The world’s largest board games convention

There are, of course, plenty of opportunities to actually play games, apart from all the business networking and buying. Photos: Calvin Wong

Every October, tens of thousands of people descend on the city of Essen in west Germany for an event without equal: the International Spieltage, a four-day tribute to board, card and tabletop gaming.

Germany is the cultural epicentre of the modern board game movement, with such classics as Settlers Of Catan spawning from its decades-long involvement with the cardboard industry. If Germany is the holy land, then Essen is its holiest site.