So Very Wrong About Games
A podcast about all manner of hobby games by Mike Walker and Mark Bigney. Bad games don't go easy on you, so we don't go easy on them. Thorough analysis via reviews, news, and discussion of topics in gaming. We take context seriously, we value your time, and we're not into hype. Just because games are fun doesn't mean we can't take them seriously, and just because we take them seriously doesn't mean we can't have fun.
Episodes
Games Catch-Up
With Walker imminently about to move (to Kingston from Kingston) and Mark still storing his games from the previous move, the overwhelming preponderance of the SVWAG collection(s) is currently shackled by packing tape. So much good design and fun toys yearning to get out! Alas, physical instantiation is a curse, the material world is a prison, and entropy always wins. Find me one realtor sympathe
Canon Update
The SVWAG Canon (https://www.sowronggames.com/svwag-canon) is an elite list of games that Walker and Mark both very much enjoy. Walker is nervous around recommendations, per se, and the imitations on an ideal game library or somesuch is subject to many practical constraints--so instead SVWAG has an unruly list of games that are greatly enjoyed by both the hosts. And it is time for that list to be
Robo Rally Dice
It's hard to go wrong with cats. Even most people who don't like cats are wise enough to keep relatively quiet about it, lest they suffer the consequences. What consequences? Oh, I don't know, maybe the fury of needle-armed psychopaths who watch things die for fun! And that's just the cat owners. ZING
I kid, I kid. We here at SVWAG have considerable enthusiasm for Official SVWAG cat, Chandler, ak
Games that Build Cred
[EDIT] In this episode, Mark falsely attributes the co-authorship of Ayar to Nestore Mangone, when in fact it was designed by Mandela Fernandez-Grandon and Fabio Lopiano. We regret the error.
Have you heard of the Walker Quint? This patent-pending, uncopyrightable system is more than just a game organizational schema--it is a multipurpose framework that will REVOLUTIONIZE YOUR LIFE in every way
Notebook Nations
The world is changing, what with everything being cozy and (some) crowdfunding projects fulfilling in weeks rather than years. This dizzying pace of evolution can be disorienting, which is why Notebook Nations seeks to comfort and console you by having throwbacks to the design decisions of years past.
Games Played Last Week:
01:55 -Wonderland's War (Tim Eisner, Ben Eisner, and Ian Moss, Druid
Mid-Year Tag Questions
We have recovered from SVWAG Con II: Electric Boogaloo, and to the best of our knowledge there was no "con crud" or equivalent contagion. We make no claims that the con possesses curative powers, though we haven't had anyone say that it *didn't* cure a chronic illness.
01:27 AYURIS: Andromeda's Edge (Luke Laurie and Maximus Laurie, Cardboard Alchemy, 2024)
Games Played Last Week:
03:48 -E
SVWAGCon Beckons
Just in time for SVWAGCon, Mark's car has fallen prey to Princeton's unforgiving roads and local practitioners of the mechanical arts. Which ones are trustworthy? Which are inept mountebanks? As far as mountebanks are concerned, would one prefer an inept one or a skilled one? These pressing questions will have to wait, as in the interim the barrier between Mark and his SVWAGCon obligations is ALL
Falling in Love with Your Collection
"If you're down and confused
And you don't remember who you're talking to
Concentration slips away
Because your baby is so far away
Well there's a rose in a fisted glove
And the eagle flies with the dove
And if you can't be with the one you love honey
Love the one you're with"
-Confucius (probably, maybe Socrates, I don't know)
02:13 AYURIS: Deep Rock Galactic (Ole Steiness, MOOD Publ
Recall
I was three actions deep into my tenth turn of Recall when I achieved total mastery. I was beyond the Schwarzenegger and the Farrell, deep with Koato and triple-mammaried subversives. A newb at the table interrupted my reverie with a question concerning ambiguous inconography. "That card?" I said, feeling like cutting a deal. "I can remember it for you wholesale." They called me a dick.
Games P
Teaching vs. Discovery
It is Inadvertent Surprise Railway Week (ISRW, pronounced "is raw") here at SVWAG, and we take a look at some train games without directly addressing the raging controversy of what, exactly, constitutes a train game.
