November 2012
1 post
kduke42 asked: Hey, I suspect LOTS of folks are looking for your experiences at BGGcon.
September 2012
10 posts
my solo games odyssey: Ingenious
It’s Reiner Knizia again!
I played Checkers as a kid. And I went through a Chess phase in my first year at college. But since getting into The Hobby, abstract games weren’t really all that interesting to me.
Ingenious was one of the games that re-piqued my interest in abstract games. Along with Hive, Ingenious made me understand that an abstract game could be more than a theme-less...
my solo games odyssey: If I'm Going Down...
Most zombie games are based in the idea that if you can survive, you win.
Not If I’m Going Down….
IIGD is referred to by the designer as a “Dying Card Game,” because no matter what you do, your character will die. Your goal is to take as many zombies out as you can before that happens.
It’s fun.
I mean, you can’t take it too seriously. I think when I...
my solo games odyssey: The Game of Shakespeare
Well, they can’t all be AMAZING.
The Game of Shakespeare is one of several games that I bought hoping My Lovely Wife would learn to play games with me, if only I could find the EXACT RIGHT GAMES to bring her into the hobby.
This plan has not worked. I understand now that some people like games, and My Lovely Wife does not. I get it now.
Anyway, that’s why I own this game.
...
my solo games odyssey: Friday
(I am doing what I can to look like the characters in the games I play. This is the only one where I am actually succeeding.)
Since I started this little project, there is one game that many nerds have been asking if I was planning to play, more than any other.
Friday.
I picked Friday up from The Compleat Strategist in New York (it’s awesome) while I was shooting one of my worst...
my solo games odyssey: Field Commander: Alexander...
I bought this game when I was in Miami for eleven days shooting an episode of Burn Notice. I spent a lot of time in my hotel room playing Field Commander: Alexander, and watching the Evil Dead movies so I’d have something to talk to Bruce Campbell about.
Anyway.
FC:A is a very simple solo wargame. I’m not sure wargamers would even call it a “wargame,” but that’s what I’m calling it.
Your goal...
my solo games odyssey: Dungeon Run
My favorite game of the last year, hands down, is Summoner Wars. It’s a fantastic two-player game with tons of replayability. I am not a fan of fantasy themes in games, usually. But Summoner Wars won. me. over.
Dungeon Run, while nothing at all like Summoner Wars, is set in the same universe. Many of the characters and abilities are direct ports, and there are lots of little tips of the...
my solo games odyssey: Decathlon
Another game by Reiner Knizia. Reiner Knizia is the German Sid Sackson. By which I mean: The guy has designed a billion games.
Decathlon is one of those games, but it’s maybe not the game he’ll be most remembered for. I’m just guessing here.
The rules are on his website, so feel free to download them and get eight dice and have at it. It’s light fare. The only time...
my solo games odyssey: The d6 Shooters
When I said that there’s no game that does anything quite like D-Day Dice, I may have misspoken.
That’s in no way meant to suggest that The d6 Shooters comes anywhere near DDD in complexity or fun or chrome. But it does trip some of the same triggers in my brain when I play it.
This one has never been published, and is fully available to Print and Play. I raided my copy of Perudo...
my solo games odyssey: D-Day Dice
As far as dice games go, there aren’t many I can think of that do anything quite like D-Day Dice.
Originally available as a Print-and-Play game, D-Day Dice had a hugely successful Kickstarter campaign last year, and I got in on it. Since the game arrived a few weeks ago, I’ve gotten to play it quite a few times.
In a way, it’s got some similarity in mechanics to Catan Dice...
my solo games odyssey: an update, and back for...
Hi.
Remember when I told you that My Lovely Wife left town? And then she came back?
Now she left again. So I am back to drowning my sorrows in solo board games.
The list from the initial post has shifted a bit. Some games have been dropped (Blokus x2, Book of Classic Board Games), and some have been added:
If I’m Going Down… is a zombie game where the player’s little dude...
August 2012
11 posts
my solo games odyssey: BREAK TIME
My Lovely Wife is in town for a bit, so I am not stuck at the kitchen table playing games by myself all night.
