Podcasts Part I

I drive a lot of miles in an average year: typically 30-40,000 and so have a lot of time to listen to music in the car. For the last 4-5 years, in fact ever since I've had the ability to connect my IPod to the car stereo, 90% of my car journeys are spent listening to podcasts. This is my view on the best I've come across.  Part 1 starts with a few Board Game podcasts, with more to follow in (surprisingly!) Part 2.

The Dice Tower

Let's start with perhaps the most popular.  The Dice Tower is presented by long-time host (and ubiquitous reviewer) Tom Vasel and co-host Eric Summerer.  Tom is widely regarded as one of the most knowledgeable personalities in the hobby and it comes across in the show. His personal tastes tend to the Ameritrash, but he likes his fair share of Euros as well. He does sometimes come across as quite arrogant, although he seems aware of this and this has diminished more recently. 

I met Eric Summerer at Origins a couple of years ago and taught him Nimmt 11. He is a smashing fella and, although still the junior presenter on the show, his contribution to the show is significant. An important part of the show's appeal in the past has been it's rota of guest contributors. This is one area that is in need of refresh, the current irregular crop of contributors is somewhat lacking, save for the excellent Geoff Engelstein and very occasional visits from the entertaining Moritz Eggert.

Overall, the Dice Tower remains absolutely essential listening. 

Garrett's Games & Geekiness

Mostly games, unless you count drinking wine as geekiness!  (now real ale might just count!).  Anyway back to the podcast ...

The weekly show is presented by Doug Garrett, usually accompanied by his wife Shelley. I met them briefly at Essen a few years ago and they are as nice in person as they come across on the podcast.  Their taste is primarily Euro in nature (special favourites being Michael Schacht & Stefan Feld) and they tend towards the "Cult of the new", although they have just started re-reviewing old games recently.

The show occasionally has round-tables with industry veterans recorded at cons. An excellent recent episode featured Susan McKinley Ross (designer of SdJ winner Qwirkle) and our very own Martin Wallace together with Aldie from BGG. What the American audience made of Martin's dry English humour would be interesting. 

I enjoy Garrett's Games because it's a very easy show to listen to and, by and large, there is a large overlap between my taste in games and that of the presenters. Overall, a highly recommended podcast.

On Board Games

This slightly irregularly appearing show is primarily presented by Don Dennis, Erik Dewey and Scott Nicholson (yes he of the excellent Board Games with Scott video series).   The format of the show is generally a round-table discussion followed by a series of game reviews. 

The industry round-table discussions are usually excellent and sometimes entertaining. They are definitely the best regular such spot on any podcast and, alone, ensure that this podcast is well worth a listen. They also cover a strange selection of games in their reviews which is very different from all of the other podcasts listed here.

One warning about the show is that Giles Pritchard is a fairly regular guest presenter.  Quite possibly a very nice guy, but his abrasive Aussie accent simply grates and I immediately switch off when his contributions pop up.

Overall another podcast that is well worth a listen.

Part II

To come, a selection of other podcasts, including:

• Boardgames to go
• Into the Gamescape
• The Spiel

UK Games Expo 2012 - still disappointing ...

Over-priced food, inadequate parking, grown (!?) men dressing up as Star Wars stormtroopers and games not turning up - yes it must be the UK Games Expo once again!

We've been along every year and in recent years we (well at least me anyway) have said "never again". This year will almost  definitely be the last. So what is most wrong about the Expo:

1. It just hasn't grown appreciably - the number of exhibitors is still minimal. 
2. There were no major game releases this year, even worse the one key new game that even graced the Expo's programme failed to appear. 
3. There are not enough retailers there to generate any price competition between vendors.

So, enough of the negativity, what was good about the Expo:

• There is plenty of space to play games - we had enjoyable games of Anchorage and Extra!
• I got to see the Going Cardboard film which was very good
• We used the trip to visit Imrans on Ladypool Road for an excellent Balti

The future of the Expo seems to be in creating a UK equivalent of Origins at the NEC Metropole. Currently the Expo exhibitor space is around a third of the size of the Origins Dealer Room and considerably less interesting.

I hope the Expo grows and thrives - maybe I'll check it out in a few years time. In the meantime, roll on Essen!

A-Z of Games, Caches & Songs – ‘A’

A weekly A-Z of Games, Caches & Songs through the alphabet. 5 games, 3 caches and 10 songs. This week it’s ‘A’.

Games

• Acquire – Sid Sackson
• Agricola – Uwe Rosenberg
• Airlines Europe – Alan R. Moon
• American Rails – Tim Harrison
• Automobile – Martin Wallace

Caches

• Aladdins Cave - Northking
• A(queduct) Ray of Hope - Roobydoo
• Are you game enough? - Hanando

Songs

• 'A' Bomb In Wardour Street - The Jam
• Absolute Beginners - The Jam
• Acquiesce - Oasis
• Action Packed - Jonathan Richman
• Alison - Elvis Costello
• All Around The World - Lisa Stansfield
• All the Same to You - Laura Cantrell
• All The Young Dudes - Mott The Hoople
• All Woman - Lisa Stansfield
• Alright - Supergrass
• Anarchy In The U.K. - Sex Pistols
• (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes - Elvis Costello
• Away From The Numbers - The Jam

And in more detail ...

