The Origin of TEG, the Strategic Boardgame that Became a Tradition

01/27/2023

“They told me it wasn't going to work”. With painted cardboard and coins he invented the game that became a classic for argentines.

The first version of T.E.G. had no name. It was just a piece of plasticized cardboard with a world map drawn with colored pencils, freehand. For tokens he had five-cent coins from the Central Bank that David Jiterman (71), creator of the game, greedily collected throughout the week.

David Jiterman en los 90, cuando las revistas lo presentaban como "El Señor TEG"

"Honestly, I never thought I had done something very momentous. It's not the penicillin...", Jiterman comments humorously in his office in Villa Adelina. However, after October 1976, the acronym “Tactical and Strategic War Plan” was engraved in the minds of many Argentines as a synonym for eternal nights, irreparable betrayals and, according to its creator, also causes of divorce.

David Jiterman was 25 years old, studying Accounting and working at the law firm “Severgnini, Robiola, Grinberg and Larrechea” in the center of Buenos Aires City. The whole week was a busy one, grayed out by stuffy suits and endless paperwork. He only had one night when he got rid of all that: once a week he got together with his friends and forgot about everything. “We spent the evening eating and chatting... It was a magical moment for me”, he recalls. One evening, one of his friends came to the meeting with a drawn planisphere, a dice system and colored chips. "They were parts of a game called ‘WAR’. But since we didn't have the instructions and it was missing parts, we started to imagine what it should be like”, he adds.

Together they wrote new rules and every week they added some element. It was then that Jiterman designed his plasticized cardboard board. "It was gigantic and with my version of the chips, the game was foolproof. We spent the night playing. Then I thought‘ 'If it's so successful here with my friends, why don't I do it to sell?’. That question was the trigger for everything that came after," he explains. From that year, T.E.G. reproduced in Argentina as a virus.

David Jiterman, creador del juego T.E.G.

Why did you name it "T.E.G. Tactical and Strategic War Plan"?

When I went to patent the trademark I was told that the words "Strategy”, “War” and "Tactics" were taken. I couldn't think of anything better and the printing company was pushing me because I had to produce the covers. So I said, "Well, I'll give it the acronym." But I regret it from the first day, although I have to accept that it hit.

“The most sedentary of sports”

David Jiterman put T.E.G. on sale and at the same time founded Yetem, the company that owns the brand. It had been only a few months since the last military coup. "It was a complicated moment, more to release a war game, but I already had the game and we had to make noise. So I rented a room, called a lot of people to play, and even called several journalists to cover the event,” says Jiterman. He wanted his company to be on everyone's lips, but it was an arduous job. Yetem had only two employees: his wife and himself.

Did sales explode from the beginning?

Not at all, but it didn't take long. The months leading up to the launch were the most difficult. I remember visiting the then owner of Ruibal to ask him to distribute it. The guy came up to me and said, “Dude, this isn't for here”. Now I know that Ruibal sells T.E.G.

Source: https://www.lanacion.com.ar/