Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 35:07 — 35.9MB)
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Email | TuneIn | RSS | More
In this episode the tables turn as Josh interviews Bruce on what Bruce’s experience was like attending BGG.CON in Dallas, TX. Spoiler….it was amazing! This bring said Bruce shares about meeting Martin Wallace, playing a bunch of games, not doing so well but still having a lot of fun in a game of poker, what it was like to play some of the new hot games of 2019, and more. Listen in for this BGG.CON wrap up episode, and thanks to all who had a hand in putting on this outstanding experience.
Specific Games Discussed:
-Azul Summer Pavilion by Next Move Games
-The Taverns of Tiefenthal by Schmidt Spiele
-Play-testing 2 upcoming Martin Wallace games
To learn more about Board Game Impact you can:
Join the Patreon: Board Game Impact
Like the Facebook Page: Board Game Impact
Instagram: @boardgameimpact
Email: boardgameimpact@gmail.com
Audio Transcription (Generated by AI)
.
0:07 – 05:04Today’s episode of Board Game Impact. It’s GonNa be a little different today because because Josh is going to interview me about my experience Attending Board Game Econ in Dallas where I got to play a ton of games and have a lot of really fun amazing experiences. It’s a stay tuned to hear all about welcome. Welcome to board game impact. My Name is Bruce Brown and what we see here on board game impact is to share with you. Some amazing things going on in this board gaming industry through our lenses I work in education and so does my co host Josh. So he’s going to join us here in a second but this is going to be a slightly different episode because I actually just went to. BG Cons. That’s board Game Geek. Dot Com if you don’t have a membership which is free on board Game Geek Dot Com. Go there and do that but then wire on your phone also quick. Subscribe here on this podcast. You can get all the cool information because what we do. Is We talk about the game. Experiences that we’re having for your benefit and your gaming’s benefit so that being said Board Game Big Dot com host to conventions a year Khan and be Spring. which happens in May so this is was the one in November? And is this going to be a little different in that. Josh has the fun opportunity because he did not get the join me this time. And he’s going to be interviewing me on the show today so josh weren’t you hop on and talk about your past experience with BG. So we know you’re not coming in cold on tunnel this. We’ll thank you for that introduction. Bruce Welcome listeners. as Bruce mentioned. I’m Josh I did not get a chance to go to. BG Con- This year. Very very very sad about that. It just fell at a time that was inconvenient inconvenient to me so for the first time in four years. Now I’d been the last three on. This is my first time not being able go since I actually met Bruce and quite quite disappointed by that. It’s a great opportunity. I really enjoy it even more now that that I live outside of Texas because it does give me a chance usually to reconnect with that game group. Where I I met Bruce and and all of a a a really great group of friends that Helped not really spark but developed further my my neuroses with game collection and board game playing so I I love BG Con. It’s one of my favorite weekends every year and Barry very sad to have missed it so josh since they’re going to hear hearing a lot of details from me can you share with them. What kind of happens at? BG and like how that all works like what is going to like a lot of events because there’s like different types of conventions out there sure BG kind. I think is A really really really great convention for folks who really just want to experience as many games as possible in a relatively short period of time I’m relatively small convention when you compare it to things like Gen con or origins or packs unplugged Some of these really big names in in board game conventions Relatively small in that respect. But you can pack so much fun into into a weekend with with BG d-conn The showroom for folks who are demoing games or Selling Games or or marketing. Those types of things is a decent size but you can get through to convince The Convention Hall probably in at least in past years. I don’t know if they expanded this year or not. The the as a preview for listeners bay they have a new location this year So but you could get through the convention hall in Probably Two you and a half to three hours if you didn’t take a long time talking to folks And if you weren’t really really looking at every every single game that was on display but still plenty there you you still have a pretty strong contingent of some of the make big games a big names names in board games Who who are represented at BG con selling their goods and amoing new games? But what I I love about. BG CON is just it is wall-to-wall gaming. You can spend thirteen. Fourteen fifteen fifteen hour day just playing games now.
