The State of Games, Episode 12 – The One About Stronghold Games

Shhhh… someone out there is watching, and listening. We can’t give away too much about Episode 12 of The State of Games except to warn you that it seems as though someone is on the line. Who? We can’t say, but if you listen to the podcast, you’ll see what we mean. Just do yourself a favor – pretend it never happened. You’re safer that way. Read More  Read More

The State of Games, Episode 11 – The One About the Last Game On Earth

The State of Games, Episode 11 is fully stocked with bottled water, shotgun shells and plenty of spam and beans. There’s no apocalypse that we can’t handle as long as we can also bring along dice, cards, several hundred board games… wait, there’s not room for all of that? What’s a couple of well-prepared gamers to do? Read More  Read More

The State of Games, Episode 10 – The One About Origins

The State of Games, Episode 10 is geared up and ready for gaming – convention style! I’ll bet all you board gamers and grognards know what we’re talking about with the title of this one, and it ain’t about Darwin (although he was a clue in a game of Time’s Up this past week). So grab your dice bag and jump on board, because it’s convention time! Read More  Read More

Origins Game Fair 2011: Day 4

I’m sad to say that there was no great Banana Quest on Day 4 of Origins (in fact, we didn’t even eat until 4 p.m.), but there was plenty of good, old-fashioned boardgaming and spending quality time with some new friends. The day started late after some unexpected, but very nice sleep time, but we made the best of our last full day. And now, the day in pictures. Observing a demo of Engage, by Table Tactics. It was a fascinating diceless system that I'd like to take a closer look at soon. Marc Specter thought the prototype of Sunrise City could use more Godzilla attacks. After a long late lunch at Barley's (surprise), we hung... Read More

Origins Game Fair 2011: Day 3

I’m happy to report that on Day 3 of Origins, The Great Banana Quest was finally fulfilled. With my system unable to sustain another morning of breakfast sandwiches, I scoured the convention center for something remotely healthy. Thankfully, I was able to bribe a smoothie attendant out of a banana, no doubt depriving some poor convention-goer of some frozen fruit goodness later that day. But I digress. First order of business for the day: Leviathans. For those not in the know, Leviathans is a miniatures game of aerial combat between huge fleets of heavily armored airships – giant, floating flotillas held aloft by giant Tesla coils.... Read More

Origins Game Fair 2011: Day 2

It’s late. Very late. Like so late that it’s almost time to get up again. That’s convention life for you, though. And thus, day 2 in pictures (I’ll elaborate later!). The day began in the dealer exhibition room. I beelined straight to Stronghold Games‘ booth, met Stephen Buonocore, and promptly purchased Confusion: Espionage and Deception in the Cold War. Yes, it is mine. Yes, it is beautiful. Next up: Meeting Cristina Ramos at the Moosetache Games booth, and getting a look at their new game, Hike. We love Rowboat; it looks like we’ll love this one, too. I’ve been promised a demo game tomorrow, so I’ll... Read More

Origins Game Fair 2011: Day 1

Just like a game of Lords of Vegas, the day started out slowly, but drew to a lively finish. After missing an exit and turning our 7+ hour drive into an 8+ hour drive, my buddy Shawn and I arrived at our hotel, grabbed our gear and headed over to the big show. After some registration hiccups, we ambled over to the open gaming area, threw open the door… and saw that it was pretty darn dead at 3:30. So we walked across the street to Barley’s Brewing, had a beer and some brats, and looked over the encyclopedia-thick booklet of events for the next four days. We soon decided that those days would be decidedly less dead. The Origins Boardroom... Read More

Ahead in the Clouds – An Interview with Chris James of Stratus Games

Last year at Dice Hate Me headquarters, we received a review copy of a very unassuming little card game called Launch Pad. The box exterior seemed innocuous enough, but once we cracked the seal and started to play, we soon realized that this little card game was anything but innocent – this was filled with more punk factor than Monopoly Deal and Bang! combined. Of course, that meant that we liked it. As a result, I’ve kept a close eye on the developments at Stratus Games – the makers of Launch Pad, Gold Mine and the upcoming Eruption – and I figured it was just about time to talk to Chris James and share the full Dice Hate... Read More

Dice On The Road

Greetings dear readers – and listeners! Below you’ll find a link to the nifty new audio player for the Dice Hate Me mini-cast. You’ll be seeing many more posts like this one starting on Wednesday as I head to Origins Game Fair to get some good gaming and plenty of interview time with a bevy of board game builders and heads of the biz. Listen to the mini-cast below to hear about everything I’ll be up to while at the big show, and be sure to comment or email with suggestions or things you’d like me to cover on Dice Hate Me! Dice On The Road mini-cast, Episode 1 – The Grand Experiment Keep your eyes glued to Dice... Read More

The Pros and Cons of Cons: 2011 Edition

Portions of this article originally appeared on Dice Hate Me on July 22, 2010 – it has been updated to reflect 2011 convention dates and information, and reposted because the somewhat-humorous, but mostly-informative posts can still aid those seeking to attend conventions in the continental US this summer. I will be at Origins this year, so if you plan to attend, look for the guy with grumpy dice somewhere on his upper body and I’ll give you a cool pin. Look for more pre-coverage of Origins, including a sneak peek at our upcoming game prototype, on Dice Hate Me within the next week. Ah, Summer. Tis the season of spray-on tans, silicon,... Read More