Shelley and I talk a bit about our wonderful trip to Portugal from which we just returned, and then discuss the new big-box game from Quined Games

Carnegie by Xavier Georges

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Shelley and I place our bets as we play a GREAT new title from Perplext

Long Shot: The Dice Game by Chris Handy

then pull a great recent title off the shelf once again to discuss its L'Etoile expanion

Paris by Wolfgang Kramer and Michael Kiesling from Game Brewer

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Shelley and I head to Oaxaca and play

Zapotec by Fabio Lopiano from Board&Dice

then we get healthy and eat our vegetables in

Veggies by Jog Kung from Devir

We also mention Cafe by Rola and Costa from PYTHAGORAS in our discussion of Veggies as a better implementation of the tableau building by overlaying cards mechanism. Check it out!

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Shelley and I got a chance to play

Living Forest by Aske Christiansen from Ludonaute

and discuss it, along with the other Kennerspiel des Jahres and Spiel des Jahres Nominees and Recommended Games.

SdJ Nominees:

Cascadia by Randy Flynn from Flatout Games and KOSMOS

Scout by Kei Kajino from Oink Games and One More Game!

Top Ten by Aurelien Picolet and Cocktail Games

SdJ Recommended:

7 Wonders: Architects

echoes: The Dancer

Magic Rabbit

My Gold Mine

So Clover!

Trek 12: Himalaya

KdJ Nominees

Cryptid from Hal Duncan and Ruth Veevers and Osprey Games 7 Skelling Games

Dune Imperium by Paul Dennen and Dire Wolf

Living Forest

KdJ Recommended:

Ark Nova

Khora: Rise of an Empire

Witchstone

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Shelley and take on a single game once again this week. This time the physical size isn't as huge as last week, but the depth is certainly there!

Golem by Flaminia Brasini, Virginio Gigli, and Simone Luciani from Cranio Creations

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Shelley and I tackle a literally HUGE game this week...it's so big it deserved its own show!

Foundations of Rome by Emerson Matsuuchi from Arcane Wonders

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Shelley and I take a break from reviews to reflect on our favorite Roll & Write or Draw & Draw games, a newer genre that certainly has exploded in the past few years.

Shelley's Honorable Mentions:

Silver & Gold by Phil Walker-Harding from NSV

On Tour by Chad DeShon from Boardgametables

Shelley's Top 5:

5) Explorers by Phil Walker-Harding from Ravensburger

4) Hadrian's Wall by Bobby Hill from Garphill Games, CMON Global & Renegade Game Studios

3) Second Chance by Uwe Rosenberg from Edition Spielwiese and Stronghold Games

2) The Clever Series (Ganz Schon Clever/That's Pretty Clever, Doppelt so Clever/Twice as Clever, Clever Hoch Drei/Clever Cubed) by Wolfgang Warsch from Schmidt Spiele and Stronghold Games

1) Welcome To... (+New Las Vegas, The Moon, etc.) by Benoit Turpin from Blue Cocker Games and Deep Water Games

Doug's Honorable Mentions:

On Tour by Chad DeShon from Boardgametables

Let's Make A Bus Route The Dice Game by Saashi from Saashi & Saashi

Doug's Top 5:

5) Biblios Quill & Parchment by Steve Finn from Dr. Finn's Games

4) Trails of Tucana by Eilif Svensson and Kristian Amundsen Ostby from Aporta Games, Matagot, and Pegasus Spiele

3) Hadrian's Wall by Bobby Hill from Garphill Games, CMON Global & Renegade Game Studios

2) The Clever Series (Ganz Schon Clever/That's Pretty Clever, Doppelt so Clever/Twice as Clever, Clever Hoch Drei/Clever Cubed) by Wolfgang Warsch from Schmidt Spiele and Stronghold Games

1) Welcome To... (+New Las Vegas, The Moon, etc.) by Benoit Turpin from Blue Cocker Games and Deep Water Games

Other Roll & Writes/Draw & Draws Mentioned at the top of the show that we have played & reviewed:

Isle of Cats Explore & Draw

Three Sisters

Cartographers & Cartographers Heroes

Rustling Leaves Blatterrauschen

Patchwork Doodle

Qwixx/Quixx on Board

Divvy Dice

Anubixx

Hex Roller

Bloom

Brixx

Encore!

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Shelley and I get heavy as we wander downriver in

Boonlake by Alexander Pfister from Capstone Games and dlp Games

then we get dicey as we attempt to raise our levels and take over lands in

First Empires by Eric B. Vogel from Sand Castle Games

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Shelley and I delve once again into Dr. Knizia's legacy game, talking about the latter chapters of

My City by Reiner Knizia from Kosmos

after we spend some time with the little brother of Isle of Cats - this week it's

Isle of Cats: Explore & Draw by Frank West from City of Games

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Shelley and I discuss the first 1/2 of

My City by Reiner Knizia from KOSMOS

(with a few spoilers), but first we tackle the FOURTH in the Azul series

Azul: Queen's Garden by Michael Kiesling from Next Move Games

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Shelley and I return to Victorian England this week for a look at the Upstair/Downstairs and Wessex expansions for

