Shelf Stable: A Board Game Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis
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Shelf Stable: A Board Game Podcast
Kenny Katayama & Tom Bowers
Frequency: 1 episode/7d. Total Eps: 92

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#65 Characteristics of Games Pt. 1
mardi 4 novembre 2025 • Duration 01:09:09
It's the year 2035. All games have been through a meta-battle royale, and the only game remaining is Pokemon GO. Run into incoming traffic to make sure you stay in the circle. Remember kids, if you die in the game, you die in real life.
Games we played:
2:29 - The Great Dalmuti (1995, Richard Garfield, AMIGO)
6:02 - Pentago (2005, Tomas Flodén, MindTwister USA)
16:37 - Legendary A Marvel Deck Building Game (2012, Devin Low, Upper Deck)
20:10 - For Sale (1997, Stefan Dorra, Eagle-Gryphon)
100 games before you die:
24:26 - Wingspan (2019, Elizabeth Hargrave, Stonemaier)
https://boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/321471/100-tabletop-games-to-play-before-turning-100
Topic:
26:00 - Characteristics of Games Pt. 1
Characteristics of Games (2012, George Skaff Elias & Richard Garfield & K. Robert Gutschera, MIT Press)
https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262542692/characteristics-of-games
Songs:
100 Games to Play Before You Die by Michael, Tyler, Devon, and Josh of The Boise RainBeaus
ROT by Bone Haus https://bonehaus.bandcamp.com/album/in-mourning
Patreon https://www.patreon.com/c/ShelfStableCast
All our socials https://linktr.ee/shelfstablecast
#64 Kiki or Bouba
mardi 28 octobre 2025 • Duration 50:50
Brace yourself. It's not like we typically make much sense anyway, but this one is around 60% words that are not present in any language. If you've been curious about trying out City of Six Moons, might I recommend listening to the second half of this episode as a sort of audiobook primer?
The worst volume slider uxdesign.cc/the-worst-volume-control-ui-in-the-world-60713dc86950?gi=c7b969c245cd
Arkhipov Day https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasily_Arkhipov
Games we played:
4:50 - Billabong (1992, Eric Solomon, SimplyFun)
9:37 - Spynet (2017, Richard Garfield, Z-Man)
14:02 - 18MS: The Railroads Come to Mississippi (2020, Mark Derrick, All-Aboard)
18:07 - Seas of Strife (2015, Mark Major, AMIGO)
100 games before you die:
21:36 - Lords of Waterdeep (2012, Peter Lee and Rodney Thompson, WotC)
https://boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/321471/100-tabletop-games-to-play-before-turning-100
Topic:
26:00 - Kiki or Bouba
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bouba/kiki_effect
Songs:
100 Games to Play Before You Die by Michael, Tyler, Devon, and Josh of The Boise RainBeaus
ROT by Bone Haus https://bonehaus.bandcamp.com/album/in-mourning
Patreon https://www.patreon.com/c/ShelfStableCast
All our socials https://linktr.ee/shelfstablecast
#55 Rulebooks
mardi 26 août 2025 • Duration 52:20
There's a new sheriff in town that is laying down the law. They have a game overview in their holster and reference sheet plastered on their butt. They're wearing underpants made of an appendix and a hat made out of examples and illustrations. Yee-haw! You've made your last misplay Ironhide.
Games we played:
2:12 - Stay Cool (2019, Julien Sentis, Scorpion Masqué)
5:22 - Linko (2014, Wolfgang Kramer, Michael Kiesling, AMIGO)
9:48 - Concept (2013, Gaëtan Beaujannot & Alain Rivollet, Repos)
13:10 - Gemlok (2007, Donald Meyer, Pywacket LLC)
100 games before you die:
17:58 - 7 Wonders (2010, Antoine Bauza, Repos)
https://boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/321471/100-tabletop-games-to-play-before-turning-100
Topic:
22:32 - Rulebooks
Songs:
100 Games to Play Before You Die by Michael, Tyler, Devon, and Josh of The Boise RainBeaus
ROT by Bone Haus https://bonehaus.bandcamp.com/album/in-mourning
Patreon https://www.patreon.com/c/ShelfStableCast
All our socials https://linktr.ee/shelfstablecast
#54 Balance in Games
mardi 19 août 2025 • Duration 56:22
What up my jellies! We got a paku-spicy episode for paku-you this paku-week! Enjoy cleaning the ticks out of your paku-drinking water! Jelly masters signing off! Richard Garfield, take us to the mooooon!
