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 May 15, 2008
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 UK Games Expo 2008 Preview• All publishersArticles & Special FeaturesThe Board Room: Gateway to What?
Michael Barnes is the well-known independent voice and one of the lead writers for Fortress Ameritrash, a great discussion website about games. Michael has a large, boisterous and devoted following and is a leader of the “Ameritrash” movement of games. His opinions have spurred major discussions about how board games should be viewed in the hobbyist community and expanded what had become an increasingly narrower viewpoint. Sometimes Michael’s writings could be described as controversial – which in some quarters would be viewed with mild understatement. But many readers have made it clear: the content of his writings has relevance to more than a few in the boardgame community. Read more... - Comments (39)
More articles: Game NewsCannonball Colony – New Title from Adventureland GamesDesigner Phil Harding, he of the self-published Archaeology and Archaeology: The Card Game through Adventureland Games, has a new title set to debut at the Australian Games Expo in June 2008. Here’s a description of Cannonball Colony:
The cover shown above is a draft. Cannonball Colony is for 2-4 players, ages 10 and up, with a playing time of 30-60 minutes. Details about price (which will likely be around $40 Australian) and ordering will soon be available on Adventureland Games. Harding says that the game might be available to North American gamers through an online store, as was the case with Archaeology: The Card Game, but the logistics are still being worked out. Note on May 12: Item bumped to show corrected cover and include prices. Recent news:May 11 - Gone Cardboard News: A Game of Games – Coming in June May 11 - Im Reich der Wüstensöhne – Playable on PlayCatan.com May 10 - Gen Con Owes Hasbro More Than $400,000 May 10 - BGN Game Giveaway Winners for March & April 2008 May 9 - Media Watch: What’s Taboo for Senator Obama? May 9 - Gone Cardboard News: Time’s Up Times Two – Coming in June May 9 - Gone Cardboard News: Dirge: Carnage in Crimson – Coming Soon May 9 - Gone Cardboard News: Khet 3D: Tower of Kadesh – Shipping Soon May 9 - Gone Cardboard News: Monty Python Fluxx – Coming in Fall 2008 May 8 - Gone Cardboard News: Okko, Era of the Asagiri – Coming in June |
ColumnistsShannon Appelcline: Dice Games, Part Two: Just the Stats, Ma’amIt’s a Dice Fest! That’s an oft-seen complaint on certain internet bulletin boards whose readers think that all games should be entirely strategic, with no chance for random elements to intrude upon carefully made plans. If that’s really the sort of game that you like, then no problem. But, don’t buy blindly into the concept. I think dice games can provide a lot of benefits that you don’t find in a “less” random game, the greatest of which is the visceral and encompassing joy that can fill you when you receive an unlikely, but badly needed roll. Besides that, if you’re wanting to simulate reality in any form, then you need to accept that randomness happens. Just ask Hillary Clinton or Constable Charles d’Albret (of Agincourt). This isn’t to say that a good dice game is totally random. Instead, it uses additional mechanics to turn that luck into another game element that can be controlled by a good player--which is the topic of this week’s article. Read more... - Comments (1) Recent columns:May 14 - Dale Yu: Bits, Bits and more great Bits! May 14 - JESS: Made In Spain Games (VI) May 13 - Fraser McHarg: Britannia and The End of the Triumverate May 12 - Scott Tepper: Market Research May 11 - Valerie Putman: Who Needs Rules? May 10 - W. Eric Martin: Forty Thoughts on Gamers and Gaming Previews & ReviewsGame Preview: Monastery
Publisher: Ragnar Brothers
After delays due to an artist mishap, the Ragnar Brothers will debut Monastery at the UK Games Expo. Monastery is a tile-laying game, but that pedestrian description conceals a lot, for as Gary Dicken has written in the designer notes online, “As in all Ragnar Brothers games, the theme is of paramount importance.” So how is the theme realized this time? While monasteries have been established worldwide, this game, writes Dicken, “is more specifically based on the monasteries of Western Europe of the medieval period. They were essentially communities devoted to living out their lives according to a set of rules that helped express their faith. A primary function was to offer prayers to God. The monastic day consisted of periods of manual work (toil), study, personal devotion (prayer) and church services involving the whole community. In order to function, monasteries developed their land and built buildings. This usually took place over several generations.” Read more... - Comments (1) More previews & reviews:May 10 - Game Review: Party Pooper May 8 - First Impression: Wizard’s Gambit May 6 - First Impression: 4th Corner Apr 29 - Game Preview: Merlin’s Company / Memoir ‘44 Campaign Bag Apr 25 - Game Review: Mall World Apr 21 - Game Review: Utopia |
Recent comments from BGN readers:
May 15, 2008 - The Board Room: Gateway to What? By Terry Bailey Sr.
