Every Night is Game Night

Latest Episodes:

Episode 146 - Psych Chat: The Psychology of Cheating in Board Games with Dr. Corey Butler Jul 05, 2019

Show notes

Shout out to Marcus Brissman over in the Sporadically Board Facebook Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/510403706050913/ - who put up an excellent, interesting thread on cheating in board games a few weeks ago. In response, Jason reached out to a blogger on BGG who wrote about cheating in board games a few years ago, Dr. Corey Butler, professor of social psychology at Southwest Minnesota State University.

What drives people to cheat? Who cheats? How often does it occur? For those who have cheated, how do they justify their behavior? If you cheat at a solo game and no one sees, does it count as cheating? We attempt to answer these and more questions about the psychological aspects of cheating.

In Liz we Trust: Legends of Novus - https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/fundamentalgames/legends-of-novus?ref=nav_search&result=project&term=legends%20of%20novus

ENGN 145 - Kickstarter Roundup: Sarah's War Fleet of Cartographers Jun 28, 2019

Show notes

Whenever the Kickstarter Roundup crew gets together, we always have more games to talk about than we can manage in one episode. So, Liz from Beyond Solitaire, Jeremy from Jambalaya Plays Games, and Jason have four more games for your listening pleasure.

We begin by leaning in to the roll and write craze that's hitting our hobby. Jeremy shares about Cartographers (2:20), the new one from Thunderworks Games which adds spacial and mapping elements to the formula. Then, the entire crew gushes about Fleet: The Dice Game (10:47), one of the most complex and combo-licious roll and write games on the market today.

For our last two games, we get into some much more niche and out-of-left-field offerings. Liz tells us about Wars of Marcus Aurelius (21:35), a tower defense-style wargame with strong historical flavor for a Latin fangirl like Liz to enjoy. Finally, Jason shared about the very interesting grid-based puzzle game meets Jenga experience, Sarah's Vision (27:37).

Finally, with all of these games, we inevitably have to confront the difficult task of culling our collections. We can't keep them all! We talk about how we judge what games to keep and/ or chuck, how we assess, and also our general philosophies towards collection-building.

ENGN 144 - Kickstarter Roundup: Fantasy Throwdown Jun 21, 2019

Show notes

The Kickstarter roundup crew is back! Liz from Beyond Solitaire and Jeremy from Jambalaya Plays Games rejoin Jason as we take a tour through all of the amazing projects we have been playing lately. This week, all of our games share the fact that they have fantasy-based themes.

First, Jeremy and Liz insisted that ENGN re-visit our review of Aeon's End: Legacy (2:44). Jason was up and down with his thoughts, so Liz and Jeremy want to set him straight! Next up, Liz shares about Call to Adventure (9:30), the very, very light dice chucking game of making a fantasy character and living out an adventure story. We'll let you know if it's worth it for "real' gamers.

After that, Jason and Jeremy get into two games that both put new school design chrome on old school, dice driven, epic games engines. Jason chats about Gloom of Kilforth (21:20) and Jeremy shares about Folklore: The Affliction (36:50).

Finally, we get into a little chat about folks who consistently ask for fantasy game recommendations on different online groups and forums. There are so many! We recommend a few more that might have flown under your radar.

ENGN 143 - U-Boot and Game of Thrones games Jun 14, 2019

Show notes

Jason is moving this month, so we're slowing down the content train just a bit this week. Jason did two guest spots on other podcasts, which you may have already heard. If you have, then please enjoy some other podcasts and come back next week for all new stuff. If you haven't heard, then please enjoy some snippets from other shows that you should be listening to!

The first part is a review of U-Boot: The Board game that Jason did with Steve and Elijah from the One Stop Coop Shop podcast. This is a cooperative WWII simulation game that's dripping with theme and immersion. Check out a bit of the conversation here. If you want to hear the full version, check out the longer pod here: https://soundcloud.com/user-318456537/87-u-boot

For the second half of this episode, Jason stopped by the flagship show, Board Gamers Anonymous, to chat about games based on the Game of Thrones IP: A Song of Ice and Fire miniatures game, Game of Thrones LCG, and Game of Thrones: The Board Game. You can listen to the full episode, with more game reviews, here: https://boardgamersanonymous.com/episode-222-best-game-thrones-games-w-jason-perez/

In Liz We Trust: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/danverssengames/for-what-remains-0?ref=discovery&term=for%20what%20remains

ENGN 142 - Origins Review of 2018 and Preview for 2019 Jun 07, 2019

Show notes

Although the ENGN crew won't make it to the big show in Ohio this year, we're still interested in all of the new games that will be demoed and played this year. First we review the games we previewed last year, letting you know if they ended up worth checking out (hint: one of us has a great record, and one falls on his face). After that, we chat about a bunch of games we are really looking forward to, including Jason's usual gaggle of adventure games and Anthony's pile of roll 'n' writes. If you plan to attend origins, let us know what you played and what you liked!

