Exceeding Expectations

After three days of competition, financial analyst Wei Wei was crowned the grand champion of the inaugural World Series of Board Gaming (WSBG) Asia on June 2.

- Kolette Lim

The China-born Canadian beat three opponents at The Castles Of Burgundy in the final in slightly less than three hours.

In that board game, players aim to develop their estate and earn points by building castles or selling goods.

"It feels surreal," said Mr Wei, 33. "I was lagging behind in the first few rounds because I made a few poor decisions, so I thought that I didn't have a chance any more, but the tides turned."

He was among about 100 players who participated in the May 31 to June 2 tournament—the first WSBG event to be held in Asia.

The parent event is held annually in Las Vegas, and satellite tournaments are mainly held in other cities in the US.

Sixteen board games were featured in the Singapore event, and winners of each game competed in the semi-finals on the morning of June 2.