02:25 AYURIS: Wilmot's Warehouse (Ricky Haggett, Richard Hogg, and David King, CMYK, 2024)
Games Played Last Week:
07:06 -Railway Boom (Hisashi Hayashi & Simone Luciani, Arclig
Goa
Acronyms and initialisms are a tricky thing. In SVWAG circles, one must be careful to use proper punctuation, lest GOA imply 2022's Game of the Year (GotY, not Gotye) Guards of Atlantis. Mark remains enraged that the SC2 acronym was robbed from Greatest of All Time (GOAT, not goat, obviously) Star Control 2 by the usurper StarCraft 2.
Games Played Last Week:
01:07 -The Old King's Crown (Pablo
The Successful Campaign Experience
SVWAG CON II Electric Boogaloo
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/svwag-con-ii-electric-boogaloo-tickets-1986634285627
www.sowronggames.com
www.twitch.tv/soverywrongaboutgames
www.youtube.com/c/SoVeryWrongAboutGames
https://twitter.com/sowronggames
www.facebook.com/sowronggames
www.patreon.com/svwag/
We are now a transnational podcast, bearing the official approval of both United States
Nippon: Zaibatsu
Rest assured, Mark was subjected to the appropriate onboarding procedures and workplace safety trainings incumbent with his new (old?) role. The HR gibbons are ever-vigilant, and wouldn't dream of letting him skip the mandatory 56 week course. Well, that's the longest one, anyway--the ape sensitivity course is a mere 45 weeks long, despite the gibbons' insistence that it ought to be the most exhau
Feya's Swamp
SVWAG CON II Electric Boogaloo
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/svwag-con-ii-electric-boogaloo-tickets-1986634285627
www.sowronggames.com
www.twitch.tv/soverywrongaboutgames
www.youtube.com/c/SoVeryWrongAboutGames
https://twitter.com/sowronggames
www.facebook.com/sowronggames
www.patreon.com/svwag/
00:00 INTRO
01:39 Salton Sea (David Bernal Devir 2024)
09:25 Stellar Ventures (P
Baghdad: The City of Peace
https://www.youtube.com/@BoardGamingRamblings
SVWAG CON II Electric Boogaloo
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/svwag-con-ii-electric-boogaloo-tickets-1986634285627
www.sowronggames.com
www.twitch.tv/soverywrongaboutgames
www.youtube.com/c/SoVeryWrongAboutGames
https://twitter.com/sowronggames
www.facebook.com/sowronggames
www.patreon.com/svwag/
00:00 INTRO
00:50 Secret Societies (S
Quest for the Roleplay Experience
https://www.youtube.com/@everydayboardgames
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/svwag-con-ii-electric-boogaloo-tickets-1986634285627
www.sowronggames.com
www.twitch.tv/soverywrongaboutgames
www.youtube.com/c/SoVeryWrongAboutGames
https://twitter.com/sowronggames
www.facebook.com/sowronggames
www.patreon.com/svwag/
00:00 INTRO
01:12 Formidable Farm (Friedemann Friese 2F-Spiele 2025)
04:43 Tric
Compania
One Stop Co-op Shop
www.youtube.com/c/OneStopCoopShop
SVWAG CON II Electric Boogaloo
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/svwag-con-ii-electric-boogaloo-tickets-1986634285627
www.sowronggames.com
www.twitch.tv/soverywrongaboutgames
www.youtube.com/c/SoVeryWrongAboutGames
https://twitter.com/sowronggames
www.facebook.com/sowronggames
www.patreon.com/svwag/
00:00 INTRO
01:30 Nippon: Zaibats
Moon Colony Bloodbath
Get your SVWAG CON tickets HERE:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/svwag-con-ii-electric-boogaloo-tickets-1986634285627
This weeks guest Tim Dolloff from Board Game Hottakes
https://boardgamehottakes.com/
00:00 INTRO
00:47 Euphoria Essential Edition (Morten Monrad Pedersen, Jamey Stegmaier, David J. Studley Stonemaier Games 2026)
05:56 The Waste of Parts (Evan Duda Sky Kingdom Games
That's my JAM
This weeks guest:
Jake Frydman
https://www.decisionspacepodcast.com/
Blueberry jam not jelly........ don't be gross
00:00 INTRO
01:33 Cysmic (Jason Blake Star Reach Games 2026)
04:43 Bomb Busters (Hisashi Hayashi Pegasus Spiele 2024)
07:03 Crits & Tricks (Pete Wissinger Inside Up Games 2026)
10:47 Baghdad: The City of Peace (Fabio Lopiano, Nestore Mangone Alley Cat Games 2025)
1
The Looming Shadow of the Golden Age of Board Games
This weeks guest:
5 Games 4 Doomsday
Ben Maddox
https://5g4d.com/
00:00 INTRO
02:06 Moon Colony Bloodbath (Donald X. Vaccarino, Rio Grande Games 2025)
06:01 Ghost Blitz Junior (Jacques Zeimet Zoch Verlag 2018)
06:56 Paku Paku (Antoine Bauza Ravensburger 2017)
11:07 Imperial Elegy: The Road to the Great War 1850-1920 (Michael Lorino VUCA Simulations 2025)
17:12 Cysmic (Jason Blake
Fishing
This weeks Guest Charlie Theel
https://playerelimination.com/
Something smells tricky
00:00 INTRO
01:01 Dark Pact (Thomas Lehmann Trick or Treat Studios 2026)
05:21 Excalibur (Manny Trembley Roxley 2026)
08:48 Don't Mess with Cthulhu (Yusuke Sato New Board Game Party 2014)
10:59 Galaxy Trucker (Vlaada Chvátil Czech Games Edition 2007)
15:25 Railroad Tiles (Hjalmar Hach, Lorenzo Silva
Night Soil
What's that smell?