More solo games in about a week.
BECAUSE YOU MUST BE DYING TO KEEP READING THESE.
my solo games odyssey: Catan Dice Game
There’s this game, see? It’s called The Settlers of Catan. It’s lots of people’s introduction to the netherworld of the board gaming hobby. And a lot of people LOOOOOOOOVE it.
I have played Settlers. A lot. But I have also played a bunch of other games. I have a feeling that those people who LOOOOOOOOVE Settlers would be even happier playing something else, but they get...
my solo games odyssey: BuyWord
BuyWord is my second Sid Sackson entry on the list, and it’s a goody.
I always say that board games are basically prettied-up math problems. This one BARELY counts as “prettied-up.” It’s a straight up math game, trying real hard to look like a word game.
The solo version is just about identical to the multiplayer version. You get some tiles on the table and evaluate...
my solo games odyssey: I BLEW IT
What did you expect? When someone is this bad at all games period, he’s bound to screw up even the simplest attempt at measuring his Total Worth in solo board game points.
The next three games on the list, Blokus, Blokus Trigon, and The Book of Classic Board Games, don’t work for my little adventure. None of them have official solitaire versions which give you a score at the end.
So...
my solo games odyssey: Blazing Aces!
I almost wrote this entry in the same nightmarish vernacular this book uses, but I thought way, way better of it.
Blazing Aces! A Fistful of Family Card Games is a book by mega-designer Reiner Knizia. According to boardgamegeek.com, he has published more than 500 games and books about games.
That’s, um, a lot. I think he’s what you might call, “prolific.”
Anyway,...
my solo games odyssey: At the Gates of Loyang
Another Uwe Rosenberg game, only four games in.
At the Gates of Loyang is part of Rosenberg’s “Harvest Trilogy,” the other two games being Agricola and Le Havre (which I thankfully traded away before having to learn how to play it solo for this little odyssey, which would have made my brain melt).
I have played Loyang several times before as a two-player. I really dig it....
my solo games odyssey: Ambush!
This was supposed to be a happy post. This was supposed to be where I told you that after three other failed attempts over the last eight years, I FINALLY got over whatever weird grudge my brain has against this game.
This is not a happy post.
Ambush! is a game I am supposed to love, according to all of my other gaming interests, and according to everyone who’s ever played it ever....
my solo games odyssey: Agricola
I hadn’t played Agricola since November 8, 2008. I know this because I log all of my games played on a website because I HAVE A PROBLEM, OKAY?
Anyway, it had been a while. So I re-read the rules this evening and dove in, not remembering a single thing about strategy or how anything works, but remembering that I loved it when I used to play it.
Basically, it’s a game about farming....
my solo games odyssey: A Gamut of Games
It’s all starting off so easily. I love this book.
A Gamut of Games is a collection of games mostly created by Sid Sackson and some of his pals.
If you don’t know who Sid Sackson was, just know that he designed about a billion games, and most of them are super-duper good. He was kind of the shit, game-wise.
It’s really a great book. It’s actually mildly entertaining as...
a solo odyssey.
Good news: My Lovely Wife is doing a play!
Bad news: It is in New York, and the kids and I will be without her for six of the next eight weeks!
Middling news: I am going to have a shit-ton of time to play solo games!
I used to think solo games were sad. Like going to a movie alone.
Sad.
Of course, about ten years ago, I went to a movie alone. And it was KIND OF AWESOME.
Being married to...
The Resistance gets an upgrade.
At least twice before on this little site, I have mentioned that you should own The Resistance. It is a great game, for all of the reasons I have mentioned before.
Now, its sequel is available on Kickstarter.
Usually, when I am Kickstarting a game, I haven’t yet had the chance to play it. I am generally risking money up front for a game that sounds kinda neat.
Not the case here.
I have...
July 2012
2 posts
plasterpawprint asked: You probably get asked this a lot, but where do you get your games? Is there an affordable site I can find without having to scour the depths of the internet? Thanks!!!
January 2012
3 posts
the games i played in 2011
I know this is a few days late, but I thought I’d take a gander at the games I played last year.
