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Things Experienced UK Games Expo Attendees Always Bring Nobody tells you the first time. You turn up to UK Games Expo full of enthusiasm, wearing slightly-too-new shoes, no snacks, and a phone on 40% battery. By 2pm you are sitting on the floor near a plug socket, regretting every decision you have made. The second … Read more
A Forest at War with Itself The Short Version – Tl;Dr Root is the most ambitious board game on my shelf, and also the one most likely to cause someone to quietly fold their arms and say ‘actually, I don’t think this is for me.’ It puts 2–4 players in control of rival factions fighting … Read more
We own a cat. Her name is not relevant to this post but she has sat on Wingspan cards, knocked over a Catan water hex, and once ate a Codenames word card so thoroughly we had to write the replacement in biro. So when someone brings a cat-themed game to the table, there is at … Read more
The industrial revolution, reconstructed in card and wooden disc form. Brass: Birmingham is the kind of game that takes about ninety minutes to teach someone properly and then about three years to fully understand. It is a two-phase economic network builder set in 18th and 19th century Birmingham, where you are building industries, connecting cities, … Read more
Yes, Wingspan is good for two players. The game works at this count and both players can have a satisfying session. It plays faster than at higher counts, the engine-building is just as rewarding, but there is less competition for food and eggs. It is not the best player count, but it is a solid … Read more
If you live in a flat (or Apartment), you already know how the square footage maths works. The average one-bedroom flat in Britain is around 46 square metres. Every bookcase, every ottoman, every sideboard is already doing two jobs. And yet the hobby board game market in this country has never been bigger or more … Read more
Not every game night calls for intensity. Some evenings, the game is the frame rather than the point. There is food on the table, someone is mid-story, drinks are being refreshed, and the room has a particular relaxed energy that you want to keep rather than interrupt. Bringing out a game that punishes distraction or … Read more
The difference between a great session and people checking their phones by turn three Why Teaching Is the Game Before the Game The moment a rules explanation goes wrong, the session is usually over before it started. People check out during a poor teach and spend the first thirty minutes of play confused and frustrated … Read more
Some games arrive quietly, sit on a shelf for a while, then suddenly reappear with confidence. Tacta is one of those. Originally designed by Jason Tremblay and first published by The Op Games, it drifted past a lot of players the first time around. Then a fresh edition landed via Osprey Games, backed by a … Read more
Campaigns rarely collapse in flames. They fade. A missed week becomes two. Energy dips. Someone forgets what happened last session. Then the group quietly pivots to a board game night, or just drifts away and never returns. It feels dramatic when it ends. The reasons are not. Most campaigns fail for mundane causes. Scheduling drift … Read more
