Dale Yu – SPIEL 2022 Games from Lesser Known Publishers that I’m looking at…

Posted on October 5, 2022 by Dale Yu

We’ve already looked at a bunch of games – so many games you might expect to be on this list – they may have already been reviewed prior to the show!  We posted a list yesterday of games that we’ve already reviewed…  

There are plenty of games that people are anticipating from the larger publishers; and while I’m looking forward to those games too – I wanted to focus on a few games from smaller publishers that I’m pretty interested in learning more about too.  Some of these may not actually be games that I’ll end up bringing back with me; in part because I need to learn more about them!  This is a list of games I want to see that may be a bit off the beaten path…  There are so many different countries represented at SPIEL, that I’m sure that I’ll also find other wonders during the fair; but these are some of the stands I’m sure to seek out…

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Dale Yu: Report from SPIEL 2022, Day 0

Posted on October 5, 2022 by Dale Yu

Wednesday is the usual setup day here in Essen, and it was quite busy today. Unlike in years past, many of the booths were not quite ready this morning when we walked in. In fact when we walked out of the halls around 6 p.m., many more boots than usual seem to still be in states of construction. 

PXL_20221005_094544068

As with most years, the start of the fair for me is the press conference in the morning followed by the new releases exhibition room. This room offers a great chance to see many of the new games of the fair in a room dedicated for the display of these new games. During the first few hours, there is someone from most of the companies there to explain the games to you. However, this room can also be a resource later in the fair, as the games are left out for quiet observation and picture taking.

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SPIEL 2022 – pregame Review Recap

Posted on October 5, 2022 by Dale Yu

Well, the SPIEL fair is about to start – while it officially doesn’t open until tomorrow morning; there is much to do here on Wednesday.  The organizers have a nice reception to welcome the press, and there is a special display room where publishers can show off their newest releases.  (More on this event in a later post…)

We’ve certainly been busy ourselves researching games and trying to get them played.  While the BGG preview by fellow OG writer Eric Martin is not exhaustive nor definitive; it is one of the best known resources for games coming out at the show.  When I last checked it, it had nearly 1200 games listed for SPIEL 2022…  (This year’s list seems a little wonky though because of the COVID pandemic; there are a lot of games that are making their “SPIEL debut” this year, but the game is actually older…)

Going back through our files here, it appears that we’ve played/reviewed about 5% of the games so far – below is a chart of the 60ish games which we have previously featured here on the blog.  You cal click on the game name to see the full review – and if you want to see more about the game, the booth location is listed to the right.

Game Publisher SPIEL Booth
Abyss Grimspire 2-B138
Akropolis Gigamic 3-B105
Aves Play with us design 5-L103
Barrakuda Helvetiq 3-Q122
Capital Lux 2: Generations Aporta / Giant Roc 2-B146
Cat in the Box bezier 1-E137
Catherine: Cities of the Tsarina dlp 1-D100
Coffee Traders Skellig 2-C110
Cryptid Urban Legends Osprey 1-E125
Decorum Floodgate Games 4-B103
Dulce Stronghold 2-E106
Evergreen horrible guild 3-F111
Fantasy Realms Wizkids 2-E124
Findorff 2F 3-L104
Fjords Grail 3-E102
Founders of Teotihuacan Board&Dice 2-C130
Gang of Dice Mandoo 4-A107
Guild of Merchant Explorers AEG 3-K107
Hanamikoji: Geisha’s Road EmperorS4 4-F100
Hibachi Grail 3-E102
Imperial Steam Frosted 1-D116
Inis Giant Roc 2-B146
Joraku Moaideas 4-D103
Kingdomino Origins Pegasus 3-M110
Kites Floodgate Games 4-B103
Living Forest Ludonaute 3-O120
Marvel Dice Throne Roxley 4-B104
Marvel: Remix Wizkids 2-E124
Neoville HCM Kinzel 3-J111
Next Station London HCM Kinzel 3-J111
Nirvana Korea Boardgames 4-D119
No Mercy Mandoo 4-A107
Origins Board&Dice 2-C130
Ready Set Bet AEG 3-K107
Rise & Fall Ludically 3-G107
Riverside Kobold 2-A142
San Francisco Rebel 1-B103
Sleeping Gods Keep Exploring 5-A109
Soulmates Chili Island 3-J100
Spaceship Unity Pegasus 3-M110
Super Mega Lucky Box Ravensburger 3-H110
Tekhenu Giant Roc 2-B146
Terracotta Army Board&Dice 2-C130
That Old Wallpaper AEG 3-K107
The Book of Rituals Grimspire 2-B138
The Dead Eye Pleasant Company 5-K122
Three Little Wolves POKI 4-G112
Top Ten Quiz Chili Island 3-J100
Trek 12 Lumberjacks 3-O106
Tulip Bubble Moaideas 4-D103
Twilight Inscription Fantasy Flight 1-B103
Unmatched Restoration 3-O110
Welcome to… Pegasus 3-M110
World exchangers EmperorS4 4-F100
Wormholes AEG 3-K107
Zapotec Kobold 2-A142
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(The Grapes of) Wrath of the Lighthouse – A Solo Game Review

