202 episodes
Board Game Hot Takes Board Game Hot Takes
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- Leisure
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4.8 • 136 Ratings
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We tell you how a board game experience felt - just minutes after we finish playing. Three unique points of view. No non-game nonsense.
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Top Board Games of All Time 2024 Edition (31-40)
In Episode 201 we start the 2024 countdown of our top 40 Board Games of all time with choices 31-40.
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
01:11 Top Games of All Time - How we made our lists
08:44 Chris #40 Battle for Rokugan
10:57 Adam #40 Brass: Birmingham
12:54 Tim #40 Rajas of the Ganges
14:47 Chris #39 - Castles of Burgundy
16:55 Adam #39 - Star Wars: The Deckbuilding Game
20:22 Tim #39 - Voidfall
21:28 Chris #38 - Nidavellir
26:32 Adam #38 - Apiary
27:30 Tim #38 - Marrakesh
29:11 Chris #37 - Fractal: Beyond the Void
31:22 Adam #37 - Rising Sun
33:55 Tim #37 - Scythe
36:12 Chris #36 - The Quacks of Quedlinburg
39:21 Adam #36 - It's a Wonderful World
41:37 Tim #36 - Viticulture: Essential Edition
43:43 Chris #35 - Robot Quest Arena
46:03 Adam #35 - Capital Lux 2: Generations
48:03 Tim #35 - Space Base
50:30 Chris #34 - Smartphone, Inc.
52:10 Adam #34 - SpaceCorp 2025 - 2300 AD
55:21 Tim #34 - Sky Team
58:56 Chris #33 - Through the Ages: A New Story of Civilization
1:01:02 Adam #33 - Xenon Profiteer
1:02:29 Tim #33 - Revive
1:04:50 Chris #32 - Woodcraft
1:08:18 Adam #32 - Glory to Rome
1:11:24 Tim #32 - Battle for Rokugan
1:12:32 Chris #31 - Heat: Pedal to the Metal
1:15:56 Adam #31 - Star Tycoon
1:20:52 Tim #31 - Star Realms -
D.E.I.: Divide et Impera
In Episode 200 we provide our hot take review of D.E.I.: Divide et Impera covering the mechanisms, the production, and our overall feelings of the game.
We discuss making the podcast after 200 episodes. We also discuss some games that have been on our table including Hallertau and Kanban EV and a Future Take on Founders of Reyvick.
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
02:08 Discussion: Episode 200!
05:58 D.E.I.: Divide et Impera Description
07:53 Gameplay and Mechanisms
17:08 Production and Theme
23:51 Final Thoughts
28:43 Hallertau
37:30 Future Take: Founders of Reyvick
42:39 Kanban EV
If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting us at https://www.patreon.com/boardgamehottakes -
Hot Topic -You're Just Not My Type
In Episode 199 we talk about types of games that don't get us excited... but we also reflect on why that is and talk about some games in those genres that have worked or might work for us.
We also discuss a related poll on genres or types of board games that are an immediate turn off.
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
00:24 Poll Time: Are there any genres or types of board games that are an automatic turn off?
02:56 Game types that we're not into
05:47 Skirmish Games (Guards of Atlantis II, Warhammer 40K, Heroclix, Batman: Gotham City Chronicles, Star Wars: X-Wing Miniatures Game, Battletech)
10:50 Team Games/Cooperative Games (Cerebria: The Inside World, Batman: Gotham City Chronicles, Star Wars: Rebellion, Ankh: Gods of Egypt, Sky Team, Oathsworn: Into the Deepwood, Cthulhu: Death May Die, Codenames, Rush Out)
19:18 Collectable Card Games (Magic: The Gathering, Wonders of the First, Disney Lorcana, Star Wars Unlimited, Mindbug, Star Realms)
28:14 Party Games (Trivial Pursuit, Apple to Apples, Codenames, Challengers!, Skull, Just One, So Clover, Green Team Wins, Balderdash, El Grande, Libertalia)
38:45 Multi-player Solitaire (Hallertau, Nucleum, Bruxelles 1893, Wingspan,
43:20 Negotiation Games (John Company, Rising Sun, Dune, Pax Pamir: 2nd Edition, Diplomacy, Chinatown, Poker, Eclipse: Second Dawn for the Galaxy)
50:47 Message Games (Daybreak, Doubt is our Product, This War of Mine, Meltwater: A Game of Tactical Starvation)
54:17 Wargames (Maria, Twilight Struggle, Undaunted)
1:00:23 Abstract Games (Mandala, Cascadia, Azul, Sagrada, Project L)
1:02:03 Trick Taking Games (Shamans, Cat in the Box, Brian Boru: High King of Ireland, Skull King, Lettertricks, Euchre, Spades, Boast or Nothing.
