Leviathan Wilds: A Spectacular Homage to a Classic

Somewhere in the video I say that Leviathan Wilds should not work. The fact that it does is a miracle, a conjuring, some sort of arcane trickery that animates paper and wood into a daunting physical act. If you boil Leviathan Wilds down into genre, you appropriately get boiler plate tags. Co-op. Boss-battler. Action selection. But if you distill it into essence you get only one word - magic.

Leviathan Wilds is a valiant attempt at translating a premise not at all dissimilar to Shadows of the Colossus into board game form. In it, you’ll climb, leap, hop and glide across the terrain of gargantuan creatures trying to liberate them from blighted crystals. It’s snappy, feather-light and more-ish in a way that only modern co-opeartive games can be.

But it’s beating heart lies in adaptation and how effortless it makes it feel. I still don’t know why Leviathan Wilds works, but I’m glad I got to experience it. For more, please watch the review above.

I'm not saying Slay the Spire: The Board Game is better than the original

Someone please pass me my hat - for I must eat it. Devour it whole, with fixings! Dear viewer, can you blame me for taking one look at Slay the Spire: The Board Game and every single one of my sceptical reviewier instincts kicking into full gear? In an industry replete with video game after video game after video game having it’s own little board game offspring and so many of them being, let’s not mince words, quite poor - it was only reasonable to asume that this one will not be somehow different.

But my job isn’t to asume. My job is to set those feelings aside and actually try things and my gosh am I glad I gave this one a chance. In every single step Slay the Spire: The Board Game surprised me and subverted my expectations.

Earthborne Rangers is One in a Million

Earthborne Rangers is a shower game. Don't actually play it in the shower, the cards will melt quicker than you can say "enviromentally sustainable." But do play it. And afterwards it will haunt your thoughts.

You'll think about Earthborne Rangers when you're having your lunch sandwich on a park bench, when you look out your kitchen window with your morning coffee, when you're walking your dog, and yes, every time you have a shower.

Earthborne Rangers is a game that stays with you because it's a game that gives more than it has. It's unusual structure ensures that every session ends with more lingering thoughts, questions, mysteries, that hook you in for just one more play.

Oh, and it's also a co-operative "LCG inspired" campaign game with all that deck construction cardy-combo goodness that you expect from games like Lord of the Rings and Arkham Horror the Card Games, but comparing it to those does it an injustice. It's so much more!

Libertalia: Winds of Galecrest Review

What’s a pirate’s favourite letter? That’s right, it’s the royal pardon. And whilst I can’t promise more quality jokes in our review of Libertalia, I can promise a curious look at a game meant for high player counts that works surprisingly well at two. How? Well, click the thing. Arrr.

Sprawlopolis Review | Pocket Series Part One

Announcement! For the next six weeks we’ll be celebrating the best that small board games have to offer. Tune in for this first episode where we feature Sprawlopolis - one of the best city building games out there fitting into a demure 18 cards, a rulebook and a wallet to fit it all in. What could be more pocket than that? Answers on a pocket postcard.

Why We Like Combos (and Other Deck-Building Stories)

Combos are empowering. We get to engage in creation whilst we play, even though that creation might have been an illusion carefully crafted by the designer. And we’ve all felt the desire to share our combo stories, but it’s never a story that lands well. Here’s why.

We Review (nearly) Everything Arkham Horror: The Card Game - Part 1

What makes Arkham Horror the Card Game so captivating? Perhaps it really is that good. Perhaps, like The King in Yellow, once you’ve experienced it you’ll just never be able to get away from it. Either way, we want to help you decide which parts are worth the entry cost. So we’ve sat through it. All of it. And here it is, act one of our Mega Review of Arkham Horror: The Card Game.

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Watergate Review

Fresh off the heels of us discussing this little gem on our podcast Efka is already ready with a video review. We’re going to keep it brief this time and point you straight to the video because the person behind the keyboard might or might not be crushed by a horrendous migraine right now. We can at least promise that this game is no headache!

Wingspan Review

Behold, the wonderful world of birds - nature’s favourite flying mammal - in all its glory. Wingspan doesn’t skimp one bit at showing you just how beautiful these creatures can be and comes with an amount of eggs so large that it can only mean that those one hundred and seventy bird cards have been getting up to no good in your brand new board game box. That’s right. Birds are the new sexy and publisher Stonemaier Games is ready to sell you a board game full of them. Just as well we’ve got a review ready to help you make up your mind.