Author: travis

January 30, 2019 /

You know how sometimes you open a game box for the first time and you just know that it’s going to be amazing? You pull out all the components for inspection and admiration. You flip through the cards. You notice that the gems are all individual, unique models and not just…

January 23, 2019 /

Thanos is on the warpath. He can’t wait to assemble the Infinity Gauntlet in preparation for The Snap. He has enemy minions to help fight off heroes in three different sectors. But we have The Avengers. And their friends. We can do this, heroes! We can defeat 10 minions before…

January 21, 2019 /

You haven’t played this game? Inconceivable! Actually, quite conceivable. I wasn’t really into the board game hobby when this came out in 2008, so of course I did not pick it up at release. I am a big Princess Bride fan, and I probably would have picked it up at…

January 16, 2019 /

Oh, Nanuk. Why are you so disliked? Is it because some gamers can’t separate Steve Jackson Games from Munchkin? Are you then destined to just be “okay” because your cousin is so polarizing? No. I will stand up for you AND your other cousin Revolution! (review coming)! You are a…

January 11, 2019 /

Tokaido is one of those simple, yet beautiful, games where you can bring it to the table and nearly everyone will have a great time, errrr I mean trip… Just keep reading! You’ll see! Tokaido (2012) FunForge 2-5 Players 45 minutes Ages 8+ BGG Weight – 1.76 / 5 I…

January 9, 2019 /

Imagine yourself a Duke/Duchess. You have land that needs to be developed. You have paltry starting resources and access to a Farmer to produce goods and a Knight to protect them. You need to build the greatest Dukedom/Duchy to prosper for generations and fend off the impending monster attack. In…

January 7, 2019 /

So rarely does a game present itself that is both very difficult for highly educated people to learn the first play through, and is simultaneously easy enough to play in under 15 minutes whilst carrying on a conversation about something entirely different. Such is my love. Such is 7 Wonders.…

January 2, 2019 /

“I’m gonna bang you.”  Taken out of context, one might be slapped for saying such things.  While playing a rousing game of BANG! The Dice Game, it’s only too common.  To “bang” someone (in this game) is to shoot them.  With a gun.  While Purple Phoenix Games does not condone…

December 24, 2018 /

Okay, so Saboteur isn’t one of the newest or shiniest board games on the market at the moment. Here’s the thing, it doesn’t need to be. It is profoundly unique, and well, scratched a BIG itch at its debut. I cannot think, off the top of my head, of a…

December 19, 2018 /

Bean farmin’.  Don’t get better’n that.  Unless you’re corn farmin’.  An’ we should know.  We are from the Quad Cities, the booger of the man made by Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, and Louisiana.  Look here.  Yes, we are surrounded by corn fields, but our home is not within a corn field.  Actually,…

December 12, 2018 /

Yer a deck-builder, Harry.  So many times we gamers are “treated” to really horrible games based on IPs (intellectual properties).  For some reason, designers and publishers seem to care about getting games in hands that have a certain brand or logo on them, and don’t really care about the game…

December 10, 2018 /

Man, this game looks great!  The components are really cool!  The premise is excellent, and something that is somewhat underused!  This is going to be amazing!  We get to be Harry Potter and his friends tracking down baddies and using spells to squish them back in their book! Except, it…

November 30, 2018 /

We are late to the game.  Almost always.  I mean, we BUY new games.  We watch videos on them to learn.  We then digest the rulebook and teach it to whomever is interested in playing with us.  Then we play.  Sometimes we can only get a few games in and…