The State Of Games

In yet another extended episode, Chris, Darrell, and TC share experiences from the 8th annual Unpublished Games Festival in Baltimore, Maryland! Hear tales of lost programs, playtests of My Father’s Work, Maastricht, Homebrewers, and Those Meddling Kids, diversity and etiquette, TC signing a game, and Shark Tank. Plus, game news about Van Ryder’s Graphic Novel Adventures, Restoration’s Fireball Island tour, new tiles for Azul & more!

In this extended episode, Chris, Darrell, and TC share experiences from one of their favorite gaming conventions, PrezCon, and then discuss what makes a con great, what they hate, and play a little Marry, Fling, Kill. All this, plus straight talk about Gen Con housing, 7th Continent, trading & negotiating in the Elysian Quadrant, fishing in Nusfjord, Fireball Island news, Charterstone, totally breaking an Unlock, the ION Award, Smile, Carnies & more!

In this episode, Chris, Darrell, and TC revisit the topic of board game expansions – whether they’re necessary, which game lines have jumped the shark, and which are absolute essentials. All this, plus more one hour wonder action in Welcome to Centerville & Pioneers, vehicular Matchbox car mayhem, busting Cthulhu in Arkham Horror, secret designer beach weekend, Time Barons, Psycho Raiders, Powerships, and other weirdness!

In this episode, Chris, Darrell, and TC talk about those wondrous gems that hit a super sweet spot in about an hour, and some of the magic behind their designs. All this, plus the Louder d20 challenge, fun at Camp Launius, Chronicles of Crime and lots of dead cats, a giveaway contest for the Endeavor reprint, what really grinds our gears, Otys, Nautilus Traps, Fog of Love, Maastricht, camels, and so much more!

In this special episode, Chris, Darrell, and TC look back on the year that was and share their awards for favorite games published last year - and even some discoveries that came out before 2017! All this, plus Ethan Louder’s choice for Family Game of the Year, lots of space things, dinosaurs, horse racing, thieves, Fireball Island, Bob Ross, The Thing, Battle for Rokugan, Downforce, samurais, board game counterfeiting, Calimala, and more!

In this episode, Chris, Darrell, and TC share experiences and games played at the annual Dice Hate Me Holiday get-together; Chris does a little solo casting on his #HolidayRoad about Merlin and the evolution of Stefan Feld’s games. All this, plus adult playgrounds, Santa’s Workshop, DropMix, beer, Whistle Stop, the Squatty Potty, Favelas, getting old, Waldschattenspiel, building French canals, Bruges, Macao, & more!

In this episode, Chris, Darrell, and TC talk Thanksgiving, Doctor Who: Time of the Daleks, Mario Odyssey, Fury of Dracula, new publishing companies, and more, and are then joined by Lesley Louder to share favorite moments from the very first PAX Unplugged in Philadelphia. All this, plus a classic Darrell rant about scarves, Dogs, Amish pretzels, the rise & fall of Coaster Park, Claims of Gold, and Black Gold.

In this episode, Darrell returns from Essen Spiel to join Chris and TC in a lively discussion about how value is calculated (and often estimated) by publishers and consumers for games in retail, online, and on Kickstarter. All this, plus how awesome Brussels and Lufthansa can be, Doctor Who, Euro and dinosaur game design challenges, Azul, Clans of Caledonia, what’s up with Mayfair, Arkham Noir, cows, marl, how this time Darrell (doesn’t) get the finger, and more!

In this episode, Chris, TC, and special guest Keith Ferguson set the Halloween mood by sharing their best spooky, creepy, or macabre retheme for totally mundane games. All this, plus Keith shares the little nightmare before his Christmas game - Santa’s Workshop - was published, the new Legend of the Five Rings, Conquest of Paradise, guerilla marketing, grave robbing, electrocution, zombie camels, & more!

In this episode, Chris, TC, and Darrell decide to continue the biyearly tradition of talk about SPIEL, the world’s biggest board game convention in Essen, Germany, including Darrell’s upcoming adventure, most anticipated con releases, and trip tips. All this, plus Whitehall Mystery, Beeeees!, an early peek at Tribes: Early Civilization, a little Nintendo talk, Legends of Sleepy Hollow, Modern Art & more!