DISCLAIMER: I realize there is about a 1% chance that you could possibly care about this information. My apologies in advance.
I logged 261 games played, up from 173 in 2010.
I was introduced to 48 games I had never played before, up from 29 new games in 2010.
My most-played game of 2011:
...
i go through phases.
Phases of different game mechanics that I have mild obsessions with. Then I try to play and procure as many of them as I can.
Previous Mechanics I have gotten all gooey over:
Deck Building
Cooperative
Secret Roles
Negotiation
et cetera
Currently, it’s Dexterity Games. Tumblin’ Dice and PitchCar and the like. Also pledged to the Caveman Curling Kickstarter.
I need to find a new...
i agree.
This is a great breakdown of why the folks at Hex19.com believe The Chapel to be the best card in Dominion.
Getting rid of crap cards is my favorite thing to do.
via Hex19.com
December 2011
4 posts
your first ten games, maybe.
I guess eventually, everyone who tries to do a blog on board games feels compelled to do some version of a list like this. A gentleman who goes by @TheGilletteFive on Twitter asked me a little while ago about my ten must-have games. This is, how you say, a “toughie.” It also makes me a little anxious and sweaty, putting myself in the imaginary place of only having ten games to choose...
Carcassonne App: Expansion details →
Some great additions to one of the best board game implementations on iOS.
carcassonne:
Hi guys,
I thought it might be a good time to finally give out a few more details. Let me highlight the two available expansions and the new features of the update for you.
The River
“The River” adds 12 new tiles, that are played at the start of a game, laying out a river that divides the…
nertz.
Looks like, due to timing issues, we won’t be able to get a December edition of Game Night into AOTS.
Bummer.
Had hoped to do a gift guide type thing. BUT THAT IS ALL RUINED NOW.
Maybe I’ll do one just for here.
Sigh.
risk legacy: seven games down
I borrowed this picture from http://geek-news.mtv.com
Holy.
Balls.
This game is awesome.
Some people don’t like Risk. I get it. I have never been a huge fan of the basic game. Takes too long, and there isn’t enough reward for your investment.
I do, however, really like the newer Risk Revised. The rules were changed enough to take the game down to a much more attractive 60-120...
November 2011
17 posts
i am going to rip this game to shreds.
Here’s an NPR story on the newest version of Risk.
Risk: Legacy allows you to make permanent changes to the game board and cards as you play, so every move you make can have long-term repercussions.
I am planning to assemble a five-player group that can commit to playing ten full games in a row as the same factions. Not all at once, but over the course of several weeks.
I am very...
games i forgot to add to yesterday's list: another...
I also have and want to play:
Eruption. Been getting some pretty good reviews. Looks like a straightforward and accessible game. Hoping it’s fun.
1st & Goal. A football game. I like sports board games, I like some dice rolling, and I like fun games. This one looks to cover those bases. Also getting some good buzz.
The Road to Canterbury. Already talked about this one, but I am...
games i have recently acquired that i really,...
Flash Point: Fire Rescue. Just arrived today from the Kickstarter campaign. Great components, great looking board. Cooperative game about rescuing folks from a fire. Plays 1-6, so this would probably hit the table first (since I can play it by myself (I am sad and lonely)).
Alien Frontiers. Another one from a Kickstarter campaign. A dice placement game that has an expansion coming down the pipe...
i am addicted to kickstarting games.
I am a sucker for both mafia themes and varied player powers, so this is a definite buy for me. Only a week left to pledge, so hop to it!
Plus, it looks fun.
man, i just can't shut up about these games.
Here’s another podcast where I talk a lot. About games. This time, mostly about history-based games. Episode 232.
The Dice Tower
another Kickstarter game you should consider. →
D-Day Dice is a great little game. I played the print and play version from BoardGameGeek and loved it.
The published version looks very pretty, and looks a billion times more involved and interesting. They have obliterated their original funding goal, so getting in on the deal now is just for your own benefit.
Check it out.
game night, episode 2: Ticket to Ride
In the three minutes we get on Game Night, we can only give a quick overview of each game. I’m hoping to use this space to go a little more in depth on the games we cover. Not much. Just a little.
