Everything Board Games Network $50 Holiday Giveaway!

This holiday season it is better to give than to receive, so here is your chance to give by winning a $50 gift card for someone else.

It is very simple--tag someone else in this Facebook Post ( https://www.facebook.com/EverythingBoardGamesdotcom/posts/1422122471166212:0 ) and THEY will be entered to win the gift card.
This giveaway is brought to you by the Everything Board Game Network, which consists of GJJ Games (George Jaros), The Game Geek Ninja (Jeremy Davis), Derek Maggs of the Australian Tabletop Games Network, Dave Merrell, David Jensen, and Dane Trimble. Find out more information and see our reviews at: http://bit.ly/2cT9MnX.




Did you like this giveaway?  Show your support by clicking the heart at Board Game Links , liking GJJ Games on Facebook , or following on Twitter .  And be sure to check out my games on  Tabletop Generation.

People Behind the Meeples - Episode 33: Ian Zang

Welcome to People Behind the Meeples, a series of interviews with indie game designers.  Here you'll find out more than you ever wanted to know about the people who make the best games that you may or may not have heard of before.  If you'd like to be featured, head over to http://gjjgames.blogspot.com/p/game-designer-interview-questionnaire.html and fill out the questionnaire! You can find all the interviews here: People Behind the Meeples.

---

Name:	Ian Zang
Location:	Pittsburgh, PA
Day Job:	Educational Professional Development Specialist
Designing:	Two to five years.
Webpage:	ianzangdesign.com
BGG:	Zangzabar
Facebook:	Ian Zang Design
Twitter:	@ianzangdesign preferred!
Other:	Search 'Zang' and I'll show up if I'm there.
Find my games at:	Ask! I'll send files.

Today's Interview is with:

Ian Zang
Interviewed on: 8/24/2016

If you've been online in any of the game design spaces you've probably seen Ian Zang. He's pretty active in the community (offline as well). 2017 is looking to be a pretty good year for Ian with a few games scheduled to be published, his first published games. So read on to learn more about Ian and be sure to follow along to see all that he has in store for the gaming community!

Some Basics
Tell me a bit about yourself.

How long have you been designing tabletop games?
Two to five years.

Why did you start designing tabletop games?
I had fallen in love with the social aspect of tabletop gaming, and wanted to bring my own ideas to the table. I was a full-time teacher at the time as well, and games really helped to get to know my students better.

What game or games are you currently working on?
Constellations, Xtronaut v2 (working title), and an unannounced game from IDW. I have a few personal unpublished designs as well that I'm currently working on.

Have you designed any games that have been published?
Not as of yet! I should have a couple coming out next year, though.

What is your day job?
Educational Professional Development Specialist

Your Gaming Tastes
My readers would like to know more about you as a gamer.

Where do you prefer to play games?
Anywhere and anywhere. I have a game on my person at all times.

Who do you normally game with?
Anyone who agrees to it.

If you were to invite a few friends together for game night tonight, what games would you play?
Galaxy Trucker or something more thinky.

And what snacks would you eat?
Normally grab pizza, and I also make killer dip.

Do you like to have music playing while you play games? If so, what kind?
I try to keep it thematic to the game!

What’s your favorite FLGS?
Games Unlimited in Pittsburgh

What is your current favorite game? Least favorite that you still enjoy? Worst game you ever played?
Galaxy Trucker is favorite. Dominion; I appreciate it, but am not completely engaged. I don't share worst games; I don't like hating on things.

What is your favorite game mechanic? How about your least favorite?
Multi-use cards. I salivate. -- Pure luck games are not cool. I need a little bit of strategy.

What’s your favorite game that you just can’t ever seem to get to the table?
Space Alert.

What styles of games do you play?
I like to play Board Games, Card Games, Video Games

Do you design different styles of games than what you play?
I like to design Board Games, Card Games

OK, here's a pretty polarizing game. Do you like and play Cards Against Humanity?
No

You as a Designer
OK, now the bit that sets you apart from the typical gamer. Let's find out about you as a game designer.

When you design games, do you come up with a theme first and build the mechanics around that? Or do you come up with mechanics and then add a theme? Or something else?
I think of the experience that is tied to the theme, then build mechanics to support that.

Have you ever entered or won a game design competition?
Nope!

Do you have a current favorite game designer or idol?
I appreciate Rob Daviau. His sense for good mechanics and story is so good.

Where or when or how do you get your inspiration or come up with your best ideas?
Spur of the moment! When I'm in the middle of something, I sometimes think of an idea I have to put on paper.

How do you go about playtesting your games?
Go to a local game night!

Do you like to work alone or as part of a team? Co-designers, artists, etc.?
For the past few years, I've been solo-designing. I love working as a team though! Recently, I've been working with Dante Lauretta on the Xtronaut line of games, and have enjoyed the conversations we've had about design and business.

What do you feel is your biggest challenge as a game designer?
Playtesting. 1) Finding people to play. 2) Dealing with sometimes harsh criticism. 3) Figuring out what the underlying issues are behind the problems players encountered. 4) Implementing those changes. Over. and. Over.

If you could design a game within any IP, what would it be?
Stargate. I love that whole series.