Games

My 2 favourite games and 3 other very strong ones.

Acquire

I’ve only recently discovered this classic Sid Sackson title, originally published in 1962. It is basically a stock trading game against a backdrop of hotel growth and takeovers. It plays like a new Euro and I’m looking forward to lots more plays of it.

Agricola

Whoever thought faming could be fun? An ‘event’ game – the experience being more important than the winning. The sheer number of cards means that each game will be fresh for years to come. My second favourite game after Automobile.

Airlines Europe

Acquire meets Ticket to Ride? Well almost – stock-holding certainly meets route-building but this is a very strong game in its own right. This is Alan R. Moon’s latest re-working of Airlines and Union Pacific and therefore has a pedigree dating back to 1990.

American Rails

Another stock-holding and route-building game – a theme seems to be emerging here. Similar to both Chicago Express and Steel Driver, but superior to both.

Automobile

Martin Wallace’s finest moment and my favourite game. Excellent theme and straight-forward gameplay. Often wrongly dismissed as overly maths-heavy, it contains many of Martin’s favoured mechanics and can be wonderfully confrontational. As Kenny Rogers sang in The Gambler – you got to know when to hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em. Except in this case, it’s all about car manufacturing …

Caches

Aladdins Cave

Sadly recently archived. This was a simple puzzle cache in central Nottingham with the final in a large ammo can in an army surplus store! The reasons why the cache was outstanding was the enthusiasm of the store owner who we discussed caching with for more than 30 minutes and also the store itself – the best army surplus store I’ve ever been in (“hey make sure that you give a discount to my geocaching buddies”).

A(queduct) Ray of Hope

The primary reason why caching in Swindon is in such good shape is one man – Roobydoo (Keith Shailes). He has placed more than 200 local caches (at the time of writing I’ve found 199 of them) and really gave the hobby a boost. This is one of his best – the cache was placed in a pipe with a hidden entrance so that you are literally standing on top of the cache but can’t understand why you can’t find it. The other end of the pipe is close by though so you can use this as a guide to discover the main entrance.

Are you game enough?

A fun local puzzle cache that combines Euro gaming with caching, how can it not be on the list?

Songs

A distinctly punky edge to this first batch. There are also 13 tracks – I was unable to pick out a favourite ten.

'A' Bomb In Wardour Street - The Jam

A song that captured the mood at the time. One of the stand-outs on All Mod Cons. I first heard it at the Brunel Rooms on a mini-tour to promote the forthcoming album.

Absolute Beginners - The Jam

With its soaring brass, this was a forerunner of the direction for Weller post-Jam. Also a great book by Colin MacInnes.

Acquiesce – Oasis

Superior ‘B’ side of Some Might Say.

Action Packed - Jonathan Richman

From the 1989 Jonathan Richman album. Recorded some great stuff around this time.

Alison - Elvis Costello

Seminal single from first album.

All Around The World - Lisa Stansfield

I’ve always had a soft spot for Rochdale’s finest. #1 hit in 1989.

All the Same to You - Laura Cantrell

Along with Jonathan Richman and Erin McKeown, Laura Cantrell is one of my favourite singers. Taken from the 2002 album When The Roses Bloom Again, the album that got me into her work.

All The Young Dudes - Mott The Hoople

Bowie written song from 1972. One I remember from the youth club, still sounds great today.

All Woman - Lisa Stansfield

Incredibly just a minor hit in 1991.

Alright – Supergrass

The feel-good summer track of choice.

Anarchy In The U.K. - Sex Pistols

I first heard (and saw) this on an EMI promo video in Harrods Music Department in December 1976. Great sneering vocal, although it sounds a bit twee now.

(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes - Elvis Costello

From a time when EC was routinely churning out fantastic pop songs. I love the lyric Oh, I said "I’m so happy, I could die”, she said "drop dead," then left with another guy.

Away From The Numbers - The Jam

Apart from In the City, the standout song from the first Jam album.

Book Review

Hereward by James Wilde

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book would be a 4.5 star if that were allowable. In fact as a first novel, it is really deserving of 5 stars.

Not quite as polished as a Cornwell, Scarrow or Kristian, but nevertheless a good paced and very readable book right from the start. I finished it in 3 - 4 days and it was a book where just one more chapter was required to be read every time I picked it up.

I knew about the central events of 1066, but not too much else about this period. I cannot vouch for the historical accuracy of the book, but it is a very enjoyable read and I have a new name in my list of 'must-read' authors. I am looking forward to the follow-up later this year and have already pre-ordered it.

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On holiday in Sölden ... shame about the jacket!

