A podcast about all manner of hobby games by Mike Walker and Mark Bigney. Bad games don't go easy on you, so we don't go easy on them. Thorough analysis via reviews, news, and discussion of topics in gaming. We take context seriously, we value your time, and we're not into hype. Just because games are fun doesn't mean we can't take them seriously, and just because we take them seriously doesn't mean we can't have fun.
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Have you heard of the Walker Quint? This patent-pending, uncopyrightable system is more than just a game organizational schema--it is a multipurpose framework that will REVOLUTIONIZE YOUR LIFE in every way! It's more like a cult, really. Join us in following the Eternal Path of the Walker Quint. 01:43 AYURIS: Undaunted 2200: Callisto (Trevor Benjamin and David Thompson, Osprey, 2024) Games Played…
The world is changing, what with everything being cozy and (some) crowdfunding projects fulfilling in weeks rather than years. This dizzying pace of evolution can be disorienting, which is why Notebook Nations seeks to comfort and console you by having throwbacks to the design decisions of years past. Games Played Last Week: 01:55 -Wonderland's War (Tim Eisner, Ben Eisner, and Ian Moss, Druid City…
We have recovered from SVWAG Con II: Electric Boogaloo, and to the best of our knowledge there was no "con crud" or equivalent contagion. We make no claims that the con possesses curative powers, though we haven't had anyone say that it *didn't* cure a chronic illness. 01:27 AYURIS: Andromeda's Edge (Luke Laurie and Maximus Laurie, Cardboard Alchemy, 2024) Games Played Last Week: 03:48 -Eternal…
Just in time for SVWAGCon, Mark's car has fallen prey to Princeton's unforgiving roads and local practitioners of the mechanical arts. Which ones are trustworthy? Which are inept mountebanks? As far as mountebanks are concerned, would one prefer an inept one or a skilled one? These pressing questions will have to wait, as in the interim the barrier between Mark and his SVWAGCon obligations is ALL…
"If you're down and confused And you don't remember who you're talking to Concentration slips away Because your baby is so far away Well there's a rose in a fisted glove And the eagle flies with the dove And if you can't be with the one you love honey Love the one you're with" -Confucius (probably, maybe Socrates, I don't know) 02:13 AYURIS: Deep Rock Galactic (Ole Steiness, MOOD Publishing, 2022)…
I was three actions deep into my tenth turn of Recall when I achieved total mastery. I was beyond the Schwarzenegger and the Farrell, deep with Koato and triple-mammaried subversives. A newb at the table interrupted my reverie with a question concerning ambiguous inconography. "That card?" I said, feeling like cutting a deal. "I can remember it for you wholesale." They called me a dick. Games…
It is Inadvertent Surprise Railway Week (ISRW, pronounced "is raw") here at SVWAG, and we take a look at some train games without directly addressing the raging controversy of what, exactly, constitutes a train game. 02:25 AYURIS: Wilmot's Warehouse (Ricky Haggett, Richard Hogg, and David King, CMYK, 2024) Games Played Last Week: 07:06 -Railway Boom (Hisashi Hayashi & Simone Luciani, Arclight…
Acronyms and initialisms are a tricky thing. In SVWAG circles, one must be careful to use proper punctuation, lest GOA imply 2022's Game of the Year (GotY, not Gotye) Guards of Atlantis. Mark remains enraged that the SC2 acronym was robbed from Greatest of All Time (GOAT, not goat, obviously) Star Control 2 by the usurper StarCraft 2. Games Played Last Week: 01:07 -The Old King's Crown (Pablo…
