292 episodes

Join Kellen, Neilan, Mark, and Christina for a podcast about board games, the latest hotness, and how to have fun with your friends even when you're losing.

Board Game Barrage Board Game Barrage

    • Leisure
    • 4.8 • 376 Ratings

Join Kellen, Neilan, Mark, and Christina for a podcast about board games, the latest hotness, and how to have fun with your friends even when you're losing.

    #293: The Great Epochs of Board Gaming

    #293: The Great Epochs of Board Gaming

    In what could be our most grandiose episode yet, we attempt to tame the wild history of all of board games. We traverse the timeline, unpacking what we consider to be the great epochs of the hobby, in an attempt to explain how modern game design evolved into its present form. Before we unpack the deep lore, we talk about General Orders: World War II, Oak, and Big Boss.
    Timecodes:
    02:36 - General Orders: World War II
    11:47 - Oak
    20:24 - Big Boss
    31:20 - The great epochs of board games
    31:45 - The First Epoch
    33:17 - The Royal Game of Ur
    34:37 - Senet
    43:23 - The Second Epoch
    44:50 - Monopoly
    48:11 - Risk
    50:29 - Operation
    56:23 - The Third Epoch
    57:22 - Catan
    1:02:33 - Dominion
    1:20:19 - The Fourth Epoch
    Send us topic ideas at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/topics
    Check out our wiki at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/wiki
    Join the discussion at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/discord
    Join our Facebook group at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/facebook
    Get a Board Game Barrage T-shirt at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/store

    • 47 min
    #292: Lightning Round

    #292: Lightning Round

    Uh oh, is that thunder? That must mean it's time for a lightning round - we're scooping up all the lovely questions and suggestions that just aren't big enough for the main event, and stuffing them in the blender. This week, it's public spaces, warning labels, gaming tips, and PAX Unplugged. Before we put fingers on buzzers, we talk about Gift of Tulips, Five Three Five, and Anunnaki: Dawn of the Gods.
    Timecodes:
    01:36 - Gift of Tulips
    10:20 - Five Three Five
    16:52 - Anunnaki: Dawn of the Gods
    32:08 - How American society affects board gaming
    39:54 - What are we excited to play at PAX
    40:26 - Stationfall
    40:56 - Blood on the Clocktower
    41:30 - The Great Zimbabwe
    41:50 - Pax Porfiriana
    43:40 - Roads & Boats
    44:49 - Warning stickers on games
    48:22 - Hot gaming tips
    Join the PAX Unplugged Math Trade at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/trade
    Send us topic ideas at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/topics
    Check out our wiki at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/wiki
    Join the discussion at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/discord
    Join our Facebook group at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/facebook
    Get a Board Game Barrage T-shirt at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/store

    • 57 min
    #291: Fantasy Draft: Reiner Knizia

    #291: Fantasy Draft: Reiner Knizia

    Drafts are back, baby. And not just any old draft, no, but to celebrate the return of the greatest game, we're drafting none other than the best of the only true and living doctor, Reiner Knizia. Who ends up with the best list? Vote for your favourite, you could win a $50 gift voucher! Before we doc it up, we talk about Empire's End, My Favourite Things, and Four Horsemen.
    Timecodes:
    02:33 - Empire's End
    12:15 - My Favourite Things
    21:15 - Four Horsemen
    27:48 - Drafting Reiner Knizia games
    33:44 - Tigris & Euphrates
    34:49 - Zoo Vadis
    36:32 - Ra
    37:47 - Modern Art
    39:19 - The Quest for El Dorado
    41:03 - Blue Lagoon
    42:03 - Lost Cities
    45:29 - Medici
    46:39 - Stephenson's Rocket
    47:44 - My City
    49:13 - Taj Mahal
    52:09 - Babylonia
    53:29 - Mille Fiori
    55:14 - Yellow & Yangtze
    58:04 - High Society
    Join the PAX Unplugged Math Trade at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/trade
    Send us topic ideas at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/topics
    Check out our wiki at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/wiki
    Join the discussion at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/discord
    Join our Facebook group at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/facebook
    Get a Board Game Barrage T-shirt at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/store

