Board Game Hot Takes
197 episodes - English - Latest episode: 6 days ago - ★★★★★ - 126 ratingsWe tell you how a board game experience felt - just minutes after we finish playing. Three unique points of view. No non-game nonsense.
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Episodes
Kemet: Blood and Sand
July 05, 2021 10:00 - 1 hour - 121 MBIn Episode 46 we provide our hot take review of Kemet: Blood and Sand covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss our favorite places to play board games and discuss poll results around this topic. Chris provides a recipe for a Kemet: Blood and Sand themed cocktail and finally we discuss some games we've been playing including Terraforming Mars: Colonies and some games we're excited about including Dune: A Game of...
Power Grid
June 28, 2021 10:00 - 1 hour - 113 MBIn Episode 45 we provide our hot take review of Power Grid covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss board game collection sizes and some of the thoughts our listeners have about their board game collections. We also discuss some games we've been playing including 7 Wonders: Duel, Isle of Skye, Coloretto, The Mind, and Blokus Duo and some games we're excited about including Smartphone, Inc Timestamps: 00:00 In...
Carpe Diem
June 21, 2021 10:00 - 49 minutes - 79.2 MBIn Episode 44 we provide our hot take review of Carpe Diem covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss why dry euro games may not fit for us all and compare Carpe Diem to Stefan Feld's most popular game with some similar mechanisms: Castles of Burgundy. We also discuss some games we've been playing including Hearts, Manila, MicroMacro: Crime City, and Hadrian's Wall and some games we're excited about including Rob...
Top 10 Board Games of All Time
June 14, 2021 10:00 - 1 hour - 115 MBIn Episode 43 we discuss our picks for the top 10 board games OF ALL TIME! Tim, Chris, and Adam list off our picks for the best games of all time. We discuss how we made those picks and if there were any surprises to us on our lists. Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction 01:30 How we made our picks 07:25 - #10 13:49 - #9 20:16 - #8 25:46 - #7 34:47 - #6 41:10 - #5 47:59 - #4 54:30 - #3 1:00:10 - #2 1:06:19 - #1 1:15:20 - Surprises on our lists
Rap Godz
June 07, 2021 10:00 - 56 minutes - 104 MBIn Episode 42 we provide our hot take review of Rap Godz covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some games we've been playing including Dice Throne, Doughnut Drive-Thru and Terraforming Mars and some games we're excited about including Paperback Adventures and AuZtralia. Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction 02:10 Rap Godz Description 03:03 Gameplay and Mechanisms 29:02 Production 29:16 Favorite Moments 35:46 ...
Lost Ruins of Arnak
May 31, 2021 10:00 - 59 minutes - 82.3 MBIn Episode 41 we provide our hot take review of Lost Ruins of Arnak covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We briefly compare Lost Ruins of Arnak and Dune: Imperium to let you know which of these deck building/worker placement games we recommend. We also discuss some games we've been playing including Power Grid and Take 5 and some games we're excited about including Oath, Witcher: The Old World, and Elder Scrolls. Timestam...
AuZtralia
May 24, 2021 10:00 - 1 hour - 109 MBIn Episode 40 we provide our hot take review of AuZtralia covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some games we've been playing including Kemet: Blood and Sand and Lost Ruins of Arnak and some games we're excited about including an expansion to Beyond the Sun and Twisted Fables. Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction 02:04 AuZtralia description 04:48 Gameplay and Mechanisms 42:55 Production 51:01 Exciting Moments...
House Rules and Variants
May 17, 2021 10:00 - 49 minutes - 78.9 MBIn Episode 39 we discuss house rules and fan variants in board games. We talk about why people may use them, how we feel about that, and what games we've house ruled with some notable examples including Orleans, Wingspan, Scythe, Castles of Burgundy, Eclipse: 2nd Dawn for the Galaxy, Dune: Imperium, My Little Scythe, Dice Throne, Space Base, and Champions of Midgard. We also talk about some official variants that you find in the rulebook including Res Arcana and Terraforming Mars. We then...
BGG Top 10
May 10, 2021 10:00 - 1 hour - 123 MBIn Episode 38 we discuss the top 10 games on boardgamegeek.com. We talk about whether we've played them, whether we want to, and how we've rated the best games of all time according to BGG user ratings. We also discuss some games that we think might make a run for the top 10. Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction 04:04 - #10 Twilight Struggle 12:50 - #9 Star Wars: Rebellion 21:00 - #8 Gaia Project 26:30 - #7 Through the Ages: A New Story of Civilization 32:20 - #6 Gloomhaven: Jaws of the...
