Playing Card Information

Designer Diary: Mistborn: The Deckbuilding Game

This is, of course, subjective, but it is an important evaluation from both one's own perspective and a best-guess estimate at the likely general audience perspective.Creating a game based on an existing, popular property, such as the Mistborn book series, has the same goal as any other game design: to create added value, to imbue the gameplay and product design with value for those who are most likely to play and/or own the game in a way that is not readily replaceable with existing games.Howev

No one understands how playing cards work

Most of them were a satisfying detangling of cards that had me immediately pressing that “new game” button once I got the win ...

Announcing The BoardGameGeek Hall of Fame Day 4 Inductees

by <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/1?bloggerid=1768" >Scott Alden</a> <div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8658423"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/gg5DLkM0_GVy419Hg-MjLQ__small/img/mVrSDE2hncbx1AHfCjUfJOhaTjQ=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8658423.png" border=0></a></div>As part of the celebration of BGG's 25th anniversary, we are pleased to announce the next five of 25 inductees into <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/geekpreview/72" target="_blank" class="postlink" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener">The BoardGameGeek Hall of Fame</a>, listed in order by release date. For background on The BGG Hall of Fame, the reasoning behind which games were eligible and which were chosen, and the first five inductees by chronological order, please see <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/1/blogpost/169777/announcing-the-boardgamegeek-hall-of-fame-day-1-in" >this introductory post</a>. Inductees #6-10 can be seen <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/1/blogpost/169778/announcing-the-boardgamegeek-hall-of-fame-day-2-in" >here</a> and #11-15 <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/1/blogpost/169781/announcing-the-boardgamegeek-hall-of-fame-day-3-in" >here</a>. The final five inductees will be revealed on Friday, January 24, 2025. Stay tuned! <center>•••</center> 16. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/25613/through-the-ages-a-story-of-civilization" >Through the Ages: A Story of Civilization</a> — 2006 Civilization games have been a standard on the game market for decades, but in Through the Ages, designer <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/789/vlaada-chvatil" >Vlaada Chvátil</a> reinvented the genre by doing away with the seemingly prerequisite world map and having players focus more abstractly on the technologies, leaders, and wonders one would expect to find. Over four ages, players guide their civilization of human development through a card-drafting system that consistently forces hard economic and tactical decisions. With random set-ups and powerful events ensuring that no two games play alike, Through the Ages is a wonder of high-conflict, heavy Eurogame design that will challenge your ability to manage people, resources, and ideas. <center><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZhpCzh8DVNM">Youtube Video</a></center> 17. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/31260/agricola" >Agricola</a> — 2007 In Agricola, players take the role of a 17th century Central-European family of farmers. Each turn, players use the husband and wife tokens to take actions from an expanding array of options, one of which is family growth. Time to have a child and put them to work! As the game progresses, you can plow and sow fields to grow grain and vegetables, fence off your land, breed animals, start occupations, add major and minor improvements, expand your home, upgrade said home, and more. You want to do so much, but time is against you, as well as the threat of starvation if you don't feed the family. Agricola launched a wave of imitators and gave designer <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/10/uwe-rosenberg" >Uwe Rosenberg</a> a second career after the success of <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/11/bohnanza" >Bohnanza</a>. <center><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOhwJLd6B3Y">Youtube Video</a></center> 18. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/28720/brass-lancashire" >Brass</a> — 2007 <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/6/martin-wallace" >Martin Wallace</a>'s Brass is an involved economic and route-building game set during the early days of the Industrial Revolution in Britain’s Lancashire County. You are an entrepreneur who wants to use technology to make money, and during the game players will construct cotton mills, ports, coal mines, iron works, and shipyards — but construction is only the first step. You also need canals and railroads to connect energy sources to industries, and industries to sales locations. Complicating all of this is your constant need for money, which will lead to loans as you try to permanently boost income. Brass has inspired other game designs, including <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/224517/brass-birmingham" >Brass: Birmingham</a>, which became the #1 game on BGG in 2023. <center><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SfWM-WX2F_Q">Youtube Video</a></center> 19. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/28143/race-for-the-galaxy" >Race for the Galaxy</a> — 2007 <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/150/thomas-lehmann" >Tom Lehmann</a>'s Race for the Galaxy is a deep, interactive card game. Each round, players simultaneously choose an action. Everyone can take the actions chosen, and whoever picked an action gets a better version of it. Unchosen actions are skipped, so you want to anticipate others to benefit from their selections. Cards in hand are resources that you can spend to put other cards in play, whereas cards on planets are trade goods you can sell for...more cards as you strive for high-value cards, military conquest, and points from produced goods. With its multiple expansions and board game adaptations, Race for the Galaxy has proven to be one of the richest, most replayable designs in the card and board game canon. <center><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWoLtNuAn48">Youtube Video</a></center> 20. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/36218/dominion" >Dominion</a> — 2008 <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/463/magic-the-gathering" >Magic: The Gathering</a> launched the trading card genre, with players building a personalized deck for each game. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/10525/donald-x-vaccarino" >Donald X. Vaccarino</a>'s Dominion transformed deck-building into a game of its own. Starting with only a handful of copper, players buy action cards and more valuable money cards turn by turn to work their way up to buying valuable point cards. The Dominion game system is incredibly versatile, with 25 different action cards in the base game, only ten of which are in play. Changing even one action affects the feel of a game, and hundreds of actions are available across more than a dozen expansions. Hundreds of deck-building games have been released in the wake of Dominion's success. <center><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lh-xRxWNYdc">Youtube Video</a></center>

Dale Yu: Review of Die Trodler aus den Highlands

Die Trodler aus den Highlands Designer: Carlo Rossi Publisher: Zoch Players: 2-4 Age: 10+ Time: 45 minutes Played with review copy provided by publisher ”Isn‘t there any vase here?“ The mayor of Cragganmore is upset. Certainly, the neighbors from Knockando … <a href="https://opinionatedgamers.com/2025/01/23/dale-yu-review-of-die-trodler-aus-den-highlands/">Continue reading →</a>

Travel with the Ayar, Hunt Salmon, Create an Ofrenda, and Follow General Orders to Japan

It's time to feast!▪️ I've previously covered Line of Fire: Burnt Moon, another Thompson/Benjamin two-player design, with this June 12, 2025 release taking place in the same setting as their 2024 game Undaunted 2200: Callisto.▪️ Following that game on July 10, 2025 is Ofrenda, a 1-4 player card-placement game from that Orlando Sá and André Santos that's inspired by the Mexican Day of the Dead.Here's an overview:The Día de los Muertos is almost upon us. It is time to prepare the ofrenda – a brigh

Cross Middle-earth to Explore The Lord of the Rings: Fate of the Fellowship

Navigate a world beset by shadow, where every choice forges a new path.The Lord of the Rings: Fate of the Fellowship is a co-operative game for 1-4 players in which each player controls two characters, lending their unique abilities to protect Frodo, battle enemies in pivotal locations, and evade the menacing Nazgûl and Sauron's searching Eye.Each playthrough presents new challenges with 24 different objectives, 14 events, and 13 playable charactersR Never miss an opportunity to get it to the ta