SVWAG CON II Electric Boogaloo https://www.eventbrite.com/e/svwag-con-ii-electric-boogaloo-tickets-1986634285627 www.sowronggames.com www.twitch.tv/soverywrongaboutgames www.youtube.com/c/SoVeryWrongAboutGames https://twitter.com/sowronggames www.facebook.com/sowronggames www.patreon.com/svwag/ We are now a transnational podcast, bearing the official approval of both United States Customs and…
Rest assured, Mark was subjected to the appropriate onboarding procedures and workplace safety trainings incumbent with his new (old?) role. The HR gibbons are ever-vigilant, and wouldn't dream of letting him skip the mandatory 56 week course. Well, that's the longest one, anyway--the ape sensitivity course is a mere 45 weeks long, despite the gibbons' insistence that it ought to be the most…
SVWAG CON II Electric Boogaloo https://www.eventbrite.com/e/svwag-con-ii-electric-boogaloo-tickets-1986634285627 www.sowronggames.com www.twitch.tv/soverywrongaboutgames www.youtube.com/c/SoVeryWrongAboutGames https://twitter.com/sowronggames www.facebook.com/sowronggames www.patreon.com/svwag/ 00:00 INTRO 01:39 Salton Sea (David Bernal Devir 2024) 09:25 Stellar Ventures (Pontus Nilsson TableTapas…
https://www.youtube.com/@BoardGamingRamblings SVWAG CON II Electric Boogaloo https://www.eventbrite.com/e/svwag-con-ii-electric-boogaloo-tickets-1986634285627 www.sowronggames.com www.twitch.tv/soverywrongaboutgames www.youtube.com/c/SoVeryWrongAboutGames https://twitter.com/sowronggames www.facebook.com/sowronggames www.patreon.com/svwag/ 00:00 INTRO 00:50 Secret Societies (S J Macdonald Garphill…
https://www.youtube.com/@everydayboardgames https://www.eventbrite.com/e/svwag-con-ii-electric-boogaloo-tickets-1986634285627 www.sowronggames.com www.twitch.tv/soverywrongaboutgames www.youtube.com/c/SoVeryWrongAboutGames https://twitter.com/sowronggames www.facebook.com/sowronggames www.patreon.com/svwag/ 00:00 INTRO 01:12 Formidable Farm (Friedemann Friese 2F-Spiele 2025) 04:43 Trickster Gods…
One Stop Co-op Shop www.youtube.com/c/OneStopCoopShop SVWAG CON II Electric Boogaloo https://www.eventbrite.com/e/svwag-con-ii-electric-boogaloo-tickets-1986634285627 www.sowronggames.com www.twitch.tv/soverywrongaboutgames www.youtube.com/c/SoVeryWrongAboutGames https://twitter.com/sowronggames www.facebook.com/sowronggames www.patreon.com/svwag/ 00:00 INTRO 01:30 Nippon: Zaibatsu (Nuno Bizarro…
Get your SVWAG CON tickets HERE: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/svwag-con-ii-electric-boogaloo-tickets-1986634285627 This weeks guest Tim Dolloff from Board Game Hottakes https://boardgamehottakes.com/ 00:00 INTRO 00:47 Euphoria Essential Edition (Morten Monrad Pedersen, Jamey Stegmaier, David J. Studley Stonemaier Games 2026) 05:56 The Waste of Parts (Evan Duda Sky Kingdom Games 2026) 10:57 Aquaria…
This weeks guest: Jake Frydman https://www.decisionspacepodcast.com/ Blueberry jam not jelly........ don't be gross 00:00 INTRO 01:33 Cysmic (Jason Blake Star Reach Games 2026) 04:43 Bomb Busters (Hisashi Hayashi Pegasus Spiele 2024) 07:03 Crits & Tricks (Pete Wissinger Inside Up Games 2026) 10:47 Baghdad: The City of Peace (Fabio Lopiano, Nestore Mangone Alley Cat Games 2025) 15:25 Taj Mahal…
This weeks guest: 5 Games 4 Doomsday Ben Maddox https://5g4d.com/ 00:00 INTRO 02:06 Moon Colony Bloodbath (Donald X. Vaccarino, Rio Grande Games 2025) 06:01 Ghost Blitz Junior (Jacques Zeimet Zoch Verlag 2018) 06:56 Paku Paku (Antoine Bauza Ravensburger 2017) 11:07 Imperial Elegy: The Road to the Great War 1850-1920 (Michael Lorino VUCA Simulations 2025) 17:12 Cysmic (Jason Blake Star Reach Games…
This weeks Guest Charlie Theel https://playerelimination.com/ Something smells tricky 00:00 INTRO 01:01 Dark Pact (Thomas Lehmann Trick or Treat Studios 2026) 05:21 Excalibur (Manny Trembley Roxley 2026) 08:48 Don't Mess with Cthulhu (Yusuke Sato New Board Game Party 2014) 10:59 Galaxy Trucker (Vlaada Chvátil Czech Games Edition 2007) 15:25 Railroad Tiles (Hjalmar Hach, Lorenzo Silva Horrible…
What's that smell? https://spacebiff.com/ This weeks guest Dan Thurot from Space-Biff 00:00 Intro 00:45 WENDYBUXXX (Jo Kelly Miasma Corp Games 2026) 02:58 Compania (Yog Akase, Level 99 Games 2025) 05:45 Inkwell (Jasper Beatrix, Lewis Graye, Joey Palluconi DVC Games 2026) 07:35 Eternal Decks (Hiroken Tricktakers Games 2025) 11:20 Dark Pact (Thomas Lehmann Trick or Treat Studios 2026) 14:15 Fearless…
Telling ME Calimala is good the nerve 00:00 Intro 00:58 Calimala (Fabio Lopiano Alley Cat Games2017) 04:59 Railroad Tiles (Hjalmar Hach, Lorenzo Silva Horrible Guild 2025) 08:15 Regicide Legacy (Paul Abrahams, Luke Badger, Andy Richdale Badgers from Mars 2025) 12:04 Movie Tricks (Vegard Eliassen Stillerud, Eilif Svensson, Åsmund Svensson Chilifox Games 2025) 15:35 SETI: Search for Extraterrestrial…
00:00 Intro 01:25 Star Trek: Captain's Chair – To Boldly Go (Nigel Buckle, Dávid Turczi, Adam Turczi WizKids 2026) 02:53 Feya's Swamp (Helge Ostertag, Anselm Ostertag Fractal Juegos 2025) 07:07 Puerto Rico 1897: Special Edition (Andreas Seyfarth Awaken Realms 2025) 09:50 Compania (Yog Akase Asobition 2025) 12:00 Voidfall: Resurgence (Nigel Buckle, Marcel Dragomir, Dávid Turczi Mindclash Games…
Going to have to post a guard to the studio.... Can't keep letting riff raff stroll in. (unless its the rapper) 00:00 Intro 04:03 Innovation Deluxe (Carl Chudyk Asmadi Games 2017) 07:28 Tír na nÓg (Isaac Shalev, Jason Slingerland Grand Gamers Guild 2024) 09:59 Azul (Michael Kiesling Plan B Games 2017) 15:27 Coalitions (Andrew Rourke PHALANX 2026) 24:44 The Crew: Mission Deep Sea (Thomas Sing…
This weeks guest Chris from Liege of Games https://www.youtube.com/c/Li%C3%A8geofGames 00:00 Intro 00:48 Torchlit (David Spalinski Allplay 2024) 03:51 The Hobbit: There and Back Again (Reiner Knizia Office Dog 2025) 06:31 Soar (Max Anderson, Zac Dixon, Austin Harrison IV Studio 2026) 12:08 Riftforce (Carlo Bortolini 1 More Time Games 2021) 13:57 Penguin Party (Reiner Knizia AMIGO 2008) NOT a…
This weeks special guest Efka from No Pun Included https://www.youtube.com/c/NoPunIncluded/videos 00:00 Intro Games we played last week 01:11 Cena (A.I. Lab 2025) 04:40 Wine Cellar (Andrew Stiles 25th Century Games 2025) 05:29 Movie Tricks (Vegard Eliassen Stillerud, Eilif Svensson, Åsmund Svensson Chilifox Games 2025) 08:09 Sweet Takes (Hisashi Hayashi Hasbro 2023) 10:40 Inis: Nemed (Christian…
This week's guest Don from The Secret Cabal Gaming Podcast 00:00 INTRO Games We Played Last Week 01:52 Soothsayers (Jeff Grisenthwaite, Play to Z 2026) 05:45 Orléans (Reiner Stockhausen, DLP games 2014) 08:56 Xenology (Dan Manfredini, Play to Z 2025) 13:16 XenoShyft: Onslaught (Keren Philosophales, Michael Shinall, Cool Mini Or Not 2015) 16:30 Puerto Rico 1897: Special Edition (Andreas Seyfarth,…
This week I welcome the Hungry Gamer 00:00 INTRO Games We Played Last Week 01:08 Conquest Princess: Fashion Is Power (Seppy Yoon, Peter Yang Fight in a Box 2024) 03:44 War Chest (Trevor Benjamin, David Thompson AEG 2018) 06:08 Lands of Galzyr (Seppo Kuukasjärvi, Sami Laakso Snowdale Design 2022) 09:27 OffShoots (Dan Linden, Self-Published 2024) 12:20 Flamecraft Duals (Manny Vega Cardboard Alchemy…
