Going Analog Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

Publisher Bitewing Games has a thing for designer Reiner Knizia (most recently with Zoo Vadis and the Mythos Collection's Illiad and Ichor). Now they're back at it with a new three-part, big-box, Knizia-palooza Kickstarter campaign. We had the opportunity to play one of those parts, SILOS (Secret Interlopers from Outer Space), a retro sci-fi (with cows!) rethemed version of Municipium...and we instantly fell in love. So we invited Bitewing founders Nick Murray and Kyle Spackman to chat about SILOS, other great area-control games, and board game series and franchises.

Timeline:

• 3:25 - Going Analog's game pick: Magic Maze Tower.
• 11:22 - Bitewing's game pick: Moonrollers.
• 19:48 - Going Analog's topic: SILOS and other great area-control games.
• 47:57 - Bitewing's topic: gaming series and franchies.

Tired of hoarding resources, majority-ing areas, and adding up victory points? Want to make your frenemy continuously act like they're milking a cow instead? Then let's talk party games!

Shoe and Christina run through a bunch of new big-group activities to help you with your next big game night.

This episode was sponsored by Magic Mind, our favorite Mental Performance Shot. As a special offer for our listeners, they're giving 40% off the next 10 (and only 10!) uses of this promo code. Go to https://magicmind.com/ANALOG40 and use our code ANALOG40 to get this deal.

Timeline:

• 1:09 - Christina's game pick: Minos: Dawn of the Bronze Age.
• 6:09 - Shoe's game pick: Nature.
• 12:44 - Games that tweak party game formulas: Sync, Rabble, Lovestruck.
• 24:59 - Team games: Belratti, Blank Slate: Challenge, Mini-Game Party.
• 35:27 - Drawing games: Caution Signs, Speed Colors.
• 42:37 - Quick hits: Task Team, Ultimate Dibs, I'm Kind of a Big Dill.

We've got so many new board games to talk about this week that we decided to skip having a guest on, so we can just blab and blab and blab about what we've been playing lately. So yup, you're just getting all Christina, all Shoe this episode. And they're ready to dish on what they liked and what they didn't about each of these.

Timeline: 

• 1:16 - The Vale of Eternity.
• 9:19 - Faraway.
• 16:50 - Monumental.
• 24:36 - The Elder Scrolls: Betrayal of the Second Era.
• 32:47 - Heroes of Might & Magic III: The Board Game.
• 45:59 - Converge: Catalysts of Change/Sparks of Hope/Engines of Progress.
• 54:17 - Evergreen.

We talk about Plaid Hat's new storytelling adventure game Forgotten Waters, our other favorite pirate-themed games, and some of the most memorable characters in board gaming.

But...is quarantining slowly killing our love for board games?

We have three special guests! Video game designer Tim Schafer (whose work on The Secret of Monkey Island influenced Forgotten Waters), and Forgotten Waters co-designers Isaac Vega and Joe Ellis.

Here's a full list of games discussed on the show:

Intro

• Forgotten Waters
• Ashes: Rise of the Phoenixborn
• City of Remnants
• Dead of Winter
• Crystal Clans
• Raxxon

Christina's topic: What are our favorite pirate-y games?

• Forgotten Waters
• Sea of Legends
• Tiny Epic Pirates
• Sea of Nadia
• Jamaica
• Sea of Clouds
• Libertalia
• Citadels
• Merchants and Marauders
• Pirate's Cove
• Loot
• Xia: Legends of a Drift System

Joe's topic: Inspirations behind Forgotten Waters

• Forgotten Waters

Isaac's topic: What are the most memorable characters you've enjoyed in board games?

• Scythe
• Scythe: The Rise of Fenris
• Magic: The Gathering
• Twilight Imperium
• Dead of Winter
• Mice and Mystics
• Tales of the Arabian Nights
• Camp Grizzly
• T.I.M.E Stories
• Star Wars: Rebellion
• Dune
• Aftermath
• Abomination
• Takenoko
• Forgotten Waters

Tim's topic: How has quarantine affected how we think about board games?

• Descent: Journeys in the Dark
• The 7th Continent
• Sea of Nadia
• Smartphone Inc.
• Santa Monica
• Forgotten Waters

Final thoughts

• Forgotten Waters

What are our favorite two-player, solo, and roll-and-write games? Do you want to restart or fail forward when you lose a cooperative adventure? And we all love designer Uwe Rosenberg!

With guest Jamey Stegmaier of Stonemaier Games (Wingspan, Tapestry, Scythe).

