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FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE: CONTACT: New novel follows on the heels of the successful Banana Republic board game. Pretoria, South Africa, 10 March 2006 — Benco Boardgames Online CEO Ben Louw today announced the availability on the Benco Boardgames Online website of The year Zero, the first novel in the Banana Republic series. The first 23 pages of the novel will be available on the site, and the complete novel can be obtained free of charge, in e-book format, on request. "At one point while designing the Banana Republic board game, I started wondering how the litlle country got to where it was," says author (and Banana Republic designer, Ben Louw."I decided there was really only one way to find out, and that was to write a novel and see what happened. So I did. "The result is The Year Zero, the first (probably; hopefully) in the Banana Republic series of novels. This one doesn't get beyond independence; but don't worry, I'm just as curious to know what happened next." a synopsis of the book is available here, while the novel is here. # # # |
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| On
27 April 2003, the Banana Republic board game was featured
on the Boo Prince Show on South Africa's regional radio station Radio702.
We @ Benco extend our heartfelt thanks to Ms Prince for a marvellous opportunity to introduce the game to a wider audience. |
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| Magazine:- FAIRLADY (South Africa) February 2003 | ||||||||
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| Press Release - 21 October 2002 | ||||||||
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FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE: CONTACT: New Board Game
Gets Players Into The Heads Of Their Favourite Love-To-Hate-Them
Dictators Pretoria, South
Africa, 21 October 2002 — Benco Boardgames Online today announce the
availability of their new board game. Called Banana Republic, it
is based on the shenanigans of the political leaders – and
“wannabee” leaders – in a small country “somewhere…”,
called, of course, Banana Republic. Mr Ben Louw, owner
of Benco, allays fears that Banana Republic is based on
any specific country: “The concept of a Banana Republic is universally
accepted to refer to non-democratic, chaotic regimes, but elements of
the Banana Republic can easily be found in the more established
democracies, from France’s bureaucrats’ mistresses-in-power to
questionable voting in the last U.S. elections,” he says. “It’s
all about that old truism that power corrupts, and the board game pokes
some fun at that, especially with the so-called Monkey Puzzle
Cards, where players are presented with politically tempestuous
scenarios and have to finesse their way through them.” Currently the game
can be purchased online only via the company’s web site at www.Benco-Boardgames.com.
The web site also serves as a companion site to the game, and interested
players can read more about the background of the game, such as a
pseudo-“history” of the fantasy country, a mock newspaper, and so
on. Benco Boardgames
Online was formed by Ben Louw solely to publish self-designed board
games. Banana Republic is the company’s first venture to reach
the market. Mr Louw, a quadriplegic, made numerous attempts to have his
games published by established game and toy manufacturers. “All my
attempts were unsuccessful,” he says. “Established companies are
reluctant to take chances on new and unproven toys and games.” He then
decided to form Benco Boardgames. “I wanted to utilise the latest
printing and publishing technologies, including the e-commerce
possibilities afforded by the World Wide Web, to bring my games to
market,” he says. “Selling directly to the public using the Web also
cuts out several middlemen, simplifying the marketing and retail
processes and making the products affordable.”
One of his aims is also to collect funds for the Quadriplegic
Association, a community sorely in need of funds. A percentage of each
item sold will therefore be donated to the Association. Louw promises
that, if the current venture is a success, more of his company’s
humorous games will become available. # # # |
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