Cubitos VS. The Quacks of Quedlinburg
May 03, 2021 10:00 - 54 minutes - 87.5 MBIn Episode 37 we provide our hot take review of The Quacks of Quedlinburg and Cubitos covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the games. We then compare the two games and discuss which is our favorite and why. Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction 01:17 The Quacks of Quedlinburg Description 03:13 Gameplay and Mechanisms 18:06 Production 21:32 Favorite Moments in Play 24:53 Final Thoughts 27:24 Cubitos Description 29:00 Gameplay and Me...
Clank! In! Space!
April 26, 2021 10:00 - 1 hour - 156 MBIn Episode 36 we provide our hot take review of Clank! In! Space! covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss the importance of diversity and representation in the board game industry and hobby and then highlight some games that we're excited about including Boss Battles and Red Cathedral, and look at the games published by Hollandspiele Games. Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction 04:23 Clank! In! Space! Description ...
Concordia
April 19, 2021 10:00 - 40 minutes - 55.9 MBIn Episode 35 we provide our hot take review of Concordia covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some recent plays including Fox in the Forest, Omen: Reign of War, and Trekking the National Parks. We also talk about a game coming to Kickstarter soon: Fractal: Beyond the Void. Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction 01:08 Concordia Description 02:35 Gameplay and Mechanisms 12:55 Production 18:22 Favorite Moments ...
Gaming Weekend Extravaganza - 10 Games in 90 Minutes
April 12, 2021 10:00 - 1 hour - 128 MBIn Episode 34 Adam and Tim discuss 10 games that they played during their first in-person gaming session in over a year! Chris joins in to heckle us. 00:00 Introduction and discussion on gaming in person 06:05 A Feast for Odin 15:27 Canvas 23:18 Dwellings of Eldervale 30:27 Baseball Highlights: 2045 39:33 Anachrony 50:40 Anachrony: Fractures of Time 51:35 Dune: Imperium 56:50 Underwater Cities 1:01:23 Path of Light and Shadow 1:12:49 Santa Monica 1:18:10 Star Wars: Rebellion 1:...
Top 5 Gateway Games and Terraforming Mars Double Take
April 05, 2021 09:00 - 53 minutes - 60.8 MBIn Episode 33 we discuss our top five games that are great for introducing people into the board game hobby. We also offer a Double Take review on Terraforming Mars and give our thoughts on how it has held up since our original review back in episode 1.
Top 5 Board Game Reviewers and Eclipse: Second Dawn for the Galaxy Double Take
March 29, 2021 10:00 - 57 minutes - 65.7 MBIn Episode 32 we talk about board game reviews and what works and doesn't work with our unique format of looking at games and then we then list our Top 5 Board Game Reviewers and why we love them. We also offer a Double Take review on Eclipse: Second Dawn for the Galaxy and give our thoughts on how it has held up since our original review back in episode 12. Timestamp: 00:00 Introduction 00:57 Discussion on Board Game Reviews 20:58 Top 5 Board Game Reviewers 45:12 Double Take - Eclipse...
Rajas of the Ganges
March 22, 2021 10:00 - 50 minutes - 57.3 MBIn Episode 31 we provide our hot take review of Rajas of the Ganges covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some recent plays including Quacks of Quedlinburg, look at what's included in the recent expansion for Parks: Nightfall, and discuss Stellaris: Infinite Legacy which leads to the discussion of Kickstarters that don't provide a rulebook during the crowd funding campaign and a rant about some bad board game...
Top 5 Board Game Art and James Wilson Everdell Interview
March 15, 2021 10:00 - 1 hour - 125 MBIn Episode 30 we talk to James Wilson, the designer of Everdell, about the new expansions for the game: Newleaf and Mistwood. We talk to him about pitching board games to publishers, his process for expansion design, and much more. James also shares some details of lost Everdell expansions that will never get published. Tim, Adam, and Chris also talk about our top 5 art in board games. Each of us covers 5 games where we love the art direction and why it speaks to us. Timestamp: 00:00 I...
Red Rising
March 08, 2021 10:00 - 1 hour - 72.6 MBIn Episode 29 we provide our hot take review of Red Rising covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some drama around the Terraforming Mars: Big Box Kickstarter and question whether we should have held out for the Ares Expedition instead. 00:00 Introduction 00:41 Listener Shout-out 01:22 Red Rising Description 02:55 Gameplay and Mechanisms 33:18 Production 45:02 Memorable Moments in Gameplay 49:21 Final T...
