Board Game Barrage
359 episodes — Page 7 of 8
#59: Ain't Nothing Like It
Some games offer an experience so unique, so unlike anything else, that you can't help but take notice. It might be a bold thematic setting, or a set of mechanics that you've never seen before. This week, we're counting down our favourite games that do something ... a little bit different. Before we stand out from the crowd, we also talk about Looting London, and Chimera. 01:05 - Looting London 04:17 - Chimera 09:45 - Unique Thematic Experiences 12:12 - Food Chain Magnate 16:11 - Space Cadets: Dice Duel 18:38 - Long Shot 21:23 - Dungeons & Dragons: Rock Paper Wizard 23:16 - Dead of Winter 26:42 - Pit 28:38 - Millennium Blades 33:11 - Alchemists 36:33 - Chaosmos 40:07 - Ponzi Scheme 42:24 - Space Hulk 45:39 - Adrenaline 47:37 - Diplomacy 51:06 - Sol: Last Days of a Star 53:22 - Captain Sonar
#58: Game Board Confessional
Time to 'fess up. We're admitting to all the transgressions we've made in the world of board gaming. We're not proud of it, but there are a lot of games we haven't played that we should have. There are Kickstarters we've overspent on, and some we regret backing. And what would a good confessional be without owning up to our guilty pleasures? Before we ask forgiveness, we also talk about Excape, Race for the Galaxy, and Biblios Dice. 01:30 - Excape 07:57 - Race for the Galaxy 13:49 - Biblios Dice 20:02 - Board Game Confessions 21:50 - Pandemic Legacy: Season 1 23:44 - Eclipse 25:31 - Terraforming Mars 29:08 - The 7th Continent 29:42 - Statecraft 30:30 - Tiny Epic Quest 31:42 - Glorantha: The Gods War 32:21 - Rising Sun 34:17 - Zombicide 34:42 - Betrayal at House on the Hill 34:55 - True Colors 35:45 - Hundreds of Horses 39:43 - Through the Ages 40:09 - Warhammer 40,000: Kill Team
#57: Where There's a Will, There's a Gateway
Gateway games are an often requested topic, but we wouldn't be us without a big old debate about them first. Are they important? Should you be trying to convert your friends at all? Isn't every game a gateway game if you just talk slowly enough? Before we raise the portcullis, we also talk about Targi, and Catan. 01:25 - Targi 07:19 - Catan 09:35 - Gateway games 17:11 - Forbidden Island 18:38 - Codenames 19:01 - Sushi Go! 22:23 - A Fake Artist Goes to New York 24:56 - Bärenpark 27:47 - Biblios 32:16 - Splendor 35:31 - The Quest for El Dorado 38:12 - Blue Lagoon 41:05 - Dominion 43:57 - Wingspan 47:32 - Converting non-gamers?
#56: Shelf of Shape Up or Ship Out
It's always sad to see a game go. But sometimes it's just time to move on, to let it be free, to let someone else enjoy its esoteric rules and quirky components. Games leave our collections for many reasons, so let's take a look at some of them. Before we spark joy, we talk about Big Dig, Trains, and The River. 01:18 - Big Dig 05:00 - Trains 09:30 - The Quest for El Dorado 10:17 - The River 19:51 - Why Games Leave our Collections 27:40 - Through The Ages 27:40 - Mage Knight 29:02 - Founders of Gloomhaven 33:49 - Capital Lux 35:25 - Rapid Fire Send-offs
#55: Answerversary
One year, baby! We did it. It's our first anniversary, and we're celebrating by ... putting out an episode of the podcast. We got a couple of reader questions that we thought would be especially pertinent for this occasion, as we look back on the impact Board Game Barrage has had on us. Before we pop the champagne, we talk about The Quacks of Quedlinburg, Forum Trajanum, and Narabi. 04:37 - The Quacks of Quedlinburg 08:57 - Forum Trajanum 15:08 - Narabi 21:00 - How has Board Game Barrage impacted us? 32:08 - Do review copies make us less impartial? 33:45 - Hyperspace 35:24 - Shouldn't Mark be the Red Tank? 39:08 - Guest reviews!
#54: 2019: An Up and Coming Year
2019 is well underway, but with so many amazing games on the horizon, it's hard to know what to look out for. Fear not, listener, that's what we're here for. Join us as we count down our most anticipated games of the year. Before we cast our eyes ahead, we talk about New Frontiers: The Race for the Galaxy Board Game, and Hansa Teutonica. 02:33 - New Frontiers: The Race for the Galaxy Board Game 09:25 - Hansa Teutonica 18:13 - Most Anticipated Games of 2019 18:59 - Eclipse: Second Dawn for the Galaxy 22:09 - Glorantha: The Gods War 25:28 - TOKYO TSUKIJI MARKET 28:27 - Sabotage 31:04 - Living Planet 33:26 - Pipeline 36:20 - Escape Plan 38:04 - Res Arcana 39:36 - Barrage 41:03 - ELO Darkness 44:02 - Black Angel 45:18 - On Mars 46:43 - Warpgate 48:54 - Mezo 51:07 - City of the Big Shoulders
#53: Objection!