What do you wish someone had told you a long time ago about designing games?
It's ok to move on. Getting stuck on a design that is not working. Down the road, you might find the inspiration you need to finish it.

What advice would you like to share about designing games?
Listen and talk with other game designers. You will learn so much so quickly!

Would you like to tell my readers what games you're working on and how far along they are?
Published games, I have: None
Games that will soon be published are: Constellations, Untitled Xtronaut Game, and an Unannounced IDW Game.
This is what I have currently crowdfunding: None
Currently looking for a publisher I have: Swing State, Inquisition, Melee Magicka
Games that are in the early stages of development and beta testing are: Onslaught

Are you a member of any Facebook or other design groups? (Game Maker’s Lab, Card and Board Game Developers Guild, etc.)
Pretty much all of them.

And the oddly personal, but harmless stuff…
OK, enough of the game stuff, let's find out what really makes you tick! These are the questions that I’m sure are on everyone’s minds!

Star Trek or Star Wars? Coke or Pepsi? VHS or Betamax?
Yes, No, VHS

What hobbies do you have besides tabletop games?
I love movies and filmmaking.

What is something you learned in the last week?
Many galaxies that are visible to the naked eye are titled M12, or M50. Always M-number. I learned that M stands for Messier, the guy who discovered every one of them. He cataloged 110 different galaxies and clusters using a 4 inch refracting telescope in the mid 1700's. The M classification still is used today for those objects.

Favorite type of music? Books? Movies?
World Music, Any books, Anything but gory stuff

What was the last book you read?
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child

Do you play any musical instruments?
I can play violin.

Tell us something about yourself that you think might surprise people.
I'm an avid waterskiier

Tell us about something crazy that you once did.
I took 16 high schoolers on a two-week camping trip.

Biggest accident that turned out awesome?
My marriage proposal. It happened two days earlier than I had anticipated, and many hijinks ensued. Reach out to me on social media for the whole story...

What would you do if you had a time machine?
Check out the far future. I'd like to see how everything ends up.

Are you an extrovert or introvert?
Extrovert. By a large margin.

If you could be any superhero, which one would you be?
Batman. Mostly because he made himself a superhero.

Have any pets?
An african grey parrot.

When the next asteroid hits Earth, causing the Yellowstone caldera to explode, California to fall into the ocean, the sea levels to rise, and the next ice age to set in, what current games or other pastimes do you think (or hope) will survive into the next era of human civilization? What do you hope is underneath that asteroid to be wiped out of the human consciousness forever?
I hope play as a concept never dies. If the yellowstone caldera explodes, though, it's a hard reset. I think everything under the sun that I'd want gone would be.

If you’d like to send a shout out to anyone, anyone at all, here’s your chance (I can’t guarantee they’ll read this though):
Doug Levandowski: He's a cool dude.

Just a Bit More
Thanks for answering all my crazy questions! Is there anything else you'd like to tell my readers?

I will look at any game design. I love talking about games. Reach out to me on social media, and I will talk your ear off!

---

Thank you for reading this People Behind the Meeples indie game designer interview! You can find all the interviews here: People Behind the Meeples and if you'd like to be featured yourself, you can fill out the questionnaire here: http://gjjgames.blogspot.com/p/game-designer-interview-questionnaire.html

Did you like this interview?  Show your support by clicking the heart at Board Game Links , liking GJJ Games on Facebook , or following on Twitter .  And be sure to check out my games on  Tabletop Generation.

The 10 Best New-To-Me Games of 2016

The 10 Best New-To-Me Games of 2016 
...plus 34 honorable mentions

Every year this list gets harder and harder to create.  It seems like every year my list of first time played games grows, and the games just keep getting better and better.  Last year I played 147 games for the first time.  This year I'm already up to 158 and there are still a few weeks to go.  As I've been reviewing more games, participating in more game design contests, and attending more game design meetups it seems I've been playing a lot more new stuff.  Unfortunately this also means that some old favorites don't get played nearly as much as I'd like, something I hope to remedy next year.

So, this year I've decided to add two more lists to this main list.  I've split them off into their own post, of The Best Kickstarter Previews & Prototype Games of 2016.  Keep your eye out for these, some may be coming to Kickstarter or a FLGS near you!

This main list only contains published games that I've played for the first time this year (although a couple I played previously in their prototype form).  So, without further ado, here are my Top 10 New-To-Me Games for 2016, including 34 runner-ups, so that's 44 excellent games for 2016!

Also, check out my lists for 2015 and 2014.

Honorable Mentions in Alphabetical Order:
* Indicates I played a prototype prior to 2016 and a completed version in 2016.