Beyond the Sun
March 01, 2021 10:00 - 1 hour - 70.4 MBIn Episode 28 we provide our hot take review of Beyond the Sun covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some board games that we've been playing or are looking forward to including Jet Set, Whistle Stop, Red Rising, and CoraQuest: 00:00 Introduction 00:45 Listener Shout-out 01:45 Beyond the Sun Description 02:52 Gameplay and Mechanisms 25:46 Production 33:53 Memorable Moments in Gameplay 40:58 Final Thou...
Everdell
February 22, 2021 10:00 - 57 minutes - 66.3 MBIn Episode 27 we provide our hot take review of Everdell covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also provide a brief comparison of each of the Everdell expansions and recommend our favorite. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including Imperium: The Contention and Cryo. 00:00 Introduction 00:38 Listener Shout-out 02:50 Everdell Description 04:12 Gameplay and Mech...
What Makes A Board Game Fun and Red Rising Interview
February 15, 2021 10:00 - 1 hour - 109 MBIn Episode 26 we talk to Jamey Stegmaier and Alex Schmidt, the designers of Red Rising, about their new game, blending theme and mechanisms, intellectual property, foil cards and failed designs. Tim, Adam, and Chris also talk about what makes games fun for us. Each of us covers 4 characteristics that create fun in games and give several examples of games that bring the fun through each of those characteristics. 00:00 Introduction 01:24 Red Rising Interview 28:23 What Makes a Board Game...
Trekking the World
February 08, 2021 10:00 - 50 minutes - 46.1 MBIn Episode 25 we provide our hot take review of Trekking the World covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also have a detailed conversation on the new mechanisms added in the latest expansion for Wingspan: Oceania. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including Imperium: The Contention and Red Rising. 00:00 Introduction 01:01 Trekking the World Description 02:35 G...
Godspeed
February 01, 2021 10:00 - 45 minutes - 41.3 MBIn Episode 24 we provide our hot take review of Godspeed covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including Dune: Imperium, Ultimate Railroads, Canvas, and Beyond the Sun.
Curious Cargo and Star Realms
January 25, 2021 10:00 - 1 hour - 56.2 MBIn Episode 23 we provide our hot take review on a couple of 2-player only games: Curious Cargo and Star Realms. We discuss the gameplay and mechanisms, the production, favorite moments in play, and our final thoughts. 00:00 Introduction 01:05 Curious Cargo 23:25 Star Realms
2020 Wrap-up and Awards
January 18, 2021 10:00 - 1 hour - 82.1 MBIn Episode 22 we talk about our board game highs and lows of 2020. We discuss gaming in 2020, our highlights of the podcast so far, and give out our awards for the best games (we've played) of 2020 as well as the best games that were new to us in 2020. We also provide some details about what's coming for the podcast and how you can enter to win a copy of Frosthaven (spoiler - it's really easy). 00:00 Intro 01:15 Board Gaming in 2020 7:33 BGHT Podcast chat 14:50 Favorite Review Episodes...
Dwellings of Eldervale
January 11, 2021 10:00 - 1 hour - 56.7 MBIn Episode 21 we provide our hot take review of Dwellings of Eldervale covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including Anachrony, Pendulum, Parks: Nightfall Expansion, Fossilis, and Slay the Spire: The Board Game.
Dune: Imperium
January 04, 2021 10:00 - 55 minutes - 50.9 MBIn Episode 20 we provide our hot take review of Dune: Imperium covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including Trekking the National Parks and Under Falling Skies.
Viticulture
December 28, 2020 10:00 - 48 minutes - 44.7 MBIn Episode 19 we provide our hot take review of Viticulture covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including Dune: Imperium and It's a Wonderful World.
All I want for Christmas... Top 5 Games We Want to Play
December 21, 2020 10:00 - 49 minutes - 45.4 MBHappy Holidays! Tim, Adam, Chris, and Jen share the top 5 games we want to play, but just haven't had the chance to. We count down the games on our wish list and talk about why we want to play them and why we haven't taken the dive... yet. If you regularly listen to our podcast for the deep dive reviews these lists will give you a good idea of what you might expect to see covered over the coming months.
