When it comes to geography-based board games, there’s always a tricky balance: how do you make something educational without losing the fun? The creator of Where is That? has been thinking about that question for years, and in a recent *BoardGameGeek News* designer diary, they opened up about how that balance shaped the game’s newest chapters — Europe and South America.
These two fresh editions aren’t just expansions; they’re a window into how geography, design, and playfulness come together around the table.
Born from a Love of Maps
At its core, Where is That? asks a simple question: can you correctly place a location — be it a city, region, or country — on a map? The seed of the idea grew from the designer’s lifelong fascination with maps. Geography, after all, isn’t just trivia. It’s a way of connecting people to culture, history, and the natural world.
Earlier versions of the game established the format: maps, markers, and an element of precision. But when the time came to tackle Europe and South America, a new challenge emerged: how do you make a geography quiz feel welcoming and exciting for everyone, from complete novices to hardcore map nerds?
The Tightrope Walk: Teaching vs. Playing
The team outlined some guiding principles to keep that balance in check:
- Keep it clear. The maps couldn’t be noisy or cluttered. They needed to feel defined enough to guide players but spacious enough for a game board.
- Serve multiple levels. Newcomers should be able to make reasonable guesses using basic knowledge, while more experienced players should face trickier, detail-oriented challenges.
- Create a journey. Pairing Europe — a continent many players are fairly familiar with — with South America — a region often less well-known — adds contrast. One feels comforting, the other full of discovery.
Above all, the game had to encourage curiosity. A misplaced marker isn’t just “wrong”; it’s the spark for a conversation: Wait, I thought that city was on the coast. Why isn’t it? From there, the table becomes less about right answers and more about learning together.
The Craft of the Maps
One of the trickiest parts of the process was the maps themselves. The designer avoided making them overly detailed, resisting the temptation to pack them with borders and tiny print. Instead, they aimed for clarity — broad strokes, clean lines, enough to orient you but not enough to give the answers away.
Visually, the maps were created to invite players in. Bright but not loud. Engaging but not textbook-y. It was important that they felt like playthings, not homework.
So What’s New?
The Europe and South America editions bring a few concrete changes:
- Fresh geography. Instead of a single country or region, you’re zooming out to continental scale.
- New challenges. Players who already know the original game get a whole new set of cards and placements to wrestle with.
- More learning baked in. The game is structured so that, whether you realize it or not, you’re soaking up knowledge. After a few rounds, you may just find yourself remembering new cities, borders, and cultural connections.
The Bigger Picture
The diary makes one thing clear: for the designer, Where is That? isn’t just about pointing to the right spot on a map. It’s about the conversations, the sparks of discovery, and the joy of realizing you’ve learned something new without even trying.
By nudging geography into the social space of a game night, these new editions transform maps into more than paper and ink. They become playgrounds — a reason to explore, guess, debate, and, most importantly, laugh and learn together.
What About You?
Could geography games ever grab you the way a deep strategy eurogame does? Or the way a big, thematic adventure game sweeps you away? And if you could pick the next map to explore in Where is That?, where in the world would you want the game to take you?