From hand games to e-sports

RAPID CITY – In the heart of Rapid City, South Dakota, the annual Lakota Nation Invitational (LNI) brings a vibrant celebration of Native youth who come to compete in honor of their schools, families, and respected nations. This week-long multisport tournament showcases a diverse array of talents, from athletics and academics to fine arts and more.

Among the many exciting events, hand games, also known as stick games, stand out as a crowd favorite, drawing both enthusiastic spectators and skilled players alike. Hand games are a traditional Native American guessing game to teach young people about creation stories, life skills, conflict resolution, and fair play.

The first team to guess all the marked bones wins. Each team hides the bones behind their back, including the one called the “male.” Players take turns guessing to identify which hand holds a marked bone. If the guess is correct, the team takes the bones. If the guess is incorrect, the guessing team gives up two sticks. The team hiding the bones uses movement, singing, and drumming to distract the other team. Hand signals and motions are a part of the play, and the audience can also participate in efforts to distract. It can get rather rollicking at times.

At the LNI, Lakota Style hand games are played, allowing eight sticks for each team and no kick stick or special hidden stick that can give a team an advantage. The lively atmosphere, with raucous sounds spilling out of LaCroix Hall, captures the essence of friendly competition and cultural pride that epitomizes the LNI. The intensity of the competition filled the hall with persistent drumming meant to distract guessers.

Tasha Hernandez (Oglala Lakota), who attends school at Mahpiya Luta High School said that her school has competed in the hand games for years. “Right now, we have two teams enrolled in the LNI Tournament. We’re doing pretty good.”

Hernandez said that hand games is more of a game of chance. “It’s supposed to be more fun, but it does get competitive. It’s never taken seriously if you win or lose. It’s another reason for us to come together. It incorporates a lot of our values like friendship, kinship, and honesty. It’s very important for us to incorporate values in everything we do.”

Hernandez said they’re playing Lakota Style, “On one team there are two hiders and on the other team there’s a guesser. So, one of the two people on the one team are hiding bones. There’s one marked bone and one unmarked bone and you hide them in one of your hands and the guesser is trying to guess which hand is holding the marked bone. So, it really is a game of chance. Some people have tells, some people have tricks, there’s trick plays but really it’s a game of chance.”

“Hand games were restricted or banned until the late 1970’s,” said Rapid City Communications Manager Darrell Shoemaker who was participating in the corporate hand games, “because of efforts to assimilate Native Americans into white culture and thank goodness it’s been brought back. Thankfully, these games have been revived and are celebrated at the LNI. The inclusion of corporate games allows businesses, elected officials, and community organizations to not only learn about the importance of hand games but also experience the rich culture and tradition of the Lakota people. This hands-on experience educates participants about the history and significance of the games.”

“We finally won,” said Shoemaker, with a smile. “The City of Rapid City has been participating for four or five years, and after receiving instruction this year, we managed to advance. It’s been a wonderful experience, not just from the competition side but also from the educational aspect and seeing how it brings us all together.”

Shoemaker also praised the LNI for showcasing talents across various disciplines, including basketball, art, chess, and skateboarding. “The corporate hand games bring the community together, allowing everyone to be part of the event.”

“Try it,” said Hernandez, “You don’t need to be Native American, and you don’t need a specific hand game set. We use rocks and sticks if we don’t have anything. It’s fun.”

While the Hand Game Competition is a tradition at LNI, the E-Sports Competition is just in its second year. Francis Big Crow (Oglala Lakota), the Athletic Director for Lakota Tech High School said that last year LNI directors ran it as a showcase to get people interested. “There were four teams last year, so we doubled in teams this year with eight entries. The kids are really enjoying it.”

It is a co-ed event, but Big Crow said currently most of the participants are male. He fully expects that will change as the event grows. “We have girls on our team, but they don’t play this specific game, so they didn’t come to the tournament. The game is called Rocket League and essentially you are playing soccer with cars,” he explained, “you are driving a car in the game, but you are playing soccer with a ball.”

Again, Lakota values are incorporated into the play. “For us, we do a lot of teamwork and working together. We are making sure that the kids remember that it’s a game, that they have fun, that they practice healthy competition, make new friends and meet new people. E-sports is getting to be such a big thing now I’m glad it’s being included at LNI.”

Currently, there aren’t many tournaments in the state of South Dakota but there is a weekly league for the schools that are competing in e-sports to have a chance to compete with other schools. “We have our own lab at Dakota Tech so our kids will get on, login and we could be playing someone in Sioux Falls on a Monday night.”

Shawn Bordeaux (Rosebud) was watching his son compete in the e-sports. He said he’s not familiar with Rocket League, but his son likes to game. “He loves this and so I’m excited. I’m happy to see him competing. I think LNI should do more like this. This is capacity building in the biggest way. We have folks here who might be handling our missile silos in the future. We can’t put all of our money on who makes the best free throw. Some of these folks here may never get to the free throw line but they love what they are doing, they love sports, they love technology and E-sports is putting the two together for them.”

(Contact Marnie Cook at cook@gmail.com)

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