https://spacebiff.com/
This weeks guest Dan Thurot from Space-Biff
00:00 Intro
00:45 WENDYBUXXX (Jo Kelly Miasma Corp Games 2026)
02:58 Compania (Yog Akase, Level 99 Games 2025)
05:45 Inkwell (Jasper Beatrix, Lewis Graye, Joey Palluconi DVC Games 2026)
07:35 Eternal Decks (Hiroken Tricktakers Games 2025)
11:20 Dark Pact (Thomas Lehmann Trick or Treat Studios 2026)
WROTH
Telling ME Calimala is good the nerve
00:00 Intro
00:58 Calimala (Fabio Lopiano Alley Cat Games2017)
04:59 Railroad Tiles (Hjalmar Hach, Lorenzo Silva Horrible Guild 2025)
08:15 Regicide Legacy (Paul Abrahams, Luke Badger, Andy Richdale Badgers from Mars 2025)
12:04 Movie Tricks (Vegard Eliassen Stillerud, Eilif Svensson, Åsmund Svensson Chilifox Games 2025)
15:35 SETI: Search for Extrater
It could have been a contender.
00:00 Intro
01:25 Star Trek: Captain's Chair – To Boldly Go (Nigel Buckle, Dávid Turczi, Adam Turczi WizKids 2026)
02:53 Feya's Swamp (Helge Ostertag, Anselm Ostertag Fractal Juegos 2025)
07:07 Puerto Rico 1897: Special Edition (Andreas Seyfarth Awaken Realms 2025)
09:50 Compania (Yog Akase Asobition 2025)
12:00 Voidfall: Resurgence (Nigel Buckle, Marcel Dragomir, Dávid Turczi Mindclash Games
Burned
Going to have to post a guard to the studio....
Can't keep letting riff raff stroll in. (unless its the rapper)
00:00 Intro
04:03 Innovation Deluxe (Carl Chudyk Asmadi Games 2017)
07:28 Tír na nÓg (Isaac Shalev, Jason Slingerland Grand Gamers Guild 2024)
09:59 Azul (Michael Kiesling Plan B Games 2017)
15:27 Coalitions (Andrew Rourke PHALANX 2026)
24:44 The Crew: Mission Deep Sea (Thomas
Crowdfunding Bubble
This weeks guest Chris from Liege of Games
https://www.youtube.com/c/Li%C3%A8geofGames
00:00 Intro
00:48 Torchlit (David Spalinski Allplay 2024)
03:51 The Hobbit: There and Back Again (Reiner Knizia Office Dog 2025)
06:31 Soar (Max Anderson, Zac Dixon, Austin Harrison IV Studio 2026)
12:08 Riftforce (Carlo Bortolini 1 More Time Games 2021)
13:57 Penguin Party (Reiner Knizia AMIGO 2008) NO
Galactic Cruise
This weeks special guest Efka from No Pun Included
https://www.youtube.com/c/NoPunIncluded/videos
00:00 Intro
Games we played last week
01:11 Cena (A.I. Lab 2025)
04:40 Wine Cellar (Andrew Stiles 25th Century Games 2025)
05:29 Movie Tricks (Vegard Eliassen Stillerud, Eilif Svensson, Åsmund Svensson Chilifox Games 2025)
08:09 Sweet Takes (Hisashi Hayashi Hasbro 2023)
10:40 Inis: Nem
Sweet Lands
This week's guest Don from The Secret Cabal Gaming Podcast
00:00 INTRO
Games We Played Last Week
01:52 Soothsayers (Jeff Grisenthwaite, Play to Z 2026)
05:45 Orléans (Reiner Stockhausen, DLP games 2014)
08:56 Xenology (Dan Manfredini, Play to Z 2025)
13:16 XenoShyft: Onslaught (Keren Philosophales, Michael Shinall, Cool Mini Or Not 2015)
16:30 Puerto Rico 1897: Special Edition (Andr
Not Lunar Rush
This week I welcome the Hungry Gamer
00:00 INTRO
Games We Played Last Week
01:08 Conquest Princess: Fashion Is Power (Seppy Yoon, Peter Yang Fight in a Box 2024)
03:44 War Chest (Trevor Benjamin, David Thompson AEG 2018)