May 15, 2008 - Shannon Appelcline: Dice Games, Part Two: Just the Stats, Ma'am By J C Lawrence
May 15, 2008 - Game Preview: Monastery By Kevin_Whitmore
May 14, 2008 - The Board Room: Gateway to What? By Frank Branham
May 14, 2008 - The Board Room: Gateway to What? By Ryan Bretsch
May 14, 2008 - The Board Room: Gateway to What? By Anye Mercy
May 14, 2008 - The Board Room: Gateway to What? By Anye Mercy
May 14, 2008 - The Board Room: Gateway to What? By Terry Bailey Sr.
May 14, 2008 - The Board Room: Gateway to What? By Ryan Bretsch
May 14, 2008 - The Board Room: Gateway to What? By Stanley Bourgeois
Articles
Shannon Appelcline: Dice Games, Part Two: Just the Stats, Ma’am
It’s a Dice Fest!
That’s an oft-seen complaint on certain internet bulletin boards whose readers think that all games should be entirely strategic, with no chance for random elements to intrude upon carefully made plans. If that’s really the sort of game that you like, then no problem. But, don’t buy blindly into the concept. I think dice games can provide a lot of benefits that you don’t find in a “less” random game, the greatest of which is the visceral and encompassing joy that can fill you when you receive an unlikely, but badly needed roll. Besides that, if you’re wanting to simulate reality in any form, then you need to accept that randomness happens. Just ask Hillary Clinton or Constable Charles d’Albret (of Agincourt).
This isn’t to say that a good dice game is totally random. Instead, it uses additional mechanics to turn that luck into another game element that can be controlled by a good player--which is the topic of this week’s article.
Posted by Shannon Appelcline on May 15, 2008 at 01:00 AM in Columnists > Gone Gaming > Shannon Appelcline
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Board 2 Pieces: May 15, 2008
Dale Yu: Bits, Bits and more great Bits!
So, while I’ve been re-organizing my game closet, I’ve been trying to peek inside each game – especially the children’s games! Why? Well, over the years, I’ve maintained a little box of lost-and-found game bits. It currently has about 30 assorted counters, chits, dobbers, meeples and dice.
JESS: Made In Spain Games (VI)
Some worldwide well known boardgames are published in Spain, by different companies, in Spanish-language editions.
But here we also have a couple of… Made In Spain Games (Part VI)
In this chapter: PatimPatamPatum, Dead End, and Tobynstein (and all of them can be played if you don’t know Spanish).
Posted by Jesús Torres Castro on May 14, 2008 at 12:30 AM in Columnists > Jesús Torres Castro - Spain
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The Board Room: Gateway to What?
Many of you have noticed two writers who have revealed, with their unique flair of the pen, the ability to exert lingering influence over the hobbyist aspect of that bedrock of entertainment we call board games. Both have revealed themselves to be insightful, relevant and sometimes even downright controversial. In the end, the true measure of a writer is the ability to create and hold his or her audience.
Michael Barnes is the well-known independent voice and one of the lead writers for Fortress Ameritrash, a great discussion website about games. Michael has a large, boisterous and devoted following and is a leader of the “Ameritrash” movement of games. His opinions have spurred major discussions about how board games should be viewed in the hobbyist community and expanded what had become an increasingly narrower viewpoint. Sometimes Michael’s writings could be described as controversial – which in some quarters would be viewed with mild understatement. But many readers have made it clear: the content of his writings has relevance to more than a few in the boardgame community.
