Unravelling 1851 Agidingbi Game

Yinka Olatunbosun

1851 Agidingbi Game, Nigeria’s first indigenous variant of the chess game based on historical events in Lagos is set to be launched. The game, available as a board and an app, is named after the year 1851 because of its historical milestone- the year Lagos was invaded by the infamous HMS Bloodhound from England.

The app comes in a single and multi-player mode. A fully immersive expressive, this chess-style game is a contemporary-styled medium of exporting Lagos to the rest of the world via the digital landscape.

With checkered board design, it comes with the six pieces such as Erelu- Kuti of Lagos as the Queen Mother, Oba of Lagos as The King, Adamu Eyo as The Rook, Omo Ogun Eko as The Pawn, Eletu- Odibo as The Bishop and Abagbon as The Knight.

Users can play on either sides that is as the Eko Defenders or the British Invaders. Before venturing into playing the game, the gamers need to understand the simple story of the Lagos invasion segmented as the feud, the envy, the greed and the invasion. The feud started as a battle between Oba Kosoko and his uncle, Oba Akitoye.

Plans are in top gear for the launch of the game board in December to commemorate the 170th year anniversary of the British invasion of Lagos.

The Creator of the 1851 Agidingbi game board and app, Oludamola Adebowale revealed how this project was transported from just a dream to a reality.

“The 1851 Agidingbi game is a very personal project. Agidingbi actually started like an experiment from an exhibition that I had in 2017 at the Lagos Book and Art Festival. I did something around Lagos history and we had over 20 art illustrations that were displayed. The game board that gave birth to this app was actually on display. I saw the way people interacted with it and it was beautiful. At that moment, I saw an opportunity and I saw a product. I have worked towards it. People won’t invest in an idea unless if it is a product,’’ he revealed.

The lockdown occasioned by the Covid-19 pandemic created some free time for Adebowale to work on the legal and design component of the app which he described as his “pandemic experiment.’’

He intends to infuse history culture and technology to form an educational or innovative tool to boost the economy and preserve history.

The game app will be available for download after the October 16 launch at Red Door Gallery, Lagos.