Board Gamers Anonymous

The new year is here and we have a list of the 50 (give or take) most anticipated games of the upcoming year. It's our supersized, mega-acquisition disorder! If you haven’t yet, be sure to connect with us on Facebook (www.facebook.com/boardgamersanonymous), Twitter (http://twitter.com/bgapodcast), and our website (www.www.boardgamersanonymous.com). You can support the show as well by donating on P...

This week, we're taking a look back at the year that was 2023, with a rundown of the games we played, the ones that didn't come out (and some that will never come out), and our overall thoughts of the year as a whole.  If you haven’t yet, be sure to connect with us on Facebook (www.facebook.com/boardgamersanonymous), Twitter (http://twitter.com/bgapodcast), and our website (www.www.boardgamersanon...

We're back with another episode of hot takes, looking at the games that people may not be as generally positive on but that we love. Plus reviews of Horrified: Greek Monsters and Hexarchy.  Acquisition Disorders: Fief England - Alliances, Treachery, And Power, Stormgate At the Table Reviews: Horrified: Greek Monsters, Hexarchy If you haven’t yet, be sure to connect with us on Facebook (www.faceboo...

This week we're looking at some of the truly great games out there that just don't click for us and discuss what about them doesn't work (and if either of us disagrees).  Question of the Week: What's a game that completely upended your expectations (good or bad)? How so? Acquisition Disorders: Nucleum: Australia, Star Realms Deluxe Colonial Collection, Adventure Time Card Wars 10th Anniversary At...

Another PAX Unplugged has come and gone, and we're discussing all the cool things we saw, did, and played over the three-day gaming weekend in Philadelphia.  Games discussed: - Defenders of the Realm 2.0 - Dune Imperium: Uprising - Undergrove - Cascadia Flip and Roll and Write Games - Evacuation - Nucleum - Star Wars Unlimited - Evil Corp. - Nautilus Island - In the Footsteps of Darwin - CATastrop...

We asked and you answered! This week we've constructed the top 10 games of 2023 according to the listeners. Thank you to everyone who filled out the survey and congratulations to Omar, who won a game as part of that contest.  Join us for a rundown of these ten, plus a bit of a rant from Anthony on the spiraling of crowdfunding for classic games, and reviews of some recent (and not-so-recent) games...

It's that time of year again. Games and gifts and gifts that are games!  Check out our 2023 holiday gift guide, complete with 20 different games, accessories, and apps that you can gift to yourself or a gamer friend for the holiday season.  Additionally, we chat about the direction of crowdfunded upgrades to classic games and what it will take to make us back Food Chain Magnate on Gamefound, plus...

This week, we're looking at another collection of mechanics based on a single component: the meeple! Check out 15+ unique uses of meeples and how they represent the hobby as a whole. * Acquisition Disorders: Cargo Empire, Calimala * At the Table Reviews: Raiders of the North Sea, Evolution If you haven’t yet, be sure to connect with us on Facebook (www.facebook.com/boardgamersanonymous), Twitter (...

Thanks to Ryan for the suggestion on this week's topic! We're looking at different ways dice have been used as a mechanic in board games with 15 different takes (and representative games) from the hobby.  * Question of the Week: Ouija is a _______ game * Acquisition Disorders: Cities, Star Trek: Into the Unknown * At the Table: Tichu, Terraforming Mars The Dice Game, Herstory, Pop in the Box If yo...

This week, we're looking at the best trick (not treat) taking games for the Halloween season. Which small box, quick fun games should you bring to the table (or hand out) on Halloween this year?  Question of the Week: What game is sneaky in its complexity, offering a lot more depth (or barriers) than you'd expect based on the artwork, presentation, or publisher? Acquisition disorder - Through the...

This week, we take a look at the sequel games that have launched their way up the BoardGameGeek Top 100 list, becoming, at least numerically, better versions. It's not a top 10, because there are 11. Find out how they iterated and changed their own formula and became more popular games.  Question of the Week: What's your favorite board game production? Not necessarily best artwork or miniatures (t...

This week, Chris welcomes special guests Chris from Board Games for the Better and Game Master Dave to talk games, the upcoming Tabletop Charity Game Day on November 4, and much more! Acquisition Disorders: Metal Gear Solid The Board Game, Twilight Imperium 4th Edition (BGA), The Night Cage: Shrieking Hollow At the Table Reviews: Tokaido Duo, Advance Civilization (Avalon Hill), Endless Winter: Pal...

