Minty’s Bootiful Football Game (Saturday Review)

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I haven't yet reviewed any pure print-and-play (PnP) games, but Alex Bardy contacted me via Twitter and sent me a complimentary copy of Minty's Bootiful Football Game. I decided to try it and wasn't disappointed. As the name suggests, it is a mint tin game all about football. Now, I love mint tin games, in case you hadn't noticed, but football isn't really my cup of tea. Yet, when I played this game, I actually really enjoyed it and did get the feeling of taking part in a real football match - but let's start at the beginning.

Intelligent design

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Let me start by saying that I completely appreciate the amount of time and effort that goes into thinking of, prototyping, designing, playtesting and developing a game. It takes hundreds of hours of playtest sessions to refine a game and very clever people to create a great game that flows nicely, is balanced and creates the intended player experience. So when people buy a game and change its rules without second thought, they disrespect the designers' and developers' hard work, time and effort. After all, your quick and hasty rule changes are unlikely to improve a game that has gone through years of development and been tested by many, many people. Yet, I think there are reasons why you would want to change a game, and I don't think there is any disrespect to anyone by doing so in those situations.

Mint Tin Aliens (Saturday Review)

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It might be time to call me the Mint Tin Man, à la The Wizard of Oz, given how many of subQuark's mint tin games I have now reviewed and made videos about. However, there is just so much fun in these small packages that I just have to write about them. Of course, games that last only 5 to 15 minutes won't satisfy everyone's needs - but then, few games do. Also, being only two player limits who these games are for. Yet, it is exactly the length, player count and box size that make these games perfect for taking with you and playing with anyone, including people who may not otherwise be much into modern games. Of course, Mint Tin Aliens is no exception

New arrivals

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For many of us it is easy to forget how we started with tabletop games. We have now played so many different games and followed the industry for some time that we forget the games we used to play and love. Of course, we have stopped playing some of these early games for good reasons. Our tastes will have changed and as we discovered more games we realized what it is that we enjoy more than the games we started with. However, that doesn't mean our early games are bad games. In fact, it will be these games that are great for introducing new people into the community.

Mint Tin Mini Apocalypse (Saturday Review)

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Here is yet another mint tin game, simply because they pack such a huge punch in such a small package. Mint Tin Mini Apocalypse by subQuark is another game that comes in a small form factor mint tin, is really quick to learn and a lot of fun to play. It easily fits into virtually any pocket and doesn't take up much table space, so you can have it with you anywhere and play it everywhere. It is a realtime game, which means there are no turns and both players take their actions continuously in order to win. It creates a lot of frantic excitement and hilarity for players of virtually all ages.

UK Games Expo 2019

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I joined the tabletop games industry as a blogger only recently (less than a year ago actually) and my journey really started when I visited UK Games Expo in 2018. I had started to work on a little project that I thought might eventually make it onto Kickstarter, and I felt that by attending the event I could do a little research, maybe get some contacts and generally get a better feel for the tabletop games industry and community. I certainly wasn't disappointed, because the UK Games Expo is an amazing event, and the whole atmosphere is very friendly and welcoming. I would argue that my visit to the expo made up my mind about wanting to do more within this great community - and I knew I had to return for UK Games Expo 2019.

Wingspan (Saturday Review)

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I've been saying it for a while now: Wingspan by Elizabeth Hargrave and Stonemaier Games is an amazingly beautiful game. The great physical table presence created by the dice tower and eggs, the gorgeous illustrations on the player mats and cards, the sheer number of different birds on the cards, all with their latin name and a brief description of what they are, and the high quality of all the components and parts make it very special. The artists, Ana Maria Martinez Jaramillo, Natalia Rojas and Beth Sobel, have done an amazing job, and Stonemaier Games has ensured that the product meets, if not exceeds, everyone's expectations. However, the beauty and quality are only one part of what makes this game so outstanding. For me, it is the gameplay that lifts Wignspan to the next level.

Friendly competition

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I was recently approached by Chris Anderson to be a judge in The Board Game Workshop Design Contest 2019, and I felt very honoured. After all, I'm not a well known game reviewer, nor am I a famous YouTuber with over 1,000 subscribers. However, the contest is open to anyone who is interested in tabletop games, which I think is really great. Here is a contest that aims to really help the community of designers and bring them together with real people who love playing games. It is these sort of events that we need more of.

Mint Tin Mini Skulduggery (Saturday Review)

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I absolutely love mint tin games, and Mint Tin Mini Skulduggery by subQuark fits this bill perfectly, as it comes in a properly small, rectangular mint tin, rather than the larger format that many other mint tin games come in. That means it fits perfectly into your coat pocket, so you can have it with you at all time. After all, you never know when the opportunity arises to play a game when you're out and about.