Latest Posts
Board Game Golden Age
It’s hard to argue with the idea that board gaming is in a golden age right now. Walk into almost any game store, browse an online retailer, or sit down at a café shelf, and you’re spoiled for choice in a way that simply didn’t exist 15 or 20 years ago. Some people may argue that the real golden age of board games was 10 years ago, when some of the best games of all time were being released, but I’d argue that the reason why the previous decade seemed better than now has more to do with our overconsumption of media and increased awareness of the average game coming out now, rather than an actual quality difference. It’s not unlike when someone says “movies used to be so much better”, and then list only the best movies from a decade. All the chaff has been lost to time, it’s not that the movies used to be better, but we just remember the good ones.
Popcorn – Board Game Review
I’m a sucker for a good theme, and there are few themes that connect with me better than Movie theatres. Back in my early adulthood, a combination of sudden disposable income and lack of post secondary educational prospects, I saw almost every movie that hit the theatres that summer. Popcorn, designed by Maxime Demeyere and published by Iello, embraces the theme of running your own movie theatre, complete with spoof-filled movie posters, and I’m here for it.
The Most Purchased Games of 2025
2025 was a big year for “new to me” games on BoardGameGeek, and the data tells a fun story about what people were actually adding to their shelves. Instead of pure sales charts, or arbitrarily locking down the conversation to games released in the last calendar year, today I’m going to take a look at games had the most number of BGG users logging as owned, which I think says a lot about long-term buzz and staying power.
Zenith – Board Game Review
Zenith makes a strong first impression before you even touch a card. It’s bright and cheerful in a way sci-fi games rarely are, usually they’re leaning into the darkness of space to inform their aesthetic, see Beyond the Sun or Race for the Galaxy for examples. Zenith though, reminds me of Lilo and Stitch. Colourful planets, charming little alien creatures, and white clinical backgrounds give this sci-fi affair a more optimistic feel.
Top 5 Cozy Board Games to Warm Your Table
Over the past few years, we’ve seen an explosion in the “cozy” genre in all forms of media. Books, shows, video games, and yes, board games. But it always makes me wonder what exactly makes a board game cozy? It’s obviously not just about ease of play, but I think it’s more about the feeling the game evokes. Cozy games are gentle on competition and rich in atmosphere. They tell you to slow down, do something perhaps inane, but satisfying, and soak in the pleasure in small decisions. You’re not fighting to survive or building a bustling metropolis; you’re farming, sorting, and enjoying the process of play itself.
Bomb Busters – Board Game Review
Remember Minesweeper? Ever since I was a little kid, I was the type of person to press every button, look in every file, check every setting. When our school go it’s first Windows 95 computer, my inquisitive nature was rewarded with finding Minesweeper. Now, I’m curious, but dumb, so I just clicked around a bunch and eventually, always, blew up. It wasn’t until I was an early teenager when someone explained to me how the game worked. It wasn’t just a random grid of mines and numbers, it was a puzzle to be solved. Today’s game, Bomb Busters, designed by Hisashi Hayashi and published by Pegasus Spiele in 2024 evokes a lot of the same feelings as classic Minesweeper.
Looking Back: Top 5 Games from 2024
Every December, I scroll through everyone else’s “Best Games of the Year” lists and feel the familiar pang of jealousy. By the time those posts go up, I’ve generally only played about five titles from the current year. Hardly enough to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with anyone publishing a “Best of 2025” list.
But that’s okay. Being a little behind the curve has its perks. At the time of writing this post, I’ve played 110 games that were published in 2024, giving me some insight of which games actually endured the hype cycle. So instead of churning through hot takes, these are the five 2024 releases that climbed the BGG ranks this year, and what I think about them.
World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King – Board Game Review
World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King was designed by Justin Kemppainen, Todd Michlitsch, Alexandar Ortloff-Tang, and Michael Sanfilippo, and published by Z-Man Games in 2021. In World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King, you and the other players are cooperatively journeying through the frozen continent of Northrend to face the armies of the Lich King. You each take on the mantle of one of the iconic heroes, such as Jaina Proudmoore or Thrall, and move through villages slaying ghouls and evading abominations while you take on quests before sidling up to The Lich King himself.