05:04 – 10:01Some of that may be reading new rule books one of my favorite things about BG con In the fall is that it comes out shortly after essence so you have a lot of new releases that you actually can get your hands on if not for purchase at least the play while you are at the convention They have a hotness section. Just like the website which is a curated list of some of the biggest games that are out at the moment that you can rent and read the rules and play in a couple of hours with some friends and make new friends. If you don’t have anyone I I love love love at that convention and so it’s really about Community Josh and I like to play a whole bunch of games. Every time we’ve gone together so he was very very much missed but josh did talk about like. Hey Yeah it was in a new hotel is still in Dallas Texas but it was a new tell. That was much larger however they they didn’t really increase attendee numbers. All the spaces were bigger. And I’ll get into some of that here in a second but Josh did say a word to clarify. That’s a couple things. So Josh said Renting Games So it really works more like a library card. You have your badge wear under neck and so you’ll go into the library. which which by the way Josh in the past the library had forty racks of games still way too many racks of games to quickly get in choose? There’s a game and get out right. So forty actually games by the way listeners was about four thousand board games. The new setup has sixty racks of games there was about six thousand board games in one room. It was insane and amazing. And I’ll post pictures are links to some pictures in the show. If you WANNA see photo I took to that and also some other people took some videos of that. I’ll post that all there but we’re going to talk. I’m GonNa talk through some of the things as I did. So Josh knows things you can ask me about and then I’m not going to go into detail though but before I do that I wanted to pause everything and just say thank you thank thank you to. BG So it’d be Aldy who’s the owner and founder of Board Game Geek then Jeff Christine and then John and Laney’s the four of them really run the convention as well as all the BG admins so all those volunteers all the paid staff from BG. And then also the other admins who you see all the time. So people like Rodney Smith from watchet played and Chas Marlow from Paradise Paradise and everything that they’ve been doing for the community and then also the incredible volunteer staff of team Geek. They increased team Geek this year. One hundred twenty volunteers who volunteer volunteered sixteen eighteen hours of their time from the week. It’s just really cool. And they go around the help teach people games but even if they don’t know the Games there’s help make sure they’re having fun also want to give a quick shout out to you Michael Well So he is. You’d be username as few tiles so I actually ended up going up a day early and crashed with Michael But Gaza play a bunch of games with him so I just want to give them shout out on. podcasts gave shout out and one of the last episodes actually because of all the money he raised for extra life when Josh we’re talking about that and then also the ultimate geek sponsors. There’s for all of the Free Games pick gave to attend DIS and helping put all this on so a couple things of note so we have the new hotel. Josh and we have the library. We have things I did. So I’m going to run through these and then we can dig into those later. There was Martin Wallace also the designer of brass London age of steam. Many other games there was play testing with him. I got to know Philip Millman. Who if you’re on facebook at all for any board game group? He is the two time. Baseball highlights twenty forty five world champion and he took a picture with him and his trophy. He made me forced me to do it. And I I’m looking pretty pouty photo in the description and then also played in the poker tournament sponsored by tm Jesus Tasty Minstrel Games. I did participate in the virtual flea market. There was a board game bizarre almost like AH honestly a in person flea market did the game show again. We didn’t win But we came real close. We were our team. name was Tigris and your Mama Mumma then we had all the vendor hall and lots and lots of open gaming as well as I was interviewed for a local Dallas magazine Zien on the convention going on played a bunch of games Some new hotness and then some others and Josh and I sent you the list of those games and then there was also a whole bunch of designers.