• 12 Days - A quick, accessible trick taking game with a Christmas theme.
• ...and then, we held hands. - An interesting cooperative abstract strategy game where talking about the game is prohibited.
• Biblios - A fast card game about collecting books for a monastery.  
• Codenames - An instant classic party game about getting your partner to identify words from clues given.
• Creature College - A lighthearted, fun family game involving bidding for turn order, collecting monsters, and then battling them against each other (and Kevin the Gigapig).
• Dead Man's Draw (AKA Captain Carcass)  - A quick press-your-luck game that has partly inspired one of my latest designs, MiniSkull Quests.
• Emergents: Genesis - A fun deckbuilder where you are a superhero in training, battling against the other superheroes. - GJJ Games Review
• Expedition: Famous Explorers - A great family friendly route building game.  This was very, very close to making it into the top 10.
• Flag Dash * - A great action programming game that is 100% strategy and no luck!  GJJ Games Review
• Francis Drake - This is a big game with gorgeous components.  Some interesting mechanics make this pretty interesting. GJJ Games Review coming soon.
• Graveyards, Ghosts & Haunted Houses - I won this in a contest, along with Pirates, Ninjas, Robots & Zombies and even though these are super simple games, I love using them to introduce non-gamers to modern games.  They've always been a hit!
• Happy Pigs - Super simple to play, lots of meaningful decisions, and almost no downtime make this a great choice for both new and experienced gamers.
• Jamaica - I played this once and had a great time playing.  There's a fair amount of luck, but the pirate theme really shines in this one!
• Jarl - Very intriguing retheme and update to The Duke.  The pieces are gorgeous and the rules are pretty simple.  Lovers of chess and other classic games will love this one.
• Lexigo - A fast playing, fun word game.  This is a great one to play with non-gamers.
• Lost Cities - It's pretty old, but I played it for the first time this year.  It's a typical Reiner Knizia style game with lots of colors and numbers, but it works wonderfully.
• Mysterium - This is another that gets a lot of popular love, and was pretty close to being in the top 10.  It's like Clue and Dixit had a baby!
• Neuroshima Hex! - I'm not usually a huge fan of combat games, but this was an interesting combination of area control and unit selection that I'd love the chance to play again some time.
• One Night Ultimate Werewolf - My family got me this for Father's Day.  I love the social aspect of it, but am not sure I like how you don't truly know what your role is at the end of the night.
• Pandemic: The Cure - I think I might like this dice variant of the classic Pandemic even better than the original.
• Patchwork - Another that was very close to making my top 10.  This is a great, strategic two-player game.
• Pirates, Ninjas, Robots & Zombies - Very similar mechanics to Graveyards, Ghosts & Haunted Houses, but a little bit simpler.  I love playing this with non-gamers because it's simple yet not monopoly.  It's a great gateway game.
• Qwixx - A friend has this and pulls it out every so often.  It's a fun little dice game that can be played while having conversations about other stuff.
• Roll Through the Ages: The Bronze Age - This dice rolling, civilization building game almost made my top 10. GJJ Games Review
• Star Wars Carcassonne - The theme is awesome, plus it's Carcassonne, so what's not to love?  Nothing really, this was a ton of fun to play.
• Stone Age - Played for the first time just a few weeks ago, this classic worker placement gateway game was a lot of fun.
• String Railway - Maybe the most unique game in my collection, in String Railway players use strings as their train tracks to connect various stations.  It ends up being a lot more strategic than you first expect.
• Sushi Go - For Father's Day my family got me two drafting games, this and The Best treehouse Ever.  Even though they're mechanically similar, they're both very different games and I enjoy them both.
• Taluva Deluxe - A friend brought this out during my 24 hour Extra Life marathon and I liked it a whole lot.  It's one I hope to play again and have the chance to introduce my wife to.
• The Best Treehouse Ever - Have I mentioned how much I like Scott Almes' games?  This is another one that's really awesome.
• The Princess Bride: I Hate to Kill You - A super simple dice game, but it helped inspire one of my newer game ideas, MiniSkull Quests.
• The Siblings Trouble - I think as my boys get a little older they'll appreciate the story telling aspect of this game a bit more, but I found it a lot of fun.
• Tides of Madness - If Tides of Time hadn't been on my list last year I'd seriously have considered Tides of Madness for this year's list.  But it's almost the same game, with a slight twist of the madness tokens.
• Tiny Epic Kingdoms: Heroes' Call - I love, love, love the Tiny Epic series of games by Scott Almes and this expansion to Tiny Epic Kingdoms (my number 7 game from 2014) really ups the game another notch. - GJJ Games Unboxing

And now for the top 10, starting with number 10.  * Indicates I played a prototype prior to 2016 and a completed version in 2016.

10. Rollet (2014 - David Harvey - Et Games Limited) - Late last year I was asked to review a game called Rollet.  I'm not a huge fan of dexterity games, but Rollet looked fun, so I said OK.  On Christmas Eve the game got delivered, so it went under the tree for the family to open on Christmas morning.  We opened the game up (the box is huge) and were absolutely amazed at the beauty!  Completely handcrafted and made of gorgeous wood, the game looks stunning.  Then we played, and the game was a ton of fun to play.  It's not strategic or deep like most of the games I like, but it's a wild good time in the vein of classics like Air Hockey and Fooseball.  Later in the year Et Games ran a Kickstarter campaign in order to be able to increase the production quantities of Rollet and it was successful (and featured my review in its ads!).  Hopefully you'll see this in retail stores soon as a worthy competitor of other tabletop dexterity action games like Klask. - GJJ Games Review

9. Carcassonne: Gold Rush (2014 - Klaus-Jürgen Wrede - Z-Man Games) - For Christmas last year my aunt and uncle gave my sons gift cards for our FLGS.  Instead of spending it on Pokemon or Magic cards he decided to pick up Carcassonne: Gold Rush and I'm so glad that he did.  If you read my 2014 list you'll see that Carcassonne is one of our family's favorite games (and it still is), but Carcassonne: Gold Rush takes a beloved favorite and adds a few new twists that make this a great respite from the classic.  I have to say, my son made a great choice!

8. Cabaret (2015 - Patrick Dillon, Adam Whitney - Know Chance Games) - Cabaret takes a typical trick taking game and turns it on its head.  Instead of having to follow suit you have to play a suit that hasn't been played yet.  If you can't you play a mime card instead, which costs you points and likely gives someone else a stack of points.  Like all trick taking games, a lot depends on the cards you're dealt, but it also has a depth of skill and strategy needed to excel.  It'll make you think differently about your strategies that you're used to in traditional trick taking games.  Plus the theme is very accessible to casual gamers or people only used to traditional card games.  And it plays with up to six players, so invite a bunch of friends to play! - GJJ Games Review

7. Tragedy Looper (2014 [2011 in Japan] - BakaFire - Z-Man Games) - I only played Tragedy Looper once, but absolutely loved it.  My wife and I played together and found it really fun and want to play more with just the two of us, so I haven't tried to play with others yet.  We loved the stories, mystery, theme, and logical deduction needed.  We've tried to get it to the table a couple of times but something always comes up that prevents us from playing.  Such is a busy life with two kids...  But we will get it to the table again, hopefully soon!

6. Tiny Epic Western (2016 - Scott Almes - Gamelyn Games) - Tiny Epic Belongs On This List...  That's pretty much any Tiny Epic game.  I've loved all of them and Tiny Epic Western is no exception.  There is a ton of game packed into this little box.  The worker placement and poker mechanics combine to create a really thematic game that's a blast to play.

5. Battle of Durak (2015 - Fedor Sosnin - DISRUPTIVE INC) - I won Battle of Durak in a giveaway and then found out from the owner of my FLGS that Durak means Fool in Russian and Durak is a traditional Russian card game.  In Battle of Durak the main mechanics are the same as the traditional game, but there are character abilities and events that change things up.  This is a great blend of a traditional card game with some fantasy character tropes that should be accessible to anyone who is familiar with traditional cards.  It's quick, fun, and keeps you thinking.  I brought this to a Cub Scout campout and everyone had a great time playing, even people that normally don't play any other games. - GJJ Games Review

4. Grifters * (2016 - Dave Fulton, Jacob Tlapek - Indie Boards & Cards) - I first played Grifters back in 2014 when it was You Dirty Rat.  I loved it then and have been following the game along with its name and publisher changes all the way up to it's successful Kickstarter and retail release.  When I got my Kickstarter copy I couldn't wait to play and when I did it was as great as I remembered.  Grifters uses a very interesting, new mechanic called hand-building.  It's similar to deck-building, but cards are never shuffled into a deck.  You always see what cards you have available.  This minimizes the luck factor considerably and makes for some really fascinating gameplay.  After playing my copy a number of friends went out and bought their own copies, something unusual for my group since most of us figure if a friend has the game we'll just play their copy.  But Grifters is one of those games where you'll really want to have your own copy. - GJJ Games Unboxing

3. Above and Below (2015 - Ryan Laukat - Red Raven Games) - Numbers 2 and 3 on this list are almost interchangeable.  I really had a hard time deciding what order to place them in.  In the end, the game that was newer to me made it into position 2 and Above and Below took position 3.  But like I said, the games are almost interchangeable...  They're both by the same designer!  Ryan Laukat has been creating some really wonderful games lately and I'm absolutely amazed that he not only designs the games, but also does all the artwork and publishes them on his own, too!  He's quite the renaissance man and I have yet to be disappointed by any of his games.  Above and Below is a fantastic game that combines worker placement mechanics with a story adventure!  It's like Tales of the Arabian Nights meets Caverna, and I'm completely enamoured with the game.

2. Islebound (2016 - Ryan Laukat - Red Raven Games) - Islebound is also by Ryan Laukat and has a lot in common with Above and Below.  Besides the amazing artwork and being set in the same fantasy world, the characters from Islebound can even be used in Above and Below!  I just recently acquired Islebound and have only played it once, but I think I like it even better than Above and Below.  Where Above and Below really focuses on individual adventures, Islebound promotes player interaction.  I felt like there was a lot more going on in Islebound to keep everyone engaged even when it wasn't their turn.  I did miss the story aspect though (even though that's there a tiny bit with the events), but I'm really looking forward to Near and Far's release next year to really unite the stories of Above and Below with the player interaction of Islebound.

1. Scythe (2016 - Jamey Stegmaier - Stonemaier Games) - OK, it may seem cliche at this point, but yes, Scythe is my top game of 2016.  Last year I succumbed to all the hype and jumped on that bandwagon in a big way.  I first discovered Jakub Rozalski's artwork a few years ago, before I new anything about a game being developed.

When I heard that Jamey Stegmaier was working on a game in that world that Jakub created I was fascinated.  The more I heard about the game the more I thought the game itself sounded awesome, too.  When the Kickstarter launched I was drooling over the game and convinced my wife and parents to buy it for me as a birthday present, even though the Kickstarter was in November, my birthday is in April, and the delivery date was supposed to be August.

I ended up getting the full Art Connoisseur edition with all the super nice bits.  Metal coins, realistic resources, bigger board, and, what I was really after, the Jakub Rozalski Art Book. As it came closer to the release of the game the hype remained high and my expectations were enormous.  Then the first few people started receiving their games and reporting back.  It seemed reception was mixed.  Overly positive, but there were a vocal few that expressed disappointment.  I was a bit worried, but still super excited, and so were my friends.

The huge box arrived just a couple of hours before I was supposed to leave for a game night, so I brought the game with, not expecting to have a chance to play since I hadn't had a chance to read through the rules in full yet.  But a friend had watched the how to play videos several times and when I walked into the game store with Scythe he pretty much demanded that we play.  So I broke it out and let him explain the rules while we set up and skimmed the rulebook for anything he missed.

We played a four player game that evening and everyone loved the game.  So much so that we played it three more times in the space of two weeks.  My expectations definitely were met with Scythe.  I love the theme, mechanics, stories, components, and of course the artwork.  Playing with the super special bits and bigger board really add to the experience, but even without all that I feel that the game is a very solid blend of Euro strategy and American theme (kind of ironic since it was designed in America and is set in Europe).  I still haven't won a game of Scythe yet, but I plan on playing it a whole lot, so I'm sure my time will come.  It really doesn't matter though, the experience of playing is a blast regardless of the outcome.

Well, that's it for my list of Top 10 New-To-Me Games of 2016.  I think overall this is the youngest list of games so far, with all of the top 10 being released in the US within the last three years and the oldest honorable mention being from 1999 and only a handful from before 2010.  I've now played a lot of the classics, so it's rarer that an older game really wows me, but I'm sure there are still some out there.  In the meantime I'll keep playing whatever turns up and having fun with all these wonderful games!  I hope you have a chance to play some of these and I can't wait to see what gems 2017 turns up.

Did you like this review?  Show your support by clicking the heart at Board Game Links , liking GJJ Games on Facebook , or following on Twitter .  And be sure to check out my games on  Tabletop Generation.


GJJG Game Reviews are independent, unpaid reviews of games I, George Jaros, have played with my family and friends.  Some of these games I own, some are owned by friends, some are borrowed, and some are print and play versions of games.  Where applicable I will indicate if games have been played with kids or adults or a mix (Family Play).  I won't go into extensive detail about how to play the game (there are plenty of other sources for that information and I'll occasionally link to those other sources), but I will give my impressions of the game and how my friends and family reacted to the game.  Quick Reviews will only get a single rating of 1-10 (low-high) based on my first impressions of the game during my first few times playing.  Hopefully I'll get more chances to play the game and will be able to give it a full review soon.

People Behind the Meeples - Episode 32: Grace E Olugbodi

Welcome to People Behind the Meeples, a series of interviews with indie game designers.  Here you'll find out more than you ever wanted to know about the people who make the best games that you may or may not have heard of before.  If you'd like to be featured, head over to http://gjjgames.blogspot.com/p/game-designer-interview-questionnaire.html and fill out the questionnaire! You can find all the interviews here: People Behind the Meeples.

---

Name:	Grace E Olugbodi
Email:	etogun@yahoo.co.uk
Location:	UK
Day Job:	Health and Nutrition, Entrepreneurship
Designing:	Over ten years!

Today's Interview is with:

Grace E Olugbodi
Interviewed on: 8/25/2016

Grace Olugbodi is a game designer and entrepreneur from London. She first became interested in designing games back in 2003 when she came up with the idea for making a game that will help children learn maths. Over the years she continued to develop her game and just recently started a new business called BeGenio that will produce a series of educational games. The first was successfully crowdfunded on IndieGoGo and is called Race to Infinity. You can learn more about Grace's company and games at http://www.begeniocity.com/ and http://www.easymathskills.com/

Some Basics
Tell me a bit about yourself.

How long have you been designing tabletop games?
Over ten years!

Why did you start designing tabletop games?
To help children love maths

What game or games are you currently working on?
BeGenio games and Race To Infinity

Have you designed any games that have been published?
Yes

What is your day job?
Health and Nutrition, Entrepreneurship

Your Gaming Tastes
My readers would like to know more about you as a gamer.

Where do you prefer to play games?
At home

Who do you normally game with?
My kids

If you were to invite a few friends together for game night tonight, what games would you play?
Chess and Monopoly

And what snacks would you eat?
Peanuts

Do you like to have music playing while you play games? If so, what kind?
Jazz

What is your favorite game mechanic? How about your least favorite?
I love any mechanics with dice

What’s your favorite game that you just can’t ever seem to get to the table?
Chess

What styles of games do you play?
I like to play Board Games, Card Games

Do you design different styles of games than what you play?
I like to design Board Games

You as a Designer
OK, now the bit that sets you apart from the typical gamer. Let's find out about you as a game designer.

When you design games, do you come up with a theme first and build the mechanics around that? Or do you come up with mechanics and then add a theme? Or something else?
Mechanics first and build a theme around it

Have you ever entered or won a game design competition?
Never entered

Do you have a current favorite game designer or idol?
No

Where or when or how do you get your inspiration or come up with your best ideas?
By talking to potential play testers

How do you go about playtesting your games?
I go into schools and send them to tuition centres and parents

Do you like to work alone or as part of a team? Co-designers, artists, etc.?
I prefer to be Part of a team but I work alone at the moment

What do you feel is your biggest challenge as a game designer?
Writing the rules, reviewing and changing according to what play testers' feedback is.

What do you wish someone had told you a long time ago about designing games?
That it takes ages

Would you like to tell my readers what games you're working on and how far along they are?
Published games, I have: One - Race to Infinity, part of the BeGenio series
Games that will soon be published are: Five
I'm planning to crowdfund: Yes
Games I feel are in the final development and tweaking stage are: One
Games that I'm playtesting are: Three
Games that are in the early stages of development and beta testing are: One

And the oddly personal, but harmless stuff…
OK, enough of the game stuff, let's find out what really makes you tick! These are the questions that I’m sure are on everyone’s minds!

Star Trek or Star Wars? Coke or Pepsi? VHS or Betamax?
Coke, VHS

What hobbies do you have besides tabletop games?
Music, working

What is something you learned in the last week?
How to expand my thinking even more

Favorite type of music? Books? Movies?
Motivational and personal development Books, pop music, family movies

What was the last book you read?
Zero to Hero

Do you play any musical instruments?
No

Tell us something about yourself that you think might surprise people.
I'm a programmer by trade

Tell us about something crazy that you once did.
My MSc full Time while working full time in Investment banking

Biggest accident that turned out awesome?
Re-designing my board for Race To Infinity

Who is your idol?
Richard Branson

What would you do if you had a time machine?
I'd publish my game sooner to help children love maths

Are you an extrovert or introvert?
Introvert

If you could be any superhero, which one would you be?
Super woman 😊

Have any pets?
No

When the next asteroid hits Earth, causing the Yellowstone caldera to explode, California to fall into the ocean, the sea levels to rise, and the next ice age to set in, what current games or other pastimes do you think (or hope) will survive into the next era of human civilization? What do you hope is underneath that asteroid to be wiped out of the human consciousness forever?
Poverty and hunger

If you’d like to send a shout out to anyone, anyone at all, here’s your chance (I can’t guarantee they’ll read this though):
My family and my mentor

Thanks for answering all my crazy questions!

---

Thank you for reading this People Behind the Meeples indie game designer interview! You can find all the interviews here: People Behind the Meeples and if you'd like to be featured yourself, you can fill out the questionnaire here: http://gjjgames.blogspot.com/p/game-designer-interview-questionnaire.html

Did you like this interview?  Show your support by clicking the heart at Board Game Links , liking GJJ Games on Facebook , or following on Twitter .  And be sure to check out my games on  Tabletop Generation.

GJJ Games Reviews - Feed the Shoggoth by Squamous Studios

Feed the Shoggoth
Designer: Badger McInnes
Publisher: Squamous Studios
3-6p | 45m | 14+

GJJ Games Reviews - Feed the Shoggoth by Squamous Studios
Disclaimer

Game Overview:
With all the games I have, I only had one set in the Lovecraftian mythos; Tides of Madness.  So when I was asked to review Feed the Shoggoth I figured it would be a great opportunity to work on filling a gap in my collection, thematically.  Feed the Shoggoth is a casual card game all about sacrificing your cultist minions to the Shoggoth in order to avoid being eaten yourself.  The theme and gameplay sounded light hearted (for a Lovecraft inspired game, anyway), fast, and interactive, so I figured I'd give it a shot.

Feed the Shoggoth is a take-that style card game for three to six players that takes around 45 minutes to play (although depending on your style of play, it can be a lot quicker or longer).  Feed the Shoggoth was successfully funded on Kickstarter back in July of 2014 and delivered to backers about a year ago.  You can pick up a copy of the game at http://feedtheshoggoth.com

Components & Packaging:
For a successfully funded game, the components were somewhat disappointing.  The cards themselves are nice, linen finished cards, and the artwork is nice, but the packaging is horrible.  Feed the Shoggoth comes in an oversized, cheap tuck box.  And it's not even a deckbox sized tuckbox like Star Realms comes in, this is a double-wides box that holds the cards in two separate piles, side by side, with no separator.  This might be acceptable if there was only one type of car, but there are a few that you don't want mixed in with the others, and inevitably the cards are going to shift and get mixed up.  

There had to be better choices for a box to store the game in.

Never mind the fact that the box stock is as thin, or thinner than the card stock and you have a box that'll be tossed in favor of a standard deck box in no time.  There's no way this box will hold up to repeated plays if you enjoy this game.  For a game that nearly doubled its funding goal there's no excuse for such a chintzy box.  If that's your first impression of the game it doesn't bode well.  It really feels more like a prototype than a published game.

I've only had the game a few weeks and the box is already looking pretty beat up.  It's not going to last for long.

I did really enjoy the artwork though.  The character and item art is fun and foreboding at the same time, perfect for a casual Lovecraftian game.  There is more artwork than needed though.  There are several cards with different names and artwork that do the exact same thing.  This adds a bit of superfluous complexity.  There's a lot of reading to learn different card abilities, so why make different cards have the same abilities?  It just adds to the inaccessibility if you can't learn to associate actions with specific cards.  But that's a point for the gameplay section.  I just wish they had taken the money spent on the extra art and gotten a decent box instead.

The art is good.  Nothing that will win awards, but it's thematic and fits the style of the game well.
Why there are so many spells that do the exact same thing as other spells though, I don't know...

Score: 5/10 x1

Rules & Setup:
Setup is super easy.  There are essentially four sets of cards in the game.  Most of the cards are the Spells, Artifacts, Actions, and Minions that will go into a main deck.  There are also ten Cult Faction Leader cards, a Graveyard card (where sacrificed Minions go), and a Shoggoth card that will circle the table looking for minions to eat.

All of the Spell, Artifact, Action, and Minion cards get shuffled into a draw deck and then each player is dealt seven cards.  If any players don't have any Minions in their hand they'll get a new hand until they have at least one Minion.  The draw deck is placed in the middle of the table with the graveyard on one side and a standard discard pile on the other.  The Shoggoth will also start the game in the middle of the table.  Each player is also given a random Cult Faction Leader card.  Each Cult Faction Leader has a special ability that will trigger during certain game conditions. 

Spells, Artifacts, Cult Leaders, Minions, Actions, The Shoggoth, and the Graveyard.

The rules also appear simple, at first glance.  However, as we played we realized that there are many vague areas in the rules, particularly around the timing of when certain cards can be played.

There are four types of cards that you'll have in your hand.  Minions are sacrificed to the Shoggoth to earn you points.  Artifacts can be used on the turn after you activate them to do various effects, but usually only on your turn.  Spells can be used any time, even on someone else's turn, and have various effects.  Actions work just like Spells, but can't be blocked.

In general, each player's turn consists of two phases.  First is the Artifacts phase.  In the Artifacts phase you enable any previously played Artifact cards.  This just means you turn them vertically, indicating that they can now be used.  Then you can play Artifacts from your hand.  When playing a new Artifact it comes into play turned horizontally.  This indicates that the Artifact cannot be used until your next turn.  Technically the rules have you do these two steps in reverse (play new Artifacts then activate existing Artifacts) but it feels much more natural how I described it and I don't believe there are any mechanics in the game that can affect this.

I have a hand of cards ready to go on my turn.

Next comes the Sacrifice phase, and this is where the rules get a bit more ambiguous.  The rules state that you can declare that you are going to sacrifice a minion if the Shoggoth is in front of you by holding up a minion card from your hand.  The assumption then would be that if the Shoggoth is not in front of you then you cannot declare a sacrifice and your turn would be over.  If you do declare a sacrifice, then the other players have the opportunity to play Spells and Actions to move the Shoggoth around or do other, more nasty things.

However, the rules then go on to state that if the Shoggoth is not in front of you, you can then play Spells and Artifacts to get the Shoggoth in front of you.

Then the rules state that you can go around the table and see if any other players have Spells to cast to try and stop your sacrifice.  You can play Spells, Actions, and Artifacts in response.  What's not clear is if these plays are done in any specific order or just haphazardly as players snag opportunities in the quickly changing game state.  It also doesn't state how long this can go on for.  Once around the table?  Until everyone passes?  Can the active player play something in response to every other player's card, or only after all other players have played?

If the Shoggoth is in front of you after everyone has played their Spells and Actions, then you can sacrifice a minion.  If you do, you get a point and the Shoggoth moves on to the next player to the left.activate don't have a minion to sacrifice, then the Shoggoth eats you and you are out of the game.

Sacrificed Minions go to the Graveyard, not the normal discard pile.  This makes Minions a limited resource in the game.

Finally, to end your turn you draw back up to your hand limit (usually seven cards).

The first player to collect three to five points, depending on the number of players, or the last one surviving, is the winner.

Overall, the rules seem pretty easy.  But the number of inconsistencies, contradictions, and ambiguities in the rules really cause a lot of confusion.  Spells can be cast any time, but does that mean any time during the Sacrifice phase?  If it's not my turn, can I play Spells during the active player's Artifacts phase?  Can I play Spells before the active player declares a Sacrifice?  On my turn, do I get to play Spells before I play any Artifacts?  Can I use Spells to move the Shoggoth in front of me before I declare a sacrifice?  Can others mess with that immediately?  Or do they have to wait until I ask if anyone wants to try and stop my sacrifice?  There's just too much that needs clarification.  Yes, you can easily house rule most of this stuff, but a game shouldn't require 2/3 of the rules to be house rules.

Score: 4/10 x2

Gameplay:
As indicated in the rules section, gameplay was a bit of a mess.  There were timing and turn order issues constantly.  The game just didn't flow smoothly.  It was hard enough to get the Shoggoth in front of you on your turn without worrying about other players playing spells before you have a chance to do anything.

