Continuo (game)

Continuo is an abstract strategy game by Maureen Hiron which was first published in 1982 and now distributed in board game form by David Westnedge Ltd. In the U.K and U.S. Games Systems in the U.S. It is played by arranging patterns printed on a deck of 42 cards, each card being printed with a grid of 16 colored squares. The goal is to place cards so that the tiles match as many chains of color as possible.[1] Continuo sold over 200,000 units in the United Kingdom alone within a few months of being launched. [2] Continuo won a 1995 Mensa Select games award.[3] The tag line on the box is "The one rule game for all the family".

An example of a Continuo tile

Versions of the game have also been published in which the same basic rule is used, but the tiles are triangular or rhombic rather than square and the hexagonal domino type game Hexago was also marketed under the Continuo name.[4] Continuo was endorsed by Omar Sharif.[5]

There has been a Continuo tournament at the Mind Sports Olympiad since 1997,[6] to determine the world champion.

Rule
The longest chains in this image are a red loop of 12 squares, and a curved yellow path of 16 squares.

Continuo consists of 42 tiles.[7] These tiles are subdivided into a 4×4 grid of small squares. All of the tiles are diagonally symmetrical with an L-shape of one colour with a single small square of another in the corner. There are 4 colours in total: red, green, blue and yellow.

The aim of the game is to score points by making 'chains' of colour and a point is scored for the length in small squares of each chain that the placed tile makes. A chain has to be squares that touch horizontally or vertically.

Hexago

Maureen Hiron also held the world championships for another of her games; Hexago (or Hexago Continuo).[8] Although being a tile game branded with the same name as Continuo, it is only the immediately touching tiles that effect the score as opposed to the chains in Continuo. It is a game with hexagonal tiles split into 6 triangles each with a colour and a number. Each time a tile is placed touching so that it matches either the segments colour or number, points are scored.[9]

Champions

The Continuo World Champions from 1997 onwards are:[7]

  • 1997: Japan Osamo Omadero
  • 1998: England Demis Hassabis
  • 1999: Italy Tony Niccoli
  • 2000: England George Hassabis
  • 2001: Sweden Jan Palmgren
  • 2002: Italy Dario De Toffoli
  • 2003: England Mathew Cordell
  • 2004: England Victoria Westnedge
  • 2005: England Mathew Cordell
  • 2006: England Mathew Cordell
  • 2007: England Mathew Cordell
  • 2008: England Mathew Cordell
  • 2009: England Matthew Hathrell
  • 2010: England Matthew Hathrell
  • 2011: England David M. Pearce
  • 2012: Italy Tony Niccoli
  • 2013: England Maureen Hiron
  • 2014: England Mathew Cordell
  • 2015: Portugal Ricardo Jorge Gomes
  • 2016: England David M. Pearce

The Hexago World Championships have been held once in 2007 during the Mind Sports olympiad[10]

  • 2007: England David M. Pearce

Reviews

See also

References
  1. Boardgamegeek Continuo page http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/1190/continuo Archived 2011-05-18 at the Wayback Machine
  2. "Maureen Hiron". Maureen Hiron website. Retrieved 1 June 2021.
  3. List of Mensa select winners "Mensa Select Games - Mensa Mind Games - Award Winners - Board Games - Card Games". Archived from the original on 2015-06-26. Retrieved 2015-06-24.
  4. Kate, Watson-Smyth (7 November 2009). "The 50 best board games". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 23 December 2018. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
  5. Hiron, Maureen (1982). Continuo. U.S. Games. ISBN 0-88079-612-X.
  6. "The South Bank Brain Show". The Independent. 1997-06-20. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
  7. Article about Continuo at MSO (http://www.boardability.com/game.php?id=continuo Archived 2010-07-06 at the Wayback Machine) 10 - 06 - 2010
  8. Article about Hexago at MSO (http://www.boardability.com/game.php?id=hexago Archived 2010-08-09 at the Wayback Machine) 09 - 09 - 2010
  9. Boardgame geek on Hexago Archived 2011-12-02 at the Wayback Machine
  10. Hexago results from the MSO website http://www.boardability.com/result.php?id=hexago Archived 2011-07-08 at the Wayback Machine 10 - 06 - 2010
  11. Playboy Enterprises (1983-09-01). GAMES Magazine #43.
  12. "Jeux & stratégie 21". June 1983.
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