Board Game Barrage

Wow! We asked for your top twenty lists, and boy did you deliver. We've crunched the numbers on the hundreds of submissions, and created what we think is the definitive list of BGB listeners' favourite board games. Now let us tell you how we think you did. Before we outsource our work, we talk about Santa Monica , Steam Works , and Cthulhu: Death May Die . 02:09 - Santa Monica 08:05 - Steam Works...

We're seeing a lot more versions of games that are X: The Dice Game or Y: The Card Game. These are (usually) simplified takes on beloved classics, but often end up changing the feel of the game dramatically. We discuss when we think this formula works, and when it really doesn't. Before we cast the die, we talk about Gods Love Dinosaurs , Nanga Parbat , and Ra: The Dice Game . 03:37 - Gods Love Di...

Sometimes all it takes is a good designer (and the right game) to take what would otherwise be a mechanic we don't like, and utilize it in a way that feels right. We take a look at some mechanics that we usually don't love, and the games that turned us around on them. Before we see things in a new light, we talk about CloudAge , Mariposas , and Faiyum . 03:04 - CloudAge 12:37 - Mariposas 18:01 - F...

Look, when we made those resolutions in episode 105, how were we to know ? The world exploded, and here we are, one year later, sheepishly looking back on the goals we set. But we're not beaten yet, we cast our minds forward (always forward, never back) and set our sights on our resolutions for 2021. Before we make promises we definitely will keep, we talk about Sprawlopolis , Bandada , and Terram...

We've been doing it a lot lately, so we thought we'd reflect on the ways that we evaluate our favourite games. How do you even begin to compare extremely dissimilar games, some party, some strategy? The process of making and ordering our lists is a fun challenge every year, and one we'd recommend you try too! Before we make hard choices, we talk about Medici: The Dice Game , The Gallerist , and Ib...

It's the big one! We've come at last to the grand finale of the Board Game Barrage Top 50 Games of All Time ... Top. Ten. Baby. These are our absolute favourite games, forty (thirty?) all together, that we'd just about never turn down a game of. Thanks for joining us on this ride, it's been wild. 09:36 - Christina #10 - I'm the Boss! 12:34 - Kellen #10 - Cosmic Encounter 15:18 - Mark #10 - El Gran...

We're moving into the terrible teens of the Board Game Barrage Top 50 Games of All Time. I learned all I know about American teenagers from TV, so I assume this is where all the sex and drugs come in. Let's get to it then, forty (roughly) more games that we simply adore. As the list goes on, they only get better and better. That is, after all, the premise. 01:46 - Kellen #29 (Correction) - A Fake...

It's the dark middle chapter of the Board Game Barrage Top 50 Games of All Time. Time to call in a new director, change things up, and get subversive. Well, if there were any directors who'd still work with us. This week, we're barreling through our twenties in what we like to call reverse numerical order . Here's forty (odd) more games that we absolutely adore, and hope you will too. 02:45 - Mark...

Now we're getting into the thick of it, in fact some are calling it the most ambitious Part II released in any medium. It's the Board Game Barrage Top 50 Games of All Time ! We're in our thirties (even if we wish we weren't) and it's full speed ahead. That's forty(ish) more games, and ten spots closer to the grand finale. Now that we've got this train going, there's no stopping it. 01:06 - Neilan...

It's here at last, the big event! Yes, it's the first episode of the yearly ritual we inventively call the Board Game Barrage Top 50 Games of All Time . And this year, for the first time, the Blue Tank, Christina is weighing in too. That's forty incredible games to kick us off! Join us in the weeks ahead as we sing the praises of our absolute favourite board games, because we're just getting start...

Heads set firmly forward, we reflect on what's been a completely wild year. Despite our complete inability to play a lot of them, board games  did happen, so we take a bit of time to talk about the biggest surprises and disappointments. Finally, we cast our mind ahead to the games we're looking forward to playing in 2021. Before we try to forget, we talk about Paris , The Fox in the Forest , and C...

'Tis the season, and if you're me, your first thought around this time of year is, "How many people can I just buy board games for?" But not all board game gifts are created equal! No, no, no, we need to find the best . So, of course, we put BGBBOB on the case. Before we start stocking stuffings, we talk about Pandemic: Fall of Rome , and Rajas of the Ganges: The Dice Charmers . 06:07 - Pandemic:...

There's so much going on in board game land all of the time that it can be hard to know where to focus your attention. So, this week, we each give an example of people, publishers, and sites that we've been keeping an eye on, that we think you might want to as well. Before we turn your gaze, we talk about New York Zoo , Targi , Throne and the Grail , and The Red Cathedral . 02:07 - New York Zoo 02...