06:08 Lands of Galzyr (Seppo Kuukasjärvi, Sami Laakso Snowdale Design 2022)
09:27 OffShoots (Dan Linden, Self-Published 2024)
12:20 Flamecraft Duals (Manny Vega Cardboard
Rating the T games from Board & Dice
Today's episode is brought to you by the letter T
T stands for tracks, tedium, Tiny mini games and sometimes Torturous
00:00 Intro
AYURIS
01:08 Captain Flip (Remo Conzadori, Paolo Mori, PlayPunk 2024)
Games We Played Last Week
04:06 Fields of Arle (Uwe Rosenberg, Feuerland Spiele 2014)
08:16 Lunar Rush (Steven "Skippy" Brown, Dead Alive Games 2023)
10:08 Clans of Caledonia:
Valheim: The Board Game
A viking fighting for Olav the Holy at Stiklestad gets an arrow in the eye. The man pulls the arrow out, his eyeball still on out it, and says: "Det jaggu nærme nasen! (That was damn close the my nose)"
Another viking fighting for Olav at Stiklestad gets an arrow through his heart. He manages to pull the arrow out and study it. With his dying breath he says: "Eg har fettslintrat kring hjartet. Ko
Nokosu Dice
On today's episode we have Sam from Board Game Dual Podcast
https://boardgameduel.podbean.com/
00:00 INTRO
Games we played this week.
01:09 Yokohama Duel (Hisashi Hayashi, OKAZU Brand 2018)
05:19 Airlines Europe (Alan R. Moon, Rio Grande Games 2011)
07:45 I Made You a Mixtape (Mike DiLisio, Dan Hughes, Massive Asterisk 2025)
11:12 Mutant Chronicles: Siege of the Citadel (Richard Borg, Pr
Zenith
https://boardgamebarrage.com/
Well here it is Walker's all alone now.....
Today I am joined by Mark from Board Game Barrage
00:00 Intro
01:08 Games we played last week.
01:12 Bomb Busters (Hisashi Hayashi,Cocktail Games,2024)
05:00 Let's Go Japan (Josh Wood,AEG,2024)
08:28 Taj Mahal (Reiner Knizia,Ravensburger,2000)
11:55 Lone Wolves (Yasuyuki Nakamura,Anthony Perone, Wonderful World B
Plastic Love
This guy just won't leave... Mark and I in our last, last episode together for a bit. Not to worry I will be rambling ever forward.
In this shorter episode we talk about just the games we played last week, some news and scene.
01.29 -AYURIS: Slay the Spire: The Board Game (Gary Dworetsky, Anthony Giovannetti, and Casey Yano, Contention Games, 2024)
Games Played Last Week:
05:05 -Tidal Bl
2025 Year in Review
In some ways, the origin story of the podcast can be traced back to Sentinels of the Multiverse. Upon arriving in Kingston, Mark was at a games event at someone's home, and he saw that someone had brought a then-complete set (this was a few expansions ago) of Sentinels. He knew that this person, namely Walker, was a person worth knowing. It therefore seemed fitting that on one of Mark's last days
Gazebo
"One day I was sitting in a gazebo, and there was a plaque on the gazebo and it said, 'This gazebo was built by the town in 1863.' That is in the middle of the Civil War. And the whole town built a gazebo. What was that town meeting like? 'All right, everyone, first order of business, we have all the telegrams from Gettysburg with the war dead. Let’s see here. Okay, everyone’s husband and brother
Racing Games
"I thought the Rococo was the name of the ship in Aliens."
