The State Of Games

In this episode of The State of Games, Dice, Darrell, TC, and Jessica chat about some of their favorite house rules for games, why house rules exist, whether designers actually like them, and how some house rules have become official. All this, plus the marvelous Gum Gum Machine, New York Slice, the wonder of anchovies, Granite Games Summit, Klingon wedding vows, Xenon Profiteer, Free Parking, Brass, rules sticklers, Targi, camels, Sagrada, and so much more!

In this episode of The State of Games, Dice, Darrell, and TC get together for a deeper discussion on game design, debating favorite mechanics with which to play and design, upcoming trends, the design process, commissioned IPs, and when to resurrect projects. All this, plus the Cardboard Edison Awards, space marines, Scythe, heists, Anachrony, Oracle at Delphi, the roll and write revolution, fishing, the future of Brass, and so much more!

In this special episode of The State of Games, Dice, Darrell, TC, and Jessica gather to recount the fun and spectacle of the 7th annual Unpublished Games Festival in Baltimore, Maryland, featuring up and coming games and designers you'll be hearing more about in the future!. All this, plus a design philosophy discussion on why games with combos are so fun, the roll-and-write movement, mad scientists, Coldwater Crown, Fleet: Dicey Waters, horse racing, Richard Launius, the Fleeples, and so much more!

In this episode of The State of Games, Dice, Darrell, TC, and Jessica share three of their favorite recommendations for essential games that every gamer should have in their collection. All this, plus the Cold War, Unpub Prime, mad scientists, Pandemic Cthulhu, Race for the Galaxy, the unbearable rats in London, adventures in Gloomhaven, Broom Service, the magnificent Quiver, ships, camels, pressing your luck, the nookie hut, the winner of the Collector's Tavarua, Munchkin (believe it or not), and so much more!

In this special convention episode of The State of Games, Dice, Darrell, TC, and Jessica get together for a rare "live" recording at one of their favorite shows of the year, PrezCon, in Charlottesville, Virginia! The quartet talk all about inappropriate appropriation of board game design, more First Class, Flamme Rouge, Insider and Insider "After Dark", Cthulhu Wars, Sultan Kebab, coffee cream stout, the optimal hotel room temperature, how to bid properly for grail auction items, submarines, Great Western Trail, Ulm, Darrell losing his mind in Burke's Gambit, angels, interrupters, and so much more!

In this special Valentine’s Day episode of The State of Games, Dice, TC, and Jessica forego the typical “best games for couples discussion” and talk all about how you can spend a romantic night in playing board games all by yourself! All this, plus more First Class, Starving Artists, Chocolate Rain, dogs, camels, VivaJava, Chainsaw Warrior and those best games of the 80s, the Arkham series of awesome games, Richard Launius, how to win a Collector’s Edition of Tavarua, Santorini, the joys of cardboard coal mining, and so much more!

On this episode of The State of Games, Dice, Darrell, TC, and Jessica are joined by special guest Chris Matthew of Panda Game Manufacturing to talk all about components, their importance (or non-importance) in games, and a bit of behind-the-scenes with production. All this, plus Forbidden Stars, First Class, Space Hulk, Herbaceous, Compounded, Arkham Horror: The Card Game, Launius, generic box art, spiky meeples, solo gaming, time travel, post-apolyptic landscapes, and, of course, camels.

In this very special episode of The State of Games, Dice, Darrell, TC, and Jessica take a long look back on the games of 2016 and pick their official top three for Games and Discoveries of the Year! All this, plus lots of racing, penguins, yetis, New Bedford, Mythos Tales, Lords of Vegas, Kingdom Death: Monster and the bajillions it raised, the return of Crash Games, the redemption of The Freezer Incident, Thunder Alley, aliens, quilts, ponies, pirates, Cthulhu, and so much more!

In this special episode of The State of Games, Dice, Darrell, TC, and Jessica gather 'round in the warm glow of kith and kin to recount all the fun and festivities at the annual Dice Hate Me Holiday Retreat in Dover, Delaware! All this, plus Great Western Trail, Terraforming Mars, Last Friday, Jessica's new nickname, the subtle racism and sexism of Café International, the beauty of Santorini, Cthulhoid racing in Fast & Fhtagn, Tavarua, Paris Connection, prototype testing, and much, much more!

In this episode of The State of Games, Darrell rejoins Chris, TC, and Jessica to catch up on a plethora of board game topics, from fun times at BGGCon and DollarCon, to CMON going public, to that whole huge Conan kerfluffle. All this, plus BoardGameGeek etiquette, community trolls, Star Trek Ascendancy, Cottage Garden, Elfenland, the upcoming holidays, the ridiculousness that is Kingdom Death: Monster, a naval battle or two, and so much more!

