The Peterborough Evening Telegraph
Gaming community hub inviting new players to join
A fledgling community group which aims to bring players of trading card games, roleplaying games (RPG) and video games together is calling for more people to join.
Xeo Forge, a bricks-andmortar social gaming hub, is looking to welcome more members to its real-world, game nights in the city centre.
Steven Worrall, who created the hub with fellow gamer Liam Hall, told the Peterborough Telegraph Xeo Forge’s aim is simple: “This has all been for the love of creating a space for people to socialise and have fun,” he said.
The 34-year-old explained that most people who play video games, RPGs and trading card games (like Dungeons & Dragons, Warhammer and Pokemon) do so at home, either as individuals or in very small groups (1-3 people) called ‘pods’.
“We created Xeo Forge so that we could merge these pods together,” Steven said.
The community currently hosts two free social gaming nights every week at its ‘exclusive underground location’ beneath the Blind Tiger bar in Peterborough.
The first night (Tuesdays) is for people who want to learn or get better at the hugely popular digital collectible card game, Magic: The Gathering.
Steven described the second night, Friday as “bonkers.” He said: “It’s all out fun [with] different people playing
in different pods and they just keep rotating throughout the night.”
A third night – which will focus on retro video games – is soon to launch on Wednesdays.
Excitingly, the enthusiasm and passion of those attending has led the group to be involved in a very special project.
“We’ve actually spoken with a game manufacturer who is looking at making an Augmented Reality (AR) version of Magic [The Gathering] with us.”
A passionate community champion who describes himself as an “ally of Peterborough,” Steven is hoping his community hub will show that the city can pioneer innovative initiatives while fostering, and even strengthening, a tangible sense of social cohesion.
“I want to build a strong community of people,” he offered.
Anyone interested in joining Xeo Forge can find out more by visiting the the hub’s Facebook page.