Tungaru
December 14, 2020 10:00 - 47 minutes - 43.7 MBIn Episode 17 we provide our hot take reviews of Tungaru covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including High Frontier 4 All and the first expansion to Space Base - The Emergence of Shy Pluto.
Herbaceous and Rajas of the Ganges: The Dice Charmers
December 07, 2020 10:00 - 41 minutes - 37.9 MBIn Episode 16 we provide our hot take reviews of Herbaceous and Rajas of the Ganges: The Dice Charmers covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game.
Capital Lux 2: Generations
November 30, 2020 10:00 - 41 minutes - 38.4 MBIn Episode 15 we provide our hot take review of Capital Lux 2: Generations covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including High Frontier 4 All, Tungaru, and Dwellings of Eldervale.
Whistle Mountain
November 23, 2020 10:00 - 53 minutes - 48.7 MBIn Episode 14 we provide our hot take review of Whistle Mountain covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including Whistle Stop, The Crew: Deep Sea Missions, and The Expanse Board Game.
Underwater Cities
November 16, 2020 10:00 - 42 minutes - 38.5 MBIn Episode 13 we provide our hot take review of Underwater Cities covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including Whistle Mountain, Marvel United, and Beyond the Sun.
Eclipse: Second Dawn for the Galaxy
November 09, 2020 10:00 - 49 minutes - 44.9 MBIn Episode 12 we provide our hot take review of Eclipse: Second Dawn for the Galaxy covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including Twisted Fables, Dune: Imperium, and Dwellings of Eldervale.
The Castles of Burgundy
November 02, 2020 10:00 - 57 minutes - 52.8 MBIn Episode 11 we provide our hot take review of The Castles of Burgundy covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including Lost Ruins of Arnak, The Artemis Project, Tapestry, and Sweet Mess.
Tapestry
October 26, 2020 10:00 - 56 minutes - 51.7 MBIn Episode 10 we provide our hot take review of Tapestry covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also interview Gary Dworetsky, the designer of the upcoming game Imperium: The Contention.
Blood Rage
October 19, 2020 10:00 - 51 minutes - 47.5 MBIn Episode 9 we provide our hot take review of Blood Rage covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including Trekking the National Parks, Trekking the World, Super-skill pinball 4-cade, and Magic: The Gathering.
Dinosaur World
October 12, 2020 20:05 - 46 minutes - 42.9 MBIn Episode 8 we provide our hot take review of Dinosaur World covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We invite our friend Jen to guest host on this special episode that is released early so that you can hear it before the Dinosaur World Kickstarter ends. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including Maracaibo. Apologies for the inconsistent audio quality with this episo...
Vindication
October 12, 2020 11:00 - 44 minutes - 40.9 MBIn Episode 7 we provide our hot take review of Vindication covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including High Rise and Parks.
Top 5 Incoming Board Game Kickstarters
October 05, 2020 11:00 - 55 minutes - 50.8 MBIn Episode 6 we go off format and Tim, Chris, and Adam discuss their top 5 board game Kickstarters that they've backed and are awaiting delivery. We discuss what drove us to back them and if we're still excited to receive them.
Gaia Project
September 28, 2020 11:00 - 52 minutes - 48.5 MBIn Episode 5 we provide our hot take review of Gaia Project covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including Dinosaur Island, Dinosaur World, Marvel United, Fossilis, and Soulgivers.
Cthulhu Wars
September 21, 2020 11:00 - 41 minutes - 37.8 MBIn Episode 4 we provide our hot take reviews of Cthulhu Wars covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games including Cascadia, Castles of Tuscany, and Top Gun Strategy Game.
Wingspan and Parks
September 14, 2020 15:51 - 44 minutes - 40.6 MBIn Episode 3 we give our hot take reviews for Wingspan and Parks covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games.
On the Origin of Species
September 10, 2020 21:15 - 37 minutes - 34.6 MBIn Episode 2 we give our hot take review for On the Origin of Species covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games.
Terraforming Mars
September 10, 2020 21:11 - 33 minutes - 30.8 MBIn our official flagship issue we give our hot takes on the ever popular Terraforming Mars covering the mechanisms, the production, exciting moments in play, and our overall feelings of the game. We also discuss some things that we're looking forward to this week in the world of board games.
Pan Am and Space Base
September 10, 2020 21:10 - 27 minutes - 25.3 MBFor this episode we give our hot takes on Pan Am and Space Base. This episode was a test run of our format so there are several sound quality issues but I enjoyed the conversation so we decided to share it with you - warts and all!