Decision Space

Click on the link to join our Discord community!   Episode 20 - Carcassonne The big episode 20 is here and with it a game that is 20 years old. Wow! That works so well that you'd think we planned it, but as you are likely well aware, this isn't really that kind of show. Hop into the interdecisional spaceship and travel with us to a time long ago, the year 2000. Specifically, we'll travel to a time and place where a cutting-edge board game with a strange name has just been released. The game? Carcassonne. In today's episode, we discuss the decision space, decisions, and much more in this classic design by Klaus-Jürgen Wrede. We hope you enjoy our conversation.   Games Discussed Carcassonne, Underwater Cities, Ticket to Ride and more...   Preplan Your Next Turn Next week is a what we talk about episode (yay!), where we will talk about making mistakes in board games (yay?).   Call to Action Leave us a review and we'll read it on the next episode! (Still, still, still, still waiting, but not without hope!) We can be reached on Twitter at @jakefryd and @burnsidebh. Follow Decision Space on Twitter @DecisionSpa and talk to us there! Thank you for helping to grow the show!   Music Credits Way Home by Tokyo Music Walker https://soundcloud.com/user-356546060​ Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/tokyo-music-walker-way...​ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/pJThZlOuDtI   Track: I Am OK — Vishmak [Audio Library Release] Music provided by Audio Library Plus Watch: https://youtu.be/KZVS1ag3itA Free Download / Stream: https://alplus.io/i-am-ok

Click on the link to join our brand new Discord community!  Decision Space is a board game podcast about the decisions in games and now on YouTube.   Episode Nineteen - Grand Austria Hotel Welcome distinguished guests to this week's episode of Decision -Space. Our Interdecisional Spaceship has taken us straight into the service industry of the Viennese modern age in Grand Austria Hotel, a board game designed by Virginio Gigli, Simone Luciani with iconic illustrations by Klemens Franz. As always, we provide our traditional ratings and slogans, explore the game's decision space, and share key takeaways about the game's design. We do it all while serving up hot coffee, strudel, cake, and wine to the masses, or at least trying to. Strudel up, Chef! Heard!   Games Mentioned Grand Austria Hotel, Castles of Burgundy, Carcassonne, Carpe Diem, Lost Ruins of Arnak, and more   Preplan Your Next Turn Next week we talk about the classic game Carcassonne and Carcassonne Hunters and Gatherers   Call to Action Leave us a review and we'll read it on the next episode! (Still, still, still, still waiting, but not without hope!) We can be reached on Twitter at @jakefryd and @burnsidebh. Follow Decision Space on Twitter @DecisionSpa and talk to us there! Thank you for helping to grow the show!   Music Credits Way Home by Tokyo Music Walker https://soundcloud.com/user-356546060​ Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/tokyo-music-walker-way...​ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/pJThZlOuDtI

Click on the link to join our brand new Discord community!    Episode Eighteen - What the HECK are Signposts in Board Games In this "What We Talk About Episode" Jake and Brendan discuss signposts in board games. We ask important questions like what are they even? And further, what do they do? To this end, Jake becomes increasingly more confused. Fortunately, we eventually come to some steady footing and draw conclusions about this board game terminology that we believe will lead to even more productive board game discussions moving forward. If that sounds like a good time to you, then good lord and welcome, Decisionaught, you are most definitely in the right place. This is Decision Space!   Games Mentioned: 7 Wonders, A Feast for Odin, Lost Ruins of Arnak, Terraforming Mars, Kanagawa, Chess, Patchwork, Grand Austria Hotel, Keyforge, Magic the Gathering, Patchwork, Codenames, Just One, The Resistance, and Carcassonne, Catan, Ticket to Ride, and more.   Preplan Your Next Turn Next time on Decision Space... we explore the decisions in Grand Austrian Hotel. Call to Action Leave us a review and we'll read it on the next episode! (I'm going to keep posting this until it happens.) We can be reached on Twitter at @jakefryd and @burnsidebh. Follow Decision Space on Twitter @DecisionSpa and talk to us there! Thank you for helping to grow the show!  

Click on the link to join our brand new Discord community!  Decision Space is a board game podcast about the decisions in games and now on YouTube.   Episode 17 - KeyForge   At long last, our interdecisional spaceship has successfully navigated to the Crucible, the land of KeyForge. This is old stomping grounds for Jake and Brendan who have long -- like kind of absurdly -- histories with the game. KeyForge is designed by Richard Garfield and published by Fantasy Flight Games. In today's episode, we explore the decision space in KeyForge and whether it delivers on its unique promise. So... does it deliver?! KeyForge, Chess, Lost Ruins of Arnak, Yugioh, Magic the Gathering...   Preplan Your Next Turn Next week is what we talk about when we talk about signposting.   Call to Action Leave us a review and we'll read it on the next episode! (Still, still, still, still waiting, but not without hope!) We can be reached on Twitter at @jakefryd and @burnsidebh. Follow Decision Space on Twitter @DecisionSpa and talk to us there! Thank you for helping to grow the show!   Music Credits Way Home by Tokyo Music Walker https://soundcloud.com/user-356546060​ Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/tokyo-music-walker-way...​ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/pJThZlOuDtI