Announcing The BoardGameGeek Hall of Fame Day 3 Inductees

by <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/1?bloggerid=1768" >Scott Alden</a> <div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8658423"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/gg5DLkM0_GVy419Hg-MjLQ__small/img/mVrSDE2hncbx1AHfCjUfJOhaTjQ=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8658423.png" border=0></a></div>As part of the celebration of BGG's 25th anniversary, we are pleased to announce the next five of 25 inductees into <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/geekpreview/72" target="_blank" class="postlink" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener">The BoardGameGeek Hall of Fame</a>, listed in order by release date. For background on The BGG Hall of Fame, the reasoning behind which games were eligible and which were chosen, and the first five inductees by chronological order, please see <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/1/blogpost/169777/announcing-the-boardgamegeek-hall-of-fame-day-1-in" >this introductory post</a>. The second five inductees can be seen <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/1/blogpost/169778/announcing-the-boardgamegeek-hall-of-fame-day-2-in" >here</a>. The rest of the inductees will be revealed throughout the week. Stay tuned! <center>•••</center> 11. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/822/carcassonne" >Carcassonne</a> — 2000 Each turn in <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/398/klaus-jurgen-wrede" >Klaus-Jürgen Wrede</a>'s Carcassonne, you draw and place a tile that shows road segments, part of a city, a cloister, or grassland in some combination. City must connect to city, road to road, and over time players develop their own version of a southern French landscape. With each tile you add, you can place one of your tokens — or meeples, a fan term that became ubiquitous across the industry — on part of it: a knight in the city, a robber on the road, and so on. When a feature is complete, players score that feature's tokens and get them back to use again. You can play friendly or cutthroat, with the base game alone or with more than one hundred expansions, making Carcassonne one of the most accessible and expandable games ever made. <center><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8fcmSBIaOs">Youtube Video</a></center> 12. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/2651/power-grid" >Power Grid</a> — 2004 To master Power Grid, you need to manage your money and know when to strike. During the game, you bid on power plants fueled by coal, oil, trash, and nuclear power, with plants being able to power more and more cities over time. Fuel for these plants is limited, increases in cost as the supply diminishes, and can even be entirely depleted. To put that fuel to use, you must build a network of cities, seizing the best routes while they're still available. The more cities you power, the more money you make...but the later you go in turn order, which drives up fuel and route costs as you race to be the first to power enough cities to win. Designer Friedemann Friese has created dozens of themed expansions for this flexible game system from his own 2F-Spiele company. <center><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0XGaMgkShw">Youtube Video</a></center> 13. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/9209/ticket-to-ride" >Ticket to Ride</a> — 2004 <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/9/alan-r-moon" >Alan R. Moon</a> designed a half-dozen train games before he created Ticket To Ride, which has been a runaway success since its debut. The game is driven by rummy-style card play, with players drafting cards, then playing colored card sets to claim matching routes on the game board. Each route claimed earns you points, but you also want to claim routes that connect the two cities listed on your secret ticket cards. If you do, you gain extra points at game's end; if not, you lose those points instead. Want to play risky? Draw more tickets and see what you get! Ticket to Ride can be played by all ages, whether casually or competitively, making it an ideal game for players of all skill levels. <center><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RsTTUHEKSuA">Youtube Video</a></center> 14. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/18602/caylus" >Caylus</a> — 2005 In <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/5629/william-attia" >William Attia</a>'s Caylus, players collectively build the King's castle and the surrounding town in a "Mother, may I?" fashion. Each round, players take turns placing their workers on buildings along a path that leads away from the castle to call dibs on a specific action. Players determine which buildings are placed in which order along the path, giving each game a different feel, but placing a worker doesn't guarantee you'll get to use that building. At round's end, players can pay to move a provost back or forth on the path, and building actions stop where the provost stands, creating an element of co-operative play. Caylus popularized the worker placement genre, which has seen hundreds of new entries over the past two decades. <center><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WkTWZ8fOZxw">Youtube Video</a></center> 15. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/12333/twilight-struggle" >Twilight Struggle</a> — 2005 <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/3876/ananda-gupta" >Ananda Gupta</a> and <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/3877/jason-matthews" >Jason Matthews</a>' Twilight Struggle allows two players to relive the Cold War, the 45-year period after World War II in which the Soviet Union and the United States tried to influence governments and political movements around the world, often through proxy wars. Players track their influence in Europe, Central America, the Middle East, and elsewhere on a world map, taking turns playing cards that highlight events from actual history. Cards can played for their event or for operation points to influence regions, attempt coups, affect the space race, and more. Twilight Struggle gives players a different type of wargame, one that mimics how in the real world war takes many forms. After countless awards and being ranked #1 on BGG for a few years, it's undeniable that Twilight Struggle has had a huge impact on our hobby, with its tense, card-driven gameplay inspiring many other historical board games. <center><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkIFwhmv_6g">Youtube Video</a></center>

Thorgal: The Board Game

Thorgal: the Board Game Designers: Joanna Kijanka, Jan Maurycy Święcicki, Rafał Szyma Artists: Maciej Simiński, Frédéric Vignaux Publisher: Portal Games Players: 1-4 Age: 14+ Time: 90-120 minutes Played with review copy provided by the publisher Do you want to go … <a href="https://opinionatedgamers.com/2025/01/22/thorgal-the-board-game/">Continue reading →</a>