    • 1 hr 2 min
    #290: Stuck in the Mid With You

    #290: Stuck in the Mid With You

    Are board games stuck? Not to be dramatic or anything, but it does seem like we keep circling the same ideas over and over again, right? We speculate on where we think the hobby is headed, and whether or not it needs a shake up. Before we plateau, we talk about Orchard, Hadrian's Wall, Terracotta Army, and Santiago.
    Timecodes:
    03:09 - Orchard: A 9 card solitaire game
    06:49 - Hadrian's Wall
    13:45 - Terracotta Army
    24:34 - Santiago
    35:45 - Board game stagnation
    38:17 - Return to Dark Tower
    41:55 - Mr. President: The American Presidency, 2001-2020
    43:55 - Turing Machine
    44:09 - Cryptid
    45:59 - Dead Reckoning
    50:37 - Stationfall
    Join the PAX Unplugged Math Trade at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/trade
    Send us topic ideas at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/topics
    Check out our wiki at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/wiki
    Join the discussion at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/discord
    Join our Facebook group at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/facebook
    Get a Board Game Barrage T-shirt at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/store

    • 52 min
    #289: Essen SPIEL 2023 Hype List

    #289: Essen SPIEL 2023 Hype List

    It's almost time for Essen SPIEL 2023, the great German Mecca of our people - and while we're not going ourselves, that's not going to stop us yearning. We're hear to tell you about all the amazing games available at the show this year that you ought to be excited about. Before we gaze longingly across the Atlantic, we talk about Asara, Skytear Horde, and Dwellings of Eldervale.
    Timecodes:
    02:31 - Asara
    10:15 - Skytear Horde
    14:04 - Dwellings of Eldervale
    28:11 - Essen SPIEL 2023 Preview
    30:04 - The Same Game
    32:52 - Among Cultists: A Social Deduction Thriller
    32:40 - Ticket to Ride Legacy: Legends of the West
    34:11 - Civolution
    35:25 - World Wonders
    36:42 - Dying Message
    38:27 - Kutná Hora: The City of Silver
    40:24 - Tiny Mini Golf
    42:19 - Arabella
    43:38 - ArcheOlogic
    45:41 - Terra Pyramides 
    46:51 - Sunrise Lane
    48:25 - Evacuation
    49:54 - TwinStar Valley
    51:04 - Planta Nubo
    Send us topic ideas at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/topics
    Check out our wiki at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/wiki
    Join the discussion at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/discord
    Join our Facebook group at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/facebook
    Get a Board Game Barrage T-shirt at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/store

    • 56 min
    #288: Less is More

    #288: Less is More

    A little prune, a little embellish, a nip, a tuck, and a flourish, and we can get this thing just how we like it. We're looking at all the little things that we'd like to see more of, all the things we'd like to see less of in the world of board games. Before we giveth and taketh away, we talk about First in Flight, Tramways, and Wandering Towers.
    Timecodes:
    02:39 - First in Flight
    11:57 - Tramways
    23:32 - Wandering Towers
    31:50 - What we want more and less of in games
    33:13 - More middleweight
    35:18 - More emergence
    36:50 - Stationfall 
    37:13 - Troyes
    37:13 - Glory to Rome
    37:13 - Innovation
    38:13 - Archipelago
    39:03 - Sidereal Confluence: Trading and Negotiation in the Elysian Quadrant
    40:02 - More rough edges
    41:57 - Cosmic Frog
    44:11 - More Saga
    44:11 - Dead Reckoning
    46:24 - Oath: Chronicles of Empire and Exile
    46:36 - More community conventions
    47:49 - More games with less rules
    49:09 - Less trick takers
    51:05 - Less board games
    53:35 - Less dour color palettes
    54:54 - Eschaton
    55:13 - 3 Ring Circus
    56:02 - The Guild of Merchant Explorers
    56:27 - Less generic themes
    57:37 - Less individual player boards
    58:44 - Less multiplayer solitare
    1:00:23 - Less content creators working for publishers
    Send us topic ideas at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/topics
    Check out our wiki at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/wiki
    Join the discussion at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/discord
    Join our Facebook group at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/facebook
    Get a Board Game Barrage T-shirt at:
    https://boardgamebarrage.com/store

    • 1 hr 5 min

Customer Reviews

4.8 out of 5
376 Ratings

376 Ratings

stickstomagnets ,

The deep dives!

I’ve listened to board game barrage for years, but I finally had to leave a review to acknowledge the depth of research they put into their November 23 “board game epochs” show. Even more impressive than usual!

Dukehockey ,

fun & right level of depth

🎽

also i listen to you guys when i run, which is the highest level that i rate podcasts

TheECP ,

The Best Board Game Podcast

This is simply the best board game podcast. The chemistry between all four hosts is fun, and their different tastes for games can really help see things from different perspectives.

But I especially love that they give plenty attention to older great games rather than just focusing on the latest BGG hotness, they have helped me curate a collection that includes several great games 10-30 years old.

Lastly, their discord community is great and welcoming, and I love how friendly and accessible the hosts are, even being to play games with them on BGA. Mark especially helped me though a tough time and made me feel welcomed in the community and I’m forever grateful for this group of people ❤️

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