Click on the link to join our brand new Discord community!  Decision Space is a board game podcast about the decisions in games and now on YouTube.   Episode Sixteen - Lost Ruins of Arnak  UH OH! The Interdecisional Spaceship has crash-landed into some kind of overrun forest. Is that some generic ruins of nonspecific civilization over there?! That's right, it's another deckbuilding game, but is it just another deckbuilding game? Today on Decision Space, we explore Lost Ruins of Arnak, designed by Elwen and Mín and published by Czech Games Edition.  0:00 - Intro 1:04 - Ratings and Slogans 3:48 - Rules Overview 5:42 - Decision Space Exploration Intro 16:52 - Lunch (Deckbuilding) 27:56 - Gear Up (Card Drafting / Travel System / Actions and Artifacts) 45:34 - Explore the Wilderness (Exploration & Idol System) 56:10 - Dig! (Worker Placement) 1:02:17 - Research Discoveries (Temple Research Track) and Signposting 1:16:17 - Turbulence and wrap up     Games Mentioned: Lost Ruins of Arnak, Star Realms, KeyForge, and others I'm sure   Preplan Your Next Turn Next week we cover KeyForge... no really!   Call to Action Leave us a review and we'll read it on the next episode! (Still, still, still, still waiting, but not without hope!) We can be reached on Twitter at @jakefryd and @burnsidebh. Follow Decision Space on Twitter @DecisionSpa and talk to us there! Thank you for helping to grow the show!   Music Credits Way Home by Tokyo Music Walker https://soundcloud.com/user-356546060​ Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/tokyo-music-walker-way...​ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/pJThZlOuDtI

Click on the link to join our brand new Discord community!  Decision Space is a board game podcast about the decisions in games and now on YouTube.   Episode Fifteen - Return of the Game Night (What We Talk About) Jake and Brendan have a nice chat about returning to in-person play after so much time away. It's a conversation, as Brendan eloquently points out, that is like the scene in Star Wars where everyone takes a break to play chess, except with no mad Wookies. We also congratulate Brendan on his new published game Enchanted Plumes, and Jake does a mini-review of Red Rising. 0:00 - Prologue 1:50 - Intro 4:30 - Where's Is My Mind 10:39 - Red Rising 18:20 - Return of the Game Night 52:57 - Wrap Up Games Mentioned: Enchanted Plumes, Red Rising, Pandemic Legacy, Kingdomino, Mysterium, Mansions of Madness, Carcassonne, Ticket to Ride, Modern Art, Holochess/Dejarik, etc.   Preplan Your Next Turn Next time on Decision Space... we explore the decisions in Lost Ruins of Arnak.   Call to Action Leave us a review and we'll read it on the next episode! (I'm going to keep posting this until it happens.) We can be reached on Twitter at @jakefryd and @burnsidebh. Follow Decision Space on Twitter @DecisionSpa and talk to us there! Thank you for helping to grow the show!

Click on the link to join our brand new Discord community!  Decision Space is a board game podcast about the decisions in games and now on YouTube.   Episode Fourteen - Star Realms with Paul Salomon  We are honored to be joined by board game designer Paul Salomon, perhaps best known for his recent hit game Honey Buzz, to talk about Star Realms. Star Realms, designed by Robert Dougherty and Darwin Kastle, is a game Paul is very familiar with, and he came prepared to school us on the inner workings of this fascinating decision space. I hope you brought a notebook because class is now in session! Also, stick around at the end of the episode for our after thought (Where Is My Mind) segment.  0:00 - Intro 2:42 - Ratings and Slogans 5:52 - Rules Overview 7:54 - Decision Space Exploration 27:06 - Turbulence 37:03 - Thresholds, Turning Points, and Tempo 44:18 - Purchasing and Scrapping 1:02:46 - Favorite Cards and Final Thoughts 1:10:18 - Where Is My Mind (Afterthought Edition)   Games Mentioned: Star Realms, Hero Realms, Honey Buzz, KeyForge, Chess, Ascension   Preplan Your Next Turn Next week is a What We Talk About Episode. It's KeyForge after that!   Call to Action Leave us a review and we'll read it on the next episode! (Still waiting, but not without hope!) We can be reached on Twitter at @jakefryd and @burnsidebh. Follow Decision Space on Twitter @DecisionSpa and talk to us there! Thank you for helping to grow the show!   Music Credits Way Home by Tokyo Music Walker https://soundcloud.com/user-356546060​ Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/tokyo-music-walker-way...​ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/pJThZlOuDtI

