So Very Wrong About Games

Walker introduces a new feature, the LIGHTNING ROUND. Destinies are determined and legends are forged in the lightning round, or at least they could be if it were not merely the pretext for his trolling. Someone should translate "I'm not saying, I'm just saying" into Latin so he can make it his family credo. AYURIS: The Voyages of Marco Polo 2m00s (Simone Luciani & Daniele Tascini, Hans im Gluck, 2015)Games Played Last Week: -The Menace Among Us 5m06s (Jeff Gum, Smirk & Dagger, 2019)-Wayfinders 9m18s (Thomas Dagenais-Lespérance, Pandasaurus Games, 2019)-Paranormal Detectives 12m41s (Szymon Maliński, Adrian Orzechowski, & Marcin Łączyński, Lucky Duck Games, 2019)-Barenpark: The Bad News Bears 17m44s (Phil Walker-Harding, Lookout Games, 2019)-Modern Art 19m54s (Reiner Knizia, Hans im Gluck, 1992)-Gaia Project 21m41s (Jens Drögemüller & Helge Ostertag, Feuerland Spiele, 2017)-Wavelength 25m13s (Alex Hague, Justin Vickers, & Wolfgang Warsch, Palm Court, 2019)-Babylonia 29m56s (Reiner Knizia, Ludonova, 2019)News (and why it doesn't matter):-Don't you know that Scott Pilgrim is the best fighter in the province? 33m01s-Uwe Rosenberg tries some fairies 33m31s-Excellent SVWAG website: https://tekeli.li/svwag/ 34m09s-Car Wars again, and again 35m42s-Hollandspiele Sale 37m11s-Canadian fulfillment woes: Reavers of Midgard, etc. 38m43sTopic: Worker Placement 41m22sAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Sorry, people, no episode this week. Mark explains why.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

We puzzle over the practices and intentions of game designers this week as though we were archaeologists trying to divine the practices of ashen Pompeiians. Why did these authors insert this mechanism into their artifact? Was it a mating ritual? Was it an obeisance to some vengeful, long-dead god? Was it to shoehorn in player interaction? Or was it to placate a Kickstarter audience? Oh, sorry, that one is redundant with the obeisance to a god thing. Also the mating ritual thing, if you think about it.Games Played Last Week: -Wavelength 1m12s (Alex Hague, Justin Vickers, & Wolfgang Warsch, Palm Court, 2019)-Carcassonne: Gold Rush (Klaus-Jürgen Wrede, Hans im Gluck, 2014)-Unmatched: Battle of Legends 12m56s (Rob Daviau, JR Honeycutt, & Justin D. Jacobson, Restoration Games, 2019)-The Menace Among Us 15m41s (Jeff Gum, Smirk & Dagger, 2019)-Barenpark 19m19s (Phil Walker-Harding, Lookout Games, 2017)-Vindication 20m41s (Marc Neidlinger, Orange Nebula Productions, 2018)News (and why it doesn't matter):-Fallout: Shelter--from promotional money-sink to... ? 30m39s-Wiz-War NINTH 31m50s-Inis in SPAAACE 32m27s-Hansa Teutonica Big Box MIA at Spiel 33m43s-DEI: Divide et Impera 34m17s-Titan is, actually, kinda BIG 35m35s-All the best to Chad Jensen 36m53sFeature Game: Cloudspire 37m44s (Josh J. Carlson, Adam Carlson, & Josh Wielgus, Chip Theory Games, 2019)Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

