Latest Posts
Brass: Birmingham – Board Game Review
I’ve never dreamed of running a coal and beer fuelled canal empire in industrial era England, but the creative team behind Brass: Birmingham decided that the dirty, dark background was the best idea for an award-winning board game, so here we are.
Final Fantasy VII
Final Fantasy Challenge Home Page Heavy story spoilers ahead Introduction It's the start of a new trilogy. Leaving the SNES behind and moving boldly towards the PS1 means bigger, flashier Final Fantasy games. Final Fantasy VII released in 1997 for the PlayStation, and...
Crokinole – The Good Old Disk Flicking Game
Being from the northern Canadian prairies means I was culturally isolated for most of my youth. It didn’t even cross my mind that some people go their whole lives without seeing the northern lights (or, aurora borealis) on an almost nightly basis. That trees could stand taller than 12 feet tall, and had trunks with a diameter wider than both my hands put together. I also just assumed that everyone’s uncle had a Crokinole board in their basement, even if the rules for the game were hotly contested from house to house. Turns out, my lived experience is not universal, and not everyone has experienced the enduring excellence that is Crokinole.
What Does it Mean to be a Board Game Collector – The Thrill of the Chase
What does it mean to be a board game collector? I think most of us in the board game hobby refer to the selection of games that we own as “our collection”, I often wonder how much thought is put into curating a collection, versus having an excuse for wanton consumerism.
Cretaceous Rails – Board Game Review
As someone who has never actually sat down to watch a Jurassic Park movie, I don’t necessarily understand how the dinosaur theme and the theme park aesthetic have become so intrinsically linked. From Dinosaur Island, to DinoGenics, to Draftosaurus, and now Cretaceous Rails, it feels odd that we have so many games about building the best theme park featuring dinosaurs. I assume Jurassic Park is to blame for this, but I’ve always found it dubious that if we invented time travel or resurrected dinosaurs, our first inclination would be theme parks.
Tokyo Vice – Book Review
Tokyo Vice is a memoir by Jake Adelstein. As a young adult, he moved to Japan and managed to land a job at the prestigious Yomiuri Shinbun, the first gaijin (foreigner) to do so. The book covers over a decade of his experience reporting on the police beat, and eventually covering the Vice squad, bringing him face to face with Japan’s human trafficking and prostitution rings.
Shipyard (Second Edition) – Board Game Review
Shipyard, was one of Suchy’s first published designs, way back in 2009. In 2023, it was treated to a second edition, which, beyond a complete graphical overhaul, most of the gameplay mechanics remain intact, perhaps speaking to the strength of the design. But let’s hold off on our judgment until the end, shall we?
Top 5 Underrated Games
Last time I was a grumpy, old, curmudgeon. It was a change of pace that I didn’t necessarily enjoy. Turns out, I don’t actually like complaining all that much. So this week I want to highlight some games that I really love, that I think are woefully underappreciated.
