Hidden Gems: A Board Game Podcast

Send us Fan Mail It only took us fifty episodes to finally get serious about how hidden our gems are! In this episode, your hosts Chris Alley, Jason Yanchuleff, and Bill Arney dig up three games from Chris's beneath the floor boards of Chris's game room so hidden, BGG doesn't even know about them.  Tune in to find out what they are. FEATURED GAMES: 00:00:00  Intro & Banter 00:21...

Send us Fan Mail We're FINALLY back! On this special 50th episode of Hidden Gems, all your hosts, Chris Alley, Jason Yanchuleff, Bill Arney, and Cameron Lockey gather to celebrate the occasion by reviewing three games chosen by our incredible audience, finally give away a copy of Strasbourg, and talk more than you've ever wanted about our favorite video games. FEATURED GAMES: 00:00:00  I...

Send us Fan Mail TL>DL: Episode 50 is going to be delayed for a while due to some recent and upcoming host vacation schedules. Stay tuned for our next episode coming sometime in May. In the meantime, go to https://forms.gle/jWSGLAju547spScY8 and leave your review for one of the games: Northern Pacific, Quo Vadis?, and Santiago! FOLLOW US: Email: hiddengemsboardgamepodcast@gmail.com Patreon: htt...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Chris (finally) takes a break, and your hosts Jason Yanchuleff, Bill Arney, and Cameron Lockey dig into three more games designed by the same guy who brought us Potato Man and Kupferkessel Co., which each brought respectively very low, and very high marks. Is there more to Mr. Burkhardt's repertoire? Tune in to find out! FEATURED GAMES: 00:00:00  Intro &...

Send us Fan Mail There was fairly gushing praise from all the HG crew for 2 out 3 games from designer Stefan Dorra going way back to our 7th episode -- where Chris even gave out a notable two 6-ratings! And then there was Tonga Bonga ... at least Bill liked it! What will the guys think of another triumvirate of games from the same esteemed designer? Join your hosts Chris Alley, Bill Arney and Jaso...

Send us Fan Mail "In that dream I thought the eastern sky grew dark and there was a growing thunder, but in the West a pale light lingered...doom was near at hand" In this episode of Hidden Gems, fantasy lovers and hosts Chris Alley and Cameron Lockey take on games with a beloved theme: Lord of the Rings. FEATURED GAMES: 00:00:00  Intro & Banter 00:24:13  King's Gate 00:47:40  L...

Send us Fan Mail Need a bit of sun and sand to kick off the new year this cold January? Also, who knew there were so many board games with the Easter Island moai as a theme? Catch some rays and find out more about these mysterious statues in this episode with your hosts Chris Alley and Jason Yanchuleff as they check out three new promising gems with Easter Island-themes. FEATURED GAMES: 00:00:00 ...

Send us Fan Mail It's that time of year again! Christmas cheer abounds in this final episode of 2022  where the whole Hidden Gems crew of Chris Alley, Bill Arney, Cameron Lockey and Jason Yanchuleff get in the Christmas spirit with 3 new potential gems. Will any of them make the cut? How will the guys do on Chris's latest holiday-themed trivia? Will Cameron treat us to another carol or t...

Send us Fan Mail The Spiel series continues with a new installment of nominees from 2013! Dig in with you hosts Chris Alley, Cameron Lockey and Jason Yanchuleff as they take a look at another crop of prestigiously nominated, yet strangely overlooked games -- listen in to hear our thoughts on the Spiel judges' decisions! FEATURED GAMES: 00:00 Intro & Banter 00:20:31 Trigger! 00:34:30 Mixto...

Send us Fan Mail What's happening on Hidden Gems? A review for a game in the top 200, almost 100?! With Cameron and Bill out, have Chris and Jason finally lost their minds and reverted to reviewing the hotness? Find out on this latest episode when the guys check out one title far down the rankings and another not quite so much -- are there gems to be found? FEATURED GAMES: 00:00 Intro & B...

Send us Fan Mail It's time for another SPOOKY edition of Hidden Gems! Get ready to enjoy more audio theatre, a Halloween-themed trivia game show, and more spooky stories. Your hosts  Chris Alley, Jason Yanchuleff, and Cameron Lockey also bring you three fresh reviews of unusual, forgotten, and under-appreciated Halloween-themed games in this 2022 episode of Hidden Gems! FEATURED GAMES: 00:00:...

Send us Fan Mail Hold your breath and stick your tongue out just right, because in this episode, taking your turn is gonna require some concentration. This time, your hosts Chris Alley, Bill Arney, and Cameron Lockey literally try their hands at three under-appreciated dexterity games.   FEATURED GAMES: 00:00 Intro & Banter 18:04 Riff Raff 40:06 Arch Rival 55:16 Hibachi   BGG GEEK LIST: https:...

Send us Fan Mail We're back with another trio of games from the renowned Reiner Knizia on this 40th episode of Hidden Gems with your hosts Chris Alley, Jason Yanchuleff and Bill Arney. Is the third time the charm for discovering even more gems from the prolific doctor? Or will we stumble across some duds? Tune in to find out! Featured Games: Rondo (00:18:20) Beowulf: The Legend (00:39:22) Ind...

Send us Fan Mail This week we explore two new possible hidden gems handpicked by YouTuber and board game content creator, Jon Gets Games! Join Jon, along with your regular hosts Chris Alley, Cameron Lockey and Jason Yanchuleff as they look at a route-building Euro from Queen Games and a zany auction game from Japan! Check out Jon's work here: https://www.youtube.com/user/jongetsgames Featured...

Send us Fan Mail Travel the globe with your hosts Chris Alley, Jason Yanchuleff and Bill Arney through the colorful streets of Buenos Aires, a French medieval stronghold and the highlands of Guatemala in this latest episode shining our familiar designer spotlight on husband and wife designer duo Inka and Markus Brand. Featured Games: La Boca (00:20:27) Saint Malo (00:37:39) Guatemala Café (01:06:4...

Send us Fan Mail You've heard his name in the credits and interacted with him on the BGG guild, hear from the man himself! HG Guild manager and BGG user Gidorah joins your regular hosts Chris Alley, Cameron Lockey and Jason Yanchuleff as they dive into three titles by esteemed designer Leo Colovini. Featured Games: Fae (00:18:43) The Bridges of Shangri-La (00:43:30) Magna Grecia (01:08:07) Hi...

Send us Fan Mail What do SpongeBob SquarePants, Humpty Dumpty and Animal Farm all have in common? Why anthropomorphism of course! This week your hosts Chris Alley, Jason Yanchuleff, and Bill Arney take a look at three games that employ this technique for theming. Tune in to find out if it takes these three potential hidden gems to another level! Featured Games: Beasty Bar (00:21:46) Counterfeiters...

Send us Fan Mail In the spirit of continuing the time travel theme we explored last time, this week your hosts Chris Alley, Jason Yanchuleff, and Cameron Lockey return to the history books and examine three games that were nominated for the Spiel Des Jahres in 2014, but did not win. Did the Spiel judges make the right choice? Did these games wrongly fall into obscurity? Tune in and find out! Featu...

Send us Fan Mail Roads! Where we're going, we don't need roads! Crank up the DeLorean and do some time-traveling with your hosts Chris Alley, Jason Yanchuleff and Bill Arney as they explore three potential past hidden gem games with a time-traveling theme! Featured Games: Legacy: Gears of Time (00:23:32) Chrononauts (00:44:15) Khronos (01:01:29) Hidden Gems Geek List: https://boardgamege...

Send us Fan Mail Tom Vasel of The Dice Tower has had an immense impact in the world of board game reviews. He also has a reputation for occasionally ripping a game to shreds and, sometimes literally, tossing a game into the trash. In this episode, your hosts Chris Alley, Jason Yanchuleff, and Cameron Lockey take a look at some of Tom's most infamous game reviews to see if they agree with Tom,...

Send us Fan Mail Come on down! Is there more than meets the eye to our next three candidate gems? Or are they better off in the bargain bin? This week, your hosts Chris Alley, Bill Arnie and Jason Yanchuleff take a look at some titles that by all appearances look like mass market games, but are they really? Featured Games: Blockers! (00:20:39) The Game of 49 (00:40:46) Montage (01:00:55) Hidden Ge...

Send us Fan Mail This episode, we are joined by honored guest host Mitch Resk of Neat & Nerdy. We'll be rolling dice to seek out juicy termites, then trying our best to not be suspicious in a game of monks, murder, and manipulation. See if these two titles by renowned designer Stefan Feld deserve to be called hidden gems! Also, check out Mitch's awesome game reviews on Instagram: @ne...

Send us Fan Mail Take it easy, relax to the soothing sounds of muzak and paint some happy little trees on this episode of Hidden Gems. This time, your hosts Chris Alley, Jason Yanchuleff, and Bill Arnie dive into some lesser known titles from esteemed publisher Eagle Gryphon Games. FEATURED GAMES: Intro & Banter (00:00:00) Take It Easy!  (00:22:42) Cubist (00:39:38) Pastiche (00:58:30) MUSIC (...

Send us Fan Mail There's no time for analysis paralysis this week on Hidden Gems! In fact, an extra cup of coffee might serve better than this episode's featured cocktail when playing the games we look at in this episode. This time your hosts Chris Alley, Jason Yanchuleff, and Cameron Lockey explore three time-sensitive real-time games. FEATURED GAMES: Intro & Banter (00:00:00) Falli...

Send us Fan Mail Come explore a novel and exciting new theme never before seen in the board game hobby -- transporting stuff on ships! Which is saltier, the water and wind in your face sailing the saline seas of this trio of shipping games, or the thoughts of your hosts Chris Alley, Jason Yanchuleff, and Bill Arnie? Join us and find out on this sailing-themed episode of Hidden Gems! FEATURED GAMES...