In this episode, Chris, TC, and special guest Ben Pinchback of Fleet and Wasteland Express Delivery Service fame chat about the biggest trends in boardgaming, from the earliest days of roll and move, to the CCG days of Magic: The Gathering! All this, plus Legends of Sleepy Hollow, Liguria, Charterstone, Dragon Island, the joys of Backgammon, HeroQuest, sharks, monster trucks, reprints, and more!

In this episode, Chris, Darrell, and TC are joined by special guest, contest winner, and friend of the podcast Lee McConnell to talk about game reviews, best and worst formats, critique etiquette, game ratings systems, and the spread of positive and negative hype. All this, plus Photosynthesis, The Cousin’s War, Ginkgopolis, a spirited Darrell rant about card sleeving, camels, unicorns, werebeasts, and more!

In this episode, Chris, Darrell, and TC recount their adventures from Indianapolis and the 50th anniversary of the biggest show of the year, Gen Con! All this, plus exhibitor woes, dirty thieves, a classic Darrell rant, going insane in Mountains of Madness, hauling nukes in Wasteland Express Delivery Service, the surreal Shark Island, Custom Heroes, Detective: City of Angels, loops in Coaster Park, & much more!

In this episode, Chris, Darrell, TC, and special guest A.J Porfirio of Van Ryder Games dig deep into the difference between strategy and tactics, their eternal symbiosis, which might be superior, and the mentality of tactical and strategic gamers. All this, plus more on Detective: City of Angels, A Dog’s Life, smelling pretty, horse racing, Argent: The Consortium, smoking pork butts, GenCon teases & more!

In this episode, Chris, Darrell, TC, and Jessica have a very special announcement to make, all about a big Exit and a bittersweet goodbye. Plus, we talk about the current Spiel des Jahres winners, some crazy picks from SdJ’s past, more on Lisboa, Unreal Estate, adventures as an Uber and Lyft Driver, Terraforming Mars, Chameleon, Yspahan, Captain Sonar, Sol: Last Days of a Star, Dogs of War, Dice Forge, and much more!

In this episode, Chris, Darrell, and TC jump in the WABAC Machine and podcast like it’s 2012 by revisiting the Jones Theory – a controversial method for collecting and culling games! Plus, we talk deeply about our first impressions of the gargantuan Lisboa, the Kennerspiel nominee Raiders of the North Sea, thinky Yamatai, the satisfying puzzle that is Sentient, and a classic Darrell rant about Ticket to Ride: Rails & Sails!

In this special episode, Chris, Darrell, and TC are joined by guests Brad Smoley and Eric Handler for a special “live” recap from Origins Game Fair! Join the fabulous five for impressions of hot games like Century: Spice Road, Honshu, Master of Orion, Bärenpark, and Dairyman, plus adventures in trivia, the joys of an official Unpub room, Vital Lacerda, an undercover Bruno Cathala, Eric almost dies on air, and more!

In this episode, Darrell rejoins Chris, TC, and an ailing Jessica to talk about the dark side of gaming – mean games! We debate the meanest host, why some people like mean games, what are the meanest mechanics, and mean games we love! All this, plus Medici: The Card Game, First Class, Dice Hate Me’s 7th Anniversary, betting on the horses (and camels), digital gaming, Ethnos, Covert, Yokohama & more!

In this episode, Chris, TC, and Jessica dim the lights and talk about what makes a game mysterious, why they’re so cool, and which are modern classics or need to be locked up with the butler. All this, plus The Chameleon, alchemy, TC’s DnD adventures, Fate of the Elder Gods, the 7 Wonders Twitter poll, the anniversary of Dice Hate Me, Spiel des Jahres nominees, Halloween, serial killers & more!

In this episode, Chris, Darrell, TC, and Jessica discuss games where you can dish about anything and everything while playing, and whether that’s actually a good idea. All this, plus DnD, Take the Bait, Fuse, dead Pharoahs, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, hobo pain, Troyes, “massage etiquette”, Diamonds, Fleet, VivaJava, lying about Liar’s Dice, and more!