When I checked in to get my wristband for 2019’s BostonFIG Fest the guy at the table astutely observed that I probably wanted directions to
Regins: The Council is on Kickstarter for 10 more days! What kind of bizarre, hilarious thought process resulted in the creation of Reigns? This quirky
I am delighted that I got to speak with one of my favorite designers, and a guy whose games I’ve been playing almost as long
A few weeks ago I wrapped up a week-long debate camp for high school students. I’ve probably coached at 10 or so of these kinds
Marc, Matt, and Ben are here after a bit of a break to talk about one of our favorite games. In our reviews of all of
The best movie fight scenes are rarely about the fighting itself. When I think about the fight scenes most notably implanted in my mind, I
Dan Letzring is back, and he’s here to talk about the latest offering from Letiman games: Adventure Tactics. This is a campaign game inspired by
Ever go to a board game con and look in the train room? Ever wonder why they dedicate entire rooms to train games? “What kind
I don’t quite know why, but I love jumping into other people’s podcasts to talk about what’s on my mind. I don’t listen to a
Vital Lacerda is one of the most significant eurogame designers of the last decade, delivering consistently high quality complex games others can rarely match. In
Writing’s been tough the past couple of weeks. I’m hesitant to use the word “writer’s block” because that seems like a copout but the words
FAZA is available on Kickstarter right now! A couple of years ago while wandering around PAX East Matt and I saw an Unpub booth and
Hello, all. If you’ve been following The Thoughtful Gamer for a while you probably know that I’ve bought up the issue of publishers paying for
Marc and Matt have started playing Magic again, so they’re going to talk about the game itself, its impact in the gaming community, and the
Call me the board game Nostradamus. Back in December I got to demo Tiny Towns at PAX Unplugged and I predicted that it would be
We’ve finally taken the plunge into 18xx train games, and guess what? They’re awesome! Marc and Orion talk about what makes a game an 18xx
Tussie Mussie is avialable on Kickstarter until 6/8/19 Full disclosure: Tussie Mussie won a design contest in which I participated. My game was far, far
I arbitrarily set a deadline for declaring the best games of 2018, and now is that time. I haven’t played all of the games from
The board game design day at the Game Developer’s Conference has been a rousing success, if you’re judging it by its ability to produce quality
Matryoshka is available on Kickstarter right now! I sit down with Cassie and Dan to talk about Matryoshka, a trading and bluffing card game about those
My first play of Spirit Island was a bloodbath. We were all new to the game, trying to wrangle these temperamental spirits while invaders poured
We’re back talking about books! After navigating schedules, we’ve finally managed to reconvene to talk about the third and final installment of the Three Body
Writing about the new Street Fighter Exceed set has forced me to confront something I dread: my past writing. Nervously I searched for my original
G2S is a great weekend of gaming for those in the New England area. Marc and Orion attended this year and we’re here to tell
I have to admit, I was tempted to be a bit of a snob about The Quest For El Dorado, Reiner Knizia’s Spiel des Jahres-nominated
In my review of Exit: The Pharaoh’s Tomb I speculated about the naming ritual of calling such a puzzle game an “escape room”, it lacking
We played a whole bunch of new games at PAX East and you’re going to hear about them! Marc, Matt, and a SECOND Marc bring
How can I talk about Crusaders without discussing the theme? The Crusades are a deeply uncomfortable part of western history and while I’m fairly ignorant
A common refrain in my game group is that Descent is fun despite itself. I think this is accurate. We certainly had a blast playing
Orion and Marc talk about some of the 2 player games they’ve been playing recently. There’s a good mix of popular and obscure, good and
