Space: an endless void with countless stars, some of which capable of harbouring a planet that can support life. On one of these Goldilocks planets far away from our own, life has indeed emerged. Yet, nothing is ever allowed to last. One day, the inevitable end will come. So in the meantime, life on this planet is competing for supremacy. They do not know it yet, but they are the Doomlings by Justus Meyer and Andrew Meyer from Doomlings LLC.
I had my camera ready. The tripod was weighed down to ensure I got a clear picture and the telescopic lens was attached to get me as close to the action as possible. It wasn't going to be easy because this creature was hard to find and very camera-shy. I was sure I was in the right spot though. There had been footprints in the ground, so there was no doubt. I stood to make good money from my photos. Then, almost out of nowhere, there it was. I almost couldn't believe it, but it was true - I Found Bigfoot by John David Wood from Thing 12 Games.
Trading in the Mediterranean was profitable, but came with risks. Merchant ships were travelling far to seek out rare spices, precious cloths and many other valuable and lucrative goods. Once a heavily laden ship returned, the goods would be brought to market and auctioned off to the highest bidder. It was never easy to compete with the other buyers and ensure you got the best deal. It was even harder to compete with the infamous and hugely influential trading family, the Medici by Reiner Knizia from Steamforged Games.
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.
The sun had set, but we still had a few hours before the main event. Our telescopes were set up and we had a flask of hot chocolate and a few biscuits ready to see us through the night. Our thick coats and thick socks were going to keep us warm and cosy. We were hopeful that tonight we would be able to discover new constellations. It was really exciting. Luckily, there were no clouds, so we stood a good chance to see the wonderful Starry Night Sky by Emma Larkins from Buffalo Games.
The snowshelf reached from horizon to horizon in all directions. We were in the Valley of the Ancient Ones, which was a frozen region, pounded by deadly storms, but which had made space for a single, lone city. It was summer and time for the guilds to go on their annual pilgrimage and explore this tundra. As one of the leaders, you were about to take your guild to look for vestiges of a civilization whose existence had been passed down through myths and stories. If you were successful, you would bring riches and prestige to your lodge. You knew the risks, but you were prepared to go out onto the I C E by Bragou and Samson F. Perret from This Way.
Oliver KinnePost read time 7 min readLeave a Comment on 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...
Oliver KinnePost read time 5 min readLeave a Comment on Last Bug Standing in the Circle of Doom! (Saturday Review) It was either us or them. We were the only two teams on a planet far, far away, a planet that was crawling with bug-eyed monsters or BEMs as we had started to call them. My navigator moved around the directional grid to guide the vehicle across the planet's surface and allow the gunner to take aim at one of the weird inhabitants of this rock in space. We had to be careful though. We had to target the right BEMs to come out victorious in this fight to the end. It was all about who was going to be the Last Bug Standing in the Circle of Doom! by Bez Shahriari from Surprised Stare Games.
"I got candy!" comes the shout. Taken aback, you look across the counter and see the eager and very happy face of the youngster staring up at you. Another sugar-loving customer has come to your amazing sweet shop to pick and mix their favourite delights. Below the face, on outstretched arms, cradled in cupped hands are 16 Candies by Dickie Chapin from Envy Born Games.
To create the best apple brandy, you have to freeze fermented cider and remove the ice. It's quite simple and very effective in increasing the alcohol content of an already delicious drink. It's really easy to apply this to cider made after the autumn harvest. Just leave the casks in the winter cold and when enough ice has formed, pour the remaining liquid into another cask. Repeat the process as often as you please to concentrate the remaining liquid to levels of anywhere between 25% and 40% alcohol. It's what we call "jacking" and it will come as no surprise that the resulting drink is called Applejack by Uwe Rosenberg from The Game Builders.