"No, that's Sulaco. Rococo is the statute targeting organized crime."
"No, that's RICO. Rococo is the hot beverage made with chocolate."
"No, that's cocoa. Rococo is what you put on walls to give them texture."
"No, that's stucco. Rococo is a kind of shortened note in music."
"No, that's staccato..."
1:10 AYURIS: Fateforge: Chronic
Covenant
You gotta read the fine print, always. Anyone dealing with a supernatural entity--whether a djinn or deity, gremlin or god--has to be conscious of the exceptions. It's simple enough--if the wizard handing you a fantastical creature tells you not to feed it, you just don't feed it. Similarly, if someone promises not to kill you *in a certain way*, MacBeth can tell you that's more of a threat than a
Omnibus Questions Epsilon Bet
Yes, it’s Tapple! The toy sensation that’s sweeping the nation! Only $14.95 at participating stores! Get one today!
Warning: Pregnant women, the elderly, and children under 10 should avoid prolonged exposure to Tapple.
Caution: Tapple may suddenly accelerate to dangerous speeds.
Tapple contains a liquid core, which, if exposed due to rupture, should not be touched, inhaled, or looked at.
If Ta
The Hobbit: There and Back Again
Before Dr. Reiner Knizia invented areas, everyone and everything was simultaneously co-located and yet distant all at the same time. It was primordial chaos. Movement was effectively impossible, as Xeno demonstrated; then Knizia did don his Bow-Tie of Delineation of Time and Space and constrained and liberated us all at once with his invention of areas.
Games Played Last Week:
00:53 -Dungeons
Omnibus Questions Epsilon Aleph
While Mark is perhaps disappointed at the typical tragic dearth of questions related to Macross and Terry Bogard, and Walker secretly yearns to be granted naming rights to a listener's offspring (protip: don't let him), SVWAG answers all* of your questions!
*by which we mean some.
01:21 AYURIS: Cascadero (Reiner Knizia, Bitewing Games, 2024)
Games Played Last Week:
03:09 -Cerebria: The
Wonderland's War
In our effort to answer all of your Omnibus Questions, sadly we cannot enlist the assistance of notable Canadian Keanu Reeves. In an interview with Stephen Colbert--as a joke after Keanu said something profound--he was asked, "What do you think happens when we die, Keanu Reeves?" After a pause, and the audience's laughter, Keanu said, "I know that that the ones who love us will miss us."
I SAY DA
Listener Hot Takes
We deliver this episode despite the officially mandated period of public mourning due to Toronto's setbacks in basesball. In Canada, public mourning is characterized by donning black jean jackets and swapping our Tragically Hip for the more down-tempo Blue Rodeo, to say nothing of abstaining from boardgaming.
Please don't turn us in for violating federal law. We might get banned from Tim Horton's
Luthier
"'Frederick Chopin was a Polish composer in the Romantic style who wrote primarily for the piano.'
I guess this is sort of interesting, as most facts are. But history has shown us that *facts are not what most humans believe.* They are not that which motivates most men and women to love to or to crime.
Now COMPARE this statement:
'Frederick Chopin was a Polish composer in the Romantic style who
Rulebooks
As ever, we do not acknowledge one of the most pernicious false dichotomies in the rulebook space; whether rules should be strictly permissive (you can only do what the rules say you can) or strictly restrictive (you can do anything unless the rules say otherwise). I have never seen a rulebook forbid me from choking an opponent, nor have I see a rulebook give me permission to breathe. I will thus
Samurai
"Wiarton Willie is the name given to a Canadian groundhog who lives in the community of Wiarton in Bruce County, Ontario. Every February 2, on Groundhog Day, Willie takes part in the local Wiarton Willie Festival. His role is to predict whether there will be an early spring. Although the original Wiarton Willie died in 1999, the Wiarton Groundhog Day celebrations continue each year with a successo
Tile-Laying Games
Rest assured that every topic we address here at SVWAG will be utterly comprehensive and final, unless and until we decide to address it again. Thus, when we discuss tile-laying games, we perforce will cover all of them, each and and every one, and failure to specifically mention any title means it does not exist and must be scrubbed from all records as a revisionist lie.