Click on the link to join our brand new Discord community!  Decision Space is a board game podcast about the decisions in games and now on YouTube.   Episode Thirteen - Does El Grande Hold Up to 25 Years of Innovation?   The year was 1996, one year after the release of a little game we like to call Settlers of Catan (or just Catan now, I guess). The German board game circuit is absolutely buzzing about the exciting future for board games hobby and designers are poised to risk it all with their next design. At that moment, Wolfgang Kramer and Richard Ulrich seize the moment and shock us all with their new design, El Grande. Fast forward. It is 2021. The board game hobby now ascends to heights many never thought possible. Glossy games with beautiful components and spot UV crowd the marketplace, with innovative mechanics seeking to refine, explore, and improve on the giants that came before. In this landscape, is it possible for any game, even a bonafide classic like El Grande to hold up 25 years of board game innovations? So we must ask, is it time to thank this dusty, old relic for its service that led us to this moment and move on to bigger and better things, or is it possible... there's still some life in this game yet. There's only one way to find out. Hop into our interdecisional spaceship and let's explore the Decision Space together!   0:00 - Intro 1:16 - Where Is My Mind 6:51 - Ratings and Slogans 10:01 - Rules Overview 13:14 - Decision Space Exploration 24:05 - Power Cards 31:44 - Action Cards 47:47 - Castillo, Secret Disc, and El Grande Cube 58:50 - Provinces and the Court 1:02:29 - Region Scoring (Ties, Special Scoring Tiles) 1:06:51 - Final Thoughts and Turbulence 1:14:40 - Wrap Up (Leave a Review!)   Games Mentioned: El Grande, Rock Paper Scissors, High Society, Red Rising, A Feast for Odin, Blood Rage, Game of Thrones, Risk, etc.   Preplan Your Next Turn Next week we'll explore the decision space in Star Realms with special guest, Paul Salomon.   Call to Action Leave us a review and we'll read it on the next episode! (Still waiting, but not without hope!) We can be reached on Twitter at @jakefryd and @burnsidebh. Follow Decision Space on Twitter @DecisionSpa and talk to us there! Thank you for helping to grow the show!   Music Credits Way Home by Tokyo Music Walker https://soundcloud.com/user-356546060​ Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/tokyo-music-walker-way...​ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/pJThZlOuDtI

Decision Space is a board game podcast about the decisions in games and now on YouTube.   Episode Twelve - We Invented a New Way To Talk About Games There's Waxing and Waning and Dynamic and Static, but do you recall, the most famous decision framework of all?  Well, Brendan has really went and done it this time. That's right, he invented a whole new way to talk about games. On this episode, we'll talk about this new paradigm and way to frame future discussions of decision space on Decision Space. Woof. We admit it's a lot, but this isn't the time to sit statically by. Do a dynamic leap right into this week's podcast, where Jake and Brendan wax poetically while the runtime wanes down to nothing!   Games Discussed New York Zoo, Patchwork, Spades, Rock Paper Scissors, Underwater Cities, KeyFlower, KeyForge, Welcome To..., Res Arcana, Mansions of Madness, Dominion, Splendor, Ticket To Ride, Five Tribes, Arkham Horror: LCG, Magic: the Gathering, Hearthstone, Legends of Runeterra... etc.   0:00 - Intro 2:23 - Where Is My Mind 6:27 - New Paradigm Overview 15:07 - Waning 24:01 - Waxing 34:54 - Static 43:41 - Dynamic 50:17 - Questions 1:06:07 - Outro   Preplan Your Next Turn Next time on Decision Space... we explore the decisions in El Grande!    Call to Action Leave us a review and we'll read it on the next episode! (I'm going to keep posting this until it happens.) We can be reached on Twitter at @jakefryd and @burnsidebh. Follow Decision Space on Twitter @DecisionSpa and talk to us there! Thank you for helping to grow the show!

Click on the link to join our brand new Discord community!  Decision Space is a board game podcast about the decisions in games and now on YouTube.   Episode Eleven Little boxes on the worksheet Little boxes filled with tricky tracks Little boxes on the worksheet Little boxes all the same There's a pool one and a park one And a fence one and a double one And they all cross off scoring tracks And they all work just the same   Welcome to... episode eleven! (See what I did there?) Today, we talk about the famous roll and write/Roland Wright/flip and write board game Welcome To... designed by Benoit Turpin and published by Blue Cocker Games. Hop on into our interdecisional spaceship as we go deep into the variants, variance, and decisions of this exceedingly pleasant game.  0:00 - Intro 3:12 - Where Is My Mind 8:24 - Rules Overview 10:41 - Ratings and Slogans 14:40 - Decision Space Exploration 39:15 - Turbulence 48:20 - Scoring Mechanisms 1:05:00 - Final Thoughts and Wrap-Up   Preplan Your Next Turn Next week is a discussion episode, where we'll talk more about waxing, waning, static, and oscillating decision spaces. In two weeks we'll explore the decisions in El Grande.    Call to Action Leave us a review and we'll read it on the next episode! (Still waiting, but not without hope!) We can be reached on Twitter at @jakefryd and @burnsidebh. Follow Decision Space on Twitter @DecisionSpa and talk to us there! Thank you for helping to grow the show!   Music Credits Way Home by Tokyo Music Walker https://soundcloud.com/user-356546060​ Creative Commons — Attribution 3.0 Unported — CC BY 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/tokyo-music-walker-way...​ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/pJThZlOuDtI