10:01 – 15:11There’s obviously Martin Wallace then robbed Avenue. Eric Lang Lisbeth hargraves. Tom Vassal Gill. Hove Ryan Lock it and many many more and then also youtube and other personalities. So Josh I’m just GONNA turn it over to you. So Bruce that’s a lot to get through and I I don’t know that we’ll get through all of it today but it sounds like he had a really great time. I WanNa start though with what I think is is probably for me at least the biggest pressing question I have. which is how is the new hotel? What was your experience as someone who’s been to an for listeners? Who may not be aware of not been to be D G Khan in the past? BG kind used to be essentially essentially at the airport. which was great if you were coming in from out of town you stepped off the plane got on a shuttle and you were there but other than that? It was kind of mediocre. You couldn’t really go anywhere. Do anything moving downtown with a new hotel new location. How how was that Bruce? So it was honestly amazing. New Hotel was fantastic. The there was a whole lot. More food options ends in this hotel. That was all tasty and good the ironic thing about being downtown so I would actually make the drive out of the airport and go to some places. I didn’t leave the hotel I didn’t because it was that good. It was just a really great experience. And I know you talked about like people being able to just like land their land and the plane flying into DFW. And you’re there but there was also shuttles shuttles but the they have the essentially rail system through downtown Dallas. And so you’d hop on two of those and get there and I know a lot of people actually stayed not at the hotel because it filled up and actually will take that in real easy I will say of course with any new event space when you have four thousand people the best way to test it. How it’s GonNa work is to put them in in it and so there was some learning opportunities The hotel ran out of like fridges for the rooms but they went out and actually bought more fridges for the rooms for people to store stuff over the weekend which was nice and then parking working. Because it’s downtown Dallas and it’s actually right next to the city hall building and things like that. There was some parking things for one day that was immediately resolved and the team did anything. They could So that was all like the logistical stuff. That was like the RUB rubbing elbows. Like how are we going to make this work. Everything else was great and they took care of all that other stuff anyway so worked really good the different this year in so in the past listeners. You’d be able to take an escalator. Later down or stares down and you’re on one floor except for a couple of rooms over up high. This year it was different. You Walk in the main floor of the hotel and that’s actually actually where registration was where the if you did go to an event like that’s where some of the events were. That’s hot games was as well as the giant giant Mega Room of gaming In the in the ballroom but then there was two other floors so the floor up was where there was like dedicated room for role playing games or more social games. That are louder As well as war games in another area and also area if you wanted to prototype a game but then in the a basement. That’s where the library was and the Vendor Hall. The Vendor Hall at the Old Hotel was split into two rooms. It’s all in one very big room and it grew and man. Did it pack a punch in a really good way. Every vendor had a phenomenal time actually had a vendor after. I don’t know why he was telling me this but he told me this he said honestly had more. He had a goal of what he wanted to sell. This is first time coming to the convention and he did that in an hour. Yeah and so the the vendor hall layout would you say significant improvement over significant nick improvement and I think all around everyone loved it awesome. You know the the being in a new location Kind of the hiccups everything that it goes along with that really great to hear that that it was a good experience for you so the next thing in this is the thing that I’m I I they need you to talk more about. Is Martin Wallace play testing. How what why? Yeah so many questions. I know right so listeners. Just for some reference designers are people too. And if there’s one thing you take away from this is like if you see somebody that made a game that’s made an impact on you. Go say hi to them. I know I talked about like emailing the food chain magnets designers and how much that an impact me in a good way but like a lot of designers go to this convention because it’s not like the other ones it’s like a trade show or they’re having to like sell things like Gen con on an Indie and things like that.
