Board Game Hot Takes

In Episode 155 we provide our hot take review of Cyclades: Legendary Edition covering the mechanisms, the production, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss a poll about storing board games horizontally or vertically. Then we discuss some board games on our table Arkham Horror, Yokai Septet, The Voyages of Marco Polo, and Marco Polo II: In the Service of the Khan. Timestamps:00:00 Introduction00:27 Poll: Do you store your board games horizontal or vertical?05:14 Cyclades: Legendary Edition Description07:27 Gameplay and Mechanisms22:28 Production and Theme28:16 Final Thoughts37:40 Arkham Horror: The Board Game44:25 Yokai Septet48:35 The Voyages of Marco Polo vs. Marco Polo II: In the Service of the Khan

In Episode 154 we provide our hot take review of Wolves covering the mechanisms, the production, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss a poll about thinking about designing board games. Then we discuss some board games on our table including Patchwork Doodle, Ticket to Ride: San Francisco, Ankh: Gods of Egypt, Draftosaurus, and Cat in the Box. Timestamps:00:00 Introduction00:32 Poll: Have you ever thought about designing a board game?07:24 Wolves Description09:55 Gameplay and Mechanisms26:35 Production and Theme41:30 Final Thoughts52:11 Patchwork Doodle and Ticket to Ride: San Francisco57:22 Ankh: Gods of Egypt59:48 Draftosaurus1:03:46 Cat in the Box

In Episode 153 Tim and Adam's partners, Danielle and Sarah, join the show to discuss their top 5 games. Please excuse the lower quality audio and some background noise due to the unique recording space we were in for this episode. We also discuss a poll on Twitter and our Facebook group about the longest board game you've played. Timestamps:00:00 Introduction00:42 Poll: What's the longest single play you've had in a board game?06:17 Danielle and Sarah's Top 5 Games06:45 Danielle #5 - Welcome To...08:55 Sarah #5 - Dune: Imperium11:45 Danielle #4 - The Quacks of Quedlinburg15:30 Sarah #4 - Abducktion20:54 Danielle #3 - Clank! Catacombs24:52 Sarah #3 - Trekking the World29:00 Danielle #2 - Sea Salt & Paper and Fantastic Factories32:40 Sarah #2 - Smartphone, Inc.36:15 Danielle #1 - The Castles of Burgundy41:32 Sarah #1 - SCOUT44:50 Honorable Mentions: Everdell, The Lost Ruins of Arnak, Cafe, Azul, Ankh: Gods of Egypt, Wonderland's War, Planted, Radlands, Othello

In Episode 152 we finish the countdown of our top 40 Board Games of all time with choices 1-10. Timestamps:00:00 Introduction00:42 Top Games of All Time03:21 Tim #10 The Castles of Burgundy05:26 Adam #10 Blood Rage07:20 Chris #10 Tzolk'in: The Mayan Calendar10:55 Tim #9 Agricola: Revised Edition13:06 Adam #9 Barrage15:50 Chris #9 Terraforming Mars19:02 Tim #8 Ark Nova21:14 Adam #8 Rising Sun24:47 Chris #8 Ark Nova27:45 Tim #7 Wonderland's War31:23 Adam #7 Star Wars Rebellion33:53 Chris #7 Teotihuacan: City of Gods36:26 Tim #6 Terraforming Mars38:43 Adam #6 Ankh: Gods of Egypt41:57 Chris #6 Eclipse: 2nd Dawn for the Galaxy44:02 Tim #5 Tapestry47:36 Adam #5 Baseball Highlights 204550:09 Chris #5 Barrage51:56 Tim #4 Dune: Imperium53:09 Adam #4 Smartphone, Inc.54:59 Chris #4 Blood Rage56:05 Tim #3 Blood Rage57:41 Adam #3 Wonderland's War48:47 Chris #3 Tapestry1:01:50 Tim #2 Gaia Project1:04:25 Adam #2 Dune: Imperium1:05:23 Chris #2 Gaia Project1:06:23 Tim #1 Everdell1:10:41 Adam #1 Eclipse: 2nd Dawn for the Galaxy1:12:44 Chris #1 Wonderland's War

In Episode 151 we continue the countdown of our top 40 Board Games of all time with choices 11-20. We also discuss a poll on how important balance is in board games. Timestamps:00:00 Introduction00:47 Poll: How important is balance to you in a board game?08:09 Top Games of All Time08:22 Adam #20 Capital Lux 2: Generations10:06 Chris #20 Viticulture Essential Edition13:12 Tim #20 Beyond the Sun15:42 Adam #19 Abducktion18:39 Chris #19 Agricola21:16 Tim #19 La Granja23:13 Adam #18 Shamans25:21 Chris #18 Obsession28:14 Tim #18 Distilled30:11 Adam #17 Through the Ages: A New Story of Civilization32:37 Chris #17 Lacrimosa35:00 Tim #17 Barrage39:00 Adam #16 Beyond the Sun40:16 Chris #16 Revive42:49 Tim #16 Revive45:47 Adam #15 Gaia Project47:57 Chris #15 Nemesis51:43 Tim #15 Paperback Adventures56:01 Adam #14 The Expanse Board Game59:25 Chris #14 Through the Ages: A New Story of Civilization1:00:08 Tim #14 Clank! Catacombs1:02:53 Adam #13 Pax Pamir: 2nd Edition1:05:36 Chris #13 La Granja1:07:16 Tim #13 Lost Ruins of Arnak1:08:46 Adam #12 Inis1:11:06 Chris #12 Distilled1:13:01 Tim #12 Underwater Cities1:15:28 Adam #11 Azul1:18:50 Chris #11 Dune: Imperium1:22:18 Tim #11 Scythe

