SPIEL Essen 2026: Believe the Hype? Episode 596
The games! The crowds! The rapidly shrinking shelf space! This week on Board Gamers Anonymous, Chris and Tim discuss SPIEL Essen 2026 and the buzz surrounding the latest board game releases. With 230,000 visitors and more than 2,000 new releases at the world’s largest board game fair, there’s plenty to get excited about. But how much should we believe the Essen hype?
Plus, in Roll for Review, we share our impressions and ratings of two games:
- Chris: Treeline — Lead a forest clan to reclaim a city for nature, flipping tiles and competing for control of key positions. Can this small box deliver big decisions?
- Tim: Excavation Earth (2021) — Alien explorers dig up humanity’s leftovers and sell their discoveries in a competitive market. One civilization’s junk is another civilization’s payday!
Keep the gaming going at our amazing website, BoardGamersAnonymous.com! Explore our episode archive, written reviews, Top 100 lists, annual BGA Awards, and most anticipated games, including our 51 Most Anticipated Board Games of 2026. Your next favorite game might be waiting there.
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