In this episode of The State of Games, Dice, TC, and Jessica take a trip down memory lane as they talk about the power of nostalgia in board games, both in what they remember way back when and what's being repackaged nowadays to tap into that powerful, fuzzy feeling. All this, plus the Gamers for Cures marathon, TC's recent foray into horror video games, equity investment in the industry, Great Western Trail, time travel, surfing, A Feast for Odin, Spires, Lazer Ryderz, Doctor Strange, Sherlock Holmes, Mega Man, Flight of the Navigator, M.A.S.K. and so much more!

In this episode of The State of Games, Dice, TC, Jessica, and special guest Matt Riddle talk all about secrets in board games, from the mentality behind non-disclosure agreements, people hoarding game information during design and development, and even our favorite games that involve secrets like hidden information, hidden roles, traitors, and so on. All this, plus more on the lawsuit between Myriad and Zap'd Games, a little bit of publisher etiquette on eliciting support from the review community, SeaFall, Sherlock Holmes, Mythos Tales, Spires, the tiniest little 4x in the galaxy, the Gamers for Cures 24-hour Board Game Marathon, and so much more!

In this episode of The State of Games, we got the band back together to talk about games that we should probably hate because of our personal tastes but that we love despite the odds. All this, plus a little bit of post-Essen excitement, Great Western Trail, crazzy fries, the Creepy Peeper, thievery, Spires, Cobras, Lazer Ryderz, Launius (of course), and so much more!

In this episode of The State of Games, Dice, TC, and Jessica turn up the heat and talk about the science, community contributions, and sometimes controversy surrounding hype and BGG's Hotness. All this, plus tales of That Board Game Thing and GrandCon, Terraforming Mars, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, nazis, Scythe, New Bedford, dog sledding, endangered species, more about art in board games, hot sauce, Lazer Ryderz, Richard Launius, and so much more!

In this episode of The State of Games, Dice, Darrell, and TC brave the podcast sans Jessica, and break out their berets and Van Dykes to talk about whether some board games could be truly considered art - and chat about which ones are most decidedly not. All this, plus Japanese CCGs, escape rooms, Mystery Mansion, WashingCon, Scythe, Rob Daviau, the big lawsuit of Zev vs. Dan Yarrington, FFG and Games Workshop parting ways, Fortress America, Settlers of Catan, Go, Chess, the Fidget Cube, and, of course, Yspahan. Whew.

In this episode of The State of Games, Dice, TC, and Jessica take on a ton of listener questions about currency in boardgames, family games, what gets better with age, and kids games. All this, plus camels (of course), social gaming, butterflies, Blackthorn, Mansions of Madness, caverns, Cry Havoc, Grimslinging, sassy vikings, Morocco, Scythe, dragons and flagons, Spires, Kemet, frozen Eskimo babies, penguins, and so much more!

In this episode of The State of Games, Dice, Darrell, TC, and Jessica recount their adventures at Gen Con 2016, offering views of the big show from publisher, manufacturer, designer, and new gamer perspectives. All this plus FeldCon, Klask, not running with the bulls, New Bedford, punk rock, baseball, Goonies, Ice Cool, ol' Jack Burton, Fate of the Elder Gods, Lazer Ryderz, camels, and so much more!

In this episode of The State of Games, the gang's all here - finally - as Dice, Darrell, TC, and Jessica chat all about their big plans as they head to Gen Con in Indianapolis for the Best Four Days in Gaming! Get tips on the hottest games to buy and try (including TC's stranger picks), where to find all of us to say hey and play some games, the best shrimp cocktail in the Midwest, great panels, and food trucks! All this, plus Mansions of Madness Second Edition, Scythe, Rolling America, sassy vikings, penguins, whaling in New Bedford, Fate of the Elder Gods, and so much more!

In this episode of The State of Games, Dice, TC, Jessica, and the disembodied voice of Darrell discuss which games designers would make it on their "Mt. Rushmore of Games". All this, plus talks of Scythe, The Camel Hypothesis in Timbuktu, RuthCon 2016, Thebes, Karuba, going to Mars, Psychological Warfare, murder, Mysterium, and so much more!

In this special convention coverage episode of The State of Games, Dice, Darrell, TC, and Jessica talk about their adventures in Columbus, Ohio at Origins Game Fair! Even though TC didn't attend, we have lots of cool coverage from the rest of the crew, with talk of the SdJ nominees Imhotep and Karuba, and tons more! Join us as we discuss Dead Last, silly putty awesomeness with Smugglers, the year of Mr. Pfister with Port Royal, Launius (of course), Pikachu's butt, Blüdle, Brad Smoley, The Legends of Sleepy Hollow, Fate of the Elder Gods, Gamelyn Games, Jeni's ice cream and so much more! This is the best coverage of Origins Game Faire you could dream of, so tune in and drop out!