195 episodes

We tell you how a board game experience felt - just minutes after we finish playing. Three unique points of view. No non-game nonsense.

Board Game Hot Takes Board Game Hot Takes

    • Leisure
    • 4.8 • 20 Ratings

We tell you how a board game experience felt - just minutes after we finish playing. Three unique points of view. No non-game nonsense.

    BGHT Big Bear Con Part 1 Coverage (8 Games Discussed)

    BGHT Big Bear Con Part 1 Coverage (8 Games Discussed)

    In Episode 194 we discuss the first half of our semi-annual BGHT convention. 3 gamers, 5 days, 16 games played. In this episode we discuss 8 of those games including several that were new to us.

    We kick off the episode off with a poll on how long you can game without burnout.

    Timestamps:

    00:00 Introduction

    00:58 Poll: How many hours can you play board games straight before you get burned out and need a break?

    07:37 BGHT Big Bear Con

    08:06 Dune: Imperium

    12:01 Sea Salt & Paper

    13:31 Pulsar 2849

    19:52 Apiary

    25:00 Fractal: Beyond the Void

    34:51 The Quest for El Dorado

    40:50 Xenon Profiteers

    46:31 Godspeed

    52:15 Listener Shoutout

    53:08 Retraction



    If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting us at https://www.patreon.com/boardgamehottakes

    • 57 min
    Orleans

    Orleans

    In Episode 193 we provide our hot take review of Orleans covering the mechanisms, the production, and our overall feelings of the game.

    We discuss a poll on favorite board games based on French cities and then we discuss some board games on our table including Galactic Renaissance, The Vale of Eternity, and Wolves.

    Timestamps:

    00:00 Introduction

    01:06 Question: Which board game based on a French city is your favorite?

    04:57 Orleans Description

    07:01 Gameplay and Mechanisms

    30:19 Production and Theme

    34:24 Final Thoughts

    38:36 Galactic Renaissance

    46:00 The Vale of Eternity

    52:18 Wolves

    55:05 Listener Shoutout



    If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting us at https://www.patreon.com/boardgamehottakes

    • 58 min
    Top 5 Unique Worker Placement Games

    Top 5 Unique Worker Placement Games

    In Episode 192 we each discuss our top 5 board games that use the worker placement mechanism in a very unique or interesting way.

    We also discuss a poll on what to do with components after you upgrade them.

    Timestamps:

    00:00 Introduction

    00:24 Poll Time: If you upgrade components for a board game, what do you do with the replaced components?

    10:16 Top 5 Unique Worker Placement Games

    11:57 Lost Ruins of Arnak

    16:25 Raiders of the North Sea

    19:47 Bus and Dominant Species

    23:32 Come Together (Great Wall)

    27:52 Lorenzo Il Magnifico

    32:10 Anachrony

    35:03 Terracotta Army

    38:16 The Godfather: Corleone's Empire

    42:47 Architects of the West Kingdom

    45:40 Chimera Station (Godspeed, Darwin's Journey)

    50:32 Euphoria: Build a Better Dystopia

    56:50 Star Wars: Rebellion

    1:00:06 Pendulum

    1:06:34 Underwater Cities

    1:09:21 Ceres

    1:14:28 Runners Up (Argent: The Consortium, Cryo, Dwellings of Eldervale, Whistle Mountain)

    1:15:55 Listener Shoutout

    • 1 hr 20 min
    Maracaibo

    Maracaibo

    In Episode 191 we provide our hot take review of Maracaibo covering the mechanisms, the production, and our overall feelings of the game.

    We discuss a poll on investigating card decks before playing games and then we discuss some board games on our table including Starship Captains, Sagnir, and Djinn.

    Timestamps:

    00:00 Introduction

    00:25 Question: When introduced to a board game that contains cards, at what point do you look through the deck to see distribution?

