Cult of the Old – Details, episodes & analysis

Welcome to the latest episode of Cult of the Old!

Each episode your hosts Iain McAllister, Matt Thrower, and Nate Owens are going to turn back the clock to look at games that are at least 10 years old. They’ll give their own critical impressions, tell you about the history of the game and its impact, and what relevance these games still have in the modern hobby landscape. 

The tabletop hobby has many niches within it. Maybe you are a miniatures person, battling over the table with painted models and buckets of dice. Just boardgames for you? No problem. How about being a dedicated card game player? Within these subcultures things get even more niche, but out of these specialisations seismic shifts can emerge. 

The 18xx genre of games is a complicated, byzantine, and often misunderstood section of the hobby. These games see players buying, selling, and building trains and train companies in a variety of different ways. The fascination with trains in the tabletop hobby doesn’t stop with this particular class of games though. When our first game this season hit the tables, it became a household name, being translated into 33 languages and, as of 2024, selling 18 million copies worldwide. I’ll be checking your travel pass as we get on board withTicket to Ride. 

Show Links

Below are links to the games and anything else that the team mentions during the course of the cast.  We will be linking to BGG for games, designers, artists, and publishers as that is a good place to start for raw information about the game in question. We will also link to previous episodes where we have one. 

Games Mentioned

Votes for Women

Catan -Episode Link

Rummy

Elfenland 

Brass -Episode Link

Bagh Chal

Hnefatafl 

Monopoly -Episode Link

Age of Steam 

Memoir 44

Ticket to Ride - Legends of the West

Lords of Vegas

Spirit Island

Gloomhaven

Other Mentions

Martin Wallace

Masters Traditional Games

Around the world in 80 games book

Team Links

Websites you can find the cast on

There Will Be Games

Iain

The Giant Brain

Bluesky

Matt

Bluesky

Nate

Bluesky

Instagram

Support us on Patreon

Email us atcultoftheolduk@gmail.com 

Welcome to the latest episode of Cult of the Old!   Each episode your hosts Iain McAllister, Matt Thrower, and Nate Owens are going to turn back the clock to look at games that are at least 10 years old. They’ll give their own critical impressions, tell you about the history of the game and its impact, and what relevance these games still have in the modern hobby landscape.    It is the end, dear listeners. As we stare once more into the inky black void of our season break, we contemplate our own mortality and wonder if there is anything out there between the episodes. Such musings can leave us imagining monstrosities that exist in the gaps between seasons. Entities vast and overwhelming that we can barely understand and are wise to not look at directly. Only by coming together in the warm embrace of our listeners can we stand a chance to fight back such Eldritch Horrors.    The game we are discussing for our last episode this season similarly tackles the darkness of the unknown. This game took the mythos of HP Lovecraft and turned it into a co-operative game where investigators take on horrors beyond measure to save a small town in Massachusetts. A game that arguably gave rise to the hobby game obsession with Cthulhu and was certainly one of the earliest co-operative games. Join us on a road trip to the end of space and time, in Arkham Horror.    The original game was designed by Richard Launius, Charlie Krank, Sandy Petersen, and Lynn Wills. We are mostly covering the second edition version created by Fantasy Flight Games and designed by Richard Launius and Kevin Wilson.   Show Links   Below are links to the games and anything else that the team mention during the course of the cast.  We will be linking to BGG for games, designers, artists, and publishers as that is a good place to start for raw information about the game in question.   Games Mentioned   Call of Cthulhu RPG Battlestar Galactica - Episode Link D&D Gold box Games Pool of Radiance Curse of the Azure Bonds Tales of the Arabian Nights Talisman - Episode Link War of the Ring Twilight Imperium Third Edition  Arkham Horror: RPG Elder Sign Eldritch Horror Star Wars: Outer Rim   Other Mentions   Ride the Lightning - Metallica  Ramsay Campbell Thomas LeGotti    Team Links   Websites you can find the cast on There Will Be Games   Iain The Giant Brain Twitter   Matt Twitter   Nate Twitter Instagram    Support us on Ko-Fi   https://ko-fi.com/cultoftheold   Support us on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/CultoftheOld Email us at cultoftheolduk@gmail.com

