For Simmy Peerutin, it all started in the '80s, back when video games were becoming the rage and board games were on the wane ... or so he thought. He started collecting board games as an investment. "When something goes out of print, it becomes valuable. But to my surprise, things went the opposite way. Despite the rise of electronic gaming, board games not only survived, but went on to soar in popularity," said Peerutin, a prominent Cape Town architect.Peerutin prides himself on what he says is one of the world's most impressive collections of board games.He houses some of his 550 games in a huge floor-to-ceiling cupboard in his study.And he has played all of them.story_article_left1"Some of them you can play in five minutes, others take five days," he said. "I love the games because it is a social activity that you can enjoy with other people."Eugene Vermeulen of Skycastle Games and Toys said there was a growing need for playing venues. "We see restaurants getting in on the action." There's a popular eatery near parliament "where you can play various games while you enjoy a drink or a meal".Informal gaming clubs were springing up countrywide, said Vermeulen, driven by customers of gaming shops such as Battle Bunker, Fanaticus and Quantum.Cape Town councillor JP Smith, who owns 67 games, is a passionate player."Originally, we played Monopoly, Totopoly, Cluedo, Risk, Poleconomy and Movie Maker," he said. "Soon these got boring and we started combining them as an integrated all-in-one game that could last a whole weekend. Then I discovered war gaming and other complex simulation games."He belongs to the board gaming club St Barnabas, named after the church hall where they play."Some games are quick and easy and take a few minutes, like King of Tokyo or Coup or even Bananagrams," he said. "Others are heavyweight games that take a few hours, like Terra Mystica, Through the Ages, Agricola and Dominant Species."Smith is trying to get the City of Cape Town to help establish board-gaming clubs to host contests - and perhaps an annual tournament...