Announcing The BoardGameGeek Hall of Fame Day 2 Inductees

by <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/1?bloggerid=1768" >Scott Alden</a> <div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8658423"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/gg5DLkM0_GVy419Hg-MjLQ__small/img/mVrSDE2hncbx1AHfCjUfJOhaTjQ=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8658423.png" border=0></a></div>As part of the celebration of BGG's 25th anniversary, we are pleased to announce the next five of 25 inductees into <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/geekpreview/72" target="_blank" class="postlink" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener">The BoardGameGeek Hall of Fame</a>, listed in order by release date. For background on The BGG Hall of Fame, the reasoning behind which games were eligible and which were chosen, and the first five inductees by chronological order, please see <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/1/blogpost/169777/announcing-the-boardgamegeek-hall-of-fame-day-1-in" >this introductory post</a>. The rest of the inductees will be revealed throughout the week. Stay tuned! <center>•••</center> 6. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/463/magic-the-gathering" >Magic: The Gathering</a> — 1993 In 1993, mathematician <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/14/richard-garfield" >Richard Garfield</a> took inspiration from <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/15/cosmic-encounter" >Cosmic Encounter</a> and <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/rpg/390/dungeons-and-dragons-original-edition" >Dungeons & Dragons</a> to craft the world's first and most successful collectable card game: Magic: The Gathering. Themed as a head-to-head duel between enemy wizards, Magic established many of the mechanisms and business models that dominate the board and card game space today. Card rarity, deck-construction, and regular expansions ensured that Magic's many fans embraced it as a lifestyle game that they literally invested in while crafting a personal deck that reflects their identity. The unprecedented success of Magic cannot be overstated, bringing millions of players into the hobby. <center><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9WTksZv-Mcg">Youtube Video</a></center> 7. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/13/catan" >CATAN</a> — 1995 Hobby gaming became a mainstream phenomenon in 1995 thanks to <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/11/klaus-teuber" >Klaus Teuber</a>'s The Settlers of Catan. The game features multiple design elements still emulated today: constructive gameplay, variable set-ups, player interaction on every turn, and a family-friendly setting. Players start with modest settlements on an island, and gain resources — wheat, sheep, wood, brick, and ore — that they use to build roads, establish new settlements, grow cities, and acquire development cards that grant points or special powers. Don't have what you need? Trade with other players on their turn or yours. CATAN, as the game is known today, has now sold more than 45 million copies, and it remains an entry point into modern gaming around the world. <center><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ZZ61ha6yC8">Youtube Video</a></center> 8. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/93/el-grande" >El Grande</a> — 1996 In <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/7/wolfgang-kramer" >Wolfgang Kramer</a> and <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/8/richard-ulrich" >Richard Ulrich</a>'s El Grande, players bid for actions and place caballeros in nine regions of Spain. Bid high, and you'll get the action you want, but no new caballeros — and if you run out of caballeros, you will have no influence on the game board. To get more caballeros, you must bid low, which might land you a useless action. To score a region, you must outnumber others, and to score as many regions as possible, you must spread yourself thin, putting you constantly on the edge of winning and losing. Thirty years after its debut, El Grande remains the ideal "area control" game. <center><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93tpwW62qtc">Youtube Video</a></center> 9. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/42/tigris-and-euphrates" >Tigris and Euphrates</a> — 1997 <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/2/reiner-knizia" >Reiner Knizia</a>'s Tigris and Euphrates is both an abstract tile-laying game and an immersive battle between dynastic powers building kingdoms in Mesopotamia. With only two actions each turn, players use their tiles, four leaders, and disasters to develop and control kingdoms that spread across the game board. As the game progresses, conflicts arise both internally from conflicting leaders and externally from merging kingdoms. Having leaders in kingdoms allows you to score, and each player's lowest score among four categories determines the winner. This scoring system prevents over-specialization and rewards balanced strategies, with players discovering new strategies with each game. <center><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZV5MQ-kWLlQ">Youtube Video</a></center> 10. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/12/ra" >Ra</a> — 1999 At first, many people loathe the bidding game Ra, coming to love it only with experience. On each turn over three rounds, you either add a random tile to the display, or call for an auction on displayed tiles. You can bid only of your few bidding tiles, with a winning tile becoming part of the next lot up for grabs. Tiles come in eight types, including disasters that can wipe out your holdings, making every lot varied and hard to assess. The time to do this is limited as the embodiment of Ra, the sun, races across the sky, forcing the round's end and scoring. Reiner Knizia's Ra is quick to learn and play, but the subtleties of bidding, second guessing others, and judging lots make it a complex simple game that demands multiple plays. Additionally, Ra launched the influential <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamepublisher/9/alea" >alea</a> game brand that quickly spread from Germany to the world. <center><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0O_0lR60DNI">Youtube Video</a></center>

Review of Far Away

Far Away Designer: Alexander Jerabek Artist: Jake Breish Publisher: Cherry Picked Games Players: 2* Age: 14+ Time: 90-150 minutes Played with an owned copy and I have backed the expansion Far Away is a fanciful cross-genre cooperative two-player* game. This … <a href="https://opinionatedgamers.com/2025/01/21/review-of-far-away/">Continue reading →</a>

