On request
Mind Games
French Defense
Dark cherry, soft florals, velvet woods
Perfume house
Mind Games perfumes
Mind Games is a chess-themed niche house created by Alex and Mariana Shalbaf. Each perfume is an ‘aromatic movement’ that mirrors a move or idea from the game, and every full-size perfume is an Extrait de Parfum in a 100 ml glass flacon with a metal cap shaped like a chess piece.
On request
On request
Mind Games
Blockade
Fresh mango over leather and oud
€269,99
On request
Mind Games
Queening
Clean cotton, rum, whipped vanilla
On request
Mind Games
The Forward
Salted citrus, jasmine, creamy vanilla
On request
Mind Games
J'Adoube
Red fruit, damask rose, bold leather
On request
Mind Games
Mentor
Salted caramel, dark plum, smoky oud
On request
Mind Games
Grand Master
Rose, Kona coffee, myrrh and dark wood
On request
Mind Games
Lionora
Passionfruit, apricot skin, creamy sandalwood
On request
Mind Games
Double Attack
Bittersweet chocolate, spice and woods
On request
Mind Games
Gardez
Apricot, orris and jasmine over black leather
The house
Mind Games perfumes
Among the perfumes listed here are French Defense, a liqueur cherry with rose, mimosa and amber, Blockade, a mango, pink pepper and tomato leaf scent over leather and oud, and Queening, a soft gourmand of clean cotton, rum, whipped vanilla and coconut. The brand calls the range genderless.
Perfumes as moves on a board
Mind Games is a niche house created by Alex and Mariana Shalbaf, named ‘The Creators’ on the brand's About page. Each perfume is called an aromatic movement that mirrors a move or idea from chess, such as French Defense, Blockade, Queening and J'Adoube. The brand calls its whole range unisex or genderless.
Extraits in heavy glass
Compositions are made with master perfumers named on the About page, and the product pages credit the perfumer of each scent. Every full-size perfume listed here is an Extrait de Parfum in a 100 ml bottle, in heavy black, silver or white glass with a metallic cap shaped like a chess piece. Collections include Artisan, Soulmate and Perfumer Extraordinaire.
Where to start
French Defense is a dark liqueur cherry with violet leaves, geranium, rose, mimosa, amber and cedarwood. Blockade is led by fresh mango, pink pepper and tomato leaf over leather, oud and amber. Queening is soft and gourmand: clean cotton, apple, orris, rum and saffron over whipped vanilla, fluffy musk and coconut.
In short
- A chess-themed niche house created by Alex and Mariana Shalbaf
- Each perfume is an ‘aromatic movement’ that mirrors a move or idea from chess
- The brand calls its whole range unisex or genderless
- Every full-size perfume listed here is an Extrait de Parfum in 100 ml
- Heavy glass bottles with metallic caps shaped like chess pieces
- Collections: Artisan, Soulmate and Perfumer Extraordinaire
Mind Games
Frequently asked
What kind of house is Mind Games and what is it known for?
Mind Games is a niche house built on chess, created by Alex and Mariana Shalbaf. It calls each perfume an “aromatic movement”, modelled on a move or an idea from the game, and the caps of its heavy glass bottles are shaped like chess pieces.
Which Mind Games perfumes are the most reviewed?
French Defense has the most community reviews of the Mind Games perfumes in our range, followed by Blockade and Queening. Review counts follow attention, so they are a starting point and not a quality ranking.
Which concentration and size of Mind Games do you list?
Every Mind Games perfume in our range comes as Extrait de Parfum, in a bottle of 100 ml. The house states the same on each of its product pages for the full-size perfumes.
Who composes the perfumes of Mind Games?
The house works with perfumers of the fragrance company Symrise. In our range Christelle Laprade composed French Defense, Blockade and Queening, and Nathalie Benareau composed The Forward and J'Adoube.
Reviews of FragranceGems
What FragranceGems customers say
NicheGems is new. These are reviews from FragranceGems customers about their orders at FragranceGems, the shop behind NicheGems. Collected by Judge.me.
4.7 out of 5
1,200+ reviews on Judge.me
Reviews of FragranceGems, the shop behind NicheGems
The store’s selection is really good and comprehensive. Placing an order was very easy, and shipping was really fast. The fragrances were well packed and they were all excellent. I’m very satisfied. 👍💯👍
Very good quality profume, it last long and it has a good price for its incredible aroma and mixes of fruit and wood smell
A cozy, slightly sensual vanilla that feels like warm night air by the sea. Easy to love if you enjoy gourmand perfumes with a soft smoky edge.
This perfume is really well blended, I just removed a star because I personnaly don't like the top note (citronella)
Placing the order was very easy. Shipping was very fast. I am completely satisfied.
Good cologne, love the citrus and ginger scent making it a playful combo while the tea base makes it a bit more mature. Great for the gym
A selection of recent reviews in proportion to their star ratings.