Posted by Ryan Bretsch on May 14, 2008 at 12:30 AM in Special Features > Articles
- Comments (39)
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Game Preview: Monastery
By W. Eric Martin
May 13, 2008
Publisher: Ragnar Brothers
Designers: Steve Kendell, Phil Kendell & Gary Dicken
Players: 2-4
Playing Time: 90 minutes
Release Date: May 31, 2008
After delays due to an artist mishap, the Ragnar Brothers will debut Monastery at the UK Games Expo. Monastery is a tile-laying game, but that pedestrian description conceals a lot, for as Gary Dicken has written in the designer notes online, “As in all Ragnar Brothers games, the theme is of paramount importance.”
So how is the theme realized this time? While monasteries have been established worldwide, this game, writes Dicken, “is more specifically based on the monasteries of Western Europe of the medieval period. They were essentially communities devoted to living out their lives according to a set of rules that helped express their faith. A primary function was to offer prayers to God. The monastic day consisted of periods of manual work (toil), study, personal devotion (prayer) and church services involving the whole community. In order to function, monasteries developed their land and built buildings. This usually took place over several generations.”
Fraser McHarg: Britannia and The End of the Triumverate
I finally got around to playing both The End of the Triumvirate and Britannia over the weekend. Vince was our only guest on Friday night and since we had three it seemed like a good time to break out The End of Triumvirate and he came back the next day with Richard to play Britannia. Melissa used to play Britannia a lot during her uni days, but I had never played it before.
Posted by Fraser McHarg on May 13, 2008 at 01:00 AM in Columnists > Gone Gaming > Fraser McHarg
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Board 2 Pieces: May 13, 2008
Postcards From Berlin #29: Saying Goodbye
German Word of the Month: Oma (Grandma)
It was a stark contrast – from the European metropolis to the Midwestern small town; from the urban life I now live to the roots I left behind, deep in the black Iowa soil. And now I found myself returning home, flying alone, my seat locked in an upright position as I gazed out onto the perfectly square fields below, a view that could easily have been a gameboard.
Posted by Jeff Allers on May 12, 2008 at 03:00 PM in Special Features > Postcards from Berlin
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Cannonball Colony – New Title from Adventureland Games
Designer Phil Harding, he of the self-published Archaeology and Archaeology: The Card Game through Adventureland Games, has a new title set to debut at the Australian Games Expo in June 2008. Here’s a description of Cannonball Colony:
| It is the golden age of colonialism and a beautiful deserted island has just been discovered. Unfortunately, ships from four different countries have arrived at the same time to claim it!
The main mechanism of Cannonball Colony is two layered tile-laying. Players construct a network of road tiles, then build forts, cannons and blockades on top of road tiles to which they have access. When different networks of roads merge, new options open up for players. There is strategy in the way you plan to develop the island for your benefit, but also tactical decisions as you react to what and where your opponents build.
 The game has the ruleset of a light Eurogame, the thought of a somewhat weighty abstract, and plenty of direct conflict as you blow up opponents. The player with the most forts standing at the end of the game wins the island for his country! |
The cover shown above is a draft. Cannonball Colony is for 2-4 players, ages 10 and up, with a playing time of 30-60 minutes. Details about price (which will likely be around $40 Australian) and ordering will soon be available on Adventureland Games. Harding says that the game might be available to North American gamers through an online store, as was the case with Archaeology: The Card Game, but the logistics are still being worked out.
Note on May 12: Item bumped to show corrected cover and include prices.
Scott Tepper: Market Research
Regular readers of my column will recall my lamenting the absence of a good game store in my hometown, Chicago. Sure, we have a Go The Game Store(if you want to pay $23 for parking at Navy Pier), and Gamer’s Paradise(where you’re more likely to find Zobmondo than Agricola), but if you want to find a recent release, you’re out of luck. Now before you heatedly point out that Games Plus is just the sort of game store gamers love, let me remind you that Mount Prospect, the home of Games Plus, isn’t Chicago. A 40 minute drive, there and back, isn’t too bad if you have nothing planned for a Saturday and feel like a roadtrip, but it’s not very convenient if you want to pick up a last minute birthday gift for your niece or nephew.