You can replace the Mark and Walker voices with lovingly-rendered miniatures with the SVWAG Host Minis add-on, which you can have for $35, but only if you pay for it before you know what they look like and before you know the content of the episode. You can also buy the SVWAG playmat, metal coins, realistic resources, microphone first-player marker, and custom insert. This is a free podcast that can cost you a zillion dollars. Decide now, though!AYURIS: Root 2m02s (Cole Wehrle, Leder Games, 2018)Games Played Last Week: -Warhammer Underworlds: Beastgrave 3m41s (David Sanders, Games Workshop, 2019)-Era: Medieval Age 8m23s (Matt Leacock, eggertspiele, 2019)-Ghost Blitz 12m03s (Jacques Zeimet, Zoch Verlag, 2010)-Menara 13m23s (Oliver Richtberg, Zoch Verlag, 2018)-Unmatched: Battle of Legends 14m01s (Rob Daviau, JR Honeycutt, & Justin D. Jacobson, Restoration Games, 2019)-The Menace Among Us 19m38s (Jeff Gum, Smirk & Dagger, 2019)-Hit Z Road 22m01s (Martin Wallace, Space Cowboys, 2016)News (and why it doesn't matter):-Infinity Defiance defies innovation? 25m35s-Beyond Humanity: Colonies has glowy bits 28m30s-Vengeance: Director's Cut 30m35s-Small World of Warcraft 31m16s-Blacklist Games' Hour of Need 32m54s-More Teotihuacan (with better titling) 35m11s-More Karl-Heinz Schmiel with Tribune 36m26sTopic: The Cost of Upgraded Components 37m46sAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Fatherhood is the overall theme of this week's episode. Imagine Harry Chapin's Cat's in the Cradle, except with the father played by Vladimir the Great and the son by Svyatopolk the Accursed. "When you coming home, dad?" asks the Accursed, to which the reply is "I don't know when. But we'll get together then, son." And then, the son allegedly murders several of his siblings in a vicious power struggle. Just like in the song! Folk music of the seventies is more bloodthirsty than many people recall. Remember that Cat Stevens song about the wars of the Diadochi? It was even better than his acoustic rendering of the murder of the Romanovs.Games Played Last Week: -Letter Jam 4m01s (Ondra Skoupý, CGE, 2019)-Codenames: Duet 8m22s (Vlaada Chvátil & Scot Eaton, CGE, 2017)-Spirit Island 9m57s (R. Eric Reuss, Greater Than Games, 2017)-The Crusoe Crew 13m02s (Shuky, Makaka Editions, 2019) -UGO! 15m28s (Ronald Hoekstra, Thomas Jansen, & Patrick Zuidhof, IELLO, 2013)-Carcassonne 17m49s (Klaus-Jürgen Wrede, Hans im Gluck, 2000)-Undaunted: Normandy 20m56s (Trevor Benjamin & David Thomspon, Osprey Games, 2019)-Cloudspire 23m14s (Josh J. Carlson, Adam Carlson, & Josh Wielgus, Chip Theory Games, 2019)-Era: Medieval Age 26m42s (Matt Leacock, eggertspiele, 2019)-Terraforming Mars 31m26s (Jacob Fryxelius, Stronghold, 2016)-Ulm 32m15s (Günter Burkhardt, R&R Games, 2016)News (and why it doesn't matter):-Pharaon Afterlife Prepping 34m19s-Patreon Content Galore 35m34s-Scared by High Frontier 4 All 36m01s-Square Off NEO & SWAP 38m07s-Valkyrie Outrage 39m34s-Francis Tresham Obituary 41m33sFeature Game: Rurik: Dawn of Kiev 43m10s (Stan Kordonskiy, PieceKeeper Games, 2019)Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