Objectivity is a nice goal, but what does it mean for board game criticism? Are there elements of board game design that we can have factual conversations about, without invoking our personal biases? We debate this in the only way we know how. Before we start shouting, we talk about Hyperspace, Gùgōng, and Wingspan. 02:30 - Hyperspace 08:52 - Gùgōng 14:43 - ZhanGuo 17:35 - Last Will 18:06 - Wingspan 21:37 - Innovation 26:26 - Critical Objectivity 26:58 - Nemesis 28:01 - Zombicide 32:01 - Heroes of Land, Air & Sea 43:04 - Monopoly 43:55 - Formula D 44:42 - Magical Athlete 46:18 - Diplomacy
#52: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Theme
Sometimes you're not looking to win or lose, you're looking for an experience. A lot of games promise to deliver thematic gameplay, but what does that mean for the mechanics? Does it have to be one without the other? Before we set the mood, we talk about Nusfjord, Paper Tales, and Nemesis. 03:25 - Nusfjord 09:43 - Paper Tales 15:25 - Nemesis 25:34 - Thematic Games We Like 26:08 - Mansions of Madness: Second Edition 29:58 - Nothing Personal 31:16 - Gloomhaven 31:35 - Android: Netrunner 32:05 - Battlestar Galactica: The Board Game 33:19 - Captain Sonar 36:45 - The Resistance 37:48 - The Grizzled 39:19 - Dune
#51: The Best of Times
We throw back to our very first episode, with our biggest surprises and disappointments of the year gone by. 2018 was a year of highs and lows, but sometimes you just don't see them coming. The difference between expectation and the final product is what this week's episode is all about. Before we gaze back wistfully, we talk about Akrotiri, Blue Moon City, and This Guilty Land. 01:56 - Akrotiri 05:09 - Innovation 05:27 - Blue Moon City 10:31 - This Guilty Land 16:37 - 2018's Biggest Disappointments 16:57 - Rising Sun 21:29 - The 7th Continent 25:31 - Merlin 32:07 - 2018's Best Surprises 32:21 - Space Base 34:31 - Decrypto 37:18 - Lords of Hellas
#50: Top 50 Games of All-Time 2018: 10-1
Top ten, baby! We finally made it. And thus concludes our five part series of our favourite games of all-time. Frankly, we were changed by the experience, and will never be the same again. We hope you were too. 01:35 - Kalen #10 - Coloretto 03:30 - Mark #10 - True Colors 06:15 - Neilan #10 - Dominion 09:28 - Kalen #9 - Diplomacy 12:45 - Mark #9 - ??? (32:02) 13:10 - Neilan #9 - Guards of Atlantis 16:32 - Kalen #8 - ??? (01:24:54) 16:43 - Mark #8 - Brass: Birmingham 20:27 - Neilan #8 - Scythe 25:32 - Kalen #7 - Troyes 28:07 - Mark #7 - Cuba Libre 31:54 - Neilan #7 - ??? (32:02) 32:02 - Kalen #6 - Time's Up! 35:23 - Mark #6 - ??? (01:07:00) 35:29 - Neilan #6 - Through the Ages: A New Story of Civilization 38:57 - Kalen #5 - El Grande 38:57 - Mark #5 - El Grande 42:56 - Neilan #5 - A Feast for Odin 46:09 - Kalen #4 - Cthulhu Wars 50:47 - Mark #4 - 1830: Railways & Robber Barons 53:55 - Neilan #4 - Codenames 56:19 - Kalen #3 - Cosmic Encounter 59:47 - Mark #3 - Francis Drake 01:04:17 - Neilan #3 - Tzolk'in: The Mayan Calendar 01:07:00 - Kalen #2 - Archipelago 01:11:35 - Mark #2 - Arboretum 01:15:15 - Neilan #2 - Gloomhaven 01:19:37 - Kalen #1 - Innovation 01:23:16 - Mark #1 - Biblios 01:24:54 - Neilan #1 - The Resistance
#49: Top 50 Games of All-Time 2018: 20-11
The end is nigh! If you squint just right you can see it from here. We're almost done counting down our favourite fifty games of all time, so join us in the penultimate part of our five part series. 01:20 - Mark #20 - Caverna 03:18 - Neilan #20 - Archipelago 05:49 - Kalen #20 - Fuji Flush 07:43 - Mark #19 - Troyes 09:22 - Neilan #19 - Aeon's End: War Eternal 12:38 - Kalen #19 - Genoa 14:29 - Mark #18 - Cthulhu Wars 15:40 - Neilan #18 - Alchemists 18:38 - Kalen #18 - No Thanks! 20:09 - Mark #17 - 1846: The Race for the Midwest 22:09 - Neilan #17 - Inis 25:27 - Kalen #17 - Telestrations 27:05 - Mark #16 - Dominant Species 31:19 - Neilan #16 - Exit: The Game 34:20 - Kalen #16 - Inis 35:34 - Mark #15 - Imperial 2030 37:22 - Neilan #15 - Watson & Holmes 40:03 - Kalen #15 - Deception: Murder in Hong Kong 41:11 - Mark #14 - Tigris & Euphrates 43:15 - Neilan #14 - Sidereal Confluence: Trading and Negotiation in the Elysian Quadrant 45:26 - Kalen #14 - Omen: A Reign of War 46:46 - Mark #13 - Caylus 49:58 - Neilan #13 - Cthulhu Wars 51:15 - Kalen #13 - Dogs of War 53:03 - Mark #12 - The Voyages of Marco Polo 55:57 - Neilan #12 - Pictomania 57:38 - Kalen #12 - Codenames 58:00 - Mark #11 - Rising Sun 58:00 - Neilan #11 - Rising Sun 01:02:04 - Kalen #11 - I'm the Boss!
#48: Top 50 Games of All-Time 2018: 30-21
Okay, we're past the middle. It's all downhill from here, but the good sort of downhill. We're counting down our fifty favourite board games, in part three of what the world is calling our most ambitious endeavour yet! Well, we're calling it that. 01:01 - Neilan #30 - Grand Austria Hotel 02:35 - Kalen #30 - Startups 04:20 - Mark #30 - Pax Renaissance 06:37 - Neilan #29 - Azul 08:57 - Kalen #29 - Imperial 2030 10:37 - Mark #29 - Kemet 11:52 - Neilan #28 - Deception: Murder in Hong Kong 14:26 - Kalen #28 - A Fake Artist Goes to New York 16:06 - Mark #28 - Castles of Burgundy 18:51 - Neilan #27 - Coloretto 20:53 - Kalen #27 - Hanabi 22:53 - Mark #27 - Blue Lagoon 24:36 - Neilan #26 - Spirit Island 27:03 - Kalen #26 - Cockroach Poker 28:50 - Mark #26 - Age of Steam 30:53 - Neilan #25 - Blue Lagoon 32:10 - Kalen #25 - A Study in Emerald (Second Edition) 34:40 - Mark #25 - Sidereal Confluence: Trading and Negotiation in the Elysian Quadrant 38:11 - Neilan #24 - Alhambra 41:16 - Kalen #24 - Insider 43:16 - Mark #24 - The Great Zimbabwe 47:03 - Neilan #23 - Patchwork 49:24 - Kalen #23 - Splendor 50:11 - Mark #23 - Orléans 51:19 - Neilan #22 - Taj Mahal 52:16 - Kalen #22 - Decrypto 53:33 - Mark #22 - Mansions of Madness: Second Edition 57:02 - Neilan #21 - Android: Netrunner 01:00:09 - Kalen #21 - Glory to Rome 01:00:09 - Mark #21 - Glory to Rome
#47: Top 50 Games of All-Time 2018: 40-31
Ten down, forty to go ... It's part two of our all-time top fifty lists! What surprises await us in this, the second installment of our historic feature?! Find out with us as we celebrate some fantastic board games! Kalen #40 – For Sale Mark #40 – Guards of Atlantis: Tabletop MOBA Neilan #40 – Hanamikoji Kalen #39 – Bruges Mark #39 – A Feast for Odin Neilan #39 – In the Year of the Dragon Kalen #38 – Crokinole Mark #38 – Sol: Last Days of a Star Neilan #38 – Kemet Kalen #37 – Taj Mahal Mark #37 – Pandemic Legacy: Season 1 Neilan #37 – Codenames: Duet Kalen #36 – Piñata Mark #36 – A Question of Scruples Neilan #36 – Dead of Winter Kalen #35 – SiXeS Mark #35 – Modern Art Neilan #35 – Agricola Kalen #34 – Lords of Vegas Mark #34 – Decrypto Neilan #34 – Decrypto Kalen #33 – Wiz-War Mark #33 – Terra Mystica Neilan #33 – Sol: Last Days of a Star Kalen #32 – SHH Mark #32 – Le Havre Neilan #32 – Orléans Kalen #31 – Keyflower Mark #31 – Codenames Neilan #31 – Gaia Project
#46: Top 50 Games of All-Time 2018: 50-41
We're counting down to our 50th episode, and what better way than to give our definitive lists of our 50 favourite games of all time?! You've been asking for it, so we've only gone and done it. Brace yourselves, we're just getting started. 01:11 - Mark #50 - Dungeon Fighter 02:51 - Neilan #50 - Werewords 04:36 - Kalen #50 - Agricola 06:28 - Mark #49 - Chronicles of Crime 08:07 - Neilan #49 - Biblios 09:28 - Kalen #49 - Concept 10:55 - Mark #48 - Pictomania 13:02 - Neilan #48 - Mage Knight Board Game 14:54 - Kalen #48 - Hanamikoji 16:27 - Mark #47 - Kanban 17:28 - Neilan #47 - Splendor 19:26 - Kalen #47 - Ingenious 20:40 - Mark #46 - Samurai 22:55 - Neilan #46 - Clank! 25:09 - Kalen #46 - Evolution 27:54 - Mark #45 - ZhanGuo 29:23 - Neilan #45 - Innovation 31:39 - Kalen #45 - Mysterium 33:02 - Mark #44 - Ra 34:21 - Neilan #44 - Puerto Rico 36:48 - Kalen #44 - New Angeles 38:58 - Mark #43 - Wyatt Earp 41:29 - Neilan #43 - The Oracle of Delphi 42:18 - Kalen #43 - The Game 46:23 - Mark #42 - Blood Rage 50:04 - Neilan #42 - Anomia 52:00 - Kalen #42 - Lifeboat 53:51 - Mark #41 - Tzolk'in 55:39 - Neilan #41 - Panic on Wall Street! 57:56 - Kalen #41 - Diamant/Incan Gold
#45: Green Letter Episode?
It's question time again! After last week's massive success, we couldn't resist the urge to have you, loyal listener, once more do all the work for us. Before we turn the microphones around, we also talk about Brass: Birmingham, Exodus: Paris Nouveau, and Werewords. 01:52 - Brass: Birmingham 05:48 - Exodus: Paris Nouveau 09:55 - Werewords 15:30 - Listener Questions 15:39 - Should I play the classics? 15:39 - Catan 15:39 - Carcassonne 20:21 - What solo games do you like? 21:08 - Coffee Roaster 21:35 - Scythe 21:45 - A Feast for Odin 21:53 - One Deck Dungeon 22:18 - Teotihuacan: City of Gods 23:35 - Onirim 24:50 - Hot Trivia Question 26:02 - Reviewing games after one play? 36:13 - Cry Havoc 37:49 - More convention showings? 39:32 - How do you pick game night games? 42:40 - YouTube?
#44: Red Letter Episode
It's your time to shine! We field questions from you, our adoring fans, in our first ever Q&A episode. You sent us the important topical issues you've been yearning for our take on, and takes ye shall receive. Before we line up in front of the mic, we also talk about Blokus, Brass: Lancashire, and Teotihucan: City of Gods. 01:42 - Blokus 06:16 - Brass: Lancashire 12:40 - Teotihuacan: City of Gods 19:20 - World Chess Championship 21:51 - Listener Questions 22:10 - Does Kalen hate co-ops? 22:50 - Pandemic 23:24 - Spirit Island 24:23 - Has Kalen played more Spirit Island? 28:16 - Best "bang for your buck" board games? 32:10 - Castles of Burgundy 32:47 - Azul 33:15 - Splendor 33:46 - Taj Mahal 34:40 - Cthulhu Wars 37:27 - Archipelago 39:11 - How are you still friends? 41:23 - Rising Sun 44:36 - Giveaway! (Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra)
#43: My Triumphs, My Mistakes
We're getting introspective this week, weighing up the mistakes we've made in our collections, and reflecting on our earlier selves. Would you reset your board game collection? What games might you not buy if you had to do it all over again? Before we turn back time, we also talk about Between Two Castles Of Mad King Ludwig, Claustrophobia, and KeyForge: Call of the Archons. 01:39 - Between Two Castles Of Mad King Ludwig 06:17 - Claustrophobia 10:43 - KeyForge: Call of the Archons 21:12 - Resetting your Collection 21:50 - Innovation 22:22 - Patchwork 23:50 - Skull 25:53 - Forbidden Stars 28:10 - Through The Ages: A New Story of Civilization 28:55 - Cosmic Encounter 32:05 - Fury of Dracula 33:57 - Rising Sun 34:22 - Blood Rage 35:52 - Cthulhu Wars 54:28 - Giveaway! (Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra)
#42: We've Been Co-opted
Not everything has to be a competition, because this week we're talking about cooperation. I know, it's weird, in some games, you're not actually trying to beat the other players! We're counting down our favourite co-op games, "favourite" of course being a relative term in Kalen's case. Before we put our heads together, we also talk about SSH, Just One, and Hamsterrolle. 01:44 - SHH 04:39 - Just One 07:53 - Hamsterrolle 11:32 - Chess 14:12 - Our Favourite Cooperative Games 15:27 - Codenames Duet 17:44 - The Grizzled 19:15 - Kitchen Rush 21:40 - Aeon's End: War Eternal 23:46 - Burgle Bros 25:04 - Chronicles of Crime 29:57 - Exit: The Game 33:30 - Mysterium 35:49 - Dungeon Fighter 38:53 - Spirit Island 42:04 - The Game 43:18 - Pandemic Legacy: Season 1 45:21 - Gloomhaven 50:44 - Hanabi 52:16 - Mansions of Madness: Second Edition
#41: The First Cut Is the Deepest
There's no love like your first love, and this week we're talking about our early board game crushes. These are the games that first got us into the hobby, that made us want to shout our love for board games to all who'd care to hear. Before we walk down memory lane, we also talk about Key to the City: London, Empires, and Guards of Atlantis. 03:31 - Key to the City: London 09:14 - Empires 15:48 - Guards of Atlantis 29:49 - Our First Board Game Crushes 30:34 - Connect Four 31:33 - Scrabble 32:43 - Acquire 33:22 - Hang On Harvey 34:31 - Risk 36:49 - True Colors 39:08 - Dominion 41:52 - Space Hulk 43:27 - WarCraft: The Board Game 44:16 - The Resistance 46:32 - One Night Ultimate Werewolf 47:09 - Alhambra 48:10 - Biblios 49:06 - Cosmic Encounter 50:22 - Genoa 51:25 - Through The Ages
#40: Bling It On
We're doing some upgrades this episode, because we're talking about improving and enhancing the board games we already own through accessories, new components, and fancy inserts. Before we sleeve our cards, we also talk about Keyflower, The Palaces of Carrara, Welcome To...'s Halloween Expansion, and That's Not Lemonade! 01:41 - Keyflower 08:46 - The Palaces of Carrara 12:17 - Welcome To ... Halloween Expansion 15:22 - That's Not Lemonade! 18:50 - Component Upgrades 27:56 - Gloomhaven 33:59 - Archipelago 34:33 - Dominant Species 45:32 - Scythe
#39: Essen SPIEL 2018 Preview
Essen SPIEL 2018! Okay, we're not technically at Essen SPIEL, but we've got that Essen FEEL. We're each counting down the five games that we most wish we were in Germany to play this weekend. Before we hand over our Euros, we talk about SPQF, Le Havre, and Scythe: The Rise of Fenris. 02:09 - SPQF 07:17 - Le Havre 12:31 - Scythe: The Rise of Fenris 17:06 - Essen Preview 17:49 - Magnastorm 19:11 - Futuropia 20:27 - Big Shot 22:41 - Gùgōng 24:21 - Shadows: Amsterdam 26:41 - Smartphone Inc. 28:03 - Alone 29:40 - Solenia 30:44 - Tsukiji 31:51 - Teotihuacan: City of Gods 33:26 - Pax Transhumanity 34:53 - Rebel Nox 36:09 - Warpgate 38:35 - Forum Trajanum 39:34 - 1906 San Francisco 44:43 - Scythe: The Rise of Fenris (SPOILERS!)
#38: Six Things I Hate About You
Board game dealbreakers, we all have them, and they're enough to dissuade us from buying or even playing some otherwise great games. This week, we go around the table and talk about two things each that put us off in board games. Before we start looking elsewhere, we talk about Illusion, and Food Chain Magnate. 02:16 - Illusion 04:46 - Food Chain Magnate 18:05 - Too Many Steps for Simple Tasks 18:35 - 1st & Goal 19:42 - Blood Bowl 21:04 - Baseball Highlights: 2045 21:36 - Automobiles 23:04 - Too Many Variants 23:35 - Agricola 26:26 - Mezo 27:33 - Battlestar Galactica 31:20 - Production Hampering Immersion 32:17 - Rising Sun 33:03 - The Great Zimbabwe 33:52 - Leonardo da Vinci 36:13 - Zombicide 37:20 - Sidereal Confluence 38:16 - Punishing the Leader 38:27 - Power Grid 39:35 - Gravwell 41:14 - Flamme Rouge 41:35 - Suburbia 43:03 - Point Salads 44:18 - Agricola 44:45 - Village 48:10 - Blue Lagoon 52:50 - Roleplaying and Improv 53:27 - Fog of Love 53:58 - Thornwatch 56:22 - Tales of the Arabian Nights
#37: Origin Story
How do you meet other board game enthusiasts? Just loving and owning board games isn't enough if you don't have anyone to play them with! It's not always easy to turn your friends into board gamers, so what are your other options? Well, sit back, as we cast our minds far, far back into the past, when the Board Game Barrage trio was just three separate unos. This is where it all began. Before we gather round the campfire, we talk about Crypt, Fool's Gold, and War Chest. 01:01 - Crypt 03:22 - Coloretto 05:17 - Fool's Gold 08:23 - War Chest 13:47 - Meeting Board Gamers 26:23 - Skull 40:40 - Twilight Imperium
#36: Your Unfulfilled Potential
What's your white whale? The one game you've been itching to get to the table for ages, but for whatever reason, just never have? Well, call me Ishmael, 'cause we're counting down not just one, not five, but ten games each that we haven't played, but really want to. Maybe this'll be the kick in the pants we need … but probably not. Before we dust off our shelves of shame, we talk about CIV: Carta Impera Victoria, Raxxon, and Scythe: The Rise of Fenris. 01:36 - Carta Impera Victoria 04:49 - Raxxon 09:28 - Scythe: The Rise of Fenris 15:18 - Games we Want to Play 16:56 - Fog of Love 17:38 - Spirit Island 18:47 - Dungeon Petz 20:16 - Mini Rails 20:45 - Pax Porfiriana 21:42 - Keyflower 23:12 - Dogs of War 24:09 - Clockwork Wars 24:37 - Anachrony 25:24 - Lisboa 26:17 - Three Kingdoms Redux 26:59 - Sid Meier's Civilization: The Board Game 27:55 - ?!!? 28:50 - The Gallerist 29:36 - The Voyages of Marco Polo 30:13 - Diplomacy 30:58 - For-Ex 31:46 - Project: ELITE 32:40 - War of the Ring 33:23 - Roads & Boats 34:12 - Tammany Hall 35:04 - Fury of Dracula 35:51 - 1880: China 36:45 - Spartacus: A Game of Blood & Treachery 37:41 - Arkham Horror: The Card Game 38:36 - Crokinole 39:32 - An Infamous Traffic 40:38 - Chaos in the Old World 42:11 - Great Western Trail 43:06 - Dune 44:40 - Pandemic Legacy: Season 1
#35: The Power of Balance
Asymmetry is a powerful tool for game design, if done right. There's a lot of replayability right out of the box, and finding a playstyle that works for you can be very satisfying. But this dark alchemy has a darker byproduct: imbalance. When so much is different between each player, how do you ensure that things stay fair? Before we nerf plz, we discuss Container, and more Root. 01:40 - Container 12:28 - Root 18:08 - Scoreboard Update 20:04 - Balancing Asymmetry 26:49 - Vast: The Crystal Caverns 27:26 - Cosmic Encounter 30:05 - Scythe 30:55 - Terra Mystica 33:20 - Cry Havoc 40:08 - Cthulhu Wars 44:14 - The Voyages of Marco Polo 45:27 - Rising Sun 47:55 - Sidereal Confluence 49:57 - Diplomacy
#34: You Know the Rules and So Do I
Board game rules, unlike other rules, were not made to be broken. They're to be strictly adhered to, trust me, this is going to be totally fun, there's just a few more things to go over and then we can start. Sometimes remembering and teaching rules can feel like a burden, so where's the line? Before we explain the turn structure, we discuss Dairyman, Riff Raff, and Lords of Hellas. 03:30 - Dairyman 07:12 - Blue Lagoon 09:00 - Riff Raff 10:49 - Lords of Hellas 20:24 - Board Game Rules 25:57 - Warhammer 40,000: Kill Team 32:38 - Gloomhaven 37:40 - Mage Knight 39:52 - Root 42:26 - Decrypto
#33: You Can't Win 'Em All
Look, sometimes we lose games. I know. It's weird. It's hard to talk about, to be frank, but it's important to realize that your heroes can have flaws. So, this week, we're counting down our top five games we're bad at! Before we admit defeat, we also discuss Yogi, Orléans, and Blue Lagoon. 01:38 - Yogi 05:25 - Orléans 11:56 - Blue Lagoon 18:28 - Good games we're bad at 20:26 - Santorini 23:50 - Spyfall 26:30 - Captain Sonar 27:45 - Avenue 30:01 - Incan Gold 31:31 - Deep Sea Adventure 32:54 - Splendor 34:38 - Glüx 35:49 - Pictomania 37:12 - Archipelago 39:11 - The Oracle of Delphi 41:45 - I'm The Boss 44:33 - Android: Netrunner 46:35 - Kanban 48:30 - Tigris & Euphrates
#32: Are We Having Fun Yet?
