PART THREE Weâre talking to Elli Amir, designer of Worldbreakers, a two-player duelling card game set in an alternate 13th century. Part one on Tuesday covered Elliâs journey to designing his own game; yesterday they talked about the anti-colonial and anti-hegemonic heart of the game. Today we conclude by peeking behind the curtain at how […]
This is the second part of my conversation with Elli Amir, designer of Worldbreakers, a two-player duelling card game set in an alternate 13th century. In yesterdayâs part one Elli told the story of how a Magic- and Netrunner-obsessed kid from Israel came to design their own game. Today Elli and I discuss their design […]
The Daily Worker Placement does not do Kickstarter previews. Let me say that again: The Daily Worker Placement does not do Kickstarter previews. Itâs not our jam. Our jam is spread out on our âAboutâ page, between two lightly-toasted slices of journalistic independence. What do, however like to write about tabletop design and culture. So […]
Iâve been playing King of Tokyo since the first day it arrived in stock at Snakes & Lattes back in 2012. Joan Moriarity basically put the game in my hands and said something along the lines of âthis is YOUR game. Youâll be playing this for a long, long time.â And she was right! Itâs […]
In a previous gateway recommendation I said that non-gamers donât like entertainment that makes them think, and while thatâs a generalization, for anyone for whom itâs true, it is a hurdle that the gamer will have to overcome eventually, because if you like games that make you think, and you want your friends to like […]
I have what I would describe as a mercurial relationship with dexterity games. I tend to not play them often, and when I do, I can rarely predict whether they will be hits or flops with me. I either need a 5-minute dexterity game where none of my choices *really* matter, or I need a […]
I messaged a friend the other day to say, âEvery time I play Quacks of Quedlinburg I think of you!â to which he responded, âEvery time I see a game on Kickstarter with weird mechanics, I think of you!â This seems entirely on-brand for both of us. As much as I love Dominion and Agricola […]
Well, it had to happen eventually. I set a puzzle that was too hard. In the past I was sure so many times Iâd constructed something with so many twists and turns that no one would solve itâbut each time you-all surprised me, and I received at least a dozen correct solutions, sometimes within hours […]
Tuesday I looked at the five stories that, to me anyway, were the most significant in terms of their effect on the Tabletop industry. Yesterday I pined for the five games Iâm most looking forward to playing next year (if all goes well, which means âwho knowsâ). And finally, today is the day I gush […]
Yesterday I looked at the five stories that, to me anyway, were the most significant in terms of their effect on the Tabletop industry. Tomorrow Iâll list my five favorites from this year. But for today, I thought Iâd list five games (in no particular order) that Iâm most looking forward to receiving and playing […]
So, 2021. Was it an improvement over 2020 or merely a glitch-ridden patch, version 2020.1? Your answer will depend on many factors, not limited to where you live, whether you or any near and/or dear to you got COVID, and to what extent your livelihood has been affected by same. Iâm going to use this […]
Once again we have passed through the longest night of the year and so it is time for our annual contest. More than ever we appreciate our Gaming Groups, which bring us together to connect with shared experiences and joy. This yearâs Non-Denominational Puzzle is a tribute to those Groups–and the games we love. The […]
Or: âHow to Start a YouTube Channelâ Although I donât remember exactly, but prior to launching Little Big Thumbs on YouTube, the very first research we did started with this phrase, or something very similar. Not long after, I came across a video from Sean Cannell at Think Media, which contained the push we needed […]
Recently I got the chance to preview a game on Tabletop Simulator called Ryozen, which is coming to Kickstarter early in 2022. Ryozen, which is being published by Tabula Games, is designed by Martino Chiacchiera and Michele Piccolini with art by Andrea Butera. The 2 to 4 player game is a worker placement game that […]
I think it was the year that Crash beat out Brokeback Mountain for the Oscar that I really gave up on the Academy Awards. Sure, Best Picture winners are likely to be good movies, but are they really the best of the year? Can anyone say that about something so subjective? Now when I see […]
The good people at Pandasaurus Games were nice enough to send us a copy of their latest offering in the âWhat if Jurassic Park was a Gameâ genre, Dinosaur Worldâwhich we’ll shorten to World for this review. Sometimes, when the writers of DWP get to play games, our opinions align quite nicely; other times, the […]
Boardgaming is an incredible hobby. Itâs fun, intellectually stimulating, socialâŠâŠbut it can also be a little quirky. Let me explain. The very first proper âhobby board gameâ I played was Five Tribes, on a cold winter evening at 401 Games in Toronto. I remember climbing up a narrow flight of stairs to get to the […]
One of the very first games I Kickstarted at the beginning of the pandemic was Square Meal by Philip DuBarry. Coincidentally, he lives near meâhi neighbor!âbut I didnât know that at the time, because I was blinded by the light of his enchanting, food-themed puzzle game. Square Meal is a concise game for 1-8 players, […]
You may have heard that it was the 10th anniversary of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (the videogame) this week. You may also have heard that Modiphius Games has launched a campaign on Gamefound for a Tabletop adaptation: The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim The Adventure Game (Skyrim:TAG hereinafter). You may even have read my two-part […]
Yesterday’s post contains Part One of the interview with Chris Birch of Modiphius Games and Juan Echenique, one of the designers of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim the Adventure Board Game. Today we conclude the interview; tomorrow I will share my thoughts on the game and why I’ve decided to back it. Just some reminders: […]
I made this game.