Photosynthesis (Saturday Review)

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A handful of small trees stand at the edge of a clearing. The wind blows gently as the sun starts to rise in the east. You can almost see the trees reaching for the light, as they slowly convert the sunshine into sugars, which is used to grow and produce seeds. Each species will have different survival strategies, but all trees have a natural urge to disperse their seeds towards the middle of the clearing, where there is less competition and more fertile ground. However, it won't be long until the many saplings have filled the available space and the fight for sunshine will become more and more intense. In the meantime, some trees will have grown old and will die, freeing up precious ground for seeds to settle and hopefully germinate. It is for you and up to three of your friends to look after your rootstock in Photosynthesis by Blue Orange Games.

Bespoke Cargo Bike (Saturday Review)

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Travelling to games night, weighed down with a giant bag full of games isn't easy. I appreciate that many people have a car and use that to get to games night, and that makes sense, especially if you travel a bit further. However, if your friends live only a short while away, then going by bike would be another, and possibly better, option. Yet, a lot of bikes aren't really designed to carry much. Yes, you could get panniers, but they're not ideal. However, these days there are a lot of utility orientated bicycles available from your local bike shop, or you can go one better and get a custom-built bike that is not only up to the task of ferrying around bulky loads, like board games, but is also made exactly how you want it.

Near and Far: Amber Mines (Saturday Review)

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In the world of Arzium, groups of brave adventurers travel from town to town, where they load up on supplies and pack animals and recruit new members, who are willing to join them on the long journey, as they look for a lost city, called Last Ruin, where legend says lies a powerful artefact that will fulfil the finder's innermost wishes. It is time for you to add your name to the list of famous explorers, venture into the wild to collect valuable and useful items, meet new people, return to town to work for money and food, travel through abandoned mines and do what is needed to successfully complete the journey. Near and Far: Amber Mines by Red Raven Games allows you to become a hero, if you can compete with your fellow bands of explorers and come out ahead.

Kodama: The Tree Spirits (Saturday Review)

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In a world where every tree is inhabited by its own gentle and benign spirit, it is your important task to ensure that every sapling grows strong and big, and offers a home for as many small creatures and plants as possible, thereby creating harmony and balance in the forest. If you can work in harmony with the seasons and nurture the worms, fireflies, flowers and mushrooms that grow on the tree that you have been tasked to look after, you will come out as the best caretaker and will be generously rewarded with health and happiness by the tree spirit, the kodama, that inhabits your tree. It is this work that you carry out in Kodama: The Tree Spirits by Action Phase Games.

Exchange: A Stock Trading Game of Strategy & Wit (Saturday Review)

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The stock market is in turmoil. There is a financial crisis. Companies' solvency is in doubt. Panic selling has started for some securities. The year is 1792, and 24 stockbrokers meet in Wall Street in New York under a buttonwood tree to sign an agreement that creates a new way of securities trading, which creates a closed market where everyone can trust each other to honour payments and where investments are legitimate. In Exchange: A Stock Trading Game of Strategy & Wit by Eric Sillies, you are one of the group of 24 and you have to use your wit and cunning to take the beginnings of a new stock exchange to what will eventually become the New York Stock Exchange.

Silver (Saturday Review)

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Here is another game that I shouldn't like, because I don't like memory games, what you have to remember where certain cards are. However, there is something very addictive about Silver, the new card game by Bézier Games. I can't put my finger on it, but somehow I look past my dislike of games where I have to remember things when I play Silver. In fact, I can't stop playing it, especially against the AI that comes with the app.

Hardback (Saturday Review)

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I don't like word games. Even though I love writing, which is one of the reasons for this blog, I was never any good at crosswords or Scrabble, and it's not because English is my second language. Even when I do a German crossword or play German Scrabble, I'm still not very good, at least not compared to my parents or a couple of my friends who seem to excel at these. Yet, when I play Hardback by Fowers Games, I have a lot of fun and have a good chance of winning.

Mint Works (Saturday Review)

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As many of you will know, I absolutely love small box games, and mint tin games in particular (see episode 6 of the Tabletop Inquisition podcast). They're so easy to stash away and take with you anywhere, and Mint Works by Five24 Labs is a great example. The small mint tin is robust and can easily deal with knocks, it's quick to set up, as it consists basically of a deck of cards, and the tin itself functions as the pool for the mint worker tokens. The gameplay is also relatively quick, so overall it's ideal for when you're out and about - on a train, plane or a bus, or while you're waiting for food in a pub or restaurant.

The Board Game Book (Saturday Review)

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I am making a slight diversion from my usual reviews and am looking at a book instead. However, it's The Board Game Book, so don't worry, we're still on topic. It's not the first book all about board games of course, but it certainly stands out, because it counts a number of professional writers among its contributors. So the quality of the writing is high, and the editing and production are also excellent - but let me start at the beginning.

Tiny Epic Mechs (Saturday Review)

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In the year 3030, mankind has developed the technology to hold epic real-life battle events where daring fighters skilled in direct combat and with hundreds of hours of experience piloting the latest advancement in mech suits, race around an arena where they place their turrets and mines, collect credits to buy weapons and shields, charge their energy storage and don their power suits in an attempt to reach the mighty mech exoskeleton, so that they can leave victorious, as hundreds of millions of viewers watch the proceedings and bet on which of the Tiny Epic Mechs will win.