Designer Diary: Flashback: Zombie Kidz

by <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/1?bloggerid=14740" >Marc-Antoine Doyon</a> <div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8586968"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/t2TDm6TzJLWessZeci26uw__small/img/eRW0A6XzSGPQP6VZEg72mYClLhw=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8586968.jpg" border=0></a></div><center>Image: Michel Verdu</center>[<a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/364942/flashback-zombie-kidz" >Flashback: Zombie Kidz</a> , the first game in the Flashback series, is designed by <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/147224/baptiste-derrez" >Baptiste Derrez</a> and <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/146318/marc-antoine-doyon" >Marc-Antoine Doyon</a>, and published by <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamepublisher/6352/scorpion-masque" >Scorpion Masqué</a>, with the game being set in the <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamefamily/78118/series-zombie-kidz" >Zombie Kidz</a> universe created by <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/44054/annick-lobet" >Annick Lobet</a>.] At the Beginning Baptiste: In 2021, I sent an e-mail to Christian Lemay of Scorpion Masqué asking whether he'd be willing to take a look at one of my ideas. This was my first real board game prototype, and the first time I'd approached a publisher. He quickly replied that he was very interested in the project, then asked me whether I'd be willing to work with someone. I replied that I'd love to work with someone as it's easier for me to work with others. Marc Antoine: It was in the summer of 2021 that Christian contacted me with the idea of working on "something cool". As he's a friend I generally trust, I immediately accepted before he even explained anything to me. "Design...writing...Baptiste...magic...zombies..." — I'd barely heard a few words before I was completely charmed and excited at the idea of working on A GAME. What I didn't know was that I was jumping into the most complex, strange, and rewarding project I'd ever done. Baptiste: Some time later, I met up with Marc-Antoine and the rest of the team by video conference (as I'm in France, and the rest of the team is in Québec) to talk in more detail about the project and to determine how everyone saw the game's development process. Everyone was motivated by the ideas, and we were willing to listen. I presented my basic idea: A scene frozen in time in which we're able to move through the characters' different points of view to see the scene from different angles to understand what happened. Marc-Antoine: First meeting with the team: I loved Baptiste's concept. There was something extremely elegant and streamlined about it, but that also drew on the intellect of the players at the same time. With little initial information, a world unfolded before us, and we found ourselves hypothesizing about all the possible whys and wherefores. <div style='display:inline;'><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/1758532"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/OgeD1duaaYAHo1iYT9BmPQ__small/img/itqgn7O77MSes8vGNm1ITsDCIV8=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic1758532.jpg" border=0></a></div> <div style='display:inline;'><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/4334067"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/Iwv0Vg8FXIKlEr8xKsapIQ__small/img/LbMfaYV0-_2yRXvl6D8pjXa86IY=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic4334067.jpg" border=0></a></div>What's more, the Scorpion team wanted to develop the first box under the banner of <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/147009/zombie-kidz" >Zombie Kidz</a>, the best kids' game out there! That was all it took to convince me...even if I was already convinced. Before writing the script, Baptiste and I decided to draw up a list of unique points of view and scenes we would like to see in the game. Being the eternal student that I am, I read Thom's dissertation on narration through images, which inspired me enormously and confirmed that my film background would not be entirely useless... V1 of the Game Baptiste: In my head, I had my scenario, some ideas of how to arrive at different solutions, and the unique points of view. The difficulty was producing a version that could be tested and understood as my initial stick figures weren't enough to give a good understanding of the situations. Marc-Antoine: From the start of the project, we had lengthy discussions with Baptiste to find out what the right workflow would be, which program we would need to use, on which platforms, how often... We had to figure it all out. We soon realized that the memories had to be created completely in 3D to avoid perspective errors. In addition to this, seeing as how we wanted the illustrators to create the Kidz universe using the same method, we figured we might as well save them (a little) work and ensure a smooth transition between the prototype and the illustrated version. After a few unsuccessful tests, I rolled up my sleeves and sat down to learn how to use <a href="https://www.maxon.net/en/cinema-4d" target="_blank" class="postlink" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener">Cinema 4D</a>, a great tool that lets you model scenes in 3D and walk through them with a camera as if you were there. The magic was already taking shape. <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8586977"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/PazUE8S76KTVrf3cEjMXgQ__small/img/sZGboEzvHX22qYpdZNGjt9P8vpA=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8586977.png" border=0></a></div></center><center>The first version, seen in Cinema 4D</center> While I was doing this, Baptiste and I began seriously brainstorming and writing the first version of the first scenario (not yet called "Memory"). Several ideas were adopted; others discarded or reworked. There were elements we really wanted: A first card full of different points of view, a blurry point of view, perspective effects, a flying zombie... Baptiste: I already had the idea of the school, of the zombies who had managed to get into the playground, of what was underneath, but not exactly all the nooks and crannies and surprises to discover. For the first scenario, I worked together with Marc-Antoine to put together a concept as complete as possible. We bounced ideas off each other. The writing process was fluid and very interesting. Marc-Antoine: You can see, in this first version, that the more offbeat ideas like the distorted television, the kaleidoscope, or the zombie baby were abandoned in the end. <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8586976"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/94-EnXMddZY2vOceXz9tmw__small/img/FOnlwHe9CLBRuz9qZxohfq097mQ=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8586976.png" border=0></a></div></center><center>Glory to the zombie baby!</center> Playtests Now came the most important and challenging part of the game's development: playtesting. Luckily, the Scorpion Masqué office had plenty of mums and dads who were happy to offer their families' services to see how our game played in real life. We quickly realized the value of our playtesters because a narrative investigation game can't be tested twenty times by the same person. Baptiste: For my part, it was a bit harder to find testers. Between my limited circle of acquaintances and those who wanted to play the final version, I didn't have many testers at my disposition. Fortunately, a lot of the feedback generated proved to be useful for future iterations. Marc-Antoine and I held weekly debriefing sessions and fine-tuned the scenario. Marc-Antoine: The playtests underlined a lot of things that were bothering us, but that we weren't able to put our finger on. Even so, they also confirmed the most fundamental thing: The game was fun! People genuinely enjoyed discovering the cards, and that's all that really matters. Another thing I love about testing is that it becomes the ultimate lever when you're not sure about a puzzle or an image: Let's test it to see if it works, then adjust! The catch is that when you change something in an investigative game, the thing you changed has to move EVERYWHERE, especially when all points of view are linked. The whole team has to be ultra-alert from the beginning to the end of production to ensure that the fewest errors possible are overlooked. The other snag is that my drawing skills are pretty limited, so we were often faced with the question: "What's that squiggle supposed to be?" — so often, in fact, that it became one of my favorite arguments to justify a slightly twisted mystery: "Oh, but you'll see, when it's drawn up properly, you'll understand everything!" Sometimes this was true, sometimes it wasn't... <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8586975"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/JwxicY19J7GOhJqo5FBTIQ__small/img/CUXXIwCvNHWAWd8ZvSOYwuGYs4w=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8586975.png" border=0></a></div></center><center>Versions 2-3-4-500 of card 01</center> Basic Rules Baptiste: My prototype and basic idea had several useless cards — an all-black card that was the point of view of a sleeping cat, for instance — but we soon realized that "red herring" or deceptive cards wouldn't fit into the final quantity of cards. Marc-Antoine: Over the course of the different versions and playtests, several rules emerged. Some stemmed from a desire to tell a logical, rich story, while others emerged as the best option for a dynamic, fluid experience. The list is long, so here are just a few: • All cards must have a purpose: information or surprise. • Some cards should lead to several points of view at regular intervals. • It's important to understand the concrete link from one point of view to another. • Every visible character has a point of view...or a reason for not having one. • If the element is essential to understand the overall scenario, it must be linked to a question. • Even absurd elements must have a minimum of logic. Basically, you can probably understand that all of these considerations became a monumental headache...but they say that from constraint comes creativity. <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8586974"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/UEU3od-3oBcaP7NvGWWOMg__small/img/Js61arMKUWZQIozk6vNGGh2dpp0=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8586974.png" border=0></a></div></center><center>More sketches, a feast for your eyes</center> Illustrations and Production Once the "Memory 1" scenario was finished and confirmed, we were joined by <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgameartist/147227/jennifer-mati" >Jenny</a> and <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgameartist/147225/laure-de-chateaubourg" >Laure</a>, who illustrated the backgrounds and accessories. I said it many times throughout the process, but their talent, patience, and immediate understanding of our world and the game are at the heart of the project's success. They breathed an incredible amount of life into every image we had in mind, and I'm so grateful to them for that. They even managed to make sense of some of our most incomprehensible puzzles, as I had predicted (or not). <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8586969"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/Qn0ooOQ2BjQEm5ax_YeASA__small/img/HY8bRM08BcCH5wvUX1gH_1I5tmA=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8586969.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8586970"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/JpyHsnh7bRSJkj6s8Nqk9w__small/img/lcBgwargw_OPvvwsgtaqgZTG0-E=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8586970.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8586971"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/ARKyK3KVfcBO4AqCXeqb_A__small/img/VavAFfEr4xzwYPNqwaoWONzU0qY=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8586971.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8586972"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/Y1Xf5LE8Wa-PwpZt-NJf1g__small/img/dTSPKq0OQlh3nQemAKe_6eTNbUI=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8586972.jpg" border=0></a></div></center><center>From the first 3D rendering of Card 01 to the final illustration by Laure de Chateaubourg</center> Then <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgameartist/112123/michel-verdu" >Michel Verdu</a> joined the team. He overcame the incredible challenge of making the kidz and the zombies his own, always adding a fun, offbeat twist. The expressions and stances of the characters are super important because it's through them that we are able to understand most of what's going on in Flashback — and I think it was a great success. Over the following months, we held weekly meetings to discuss in great detail a universe that no longer looked so much like a game, but rather a colorful labyrinth hiding challenges and surprises around every corner. I remember absurd questions like, "If we place the bowling ball this way, can it look like a head?", "Can the flying zombie be wearing sunglasses?", and "Why is the cheese in a can if it's already rotten?" Fortunately, our wacky ideas were supported by a team of incredible graphic designers who boosted their efforts to bring this crazy ship to harbor. They brought impressive expertise and inventive solutions that clearly became the heart of the magic. So thanks to Manu, Christian, Sébastien, Karine, Émilie, and Hélène! Conclusion Creating a game is a strange undertaking, one in which hilarious questions can end up being taken very seriously, all in the aim of giving strangers a few hours of fun. For me, it represented a monumental team effort, a lot of learning and fun, but above all the realization that this is what I want to do for the next few years of my life: Make games with people who make magic. Baptiste: This is my first published game, and I don't know whether you can dream of anything better for your first game: a rewarding year's work, a great team always in a good mood, lovely people who listen and are talented, a game that was well received by the public, and an As d'Or at the 2023 Festival International de Jeux de Cannes. Thanks to that experience, I've come to realize that game creation isn't just for other people, and that I, too, can come up with the crazy stuff that's in my head. If you want to see even more of the creative process for Flashback: Zombie Kidz — at the risk of spoiling the game if you have yet to play — here are the illustrators' Art Stations: • <a href="https://michelverdu.artstation.com/projects/aGWO8J" target="_blank" class="postlink" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener">Michel Verdu</a> • <a href="https://www.artstation.com/artwork/b5LwPo" target="_blank" class="postlink" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener">Jenny Mati</a> • <a href="https://laure_de_chateaubourg.artstation.com/projects/RnRBYr" target="_blank" class="postlink" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener">Laure de Chateaubourg</a> <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8586973"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/WGf_ZCysM_ThGvO7yp5Kjg__small/img/DFqfKqW0KXZXpqp8rf0DdspLZb0=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8586973.jpg" border=0></a></div></center><center>Image: Jenny Mati</center>

