Twist Taking – trick-taking games with a twist (Topic Discussion)

I've written about my love of trick-taking games and the genre in general many times. Just check the archives... Now that my game group has also gotten into the genre, I've discovered more and more games that take this ancient card game mechanism to new heights. They apply new twists and add different mechanisms to create really exciting new titles. In this article, I want to share with you which ones I am particularly excited about.

Picky Pixie (Saturday Review)

They were very shy and very few people had seen one, but you and your friends had been lucky. One lived at the bottom of the garden of the McGregories at the end of the village. The old couple was completely unaware of the sneaking by both, the mythical creature and your group of pals. You really wanted to make friends with this little winged being, but it was a very Picky Pixie by Elizabeth Hargrave from Button Shy.

Odin (Saturday Review)

Viking warriors cherish war. They bravely man their longships with healers, skalds, spies, seidmadrs, völva, hirdmen, berserker, a styrimader and maybe even the jarl. They go on long voyages to conquer far-away lands and fight the locals in glorious battles. Those Vikings who fall go to Valhalla, a majestic hall located in Asgard and presided over by the god of gods, Odin by Yohan Goh, Hope S. Hwang and Gary Kim from Helvetiq.

Bad Trevor (Saturday Review)

Fero City: a bustling metropolis that has become a battleground. There was little time to evacuate the millions of inhabitants before a horde of supervillains descended and started pulverizing iconic landmarks. Most people fled, but many had no chance. Now you have to get them out of there before it's too late and before the arrival of the worst supervillain of them all: Bad Trevor by Mark Hurdle from Fist Bump Games.

Cosmoctopus (Saturday Review)

Welcome, everyone. It is wonderful to see so many of you here today. The hour is near and the gaze of the Great Inky One is upon us. We have to be strong and stay true to the cause. It is time to show our dedication, fellow followers. It is time to hail the mighty Cosmoctopus by Henry Audubon from Lucky Duck Games.

Friends with Games – how important game nights are (Topic Discussion)

I know it's not true for everyone and playing games by yourself is certainly something a lot of people really enjoy, but for me, playing board games with friends or family is very important. I always look forward to the next time I meet friends, be it online or in person, for game night. I get really excited when my wife or daughter says that they want to play board games with me. I always think carefully about what games to take when we go and meet family and it's wonderful that they enjoy the hobby almost as much as I do. In this article, I want to look at this a little closer.

Votes for Women (Digital Eyes)

The Women's Suffrage Movement in the US started small, very small in fact, in a tiny hamlet in New York State. Over time, it spread from state to state across the whole country as its following grew. Their fight for equal rights culminated in the ratification of the 19th Amendment after a seventy-year battle. However, while this monumental achievement was a vital step, it did not guarantee every woman access to the ballot. The story continues to this day across the globe and the fight is still fought to achieve Votes for Women by Tory Brown from Fort Circle Games.

Top 5 Games of (and I reviewed in) 2023 (Saturday Review)

Announcing the annual Top Table Award is always a pleasure and an honour at the same time. Choosing and deciding the order of the top 5 games I reviewed in 2023 is never easy. There usually isn't much between the games and they are all great for their own reasons. So, irrespective of which one won the coveted award, all of the games are worth a closer look. Here goes...

Gold n’ Grog (Saturday Review)

Ho, ho, ho and a bottle of rum! That was the song that accompanied the small boat being rowed by a motley crew of scallywags. We were heading to our secret pirate treasure island to retrieve the loot we had stashed over many, many years. The problem was, none of us knew exactly where we had buried our spoils. We had packed plenty of shovels though to make short work of this small patch of land. After we pulled up on shore and spread out on the island, it was time to dig for Gold n' Grog by Jake A Smith from Next Adventure Games.

The Battle of Versailles (Saturday Review)

This week, Hope Thompson joins us on the blog with her review of a game about the fashion show held in 1973 in Versailles, France that pitted newcomer American designers such as Anne Klein, Halston, Oscar de la Renta, Stephen Burrows and Bill Blass against the stalwart French designers such as Yves Saint Laurent, Hubert de Givenchy, Emanuel Ungaro, Pierre Cardin and Christian Dior. Hope's father, David Thompson, talks to her about her experience of playing The Battle of Versailles by Eloi Pujadas and Ferran Renalias from Salt & Pepper Games.