01:41 AYURIS: Kutná Ho
Ayar: Children of the Sun
"A quipu usually consists of cotton or camelid fiber cords, and contains categorized information based on dimensions like color, order and number. The Inca, in particular, used knots tied in a decimal positional system to store numbers and other values in quipu cords. Depending on its use and the amount of information it stored, a given quipu may have anywhere from a few to several thousand cords.
Why Is This Game So Long?
We are staunchly body positive here at SVWAG, but we do prefer our bears fat. "Let me have about me bears that are fat," said Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, or he would have, had he known about the glory that is Fat Bear Week. I guess Caesar wouldn't have been totally down with the democratic aspect of the whole voting thing, but whatever! Exercise your franchise and vote for the moist chonkers bear
Star Wars: Battle of Hoth
We tempt fate and refer to a number of third rails in the hobby community. For one, we acknowledge a loss in Regicide Legacy, which reliably summons the chattering mobs. Further, we mention both Star Trek and Star Wars, so undoubtedly we get a detail "wrong" that will "justify" a detailed response.
Look, we're experts here. We completed the Kobayashi Maru in under 12 parsecs. We're regular calle
Nostalgia
"Well, that was your mother
And that was your father
Before you was born dude
When life was great
You are the burden of my generation
I sure do love you
But let’s get that straight"
-Paul Simon, "That Was Your Mother"
01:34 AYURIS: Nucleum (Simone Luciani & Dávid Turczi, Board&Dice, 2023)
Games Played Last Week:
04:04 -SILOS (Reiner Knizia, Bitewing Games, 2025)
09:34 -Ayar: Child
Light Speed: Arena
On this day of Labour, we offer our solidarity to you. We also offer our labour, because we don't take many days off. No union for us in the opinion mines! I'd complain to my manager, but since that's me, I guess I'd be inclined to ignore it. Classic conflict on interest. The gibbons only complicate the org chart in unhelpful ways.
Games Played Last Week:
01:01 -Hot Streak (Jon Perry, CMYK, 20
Trick-Taking Games Redux
I've always chafed at the conventional wisdom that young goats are good at trick-taking games. Or, at least, ones where you are not incentivized to go null. Do they hold their cards in their cloven hooves? Do their dead eyes come to life when contemplating the vagaries of trump suits?
It must be true, though, because I have it on good authority from a cartoon rabbit that tricks are for kids.
0
The Lord of the Rings: The Fate of the Fellowship
Losing a component is rough. Knowing that one of your games is incomplete is like having a permanent absence in your soul. It's one thing to eschew that one added expansion--that's a triumph of restraint. But that missing block in Viking See-Saw will taunt you forever, a blight on your consciousness that can never be healed. Maybe I'm exaggerating.
Games Played Last Week:
00:52 -Uprising: Curs
Starting Over Your Collection
Inigo: I am waiting for you, Vizzini. You told me to go back to the beginning. So I have. This is where I am, and this is where I’ll stay. I will not be moved.
Brute: But the Prince gave orders —
Inigo: — So did Vizzini — when a job went wrong, you went back to the beginning. And this is where we got the job. So it’s the beginning, and I’m staying till Vizzini comes.
-The Princess Bride
(who
Vantage
"We don’t ask that you stop loving your fantasy world. We ask
you stop paying money for the privilege to dream of it. If
you want to read the [Harry Potter] books or watch the movies, consider
buying second-hand or renting them from a library. Small
changes can make sure you never put your hard-earned
money into JKR’s hands."
-Blacklist CGE zine
Games Played Last Week:
01:01 -Through the Desert (
SVWAG Con Report
A chief misgiving Mark has about the con is that he is a terrible playtester. He was able to play two unpublished games, and while the designers were gracious he is seldom able to offer anything of much substance. "This game," he might say, "has cards. And other things." Past that, for some reason, when confronted with a prototype his faculties often fail him.
01:48 AYURIS: Arborea (Dani Garcia,
#369: Take That
The purest juxtaposition that reveals the absurdity of "take that" effects can be found in many of your heavier games and some consims with cards. You gather the resources, marshal your forces, laboriously haul those troops hither and yon, and then sometimes have to manage some activation tokens or whatnot to finally get it on. And then your opponent plays the "nuh uh" card. Fun!