Be Careful Not to Misplace a Blue Penguin on Wool Street during a Tic Tac Trek

by <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/1?bloggerid=17" >W. Eric Martin</a> <div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8645088"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/e79AdjEO4dbp1i2gou4Pdg__small/img/NfVQPrwGAu9z40T0P4Xp5DLM-MI=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8645088.png" border=0></a></div>▪️ <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/122486/rob-sparks" >Rob Sparks</a>' <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/295192/tinderblox" >Tinderblox</a> has been a continued success for <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamepublisher/34033/alley-cat-games" >Alley Cat Games</a> since its debut in 2020, so the publisher has a couple of new teensy games on its release schedule, including <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/393114/barbecubes" >Barbecubes</a>, a co-design by Sparks and <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/87631/kuly-heer" >Kuly Heer</a>. The appeal of the game is pretty straightforward: <div class='quote'><div class='quotebody'>In this co-operative game, players place "bbq pieces" on the fire and stack them in a particular configuration before taking them off the fire to plate up. The game gets progressively more difficult the more cards you choose to play with.</div></div> <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8645101"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/JJ6WoA_8zPiN7f34vUyUvQ__small/img/hmVRTFaFRLX0JIevTvibYe4cmDk=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8645101.jpg" border=0></a></div></center><center>Heer lays down some meat</center> ▪️ A second new title coming in Alley Cat's "tin" series is Tic Tac Trek from <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/56058/brett-j-gilbert" >Brett J. Gilbert</a> and <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/90410/trevor-benjamin" >Trevor Benjamin</a>. <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8645109"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/4U8Tz_JZ-Ls1ebnk_O13XQ__small/img/7z6JaiRx_IHbXsM7EzrS9l6NrJU=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8645109.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> As for what you do in the game, the <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DBriKrBtqTZ" target="_blank" class="postlink" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener">Instagram post</a> teasing this release says only "What kind of game do you think this is?", so you are free to speculate on the meaning of these bits. <div style='display:inline;'><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8644805"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/2OSqGT1jG_OnLgdMzOfsag__small/img/n8DhyEMfRYfAJGiWL9MeqmDVu8I=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8644805.png" border=0></a></div> <div style='display:inline;'><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8644667"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/b2nauuu9tlGXXJAg205zfA__small/img/bR-0esf6LZuFmm6VRXjuxH14p2A=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8644667.jpg" border=0></a></div> <div style='display:inline;'><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8644688"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/SYq7spKLxPWeN9_M5ljcXA__small/img/5VRDmklJzl40juDFvMAvDilT1os=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8644688.jpg" border=0></a></div> <div style='display:inline;'><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8644969"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/LOHJEAoU3v4MuVTrlDvn2A__small/img/HdS1im43nsI1GsWf0D2aPXPuX3Q=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8644969.jpg" border=0></a></div>▪️ In <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/1/blogpost/169636/build-a-canal-from-kiel-take-part-in-a-rising-cult" >my January 2025 post</a> about titles coming this year from German publisher <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamepublisher/3490/huch" >HUCH!</a>, I overlooked a trio of tiny titles (7x5x5 cm) that debuted from Swiss publisher <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamepublisher/55180/naivina" >Naivina</a>, which was founded in 2024 by game designer <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/148985/tobia-botta" >Tobia Botta</a>. (The Naivina logo is at right.) HUCH! is bringing these games to the German market, so let's get to them, starting with <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/419327/meteo" >Meteo</a>, a 2-5 player design: <div class='quote'><div class='quotebody'>In Meteo, players try to find the best weather conditions for last-minute holidays. To set up, lay out six face-up weather cards (worth +2 to -2), then place one of six color cards at random face down under each weather card. Each player secretly looks at one face-down card. <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8644685"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/E3ENLQoBkGP2NRlGJFPxdA__small/img/hE9iYmEEaqpbmZTUaqQCf9chrTg=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8644685.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> Shuffle the deck with sky cards in the six colors. Reveal sky cards one by one face up next to one another on the table. When 2-5 sky cards have been revealed, any player can shout "Off I go", collecting all of the cards present as they take off on a vacation. As a reward, they get to peek at another face-down color card. If no one has claimed the cards after five have been revealed, the weekend has arrived, and all of those cards are discarded before a new week begins. Each player can claim cards at most three times. When all players have done so or the deck is empty, the game ends. Everyone tallies their score after revealing the face-down color cards to determine how much each sky card is worth. Whoever scores the most wins.</div></div> ▪️ <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/419328/blue-penguin" >Blue Penguin</a> is similarly for 2-5 players: <div class='quote'><div class='quotebody'>In Blue Penguin, each player tries to attract the cutest penguins, and the smaller they are, the cuter they are. The problem is that little penguins always follow the bigger ones. To set up, place the color cards on the table in this order: blue (1-12), purple (13-24), red (25-36), orange (37-48), yellow (49-60), then place the corresponding cuteness value cards under the colors in this order: 2, 1, 0, -1, -2. Deal each player two penguin cards from the deck as their hand; penguin cards go from 1-60. <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8644689"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/66SBRNuGAOMfry-ofSrvDw__small/img/H1ZQiZLx2ml6HN9nax9In7dKngk=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8644689.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> The start player in the round plays a penguin card face up, then each other player does so in turn, with everyone refilling their hand to two cards after playing. Whoever plays the highest card collects all of the penguins, then leads the next round. (In a two-player game, each player plays two cards before a winner is determined.) Continue additional rounds until all of the penguin cards have been played. Each player then calculates their score based on the color of the cards they collected. Whoever has the mots cuteness points wins. As a variant, you can shuffle the cuteness value cards and lay them out in a random order.</div></div> ▪️ Finally, we hit <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/437130/wool-street" >Wool Street</a>, which is also for 2-5 players and which has only a skimpy description for now: <div class='quote'><div class='quotebody'>In Wool Street, you buy, sell, and trade colorful woolen goods in order to end up with the trendiest items in your wardrobe and lose as little as possible on the stock market. Analyze the market in order to act cleverly at the right time!</div></div> <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8644970"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/rXf0e6KuE1oH8cLNN1UkQg__small/img/KKRJy1uVVbu4zDRPzWeM98LVppo=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8644970.jpg" border=0></a></div></center>

