Hobbyist Media Code Of Ethics
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 reviews a few times, and I’m still kind of astounded at the ways this discussion … Continued
Podcast Episode 53: Magic the Gathering
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 new online implementation — “Arena”. 2:15 – MtG as a game21:18 – MtG as a … Continued
Tiny Towns Review
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 a hit. Now…well I don’t have sales numbers but it seems like there are a … Continued
Podcast Episode 52: A Journey Into 18xx
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 game, what the appeal is, and some of their favorite experiences yet. 1:14 – It’s … Continued
Tussie Mussie Review
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 worse. I love the idea of creativity within boundaries. I suspect it’s because too much … Continued
Podcast Episode 51: Best (and Worst) of 2018
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 last year that I wanted to, but I did play a good number, and these … Continued
4 GDC 2019 Talks Worth Your Time
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 talks. (In terms of interest at the conference, I suspect it’s done well since they’ve … Continued
Podcast: A Conversation With Cassie Friedman And Dan Letzring About “Matryoshka”
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 Russian nesting dolls I didn’t know the name of until I heard about this game. … Continued
7 Strategy Tips For Spirit Island
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 in like water in a bath. No matter what we did we felt like we … Continued
Book Discussion: The Three Body Problem Part 3: Death’s End
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 Problem series: Death’s End. The scope of this book is truly immense, even as the … Continued