Posted by Scott Tepper on May 12, 2008 at 01:00 AM in Columnists > Scott Tepper
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Gone Cardboard News: A Game of Games – Coming in June
Ted Cheatham and Mike Petty released a small card game at the Gathering of Friends in April 2008 called A Game of Games. While the game is similar to Password – players give single word clues to get their teammate to guess game titles – A Game of Games includes additional scoring opportunities that depend on your knowledge of a game’s designer and year of release.
A Game of Games is available for preorder through Fair Play Games and will be released on June 1. This game has been added to Gone Cardboard.
Posted by W. Eric Martin on May 11, 2008 at 02:00 PM in News > Gone Cardboard News
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Im Reich der Wüstensöhne – Playable on PlayCatan.com
Klaus Teuber’s Im Reich der Wüstensöhne (In the Realm of the Desert Sons), the second title in his new Entdecker series, won’t be available in most game stores, but you can try the game online at PlayCatan.com for free through the end of May 2008. After that time, the game will be available only to Premium members of the site. To find the game, visit PlayCatan.com, then click on “Play” underneath the Catan Online World heading.
Valerie Putman: Who Needs Rules?
As the last week of classes finished up, one of my colleagues had a bunch of us over for home brewed beer, good food, and good times. My friends at work know that I’m a board gamer and, in fact, the host and his wife owned Settlers of Catan and Carcassonne. As the grown ups became a bit boring for their 3 year old to hang out with, he pulled out Settlers and started rolling the dice and playing with the cards. Later, I was asked if I wanted to see the “boat game” and was delighted to see he meant Serenissima! We opened the board up and loaded it with boats (at least 3 or 4 in each space) and pushed them around the open seas (and even across land when he felt like it).
Posted by Valerie Putman on May 11, 2008 at 01:00 AM in Columnists > Valerie Putman
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Gen Con Owes Hasbro More Than $400,000
While looking for information on the Lucasfilm vs. Gen Con LLC lawsuit, Trask at LivingDice.com ran across Gen Con’s bankruptcy filing, which took place in December 2007. Among the creditors listed are the Make a Wish Foundation ($148,000), Lucasfilm Ltd ($284,000) and Hasbro ($431,000). You can download the filing from the Gencon [sic] Bankruptcy Filing post on LivingDice.com.
BGN Game Giveaway Winners for March & April 2008
Put your hands together for the following BGN members who won games in the drawings for March and April 2008:
- Jamaica – Jeffrey Henning (March), Timothy S. Higgins (April)
- Kill the Hippies – Joshua Cappel (March)
- Game Ink T-shirt – Steve Hughes (March)
- Slide 5 – Michael Merten, Pat Mitchell (March)
- Galactic Destiny – Jim McDanold (April)
- Word Blur – Giuseppe De Carolis (April)
- Medievalia – Jon Sykes (April)
Game Review: Party Pooper
By Ted Cheatham & W. Eric Martin
April 23, 2008 (updated May 10, 2008)
Publisher: Out of the Box Publishing
Designers: Garrett J. Donner, Brian S. Spence & Michael S. Steer
Players: 4-8
Ages: 12+
Playing Time: 40 minutes
Rules Language: English
A bumped review as I’ve played again and revised my take on the game. See below for details.
Ted Cheatham is back for a quick shot at the newly released Party Pooper:
For those of you who skipped Ted’s presentation, here’s a recap of the rules: Try to guess which player the current round’s host will identify as the most/least likely to do some specified task or challenge, whether it’s singing karaoke, taking a dip with the Polar Bear club, or going dancing with your teenage daughter. Guess well, and you’ll score a point; have everyone guess what you’re thinking when you’re host, and you’ll score lots of points.