Scatman cursed remix https://youtu.be/5rCC25N66Dg?feature=shared
Games we played:
6:02 - Paku Paku (2017, Antoine Bauza, Ravensburger)
10:36 - Barrage (2019, Tommaso Battista & Simone Luciani, Cranio Creations)
16:01 - The Castles of Burgundy (2011, Stefan Feld, Alea)
20:29 - Iberia (2016, Jesus Torres Castro & Matt Leacock, Z-Man)
100 games before you die:
24:49 - Robo Rally (1994, Richard Garfield, Wizards of the Coast)
https://boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/321471/100-tabletop-games-to-play-before-turning-100
Trans 101 for BGG by Som Paris https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/16472/blogpost/177212/trans-101-for-boardgame-geeks
Topic:
30:41 - Balance in Games
The Balancing Act by Richard Garfield https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/1/blogpost/169896/the-balancing-act
Songs:
100 Games to Play Before You Die by Michael, Tyler, Devon, and Josh of The Boise RainBeaus
ROT by Bone Haus https://bonehaus.bandcamp.com/album/in-mourning
Patreon https://www.patreon.com/c/ShelfStableCast
All our socials https://linktr.ee/shelfstablecast
#53 ft. Ray Billings, Board Game Nostalgia
mardi 12 août 2025 • Duration 01:08:15
Remember the time Mr. Kellogg put a bag on his head to stop the nut from happening? Neither do we. This week we are joined by Ray Billings, digital content specialist at The OP.
1:44 - Intro: Ray Billings
7:32 - Update on CGE and Devir
Marceline post on CGE update https://web-cdn.bsky.app/profile/marcelineleiman.bsky.social/post/3lvw5kexn5c2w
Ace of Spades images and thread https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/3555308/just-some-ole-racist-history-crap
Devir follow up https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/3555679/a-message-to-the-community
13:20 - We Have to Know!
Games we played:
22:41 - Schadenfreude (2020, ctr, Studio Turbine)
29:25 - Wizard (1984, Ken Fisher, Amigo)
NL Mottainai clip (thank you Tim) https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=S1RXtkTwWW4&t=3645s
Topic:
39:31 - Board Game Nostalgia
Where to find Ray: https://bsky.app/profile/raybird.bsky.social
Songs:
ROT by Bone Haus https://bonehaus.bandcamp.com/album/in-mourning
Patreon https://www.patreon.com/c/ShelfStableCast
All our socials https://linktr.ee/shelfstablecast
#52 Online Play
mardi 5 août 2025 • Duration 01:03:13
So Tom kinda just willed Daybreak into Shelf Stable legality and I don't know how I feel about that. On one hand it's an excellent game, but on the other it sets a dangerous precedent a la Beetlejuice. He can just say something enough times and it materializes like some kind of antithetical podcast ghost. I'm going to have to go back to the lab for this one and figure out how to handle future manifestations of this SCP. Maybe a little bit of Jay Leno will help.
Games we played:
5:15 - Babylonia (2019, Reiner Knizia, Ludonova)
9:37 - Brass (2007, Martin Wallace, Warfrog)
16:08 - Linko (2014, Michael Kiesling & Wolfgang Kramer, Amigo)
19:08 - Monikers (2015, Alex Hague & Justin Vickers, CMYK)
100 games before you die (kinda):
22:15 - Response to CGE
Marceline Leiman's zine https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/10BUxxRO08jS9ZFnfnt0dnMPEZi5lrwke
Meaning of trans rights https://www.reddit.com/r/asktransgender/comments/11f0pmy/what_do_people_mean_when_they_say_transrights/
Contribute to the BGG discussion
https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/3553665/blacklist-cge
Topic:
37:15 - Online Games
The medium is the message https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/6343/blogpost/174872/the-physical-game-and-its-digital-implementation-a
Songs:
100 Games to Play Before You Die by Michael, Tyler, Devon, and Josh of The Boise RainBeaus
ROT by Bone Haus https://bonehaus.bandcamp.com/album/in-mourning
Patreon https://www.patreon.com/c/ShelfStableCast
All our socials https://linktr.ee/shelfstablecast
#51 Board Game Black Mirror
mardi 29 juillet 2025 • Duration 01:09:49
Do you ever get the feeling that we're just living in one big simulation? Like we might just be pawns in a big Game of Life, and we're just being played by hyper-dimensional beings who are complaining about how badly the host taught them the rules? No? Well, you should probably listen to a different episode, then. This week we're crowdsourcing our content to bring you the best and most mind-bending plot synopses possible for a theoretical future wherein Netflix green-lights a version of Black Mirror just for us Tabletop Gamers 😎
Games we played:
2:28 - 1880: China (2010, Helmut Ohley & Leonhard Orgler, Lookout Games)
11:49 - Samurai Swords (aka Ikusa) (1986, Michael Gray, Milton Bradley)
21:31 - Broom Service (2015, Andreas Pelikan & Alexander Pfister, Alea)
28:50 - Captain Sonar (2016, Roberto Fraga & Yohan Lemonnier, Matagot)
100 games before you die:
34:35 - CATAN (1995, Klaus Teuber, Mayfair)
https://boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/321471/100-tabletop-games-to-play-before-turning-100
Topic:
41:06 - Black Mirror if it was Board Games
Songs:
100 Games to Play Before You Die by Michael, Tyler, Devon, and Josh of The Boise RainBeaus
ROT by Bone Haus https://bonehaus.bandcamp.com/album/in-mourning
Patreon https://www.patreon.com/c/ShelfStableCast
All our socials https://linktr.ee/shelfstablecast
#50 Burnout
mardi 22 juillet 2025 • Duration 01:08:44
We've all been there. You want to show your cool high school teacher that Code Geass is a lot like an ancient philosopher's teachings. Then you show the clip for a bit too long and all of a sudden you're watching booty shots and some boys love...