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Designer Diary: Heroes of Timeline

by <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/1?bloggerid=16256" >Alik Shy</a> <div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8568530"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/5klUmVz3GylC8N3Bium3kA__small/img/-jfivq3FCrmsrdBmnK_uOOo8yy4=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8568530.jpg" border=0></a></div>A few moments in life feel so significant that you remember the exact date they happened. For me, one of those moments was deciding to make a board game — and I remember not just the day, but the time. It was March 8th, 2023. A friend from abroad was visiting me in Amsterdam. On his first day, we decided to take it slow and crack open one of the many new board games I had just gotten. What was supposed to be a light-hearted, hour-long session quickly turned into...something else. Two hours of learning rules. Three hours of gameplay. And still, we didn't even finish the game. By the end, it felt like we weren't even playing a game anymore; we were just competing at who could throw dice better. Frustrated and a little disenchanted, I found myself thinking, "If I were to make a board game, it would be veeery different..." And that thought never left. What started as a frustrating gaming session turned into a spark of inspiration that would change my life. That day, <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/414994/heroes-of-timeline" >Heroes of Timeline</a> was born — or at least, the idea of it was. Vision That day, I landed on what I now see as the cornerstone of game design philosophy: the core principles of the future game. I knew I wanted to create a game that would be easy to learn (and teach!), a game completely independent of luck with no frustrating dice rolls, no unfair card draws — just pure skill and strategy. The game needed to be hard to master, a challenge that would reward players for improving over time. As a huge fan of fantasy, I also couldn't resist adding asymmetric factions with unique gameplay styles. That's how Heroes of Timeline started to take shape. First Steps Fast forward a few weeks, and the first prototype of Heroes of Timeline was complete. Only one delivery box had to be sacrificed in the process. <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8569024"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/MQfu28z7RsEzSJ-O4kd3lA__small/img/T0tXBv9Kf_vWhwaf0-xF2xhc2lU=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8569024.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> It was an exciting moment: the first test play — the moment of truth when the whole concept hung in the balance. Luckily, the prototype worked! Even with its humble cardboard cutouts, the potential for strategic depth was clear. It was a small but monumental step on this journey of bringing the game to life. Playtesting Now came my favorite part of game development: playtesting. It was time to polish the mechanisms, refine the balance, and watch players break the game in ways I'd never anticipated. At its core, Heroes of Timeline is simple: The goal is to either eliminate all enemy heroes or control the bigger part of the board. Heroes maneuver around the hexagonal tiles, positioning themselves so that their vulnerable sides (with no armor) are protected. Ranged attacks eliminate unprotected heroes outright, and melee attacks can overpower them through regular armor. It's easy to learn, much like chess once you grasp how the pieces move. But the magic happens in the layers of strategy. Each team comes with its own identity, unique heroes, and team skills that slightly bend the rules. For example: • The Hidden Temple ninjas are fast and aggressive, focusing on offense. • The Guards of Witgat rely heavily on their armor and defensive strategies. • Individual heroes bring their own twists, such as a mighty Knight walking through walls or a Golem absorbing armor from defeated foes. These asymmetries create a depth of strategy that makes every game feel challenging. A Glitch in the System But there was an unintended side effect. During the test plays, I noticed something fascinating: every player was paralyzed. The layers of decisions — balancing attacks, defenses, and hero abilities — pushed their strategic thinking into overdrive. Just look at the faces in these photos! (Spoiler: I was no different.) <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8568955"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/N3qqXiaBbvU6x0xKH926kA__small/img/awl6DupePK_i2T0mJC2FTtUrlww=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8568955.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8568956"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/xoBc0PJFcIsuBWqzmszy2w__small/img/f4_9QuwSWOdR_Pg2M2JXnZrh9V4=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8568956.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8568957"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/Os8KWaW1I8Rtpi2JQews6A__small/img/osP5nW5RG1dF5ynYciz2xJBIOzY=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8568957.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8568958"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/mocK7ZVWmnvcqG202iVfbw__small/img/6Jlpf3eiU4vfa2z07XctWASTkRU=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8568958.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> A year into development, I realized something hilarious: I'm still not great at my own game. Even after countless matches, I continue to discover new ways to approach each team's skills and abilities. FID: The Scary Part Realizing that the game was complete was the moment I had to take the final investment decision (FID). I knew Heroes of Timeline wasn't the type of game most publishers were looking for. To bring the game to life and share it with a wider audience, I made the bold decision to self-publish. What followed was a daunting yet rewarding challenge. I had to tackle production, shipping, marketing, and every other aspect of bringing a board game to market — all on my own. This journey was a roller coaster of "learning moments": production mix-ups, shipping delays, tax hurdles, rules video editing, social media promotion, and travel to play with reviewers across Europe. Here's a highlight: The factory somehow printed one thousand copies of the rulebook...in Comic Sans. Yep. Every single copy in the first batch had to be repacked and replaced. A delay, for sure, but definitely a story to tell. <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8568959"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/PREC0AjwSjc8p08dP6k5cA__small/img/FV3LX1KkPYMobkzbEHKS8j-hLnE=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8568959.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8568960"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/HUMzvxxHEx9TiOKCi_hFuw__small/img/M5iTWXkC_AMRDnxQmyigOSLAgs4=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8568960.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> Release After all the hurdles, Heroes of Timeline officially launched in November 2024. Seeing the game in its final form, ready to be played and enjoyed, feels surreal. It's the culmination of countless late nights, unexpected challenges, and a passion for creating something unique. Sometimes it's hard to believe the journey is over — or perhaps, it's just beginning. Heroes of Timeline is out there now, and I can't wait to see how others experience it. Just look at this beauty in its final glory: <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8569789"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/y0hJvAdQWxBmkKh12Bqdkw__small/img/8om9hhl9sDwg_QgmDGtpHPeqoHI=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8569789.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> Conclusion Sometimes, once an idea takes shape, it feels like it needs to exist — like it's guiding you rather than the other way around. With a clear vision of what I wanted Heroes of Timeline to be, the rest just followed. Creating something can feel daunting, but when you know the core of what you want to make, the obstacles become part of the process, not the roadblocks. If you've ever had that spark, trust it. Sometimes, all it takes is to start — and let the idea lead the way. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/160007/oleh-shyianovskyi" >Alik (Oleh) Shyianovskyi</a>