Here's a full list of games discussed on the show:

Intro

• Wingspan
• Viticulture
• Scythe
• Euphoria
• Tapestry

Shoe's topic: What are our favorite two-player and solo games?

• Lost Cities
• Hanamikoji
• Jixia Academy
• Onitama
• 7 Wonders Duel
• 7 Wonders
• Shards of Infinity
• Shards of Infinity: Shadow of Salvation
• SHOBU
• Jaipur
• War Chest
• War Chest: Nobility
• Patchwork
• Pathfinder: Adventure Card Game
• The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game
• Arkham Horror: The Card Game
• Coffee Roaster

Jamey's topic: How do we feel about replaying scenarios vs. "failing forward" in cooperative games?

• Forgotten Waters
• Gloomhaven
• Pandemic Legacy
• Legacy of Dragonholt
• The Lord of the Rings: Journeys in Middle-Earth
• T.I.M.E Stories
• Forbidden Desert
• Atlantis Rising
• Arkham Horror

Christina's topic: Favorite beginner-friendly and heavy-duty ___-and-writes

• Second Chance
• Qwixx
• Ganz Schon Clever
• Fleet: The Dice Game
• Rolling Realms
• Welcome to...
• Silver & Gold
• On Tour
• Cartographers
• Doppelt So Clever
• MetroX
• Welcome to New Las Vegas

Jess's topic: What are our favorite Uwe Rosenberg games?

• Agricola
• Patchwork
• Caverna: Cave vs. Cave
• Agricola: All Creatures Big and Small
• Viticulture: Moor Visitors Expansion
• A Feast for Odin
• Caverna
• Caverna: The Forgotten Folk
• Bohnanza
• Cottage Garden
• Fields of Arle
• Le Havre
• Ora et Labora

Final thoughts

• Kingdomino
• Pinnacle
• Scythe
• My Little Scythe
• My Little Scythe: Pie in the Sky
• Rolling Realms
• Euphoria

Which games transport us to new places or worlds? What makes a good asynchronous digital game? And how does sheltering in place change how a designer goes about his business?

Board game designer Emerson Matsuuchi (Century series, Metal Gear Solid, Specter Ops) joins us to discuss.

Here's a full list of games discussed on the show:

Intro

• Century
• Metal Gear Solid
• Foundations of Rome

Christina's topic: What are your top board games that help you escape?

• Tokaido
• Namiji
• Tales of Arabian Nights
• Hive Mind
• King of Tokyo
• Mansions of Madness
• Robinson Crusoe: Adventures on the Cursed Island
• Dead of Winter
• Above & Below
• Near & Far
• Mice & Mystics
• Aftermath
• Forgotten Waters
• Suburbia

Emerson's topic: How important is it for a game to have something innovative?

• The Mind
• Dead Man's Cabal
• In the Hall of the Mountain King
• The Castles of Burgundy
• Lost Cities
• Codenames
• Paladins of the West Kingdom
• Architects of the West Kingdom

Nick's topic: Asynchronous digital games

• The Castles of Burgundy
• Lost Cities
• Carcassonne
• Patchwork
• Ticket to Ride
• Tokaido
• Ascension
• Shards of Infinity
• Lords of Waterdeep
• Kingsburg

Shoe's topic: How does shelter-in-place impact game design work?

• Infiltrator

Final thoughts

• Just One
• Rising Sun

The world has changed. How are we playing games now? How has coronavirus impacted the game-publishing business? And why is community more important than ever?

We cover these big topics with Nolan Nasser (CEO) and Jacob Way (COO) of Deep Water Games (Welcome To..., Hanamikoji).

In lighter news, we go on and on about one of our favorite games of 2020 so far: The Crew. It's so amazing, we guaranteed our guests their money back if they bought it and didn't like it.

Here's a full list of games discussed on the show:

Intro

• Hanamikoji
• Realm of Sand
• Welcome to...
• Fantastic Factories
• Spirit Island
• New Bedford
• Fleet: The Dice Game
• The Crew

Jacob's topic: Importance of community during COVID-19

• Monstrosity
• Diplomacy
• Gloomhaven

Christina's topic: What do our board gaming lives look like during shelter-in-place?

• Ascension
• Shards of Infinity
• Patchwork
• Tang Garden
• Sagrada
• Ganz Schon Clever/That's So Clever
• Doppelt So Clever/Twice as Clever
• Chronicles of Crime
• Aftermath
• Clank! Legacy
• Eclipse: Second Dawn for the Glaaxy
• Hive Mind
• Codenames
• Wavelength
• Time's Up
• Time's Up: Title Recall
• Monikers

Nolan's topic: How has COVID-19 affected Deep Water as a company?

