Shelley and I have a good time grinning through our first lighter game, but then cannot recommend our second, middle-weight game – at least for 2 players.

Smile by Michael Schacht from Z-Man Games

and

Nusfjord by Uwe Rosenberg from Mayfair/Lookout Games

Shelley and I FINALLY get a finished copy of Palace of Mad King Ludwig to the table after playing a much different prototype version about 9 months ago, then get a chance to send our divers into the depths with Otys!

Palace of Mad King Ludwig by Ted Alspach from Bezier Games

and

Otys by Claude Lucchini

Thanks to everyone for listening - we made it to 600!!! - and if you can sponsor the podcast, please do so at www.patreon.com/garrettsgames

Merry Christmas to those listening on the day this drops!

Shelley and I become goods smugglers this week, then head back in time to brew some beer in our monasteries!

Star Cartel by Martin Boisselle from Osprey Games

and

Heaven and Ale by Michael Kiesling and Andreas Schmidt

Shelley and I put on our conquistador helmets, then head into the library to do some shelving.

Santa Maria by Eilif Svensson and Kristian Amundsen Ostby from Aporta Games

and

Ex Libris by Adam P. McIver from Renegade Game Studios

Shelley and I have a fantastic time with two newer games from the related publishers ADC Blackfire and Spielworxx

Gentes by Stefan Risthaus from Spielworxx

and

Calimala by Fabio Lopiano from ADC Blackfire

Shelley and I check out the two new HABA releases that are geared to gamers and families rather than just children (a trend they've been following for the past couple of years).

Conex by Prospero Hall

and

Iquazu by Michael Feldkotter

Shelley and I get a chance to delve into one of the buzzy-est games of Essen (Thanks Alan How!!!) and the new 2-player version of a modern classic

Biosphere from DDD Verlag and designed by Christoph Bauer, Max Kleinschroth, Philipp Rösch, and Tilman Schneider

and

Codenames Duet from CGE and designed by Vlaada Chvátil and Scot Eaton

Shelley and I get two of the top lighter to middle-weight games of Essen to the table.

Azul by Michael Kiesling from Plan B Games

and

Majesty: For The Realm by Marc Andre from Hans-im-Gluck and Z-Man Games

Shelley and I make it back form Essen and get a couple of 2-player-only titles to the table for our first post-Essen recording session. They are

Cousins' War by David J. Mortimer from Surprised Stare Games

and

Zooloretto Duell by Michael Schacht from Abacusspiele

While hanging out in the BGG booth before the fair opened and then wandering the halls running into friends, I turned on the recorder to get some opinions about games seen and new stuff coming out.

BGGers = Chad, John, and Beth

Dale Yu from Opinionated Gamers

Bryan from Bezier Games

and

Ted Alspach from Bezier Games

Games mentioned in discussions:

Untold

Transatlantic

Otys

Pandemic Legacy Season 2

Ex Libris

Majesty: For The Realm

Azul

Biosphere

Nusfjord

Fortress

Flee

Fear

Rescue Polar Bears

Battlefold

Cheating Bumblebee

Bonk!

Tokyo Highway

Coaster Park

Shelley and I get a short pre-travel-to-Germany episode in, reviewing one of the games getting its debut at the Essen fair.

Column of Fire by Michael Rieneck from KOSMOS

Shelley and I have a great time solving murder mysteries as hard-boiled detectives, then get all zen as we chill with Bob Ross.

Deadline by Adam West and Dan Schnake from WizKids

and

Bob Ross The Art of Chill by Prospero Hall from Big G Creative

And once those are discussed, it's time for Part 2 of our Essen Preview, looking at Halls 1, 2, and 3 this week!

Hope to see you in Germany!

Shelley and I spend this week looking at two games that will be readily available at Essen in a couple of weeks (though AEG's has been out in the US for a month or so) as well as previewing the three smaller halls at the Essen Fair coming up.

Mini Park by Hsu Wun Hao from Soso Studio

and

Custom Heroes by John D. Clair from AEG

as well as a look at Halls 6, 7, and 8 of the fair (BGG's in Hall 6 By the way)

Shelley and I finally get a chance to play a game we've been talking about from our sponsor (and enjoy it), as well as delve into the little brother of a BIG game we had fun with a couple of years ago.

Whistle Stop by Scott Caputo from Bezier Games

and

Caverna: Cave vs. Cave by Uwe Rosenberg from Mayfair/Lookout

The group spends more time talking about design and the state of the hobby with Tom Lehmann, Susan McKinley Ross, Matt Leacock, and the rest of the gamers around the table.

Qwirkle

Pandemic

Race for the Galaxy

Pandemic Legacy

Century Spice Road

Terraforming Mars

and others discussed

Meeplefest 2017 Night 2 involves Tom Lehmann, Matt Leacock, Susan McKinley Ross and a bunch of gamers spending time discussing great games played and the ways in which rules can help/hurt learning games.

Emperor's Choice

Terraforming Mars

Pandemic

Qwirkle

Race for the Galaxy

Alea Iacta Est

and others discussed!

Shelley and I get a couple of solid titles to the table at Meeplefest: an excellent card game and a 'not for us, but we see the appeal' dice building game.

Capital Lux by Eilif Svensson and Kristian Amundsen Ostby from Aporta Games

and

Dice Forge by Regis Bonnessee from Asmodee

Shelley and I report back on two fantastic Hisashi Hayashi games we were fortunate enough to play at Meeplefest (thanks Lorna and Joe!). They made a brief appearance on BGG's store at the beginning of August (maybe you picked up copies), but are worth hunting down (or picking up if you're a publisher!!!).

Emperor's Choice by Hisashi Hayashi from Okazu Brand

and

SheepNSheep by Hisashi Hayashi from Okazu Brand

We thought we were done on that first Friday night, but right after pushing STOP on the recorder, Denis decided he needed to delve into other issues and started anther 1/2 hour of discussion and ranting (wine helps!)

I hope you enjoy this bonus episode with the microphones picking up the ambient discussions around the table.

Remember you can sponsor the podcast at www.patreon.com/garrettsgames

Ric, Joe, Matt, Doug, Chris, Denis, Shelley and others join in for a discussion of the Spiel des Jahres winner and nominee, as well as more on game design, playtesting, and 'The State of the Industry' as we see it.