I don’t know what Carl Chudyk looks like, but I picture him in mad scientist garb, cackling over card templates as he conjures up his
Just look at the box cover of Big Dig and you’ll see why I jumped on a chance to review it. That woman is so
Escape rooms are a humorous signal of prosperity. Who knew that a fad would emerge where people pay $30 each to voluntarily trap themselves in
NOTE: The Kickstarter date for Thrive has been pushed back to March 5th instead of February 26th as mentioned in the audio. I sit down
Antinomy is on Kickstarter for just a couple more days! It’s fitting that Antinomy grants first player privileges to the person who has most recently
Who could have guessed that birds would be an exciting part of early 2019 among gamers? Elizabeth Hargrave might have been able to predict it,
Look, people. I know I come across as this paragon of Aristotelian temperance, but when three people I trust tell me that a particular game
We’ve been playing abstract games all month and we’re here to tell you about it! Marc, Matt, and Orion go in depth about five different
Abstract month got pushed back a bit, and you’ll still see some remnants from that into February (like this afternoon’s podcast!), but starting with yesterday’s
Fry Thief is on Kickstarter until 2/24. Check it out! I have never seen a game with a more relatable theme. You’re at dinner and your partner has ordered a burger and fries. In
A version of this review first appeared at Love Thy Nerd. Check it out! The cover of Pioneer Days depicts a colorful cast of eclectic characters smiling in the sun and looking like they’re having a splendid time
As abstract game month here at The Thoughtful Gamer spills into February for a bit, I have to admit that I’ve fallen more and more
Drop It, the silly abstract dropping-things dexterity game from Kosmos, is part of that eclectic board game sub-genre where the title of the game is
Marc, Orion, and Matt continue their discussion of this incredible sci-fi trilogy. This time they’re talking about the 2nd book, which is probably the most
PAX Unplugged, like a healthy diet, felt very balanced for me this year. I played with friends, I browsed the expo hall, I did some
Marc talks with Peter McPherson, designer of the upcoming Tiny Towns from AEG. What was it like working with a publisher for the first time,
After opening my review of SPQF talking about the slightly strange occurrences when two movies with very similar premises are released at the same time,
Join Marc, Matt, and Orion as they discuss a truly wonderful sci-fi series: The Three Body Problem. Here they discuss the first of this trilogy,
I turned 29 during last month’s delightful PAX Unplugged, and I think this is the year where time really starts to accelerate, because it’s been
Anthelion is on Kickstarter until 1/18/19 Some games feel open and comfortable. Whatever system the designer created feels like it could contain endless iteration and
Marc, Matt, and Orion, three people who typically don’t care very much about the look of the games they’re playing talk about the games that
For 2019 I’ve decided to implement one major change for The Thoughtful Gamer. We’re doing themed months! January will focus on abstract games, and while
We’ve done it, folks! We’ve made it another year and now I have to remember it’s 2019 for all those times I have to write
In film there’s a bizarrely frequent occurrence where two movies with remarkably similar premises or inspirations will release at roughly the same time. Like, remember
Marc and Amber sit down to talk about their time at PAX Unplugged. We played some new games, some old games, and some that aren’t
I was at the wonderful PAX Unplugged earlier this month, and I was able to share the experience with some friends I hadn’t seen in
We’re delighted to sit down with game designer Isaac Shalev to talk about a variety of things, from the designs of Ryan Laukat to Isaac’s
Remember when Love Letter was the hot new game taking the western world by storm? A fun game, with fun art, and only 18 cards!
