Alga (game publisher)

Alga
IndustryBoard games
Founded1917 in Stockholm, Sweden
ParentBrio
Ravensburger
Websitewww.algaspel.se

Alga AB is a board game publisher founded in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1917, which has produced board games in multiple languages for the Nordic countries.[1] It was formed as a subsidiary of Pressbyrån, a chain of convenience stores. Alga took care of the distribution of postcards and writing materials. In 1938, it started manufacturing board games. In 1940, Pressbyrån itself took over the production of postcards, and the connection between Alga and Pressbyrån was broken by the Bonnier Group, which owned both companies. The old Alga was later transformed into Bokförlaget Forum, while the game production continued under the brand name Alga.[2] It took over the publication of Monopol (Monopoly) from Åhlén & Åkerlund, another Bonnier company.[1]

In the 1960s, the company was modernized with, among other things, the current logo, Alga in white text against a red circle as a background. The company also moved from Stockholm to Vittsjö where a new factory and headquarters were built.[3] At the same time, Alga also became a distributor of toys, including Monchhichi.[4]

Dan Glimne was product development manager at Alga from 1980 to 1989.[5] Alga has been owned by Brio since 1983.[3] The factory in Vittsjö was closed in 2006 and the head office was moved to Malmö. In 2015, Brio and Alga were bought up by German toy manufacturer Ravensburger.[1]

Games publications (selection)

Original Swedish designs

The game box of Oljan showing oil drilling and a BP tanker.
The board after a game of Drakborgen with the expansion, Drakborgen II.
  • Bondespelet ("The Farmer Game", taken over from the defunct publisher Aristospel ca. 1974; also published in Danish, Finnish, and Norwegian)[6]
  • Drakborgen (1985; later published in English as Dungeonquest)[7]
  • Jägersro (a horse racing game first published in the 1950s, named for the racing facility in Jägersro)[9]
  • Oljan ("The Oil", first published 1960)[10]
  • Tjuv och polis ("Thief and police", first published 1943)[11]

Games adapted from overseas originals

An Alfapet board with a few letter tiles.
The game board for the first Swedish edition of Karriär.

Traditional board games

Games based on TV series

References

  1. ^ a b c d "Alga". BoardGameGeek. Retrieved 2024-09-10.
  2. ^ Arne Sandström, Vykortets historia, Trafik-Nostalgiska Förlaget, Stockholm, 2015, p. 58.
  3. ^ a b Johannesson, Ika & Wilhelmsson, Jimmy, Boken om ALGA, Fandrake, Stockholm, 2023.
  4. ^ "Alga, en vitamininkektion för Vittsjö". vittsjobjarnum.nu.
  5. ^ Gustavsson, Anton (December 9, 2009). "Mannen bakom Alga-spelen". Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish).
  6. ^ "Bondespelet". BoardGameGeek. Retrieved 2024-09-10.
  7. ^ Rolston, Ken (April 1991). "Roleplaying Reviews". Dragon (168). TSR, Inc.: 37–38.
  8. ^ Woods, John (June 1988). "Never Cross the Beams". The Games Machine. No. 7. Newsfield. p. 115.
  9. ^ "Jägersro; spelregler". Alga. Archived from the original (pdf) on 2016-03-04.
  10. ^ "Sällskapsspel står sig bra mot datorspel". Archived from the original on 2013-04-18.
  11. ^ "Alla spelar alga". Alga. Archived from the original on 2016-10-09.
  12. ^ "Matador". BoardGameGeek. Retrieved 2024-09-11.
  13. ^ "Regler & Manualer: Mysteriet på Greveholm" (PDF) (in Swedish). Alga. Retrieved 2024-09-11.