La Historiaaaaah! from designer Thomas Regala is a fun party game perfect for those out of town trips with family and friends.
We got a chance to speak with the designer and share got to know more about La Historiaaaaah! and more in the interview below:
Ungeek: Can you introduce yourself? What do you do for a living?
Thomas Regala: Hello! I am Thomas Regala, I used to be a call center zombie by night, tabletop game designer by day, but now I am a sarariman by day, tabletop game designer by night. I also sideline as a photographer from time to time.
UG: How did you start boardgame design?
TR: As early as 8 or 9 years old I’ve been designing games. Life got in the way, but all that changed when I saw The Appraisery in Cubao Expo last 2013 and saw what modern board games can accomplish.
I saw an opportunity as the market then is full of board game cafes and very few PH tabletop games, so I started designing sometime 2015. After a couple of indie releases Ludus Distributors took in Hugot under the Larong Atin line. The rest, as they say, is history.
UG: What games have you designed?
TR: I was told by UP Tabletop that I may have the most number of locally published games around.
I am blessed to have the following games published, one way or the other:
1) Chaos Cafe
2) Refrigeraiders
3) Hugot (The self published one, the first edition, the expansion, and the 2024 Edition)
4) Combatron The Card Game (and it’s expansion The Rise of Megadeath)
5) MNL48 Team Shuffle (co-designed with Ron Villaver)
6) This/Alignment (Self-published)
7) La Historiaaaaah! (Self-published)
These are just the ones published and sold, I have released games that haven’t been produced, and I also have some tabletop RPGs, mostly micro-RPGS
UG: What was the inspiration for your latest game, LH?
TR: Last year I got into an Unpub mentorship program with Sen Foong Lim, and my initial game was a miniatures game inspired by PH action movies. During the mentorship I realised I lack knowledge about my own country, so I went on a PH history binge. One of the first things I read was the La Historia Komiks by Maou No Sekai, it’s casual history with a lot of memes but was well-researched and very factual.
One day I saw my cousins playing this Roblox game where you answer categories with the longest word possible, and I thought to myself, “why not a boardgame version of this”? I refined my design so that it is far removed from the Roblox game and I offered it to a famous local artist, who graciously referred me to their manager, which went nowhere.
Talking to Maou about making a game about her mecha-inspired komiks, I got the genius idea to offer my “longest word in a category” game to her and make the topic about PH history, and La Historiaaaah! happened.
Once again I am blessed with a great collaborator in the form of Maou no Sekai, who not only allowed me to use her IP but also contributed her knowledge into the game! Her artwork in the game brilliantly showcases the chaotic, fun energy I want the game to have.
UG: LH is a self published game correct? Why did you opt to take this route?
TR: Sometimes you get an itch to make something from your own hands. Granted I design my own games, but for the past couple of games it has always been under Larong Atin. I am ever thankful for sir Freddie Tan for that, but there are times you want to try something on your own.
It was an…interesting decision to say the least. Imagine my surprise when the price of paper jumped to at least twice the price from when I made my first game! Tempered and humbled by this experience I approached LH with a full optimization mindset, making sure each and every component has a use, nothing wasted. Especially since all cost is mine, hahaha!
Fortunately my years of designing games made me design a game that can make me earn enough and pay for the artist, while making sure it’s a fun game that can be played by many players.
I am glad I got to try self-publishing again as I am once again grounded to the realities of tabletop game design in the Philippines.
UG: Can you briefly describe how LH plays?
You play as popular historical figures, each with a special power
TR: In a nutshell, LH is about providing the longest possible answer in a category (eg, “Ulam na may sabaw”). The category will tell you if you can with just 1 word or up to 2 words. After writing down the answer, the first player who wrote first starts the timer for everyone else. Longest answer wins, but if more than one player has the same answer/word, those players don’t score.
The goal is to go through an 18-step track, with the longest answer worth 3 steps, the second longest 2 steps, and all other valid answers 1 step. Players win if they reach the end of the track, and then answer longest in another round.
UG: What is the target audience of the game?
TR: Anyone who has a passing interest in the country, it’s culture and history is the target market. No need to be a Xiao Chua or Ambeth Ocampo to enjoy the game, in fact it could even be detrimental depending on the category!
UG: As a historical trivia game, do you see educational value in it? Can it be used to supplement history teaching in schools?
TR: For me the educational value is not just in the content of the game unlike most trivia games, but in the sharing and research that happens after. People explaining their answers, collectively doing research to confirm if an answer fits the category, things like that. There is history of course, but the players learn of what they know, and more importantly what they don’t know.
I can say it’s a perfect supplement for history teaching as it is proven that knowledge is retained faster and better if reinforced by play. It also plays relatively short so teachers can fit it into their subjects.
UG: Have you reached out to historical and educational institutions?
TR: We went around and one of the early adopters and supporters of the game is Nilad Community, a collective of Manila-based tour guides and creatives. As for government historical and educational institutions we’re still going around, so if anyone is reading this and wants a fun way to learn and appreciate PH history just let us know!
UG: How do you see the game improving in the future? Expansions? 2nd Edition?
TR: Due to budget constraints I only released part of my collected categories, so there is definitely room for more. In fact, the framework is very adaptable that I can reskin it to any subject/theme! A science one is in the works, and we are open for local versions one with categories based on a province or city.
In this regard I feel like I can make this something like Timeline, with various themes and topics.
This means that we can also cover a full set of school subjects with our board and card games.
I am also working on something that’s coming really soon, watch this space!
UG: What is your vision for LH?
TR: It would be nice if there was an interschool tournament for this, with topics/categories designed by actual teachers. I also would like Maou and I to play against actual historians like Xiao Chua. A man can dream, right?
In reality I just want people to appreciate the country more after playing La Historiaaaah.
Sample Category Cards
UG: What is your mission as a local game designer?
TR: To make games you and I can play, of course!
But nowadays I add “To see a blossoming PH Tabletop Game Design Scene” in there somewhere. I want to show budding designers a sustainable and safe way to Get A Game Out, a way that won’t break the bank or burn out the designer. I sincerely want to play games made by other PH tabletop game designers, and have an event that celebrates all of our works.
UG: Do you have any message for the local boardgame community?
TR: Support local games because they are good, not because they are local, and if ever anyone is interested in designing their own tabletop game, just PM me at my Facebook gaming page or at my page!