In Episode 150 we continue the countdown of our top 40 Board Games of all time with choices 21-30. We also discuss a poll on looking for game stores when travelling. Timestamps:00:00 Introduction00:50 Poll: Do you seek out game stores or when you travel to no cities?09:03 Top Games of All Time09:15 Chris #30 Star Wars: The Deck Building Game13:19 Tim #30 Frosthaven16:20 Adam #30 Sol: Last Days of a Star18:50 Chris #29 Clank! In! Space!22:22 Tim #29 Magic: The Gathering25:53 Adam #29 Ghosts of Christmas28:36 Chris #28 Rap Godz31:38 Tim #28 Rajas of the Ganges33:23 Adam #28 Star Realms35:22 Chris #27 Batman: Gotham City Chronicles39:23 Tim #27 Lorenzo Il Magnifico40:44 Adam #27 Robotech Reconstruction43:27 Chris #26 Endless Winter: Paleoamericans45:46 Tim #26 Pan Am47:32 Adam #26 Shards of Infinity50:15 Chris #25 Outlive52:44 Tim #25 Rising Sun55:28 Adam #25 Trekking the World57:18 Chris #24 Yokohama49:47 Tim #24 Anachrony1:02:10 Adam #23 Anachrony1:04:21 Chris #23 Smarphone, Inc.1:06:45 Tim #23 Eclipse: 2nd Dawn for the Galaxy1:10:28 Adam #24 Age of Galaxy1:12:58 Chris #22 Golem1:15:22 Tim #22 Yokohama1:16:20 Adam #22 Downforce1:18:14 Chris #21 Lost Ruins of Arnak1:21:48 Tim #21 Outlive1:24:30 Adam #21 Pan Am

In Episode 149 we start the countdown of our top 40 Board Games of all time with choices 31-40. We also discuss a poll on expressing your board game love in public. Timestamps:00:00 Introduction01:14 Poll: How do you express your board game love in public?09:18 Top Games of All Time15:20 Tim #40 and honorable mentions - Tiletum, Woodcraft, Darwin's Journey, Arkham Horror: The Card Game19:25 Adam #40 and honorable mentions - Dune, La Granja, Air, Land, and Sea, Sentient, Distilled, High Society22:56 Chris #40 and honorable mentions - Cthulhu: Death May Die, Root, Imhotep, Nidavellir, Ankh: Gods of Egypt, Darwin's Journey26:05 Tim #39 - Star Realms28:36 Adam #39 - Planted: A Game of Nature and Nurture30:35 Chris #39 - Scythe 32:50 Tim #38 - Libertalia: Winds of Galecrest36:38 Adam #38 - Mosaic: A Story of Civilization39:50 Chris #38 - Can't Stop44:00 Tim #37 - Cthulhu: Death May Die46:12 Adam #37 - Brian Boru: High King of Ireland47:49 Chris #37 - Final Girl50:08 Tim #36 - SCOUT51:34 Adam #36 - SCOUT52:32 Chris #36 - Space Base55:27 Tim #35 - Res Arcana57:10 Adam #35 - Terraforming Mars58:56 Chris #35 - Terracotta Army1:02:14 Tim #34 - Paladins of the West Kingdom1:04:45 Adam #34 -  Brass: Birmingham1:05:54 Chris #34 - Downforce1:09:07 Tim #33 - Viticulture Essential Edition1:10:45 Adam #33 - Can't Stop1:11:49 Chris #33 - Azul1:14:44 Tim #32 - Teotihuacan: City of Gods1:17:15 Adam #32 - Lacrimosa1:18:26 Chris #32 - Pan Am1:21:06 Tim #31 - Near and Far1:23:21 Adam #31 - Revive1:24:41 Chris #31 - The Fox Experiment

In Episode 148 we provide our hot take review of Darwin's Journey covering the mechanisms, the production, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss a poll about receiving board games with missing or damaged components. Chris provides a Darwin's Journey themed cocktail and then we discuss some board games on our table including Abducktion and Robinson Crusoe: Adventures on the Cursed Island. Timestamps:00:00 Introduction00:41 Poll: Have you ever opened a new copy of a board game to find out components are missing or misprinted?07:21 Darwin's Journey Description10:03 Gameplay and Mechanisms33:55 Production and Theme39:08 Final Thoughts44:25 Darwin's Journey Themed Cocktail47:28 Abducktion59:53 Robinson Crusoe: Adventures on the Cursed Island1:08:10 Listener Shoutout

In Episode 147 we provide our hot take reviews of Heat: Petal to the Medal and Downforce covering the mechanisms, the production, and our overall feelings of the game. We also compare the two and discuss which we liked more. We also discuss a poll about attending game nights without knowing anyone there. Timestamps:00:00 Introduction00:45 Poll: Have you ever attended a board game night without knowing anyone there?09:34 Heat: Petal to the Medal Description11:18 Gameplay and Mechanisms25:58 Production and Theme29:37 Final Thoughts33:46 Downforce Description33:15 Gameplay and Mechanisms47:08 Production and Theme50:37 Final Thoughts56:55 Listener Shoutout

In Episode 146 we provide our hot take review of Revive covering the mechanisms, the production, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss a poll about storing board game components. Then we discuss some board games on our table and future takes including Akropolis, Ra, Skull, Smartphone, Inc., and My Father's Work. Timestamps:00:00 Introduction00:41 Poll: How do you most commonly put your board game components back in their boxes?08:57 Revive Description11:08 Gameplay and Mechanisms30:21 Production and Theme36:40 Final Thoughts44:12 Akropolis48:55 Ra58:52 Skull59:54 Smartphone, Inc.1:01:38 My Father's Work