http://boardgames.about.com/ Get the latest headlines from the About.com http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hh http://www.about.com/ 118 20 en-us 2013-04-30T23:55:00Z Tue, 30 Apr 2013 23:55:00 +0000 hourly 1 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00 http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/04/30/pig-a-great-game-to-pass-the-time.htm <p>Some friends and I were recently in a restaurant waiting at the bar for our table to be ready. We pulled out a single six-sided die and had a great time while the staff prepared the table -- we played the game Pig (<a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/od/dicegames/a/pig_rules.htm">complete rules</a>). It's best with just a few players, but it can work with as many as are available. Pig is a press-your-luck game where the goal is to be the first player to reach 100 points... but every single roll is a risk. Give it a try!</p> http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/04/30/pig-a-great-game-to-pass-the-time.htm Tue, 30 Apr 2013 23:58:18 +0000 2013-04-30T23:58:18Z http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/04/30/2013-mensa-select-winners.htm <p>The 2013 <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/od/awards/a/mensa_select.htm">Mensa Select Award</a> winners have been announced:<p> <p><ul> <li>Forbidden Desert (designed by <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/od/designers/p/mattleacock.htm">Matt Leacock</a>)</li> <li>Ghooost! (designed by <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/od/topbydesigner/tp/richardgarfield.htm">Richard Garfield</a>)</li> <li>KerFlip!</li> <li>Kulami</li> <li>Suburbia (designed by Ted Alspach)</li> </ul></p> http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/04/30/2013-mensa-select-winners.htm Tue, 30 Apr 2013 23:55:00 +0000 2013-04-30T23:55:00Z http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/04/30/new-battlestar-galactica-expansion-coming.htm <p>The semi-cooperative board game <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/od/cooperativegames/p/battlestar_galactica.htm">Battlestar Galactica</a>, one of my favorites, will soon have a new expansion: Daybreak. Game publisher <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/od/companies/p/fantasy_flight.htm">Fantasy Flight Games</a> has announced that the Daybreak expansion will include "12 new character sheets, 30 new Crisis cards, 25 new Skill cards, and much more" -- with "much more" including sweet-looking new plastic Centurion figures to replace the cardboard tokens that came with the original game.<p> <p>Daybreak is scheduled to be available in the fall of 2013.</p> http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/04/30/new-battlestar-galactica-expansion-coming.htm Tue, 30 Apr 2013 23:52:10 +0000 2013-04-30T23:52:10Z http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/04/30/2013-gathering-of-friends.htm <p>At this year's Gathering of Friends, an event organized by game designer <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/od/designers/p/alan_moon.htm">Alan R. Moon</a>, I was only able to be there for three days -- but I managed to play <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://www.boardgamegeek.com/plays/thumbs/user/arneson/subtype/boardgame/start/2013-04-18/end/2013-04-21">32 games a total of 38 times</a> in that short span. Among those were some favorites, like the <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/od/toppicks/tp/auction-games.htm">auction games</a> Ra and Traumfabrik, along with plenty of new games which I really enjoy, including Coup, Clubs and the cooperative game Star Wars: Angriff der Klonkrieger. (Sadly, the Star Wars game is very unlikely to have an English edition printed due to the licensing issues.) I'll be writing more about many of the games I played soon!</p> http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/04/30/2013-gathering-of-friends.htm Tue, 30 Apr 2013 23:49:17 +0000 2013-04-30T23:49:17Z http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/03/31/designer-of-the-year-2012.htm <p>For years, gamer Larry Levy has analyzed the best releases of the previous year and come up with his pick for the Game Designer of the Year. I love reading his analysis each year, and his <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://opinionatedgamers.com/2013/03/06/larry-levy-2012-designer-of-the-year-award/">recent look back at 2012</a> is no exception. I wont spoil the piece for you, but his list of contenders includes some of my perennial favorites: <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/od/designers/p/richard_borg.htm">Richard Borg</a>, <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/od/designers/p/bruno_cathala.htm">Bruno Cathala</a>...