Portal Games Welcomes Wiremen to Neuroshima Hex, Aliens to Age of Galaxy, and Bohemians to Europe

▪️ In October 2025, Portal will release a twentieth anniversary edition of Michał Oracz' Neuroshima Hex, a 2-4 player conflict game in which each player controls a unique army of hex tiles that enter play bit by bit to try to eliminate opposing headquarters or have the least damaged HQ when the game ends. ▪️ That title will be preceded in June 2025 by Neuroshima Hex: Battle, a smaller two-player only version of Neuroshima Hex that features the previously released expansion armies Beasts from des

Prepare for Heat to Survive the Island in Darwin's Oceania

by <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/1?bloggerid=17" >W. Eric Martin</a> <div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8647210"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/ez01nzXEqZgLn0lx714eqA__small/img/sw29GPWLzh7y3edW8CPqw258wFo=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8647210.jpg" border=0></a></div>For fans of certain things, more of that thing is coming in the hope that you will also be a fan of it, too. What are the things in question? Let's list them: ▪️ <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgameexpansion/436904/heat-tunnel-vision" >Heat: Tunnel Vision</a> is the next expansion for <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/80520/asger-harding-granerud" >Asger Harding Granerud</a> and <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/80521/daniel-skjold-pedersen" >Daniel Skjold Pedersen</a>'s racing game <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/366013/heat-pedal-to-the-metal" >Heat: Pedal to the Metal</a>, and it will debut in Europe in February 2025, with an April 2025 release following in the U.S. and elsewhere. Here's the pitch: <div class='quote'><div class='quotebody'>The roar of powerful engines bursts from the dark mouth of the Pyrenean tunnel just moments before gleaming cars streak past. One mistake could mean certain destruction, but the lure of the Spanish Grand Prix keeps the drivers focused and aggressive. Heat: Tunnel Vision introduces two new racing tracks. The Spanish Grand Prix takes your car through treacherous tunnels, forcing you to trust your instincts in the semi-dark. The Netherlands track allows you to open your engine to full throttle before throwing you into a succession of treacherous corners. Take part in the 1965 Championship season and install the new Front Wing upgrade to draft off the other drivers and charge to victory. This second expansion brings chicanes and tunnels for more technical and high-intensity races, front wing upgrade cards, and new event cards, in addition to expanding the player count to seven (or eight with the Heavy Rain expansion).</div></div> <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8647208"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/tkFzD5_2e3Ur5l9RMSaaqg__small/img/J6cnNsujilIuLdkkhMLWKAnv7Nw=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8647208.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8647207"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/BtIn4jXqQ3PmN_YpZ1pKtg__small/img/unKfaY1N2ApFcJeNeAhW2yfyFNs=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8647207.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> ▪️ In February 2025, <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamepublisher/39848/zygomatic" >Zygomatic</a> will release <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgameexpansion/436998/survive-the-island-monster-pack" >Survive The Island: Monster Pack</a>, an expansion for <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/161/julian-courtland-smith" >Julian Courtland-Smith</a>'s <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/425428/survive-the-island" >Survive the Island</a> that contains three new monsters to bring twists to your game: the pterodactyl can lift you off the ground and leave you stranded far from safety; the whale creates chaos by tipping over boats, forcing you to rethink your escape strategy; and the unpredictable octopus can snatch players when they least expect it, making the race to escape even trickier. <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8642076"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/fGQzb15A-xIlvtUhLCybzA__small/img/np8bKdfHHlRoiChwh2XbzaraqGM=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8642076.png" border=0></a></div></center> ▪️ Charles Darwin is on the road again in <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgameexpansion/434329/darwins-journey-oceania" >Darwin's Journey: Oceania</a>, an expansion for <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/35418/simone-luciani" >Simone Luciani</a> and <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/52377/nestore-mangone" >Nestore Mangone</a>'s 2023 game <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/322289/darwins-journey" >Darwin's Journey</a> that <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamepublisher/32922/thundergryph-games" >ThunderGryph Games</a> is <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/gonab/darwinoceania?ref=bggforums" target="_blank" class="postlink" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener">crowdfunding</a> for release before the end of 2025. Here's an overview: <div class='quote'><div class='quotebody'>In Darwin's Journey: Oceania, Charles Darwin ventures into the Pacific islands, captivated by their untamed beauty and unique life forms. Amid breathtaking discoveries, he faces setbacks and challenges that test his resolve, from harsh environments to the unpredictability of uncharted territory. As Darwin delves deeper into these natural wonders, his journey becomes a testament to the interconnectedness of life and the boundless curiosity that drives human exploration. <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8583996"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/Onzq0n_0KWoWxrBRQMrdxg__small/img/zvgU0f0tXG9NgTQiIRd7jpq1UIQ=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8583996.png" border=0></a></div></center> Players will venture into a freshly designed island map, showcasing sixteen unique specimens inspired by Oceania. This expansion brings reimagined player boards with distinct bonuses and introduces a revamped main board filled with new features.</div></div> ▪️ In February 2025, <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamepublisher/36186/phalanx" >PHALANX</a> will launch <a href="https://gamefound.com/en/projects/phalanx/nanty-narking-cthulhu" target="_blank" class="postlink" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener">a crowdfunding campaign</a> for <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgameexpansion/437247/nanty-narking-rise-of-the-cthulhu" >Nanty Narking: Rise of the Cthulhu</a>, a design by Valdemar Gumienny and Martin Wallace that takes 2019's <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/249746/nanty-narking" >Nanty Narking</a> in a whole new direction: <div class='quote'><div class='quotebody'>A veil of darkness and despair has shrouded London. The natural order of things is shifting. The Great Old Ones emerge from the never-lifting mist, bent on taking over the feeble minds of humans – and each has its own purpose, a malevolent goal to fulfill. Rejoice as London descends into madness, and reshape it into your own ghastly image! <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8652527"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/qqZzgJZ4WDySYQ9zVUXCiQ__small/img/AgwbRaU5Y_Lo82zt0zcNKDKMyJE=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8652527.png" border=0></a></div></center> Nanty Narking: Rise of the Cthulhu is a dynamic expansion that allows 2-4 players to become a Great Old One of myths. Summon lesser gods and entities to do your bidding, help you achieve your secret goal, and battle with other powerful Great Old Ones, equally as hell-bent on total domination and destruction. The expansion introduces new components – including Great Ones' giant miniatures – and a slew of new mechanisms. You'll take on the personalities of Great Old Ones, and use new card abilities: insanity, to ramp up the madness level, and Ssummon, to beckon lesser entities to join you. Each such Great One is a unique agent with powerful ability, difficult to eliminate and eager to sow destruction, now easier and more fun than ever. But beware – if you overdo it and the Doomsday track is filled, you all lose!</div></div>