• Floor Plan
• Jixia Academic

Shoe's topic: The Crew

• Claim

Final thoughts

• Welcome to New Las Vegas

How do we pick which board games to cull when we move? What is gaming life like in the military? What's considered a classic nowadays? And what's our ideal convention experience -- deadly viruses aside, that is?

Lizzy Funkhouser (Board Game Spotlight) and Derek Funkhouser (Skybound Games) join us to discuss!

Here's a full list of games discussed on the show:

Intro

• Medium
• Q.E.
• The Walking Dead: Something to Fear
• Herbaceous Sprouts

Derek's topic: What makes an evergreen or classic board game?

• Axis & Allies
• Azul
• Ticket to Ride
• Dominion
• Settlers of Catan
• 7 Wonders
• Risk
• Paladins of the West Kingdom
• Marvel Champions: The Card Game
• Nemesis
• Terraforming Mars
• Twilight Struggle
• The Castles of Burgundy
• Viticulture
• Architects of the West Kingdom
• Quacks of Quedlinburg
• Tidal Blades
• Gloomhaven
• Blood Rage
• Carcassonne
• Monopoly
• Scrabble
• The Game of Life
• El Grande
• Wingspan

Christina's topic: What's your ideal convention experience?

• MetroX
• The Taverns of Tiefenthal

Lizzy's topic: How do you decide which games to cull or keep?

• Azul: Summer Pavilion
• Herbaceous
• Mombasa
• Gears of War: The Board Game
• Chaos in the Old World
• World of Warcraft: The Board Game
• StarCraft: The Board Game
• T.I.M.E Stories
• Small World
• Ginkgopolis
• Rococo
• Orleans
• Arboretum
• Lords of Hellas

Shoe's topic: What is board gaming like while deployed or in the armed forces?

• Magic: The Gathering
• The Crew
• Skull King
• The Resistance
• The Resistance: Avalon
• Hanabi
• Hive Mind
• Codenames

Final thoughts

• The Godfather: Corleone's Empire

Why we'll never get some of our friends to play board games; the best laugh-so-hard-we-always-cry games; board game movies (our faves and the ones we'd like to see); and whether high-production trailers are good -- and bad -- for Kickstarter campaigns.

Games discussed on the show:

• Clue
• Jumanji
• Battleship
• The Castles of Burgundy
• Pandemic
• Pandemic: Legacy
• Settlers of Catan
• One Night Ultimate Werewolf
• Gloomhaven
• Root
• T.I.M.E Stories
• Scythe
• Nine Tiles Panic
• Mice & Mystics
• Aftermath
• Above & Below
• Near & Far

• Lost Cities
• The Mind
• Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective
• Crokinole

• Telestrations
• Draw Your Own Conclusions
• A Fake Artist Goes to New York
• Head's Up
• Skull
• Cards Against Humanity
• Funemployment
• Hive Mind

Shoe's topic: Are fancy video trailers too fancy? Or are they necessary to stand out?

• Unsettled
• SHASN
• Dogs of War

• Imperial 2030
• Cry Havoc
• Nokosu Dice

Mike Young (Plan B) explains why game publishing is so tough! Plus, our fave board game franchises and imports.

Games mentioned on the show:

Shoe's topic: Game franchises

• Azul
• Azul: Stained Glass of Sintra
• Azul: Summer Pavilion
• Century
• Century: Golem Edition
• Chess
• Othello
• Ticket to Ride
• Settlers of Catan
• Codenames
• Cottage Garden
• Indian Summer
• Spring Meadow
• Funkoverse Strategy Game
• Unmatched
• Android: Netrunner
• Magic: The Gathering
• Mexica
• Tikal
• Java
• Terraforming Mars
• Castles of Tuscany
• Castles of Burgundy
• Blood Rage
• Rising Sun
• Ankh

• 5211
• 5 Colors
• Aquatica
• Modern Art
• Nokosu Dice
• Orchard Ocean
• Let's Make a Bus Route
• Sunflower Valley
• Great Western Trail
• Oh My Goods!
• Broom Service
• Tybor the Builder
• Startups

• Team3
• Nyctophobia
• Oceans
• Evolution
• Tuki
• Junk Art
• Camel Up
• SOS Dino
• San Juan
• Beez
• Era: Medieval Age
• Alma Mater
• Tzolk'in
• Teotihuacan