<p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/03/31/designer-of-the-year-2012.htm">Read Full Post</a></p> http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/03/31/designer-of-the-year-2012.htm Sun, 31 Mar 2013 22:21:48 +0000 2013-03-31T22:21:48Z http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/03/31/star-wars-game-experience-may-3-5.htm <p><img align="right" hspace="5" src="http://0.tqn.com/h/boardgames/1/3/g/1/1/star-wars-card-game.jpg" alt="Star Wars: The Card Game">If you're a fan of <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/od/starwars/p/Star-Wars-The-Card-Game.htm">Star Wars: The Card Game</a>, the <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/b/2012/09/30/star-wars-x-wing-minis-game-available.htm">Star Wars X-Wing Miniatures Game</a> (both are great), or the Edge of the Empire Roleplaying Game, game publisher <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/od/companies/p/fantasy_flight.htm">Fantasy Flight Games</a> has an event you don't want to miss.</p>...<p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/03/31/star-wars-game-experience-may-3-5.htm">Read Full Post</a></p> http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/03/31/star-wars-game-experience-may-3-5.htm Sun, 31 Mar 2013 22:14:06 +0000 2013-03-31T22:14:06Z http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/03/31/game-collectors-james-sheila-davis.htm <p>My friends think I own a lot of board games when I tell them my collection is closing in on 1,000 games. But James &#038; Sheila Davis... they have a real collection: roughly 12,500 games. In <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/14254/interview-with-sheila-and-james-davis-game-collect">this interview at BoardGameGeek.com</a>, they talk about how they got into collecting games, how they store their games and much more.</p>...<p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/03/31/game-collectors-james-sheila-davis.htm">Read Full Post</a></p> http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/03/31/game-collectors-james-sheila-davis.htm Sun, 31 Mar 2013 22:04:22 +0000 2013-03-31T22:04:22Z http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/03/03/remembering-allan-b-calhamer-creator-of-diplomacy.htm <p><img align="right" hspace="5" src="http://0.tqn.com/h/boardgames/1/3/F/k/diplomacy_170.jpg" alt="Diplomacy">The man who created the classic <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/od/toppicks/tp/negotiation.htm">negotiation board game</a> <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/od/gamehistories/p/diplomacy.htm">Diplomacy</a>, Allan B. Calhamer, was 81 years old when he <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/02/28/allan-b-calhamer-1931-2013.htm">passed away</a> on February 25, 2013. He has been remembered fondly by fans of the game, along with those who knew him better as a mailman in his hometown of La Grange Park, Illinois.</p>...<p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/03/03/remembering-allan-b-calhamer-creator-of-diplomacy.htm">Read Full Post</a></p> http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/03/03/remembering-allan-b-calhamer-creator-of-diplomacy.htm Sun, 03 Mar 2013 17:17:48 +0000 2013-03-03T17:17:48Z http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/02/28/allan-b-calhamer-1931-2013.htm <p><img align="right" hspace="5" src="http://0.tqn.com/h/boardgames/1/3/I/o/diplomacy_200.jpg" alt="Diplomacy">Allan B. Calhamer, designer of the brilliant board game <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/od/gamehistories/p/diplomacy.htm">Diplomacy</a>, passed away this week at the age of 81.</p> <p>According to <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allan_B._Calhamer">Wikipedia</a>, Calhamer received an undergraduate degree from Harvard University and studied at Harvard Law School, where he developed the game that would eventually be published as Diplomacy. It was part of the reason that Sylvania hired him for operations research. Later in life, Calhamer worked as a postal carrier.</p>...<p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/02/28/allan-b-calhamer-1931-2013.htm">Read Full Post</a></p> http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/02/28/allan-b-calhamer-1931-2013.htm Thu, 28 Feb 2013 18:40:58 +0000 2013-02-28T18:40:58Z http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/02/28/cool-looking-puzzle-book-by-mike-selinker.htm <p>Mike Selinker, a game and puzzle designer whose work includes the terrific Cthulhu-themed word game <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/od/unspeakablewords/gr/review.htm">Unspeakable Words</a>, has written an incredible cool-looking puzzle book, <em><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/loneshark/the-maze-of-games-an-interactive-puzzle-novel">The Maze of Games</a></em>. The book, which is already fully funded on Kickstarter with nearly two weeks to go, is scheduled to be out this fall.</p>...<p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/02/28/cool-looking-puzzle-book-by-mike-selinker.htm">Read Full Post</a></p> http://boardgames.about.com/b/2013/02/28/cool-looking-puzzle-book-by-mike-selinker.htm Thu, 28 Feb 2013 18:27:33 +0000 2013-02-28T18:27:33Z