Vrahode: Age of Prophecy (Saturday Review)

The Age of Inception is all but over. People are starting to forget the stories that were passed down. Tabuhl's Tail, a sign of things to come, will soon return. While our memories fade, that most ancient of omens is ready to lighten the night sky once again. It is time for a few of us, whose memories are more vivid, to get ready for a new age, when Tabuhl's Tail returns and reigns supreme in Vrahode: Age of Prophecy by Jeffrey Irving from Weathervane Games.

Mischief (Saturday Review)

In Tir na-Nog, ethereal Queen Titania and Lord Oberon have finally decided to not only end their age-old rivalry, but also to get married. For the big day, they have invited delegations from all the vassal faeries to come together and celebrate the grand occasion. As a faerie noble yourself, you also received one of these invitations, but which role your folk will play in this new combined kingdom is unclear. It is up to you and your delegation to be true fairies and form as many alliances as you will cause Mischief by Dan Cassar from Dream Cult Game Studio.

Sakana Stack (Saturday Review)

You have risen early to prepare your stall at Tsukiji Market. It won't be long until the doors open and the aisles become a sea of people wanting to sample the wares. It's going to be tough. The quality and variety of fish and shellfish on your stand are outstanding and should speak for themselves, but you can't be sure until you have sold your whole Sakana Stack by Mike Petchey from Huff No More.

Objective Bias – why reviews are always subjective (Topic Discussion)

If you have spent a number of years reviewing board games, you will have seen how people keep bringing up the topic of how reviewers should not be biased and remain as objective as possible. Of course, reviewers, like all people, are always going to have biases and a review will never be objective. As this topic was recently discussed yet again, I wanted to share my thoughts on bias and subjectivity in my writing.

Loot Dispute (Saturday Review)

The band of brave adventurers had finally arrived back in our town. They had returned jubilantly after clearing the local dungeons of the many monsters that had lurked in the deep caverns and tunnels. We celebrated with them because we no longer faced the threat of attacks. Not only that, now that the dungeons were clear of all dangers, we were able to scour them for treasure. The only problem was how to divide the riches we would find. It was clear, there was going to be a lot of Loot Dispute by Jeffrey D. Allers from Gold Seal Games.

Star Trek: Away Missions – Captain Kirk: Federation Expansion (Saturday Review)

Captain's Log - Stardate... well, nobody is really sure. After having been drawn into some sort of temporal disturbance, the Enterprise is now floating helplessly in space without thrust and only minimal power. Our viewscreens show the presence of another vessel. It isn't completely clear, but it looks like we have been transported into the aftermath of a massive battle. To find out what we are dealing with, Spock, McCoy, Chekov and myself, the captain, have decided to beam across and investigate. I know this is going to be our first of many Star Trek: Away Missions - Captain Kirk: Federation Expansion by Andrew Haught, Mike Haught and Phil Yates from Gale Force Nine.

Joint Excitement – discovering games together (Topic Discussion)

I love my game group. We've been playing board games for many. many years now. Over the years we learned many new ones and slowly established favourites, which would eventually get replaced by new favourites. It's very special to have a consistent group of people to play games with. One of the really special things I found is how we discover games together and I want to write about it in this article.

Charms (Saturday Review)

Whether it is coins, keys, clover or rabbit feet, there are many items that, according to ancient superstitions, bring you luck and maybe even protect you from evil. You merely need to wear them around your neck or on a bracelet and their magic becomes active. Collectively, these items are known as Charms by Taiki Shinzawa from New Mill Industries.

In Between Games – quick games while you wait (Topic Discussion)

I think many of us like games that take an hour or two to play, maybe even longer. I guess that's at least true when you've got a game group you play regularly with. I love longer games, but I also love those quick games that take less than half an hour to learn and play. They're ideal to play before, after or even in between other games. They're also perfect for game groups, because you can play them while you wait for others to arrive, after some people have left or in between other games, while some of you freshen themselves up. So in this article, I want to look at these "in-between" games.

Prey Another Day (Saturday Review)

The forest is dark and eerie. A cold wind whistles through the branches and makes them creak and groan. The rustling of the leaves goes some way to hiding the noise of your prowling through the undergrowth. You have your prey in sight, but suddenly, at the same time as you break cover, other hunters reveal themselves. There is a moment of confusion which our shared victim uses to their advantage to escape to safety. It looks like we are all going hungry today and we all have to accept that we will have to Prey Another Day by Matthew Dunstan and Brett J. Gilbert from Pegasus Spiele.