1:05:39 Listener Shoutout -
Top 5 Small Footprint Games
In Episode 198 we each discuss our top 5 board games that have a small footprint on the table.
We also discuss a poll on whether the footprint of a game influences your purchase.
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
00:24 Poll Time: Does the footprint of a board game on the table have an impact on whether you'll purchase a game?
07:26 Top 5 Small Footprint Games
09:14 Skull
12:42 Age of Galaxy
16:08 For Sale
19:15 High Society
22:06 Watergate
25:30 Rajas of the Ganges: The Dice Charmers
28:34 Five Three Five
33:21 Calico
37:48 Sea Salt & Paper
38:53 Patchwork
44:29 Disney Villainous
48:55 Sky Team
56:20 Shamans
59:27 Star Realms, Hero Realms, Cthulhu Realms
1:03:44 Haggis
1:07: Runners Up (Star Wars: The Deckbuilding Game, Shards of Infinity, Cat in the Box, Cafe, Azul, Hissy Fit)
1:14:18 Listener Shoutout -
Top 5 Games We Suck At
In Episode 197 we each discuss our top 5 board games that we really like but can't seem to win.
We also discuss a poll on whether you've bought board games because of an award.
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
00:24 Poll Time: Have you ever purchased a board game because it won a prominent award?
04:45 Top 5 Games We Suck At
07:46 Tapestry
10:32 Space Base and Nidavellir
14:42 Barrage
18:32: Apiary
20:17 The Castles of Burgundy
22:50 The Voyages of Marco Polo and Marco Polo II: In the Service of the Khan
25:54 Underwater Cities
28:40 Eclipse: Second Dawn for the Galaxy
32:44 Dune
35:35 Ark Nova
41:14 Yokohama
42:35 Pan Am
44:15 Agricola
48:02 Clank! Legacy
50:00 Runners Up (Battle for Rokugan, Skyrise, Rising Sun)
54:28 Listener Shoutout -
Biohack
In Episode 196 we provide our hot take review of Biohack covering the mechanisms, the production, and our overall feelings of the game.
We discuss a poll on buying expansions sight unseen. We also discuss some games that have been on our table including Camel Up, Le Havre, and Skyrise.
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
00:20 Question: Are there any games you would buy an expansion for without knowing anything about them?
08:33 Wyrmspan Giveaway Winner
09:26 Biohack Description
11:09 Gameplay and Mechanisms
31:41 Production and Theme
41:41 Final Thoughts
44:58 Camel Up
49:38 Le Havre
57:05 Skyrise
1:03:34 Listener Shoutout
If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting us at https://www.patreon.com/boardgamehottakes
Customer Reviews
BGHT, a commuter’s best friend
This gaming buddy trio has graced my car speakers for the last nine months during my evening commute, and I have yet to regret the time spent with them. The featured tongue-in-cheek banter combined with thoughtful analysis has inspired me to grab many of the titles featured on the show and rejoin the post-pandemic tabletop gaming community. In addition, the show has significantly improved my mental health; I scream a lot less over my steering wheel and no longer wish that motorists who fail to use their turn signal expire from anxiety attacks while drowning in giant vats of flan. Keep up the excellent work!
I made a mistake listening to this podcast!
Found these guys looking for a review on Anachrony and checked out the episode. I wanted to check out some other episodes on games I was interested in. What a mistake! I chose to mark episodes I planned to skip as “Played” for organizational purposes. Now the problem is, these guys are so good that now that I want to hear the rest of the backlog episodes I can’t see which ones I’ve already listened to! So enjoy the extra listen counts; it’s worth it!
The guys are honest, frank, and funny. They deliver great insight on games and thankfully include a mix of new and older games of various types for those of us that are relatively new to the scene. I also appreciate that they do not avoid being critical of popular games, but instead provide thoughtful feedback. Their dynamic personalities and preferences really give a varied and comprehensive scope of the gaming world, all while making you feel like you’re hanging with a group of friends.
Thanks for the awesome work guys! Looking forward to finishing the catalogue. And just for the record, Team Chris all the way!
My First and Only Board Game Podcast
This is my first and only board game podcast I will listen to. It’s that good! This was the first board game podcast recommended to me when I started getting into board games. The structure of the podcast is perfect it’s easy to understand. Simple but detailed reviews, that’s straight to the point. The host Tim, Chris, and Adam do a great job discussing about their separate opinions, and feelings, on the current game. Also love hearing their Top 5 list and one of my favorite episodes was when Tim went to the BGG Con, such a cool episode, didn’t want Tim to stop talking about it. Sounded like so much fun! I really want to go a board game con now! The cherry on the top is the poll questions and what games they have been playing recently. Wouldn’t change a single thing about this podcast! Because it’s the perfect board game podcast!