15:11 – 20:00It’s really just like let’s come together. As a comedian playthings and so quite often you’ll see designers just like set up shop at a table and be like. Hey who wants to play games with me and like yes please. In this case I was actually so there’s a a group Messaging Messaging Not apt called slack. That if you haven’t heard of it it’s really good I use it for a couple of things for work. But Board Game Geek. Actually there’s a slack channel. It’s free you can just download this One that just posts like whenever they publish a new twitter article or Game I think but there’s also a community one that’s used a lot during the conventions and Aldy posted on there saying. Hey Martin. Wallace needs six knicks. Play testers for a new prototype game that’s going to be coming to kick starter and twenty twenty and I am meeting. They responded to that thing of like I got five people and so I was like okay. Come to this table and it was an come to this table at nine. Am Tomorrow And so we went down there and several of the people from our game group here. The Twelfth Gamer A got the chance to play with Mitha malls for six six and a half hours because they ended up playing two games. He’s a really really nice guy very humble but very very much approachable and just. He was super for analytic with everything that was going on. He was somebody who wall playing they would he would actually like because he’s never played those games at six players. There’s ever and so. He was making rule modifications on the fly to maximize the Games. It was wonderful and actually he just accepted my friend request West on facebook so it’s like like achievement unlocked so it was really cool and like that’s the kind of thing that you get to have these conventions didn’t see how it was nice. That’s awesome and probably the thing that I must admit I’m most jealous about here Martin Wallace’s designed some of my all time favorite games Just a really really really good good game designer minor. And I can’t say that I’m surprised with saying he’s analytical based on game design he. He makes him phenomenal very brain burner a game. So that’s that’s super cool and I am now looking forward to you. Introducing me to Martin Wallace at the the next BG Khan and. Here’s the thing I know I’m GONNA kick start these games when they come out. So we’ll get the flame us as well josh fantastic. I’m looking forward to Bruce. So the next burning question I have for you. Because it’s one of my favorite things about. BG CON is is the poker game so for for our listeners. Again who who may not be aware on every year there. There is a poker tournament that you can sign up for And it’s it’s a huge tournament and everyone shows up from folks sue of never played a hand of poker in their life to folks who are at the Casino every night and everyone in between and I think it’s a really really really fun interesting little way to spend a few hours of the Convention so Bruce Yup number one question Shen. How did you place not well? But if it’s any consolation so I went all in a says about three hundred people playing thing and we’re at tables. I do think I was jinx to begin with because I was at table F. and spot one so as one after Guy But I went all in on pocket Queens with another pair on on the flop and so so he took me he had pocket kings so if there was ever a reason like that I get that. That’s okay but if it’s also any consolation of all three hundred people he plays second okay so evolved out by right of all people. Let’s get knocked out by. It was a first time attendee and he ended up almost like pretty much waning thing So sponsored by TMZ This year tasty mentor Games Games And they incentivize anybody who knocked out one of their guys got game and they had people playing and then everyone who got the final table Got Games teams in the final.
20:00 – 25:40Two people got a lot of games. Yeah awesome well. I am sorry for your losses but Glad that that you had a decent decent time with a commemorative white poker chip goes with the other three already have you so bruce. Let me ask you on the on. The mentioned mentioned a poker chips is what what color is do you have I have. All of them are white except one blue. Okay so I did make it past the first set of seventy five people once But honestly I’m there to just have fun. I’m I’m not one of those big poker people. It’s just that I always always play that because it’s such a fun time if anything Jeff already talked about runs the thing with Christine John and Laney there. Jeff runs a poker tournament and you have to listen to jeff desks rules which is like no one’s allowed to be that guy or girl is oh it’s like if you’re the analytic analytic person. That does go to Vegas all the time. Like it’s not for you and if you can’t not be that person leave but it was very approachable and a ton of fun Bruce. You’ve got to play a couple of games that I’m I’m quite jealous of That were in the hotness and so why don’t you talk to me about the the first first thing on this list Just because I I need to know what it is is a dual summer pavilion. Yeah Suicidal Somerville is the third game in the Zule. Lines of Zuelle Zoo Stained glass of Sintra and then some billion and I have to say I immediately. I wanted a by summer pavilion immediately. And I didn’t have that reaction about the other. Two regulars oil can sometimes bring out a little heat drafting and people and which sometimes rubs me the wrong way. But I loved the game. Don’t get me wrong but Zule Summer Pavilion. You’re not placing your tiles immediately. You’re holding them to the side and then go around and you’re placing them and then every round of the game one of the colors tiles there now Rumba says instead of squares wears So they’re like little trapezoid type things One of them is wild. And so you can use it for its color or another color. And so it’s cool so you’re building these essentially little flowers on your board and their spots that you can essentially surround. Then there’s a center board with tiles on it and depending on what type of thing you surround. Then you get to take tiles off of that center board which thing get replaced immediately so you can just trying to prolong being able to put down as many tiles as you can and so it was really cool. I will say there is