Welcome to the latest episode of Cult of the Old!   Each episode your hosts Iain McAllister, Matt Thrower, and Nate Owens are going to turn back the clock to look at games that are at least 10 years old. They’ll give their own critical impressions, tell you about the history of the game and its impact, and what relevance these games still have in the modern hobby landscape.    For the first episode of this season we are going back to what many consider the beginning of the modern era. Arriving onto the tabletop scene in the mid-90s Settlers of Catan was a breath of fresh air into a hobby that had grown somewhat stale. It made a star of its designer Klaus Teuber, who sadly passed in 2023. Join us as we trade wood for sheep and discuss the relevance this game still has in the modern hobby.    Show Links   Below are links to the games and anything else that the team mention during the course of the cast.  We will be linking to BGG for games, designers, artists, and publishers as that is a good place to start for raw information about the game in question.   Games Mentioned   Baraborosa Hoity Toity Borderlands Go Magic Realm Dominion Game of Thrones Catan Star Trek Catan Risk Puerto Rico Vila Paletti   Other Mentions   New Yorker Interview Spiel des Jahres   Team Links   Websites you can find the cast on There Will Be Games   Iain The Giant Brain Bluesky Matt Bluesky   Nate Bluesky Threads   Support us on Ko-Fi   https://ko-fi.com/cultoftheold   Support us on Patreon   https://www.patreon.com/CultoftheOld   Email us at cultoftheolduk@gmail.com

Welcome to the latest episode of Cult of the Old!   Each episode your hosts Iain McAllister, Matt Thrower, and Nate Owens are going to turn back the clock to look at games that are at least 10 years old. They’ll give their own critical impressions, tell you about the history of the game and its impact, and what relevance these games still have in the modern hobby landscape.    For the last game of this season we are venturing once more beyond the stars and further back in time than we ever have before. Cosmic Encounter is a game that has been around before the hobby as we know it today even existed. Having had numerous versions over the years, the team dive into the impact of this game and what lies behind its longevity. Designed by Bill Eberle, Jack Kittredge, Bill Norton, Peter Olotka, and Kevin Wilson over the various versions. There have been artists and publishers too numerous to mention but are all listed on BGG. The most recent version of the game that most people know is from Fantasy Flight Games.    CULT OF THE OLD WILL RETURN!   Show Links   Below are links to the games and anything else that the team mention during the course of the cast.  We will be linking to BGG for games, designers, artists, and publishers as that is a good place to start for raw information about the game in question.   Games Mentioned   Diplomacy Dungeons & Dragons Magic: The Gathering Settlers of Catan Acquire Dune Dune: A game of Conquest and Diplomacy Borderlands Gearworld Arrakis: Dawn of the Fremen Dominion  Medium Root Andean Abyss Battlestar Galactica Arkham Horror   Other Mentions https://therewillbe.games/articles-interviews/7232-an-interview-with-peter-olotka   Team Links   Websites you can find the cast on There Will Be Games The Cult of the Old   Iain The Giant Brain Twitter   Matt Twitter   Nate Twitter   Support us on Ko-Fi   https://ko-fi.com/cultoftheold   Email us at cultoftheolduk@gmail.com

Welcome to the latest episode of Cult of the Old! Each episode your hosts Iain McAllister, Matt Thrower, and Nate Owens are going to turn back the clock to look at games that are at least 10 years old. They’ll give their own critical impressions, tell you about the history of the game and its impact, and what relevance these games still have in the modern hobby landscape.  From time to time a game comes along that captures the zeitgeist. A title that stands like a colossus above the rest of the releases that year, offering a veritable garden of delights to players. Just the sort of game we like to talk about on Cult of the Old. 7 Wonders was such a game, taking the civilisation game and boiling it down to a simpler drafting mechanism. Designed by Antoine Bauza, published by Repos Productions, with art from Dimitri Chappuis, Miguel Coimbra, Etienne Hebinger, and Cyril Nouvel.   Show Links Below are links to the games and anything else that the team mention during the course of the cast.  We will be linking to BGG for games, designers, artists, and publishers as that is a good place to start for raw information about the game in question.   Games Mentioned   Magic : The Gathering Fairy Tale Mare Nostrum Innovation Mottainai RA Civilisation, Frances Tresham version Villagers Civilisation: New Dawn Catan Wingspan Werewolf Dominion Tortuga 1667 Sushi Go/ Party 7 Wonders Duel Carta Impera Victoria Netrunner Project Nisei/ Null Signal Res Arcana Millennium  Blades     Other Mentions   Serge Laget passing Wizards of the Coast controversy Team Links   Websites you can find the cast on There Will Be Games The Cult of the Old   Iain The Giant Brain Twitter    Matt Twitter   Nate  Twitter   Support us on Ko-Fi   https://ko-fi.com/cultoftheold   Join us on our Discord https://discord.gg/Ye6Bem5Q6x Email us at cultoftheolduk@gmail.com