This week, we look from afar at the hotness from Essen Spiel 2023, talking about the games that sold out, the games that hit the BGG hotness, and all the things we're interested in tracking down for ourselves in a few months when they reach the US.  Question of the Week: What should be a mandatory addition to the side of game boxes (along with player count and length)?  Acquisition Disorders: Rats...

We take a look back at the last 10 years and the games we named "best of the year" in each of those years, then discuss if those selections have changed since then. Some years remain strong, others change substantially. Find out which games we're still playing.  Acquisition disorders: Haggis, Mycelia | The Strategic Mushroom Game At the Table reviews: Voidfall impressions, Masters of the Universe:...

This week we're talking the BGG hotness as of the end of September. Which games are hot and why? Always a fun discussion. Plus Anthony discusses the process of unpacking and learning Voidfall (it's a lot!) Acquisition Disorders: Evacuation, Flock Together - An Asymmetric Cooperative Game At the Table Reviews: Race to the Raft, Heat: Pedal to the Metal If you haven’t yet, be sure to connect with us...

This week we're talking about all those Roman Empire games we can't get out of our heads, plus a discussion of the Terraforming Mars AI controversy, and an announcement for upcoming NJ gaming goodness. Acquisition Disorders: Fromage, One Page War At the Table Reviews: Moon, Bullet♥︎, Ra (Deluxe Edition) If you haven’t yet, be sure to connect with us on Facebook (www.facebook.com/boardgamersanonymo...

This week we're running through the 10 best games that Simone Luciani has worked on. All the best of meeples on maps and dice for actions.  Question of the Week: In the age of board game sequels, has a new version or sequel truly killed an old game for you? How so? Acquisition Disorders: Planet Nubo, More Terraforming Mars! At the Table Reviews: Number Drop, Terraforming Mars: The Dice Game (solo)...

This week, we're talking about...games that aren't Lorcana! Specifically, we're reminiscing about some of the now defunct CCGs and TCGs that devoured our money in years past. Find out what happened to them and why it seems like every collectible card game that isn't Magic, Pokemon, or Yu Gi Oh eventually folds up shop.  Question of the Week: What's your favorite game to play in public (malls, rest...

We have a special guest this week: Geof Gambill, previously of The Longview Podcast, joins us to discuss all things gaming, including his background in the hobby, some recent reviews, and a rundown of his favorite civilization games. Acquisition Disorders: Obojima Tales from the Tall Grass: A 5E Campaign Setting, Dungeon Kart, Unsettled At the Table Reviews: Mindbug First Contact, Lost Ruins of Ar...

We're in the heart of Essen announcement season, meaning the BGG hotness is loaded with fresh new games with only tidbits of information to tie us over until the fall. Join us as we run through the top 50 on BGG's hotness list for August. Question of the Week: What's changed most about you as a gamer since you entered the hobby? Acquisition Disorders: Grand Austria Hotel: Hochsaison, Fool's Blade:...

My how time flies! It's been ten years since Board Gamers Anonymous launched, and over the course of 437 episodes, we've played a bunch of games, talked about a lot in the industry, and experienced a lot in both life and gaming. This week we're looking back, not just at the last year of episodes (as we do every summer), but at the last decade as a podcast. Thank you to everyone who has helped us g...

Gen Con 2023 was an amazing time, filled with friends, games, academic discussions, and more! Listen to our rundown of the games played, events attended, and academic conferences run during Gen Con 2023 in this week's episode. Games discussed: Terraforming Mars The Dice Game Point City Waffle Time Deep Dive War of the Ring the Card Game Keyforge Lorcana Nucleum Lost Ruins of Arnak expansion If you...

In just a few weeks, we're celebrating our 10th anniversary as a podcast, so we want to look back at the games and events that made headlines over the last decade. This week we're looking at the last ten winners of the Board Game Geek Game of the Year award.  Question of the Week: You just got a game you are super excited about—how do you convince your friends to play it? Acquisition Disorders: Un...

It's back! Our world cup bracket, this time for the Women's World Cup (Go Team USA!). This time around, we're featuring video game IP-based board games, and yes, there are a whole bunch of them. Find out which video game IP translated to cardboard (and plastic) holds up best in 2023. Question of the Week: Favorite player color and why? Acquisition Disorders: Luddite, Stonespine Architects At the T...

We're back with another episode of "Last 10", this week featuring the last 10 winners of the Kennerspiel des Jahres winners. We recorded this before 2023's winners were announced, so find out if we guessed correctly which games would win plus previews of The White Castle and Calimala's 2023 update, and reviews of Expedition and Earth.  =============== Board Game Academics is launching its first ac...