An article I wrote for Tabletop Gaming Magazine was published in issue 80 on 23rd June and is available now in print and digital editions. You can have a peek at it on PocketMags but it is paywalled beyond the first two paragraphs.
The article is a discussion of Tarot card games, asking: why aren’t there more games using this deck? What are the particular strengths of the deck (with its trumps / major arcana) and what challenges does it present to the game designer? One of the games I write about is Battle of Tarot, an intriguing game by game designer and artist Denman Rooke.
I interviewed Denman and played a few games with him when I was researching this article. I found the topic so interesting that I decided to go further and write a longer essay looking at the many influences within his game and the use of Tarot in general as a gaming deck. I’m working with the editor of The International Playing-Card Society (of which I am a member) on a paper for the journal The Playing-Card. I hope it will be in an edition later in the year.