Welcome to the latest episode of Cult of the Old!   Each episode your hosts Iain McAllister, Matt Thrower, and Nate Owens are going to turn back the clock to look at games that are at least 10 years old. They’ll give their own critical impressions, tell you about the history of the game and its impact, and what relevance these games still have in the modern hobby landscape.    So far this season we’ve been on the farm, battled in tokyo, cured a worldwide pandemic, built an industrial empire, expanded our Citadels, struggled in the cold war, and been the lords of waterdeep. Now it is time to cross the barrier into the unknown as we journey to space for the first sci-fi game of the season. It’s time to put on your cap, yell “10-4, Rubber ducky’ and blow your space horn as we sign up to become Galaxy Truckers. Published by Czech Games Edition and designed by Vlaada Chvatil with art from Tomáš Kučerovský and Radim Pech.   Show Links   Below are links to the games and anything else that the team mention during the course of the cast.  We will be linking to BGG for games, designers, artists, and publishers as that is a good place to start for raw information about the game in question.   Games Mentioned   Bananagrams Race for the Galaxy Agricola - Cult of the Old Episode Pandemic - Cult of the Old Episode Prophecy Through the Ages Dungeon Lords Mage Knight Space Alert Pictomania Jungle Speed Magic Maze 5 minute dungeon 5 minute marvel Millennium Blades Pendulum Tash Kalar Last Will Codenames Legacy: The Testament of Duke de Crecy   Other Mentions   Czech Games Edition Team Links   Websites you can find the cast on There Will Be Games The Cult of the Old   Iain The Giant Brain Twitter   Matt Twitter   Nate Twitter   Support us on Ko-Fi   https://ko-fi.com/cultoftheold   Join us on our Discord https://discord.gg/Ye6Bem5Q6x   Email us at cultoftheolduk@gmail.com

Welcome to the latest episode of Cult of the Old!   Each episode your hosts Iain McAllister, Matt Thrower, and Nate Owens are going to turn back the clock to look at games that are at least 10 years old. They’ll give their own critical impressions, tell you about the history of the game and its impact, and what relevance these games still have in the modern hobby landscape.    Dungeons and Dragons has always been the dominant game in the tabletop RPG space. From its early days to the all encompassing 5th edition, there have always been attempts to leverage that name in other ways. T-shirts, mugs, TV shows, and of course board games. Lords of Waterdeep from designers Peter Lee and Rodney Thompson is a game that took many by surprise when it came out. Putting the worker placement mechanism into the world of DnD as you take on the role of one of the Lords of the city, it remains on shelves to this day and we delve into the reasons why.    Show Links   Below are links to the games and anything else that the team mention during the course of the cast.  We will be linking to BGG for games, designers, artists, and publishers as that is a good place to start for raw information about the game in question.   Games Mentioned   Agricola Caylus Kingsburg Pillars of the Earth Alien Frontiers Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition Old School Essentials Castle Ravenloft Wrath of Ashardalon Conquest of Nerath Nexus Ops Argent Consortium Lords of Vegas Ra Risk Legacy Assault of the GIants Tyrants of the Underdark Dune: Imperium Everdell Anachrony Other Mentions -  Folded Space Inserts   Team Links   Websites you can find the cast on There Will Be Games The Cult of the Old   Iain The Giant Brain Twitter   Matt Twitter   Nate Twitter   Support us on Ko-Fi   https://ko-fi.com/cultoftheold   Join us on our Discord https://discord.gg/Ye6Bem5Q6x   Email us at cultoftheolduk@gmail.com