The “we want an objective review” cry that frequently pops up on the internet is one of the most annoying arguments on the face of
I vaguely remember the first time I played Magic: the Gathering. I think it was on a camping trip with some family friends. I was
This one’s up on Kickstarter for only a week longer! Anyone planning to design a microgame has a number of tough decisions ahead of them
Marc and Amber talk about their gaming life, from childhood to the present. A trip down memory lane. 1:22 – Childhood 15:28 – Video games
So much of the pleasure of board gaming comes from moments of frisson, those exciting moments of suspense and anticipation before pulling a key card,
As you can probably tell, I’m not much of a graphic designer or someone who has any eye for that kind of visual, but I’ve
I’m looking for your feedback–what interesting board game things should I do while in Philadelphia after PAX Unplugged? What monthly themes should I focus on
I suspect I have somewhat of an unusual perspective in the board game world, being a reviewer but still feeling somewhat outside of the board
I’m not tied to a publisher, and from my Kickstarter Curmudgeon pieces it’s obvious I clearly don’t have any idea of what kind of marketing
Netrunner may be now officially dead from a corporate perspective, but it’s still alive in our hearts. If there’s anything the game’s taught us it’s
After a bit of a break, we’re back! Marc, Matt, and Orion talk about area majority games with an emphasis on their recent play of
I can distinctly remember the first time I played Mastermind. We were in Canada on vacation. My grandparents had rented a house for the summer,
I kind of liked not doing Kickstarter Curmudgeon last month, as scheduling things led to me simply not getting around to it. So when I
I’m not going to bury the lede: Spirit Island is getting a new expansion, and it’s going to be huge! Up right now on Kickstarter,
Deep within the heart of the Terror Swamps, the noble adventurers plod through the muck, their…paws caked with mud. The heroes are pugs, okay? They’re
We’ve got a bonus ‘cast! Marc, Matt, and Orion are joined by Sam Wolkenhauer, who has built a football analytics algorithm to try to predict
Listen, people. I know. 2018 is over halfway done and here I am posting a top 10 of 2017 list like I’ve lost track of
I keep seeing this question on social media and elsewhere and I can’t quite figure it out. Where’d we get the idea that surprise hit
Marc and Orion discuss the talk of the boardgaming town these days: Root! But first, we went to the New Hampshire Comicon’s board game room
Once, when getting out of my car at the grocery store, I was approached by a guy holding out a CD. He earnestly inquired, “hey,
Dear Publishers, I grow weary. I’m tired of yelling in frustration at your rulebooks. I’m fully willing to admit that the problem is partially my
Again my mind is on debate, community, and board games. If you read my article from last week you’ll have some idea of the state
I’ve reviewed a number of books on gaming and board games here at The Thoughtful Gamer, and even the ones I haven’t found particularly informative
Marc and Matt are joined by Orion (who is on a train) to talk about randomness. What is randomness? No, really, what is it? What
A number of events in the past few weeks have led to me sitting here, writing this post without quite knowing where it’s going to
More than any game I’ve played in recent memory, Eminent Domain truly feels like a game made for dedicated gamers. It’s not particularly complicated, it
No particular agenda today. I talk about some new TTG developments, a book series recommendation, and some board game stuff. Music: Sailing The Solar Wind by Abstraction
We’re in the dog days of August, and I guess that seasonal malaise affects board game marketing, because there were a surprising absence of interesting
How’d we get through 36 episodes without doing a deep-dive into the oeuvre of our favorite designer? This oversight has now been fixed, as Marc
How did the roll and write genre get so popular all of a sudden? Yahtzee is an okay game, but I don’t remember any roll
Hello, all! I realize it’s been a little while since I last posted anything here (10 days by my count–yikes!), so I wanted to make
Just some meandering thoughts about the Gen Con announcements I’ve heard about so far, and a couple other things. Happy Gen Con! Or GenCan’t. 0:41
Burning Rome is a game I’ve had a very difficult time contextualizing. It comes in this saturated blood-red box with the subtitle “Rome’s Nightmare”. The
Marc, Orion, and Bubba talk about that most peculiarly-named genre of game: Ameritrash. We talk dice rolling, card pulling, combat-focsed narrative games. What makes some of
Did you know that there’s a segment of the Gladiator film score that Hans Zimmer apparently turned into the main theme for Pirates of the
Oh how time flies! It seems like only last week that I was grouching at a host of Kickstarter campaigns, though to be honest a
Uncertainty is a terrifying nightmare from which there is no escape. Many people are still uncertain every day of where their food will come from.
I have been blessed with some amazing supporters. We’ve created what I would selfishly describe as a rad little community. And I think I’ve just
We’ve got no particular agenda. We’re just going to sit back and chat. Marc and Matt are joined by Orion who is all the way
Humanity is in crisis. Major governments of the world have combined into two superpowers: The Coalition, and The League. As these two regimes face off
Warning: Very light and mostly non-specific spoilers for the first 4 games of Charterstone. Lots of spoilers for stuff you’ll find out pretty quickly in
Marc and Orion talk about elegance in games. Is it a simple matter of rules complexity vs. strategic complexity? Or are there additional elements that
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