In this week's fun episode, we talk gaming etiquette, or the unspoken rules that surface when you're playing a board game. They often have nothing to do with the game itself, but what's appropriate? Should you deliberately help and hinder others at the table? Before we let the Wookiee win, we also discuss Let's Make a Bus Route, Sailing Toward Osiris, Fleet, and Founders of Gloomhaven. 01:45 - Let's Make a Bus Route 06:06 - Sailing Toward Osiris 10:10 - Fleet 15:30 - Founders of Gloomhaven 33:57 - Gaming Etiquette 39:25 - Puerto Rico 40:17 - The Resistance 41:02 - Root 42:04 - Archipelago 54:40 - Scythe
#31: Logged and Loaded
Just when you thought we couldn't get nerdier, this episode is all about logging plays and collecting statistics on your games. It turns out it's actually a pretty fun way to look back on your gaming history. We also discuss Fast Forward: FORTRESS, The Captain Is Dead, and Schummel Hummel. 02:38 - Fast Forward: FORTRESS 06:57 - The Captain Is Dead 12:57 - Schummel Hummel (Cheating Bumblebee) 16:22 - Logging Games
#30: Party Party Party
We're staying up all night to count down our favourite party games! You know the feeling. Everyone's at your place, no one's talking, it's a little bit awkward ... but then you break out some of these fifteen amazing party games, and suddenly everyone's back in, talking, laughing and shouting until the early hours. We also talk about JamSumo, Isle of Trains, and Root. 02:24 - JamSumo 04:05 - Isle of Trains 06:17 - Root 17:43 - Party Game Countdown 19:10 - Deception: Murder in Hong Kong 22:59 - One Night Ultimate Werewolf 25:08 - Cockroach Poker 27:20 - Krazy Wordz 29:26 - Pit 32:02 - Fuji Flush 33:32 - Pictomania 36:04 - Anomia 39:20 - Balderdash 41:41 - Codenames 43:03 - A Question of Scruples 44:56 - Time's Up: Title Recall 47:43 - The Resistance 51:22 - True Colors 53:32 - Telestrations
#29: Cult of the You Do You
Shiny and new! Everyone online is talking about the latest, greatest thing, and you can't help but feel that you're missing out. How important is it to keep up with the cult of the new? We also talk about Cthulhu Wars, World Championship Russian Roulette, Kubb, and Word Slam. 01:38 - Cthulhu Wars 04:56 - World Championship Russian Roulette 07:47 - Kubb 09:35 - Word Slam 14:53 - The Cult of the New 32:25 - Alien Artifacts 33:25 - Patchwork 34:32 - Space Base 34:45 - Glorantha: The Gods War 46:14 - Chess 48:31 - Secret Hitler 49:39 - El Grande 50:19 - Codenames
#28: Dance Like Nobody's Watching
In the wake of Gen Con, we return home invigorated about just how grand and diverse the hobby is. We celebrate the games that we might not otherwise have thought to play, and encourage you to do the same! We also talk about Lift it!, The Estates, and Cat Lady. 01:57 - Gen Con Final Thoughts 09:30 - Lift it! 13:00 - The Estates 20:42 - Cat Lady 22:47 - The Breadth of Gaming 24:27 - Sushi Go 26:45 - Zombicide: Black Plague
#27: Gen Con 2018 Day Three
Day three of Gen Con is over, and that's a wrap for our coverage from Indianapolis! Enjoy our final thoughts from the show floor (at least for this week), while we trudge back to the west coast with as many games as we can carry. We talk about Istanbul: The Dice Game, Wendake, One Week Ultimate Werewolf, Show & Tile, Coimbra, and Trade on the Tigris.
#26: Gen Con 2018 Day Two
We're halfway through Gen Con, and we wrap up day two of the show with our thoughts from the floors and tables and beds (?!) of Indianapolis. We talk about Crusader Kings, Scarabya, Petrichor, Zogan, Flotsam Fight, Welcome To..., and Dice Fishing: Roll and Catch!
#25: Gen Con 2018 Day One
Gen Con! It's here at last, and we run through our quick impressions of the first day of the show. We talk about Exodus: Paris Nouveau, Reef, Nyctophobia, and Illusion.