I think at it's heart Feed the Shoggoth could be a very fun take-that game, similar to Munchkin, but without a lot of the overhead, but it needs a lot more work.  The pieces are there, they just don't work well together.  Some streamlining of the timing and turn sequence, clarification of exactly when cards can be played, and more Shoggoth attacks would really help the game flow.  

There are some great interactions caused by the Spell cards.

There is a variant that has the Shoggoth demand a sacrifice on every turn, regardless of who it ends up in front of, and I think that would be a much more exciting and fast paced way to play.  With the standard rules it is so difficult to control the Shoggoth so he is in front of you on your turn that the game drags and outstays its welcome.  With someone needing to sacrifice every turn, I think the game time would be cut to about 30 minutes, maybe even quicker, which is perfect.  

Score: 5/10 x3

Replayability:
Honestly, I have no real desire to play this again, and neither did anyone I played with.  I think this was mainly due to the pace and follow of the game though.  I can see where the game could have some potential with an overhaul of the rules, but my initial experience with the game was so lackluster that it would take someone else really wanting to give the game a try for me to play again.

However, if there is ever a second edition with all of the rules issues ironed out, I could see this being a great alternative to Munchkin.  If you are into take-that games like Munchkin I can see where Feed the Shoggoth would be right up your alley.  The cards are humorous (you can chase the Shoggoth with a hoard of penguins), there is a ton of player interaction, and it's light enough that the screw-your-neighbor and player elimination aspects shouldn't be a huge deterrent.  It's really the rules that are the issue.

"Those must be some special penguins.  I don't think I've ever seen a Shoggoth move that fast."
The flavor text on many of the cards is great.

Score: 5/10 x1

General Fun:
You can probably guess that the game, as is, wasn't much fun for me or the others I played with.  In fact, they all asked to quit before the official end.  The pacing was all off and everyone was tired of trying to scour the rules searching for clarifications that just weren't there.  For a game that should have been fast, chaotic fun, Feed the Shoggoth just left everyone feeling frustrated and run down.  That's a shame, because I think with a lot of clean up and clarification to streamline the gameplay, Feed the Shoggoth could be a ton of fun.

These guys are the stars of the show.  Unfortunately they can't quite save it.

Score: 4/10 x2

Overall Value:
At $20, I can't recommend Feed the Shoggoth.  Even if the gameplay was fixed $20 would be to much for a game that consists of only 120 cards, a rules sheet, and a piece of junk tuck box.  $15, or even $10 would be more appropriate, but the gameplay needs a lot of work for even that to be reasonable.

Score: 4/10 x1

Final Thoughts:
Feed the Shoggoth felt more like an early prototype than a completed game.  There is a vague impression of a decent game, but it needs a lot more testing and refinement before it's finished.  Unfortunately it is finished.  

If I had played this at a Protospiel event, I'd have given the designer feedback and said I was interested to see where it would evolve to by the next event.  I do like the moving Shoggoth, the different Cult Faction Leader abilities (although they don't seem very well balanced), the way Minions can become a limited resource (although I suspect this isn't as much of an issue in lower player count games), and the player interaction.  Unfortunately all the good stuff is overshadowed by the obtuse rules.

If I had gotten this as a Kickstarter preview I'd have pointed out all the rules issues in the hopes that they'd be fixed for the final printing.  I'd probably have rated this as a 6 as a Kickstarter preview, especially if I had gotten some positive responses from the designer (maybe even a 7).

But for a published game to have this many issues is inexcusable.  It feels like the game was never blind playtested.  Curiously, there are no reviews on the Kickstarter page for Feed the Shoggoth, so maybe it never was blind playtested or sent to any reviewers.  Regardless, it's obvious that there really wasn't enough time put into perfecting the game.

Were this a prototype I'd say it had potential.  But unfortunately it's not a prototype.

So I guess Tides of Madness is going to remain the only Lovecraftian game in my collection.  The only one I'll be playing, anyway.  However, if you really like take-that style games and want a change from Munchkin, you might want to take a look at Feed the Shoggoth.  Just be prepared for a lot of tweaking and refinement to the rules through your own house rules.  If you play as the rules are written you're in for a night of frustration.

Overall Score: 45/100

Want another opinion?  Feed the Shoggoth was also reviewed by Jeremy on the Everything Board Games Network!  Check out his review here!

Did you like this review?  Show your support by clicking the heart at Board Game Links , liking GJJ Games on Facebook , or following on Twitter .  And be sure to check out my games on  Tabletop Generation.

GJJG Game Reviews are independent, unpaid reviews of games I, George Jaros, have played with my family and friends.  Some of these games I own, some are owned by friends, some are borrowed, and some are print and play versions of games.  Where applicable I will indicate if games have been played with kids or adults or a mix (Family Play).  I won't go into extensive detail about how to play the game (there are plenty of other sources for that information and I'll occasionally link to those other sources), but I will give my impressions of the game and how my friends and family reacted to the game.  A score of 1-10 (low-high) is given to each game in six categories: Components & Packaging, Rules & Setup, Gameplay, Replayability, Overall Value, and General Fun.  Rules & Setup and General Fun are weighted double and Gameplay is weighted triple.  Educational games have an extra category and Gameplay is only weighted double. Then the game is given a total score of x/100.