    08:15 Maracaibo Description

    10:07 Gameplay and Mechanisms

    22:02 Production and Theme

    26:22 Final Thoughts

    35:35 Starship Captains

    42:47 Sagnir

    47:03 Djinn



    If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting us at https://www.patreon.com/boardgamehottakes

    • 53 min
    Top 5 Desert Island Games w/ Connie Vogelmann

    Top 5 Desert Island Games w/ Connie Vogelmann

    In Episode 190 Connie Vogelmann (designer of Apiary and Wyrmspan) joins us as our guest host as we each discuss our top 5 Desert Island Board Games.

    We also discuss a poll on how less games might impact our play habits.

    Timestamps:

    00:00 Introduction

    03:08 Poll: If you only had 5 board games (of your choice) available forever do you think you'd still play board games as frequently as you do?

    09:33 Top 5 Desert Island Games

    12:40 Azul

    15:08 Cribbage

    16:27 Ark Nova

    19:15 Dune: Imperium

    22:00 The Resistance: Avalon

    26:33 Sea Salt & Paper

    28:30 Fractal: Beyond the Void

    32:07 Gloomhaven

    35:23 Clank! Catacombs

    39:47 Hegemony: Lead Your Class to Victory

    43:32 Stationfall

    44:48 A Feast for Odin

    47:10 Welcome to the Moon

    49:15 Twilight Imperium: 4th Edition

    51:28 Blood Bowl

    55:16 Age of Innovation

    1:01:10 Runner Ups (Capital Lux 2, Xia: Legends of a Drift System, Decrypto, Werewords, Codenames, Voyages of Marco Polo, Grand Austria Hotel, Skull, Just One, Fun Facts)

    1:04:50 Listener Shoutout

    • 1 hr 7 min
    Board Game Arena

    Board Game Arena

    In episode 189, we take a deep dive into Board Game Arena and discuss games that we think are best on that online platform and games that are way better on a physical table.

    We also discuss a listener poll about how frequently you take turns on online board game platforms and give a huge shoutout to our BGA Community.

    Timestamps:

    00:00 Introduction

    04:00 Poll: How frequently do you take turns on async games on BGA (or other online platforms)?

    09:48 Board Game Arena (Top 3 we prefer on BGA and Top 3 We prefer in person)

    13:26 Ark Nova

    19:00 Keyflower

    22:48 7 Wonders

    25:42 Heat: Pedal to the Metal

    32:05 Tapestry

    39:03 Terraforming Mars, Agricola

    43:50 Blood Rage

    46:02 Tichu, Haggis, 6 Nimmt, Libertalia

    49:16 La Granja

    52:19 Blood Rage

    53:28 Cerebria: The Inside World

    55:44 Wonderland's War

    57:42 Woodcraft

    59:21 Lords of Ragnarok, Lords of Hellas, The Great Wall, Nemesis

    1:03:20 BGHT BGA Community Shoutout

    • 1 hr 12 min

Customer Reviews

4.8 out of 5
20 Ratings

20 Ratings

andy sut ,

Excellent

This is a great listen informative and fun. Being new to the hobby ( only through buying andor and my lil everdell to play with my 6 year old ) this podcast has opened my eyes to the hobby and the wonderful amount of games.

Bristol Eddie ,

Superior board game podcast

This is without doubt the best board game podcast out there and there are many. These guys are great and here’s why:-
1/ No corporate stooge. They tell you how it is. If it’s bad they say, if it’s great, they say. They also highlight all elements and give an informed opinion
2/ They have great chemistry and it’s like listening to myself and my friends after playing board games. The genuine joy can be heard, as well and the frustration at points, and it just makes it real
3/ Can’t speak for everyone but my tastes are very much in line with them and I’ve even specifically gone out searching for board games based on their recommendations.
4/ it’s just a great mix of how to play games, reviews on games and what I want from a conversation about board games.

A Must listen!

adepippo ,

A little tweak?

The show overall is quality. Good chemistry between the hosts with helpful interaction. I listen to this on the way to work and it’s a really nice way to start the day, listening to reviews of my hobby. I do have a question though, could you feature a player count? I just listened to the thunder road episode but have no idea on max or optimum head count. Could this be considered, especially when reviewing games in which you’ve had multiple games of. I know the player count is available via BGG but your views would really benefit me and other listeners to help decide whether to pull the trigger. Thanks for your works, keep it up. Love from the UK

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