What do you think would happen if you gave a chicken a beehive launcher?  Or how about a rabbit armed with a wagon wheel shield?  These are just some of the crazy combinations you’ll find in “Barn Brawl”, a game that’ll be seeking funding on Kickstarter in April, 2024.  It supports 2-6 players and is appropriate for ages 14+.  Games typically take around an hour.  Before we slap on our “horsuriken” (you’ll see) and dive into the game, I’m required by FTC regulations to disclose that I was paid to cover this game.  As always, any and all opinions are my own.

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We absolutely loved the original “Awkward Guests”, which is like “Clue” but on steroids.  It can be played competitively or cooperatively/solo, though we prefer the latter.  In “Awkward Guests”, players had to figure out who killed Mr. Walton, with what weapon, and with what motive.  If you played on a higher difficulty, you also had to figure out a possible accomplice.   “Awkward Guests 2: The Berwick Cases”, coming to Kickstarter in April 2024, has two players going head to head to figure out who killed the Berwick Sisters (suspects in the original game).  Before we begin I am required by FTC regulations that I was paid to cover this game, however any and all opinions therein are my own.  As this is a prototype (which was also in Spanish but playable), rules and components discussed here are subject to change.

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There are times where I enjoy a strategic, engine builder of sort and then there are times where I am in the mood for something a bit more casual. While I don’t have a ton of experience with narrative games, I have played and enjoyed “Destinies” and “Legacy of Dragonholt”.  Similar to “Dungeons & Dragons”, the story in games like these usually leads the characters through some kind of peril accompanied by skill checks.  I would say that “Lands of Galzyr” falls into this category as players will be leading characters from one adventure to another trying to earn prestige as they go.  It’s also on the cuter side to boot…you’ll see what I mean.  Special thanks to Ville over at Snowdale Design for providing a press copy for review purposes.

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I’m a huge Star Wars fan, let’s just get that out of the way now.  I grew up playing “X-Wing” on the PC.  In those days, you installed games via 3 1/2 disks and created a boot disk so you could boot the PC to DOS in order to have enough memory to run your games.  This was “before the dark times, before the Empire.” Still, it was light-years ahead of DOS Text Adventures.  Anywho, fast-forward through about two-dozen “Star Wars” games later and we come to “Star Wars: Outer Rim” and later its expansion, “Unfinished Business”.  This game focuses more on the scum and villainy as opposed to plight of the Rebel Alliance against the Empire.  Kind of like Mos Eisley Spaceport, because you’ll never find a more wretched hive…I’ll stop now.

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Sadly, my “X-Wing Miniatures” and “Star Wars Armada” phase is on hiatus, as Aidalee doesn’t really care for miniature games with tactical planning.  With Vinnie having spread his wings and moved several months ago,  I relied on Tabletop Simulator for my “X-Wing” fix.  When I got my copy of “Snap Ship Tactics” I was really excited as it boasted a solo mode with AI programming.  I’d finally be able to use my laser tool and 3×3 rubber mat again.  In the end, I wasn’t disappointed.  Special thanks to Scott over at Snap Ships Tactics for sending the core / starter game over for review purposes.  As always, press copies or not, paid coverage or not, my opinions remain my own.

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Most of us tabletop gamers are familiar with “Pandemic” and “Forbidden Island” as they are (what I consider to be) staples in the cooperative genre.  Instead of curing diseases or getting off a sinking island, what if you all had to work together to outwit an alien tesseract that was removing bits of itself to destroy Earth?  To make matters worse, Will Smith and Jeff Goldbloom aren’t around this time to blow up a mothership.  I’m pretty sure I’ve used that joke before, so props if you can find it in a previous article.  I’m old and don’t remember such things.  Special thanks to Kurt over at Smirk & Dagger Games for providing me with a copy of the game for review purposes.

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You folks have no idea how much I had been anxiously awaiting this one.  I backed this beast of a game on Kickstarter in late 2022 and finally received it (Second Edition) late 2023.  Oh, it didn’t disappoint!  I only backed the core game as I wasn’t sure in 2022 if I would have liked it enough to invest hundreds of dollars into all of the expansions.  Part of me wishes I had but alas, I was unemployed and awaiting a decision on my disability case (still am).  Any-who, for the uninitiated, let’s take a quick look at what makes this game tick.