Welcome to the latest episode of Cult of the Old! Each episode your hosts Iain McAllister, Matt Thrower, and Nate Owens are going to turn back the clock to look at games that are at least 10 years old. They’ll give their own critical impressions, tell you about the history of the game and its impact, and what relevance these games still have in the modern hobby landscape.  This episode the team find themselves in the midst of the Cold War. Twilight Struggle from  designers Ananda Gupta and Jason Matthews, sat atop the BGG rankings for many years. It brought card driven wargames to a wider audience and has influenced the direction of much of the wargames side of the hobby. Originally published by GMT Games with Art from Viktor Csete, Rodger B. MacGowan, Chechu Nieto, Guillaume Ries, and Mark Simonitch.   Show Links Below are links to the games and anything else that the team mention during the course of the cast.  We will be linking to BGG for games, designers, artists, and publishers as that is a good place to start for raw information about the game in question.   Games Mentioned   We the People (Washington’s War) Hannibal: Rome vs Carthage Paths of Glory Here I Stand El Grande Turn Zero Expansion Hammer of the Scots A Victory Lost Dominant Species Sekigahara  Pandemic: Legacy Root Dawn of Freedom 1960: The Making of a President 13 Days Watergate Red Flag Over Paris Fire in the Lake A Distant Plain  People Power Labyrinth: War On Terror The Troubles   Other Mentions   ACTS - Automatic card tracking system Dispatches, vietnam book Wargameroom.com    Team Links   Websites you can find the cast on There Will Be Games The Cult of the Old   Iain The Giant Brain Twitter   Matt Twitter   Nate Twitter   Support us on Ko-Fi https://ko-fi.com/cultoftheold   Join us on our Discord https://discord.gg/Ye6Bem5Q6x   Email us at cultoftheolduk@gmail.com

Welcome to the latest episode of Cult of the Old!   Each episode your hosts Iain McAllister, Matt Thrower, and Nate Owens are going to turn back the clock to look at games that are at least 10 years old. They’ll give their own critical impressions, tell you about the history of the game and its impact, and what relevance these games still have in the modern hobby landscape.    This episode the team is turning to their first small box game of the season. A game with a mean streak that brought the mechanism of role selection to the modern hobby audience and made a name for its designer. Citadels from designer Bruno Faidutti and publisher Hans im Glück was a staple of every backpack. Across the various versions it has art from Cyrille Daujean, Julien Delval, Jesper Ejsing, Bruno Faidutti, Didier Graffet, Bjarne Hansen, Darrell Hardy, Florence Magnin, Jean-Louis Mourier, Scott Nicely, Hassan Nozadian, Christian T. Petersen, Brian Schomburg, and Richard Spicer.   Show Links   Below are links to the games and anything else that the team mentions during the course of the cast.  We will be linking to BGG for games, designers, artists, and publishers as that is a good place to start for raw information about the game in question.   Games Mentioned   Castle (Castel) Verräter  Meuterer Werewolf Five Tribes 7 Wonders Duel  Lords of Vegas  Blood on the Clocktower Puerto Rico Mission: Red Planet El Grande Mascarade Survive/ Escape from Atlantis Cockroach Poker Carta Impera Victoria   Other Mentions   Faiduttis perfect game library Complexity and Depth article from Iain Iain’s Collection  Team Links   Websites you can find the cast on There Will Be Games The Cult of the Old   Iain The Giant Brain Twitter   Matt Twitter   Nate Twitter   Support us on Ko-Fi   https://ko-fi.com/cultoftheold   Join us on our Discord https://discord.gg/Ye6Bem5Q6x   Email us at cultoftheolduk@gmail.com

Welcome to the latest episode of Cult of the Old!   Each episode your hosts Iain McAllister, Matt Thrower, and Nate Owens are going to turn back the clock to look at games that are at least 10 years old. They’ll give their own critical impressions, tell you about the history of the game and its impact, and what relevance these games still have in the modern hobby landscape.    In this episode of Cult of the Old we visit the industrial revolution in England through the game Brass. With a new edition, called Brass:Lancashire, released through Roxley Games in the not too distant past, this game has caught the limelight again and reminded everyone what a powerhouse designer Martin Wallace is. The original release was through Warfrog Games. Artists who have worked on the game are Gavan Brown, Lina Cossette, Peter Dennis, David Forest, Eckhard Freytag, and Damien Mammoliti.   Show Links   Below are links to the games and anything else that the team mentions during the course of the cast.  We will be linking to BGG for games, designers, artists, and publishers as that is a good place to start for raw information about the game in question.   Games Mentioned   Age of Steam Steam Railroad Tycoon/Railways of the World Ankh Morpork Power Grid/Funkenschlag Struggle of Empires Few Acres of Snow  A study in emerald Auztralia Age of Industry Brass: Birmingham Twilight Struggle Through the Ages Tinner’s Trail Barrage Kanban Indonesia Greed Incorporated Food Chain Magnate Team Links   Websites you can find the cast on There Will Be Games The Cult of the Old   Iain The Giant Brain Twitter   Matt Twitter   Nate Twitter   Support us on Ko-Fi https://ko-fi.com/cultoftheold   Join us on our Discord https://discord.gg/Ye6Bem5Q6x   Email us at cultoftheolduk@gmail.com