Posted on October 4, 2022 by Mark Jackson

Once upon a time (well, in 2010), there was a post-apocalyptic tableau building game from Poland that garnered a good bit of attention. And some expansions.

This review is not about that game.

Over the years, the designer/publisher decided to take a fresh look at the design and reimagine it for a new generation of gamers. I own that version (and a number of the expansions).

This review is not about that game, either.

In the interregnum between the two post-apocalyptic games, the same Polish company released a fluffier-looking take on the original game that added individual player decks/civilizations and opened up the game space a good bit. And, no surprise, it had expansions.

This review is not about game #3… but we’re getting closer.

A couple of years after the release of the new & improved version of the “dark future” game, the civilization game spawned a new offspring… taking the civilizations north, reducing the destructive interactions, and actually increasing the strategic game space. Once again, I own that game (and pretty much all of the expansions.)

This review is not about that game… until it is – because Wrath of the Lighthouse (the subject of this game review) is a solo campaign for the Imperial Settlers: Empires of the North.

And I like it.

A lot.

Note: the original game was 51st State… later updated and improved by the 51st State Master Set. (Not mentioned: there’s a new big box version with more content about to deliver in the next few months.) The “fluffier-looking” game is Imperial Settlers… and the company that made all of this possible is Portal Games.

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Dale Yu – First Impressions of Formosa Flowers, 2nd ed

Posted on October 4, 2022 by Dale Yu

Formosa Flowers, 2nd ed

  • Designers: Lin Chen Yu
  • Publisher: soso games
  • Players: 2-4
  • Age: 10+
  • Time: 20-30 minutes
  • Played with review copy provided by publisher and Taiwan Boardgames Design

formosa flowers

Per the publisher: “Seasons change, and flowers blossom. The nature, sun, and wind enjoyed by visitors in the mountain are all beautiful memories of their journeys.

Formosa Flowers is adapted from (and inspired by) the traditional Japanese card game Hanafuda. Through playing flower cards of the same months, players collect required icons for card sets. In the game, the timing of scoring is very important. Obtaining high points while scoring before other players leave the round requires skill and luck.”  

The original version appears to have come out in 2018 per BGG.  This new version was published late 2020, but it on the SPIEL list here in 2022.  It should be noted that this 2nd edition comes with the “Yaku” rules to provide more tactics and greater tension in the game. Continue reading →

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Cat In The Box – Deluxe edition

Posted on October 3, 2022 by Dale Yu

Cat in the Box, Deluxe edition

Designer: Muneyuki Yokouchi (横内宗幸)
Publisher: Bezier Games
Players: 2-5
Playing Time: 30-45 minutes
Times Played: >12 between purchased copy of original and review copy of Deluxe Edition provided by Bezier Games

cat in the box box

The new version of Cat In The Box has come out at GenCon 2022, and I’m happy to say that this allows the masses to get a chance to play this mind-warping trick taking game, and I mean that in the best sense of “mind warping”.

Before we talk about the new version, let’s revisit the review of the original by James Nathan (his words in italics).   I am inserting pictures of the new version in the midst of his old review…

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