2011 Five and Dimes

10 or more plays
Game	Qty
7 Wonders	30
Pinguïn Party	27
Dixit	16
23	11
5 or more plays
Game	Qty
Loopin' Louie	7
Power Grid: The First Sparks	7
Drum Roll	6
Ticket To Ride – all versions	6
The Bottle Imp	5
Braggart	5
Hoppladi Hopplada!	5
Power Grid – all versions	5
Qwirkle	5

Most years I record exactly zero ‘Dimes’ – in 2011 I managed to record no fewer than 4. A quick summary of each game:

I don’t need to go into any detail on 7 Wonders: this hit from Essen 2010, the top-ranked game of that year on BGG, continued to hit the table regularly in 2011. Its streamlined playing time and variety of play will continue to see it hit the table for some time to come. The ‘Leaders’ expansion refreshed the game in 2011 and is a natural addition for experienced players.

Pingüin Party also continues to hit the table regularly, whether at family gatherings or on game nights. This light filler continues to entertain and where would be be without the classic ‘Miserable Penguin’ opening? The good Doctor’s finest hour?

Dixit is the party game for family occasions, yet still not totally out of place on game nights. The second expansion ‘Dixit Odyssey’ added a lot of new cards to the mix, along with 6 new rabbits, allowing up to 12 players. Always guaranteed to produce laughter.

23 is perhaps the surprise hit from Essen 2011. A light card game from Amigo, covering much the same ground as ‘No Thanks’ or ‘6 Nimmt’. Its simplicity and simple gameplay has made this an instant hit.

Loopin’ Louie is the classic game of dexterity and skill – always entertaining, especially when alcohol is in the mix! My copy cost me £5 from Tescos five or six years ago. Money well spent – every little helps!

Power Grid: The First Sparks, or Power Grid Lite as it has been dubbed, is a wonderful re-implementation of Power Grid mechanics that plays out in about half the time of PG. This fun version of PG, with an iron age theme, was the 2F-Spiele game from Essen 2011.

Drum Roll was perhaps my favourite game of Essen 2011. A great theme with superb artwork.

This is a smooth and elegant implementation of the ‘worker placement’ mechanic, although perhaps plays 30 minutes too long.

Ticket To Ride continues to be consistently played. This year I played Nordic twice (the 2/3 player map of choice), classic USA once, Europe once, Switzerland once and the new India map once. The India map brought an enjoyable fresh variant to the game family and is currently my favourite. I also bought the Alvin & Dexter expansion which livens up the USA map. 2011 was also the year I sold Märklin – I just never got it to the table. I’ve also played some TTR using the excellent IPad implementation but only include ftf games on my play stats.

I purchased the Bottle Imp a few years ago, after a game with Steve Kearon at a con, but really only played it last year. This is a roller-coaster of a trick-taking game which seems to play excellently as a 3-player.

I picked up Braggart at the UK Games Expo back in June. This is a humorous light-hearted game which is great in the right setting. This is an ‘experience game’ – a bit like Dixit – nobody cares who wins, the fun is in the experience.

Hoppladi! Hopplada! is a rabbit-themed push-your-luck dice game. All of the plays relate to the holiday period in January.

Power Grid remains a firm favourite. This year I played classic PG twice, the Brazil/Spain & Portugal expansion twice and the China map once. Of these, the China map seemed to offer the most challenging game experience.

I first played Qwirkle at Essen, then some friends in Germany bought it and we played with them, and then we bought a copy for my Mother-In-Law and so we played with her. Frankly I detest the game, it is far too dependent on the luck of the tile draw, but usually do well when playing it.

Bubbling under: Totemo was a surprise hit (from Surprised Stare!) which I picked up at the UK Games Expo. Released in 2010, the bits are great and it is a great introduction for non-gamers.

All in all, I played no less than 96 different games in 2011 – and people wonder why I can’t remember the rules of games! The total number of games played was 251. Surprise hits of 2011: I’d pick out 3 – Small World, Stone Age and Hanabi.

I normally run a mile at the threat of dwarves, elves and the like. Fantasy games leave me absolutely cold – my fantasies certainly don’t involve pixies or ogres! However Small World was a great little area majority game and I look forward to playing it again.

Somehow Stone Age completely passed me by over the last few years. I finally got to play it at Midcon and had a blast. I now own the game and look forward to more plays in 2012.

I played Hanabi for the first time at Midcon as well, and I think it is the first time I’ve ever enjoyed a co-op game. The theme is that you are trying to stage a firework display by working together – the twist is that you can’t look at your cards, but everyone else can see them (you hold them the wrong way round). It is ostensibly a team puzzle game, but is a hoot.

Finally my ‘Top 10’ 2011 releases, at least thus far:

1. Power Grid: The First Sparks

2. Drum Roll

3. Pantheon

4. 7 Wonders Leaders

5. Airlines Europe

6. The Dwarf King

7. 23

8. The City

9. Nefarious

10. Coney Island

A Dance with Dragons

A Dance With Dragons by George R.R. Martin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I read AGOT and then the rest of the series back-to-back. I rested a couple of months and then launched into this latest episode. This book is becoming increasingly like the literary equivalent of a soap opera - you feel the need to keep up because of the time invested in the series, which is considerable, and the need to find out how your favourite characters fare (in my case, Tyrion and Jon Snow).

However at the same time you increasingly start to lose interest in some of the lesser storylines and realise that you don't care one way or another what happens to them. Some of the strands need to come together, but I can't see that happening any time soon. A "must read", but no longer 5-star.

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