a more of a punishment for taking that first player token though so if you’re the first person to reach in the middle you get minus one points for every tile that you took. Oh how and if there’s a wild on tile on the like a coaster that you’re taking from or from that center pile if you’re taking from the center you have to take one wild So it’s really cool It was really relaxing a lot. Less of the other stuff from Zule which were good but honestly everyone who played summer bazillion. This game sold out within an hour of the vendor hall opening. That’s awesome it. Sounds like that’s a another home. Run for Michael Kiessling on that. That both visual and a Zule stained glass are in my collection. I keep saying saying that. I don’t need another result. May Be Ideal. Yeah this one. This one kind of trump’s them all like love the other to like the refund. This one was knocked out of the park. Bruce there was another game on your list of you got to play that. I’m incredibly interested to hear about because the designer of this game has designed designed to of my favorite games last year Yup You got to play the taverns of teeth and tall did said can you. Can you tell the listeners. A little bit about that game. What is the designer and and how you felt about it? It’s absolutely so by Wolfgang Wash and it’s put up by Schmidt Spiel And I assume the other Games are talking about that you’ve played are one quacks of Limburg right and guns doublet but double. Yeah so yeah yeah. Same thing ver different flavor game designer to look out for phenomenal. So if you’ve ever played quacks which is essentially a slot machine but bowling bag right. This is Wolfgang War. Saying how can I do that with cards. And then how can I do it. Where the half to make a choice? What you’re trying to do is you’re trying to either buy more stuff for your infrastructure of your tavern through money or by patrons who are worth victory points much more victory points by having beer but you won’t get more patrons on last last year doing this but then he’s like I’m going to throw in another thing because I like some dice games too and it was drafting? And so you’d roll the set of four dice and you get to pick one and you pass your coaster need pick one from there’s and all of the spots on this little tavern board as well as the cards play Have little spots for what Di- I accept.
25:41 – 30:00It was a lot of fun but it gets thinking because there’s like oh I want to buy this thing because it’s in the display route a row. But guess what you didn’t Draw Jack Jack for making money this go or the dice. Didn’t fall in your favor. Even if you did or making money or you did stuff you’ve got stuff to make beer so you’re gonNA have to focus elsewise and so actually Kinda cool to think of. How is this a beer? Rounders is money round and they actually taught this to another couple two days ago now and they really enjoyed it they they. We played quacks and then we played taverns and you could easily see the flare between them so if you like quacks and he wanted to be more your thinking and having to make some choices with some dice drafting then taverns is for you. Awesome and listeners. Don’t get confused confused When when bruises talking about quacks it’s it’s quacks of Quedlinburg technically as the game name? Most people just call it quacks because it’s easier easier and then Gone Sean. Clever or or that’s so clever is is Wolfgang worshippers other game and this guy came out of nowhere wear and has just absolutely crushed every game the that that he’s put out in the last couple of years I I really. We really would keep an eye on him For the future I. It sounds like this is another win for you. Bruce’s I right. It’s it’s a lot of fun. I think that I’d I be more tempted to pull down quacks because as some similar stuff with cards I did really enjoy it so I wouldn’t turn down a game if if that makes. Okay yeah okay. I think it’s time for maybe one more question or anything else. You want me to comment on before we wrap it up absolutely bruce. There’s one more thing in here that that I’d like for you to hear your thoughts about mainly because of your comment about this game. Emma and I understand you didn’t play this game but you watched or learned about it and that’s Ekos first continent. Can you tell the listeners. There’s what Echo Echo’s is. Yeah why the comment that you’ve made in our document so Ekos is and this is what’s in the show notes said. I put there for Josh Jesse. And why he’s confused. I wrote Dot Dot dot it is Bingo because it is now. It’s not like let’s draw out like like B fifty two. It’s not how that works. What it is is you have a very small continent essentially in the beginning beginning of the game and you’re going to be adding tiles hexagons to this continent and building it out to then when you draw out of this bag. Little Oh runes based on the setup of things the runes are essentially like a Bingo ball. And you have little cards with powers that you can kind of chained together so a ruined comes out. Then it’s going to trigger one and then that triggering will then play into this one triggering so you kind of build these little Bingo engines and so it’s a fun game if you like that kind of experience things like that. The thing that kind of kept me away from it though is I was asking people about it because it looks gorgeous. The pieces look really nice. They’re popping you have a little like abstract lines and stuff you can put on this board but the thing is is unless you’ve played it like a bunch of times that board means nothing to you from everything people were telling me of. Oh I happened to put my lying here. And it’s really just to prevent other people from things doing things and so you’d move things around on their sometimes because they were pretty static and so the board didn’t actually play into a lot of the experiences of the players. Were having so people told me. It’s a lot of fun but it was just. It was missing using something to make that interactivity with the cool thing in front of you actually have meaning okay so another easy to pick up game. That’s the May with a bunch of components that are gorgeous but again there was that connection between the things. I will say the reason I wanted to ask is looking looking at pictures online.
