Don't even think about muttering "Monopoly" and the names of other childhood favorites to the eclectic Penn Gamers.
Rich Heimlich, a 39-year-old member from Southern New Jersey, would be the first to object.
"There's a stigma associated with games ... that it's for children ... but [the games that the Penn Gamers play] are not those games," he says.
Among the more obscure games include Tichu, a tricky trick-taking card game; Adel Verpflichtet, a bidding-and-collecting board game and Sunda to Suhai, a jigsaw puzzle in Escher-style tessellations.
First encouraged to participate by friend and Penn alumnus Doug Bellew, Heimlich was initially skeptical.
"Who would want to get together on Wednesday to sit and play games?" Heimlich laughs. "That held me off for a while, but I went and fell in love with the whole concept and the folks who were there."
Heimlich has been a member for four years now.
Observing the impact of weather on the attendance of members, Heimlich recounts, "We've had sessions where [30 or more people arrive and] we turn people away."
Usually, however, five to 15 people show up to participate.
Nonetheless, according to Heimlich, "there's always a mad scramble to find a student to head up the group."
He notes that continued use of Penn facilities is a recurring issue due to University regulations that require Penn affiliation.
Staff host and Director of Instructional Computing in the School of Arts and Sciences Jay Treat acknowledges that it has been difficult to "find someone to head up the group since [former president Anthony] Rubbo left."
"There are a fair number of members who are no longer students," he adds. "Typically, three to six undergraduates show up on a given Wednesday."
Even the current president, Samuel Willcocks, is a second-year Germanic Languages and Literature Ph.D. candidate.
Facilities aside, members prefer to concentrate on bringing a diverse collection of sophisticated and lesser-known games to the community.
Members bring "backpacks, carry-ons, luggage -- whatever it takes to get through the door," Heimlich jokes. "If it's Anthony Rubbo, he needs a mini caravan."
2001 Wharton alumnus Rubbo presided over the club for four years.
"Prior to coming to Penn, I had looked on the Internet for any clubs that they might have, since I was ... hoping to find some fellow gamers when I arrived on campus," Rubbo says.
Gaming aside, Rubbo stresses the social side of the club as a significant drawing point for members.
He met "with a group of people who enjoy playing [and] discussing games, and who enjoy interacting with other people in a manner that also provides a way to stimulate the brain," he says.
Despite having already graduated, Rubbo remains committed to gaming.
"I play games with friends and family all the time and attend several different gaming conventions across the country each year ... . [I] still try to make it [to Penn Gamers] each week," he adds.
In addition to playing games, Rubbo is also a budding game designer.
Game design "is an interesting experience: coming up with the initial idea for a game, solid game mechanics ... a fun theme through which players might experience the game and putting all of these together into a tidy, complete package," Rubbo says. "The Penn Gamers Club ... is certainly a place where one can show up with a new prototype and instantly find a group of participants eager to playtest and provide helpful insight."