SHUX has passed, but the memories have not. Your hosts give a final rundown of some of the goings-on during the august October event.Mark asserts that no one is less competitive than he, no one by a long shot, he is much less competitive than you and if you disagree he will fight you. Unless you are a child or infirm, in which case he will still fight you out of a grudging sense of duty and respect, but he will pull his punches. Some of them. Editorial note: the hosts neglected to repeat that Air, Land & Sea was a review copy received from the author. They apologize for the oversight.Added SHUX dig: The Quacks of Quedlinburg 2m18s (Wolfgang Warsch, Scmidt Spiele, 2018)AYURIS: Yellow & Yangtze 5m38s (Reiner Knizia, Grail Games, 2018) and Tigris & Euphrates (Reiner Knizia, Hans im Gluck, 1997)Games Played Last Week: -Durance 8m05s (Jason Morningstar, Bully Pulpit Games, 2012)-Aftermath 10m33s (Jerry Hawthorne, Plaid Hat Games, 2019)-Mysthea 13m09s (Martino Chiacchiera & Marta Ciaccasassi, Tabula Games, 2019)-Guards of Atlantis II: Tabletop MOBA 15m57s (Artyom Nichipurov, Wolff Designa, 2020?)-Blood on the Clocktower 19m19s (Steven Medway, The Pandemonium Institute, 2019)-Sine Tempore 27m43s (Luca Bernardini & Andrea Colletti, Ludus Magnus Studio, 2018)-Air, Land & Sea 33m27s (Jon Perry, Arcane Wonders, 2018)-Mr. Lister's Quiz Shootout 35m24s (Uncredited, Big Potato, 2015)-SiegeStorm: Siege Mode 38m34s (Kamil 'Sanex' Cieśla & Marcin Świerkot, Awaken Realms Lite, 2019)News (and why it doesn't matter):-Barrage Expansion 40m50s-Erica Bouyouris' Scott Pilgrim and Steven Universe Offerings 42m16s-Calico Cuteness 44m13s-Arkhipov Day on October 27th 44m29sTopic: Competition and Competitiveness 44m53sAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

"You two are idiots."-QuinnsWe are live (on tape)! With special guest Quintin Smith aka Quinns from Shut Up & Sit Down. Also featuring guest appearances from French Canadian snack cakes, passive aggression, wonderful prizes (none for you, sorry, all gone), and the man who saved your life, Vasili Arkhipov! Also some feedback and noise from the megagame next door. Oh, well.Games Played Last Week: -Irish Gauge 8m34s (Tom Russell, Capstone Games, 2014)-Mandala 10m39s (Trevor Benjamin & Brett J. Gilbert, Lookout Games, 2019)-Warband: Against the Darkness 15m20s (Micah Fuller, Dyskami Publishing Company, 2015)-Ragusa 18m29s (Fabio Lopiano, Capstone Games, 2019)-Flash Duel 22m43s (David Sirlin, Sirlin Games, 2010)-Cowboy Bebop: Boardgame Boogie 27m17s (Josh Derksen, Thomas M. Gofton, & Aron Murch, Jasco Games, 2019)-Glory to Rome 29m37s (Carl Chudyk, Cambridge Games Factory, 2005)-Labyrinthos 31m07s (Lindsey Rose, Dog Might Games, 2020)-Quacks of Quedlinburg 36m03s (Wolfgang Warsch, Schmidt Spiele, 2018)-Ancient Civilizations of the Inner Sea 42m22s (Mark McLaughlin & Chris Vorder Bruegge, GMT Games, 2019)News (and why it doesn't matter):-Boardgame anime! 48m24s-Kemet 1.5 in English 50m38s-Cooper Island 51m17s -Arkhipov Day on October 27th 51m36s Audience Questions 54m31sAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

The saturation point is the point at which you can no longer dissolve a deck of cards into a bottle of water. I am told that in summer, it feels hotter than it is really is because of all the board game particles diffused throughout the air. It gets really hard to breathe sometimes--my cousin nearly choked on a cube, once. The dewpoint, I think, is the temperature at which a full copy of Catan will coalesce out of nowhere. Join us for our podcast about science.AYURIS: Thunderstone Quest 2m22s (Mike Elliott, Bryan Reese, & Mark Wootton, AEG, 2018)Games Played Last Week: -Teotihuacan: Late Preclassic Period 4m06s (Rainer Ahlfors, Andrei Novac, & Daniele Tascini, Board2Dice, 2019)-Tigris & Euphrates 6m07s (Reiner Knizia, Hans im Gluck, 1997)-Cockroach Poker 8m36s (Jacques Zeimet, Drei Magier Spiele, 2004)-Sidereal Confluence 10m22s (TauCeti Deichmann, Wizkids, 2017)-Slide Quest 12m27s (Nicolas Bourgoin & Jean-François Rochas, Blue Orange, 2019)-Obscurio 13m24s (L'Atelier, Libellud, 2019)-Mental Blocks 16m49s (Jonathan Gilmour & Micah Sawyer, Pandasaurus Games, 2019)-Conspiracy: The Solomon Gambit 19m17s (Rob Daviau, JR Honeycutt, Justin D. Jacobson, & Eric Solomon, Restoration Games, 2019)News (and why it doesn't matter):-Time Machine, Redux 22m42s-Tajuto: Fresh Take on Buddhism 25m58s-Pfister's Bizarre Rewriting of History, Again 29m15s-Doesn't he know that Scott Pilgrim's the best fighter in the province? 31m31s-Warhammer Underworlds Beastgrave: Pre-Made Decks 32m33sTopic: Market Saturation 34m12sAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

