The Spiel

Al Waller from Out of the Box stops by to talk about Snake Oil, a game about shifty salesmen pitching crazy products to skeptical customers. We also learn about the development of Quack-a-Doodle-Moo, a reboot of the very popular Snorta party game.

Tom Donelan from Heartland Consumer Products talks about the Square Shooters Game Design Contest. Submit an original game using their card/dice and you could be published AND win $2,000!

Diceometry Puzzle by David Coleson. 10 clues lead to 10 game titles. Use the hidden art of "diceometry" to unlock the solution. Solve the puzzle and you could win a prize!

Bernie DeKoven is Major Fun. He has dedicated his life to the idea of fun and the importance of play for all! Part 3 of our interview explores his game commune, a public play day in Philadelphia, the Whole Earth Catalog and early video game design.

Movies have the Oscars. Games have the Spiel des Jahres. We play and review the three nominees, Augustus, Hanabi, and Qwixx, and try to predict the winner.

High stakes, higher strategy? The Kennerspiel des Jahres is given to the best advanced board game of the year. From Belgium to Italy to a realm in need of heroes, we review Bruges, Palaces of Carrara and Legends of Andor and try to predict the winner.

Child's play. From treasure hunters to mechanical towers and crazy cosmic cows, we review three games nominated for the Kinderspiel des Jahres (German Children's Game of the Year) and try to predict the winner.

Mind manipulators. We review 3 family friendly games that mess with your head in 3 different ways: Just In Time (twist your pieces to solve timed puzzles), Dotzee (a slide puzzle with dice), and Clubs (a mash up of Spades and ladder games like Tichu).

A well-placed banana. From comrades in rockets to apes in bumper cars, we review Kosmonauts and Spin Monkeys - two programmed movement games that give us a fresh look at the genre.

Roll over, Erasmus. We travel back to Elizabethan England for an in-depth look at Noblemen, a game about managing country estates and attending masquerade balls. The goal? Impress the Queen.

Built to last. We celebrate the show's 7th anniversary with blocks of marble and tiki huts. We review of Palaces of Carrara and Hawaii, two games about building that offer challenge and strategy from a set of seemingly simple choices.

Urban cardboard jungles. We review three games, each with their own take on urban planning: from the futuristic treehouses of Ginkgopolis to the crowded streets of Suburbia to the far flung shore of France and the walls of Saint Malo.

Rummy revisions. We review A Fool's Fortune and Morels two set collecting card games that breathe new life into this well known and time tested genre, plus the first in a series of interviews with Major Fun, Bernie DeKoven.

A world built with 36 cards. We delve into the Decktet, an ingenious set of double suited cards, a Tarot deck from a parallel dimension, and a sandbox for innovative game design. From trick taking to resource management, we review four of Decktet games.

Fun for all. From sausage dice to treasure on the high seas, we review four games you could teach/play/enjoy with almost any group of players: Wordaround, Wurfelwurst, Tokaido and Pirate Dice.

Northern Exposure. Join us for a live recording at Spielfest, a two-day gaming event hosted by Snakes & Lattes, a board game cafe in the heart of Toronto.

Welcome to Tempest. This fictional city-state is the setting for a series of games from publisher AEG. Conspire & connive; duel & deliver. Each game tells a story and gives players a new way to explore the world. We review the first four Tempest titles.

Word Block Puzzle by David Coleson. Assmeble word blocks to find 10 game titles. Don't worry; there's a clue for each bit included. Solve the puzzle and you could win a prize!

Honor, glory and geishas. Feudal Japan is our destination. We review Yedo, an auction based worker placement game where noble houses compete for the Shogun's favor by completing secret missions.

Give the gift of play. With over 40 game suggestions in 10 categories, you're sure to find a great game for someone this holiday season.

Fill your plates. We serve up a nice slice of our interview coverage from the largest game fair in the world, the Essen International Spieltag.

Games around the globe. We report back from our latest adventure in Europe, covering the International Spieltag in Essen, Germany and filming a travelogue in Belgium.

Going the distance. We review Milestones, a road building game that mixes abstract strategy with custom rondels, and dive into Smash Up, a genre bending card game chock full of pirates, ninjas, zombies and robots.

Cube-a-licious. We review Seasons, a dice-driven card drafting duel between wizards, and take a closer look at Dungeon Fighter, a dice-bouncing dexterity game that is equal parts crazy, stupid, silly, and fun!

Con-clusions. We finish our GenCon coverage with 15 interviews including chats with artists, board game cafe owners, publishers, and Ken St. Andre, designer of Tunnels & Trolls, the 2nd role playing game ever published.