Games we played:
5:43 - Great Western Trail (2016, Alexander Pfister, eggertspiele)
15:03 - The Game: Face to Face (2017, Steffen Benndorf & Reinhard Staupe, Pandasaurus)
22:15 - Shards of Infinity (2018, Gary Arant & Justin Gary, Stone Blade)
31:13 - Millennium Blades (2016, D Brad Talton Jr, Level 99)
100 games before you die:
39:03 - Modern Art (1992, Reiner Knizia, CMON)
https://boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/321471/100-tabletop-games-to-play-before-turning-100
Topic:
43:13 - Burnout
Songs:
100 Games to Play Before You Die by Michael, Tyler, Devon, and Josh of The Boise RainBeaus
ROT by Bone Haus https://bonehaus.bandcamp.com/album/in-mourning
Patreon https://www.patreon.com/c/ShelfStableCast
All our socials https://linktr.ee/shelfstablecast
#49 Deck of Cards
mardi 15 juillet 2025 • Duration 01:00:50
Gatorade is like the LaCroix of LaCroix which is not to be confused with carbonated water which is the Spindrift of LaCroix. Water is mid and the LaCroix of water is obviously [drumroll...] LaCroix. Why do they call it LaCroix when you la croix the cold drink la "cwa" hot drink the drink? Stroke and/or deep cut. Jury is out.
Games we played:
5:03 - Yellow & Yangtze (2018, Reiner Knizia, Grail)
9:16 - Monopoly DEAL (2008, Katharine Chapman, Hasbro)
14:53 - Bohnanza (1997, Uwe Rosenberg, Amigo)
19:22 - Space Base (2018, John D Clair, AEG)
100 games before you die:
24:53 - Memoir '44 (2004, Richard Borg, Days of Wonder)
https://boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/321471/100-tabletop-games-to-play-before-turning-100
Topic:
31:37 - Deck of Cards
Songs:
100 Games to Play Before You Die by Michael, Tyler, Devon, and Josh of The Boise RainBeaus
ROT by Bone Haus https://bonehaus.bandcamp.com/album/in-mourning
Patreon https://www.patreon.com/c/ShelfStableCast
All our socials https://linktr.ee/shelfstablecast
#48 Mid Year Eval
mardi 8 juillet 2025 • Duration 57:24
It's like horse racing but the horses are waifus. What's a waifu? Well that's kind of hard to explain. Have you heard of a gatcha? No? NorthernLion? Oh... well I don't know if this is going to work out. Thanks for the interview, I wish you the best of luck in finding a candidate.
Games we played:
3:16 - 51st State (2010, Ignacy Trzewiczek, Portal)
9:54 - Gizmos (2018, Phil Walker-Harding, CMON)
15:11 - Mottainai (2015, Carl Chudyk, Asmadi)
21:03 - Side Effects (2017, Jen Igartua & Jade Shames & Kat Thek, Pillbox)
100 games before you die:
29:24 - Chinatown (2017, Karsten Hartwig, Z-Man)
https://boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/321471/100-tabletop-games-to-play-before-turning-100
Topic:
34:12 - Mid Year Eval
Tom's bingo https://imgur.com/a/Of4POTr
Songs:
100 Games to Play Before You Die by Michael, Tyler, Devon, and Josh of The Boise RainBeaus
ROT by Bone Haus https://bonehaus.bandcamp.com/album/in-mourning
Patreon https://www.patreon.com/c/ShelfStableCast
All our socials https://linktr.ee/shelfstablecast