Ticket to Ride, by Alan R. Moon
I think I may have owned more copies of Ticket to Ride, over time, than any other game. It’s been a little like the books Replay and In the Lake of the...
game night, episode 2: The Resistance
In the three minutes we get on Game Night, we can only give a quick overview of each game. I’m hoping to use this space to go a little more in depth on the games we cover. Not much. Just a little.
The Resistance, by Don Eskridge
This was originally a game playable with a regular deck of cards. I’ve played it both ways, and I prefer the published version. The pictures are pretty,...
game night, episode 2: Pandemic
In the three minutes we get on Game Night, we can only give a quick overview of each game. I’m hoping to use this space to go a little more in depth on the games we cover. Not much. Just a little.
Pandemic, by Matt Leacock
Pandemic is one of very few cooperative games that works really, really well.
I am not counting the semi-cooperative games, where there’s maybe a traitor or...
game night, episode 2!
Game Reviews - E3 2012 - AOTS Exclusive
game night on aots tomorrow!
The second segment of Game Night on Attack of the Show is scheduled to air during tomorrow’s (11/10) episode. There’s always the small chance that it could get bumped for time, but I think it’s a safe bet it’ll be in tomorrow’s show. Keep in mind: Last month, there was a game giveaway for a few folks who tweeted about the segment using the hashtag #aots. I have no...
new game: the road to canterbury
I supported this game over at Kickstarter a few months back. Very excited to have it in my hot little hands today.
Take a look at the game below. I think it looks fun. At the very least, you can get a little insight into the things that get me excited enough to throw money at them.
settlers of catan: the book
(I accidentally posted this first on my regular blog. Sorry if there are any non-nerds who read it by accident!)
Board games based on books or movies, I get.
Movies based on board games… You’re pushing your luck.
A book based on a board game? Especially this board game?
Um.
…maybe not.
you like games? you like good causes? go here.
There’s an auction being run right now on boardgamegeek.com. Every cent raised by the donated items goes to the Jack Vasel Memorial Fund.
If you don’t know the story of Jack Vasel, or the contribution his dad has made to the board game hobby, please head here to read more about The Gentlemen Vasel.
This is a fantastic and unique cause, and it makes me proud to be a board gamer....
different kind of host, miss manners. don't worry...
Finally had the chance to play Panic Station yesterday, after recommending it blind as a good spooky game. Looks to be a super fun game, once you get the rules down.
We did not get the rules down.
As included with the game, they are not good, and omit lots of stuff. As amended, they are maybe-a-bit wordy. Here’s hoping someone can come up with a version of the rules that comes somewhere...
game night, episode 1: Ascension
In the three minutes we get on Game Night, we can only give a quick overview of each game. I’m hoping to use this space to go a little more in depth on the games we cover. Not much. Just a little.
Ascension: Chronicle of the Godslayer, by Justin Gary
Like I said waaaaaaaaaaay back three days ago, I love me some deck-building games. So I was very excited to hear about Ascension, especially...
game night, episode 1: 7 Wonders
In the three minutes we get on Game Night, we can only give a quick overview of each game. I’m hoping to use this space to go a little more in depth on the games we cover. Not much. Just a little.
7 Wonders, by Antoine Bauza
I was introduced to 7 Wonders while visiting Snakes & Lattes* in Toronto. I bought a copy immediately. It’s mechanically different from other games, it...
October 2011
4 posts
game night, episode 1: Quarriors!
In the three minutes we get on Game Night, we can only give a quick overview of each game. I’m hoping to use this space to go a little more in depth on the games we cover. Not much. Just a little.
Quarriors!, by Mike Elliott & Eric M. Lang
This is a relatively new game, having been released only a couple months ago. I bought it immediately, since I am very into the deck-building...
spooky games.
Some delightful games you could play to get in, or remain in, the Halloween spirit.
Betrayal at House on the Hill 3-6 players. Super fun game. Cooperate with the other players to explore a haunted house, until “the haunt” is triggered — at which point one player (usually) turns traitor, and the entire flavor of the game changes. With fifty different scenarios, it’s plenty...
