Our team of gamemasters started hosting free, online, card game events for language learners in April of 2023. And by the end of that year, we had hosted 44 official games, with about 50 different players from over 12 different countries, and in over 8 languages! Many more unofficial games were hosted by the gamemasters, and by the players themselves, too. And now we are warmly inviting you to join us! Why not try a novel and exciting method to enrich your language learning process this year, as well as come out to meet other fun-loving and positive learners from around the world? Our virtual events are free and open to all levels! What’s more, native speakers often join us to help teach and guide us. It’s a fantastic opportunity not to be missed! So in today’s post, I want to tell you a little bit more about what we’re doing and explain how you can get involved. I hope you won’t hesitate to try something a little bit new and different, something that might nudge you outside of your comfort zone.
Which Game?
To start off, it’s important you know about the game we are using. It is called Heading Into Language Land. This is my latest language learning card game and I believe it is my best one yet. I spent about three years working on it in my free time. Finally, I released it in 2023, in a virtual version (which we use in our online gaming groups, of course!), a printable version, and a real deck version. This is the first game that I have also released foil promo cards for and the first game that I make card commissions for, so that customers can design their own characters.
So how to play this game? In a nutshell, choose your character, flip over a card you want to move to on the board, roll a dice, and speak an example word or sentence in your target language of something that fits that number word category on the card. If you’re successful, you will be able to take a specific type of action, depending on what type of card you have flipped over, AND you gain one point. If you’re not successful, because you either don’t know what to say or speak incorrectly, then you do not get to take any further actions. Your turn is over and you lose one point. The first player to reach 10 points wins. Drop to 0 points, and you lose the game. Move to the same space as another player, and you can start a head-to-head battle!
If you have any doubt about whether you would enjoy this game, keep this in mind: it’s not really about the game. The game is just a vehicle or tool to aid our learning. The real magic is when you get to meet other people who are learning your TL and practice with them in a supportive and encouraging environment. Let’s talk about that more in the next section!
How Do The Gaming Groups Work?
Alright, now here’s where things get extra fun. I’m going to describe how the online gaming groups for language learning actually work. First, I arrange 5-6 people who are all studying the same target language. Once I have done that, I send each of the players an email which contains the links to join the call and some other useful details. But here’s the thing: it’s not necessary to understand how to play the game in advance. Because when we play the game, I, or another gamemaster from my team will be present to teach and facilitate, helping all the players to understand clearly what to do and have fun. So have no doubts! You can just jump in the water with us and start having fun and learning right away.
Furthermore, it is not necessary to have a high level of knowledge in your target language. In other words, beginners are welcome! We play in a friendly, cooperative, and supportive way. The reason is because players are often new to each other and new to the game. So we want to make sure everybody has a fantastic initial experience. Thus, we typically play “open notes” or “open translator”. We allow players to look up answers when they are struggling with thinking of what to say or to share answers with each other. In the future, if a certain group of players gets more familiar with each other, and wants to play in a stricter or more competitive way, we can do that, too. But most groups, for now, are very relaxed and easygoing. And what I find, and what I love, is that everybody in the room learns something from everybody else regardless of their level. We don’t even talk about our levels!!! We all learn and so we all win.
A Video To Show The Game We Use
What Groups Are Active Now?
Currently, we have active online gaming groups for language learners who study Mandarin, Japanese, Spanish, and Ukrainian. From time to time, we also arrange “pop up” events for other languages, such as French, Arabic, Turkish, and German. What’s more, we sometimes hold DEMO sessions open to all languages (so think “mixed language” games), or set events at different days and times from the norm. If you have a different target language or a difficult time zone, and you really want to try to create an gaming event, I’m happy to help with that. Just contact me about it and we both can work together to recruit the right players. You can email me, Matt, directly at [email protected].
Upcoming Sessions?
I will post upcoming gaming session times on the homepage of this website, and occasionally on Twitter and in our Facebook group. But you must get in touch with me in advance if you want a seat at the table! I only accept 5-6 players for each session.
If you’re interested to join one of our upcoming online gaming sessions, or to form a gaming group for your target language, just email me directly at [email protected]!
What Time Do You Play…And For How Long?
These days, we tend to hold our gaming sessions on Saturdays at 9PM China Standard Time, which is +8GMT. Roughly speaking, that is morning time in North America and afternoon in Europe. This enables most players to have a reasonable chance to join the game regardless of where they are living in the world. But I am willing to organize sessions at other times if that would be helpful to you. Usually, each game lasts for about one hour.
For a time zone converter, click here.
Technology/Internet/Resource Considerations
It is recommended that you join our games with a great internet connection or service, so that all the virtual cards on the game board will load up quickly and smoothly for you.
It is also recommended that you join the game on a computer, tablet, or something with a larger screen. Players have joined and continue to join us on their phones and it can work, but it is not ideal because then the cards will be pretty small and hard to see well. But if your eyesight is really sharp and you want to try just using your phone, you’re welcome to.
Another important point: in countries where the internet is strictly controlled, a VPN might be necessary to access the card game website that we use.
Finally, as we encourage the use of translators and dictionaries during the game for learning purposes, it would be a good idea to prep your favorite dictionary or translator in advance on your device by opening those windows and having them ready. Oftentimes, players like to open those on a second device if they have one, so that they don’t need to switch back and forth between screens on one device.
Groups For Special Purposes Or Audiences
If you have a special group that you would like me to host or teach, I can do that. Some people, for example, may like to organize a group just for children, or children and their families, or students, or for people with disabilities, etc. I am an experienced and patient teacher and coach, with about 15 years of experience teaching all kinds of ages and subjects. So rest assured, I can be of great assistance and value to your community.
Online Gaming Basic Membership
Every week, we host online gaming sessions for language learners all over the world using our latest and greatest game Heading Into Language Land. But there are only 6 seats for the players at the virtual table and oftentimes after announcing a session those seats fill up fast! If you would like prioritized seating (meaning we will ensure you get a seat at the table to play each week) and also, if you would like the freedom and flexibility to join as many gaming sessions as you can each month, then this Online Gaming Basic Membership is the perfect choice for you!
Summary
In conclusion, the online gaming sessions have been very enjoyable and valuable to those involved. Several people from each session tend to say that they would like to play again. Indeed, by the end of 2024, we recorded that about 7 players had attended 5 or more games, many more players attended 2-4 games, and a few of our players loved the experience so much that they quickly “graduated” to become gamemasters on our talented team of gamemasters.
So we plan to organize more gaming sessions and keep them going on a rotating basis. Our goal is to have at least one event every week and rotate through a different language each time.
If you are the kind of person who is fun-loving, who loves the fantasy genre, who loves card games, and who would benefit from learning languages with a small group of likeminded individuals, I hope you will not hesitate to contact me! You can find my contact information below.
My Contact Information
My name is Matthew Boyle. I’m the designer behind Heading Into Language Land. The best way to reach me is to email me at [email protected], but you can also leave a comment under this post or one of my latest YouTube videos. Thank you for reading this post today and I hope that you’ll share it with other language learning gamers you know!
This blog post was updated on February 5th, 2024.
