For the third instalment in my series Origin Stories, I had the pleasure to talk to Asger Harding Granerud, one of the two designers (with Daniel Skjold Pedersen) behind what is very likely the most in-demand board game of 2023, Heat: Pedal to the Metal. Fresh off a prestigious nomination for the Deutsche Spielepreis, I …
The other day, while I was playing Barcelona, I was wondering: what made me fall in love with games like Grand Austria Hotel, Suburbia and or more recently La Granja. They don’t have the most mechanical perfect designs. They have artwork I enjoy a lot, but they are no artistical masterpieces I would frame and …
Read more “First Impressions of Barcelona – Putting the Charm Back Into Euros”
I have the feeling I need to preface this one with a huge disclaimer: More than any other game I can think of, Mr President is first and foremost a interesting challenge. It’s a challenge to learn, a challenge to play, a challenge to write about. And I’m not even sure I’m the right person …
Aaah, Kickstarter, what a hodgepodge of emotions! From FOMO to buyer’s remorse, happy anticipation to the dread of something possibly never fulfilling, pride of having backed something amazing to the feeling of superiority when one has managed to miss a dud. Lately, I’ve noticed a new aspect of it which for lack of a better …
Read more “Review of Rolling Heights – True to Its Theme, Things Take Longer Than Planned”
Do you know the feeling when you play a game and wonder “why on earth did I buy this”? Not in a bad way, just seriously asking yourself what made you do it. On paper, For Northwood is a 1p-only (so far so interesting), trick-taking game (not particular exciting stuff) with art that could be …
Read more “First Impressions of For Northwood – Trick Taking for One?”
You are a game designer and looking for a challenge? Well there is the holy grail of creating a true civilisation game that can be played in under two hours (and no, Mosaic isn’t it). There is the endless adventure game (Lands of Galzyr technically did it, but what is an adventure if there is …
Read more “Review of Paperback Adventures – Extreme Combative Solo Wordsmithing”
It almost seems like a tradition: every year, the jury of the German Spiel des Jahres award publishes their list of nominees. And every year, the same kind of discussions come up like clockwork: why is game X not on the list? Why IS game Y on the list, it’s three years old? How can …
Read more “The Spiel des Jahres Award Explained (Not Only for Non-Germans)”
It’s quite remarkable how fast the initial buzz about Horseless Carriage has subsided. Simply by the fact of being another game from publisher Splotter Spellen, known for their innovative and often quirky games, many had anticipated it with great excitement. The theme also sounded interesting: building and selling cars in an early era of automobiles …
Read more “Review of Horseless Carriage – A Class of Its Own”
Mosaic has been out for a while now, so in a sense I guess I’m kind of late to the party. This is another Kickstarter game where I held out on backing it, despite the gorgeous artwork, that enticing mosaic map and the allure of a civilisation game that wouldn’t take a whole day to …
While Kickstarter and crowdfunding in general has allowed a lot of small designers and independent publishers a chance to fulfil their dream and turn their ideas into products, it has also taken on a life of its own. After the initial rush, there seems to have been an extended period where games were mostly sold …
Read more “Review of Tiwanaku – The Game That Should Not Work”