01:19 AYURIS: Da
#368: Shackleton Base
"Dear friend, if you wanna feel better
Don't let the devil make you toss this letter
If you've been crossed up by hoodoo voodoo
A wizard or the lizard
You got family trouble, man trouble, woman trouble
No light through the tunnel
If you're lookin' for a true friend, or a true lover
Or if you've been livin' undercover
Well, I'm comin' to your town to break it all down
And help you with all of this
#367: Set Up and Tear Down
It is remarkable to reflect on how much hobbies can demand of us, and certainly board gaming is no different. Setting aside the administrative, economic, and social burdens; we then have to spend so much time teaching, setting up, and tearing down. Alas! 23-step processes for general set up prior to the 12-step individual player board set up. It was not always thus, but here we are.
01:42 AYURIS:
#366: 7 Empires
Apparently the American custom of the "push present" can trace its roots to the Anglo-Indian tradition of the "baby bauble", although in the latter case jewellery is the more standard gift (instead of, say, boardgames). Can we acknowledge that baby bauble is a much less crude term? Let's try to be classy here, people. There is already enough about childbirth that is fraught.
Games Played Last Wee
#365: Small Box, Big Game
Walker's approach to parenting eschews what he sees as the coddling endemic in other families. He believes in competition above all else, where newbs must be pwned and even babies must git gud. "L2P" is his family motto. Some appalled anthropologists tried making a documentary about the Walker household, but they were forced to tone it down and release it as Squid Game.
01:21 AYURIS: Through the
#364: Pulling Levers
"Because of the long-standing mutual enmity between Meany and Brown, Meany was named among the suspects in The Case Of Encyclopedia Brown’s Mangled Corpse. Meany denied the allegations.
'It’s true that Detective Brown and I didn’t see eye to eye, but I would never do something so downright dirty rotten as murder him,' Meany said. 'Besides, it’s a matter of public record that, at the time the crim
#363: The Social Contract
We generally frown on ad hominem here at SVWAG, ensconced as we are in our glass houses. In the case of Jean-Jacques Rousseau (known affectionately as "Ja-Jay" by no one), though, who wrote extensively about proper methods of childhood education, we shall report that he confessed to rather callously sandbagging his lover into abandoning their children (Rousseau claimed there were five of them, tho
#362: Rumble Nation
I've read several different accounts of the battle of Sekigahara, and I swear there's no mention of Kevin Bacon or anyone bleaching their hair. How am I to know if Pony Boy stayed golden?
Games Played Last Week:
01:42 -MicroMacro: Kids--Crazy City Park (Johannes Sich, Edition Spielwiese, 2025)
04:20 -Good Puppers (Chris Cieslik, Asmadi Games, 2021)
07:38 -23 Knives (Tyler J. Brown, Play to Z, 20
#361: What Makes Longer Games Worth It
Walker and Mark almost come to blows over Flip 7 this week. Their disagreements over the merits of the product (Game? Experience? Way of Life? Sub "Roll a 6, Win a Cookie" distraction?) have long simmered, but the fundamental schism can no longer be ignored or papered over. They finally have it out.
02:27 AYURIS: Knarr (Thomas Dupont, Bombyx, 2023)
Games Played Last Week:
03:36 -Autobahn (Fabio
#360: Hot Streak
"Observers brought attention to [Gritty's] appearance, which could be construed as frightening, while The Guardian described him as an "acid trip of a mascot." Response to Gritty's introduction was immediate and sharply mixed, with many fans on social media expressing bewilderment and some fright at his appearance. Public perception of Gritty became increasingly positive as Gritty's antics, which
#359: Gibberers
"gibber--intransitive verb
:to speak rapidly, inarticulately, and often foolishly"
-Merriam-Webster
"gibberer--noun
:the hosts of SVWAG"
Games Played Last Week:
01:17 -Sausage Sizzle (Inka and Marcus Brand, 25th Century Games, 2012)
05:22 -Landmarks (Rodrigo Rego & Danilo Valente, Floodgate Games, 2024)
09:11 -Skara Brae (Shem Phillips, Garphill Games, 2025)
14:20 -Moving Company (Guo Jiahui & W
#358: Tricky Edge Cases
Chaka Khan, let me rock you
Let me rock you, Chaka Khan
Let me rock you, that's all I wanna do
Chaka Khan, let me rock you
Let me rock you, Chaka Khan
Let me rock you, 'cause I feel for you
-Chaka Khan, "I Feel for You"
01:26 AYURIS: Barcelona (Dani Garcia, Board&Dice, 2023)
Games Played Last Week:
03:10 -Snap Ships Tactics: Swarm Box (Josh Derksen, Snap Ships, 2025)
10:13 -Battle of Mekaverse
#357: Post-Easter Update
While we pride ourselves in playing more games in a week than many play in a month, when we take a week away from the SVWAG studio we often face a truly herculean backlog of games to discuss. This two-week period is no exception. Rest assured, we would never leave our dear listeners in the lurch, so we will keep you updated so you need not miss a thing.