Solo Gaming 2024: The End of the Year Edition

I’ve been writing these solo gaming reports since March of 2020… but my solo gaming started a lot farther back than that – being a wargamer in the 1970s/80s meant that a lot of your collection only saw table time if … <a href="https://opinionatedgamers.com/2025/01/17/solo-gaming-2024-the-end-of-the-year-edition/">Continue reading →</a>

Designer Diary: The Fellowship of the Ring: Trick-Taking Game

by <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/1?bloggerid=16217" >Bryan Bornmueller</a> <div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8437787"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/uC4N_3kQdoHefNPesAHCzQ__small/img/hLjGKsIwJP43656LEnehjFVRzDE=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8437787.png" border=0></a></div><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/429293/the-fellowship-of-the-ring-trick-taking-game" >The Fellowship of the Ring: Trick-Taking Game</a> is a co-operative trick-taking game based on the first book of The Lord of the Rings. Players journey through eighteen chapters covering the characters, events, and places in Middle-earth. Each chapter plays out as a series of tricks that must be won or lost to complete each character's specific goals. Beginnings The game started out small. Two questions swirled together in my head: • Can you make a trick-taking game properly thematic? and • What would a The Lord of the Rings trick-taking game look like? Most trick-takers have a theme but often it is just a fun name and artwork with the gameplay more geared toward traditional clubs and diamonds than story and adventure. As a lifelong fan of both trick-taking games and Tolkien, I wanted to make a genuinely fun game in which players feel completely immersed in the epic masterpiece. Waiting outside my kid's school one afternoon, I was struck with an idea: If the deck and suits formed the world, players could act as characters in Middle-earth and the gameplay would naturally follow the story structure of the book. <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8550894"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/K3wm5fjnvJxG9LKKeGKwiA__small/img/XzEfTAlDupxotOk4VlVTP_VajpA=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8550894.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> After building a prototype and testing it, the idea held up! The basic suits (hills, forests, mountains, shadows) lent the card play the texture of Middle-earth and the familiar characters made it easier for players to learn the character goals. The co-operative aspect of the game made thematic sense for the story of The Lord of the Rings. Each character has a goal to achieve in every hand, placing the memorable characters at the core of the game. <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8437895"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/05Z-YpN30SRQtgyS4WDCSg__small/img/sZM7Nbpj0E2Xe_TZ_euHCRzMR34=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8437895.png" border=0></a></div></center> The Ring Sets Out After sorting suits and characters, I designed the members of the Fellowship and we were off to Mount Doom...but something was missing. Working in the mechanism of passing cards between players before a hand allowed me to add more authentic detail to the characters. For example, it was obvious that Legolas and Gimli should interact with each other. The character selection process proved to be a fun strategic element, providing an opportunity to give hints about the strength of your hand and other clues to your fellow players. <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8437899"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/O_dlgn3k2SHZEZ8IhnBDvQ__small/img/MfXaF_x7xq0G8PDmV-soc3y_O-0=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8437899.png" border=0></a></div></center> Another benefit of the character selection and card exchange was that it provided enough information and luck mitigation that players didn't need other mechanisms to communicate. This kept the game flowing smoothly, like some of my favorite trick-takers. However, the characters in The Lord of the Rings have anything but a smooth journey. Enter the Rings. If I included a Rings suit, then the 1 of Rings (or the One Ring) would be especially powerful. It was clear that the player who was randomly dealt the One Ring would have to play as Frodo. With Frodo's role in the game now firmly in place, the game needed one more core rule to keep his goal challenging. Since he needs to win Rings cards and has the only trump card in the game in that same suit, I needed to slow him down a little bit so that he wouldn't finish his goal first every single time. For this, I was able to borrow a rule from classic trick-taking games (like <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/6887/hearts" >Hearts</a> and <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/592/spades" >Spades</a>) and not allow Rings to be lead until they are broken (played off suit). This created just the right obstacle for Frodo and also made the first appearance by a Rings card each round feel pivotal, further improving the thematic resonance of the Rings. <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8550893"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/CQZiF6-TYALnA75oCr9Maw__small/img/WBQFMPCUrOl0Lmcz38tdD_AaD98=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8550893.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> Many Meetings I put together a new prototype and headed off to PAX Unplugged 2022. Two key realizations came out of the show. First, anyone not deep into trick-taking games was overwhelmed by simultaneously learning a new game and the goals of nine characters. Second, <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/134528/taylor-reiner" >Taylor Reiner</a> — a game designer you should know from <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/134528/taylor-reiner/linkeditems/boardgamedesigner" target="_blank" class="postlink" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener">his amazing games</a> and foundational Youtube channel, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@ClaudeAndTaylor" target="_blank" class="postlink" rel="nofollow noreferrer noopener">Taylor's Trick-Taking Table</a> — was the perfect developer for The Fellowship of the Ring: Trick-Taking Game. The final steps of design and development were dedicated to achieving a delicate balance: the campaign needed to feel as though players were experiencing the full story with all the characters, but couldn't be a legacy-style campaign that simply re-enacted the book. Buoyed by Taylor's enthusiasm and diligent testing, we refined the game to eighteen chapters and designed a couple of introductory modules to teach the game step-by-step. With the introduction and gameplay established, we were able to build in some truly difficult challenges and surprising twists later on in the game. We also built in other modes of gameplay like rules that generate a random selection of characters ("The Road Goes Ever On" mode), rules to play a two-player game, and rules for solo play. <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8550897"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/AuSXdguBCjF3SmVbNW78Mw__small/img/C9mitsiJtWzWhNUYtirI51QG-WE=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8550897.jpg" border=0></a></div></center> The Council <div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/7699657"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/ZpomytZQSPsFWlWPqBvyAA__small/img/EOGhRg4VAaAPcIcl_LxBPThvh18=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic7699657.png" border=0></a></div>It's been an amazing journey to take a story that has been important to me for basically my whole life and combine it with a fascination with trick-taking card games. Even more amazing has been the support of the whole team here at Asmodee (Luke, Bree, Lupe, Jay, Randy, Preston, Kevin, Jorge, Krystal, and Mike) and all of the talented folks who made the game look so great (Elaine, Matt, Blaise, and Sam). I am also so grateful to everyone who has played or playtested the game over the years and everyone who is excited to join me on my quest to combine Middle-earth and trick-taking for many years to come. <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgamedesigner/159764/bryan-bornmueller" >Bryan Bornmueller</a> <center><div style=''><a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/image/8550895"><img src="https://cf.geekdo-images.com/OXHfSQJ2ED-FHxHbbawLvQ__small/img/pofvjjgPGJFJi4hJMlHbUjKXg0w=/fit-in/200x150/filters:strip_icc()/pic8550895.jpg" border=0></a></div></center>