Obsession by Dan Hallagan from Kayenta Games

then we head out into the garden and work with corn, beans and pumplins in the new roll & write

Three Sisters by Ben Pinchback and Matt Riddle from Motor City Gameworks and 25th Century Games

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Shelley and I put on our "Where's Waldo?" hats to solve some crimes in

Micro Macro - Crime City by Johannes Sich from Edition Spielwiese and Pegasus Spiele

the head back to Victorian England and become landed gentry courting the Fairchilds in

Obsession by Dan Hallagan from Kayenta Games (KG)

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Shelley and I enjoy a 2-player-only game of competing groups of thieves stealing precious artifacts in

Caper: Europe by Unai Rubio from Keymaster Games

then we head back to

The Isle of Cats by Frank West from City of Games

to explore some of the recent expansions, including the Boat Pack, Kittens & Beasts, and Kickstart Expansion 2

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Shelley and I get another BIG game to the table this week, delving into zoo building and animal acquisition in

Ark Nova by Mathias Wigge from Capstone and Feuerland Spiele

then we check back into

Paris: La Cité de la Lumière by Jose Antonio Abascal Acebo from Devir to see how the Paris: Eiffel expansion works with the base game

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Shelley and I take on the BIG, colorful new Devir game

Bitoku by Germán P. Millán from Devir

and then finish up our discussion of

Welcome to the Moon by Alexis Allard and Benoit Turpin from Blue Cocker and Pegasus Spiele

with a discussion of how the campaign mode works

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Shelley and I continue our in-depth exploration of

Welcome to the Moon by Alexis Allard & Benoit Turpin from Blue Cocker Games and Pegasus Spiele (boards 5-8)

and then head back into the Middle Ages in Italy with

Citta-Stato by Simone Cerruti Sola from Giochix.it

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Shelley and I take our first journey to the moon this week in

Welcome to The Moon by Alexis Allard and Benoit Turpin from Blue Cocker, Dude Games, and Pegasus Spiele

then we look back on an alternative reality when otherworldly helpers lent a hand to establish humanity's biggest projects in

Origins: First Builders by Adam Kwapinski from Board&Dice and CMON Global

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This week Shelley and I duel by making llama deliveries in

P'achakuna by Stefan Kraft and Moreno Vogel from Treecer

then make more elaborate deliveries from our farms to town in a re-review of

La Granja by Adreas 'ode' Odendahl and Michael Keller originally from Spielworxx and recently Kickstarted from Board&Dice

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Shelley and I reflect on our plays of 'new to us' games in 2021 and choose our favorites (though we forgot one that both of us would have added to our lists!).

Honorable Mentions (Shelley):

Nidavellir by Serge Laget from GRRRE Games

Ten by Johnson, Melvin & Stankewich from AEG

Juicy Fruits by Christian Stöhr from Deep Print Games

Meadow by Klemens Kalicki by Rebel

Nanga Parbat by Steve Finn from Dr. Finn's Games

Honorable Mentions (Doug):

New York Zoo by Uwe Rosenberg by Capstone Games and Feuerland Spiele

Cascadia by Randy Flynn from Flatout Games and AEG

Llamaland by Phil Walker-Harding from Lookout Spiele (we may have said that this was by Uwe - oops!!!)

On The Underground by Sebastian Bleasdale from Ludicreations

Maglev Metro by Ted Alspach from Bezier Games

Shelley's Top Ten:

Point Salad by Johnson, Melvin, & Stankewich from AEG

Evidence by Orestis Leontaritis from Edition Spielwiese and Pegasus Spiele

Hadrian's Wall by Bobby Hill from Garphil Games and Renegade Game Studio

Project L by Mikes, Soukal, & Spanel from Boardcubator

Praga Caput Regni by Vladimir Suchy from Delicious Games and Rio Grande Games

Explorers by Phil Walker-Harding from Ravensburger

Savannah Park by Kramer & Kiesling from Deep Print Games and Capstone Games

Mini Express by Mark Gerrits from Moaideas Game Design

Flourish by Wilson & Wilson from Starling Games and Matagot

Doug's Top Ten:

Café by Costa and Rola from PYTHAGORAS

Faiyum by Freidemann Friese from 2F Spiele and Rio Grande Games

Praga Caput Regni by Vladimir Suchy from Delicious Games and Rio Grande Games

Meadow by Klemens Kalicki by Rebel

Flourish by Wilson & Wilson from Starling Games and Matagot

Project L by Mikes, Soukal, & Spanel from Boardcubator

Let's Make A Bus Route: The Dice Game by Saashi from Saashi & Saashi

Point Salad by Johnson, Melvin, & Stankewich from AEG

Mini Express by Mark Gerrits from Moaideas Game Design

Hallertau by Uwe Rosenberg from Lookout Spiele

(and we both would have included Witchstone by Reiner Knizia from R&R Games in our Top Tens if we both hadn't had a brain fart)

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Shelley and I get the expansion to Dune: Imperium to the table

Dune: Imperium The Rise of Ix expansion by Paul Dennen from Dire Wolf and Legendary

and then get our potions going in

Brew by Stevo Torres from Pandasaurus Games

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