One of the best games of recent years- my original review from 2015.

The local pub has been synonymous with games for as long as we’ve had alcohol to drink and the wherewithal to put tokens on boards. From backgammon to cards, games have always had a place in watering holes across time and geography. Many companies have tried to make games that would take their place alongside such timeless classics as Chess and Poker, and Nudge Games are coming onto the scene with their first product, also called Nudge, to see if they can’t crack that particular nut.

The oft-told story of a marooned man left shipwrecked and abandoned on an island, far from home and with none but a dog and two cats for company as he languishes there for eight and twenty years. Beset by the isolation and the cannibals it was a harsh and unforgiving experience and one which, I imagine he would have not wanted to repeat unless it was to sell more books.

Does Catan still hold up? Is Cockroach Poker the best game there is about lying? Is Clash of Cultures still the best civilization game there is, or was it ever? Find the answers to these questions as Nate asks himself, "Why do I own this?"

This week Josh and Tom catch up on the latest tabletop releases, Tom's office gaming club and our Kill Team campaign. 

I should really like dungeon crawl board games. I like D&D, I like fighting monsters, and I love collecting sweet, sweet loot. But in spite of all those predelictions, I have played few dungeon crawling board games that I have loved. As I've become more involved both in D&D and in playing classic computer RPGs, I've wondered why most dungeon crawling board games have left me cold.

Mare Nostrum, designed by Serge Laget was first published in 2003. Inspired by Civilization, Mare Nostrum also incorporated mechanics inspired by other popular board games including Settlers of Catan, Risk, Diplomacy and Citadels. It is considered by many to be one of the earliest examples of a successful Eurogame/Ameritrash hybrid.

Asmodee Entertainment are delighted to announce that Aconyte, the newly announced fiction imprint of global games giant Asmodee, have entered into a distribution agreement with Simon & Schuster for the US and Canadian book trades. The well-known publishing house will handle sales and distribution throughout North America starting with Aconyte’s very first releases, due on shelves in late spring 2020.

Wizard presents itself in absolutely the same way that the most boring of mass market productions do, in an ugly box, sitting limply on a Walmart shelf, or introduced by your grandparents when they’ve run out of various political topics to run you through.

Gimmicks are elements of a game that are the fundamental selling point, the core attention grabbing mechanic or experience that the game is built around. This episode, we're breaking down gimmicks in board games, figuring out if they're good or bad for the hobby, and talking about some of the most notable.