30:01 – 34:53This is again the that catches your eye very quickly. Yeah very much. So and age is eighties. Aldridge Entertainment Group who I also purchased the Wingspan. Not Wingspan expansion. the war chest expansion from had this beautiful honestly like fifteen foot tall backdrop up of the cover of echoes. Because that gorgeous yeah awesome. Well thank you so much for sharing your experience. Bruce I have I I lied. I do have one final Burning burning in my brain here and that is pretty simple. Game of the CON- go. Oh Okay I’m GONNA answer a couple of things real fast game of the CON that I purchased That I had to buy leaving the convention. Age of steam deluxe edition from Ego Griffin Games designed by Martin Wallace game of the CON. That was small box game name the startups by OINK Games really fun game highly recommend game of the Convention for a new game to me that was for multiple players us a little bit larger Babylonia which came out at Essen by Reiner can designer of modern art and like six hundred other games and then game of the convention was to player is an older game and that was rafter. That is a game. Where one person’s of loss rafter with some babies and the other person’s of scientists the rafters trying to eat the scientists? The scientists are trying to capture the babies for scientific study. Whoever wins in a game or it was like a fifteen minute game So that was a lot of fun to play later at night And then favourite dexterity game of the convention that I played it was wacky wit which was pacman. The dexterity game well that was way more than I ask nonetheless We will thank you for for that insight insight I will say Raptor is a fantastic player. Game I’ve had that one around a couple of times really really interesting. Ages theme not a new game by any stretch of the imagination but I’m glad to hear that you enjoyed it. As much as countless others have Over the years so so I’m really glad they put out a deluxe edition of that game. it looks really nice. I I would love to have that one in my collection as well. Well so we can play it and they also have every single map so that’s sadly all we have time for no listeners. We’re a little bit over on this but we wanted you just make a special note of. You’re definitely going to want to tune in next week as you’re doing some holiday travel because Josh cooked up something fun for y’All I’m not GonNa let them spoil what it is But it’s GonNa be a lot of fun and it’s GonNa be something new for the podcast Just to do something Nice for the holidays and as we were together Josh. Do you have any closing remarks for the listeners listeners. Once again as always thank you so much for tuning in joining us Wherever you are whatever you’re doing while you’re listening I’m we’re glad to be a part of your lives and we’re glad that we can have some form of impact on you in the way that these Games in this hobby has an impact on us. US gruesome again very jealous but I’m glad you had a good time. It sounds like Bg Con as always was a massive success. Assess it was it was in congratulations to be For the massive success that this was in the transition to the new hotel. Thank you again to everybody. who had a hand ended putting this amazing thing on and thanks everybody who came from around the world and everybody who took time to play games with me as random stranger on in those who said Hi? And thank you for the PODCASTS. which there was a couple of so? Thanks for that a lot actually Appreciate y’all And so with that being said If this has been impactful review for to learn about some cool things experiences that we’re having make sure to subscribe But that’s really what we’re here for is to share the experience that we’re having and talk about games. What game what they bring out in people so that way? We can really have a positive impact on this hobby that does continue to give and foreign to our lives So please feel you’re free to tell a friend about the board game impact and also drop us a rating in the eighteen. Whatever podcast flat formula to this on Because we go through and read all of those comments so all of this feedback is very much appreciated but that will also help us grow and help spread the word to other people that all being said Thanks again be for the amazing time. Make sure to tune in next week for a very special episode of Board Game Impact. And hopefully. You’re if you’re traveling you travel safely as we’re wrapping up this year but until next time go out and have a positive impact on the world