The game includes two plastic trays to keep game pieces organized and allow game pieces to be easily lifted from the box while also facilitating open-ended creative play to make patterns in the trays.
ABOUT DOREN TOY COMPANY
Dr. Ken Scheel is both a veterinarian and a visionary inventor! He introduced the world to KEVA Planks, fostering creativity through simple precision cut identical building blocks. Today FOROS, a 3-dimensional stacking game that is quick to learn, easy to play, is crafted from beautiful maple wood. The name “Doren” pays homage to Ken’s journey, derived from a combination of his own name and that of his art teacher wife Dorothy. The family business continues to inspire imaginative play and exploration through Doren Toy Company’s innovative creations including iconic FlingSock®, providing the revolutionary game of catch for all skill levels. Visit dorentoys.com.