Where the Games Are
It’s officially Spring Break at Dice Hate Me HQ, and that means that Monkey238 and I are taking a little mini-vacation. We plan to unwind, unplug, and spend four days in analog heaven, getting pampered and, more importantly, playing some games! Before we start our staycation, though, I thought a little preview of what’s up next on the site was probably in order. It’s going to be a busy couple of months, so stick around – we have some great things in store. Trollhalla Some of you may have spotted copies of a box covered in strange, Viking trolls popping up at your favorite local game store. Fear not – this little gem is the newest... Read More
The State of Games, Episode 3 – The One About the Death and Life of Monopoly
The State of Games, Episode 3 is live! A little disclaimer: for those of you put off by the simple word “Monopoly” in the title of this State of Games, stick with us, relax, and remember a time in your life when paying the rent could be as simple as finding some Free Parking. Read More Read More
High Stakes Trivia – A Wits & Wagers Review
Math may sometimes confound me and dice certainly hate me, but there has always been one gaming staple that I could fall back on: trivia. Yes, I’m that guy that used to play in weekly trivia leagues, and the one that sometimes ruins Trivial Pursuit for the rest of the group. I’m not sure if someone at North Star Games was aware of all this when they offered to send me a review copy of Wits & Wagers, but after playing, I’m pretty sure that it was designed by someone that hated playing Trivial Pursuit with the likes of me. Wits & Wagers is truly the cure for the perfect know-it-all. The game consists of seven rounds. Each round, players... Read More
The Amazing Race – A Travel Blog review
I have a confession: I am a Vlaada Chvatil groupie. Galaxy Trucker is in my top 5 games of all time, and I rabidly wait for his new releases like some people stalk Ticketmaster for Lady Gaga tickets. And so it was with great excitement that I awaited the announcement of his newest game at Essen Spiel – the biggest show in gaming. Would it be another hilarious romp through outer space? A funky dungeon? A sequel to Bunny Bunny Moose Moose? No, it was to be a game about travel. And geography. And blogging. Huh. Never let it be said that the guy gets stuck in a rut. Travel Blog has some intriguing mechanics, but overall, gameplay is fairly simple.... Read More
The State of Games, Episode 2 – The One About Naked People
The State of Games, Episode 2 is live! Fair warning: although we keep our language clean (and medical), this episode contains some adult themes, so discretion is advised. Read More Read More
The State of Games, Episode 1 – The One About the Chinese
Welcome to the inaugural podcast of The State of Games! In this episode, Monkey238 and I get racy when we talk about Chinese stereotypes in board games, how Monkey is truly down with the Pandemic sickness, and answer the question “what’s bigger than a tulip but smaller than Holland?” We also offer up the first Riddle of the Sphinx – a random trivia question about board games that, if answered correctly, could get you a custom shoutout on the next podcast. If you think you have the answer, email us at podcast [at] dicehateme.com or comment on this post. Read More Read More
I’ve Been Drinking on the Railroad – A TransEuropa Review
All aboard – and a plethora of other train puns too unbearable to publish – this week, a look at TransEuropa! Yes, yes, I can hear the collective groans now; a million (ok, a couple hundred) voices crying out, “Another train game?” Yes, dear readers, another train game. Bear with me during this brief review, though – a) it’s fun, b) you can play it blitzed, and c) it has about as much to do with trains as colored cubes do with making burgers. In TransEuropa, each player randomly selects five differently colored cards, each with a Eurasian city on the face. The goal for each round is to place little bits of “track”... Read More
Alien Frontiers Second Printing Delayed
The bad news: The second printing of Alien Frontiers will be delayed by at least two weeks, missing the March 31st shipping date originally announced. The good news: the pre-order period has been extended! Here is the note posted today by Clever Mojo Games head W. David MacKenzie: “Panda Games Mfg just emailed to say that their dice subcontractor has failed to meet their delivery deadline and will not be able to get the dice to Panda’s assembly team before the plant closes down on Jan 29th for the two-week Lunar New Year. This means that Alien Frontiers will not get shipped out of China until late February. We had expected the shipment... Read More
A Few Fries Short of a Happy Meal – A Burger Joint Review
There’s just something strangely fascinating about playing with your food. Lately, it seems that gamers who like games and grub have had a buffet of choices: Wasabi!, Wok Star and Lord of the Fries are some that have been recently released. Since I was not one of the lucky few who grabbed up a scarce copy of Wok Star, I decided to go completely American and try my hand at fast food franchising with Burger Joint. The object of Burger Joint is to be the first foodie to reach 12 on the scoring track by building up basic restaurants like Burger Joints or Pizza Parlors, and then converting some of them to Diners or hoity toity Bistros. The basic... Read More
Clever Mojo Games Gets Steamy
It’s been a long time coming, but it looks like Steampunk fans will finally get a meaty boardgame they can call their own. Clever Mojo Games – the makers of Alien Frontiers – is currently working with New Zealand game designer Anthony Henning to produce Arkopolis Engines. No details are available for a specific release date, but the teaser art is looking pretty nifty. I’m a huge fan of Steampunk, so rest assured that there will be plenty more news and previews of Arkopolis Engines over the next year at Dice Hate Me. In other news from Clever Mojo Games, two other projects are currently in production and playtesting. The... Read More