The cube trundles onward, marching inexorably--if haltingly--towards its ultimate destination. It is told it must explore, and so explore it does. The other cube conquers, but that is not this cube's concern. They met once at a party. It seemed nice, but that was long ago, and the cube must explore, not mingle. Sometimes it does not explore; sometimes it scores for some quantity of non-explore things. These things it does not understand, but it knows that points are good, and so it does those things. The explore cube also cares about farms, for some reason, and mushrooms. Near the end of its track, it pauses--not for lack of mushrooms, this time, but out of an uncharacteristic self-doubt. Why does it do these things, it wonders. What mad god intersperses these random tasks so? And down from Olympus comes the pronouncement of the cube's controller--perhaps that very mad god, or perhaps merely a lesser divinity in thrall of some yet more powerful, some yet more capricious deity--"BECAUSE THEME."Games Played Last Week: -Shards of Infinity 2m38s (Gary Arant & Justin Gary, Stone Blade Entertainment, 2018) -The Bridges of Shangri-La 4m33s (Leo Colovini, Uberplay, 2003)-Vengeance 9m22s (Gordon Calleja, Mighty Boards, 2018)-Slide Quest 12m03s (Nicolas Bourgoin & Jean-François Rochas, Blue Orange, 2019)-Gaslands: Refuelled 14m02s (Mike Hutchinson, Osprey Publishing, 2019)News (and why it doesn't matter):-Walker deploys facts, CMON travels in time 18m00s-More Warhammer Underworlds 21m58s-More Sidereal Confluence 24m20s-Foundations of Rome 25m44s-Mark must resist Obsidian Protocol 26m07s-Blacklist Games' Hour of Need 27m19s-Root RPG 28m34sFeature Game: Tapestry 29m06s (Jamey Stegmaier, Stonemaier Games, 2019)Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Mark thinks it is colossally unfair that he gets so much flak for speaking French when mediocre game designers get to throw around a word like "tableau." Then again, Mark and Walker can't quite agree on what a tableau constitutes. Mark seems to define it the way that American judge famously defined pornography--he knows it when he sees it--whereas Walker is more conspiratorial about tableaus (Tableaux? Tableausies?), seeing them everywhere and lurking behind every player board or suite of special powers. Nothing seems to inspire disagreement among geeks like a taxonomy. AYURIS: Street Masters 2m17s (Adam Sadler & Brady Sadler, Blacklist Games, 2018)Games Played Last Week: -Attribute 5m27s (Marcel-Andre Casasola Merkle, Z-Man Games, 2002)-Pax Pamir: Second Edition 7m33s (Cole Wehrle, Wehrlegig Games, 2019)-Air, Land & Sea 9m57s (Jon Perry, Arcane Wonders, 2018)-Shadows of Malice: Revised 2nd Printing 13m27s (Jim Felli, Devious Weasel Games, 2019)-Undaunted: Normandy 17m10s (Trevor Benjamin & David Thompson, Osprey Games, 2019)-Infinity 21m44s (Gutier Lusquiños Rodríguez, Corvus Belli, 2005)News (and why it doesn't matter):-Root's solitaire expansion 23m54s-Donning more Purple 24m42s-Mark pleads for strength in the face of Aeon Trespass 26m27s-John Company 2nd edition: Mo JoCo Fo Sho 28m14sTopic: Tableau-Builders 29m10sAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy