Fancy a little “Patchwork”? Or perhaps a little “Cascadia” or “Kingdomino”? “Wispwood”, a charming little game for 1-4 players, has a bit of all of those tabletop games with a nice, free scoring app to go along with it. In “Wispwood”, players will be drafting wisps of different colors and forming tetromino pieces to score the most points in their personal grids. Special thanks to the folks at CGE for providing a press copy of review purposes.
Archives
All posts by Vincent
“All I Wanna Do…Is Play Mutant Clans…” That jingle has been living rent free in my head for the last several days, courtesy of the developer’s promotional video for the game, “Mutant Clans”. “Mutant Clans” is a 2-4 player card game that takes roughly 5-15 minutes to play. While the developer recommends an age requirement of 18+ due to depictions of combat, I’d feel comfortable lowering this to ages 12+ with parental supervision. Special thanks to Sam Soofi, Creator of Mutant Clans, for sending a copy. I’m also required by FTC regulations to disclose that I was paid to cover this game, however any and all opinions remain my own. The only thing paid for here was my time and expertise.
Released in 1991, “Street Fighter 2” was probably one of my favorite arcade games, even when “Mortal Kombat” made its debut as a serious contender a year later in 1992. I had more of a connection with Ryu, Ken, Guile, and the others compared to Liu Kang, Kano, and etc. “Yomi” seems to have a relatively rich history, dating back to 2011 per BoardGameGeek. Admittedly, the “Yomi 2” products are my first adventure into tabletop / card fighting games in quite a while. On that note, special thanks to the Yomi 2 Marketing Team for reaching out and providing copies for coverage purposes.
Every time I attempted to come up with a way to start this dedication, I ended up going down a rabbit hole of memories and accomplished nothing. It’s incredibly frustrating, especially since I’m trying to come up with something perfect to honor her memory. Firstly, I realized that nothing I write here will be perfect. I then reasoned that memories are all I’ll have of my mother until the day comes that I too will pass on, so I suppose that approach is not to be dismissed, but embraced.
Sometimes, a popular board game will be followed up by some kind of stand-alone product that is both similar and different. “Settlers of Catan”, while having a ga-zillion expansions, had a Star Trek version that included a brand new card mechanic I had never seen before. “Carcassonne” has a Star Wars version as well as one that includes ghosts (“Mists Over Carcassonne”). In this case, “My Little Pony: Festival of Lanterns” is “Lanterns: A Harvest Festival” with a My Little Pony theme. Special thanks goes to Renegade Games for providing me with a copy for review purposes.
Believe it or not, the adult entertainment industry is valued at $72 Billion Dollars, assuming Google statistics are to be trusted. This fact doesn’t surprise me as I’ve seen quite a few adult-themed games over the last twenty years. “Work The Strip”, an adult-themed card game for 3-6 players, puts players in the role of a “Madam*” (or Madame) vying to get the most points by the end of the game. Before we begin I’d like to thank Game Creator David Kimlin for reaching out and providing a copy for review purposes. I’m also required by FTC regulations to disclose that I was paid to cover this game, however any and all opinions remain my own. The only thing paid for here was my time and expertise.
*I admittedly had to look this up, but a Madam is typically the owner of a brothel.
WARNING: While I run a family-friendly network, I do on occasion cover adult-themed games. The cards herein mainly feature women in various articles of provocative “nightly apparel”. I will do my best to keep images “classy”, but only those 18 years and older should be reading this article or playing this game. Some of the cards in the game do contain full or partial nudity.
Thank goodness for games. They keep me relatively sane in these crazy times. Last year was incredibly difficult, to the point where I didn’t even have time to make a 2024 Board Game Awards video. I tend to use these awards to keep you all up to date but I’ll try to keep it brief.
I love “Warp’s Edge”, one of the many games you can find in the Renegade Games Solo Hero Series. While some might consider solo games a lonely venture, it’s easy to gather a friend or loved one and work on the game together. These aren’t your grandparents’ jigsaw puzzles though! “Unstoppable” will task either one or two players against one of three bosses, each with their own style and difficulty. Before we begin I want to thank Renegade Games for providing me a copy for review purposes.
Most rodents are nocturnal (mostly active at night) and while I’ve never had the pleasure of owning one, I’ve experienced the endless “squeak squeak” of the hamster wheel during overnight stays at a friend’s house back in grade school. I’ve not had a whole lot of experience with mice, aside from the cartoons I’ve seen on TV. Luckily, with “House Mouse”, a board game shipping 10/15/2025, no experience is necessary to jump in and start scavenging. Special thanks to the folks at Sodalite Games for providing me a copy for review purposes. I’m required by FTC regulations to disclose that I was paid to cover this game, but any and all opinions remain my own. As always, the only thing paid for here was my time and 15 years of experience.
Did you know that Heroscape dates back all the way to 2004? I didn’t. If the internet Wiki stuffs are to be trusted, it began with Milton Bradly (a subsidiary of Hasbro) and then shifted to Wizards of the Coast (another subsidiary) in 2008. Much later, in 2022, Avalon Hill (yet another subsidiary of Hasbro) announced “Heroscape: Age of Annihilation” with Renegade Games licensing this endeavour in 2023. Needless to say, there’s a LOT of history here. Renegade was kind enough to send the “Heroscape: Battle for the Wellspring Battle Box”, a beginner friendly set that can be played by itself or included with other Heroscape products.
You may have heard of card games like “Exploding Kittens”, “Doomlings”, and “Here to Slay”…they are typically fast paced and somewhat competitive. Enter “Combustible Penguin”, an upcoming Kickstarter project with similar themes. Designed by Kyle S. over at Agartha Games, “Combustible Penguin” supports 3-8 players and takes about 10-20 minutes to play. Special thanks to Kyle for sending a press copy / prototype for preview purposes. Prototypes are not typically reflective of the finished product, so what you’re about to see / read may be subject to change. I’m also required by FTC regulations to disclose that I was paid to cover this game, however any and all opinions remain my own. The only thing paid for here was my time and expertise.
I’ve already gone on record praising the “The Search For Planet X” and “The Search For Lost Species”, the two predecessors to “The Search For UAPs”. That said, it stands out enough to warrant its own critique, but more on that later. UAPs stands for Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena in case you were wondering, I’ve looked it up at least five times now. The term UFO has a lot of stigma behind it and used in a more casual light, while UAP was coined to replace UFO in a more serious, scientific setting (que the “The More You Know” piano jingle). Special thanks goes to Renegade Games for sending a copy for review purposes.
There aren’t a lot of good and reliable logic puzzle-y style board games on the market, but I attempt to grab them when I can. “Alchemists“, “Awkward Guests“, and “The Search For Planet X” immediately come to mind. In the case of “TSFPX”, the predecessor to “The Search For Lost Species” (hereby dubbed “TSFLS”), you’re looking for stellar phenomena to deduce where Planet X is in the night sky. Here, you’re attempting to find the Lost Species on a land-based island using similar logical deductions. Special thanks goes to Renegade Games for providing me with a press copy for review purposes.
So, Aidalee has been pushing me to watch “My Little Pony” ever since she moved in eight years ago. She even tried to hook me by telling me that John de Lancie voiced Discord, a omnipotent semi-villain that took its inspirations from “Q” in Star Trek: The Next Generation. In exchange for watching Lord of the Rings I agreed to watch a few episodes. It was…tolerable…and charming in its own way. Needless to say Aidalee squealed when she heard that I was being sent a copy of this title, courtesy of the kind folks over at Renegade Games.
I’m a Trekkie. Or a Trekker. I really don’t know what the difference is. I’ve watched the shows / movies and read the books for the last forty or so years. The video games came and went as older games refused to work on newer systems. There’s GOG for some of it, thank goodness…”Armada” was amazing but I wouldn’t mind strolling down “A Final Unity’s” lane one more time. Then there are the board games. Oh, we had that crappy “Star Trek” trivia game, don’t get me wrong, but the more modern games like “Star Trek: The Next Generation Deck Building Game” run rings around stuff from the 80’s / 90’s. Though, seeing fake Gowron (same actor, different character) capture the ship in the VHS game is worth another play. EXPERIENCE BIJ!!!! I digress, I’m here to talk about “Star Trek: Captain’s Chair” and you sorry lot get to read reference after reference even if it’s not funny or warranted. It’s a complex deck-building game for one or two players and after about five plays I’m ready to give my impressions of it. Will Picard see five lights, or will my love be forever wondering in star-flight? Those aren’t units of measure, don’t bother trying. Shaka, when the walls fell. Continue Reading
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to travel back in time to another dimension? Ever thought about an alternate universe where things were similar but not quite the same? Well that’s certainly not this game! However, that doesn’t mean Dimension isn’t packed with intensity and chaotic hecticness! Especially when looking things over with (optional) time running out!