Meet Calgary's Games Master, the sheriff of board games

3 board game cafes have opened in Calgary in the last year

Image | games masters Pips Board Game Cafe

Caption: Justin Acierto is the Games Master at Pips Board Game Cafe in the southwest Calgary community of Marda Loop. (Sarah Lawrynuik/CBC)

The increasing popularity of board game cafes in Calgary has prompted one establishment to hire a Games Master.
Justin Acierto mans a collection of more than 500 board games at Pips in Marda Loop. He also helps customers branch out and try something new.
"I'm the Netflix of board games. I'm like, 'You've played this? Oh, try this game."
The job was a good fit for Acierto, who owns more than 100 games himself.
His vast knowledge of the rules of Scrabble, Sorry and Monopoly come in handy when players call him over to their table to settle disputes when things get a bit "intense."
But by no means does he have all the answers. In fact, he spends a lot of time studying game manuals.
"That's my night reading. I don't read novels. I will honestly read a manual just to understand it better."

Image | Pips Board Game Cafe

Caption: Justin Acierto says he's the 'Neflix of board games' because he's always trying to get customers to try something new. (Sarah Lawrynuik/CBC)

Master and matchmaker

When providing suggestions for games, Acierto says he's always considering the dynamic going on between his customers.
"For instance, if I see a couple and they're trying to get to know each other — I will actually pick … cooperative, two-player games that kind of get the conversation going," he said.
Highly strategic games are better for friends — but never for large groups.
"They're energetic and that would just kill the buzz."
There are four cafes in Calgary with a sizeable collection of board games — Pips(external link), Hexagon(external link), Metal Galaxy(external link) and Boxcar(external link). Three of those businesses opened in the last year.

Media Audio | Calgary Eyeopener : Board game cafes take off across Calgary

Caption: The Eyeopener’s Sarah Lawrnyuik talks to a “gamesmaster” at one of the city’s newest board game cafes.

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With files from the CBC's Sarah Lawrynuik and the Calgary Eyeopener(external link)