Posted by W. Eric Martin on May 10, 2008 at 02:00 AM in Reviews > Game Reviews—Video
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W. Eric Martin: Forty Thoughts on Gamers and Gaming
1. You should always carry a game with you when you leave the house. You never know when the opportunity to introduce someone to a new game might arise, and showing always trumps telling.
2. These opportunities happen more frequently if you talk about games every chance you get. I used to be reticent on the topic of games and didn’t bring up the subject around people whom I had just met. Thankfully I’m no longer that person, and I play many more games as a result.
Posted by W. Eric Martin on May 10, 2008 at 01:00 AM in Columnists > W. Eric Martin
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Media Watch: What’s Taboo for Senator Obama?
From ABC News:
| Sometimes even politicians need a break from the game of politics.
Aboard his 757 airplane en route for five hours from Washington, D.C. to Oregon, Democratic presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama opted for a new game: Taboo. Obama was challenged to a press corps versus Obama staff game to pass some in flight time.... The competitive senator quickly got into the game, cheering on staff members, handing out high fives to his team, and checking the score religiously after each turn. |
How well did the Senator perform? And would he propose a Taboo-off to settle the long-running Democratic nomination process? Read the complete article on ABCNews.com to find the answer to one of these questions.
Gone Cardboard News: Time’s Up Times Two – Coming in June
R&R Games’ Time’s Up – Peter Sarrett’s take on the charades game Celebrities – has been a blast whenever I’ve played it, and soon there will be even more to love. Coming in June 2008 are two new (or partly new) Time’s Up titles:
- Time’s Up Deluxe, which combines 500 names from the base game and the two expansions with 500 new names. This set, which retails for $30, also includes an electronic timer, play rules for an odd number of players (so you don’t have to kick someone out to form teams of two), and advanced rules for a fourth round of play. What can you do once you’ve eliminated speech in round 3 and are left with nothing but pantomiming? Eliminate that, too! Yes, the fourth round is all about posing. Your teammate will keep her eyes closed until you’re ready to show off your still life version of Herbert Hoover or Georgia O’Keeffe. Take a cue from Madonna, and strike a pose…
- Time’s Up: Title Recall, which does away with the famous names and replaces them with 864 titles from books, movies, songs, and more. This standalone game will retail for $20.
Posted by W. Eric Martin on May 9, 2008 at 06:00 PM in News > Gone Cardboard News
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Gone Cardboard News: Dirge: Carnage in Crimson – Coming Soon
John Clowdus will start shipping the fourth title from Small Box Games, Dirge: Carnage in Crimson, the week of May 12, 2008, but there’s still time to preorder the game at a discounted rate. Dirge is a two-player miniatures combat game with a basic action point system; wreck the other player’s army, and you win. You can download the rules from the Dirge webpage on the Small Box Games website.
This game has been added to Gone Cardboard.
Posted by W. Eric Martin on May 9, 2008 at 02:30 PM in News > Gone Cardboard News
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Gone Cardboard News: Khet 3D: Tower of Kadesh – Shipping Soon
Luke Hooper at Innovention Toys says that the Tower of Kadesh expansion for Khet – which was first shown at NY Toy Fair back in February 2007 – has finally arrived at the company’s warehouse. He adds, “After our full inspection they will begin shipping next week!”
This game has been updated on Gone Cardboard.
Posted by W. Eric Martin on May 9, 2008 at 01:30 PM in News > Gone Cardboard News
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Gone Cardboard News: Monty Python Fluxx – Coming in Fall 2008
Looney Labs has announced that it will release a Monty Python-themed version of Fluxx before the end of 2008. According to designer Andy Looney, the card mix “focuses heavily on Holy Grail but pulls in as many other bits and references as I can squeeze in.” The previously announced Martian Fluxx has been moved to the second quarter of 2009 to make room for this title.
These games have been updated on Gone Cardboard.