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I recently binged “The Big Bang Theory” and always wondered if anyone would make a game out of “Rock Paper Scissors Lizard Spock”.  While not involving reptiles or Vulcans, “Dominus Charta” does add hammers to the mix, along with some abstract movement rules a la “Chess” & “Checkers”.  It supports two players and takes about a half hour to an hour to play.  Before we get started I’m required by FTC regulations to disclose that I was paid to cover this game, however any and all opinions are my own.  The only thing paid for was my time and expert opinion.

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I’ve played my share of Euro games and you know what?  The older I get, the less patience I have to learn games with 30 page rule-books.  Twenty-five year-old me would never have hesitated, but as a forty-something tired adult, I often welcome a more simpler diversion.  “Trio” is such a game, featuring only 36 cards making learning the game easy.  It supports 3-6 players and is appropriate for ages 8+.  The average play time clocks around 15-30 minutes.  Despite the game being quick and easy, make no mistake…there’s still a bit of thinking (and luck) involved if you want to pull ahead and win.  Special thanks to Jason Schneider from Happy Camper Games for providing me with a copy to review.  Before we begin I’m required by FTC regulations to disclose that I was paid to cover this game, but any and all opinions remain my own.  The only thing paid for here was my time.

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Like Gamewright, GoVenture has quite the history of creating educational products.  GoVenture includes “software applications, educational games, simulations, mobile, apps, board games, card games, blended games, ebooks, and a massively multiplayer online game”, according to their official website.  Today we’ll be looking at “Food Truck Entrepreneur”, a tabletop game revolving around delivering food to customers (and other places) to gain XP and claim victory.  Before we begin I’m required by FTC regulations to disclose that I was paid to cover this game, however any and all opinions are my own.

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I think most tabletop gamers have played at least one type of “hidden role” game in their lifetime.  I have…and in my experience, the more people you have playing, the better.  “13th Street Crew”, a tabletop game that’ll be seeking funding through Kickstarter in October 2023, has that “don’t trust anybody” feel about it and a little more.  In this case, players are low-ranking members of a large criminal organization all semi-cooperatively competing to advance (by winning the game).  Before we begin I’m required by FTC regulations to disclose that I was paid to cover this game, however any and all opinions are my own.  The prototype copy provided was sent via “The Game Crafter”, so components and rules may be subject to change.

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Hey all!  Just dropping a line to share the below video.  Curt Covert, Owner of Smirk and Dagger Games, was kind enough to walk us through the core game (The Night Cage) and the expansion currently on Kickstarter (Shrieking Hollow).  In summary, it’s a cooperative game where players all win or lose together.  They must navigate an everchanging board and avoid the horrors amid the darkness.  We had a great time, but don’t take my word for it…go watch the below video to learn more about it!

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I imagine that most of us are familiar with the idea of siphoning part of a paycheck to a 401k or some sort of retirement fund.  Some of us take a more daring approach in the form of taking risks with the stock market.  “PITBULLS”, a board game that will be seeking funding through Kickstarter in Quarter 4 of 2023, has mechanics that remind me of people on Wall Street yelling on trading floors to “buy for” whatever and “sell at” whatever.  Luckily (and thankfully), the only risk with “PITBULLS” is losing paper money.  Before we get started I should mentioned that the game is still in development and the copy I received was a prototype.  I am also required by FTC regulations to disclose that I was paid to cover this game, however any and all opinions are my own.  The only thing paid for here was my time.

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What do you get when you cross some good ol’ fashion mining with a flicking game?  “Can You Dig It” of course!  I covered this game a few months ago and I’m here to report that the game is now live on “The Game Crafter”.  What’s better, there’s a crowd sale…meaning the more people that buy the product, the cheaper the price gets.  I included a fancy chart below that outlines that specifics.

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I had the pleasure of meeting with Robert Geistlinger, President of Arcane Wonders, on Tabletop Simulator yesterday.  In the video below, he takes me through a full game using the advanced ruleset. We also talk a little about the planned Solo/Co-Op/Campaign mode, the Kickstarter campaign itself, and other juicy tidbits.  I really enjoyed the psychological and tactical aspects of the game and can’t wait to get my hands on this title.  You still have time to back it, should this tense brawler suit your fancy.

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