Author: Anthony

Glory to Rome is a card game from Cambridge Games Factory that is perhaps more well-known for its disastrous Kickstarter campaign than it is for its actual gameplay. Gameplay, by the way, that is pretty fantastic. So fantastic that it earned the #71 spot in our Top 100 Board Games of All Time. It’s a shame that such drama has overshadowed and overwhelmed what would have been a great game for the table top community to rally around. Before we get into my review of the game itself, let’s go over Glory to Rome’s odd history. Rome was built in…

What they say is definitely true – your first Gen Con is a whirlwind. This year, in our second Gen Con, we had a much smoother time navigating Indianapolis, finding events and booths, and actually playing some games! So to cover all the games we saw, played and bought, our post Gen Con episode this year is a smorgasbord of games – more than 24 to be exact. Join Anthony and Chris to discuss our absolutely favorite plays of the show, some games we brought home and haven’t had a chance to play yet, and others still we’re waiting on…

New from designer Chris Castagnetto and Passport Games at Gen Con this year was 3 Wishes, a small box card game in the same class as Love Letter about aligning your three cards and figuring out the hidden information hidden throughout the table. In fact, you’ve probably heard your fair share of direct comparisons to Love Letter, a game that has essentially created an entire genre unto itself. So does this one live up to the comparisons or is it yet another tiny box that is going to get lost on your game shelf after a few plays? Let’s take…

The following is a preview of a full-production copy of Carrotia, launching on Kickstarter from MAGE Company on August 25th. Real time games can be tricky. They require a careful balance of tension and simple mechanics that players can pick up and implement fast enough that the ticking timer doesn’t cause major mistakes. So, in approaching Carottia, I was a bit apprehensive. The game relies heavily on three hour-glass timers over the course of three rounds during which players must put down tiles to form a path through the woods, while avoiding birds that may swoop in and move the…

My first experience with Carcassonne wasn’t the same as most. It was the early days of the Xbox 360, and Microsoft was still figuring out how to approach their online arcade feature. Carcassonne was one of the games they offered, one of the few based on a board game. I remember being a bit underwhelmed by the game. I was a teenager and if I wasn’t playing Halo, I was probably playing stupid pranks on my friends. I didn’t have the patience for a German tile-building game. There weren’t any grenades to throw. Adult me has a much different story…

One of the reasons I enjoy conventions so much is that you never quite know what you’re going to find there. Sure, there are the big releases. The hot new games that hit the hotness list on BGG and the convention preview geeklists. I am fully aware of those games, eager to hunt them down, and usually find a copy or have demoed it by the end of the con. But it’s the oddballs and hidden gems that really excite me, which is exactly what we found this summer in Killer Snails. Nestled in the back corners of both the Origins and…

Another year, another of the best four days in gaming behind us. Gen Con 2016 was special for Board Gamers Anonymous, if only because it was our second year attending, and therefore the first time we had any idea what we were doing. A hotel in walking distance, a clear sense of the size and scope of the convention center, and a keen understanding of how many events you can actually squeeze into a day – all helped us have a heck of a good time. Not that last year wasn’t a blast, but the first time you attend this…

One of the hottest games of the last year is Blood Rage. The epic war-game/euro pitting viking clans against one another in a point-grabbing battle to the death is one of Eric Lang’s best to date, and is the subject of our If You Like treatment this month. In this episode we’ll look at 12 games you might like if you also like Blood Rage, along with 5 new acquisition disorders, 4 new games at the table, and the recent spate of new apps in board games revitalizing old classics. But first…. August Contest If you’re reading this, you can…

The following Blood Rage review incorporates experiences from 15 plays, including those at every possible player count, 2-5.  The sky burns red in the distance. The howls of creatures not of this Earth raise the hairs on your neck. Ragnarok comes and it boils your blood, axe beating your shield rhythmically as you wait for the order to Pillage. To run rampant through the halls of men and women, fighting for Glory and Glory alone. For Valhalla! If ever I doubted a board game could fill me with the thrill of a blood thirsty hoard of ravaging warriors, it is…

We’ve all played a game like this. One that sounds brilliant on paper. That has won numerous awards. That has people raving about how unique and innovative it is… Only to fall flat in execution because the people actually playing the game unintentionally cheat, take over decision making, or skip key mechanics that make the game work. That’s what we’re talking about this episode – the mechanics that sound brilliant but just plain don’t work in execution unless everything else is perfect. Also this episode we’ll be talking about several upcoming games we’re looking out for, some big new games…