#24: Gen Con 2018 Preview
Gen Con 2018 is almost upon us, and we're counting down the games we're most excited to check out! We also talk about Vikings, and Navegador. 01:43 - Spiel des Jahres 03:10 - Vikings 07:45 - Navegador 10:15 - Gen Con 2018 Preview 13:50 - Piepmatz 16:13 - Welcome To ... 19:01 - Dice Fishing: Roll and Catch 20:26 - Ultimate Werewolf Legacy 23:18 - Coimbra 25:24 - Lost Cities: Rivals 27:19 - Pikoko 29:29 - Wendake 31:30 - Nyctophobia 34:03 - Yellow & Yangtze 36:27 - Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game 39:07 - Gizmos 41:03 - Newton 44:23 - Warhammer 40,000: Kill Team 52:30 - Teotihuacan: City of Gods 53:26 - Hyperspace
#23: Are You Feeling Lucky?
Luck is an element of almost every board game there is, but it's still a major point of contention. Whether it's the roll of dice, or the draw of a card, randomness can make or break a game. We also talk about Lowlands, Bilder, In the Year of the Dragon, and revisit Space Base. 00:54 - Lowlands 07:32 - Bilder 11:03 - In the Year of the Dragon 16:14 - Space Base 20:12 - Luck in Games 23:40 - Cthulhu Wars 31:24 - Guards of Atlantis 36:06 - Lords of Vegas 42:42 - Rising Sun 43:33 - Diamant
#22: Baby's First Social Interaction
Multiplayer Solitaire doesn't have to be a bad thing! Sometimes we're just not always looking for high interaction, high conflict games, and that's okay. We break down some games with low interaction, and what makes them great. We also talk about Joraku, Impulse, and Wyatt Earp. 01:36 - Joraku 06:25 - Impulse 16:34 - Wyatt Earp 19:29 - BGB on Twitch! 21:18 - Low Interaction Games 28:32 - The Godfather: Corleone's Empire 29:31 - Karuba/NMBR 9 34:05 - Agricola 38:55 - Cooperative Games 41:33 - Azul 46:15 - Castles of Mad King Ludwig
#21: The Beautiful Game
World Cup fever sweeps the podcast, as we consider the analogies between board gaming and sport. We also talk about Harvest, Caylus, Exit: The Game, and Trajan. 2:07 - Harvest 4:27 - Caylus 9:45 - Exit: The Game 13:39 - Trajan 14:48 - Board Games and Sport 19:45 - Balderdash 26:52 - Rising Sun 29:24 - Archipelago 33:24 - Care Bear Eurogame 36:22 - Diplomacy
#20: Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger
We're counting down games that replace other games in our collections! We also talk about Chimera Station. 01:31 - Chimera Station 05:16 - Games That Replaced Others 06:49 - Queendomino 08:28 - San Juan 09:56 - The Thing: Infection at Outpost 31 13:55 - Space Base 16:36 - Cthulhu Wars 17:52 - Android: Netrunner 21:01 - Azul 23:49 - Cockroach Poker 25:56 - Watson & Holmes 29:31 - Pictomania 33:15 - Splendor 36:59 - A Feast for Odin 42:22 - Alchemists 44:45 - What Replaces Biblios? 45:44 - Deception: Murder in Hong Kong 50:48 - Aeon's End: War Eternal
#19: What Are You Made Of?
What would a board game be without components? Just rules and a box, I guess. Before we pick up our pieces, we talk about Wildcatters, Bärenpark, Chimera, Star Cartel, and Council of 4. 01:20 - Wildcatters 06:33 - Bärenpark 09:00 - Chimera 11:50 - Star Cartel 14:42 - Council of 4 20:38 - Components and Production 23:55 - Archipelago 27:02 - Splendor 27:52 - El Grande 29:03 - Cthulhu Wars 30:12 - Scythe 31:55 - Terraforming Mars 33:58 - Zombicide 34:56 - Twilight Imperium 38:47 - Viticulture
#18: You Get What You Give
Skill and experience should be important parts of determining the winner of a game, but what about new players? Accessibility is important too, so, where's the balance? We also talk about High Society, Rising 5: Runes of Asteros, The Tea Dragon Society Card Game, and Inkognito. 03:42 - High Society 07:16 - For Sale 08:20 - Rising 5: Runes of Asteros 12:17 - The Tea Dragon Society Card Game 14:36 - Inkognito 19:17 - Rewarding Experience versus Accessibility 20:53 - Food Chain Magnate 23:40 - Chess 28:27 - Power Grid 32:38 - Arboretum 33:45 - Through the Ages 39:35 - Innovation 41:37 - Guards of Atlantis
#17: The Best Things in Life Are $20 or Less
What games can you get for $20? Quite a few really good ones, it turns out. We also discuss Scythe, Watson & Holmes, and Mansions of Madness: Second Edition. 01:34 - Scythe 10:44 - Watson & Holmes 13:06 - Mansions of Madness: Second Edition 15:25 - The Best Games Under $20 17:12 - For Sale 19:56 - The Resistance 21:55 - Oink Games 24:29 - The Grizzled 26:41 - Krazy Wordz 28:50 - Time's Up! Title Recall! 30:50 - Sushi Go! 35:18 - Hanabi 37:53 - Innovation 41:19 - Patchwork 43:25 - Notre Dame 46:29 - Coloretto 49:37 - Decrypto 53:00 - Biblios 54:35 - Codenames