Today's episode is brought to you by the letter T T stands for tracks, tedium, Tiny mini games and sometimes Torturous 00:00 Intro AYURIS 01:08 Captain Flip (Remo Conzadori, Paolo Mori, PlayPunk 2024) Games We Played Last Week 04:06 Fields of Arle (Uwe Rosenberg, Feuerland Spiele 2014) 08:16 Lunar Rush (Steven "Skippy" Brown, Dead Alive Games 2023) 10:08 Clans of Caledonia: Industria (Juma…
A viking fighting for Olav the Holy at Stiklestad gets an arrow in the eye. The man pulls the arrow out, his eyeball still on out it, and says: "Det jaggu nærme nasen! (That was damn close the my nose)" Another viking fighting for Olav at Stiklestad gets an arrow through his heart. He manages to pull the arrow out and study it. With his dying breath he says: "Eg har fettslintrat kring hjartet.…
On today's episode we have Sam from Board Game Dual Podcast https://boardgameduel.podbean.com/ 00:00 INTRO Games we played this week. 01:09 Yokohama Duel (Hisashi Hayashi, OKAZU Brand 2018) 05:19 Airlines Europe (Alan R. Moon, Rio Grande Games 2011) 07:45 I Made You a Mixtape (Mike DiLisio, Dan Hughes, Massive Asterisk 2025) 11:12 Mutant Chronicles: Siege of the Citadel (Richard Borg, Pressman Toy…
https://boardgamebarrage.com/ Well here it is Walker's all alone now..... Today I am joined by Mark from Board Game Barrage 00:00 Intro 01:08 Games we played last week. 01:12 Bomb Busters (Hisashi Hayashi,Cocktail Games,2024) 05:00 Let's Go Japan (Josh Wood,AEG,2024) 08:28 Taj Mahal (Reiner Knizia,Ravensburger,2000) 11:55 Lone Wolves (Yasuyuki Nakamura,Anthony Perone, Wonderful World Board…
This guy just won't leave... Mark and I in our last, last episode together for a bit. Not to worry I will be rambling ever forward. In this shorter episode we talk about just the games we played last week, some news and scene. 01.29 -AYURIS: Slay the Spire: The Board Game (Gary Dworetsky, Anthony Giovannetti, and Casey Yano, Contention Games, 2024) Games Played Last Week: 05:05 -Tidal Blades 2:…
In some ways, the origin story of the podcast can be traced back to Sentinels of the Multiverse. Upon arriving in Kingston, Mark was at a games event at someone's home, and he saw that someone had brought a then-complete set (this was a few expansions ago) of Sentinels. He knew that this person, namely Walker, was a person worth knowing. It therefore seemed fitting that on one of Mark's last days…
"One day I was sitting in a gazebo, and there was a plaque on the gazebo and it said, 'This gazebo was built by the town in 1863.' That is in the middle of the Civil War. And the whole town built a gazebo. What was that town meeting like? 'All right, everyone, first order of business, we have all the telegrams from Gettysburg with the war dead. Let’s see here. Okay, everyone’s husband and brother…
"I thought the Rococo was the name of the ship in Aliens." "No, that's Sulaco. Rococo is the statute targeting organized crime." "No, that's RICO. Rococo is the hot beverage made with chocolate." "No, that's cocoa. Rococo is what you put on walls to give them texture." "No, that's stucco. Rococo is a kind of shortened note in music." "No, that's staccato..." 1:10 AYURIS: Fateforge: Chronicles of…