Gobble gobble, you got got! We wouldn't leave you hanging when there's important work to be done. Happy Thanksgiving! 02:54 - Marco Pollo: Sultry Poultry Edition 04:01 - Startups 05:33 - New York Zoo 06:49 - Hang on Harvey 09:27 - Fast Sloths 11:43 - ICECOOL 13:47 - Root: The Underworld Expansion 15:21 - Mariposas 16:25 - Fafnir 17:52 - Pokémon Trading Card Game 20:19 - Loopin' Louie 21:55 - Bibli...

Boy, what a year it's been for accumulating games that we can't play. The shelf of shame, the collection of games we own that are yet to see a single play, has been steadily growing, and it's about time we pruned it. We check in on the games most deserving of that first play. Before we take a walk of shame, we talk about Sonora , Troyes Dice , Macao , Quantum , and Rurik: Dawn of Kiev . 01:49 - So...

Put on your thick socks, wrap yourself in a blanket, and get comfortable with us in front of the fire. We're using our patent pending formula (aka BGBBOB) to find the best heart warming comfort games. Twelve board games enter, and ... twelve leave, but arranged in the scientifically correct order. Before we get comfortable, we talk about The Castles of Tuscany , Cooper Island , and SCOUT! 02:41 -...

At least in some things, you've got to give a little to get a little, but what would you give to get what you want? We're coming up with our big board game compromises, the things we'd happily trade away to fix some of our biggest frustrations.  Before we deal with the devil, we talk about Lost Ruins of Arnak , Ohanami , and Beyond the Sun . 01:49 - Lost Ruins of Arnak 02:39 - Dune: Imperium 13:47...

Essen SPIEL is the latest of the conventions in 2020 to go digital, which is convenient for us, because we weren't about to fly to Germany any time soon. We perused the upcoming games that were showcased as part of the event, and picked our favourites to talk about. It's a top 5! Before we virtually convene, we talk about Babylonia , Veiled Fate , and Dune: Imperium . 02:29 - Babylonia 15:09 - Vei...

We weren't going to let Kellen have the last word on what makes the perfect $100 collection, so the 139 squad is here to finish it out. Forgot the premise? You've lost all your board games, and only have $100 to rebuild it; what do you buy first? Before we make every penny count, we talk about Cosmic Encounter Duel , Hundreds of Horses, Billionaire Banshee , and Floor Plan . 03:45 - Cosmic Encount...

It's an awful notion, but bear with me. What if you lost your entire board game collection, and had to rebuild it from scratch? Here's the catch, you only have one hundred dollars . We try to predict what the Red Tank would do, before he talks us through what makes the cut, and why. Before we rebuild, we talk about 5211 , Marco Polo II: In the Service of the Khan , and Cóatl. 03:10 - 5211 10:35 -...

Slow and steady might win the race, but it doesn't make for an exciting board game. Pacing is a vital component of most entertainment mediums that doesn't often get applied to board games, so we're going to climb and climb and climb and climb ... and then rapidly descend down the roller-coaster of emotion that makes for some of our favourite games. Before we set the pace, we talk about Bus , The G...

Blessed are the forgetful, because they don't have to play memory games? After all, games with a strong memory component often get a bad rap in the hobby. We look at some of the reasons why very few games want to test your memory, and just to be otherwise, we discuss some of our favourite games that do . Before we walk our mind palaces, we talk about Fort , Under Falling Skies , and Tellstones: Ki...

We often build up the idea of what a game will be before we play it, whether for bad or good, and the reality of the game itself might deliver something we weren't expecting. We take a look at what often leads to our expectations being shattered, and mention some of the games that most defied them. Before we expect the unexpected, we talk about SHŌBU , Pan Am , and Planet Unknown . 02:35 - SHŌBU 0...

We return to our much loved feature from 2018, all about our favourite mechanics. This week, a mere two years later: auctions! We look at the good and bad sides of auction mechanics, and discuss our favourite games that feature them. Before we inflate the bid, we talk about Fleet: The Dice Game , Iwari , and Modern Art . 04:57 - Fleet: The Dice Game 11:02 - Welcome to Dino World 13:47 - Iwari 21:5...

It's an unprecedented trio of hosts, but we're no less heated about our biggest board game bugbears. In fact, we're so upset about these little annoyances, that we couldn't help but order them in a list for your amusement ... BGBBOB style. Before we get bugged by bears, we talk about Calico , Telestrations: Upside Drawn , and Pendulum . 01:42 - Calico 09:05 - Telestrations: Upside Drawn 13:14 - Pe...