01:00 AYURIS: Race to the Raft (Frank West,
#356: Endgame Scoring
Tiebreakers are arguably a kind of endgame scoring. I respect the fact that they are invariably necessary (I mean, if for no other reason than if they're omitted some smartass like me will complain). That said, clearly if the scoreboard goes to 200+ I don't imagine we'll be hauling out the second tiebreaker condition all that much. Frequently the endgame conversion of resources to points already s
#355: Rise & Fall
When is a thing like another thing? Is Albedo like Core Worlds? Is Cat Blues like Rummy? Is Through the Desert like Go? Is a nudge as good as a wink to blind bat? Are all Roll & Writes inferior to Roll a 6, Win a Cookie? Is Christophe Boelinger France's Vlaada Chvátil? Probably, because it's all just like Mage Knight in the end.
Games Played Last Week:
04:46 -Street Masters: Tide of the Dragon (
#354: 20th Century Games
People have favourably described our physical appearances as "borderline tolerable" and "just short of hideous", and that was just our mothers. In light of this, we put ourselves forward as candidates for all manner of game show. Mark is quite fond of Rice-a-Roni and thus would be more than happy to just have a consolation prize, and Walker just wants to spin something as hard as he can. Better re
#353: Rebirth
In logic, conditionals are always true if the antecedent is false. You can't falsify the conditional if the conditions aren't met. For example, if Mark can bench 500 pounds, then vinegar tastes like cotton candy. Rest assured that I ain't benching that much, so don't worry about it; the conditional is true. Similarly, I can invite pretty much whoever I want to SVWAGCon. Fareed Zakaria, Olivia Rodr
#352: Ascending Empires: Zenith Edition
I was donating blood while wearing my Transformers Converse shoes, and two different phlebotomists commented positively about them. "We have won the cultural argument," I said, deliberately burying the lede that demographic destiny is probably the chief cause. I suspect that the same forces explain increased societal acceptance of toys, and board games are not immune. Thank goodness!
Games Played
#351: Flexing New Muscles
As is readily apparent from the show's subject matter and our general presentation, we here at SVWAG are stone-cold jocks who excel at the sports and are thoroughly ripped. We trust the launcher and never ever skip leg day.
00:57 AYURIS: Expeditions (Jamey Stegmaier, Stonemaier Games, 2023)
Games Played Last Week:
03:04 -Coloretto (Michael Schacht, ABACUSSPIELE, 2003)
07:16 -Metal Gear Solid: Th
#350: Beyond the Horizon
Despite the welcome relative absence of anthropomorphic animals this week--aside from some sundry ducks in Lorcana--we see a lot of animals and various critters this week. We eschew sacrifices to a dodgy snake in Imperium, we fling sheep with abandon, we throw down with some wrestling bugs, and that's on top of comparatively mundane animal husbandry in Keyflower. Mark offered some unflattering com
#349: A Plowful of Games
While we hate to confirm your most reductive of preconceived notions, snow removal in Canadian cities is no joke. The fleet of vehicles required to allow for daily life in even a small Canadian city after major snowfall is impressive. The balletic dance of some of their formations while in operation calls to mind the precise of mid-air refuelling.
01:03 AYURIS: Ra (Reiner Knizia, alea, 1999)
G
#348: SETI
Colour nouns are essentially arbitrary; how one decides to chop up the visible spectrum of light is a matter of contingent taxonomy. Some languages have one noun for both blue and green, for example. English has a word for light red (pink) where other languages don't. Russian similarly has a word for light blue. And then there's magenta, which we can all agree is a scene and a half.
Games Played
#347: How Expansions Can Fail
Our upcoming convention, July 25th-27th 2025, is in its planning stages! We have a venue but nothing much else yet. Not even a name! Suggestions welcome. Mark quite likes So Very Wrong About Games Fun Times Good Vibes Only Trans Rights Are Human Rights Boardgame Jamboree, but he worries that it might be too pithy. Few things are off the table! Special guests? Maybe! Fabulous prizes? Well, prizes,