#16: How to Win Friends & Area Control People
We wrap up the mechanics trilogy with Kalen's pick, area control. We also talk about Herbaceous Sprouts, Fae, Explorers of the North Sea, Wiz-War, and Imperial 2030. 02:40 - Herbaceous Sprouts 04:53 - Herbaceous 06:08 - Fae 08:54 - Explorers of the North Sea 10:30 - Wiz-War 15:01 - Imperial 2030 19:40 - Area Control 25:32 - Blood Rage, Rising Sun 27:20 - Risk 28:10 - Kemet, Inis 32:10 - Hanamikoji, Battle Line 35:05 - Eclipse 35:30 - Twilight Struggle, Cuba Libre 37:18 - Notre Dame 37:52 - Scythe 41:14 - Ethnos 42:34 - Tigris & Euphrates 42:52 - Glüx 43:45 - Diplomacy
#15: Keep Your Hands to Yourself
Week two of our favourite mechanics in board games is Mark's pick, hand management. We also talk about Ascending Empires, Funky Chicken, Felicity: The Cat in the Sack, and New Corp Order. 01:47 - Ascending Empires 05:41 - Funky Chicken 07:14 - Felicity: The Cat in the Sack 08:25 - New Corp Order 11:34 - Hand Management 12:57 - Terraforming Mars 13:44 - Dominion 14:44 - Candyland 15:25 - Scrabble 19:33 - Gloomhaven 20:40 - Biblios 22:00 - Taj Mahal 23:17 - Biblios Again 25:17 - Red 7 26:15 - Arboretum 27:09 - Twilight Struggle 28:32 - Cuba Libre 30:47 - Glory to Rome 31:59 - Wiz-War 33:24 - Cosmic Encounter 34:35 - Bohnanza 36:19 - Hanabi 36:57 - Mage Knight
#14: Do You Want to Know a Secret?
We kick off three weeks of our favourite mechanics in board games with Neilan's pick, hidden information. We also talk about Omen: Fires in the East, Gaia Project, and Pioneer Days. 01:30 - Omen: Fires in the East 03:39 - Gaia Project 05:43 - Pioneer Days 09:59 - Drop It 11:21 - Hidden Information 13:31 - Archipelago 19:32 - Dead of Winter 23:04 - I'm The Boss 23:48 - El Grande 27:56 - Discworld: Ankh Morpork 30:21 - Hanabi 38:58 - Survive: Escape from Atlantis! 39:59 - Chaosmos 41:55 - New Angeles 43:21 - Lifeboat
#13: We're Still Right
We return to BGG's top list, but we're flipping it on its head. That's right, we're talking about much loved games that we don't much love. We're also giving away a copy of Drop It! 01:05 - Drop It 04:53 - Cosmic Encounter 09:59 - Above and Below 12:56 - T.I.M.E Stories 16:36 - Lewis & Clark 18:29 - Five Tribes 20:12 - Inis 23:56 - 7 Wonders 27:06 - Viticulture 33:07 - Mechs vs. Minions 37:05 - Robinson Crusoe 39:42 - Scythe 50:10 - Terraforming Mars 52:43 - Blood Rage
#12: More Isn't Always Better
This week, we explain and expound our experiences with expansions. Improvements, tweaks, variability: the benefits are clear, but what does tacking more onto a game mean for all your players? Is it always a good thing? How much is too much? Before we get there, we discuss Altiplano, Omen: A Reign of War, Felicity: The Cat in the Sack, and A Feast for Odin. Timecodes: 01:41 - Omen: A Reign of War 09:39 - Altiplano 18:58 - A Feast for Odin 28:11 - Felicity: The Cat in the Sack 30:56 - Expansions
#11: Heavy is the Head that Wears the Crown
Why is everything so heavy? Well, we all played Dominant Species together, and so we're in a heavy sort of mood. There's a very vocal subset of the community that'll insist a game isn't worth playing unless it's mechanics are punching above a certain weight. But, surely there's room in a collection for the light games, the easy games, the so-called gateway games? We hash it out, but before we get into Dominant Species and games of its ilk, we revisit Codenames, Pictomania, Clank! and take a first look at The 7th Continent. Timecodes: 01:37 - Codenames 02:28 - Clank! 08:52 - Pictomania 12:27 - Dominant Species 28:20 - The 7th Continent 37:37 - Heavy Games
#10: Everyone is Wrong and We are Right
Did you know that sometimes the internet is wrong? Thankfully we're here to tell you what's up, and right the wrongs that BoardGameGeek hath wrought. You see, there are some games in their database that are just ranked way too low for how good they are. So, to fix these injustices, we each count down our top five games that BoardGameGeek got wrong, and we got right. Skip the timecodes if you don't want spoilers! Timecodes: 00:46 - Azul Contest 01:13 - Games That BGG Got Wrong 02:16 - Safranito 05:13 - Sixes 07:56 - Anomia 10:11 - Quo Vadis? 13:27 - Fuji Flush 15:56 - Watson & Holmes 20:52 - Ugg-Tect 23:49 - Piñata 26:41 - The Thing: Infection at Outpost 31 31:30 - True Colors 35:13 - CrossTalk 38:20 - Panic on Wall Street! 41:01 - Scruples 44:14 - I'm the Boss! 48:46 - Guards of Atlantis