In Liz We Trust - Battlestations: Dirtside https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/gorillagames/battlestations-dirtside?ref=nav_search&result=project&term=battlestations

ENGN 141 - Podcaster Roundtable on Paid Reviews May 31, 2019

Show notes

We are tacking a very critical subject this week - board game reviewers who receive payment for their reviews. A lot of folks in the various forums and social medias have been discussing the topic, which was inspired by a video posted by Rodney Smith on paid reviews - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7LSY6HOX5c&t=1s.

I invited a couple of content creators on to talk about the issue - Liz Davidson from Beyond Solitaire, as well as first time ENGN guest Lance Myxter, the Undead Viking. We engage in a long, critical discussion about the topic from two very different perspectives (if you know the Undead Viking, you know the conversation would stretch a bit!). Some of the questions we consider:

Should reviewers be paid for their work? Who should pay, the publisher or the consumer? How do paid reviews impact consumer trust? What are the ethical implications? How do review copies or sponsorships play into the issue? And more!

It's a topic that stirs up a lot of emotions, which can be a real drag. However, we sincerely hope that this particular conversation offers more light than heat, and that you come out of it knowing more about both perspectives. As always, please reach out to us with any responses! (edited)

ENGN Preview Series 45 - Altar Quest with Adam and Brady Sadler, and Mike DiLisio May 28, 2019

Show notes

If you heard our last episode with the Top Ten Fantasy Games, you’ll know that the Sadlers will soon hit Kickstarter again with Alter Quest. This is a huge, new fantasy adventure game, combined with the same Modular Deck System as Street Masters and Brook City.

The Sadlers elaborate on influences like Hero Quest and Descent, then talk about how their game tries to capture the magic of old school, wondrous adventure with new school mechanisms. And, oh yeah, furniture! Mike also provides insights as a playtester.

ENGN Episode 140 - Top Ten Fantasy Adventure Tabletop Game with the Sadlers and Solomode Games May 24, 2019

Show notes

We welcome back Adam and Brady Sadler to talk about another big, honking project of theirs from Blacklist Games, Altar Quest! However, instead of a straight-up preview, Jason figured it would be fun to invite the guys on to share their main influences for crafting their newest fantasy Kickstarter project.

So, along with Mike Dilisio from Solomode Games, we put together a list of Top Ten Fantasy Tabletop Games. We all made our personal Top Tens, then smushed them together to make an uber list. Spoiler alert: Adam and Brady have a LOT to say about two games that seem like no brainers for a list like this - Mage Knight and Gloomhaven. Come check out what they have to say about these and a host of other fantasy games.

Also, we will have a full preview of Altar Quest coming out for you next week.

ENGN 139 - Oh My Ninjas! and Improve Your Play: Race for the Galaxy May 17, 2019

Show notes

We go card game crazy once again in this episode. Jason begins with Tiny Ninjas (5:48), a very small, single deck, card dueling game with chibi ninjas, dice, and an interesting wrinkle on attacking and defending. Anthony then shares about Oh My Goods with the Longsdale expansion that adds a more robust solo mode and a campaign (11:32).

Jason then welcomes Nettersplays, Annette Villa, on to the podcast to talk about a personal favorite for both of us, Race for the Galaxy (24:58). It's easy to walk into that game and get completely smoked by a decent opponent, so we have some tips and strategies for you to avoid that fate. Can you name the four basic RftG strategies that will lead you to victory (or, less embarrassing defeat)?

ENGN 138 - Journeys Through Fuji and Middle Earth May 10, 2019

Show notes

We welcome Anthony back to the pod after a short, child-inspired excursion, just in time for some cooperative games! Anthony's favorite type of game, for sure.

First, we get into Fuji (5:05), a unique game from the designer of The Mind. Fuji returns to the concept of limited communication between players, only with dice and a race game feel. We get into reviewing Fuji as well as consider the general question of whether The Mind can truly be considered a "game".

Then, we get into Lord of the Rings: Journeys in Middle Earth (17:55). If you want to hear more about mechanisms here, please check out Anthony's main podcast, Board Gamers Anonymous, episode 219. Here, we get into more nitty-gritty issues such as the presence (and possible intrusiveness) of the app, as well as how well this game integrates the Lord of the Rings theme.

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