Posted by W. Eric Martin on May 9, 2008 at 12:00 PM in News > Gone Cardboard News
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Kris Hall: Pirate Impressions
By pure coincidence, my family came into possession of two pirate games in the last three weeks. Some days ago, my eldest daughter was given the game Pirateology as a belated birthday gift, and then my copy of GMT’s Blackbeard arrived this week. Both games have a fine physical production, but both play very differently.
Gone Cardboard News: Okko, Era of the Asagiri – Coming in June
Asmodée Editions had initially given a Q3 2008 release date for Okko, Era of the Asagiri, but in a rare display of overachievement on the part of a game publisher, Okko is now due out in June 2008.
Okko, Era of the Asagiri is a two-player miniature-style game with modular game tiles, a ton of characters, and a heaping helping of dice. For more details, head to Asmodée’s Okko webpage or visit the official Okko website, which includes a PDF of the English rules.
This game has been updated on Gone Cardboard.
Posted by W. Eric Martin on May 8, 2008 at 02:30 PM in News > Gone Cardboard News
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Gone Cardboard News: Money, Gem Dealer – Coming in September; High Society in 2009
FRED Distribution has passed on images for the first titles in its Gryphon Games line: Money and Gem Dealer, both due out in September 2008, and High Society, which is now scheduled for early 2009. Gryphon games will be 6"x8" with a bookshelf look and perhaps 8-10 titles in the series once it’s complete. “They’re not all going to be card games,” says FRED’s Keith Blume. “But they will be family-friendly games that you can get into in five minutes and play in 20-40 minutes. That’s the ballpark we’re shooting for.”
Money, as you might expect, is all about the bills. Blume says that the money cards will be Lost Cities-sized to give you more grip on the geld.
Posted by W. Eric Martin on May 8, 2008 at 01:00 PM in News > Gone Cardboard News
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First Impression: Wizard’s Gambit
By W. Eric Martin
May 8, 2008
Publisher: Gryphon Forge Games
Designers: Eric Drever & Matthew Stipes
Players: 2-5
Ages: 8+
Playing Time: 45-60 minutes
Rules Language: English
Game Played: Production copy
Number of Plays: Thrice, once each with 2, 3 and 5 players
Ryan Bretsch must be affecting my mind. In comments on BGN and elsewhere, Bretsch, a mainstream game fan, has cried out for publishers to stop using geeky subject matter. “No more elves or trolls or generic fantasy worlds or obscure foreign cities or Renaissance art fests or all those other things that game publishers do repeatedly,” he demands. While I normally roll my eyes at such requests – since many people dig fantasy worlds and topics shunned by mainstream games – I found myself unexpectedly sighing while reading the ad copy on the back of Wizard’s Gambit:
Posted by W. Eric Martin on May 8, 2008 at 09:45 AM in Reviews > First Impressions
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Board 2 Pieces: May 8, 2008
Aaron Lawn: Trade Show Ramblings
Ah, lateness. This column was written two weeks ago, just missing my Thursday appearance… Hooray!
I’ve just wound my way back into California after a three day stint at the GAMA Trade Show in Las Vegas. As you may or may not know, GTS1 is the trade show for the Hobby Game Industry2. As far as board games, especially Euro-style board games, it’s an odd show to report on. Why odd?
Posted by Aaron Lawn on May 8, 2008 at 01:00 AM in Columnists > Gone Gaming > Aaron Lawn
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Media Watch: Game collection fetches $150,000
From the (Oregon) Mail Tribune:
| You might say Ken Fonarow is doing a little spring cleaning.
After buying and selling board and role-playing games for 25 years and hawking his wares at shows around the country, the retired policeman is selling his personal collection — for $150,000. Fonarow’s 20,000 games — from one-of-a-kind collector’s items to out-of-print rarities — is being snatched up by board and role-playing game Internet retailer TrollandToad.com, based in Barbourville, Ky. TrollandToad.com spokesman Ryan Severin says the acquisition is the largest in the company’s 17 years of doing business. It has 75 employees and had sales of $5 million last year. |
Visit the MailTribune.com for the complete article, which includes a pic of Fonarow and a tiny part of his collection.
