Asian Library’s board games are the perfect way to keep warm and dry while having fun with friends and family. Come check out our recently-acquired board games, including traditional Asian games as well as newer games with Asian themes.
The majority of Asian Library’s board games are now circulating! Come by to Asian Library and take the games out for a 7 day loan (or until January 2 if you visit us between December 18 and 24). Take these home to enjoy with friends and family using your UBC library card.
Some games in our collection:
GV1469 F45 F45 2024
飞行棋 = Flying Chess
Flying Chess or Aeroplane Chess is a classic board game in China. While its origins are not precisely known, it is commonly thought to have evolved from the Western game of Ludo during the mid-to late- 20th century. It is also similar to the Indian game of Pachisi.
Flying Chess is a fun, fast-paced, and easy-to-learn board game played with dice which determine how many spaces you can move your airplane pieces clockwise around the board. The object of the game is to have all your pieces reach the centre first.
GV1469 G72 F58 2024
五目 = Gomoku = Five in a Row
Gomoku is a strategy board game played with the goal of making an unbroken line of five stones. The game is popular around the world, where it is called Wuziqi (五子棋) in China and Omok (오목) in Korea.
This game is thought to be an offshoot of Go and became a popular pastime in Japan during the 17th century.
GV1458 C5 Z46 2024
中国象棋 = Chinese Chess
Chinese Chess has some similarities with Indo-European chess. One major difference is the presence of a river (symbolically, the Yellow River or Huanghe) running across the middle of the board.
Chinese Chess has been played in China for centuries, having evolved into the form which exists today by the end of the 11th century. It is believed to have derived from an Indian board game known as chaturanga.
GV1299 M3 C45 2024
麻将= Mahjong
Mahjong is a game of both skill and luck played by four people with a set of tiles and dice.
It is generally believed that Mahjong evolved near Shanghai in the mid- to late- 1800s. It became popular in Shanghai and Beijing, and was eventually brought over to the United States in the 1920s. There are numerous regional variations to the game with their own unique rules and scoring methods, including 麻雀 or マージャン (Mājan) in Japan that is played with a smaller set and has slightly different rules. Mahjong is a community-building game and beloved pastime in China and around the world.
GV1469 S74 K66 2023
Steam Up: A Feast of Dim Sum
Steam Up is a competitive, family-friendly board game. It was released in 2023 and offers cultural experience through a gameplay of collecting dim sum pieces.
GV1469 B2 P43 2024
Peacock Khatam Backgammon and Chess Set
Precursors of the game backgammon are among the most ancient of all games and may date from as early as 3000 BCE. Backgammon, or Nard, originated in ancient Persia and is still very popular in Arabic countries and around the world.
Backgammon is a game of luck and strategy played with a board and dice. The objective of the game is to move all your own checkers to the home board and then remove them from the board entirely.
To help you learn and enjoy these games, we have included some helpful references:
Brittanica Editors. (2025, October 28). Backgammon. Encyclopedia Brittanica. https://www.britannica.com/sports/backgammon
Britannica Editors. (n.d.). Chinese chess. Encyclopedia Brittanica. https://www.britannica.com/sports/Chinese-chess
British Museum. (2021, February 26). Top 10 historical board games. The British Museum. https://www.britishmuseum.org/blog/top-10-historical-board-games
Carlisle, R. P. [ed.]. (n.d.). Mahjong. In Encyclopedia of Play in Today’s Society. Retrieved November 29, 2025, from https://sk.sagepub.com/ency/edvol/play/chpt/mahjong
Encyclopedia of Japan (1999). Renju. In JapanKnowledge. Retrieved November 29, 2025, from https://japanknowledge-com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/lib/display/?lid=10800LS001305
Finkle, I. (Host). (n.d.). Dr. Irving Finkel on games [Audio podcast episode]. British Museum. https://islamicworld.britishmuseum.org/audio/12?_gl=1*180lgv3*_gcl_au*NDYyMDI4MDQxLjE3NjEzMzE0NzI.*_ga*MTE3NzI3NTUyMi4xNzYxMzMxNDcy*_ga_08TLB9R8X1*czE3NjEzMzE0NjkkbzEkZzEkdDE3NjEzMzE2MTUkajU5JGwwJGgw
GomokuTV. (2023, March 30). How to play Gomoku? – Introduction and openings [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BzqgctYg9s
Hot Banana Games. (n.d.). Steam up: A feast of dim sum [Rulebook]. https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0669/1815/4538/files/SteamUp-Rulebook-EN.pdf?v=1706750959
Kong, P. (2021, September 10). Steam up board game designer diary #1: How it began. Board Game Geek. https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/11246/blogpost/122473/steam-up-board-game-designer-diary-1-how-it-began
Lau, H. T. (1985). Chinese chess: An introduction to China’s ancient game of strategy. Tuttle Publishing.
Mahjong Sparrow. (2023, September 8). How to mahjong (basic Hong Kong style) [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JGsb87PEIo
Ping, S. (2014, September 19).記者來鴻：飛行棋與德國魂 | Reporter’s letter: Flying chess and the German spirit. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/zhongwen/trad/fooc/2014/09/140919_fooc_germanygame
Rulies. (2024, April 12). Backgammon | Clear & easy tutorial [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5sUvKaBV5zw
Singapore National Heritage Board. (n.d.) Aeroplane chess game set. https://www.roots.gov.sg/Collection-Landing/listing/1586806
Tabletop Duo. (2023, April 28). How to play steam up: A feast of dim sum board game in 3 minutes (steam up boardgame rules) [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uweSUve_394&t=7s
Xianqi Chinese Chess. (2021, March 30). A chess player’s guide to xianqi | How to play chinese chess [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vklqOLf6mtU
Yellow Mountain Imports. (n.d.-a). How to play aeroplane chess “fei xing qi” 飞行棋. https://www.ymimports.com/pages/how-to-play-aeroplane-chess-fei-xing-qi
Yellow Mountain Imports. (n.d.-b). How to play backgammon. https://www.ymimports.com/pages/how-to-play-backgammon
Yellow Mountain Imports. (n.d.-c). How to play chinese mahjong. https://www.ymimports.com/pages/how-to-play-chinese-mahjong
Yellow Mountain Imports. (n.d.-d). How to play xiangqi / Chinese chess / 象棋. https://www.ymimports.com/pages/how-to-play-xiangqi-chinese-chess?srsltid=AfmBOorOCo64zA0aqLvdSrEZ1bhN48ssifxK5RVvUU3h4CdT4GqoQ4Sp