You gotta read the fine print, always. Anyone dealing with a supernatural entity--whether a djinn or deity, gremlin or god--has to be conscious of the exceptions. It's simple enough--if the wizard handing you a fantastical creature tells you not to feed it, you just don't feed it. Similarly, if someone promises not to kill you *in a certain way*, MacBeth can tell you that's more of a threat than a…
Yes, it’s Tapple! The toy sensation that’s sweeping the nation! Only $14.95 at participating stores! Get one today! Warning: Pregnant women, the elderly, and children under 10 should avoid prolonged exposure to Tapple. Caution: Tapple may suddenly accelerate to dangerous speeds. Tapple contains a liquid core, which, if exposed due to rupture, should not be touched, inhaled, or looked at. If Tapple…
Before Dr. Reiner Knizia invented areas, everyone and everything was simultaneously co-located and yet distant all at the same time. It was primordial chaos. Movement was effectively impossible, as Xeno demonstrated; then Knizia did don his Bow-Tie of Delineation of Time and Space and constrained and liberated us all at once with his invention of areas. Games Played Last Week: 00:53 -Dungeons &…
While Mark is perhaps disappointed at the typical tragic dearth of questions related to Macross and Terry Bogard, and Walker secretly yearns to be granted naming rights to a listener's offspring (protip: don't let him), SVWAG answers all* of your questions! *by which we mean some. 01:21 AYURIS: Cascadero (Reiner Knizia, Bitewing Games, 2024) Games Played Last Week: 03:09 -Cerebria: The Inside…
In our effort to answer all of your Omnibus Questions, sadly we cannot enlist the assistance of notable Canadian Keanu Reeves. In an interview with Stephen Colbert--as a joke after Keanu said something profound--he was asked, "What do you think happens when we die, Keanu Reeves?" After a pause, and the audience's laughter, Keanu said, "I know that that the ones who love us will miss us." I SAY…
We deliver this episode despite the officially mandated period of public mourning due to Toronto's setbacks in basesball. In Canada, public mourning is characterized by donning black jean jackets and swapping our Tragically Hip for the more down-tempo Blue Rodeo, to say nothing of abstaining from boardgaming. Please don't turn us in for violating federal law. We might get banned from Tim Horton's.…
"'Frederick Chopin was a Polish composer in the Romantic style who wrote primarily for the piano.' I guess this is sort of interesting, as most facts are. But history has shown us that *facts are not what most humans believe.* They are not that which motivates most men and women to love to or to crime. Now COMPARE this statement: 'Frederick Chopin was a Polish composer in the Romantic style who…
As ever, we do not acknowledge one of the most pernicious false dichotomies in the rulebook space; whether rules should be strictly permissive (you can only do what the rules say you can) or strictly restrictive (you can do anything unless the rules say otherwise). I have never seen a rulebook forbid me from choking an opponent, nor have I see a rulebook give me permission to breathe. I will thus…
"Wiarton Willie is the name given to a Canadian groundhog who lives in the community of Wiarton in Bruce County, Ontario. Every February 2, on Groundhog Day, Willie takes part in the local Wiarton Willie Festival. His role is to predict whether there will be an early spring. Although the original Wiarton Willie died in 1999, the Wiarton Groundhog Day celebrations continue each year with a…
Rest assured that every topic we address here at SVWAG will be utterly comprehensive and final, unless and until we decide to address it again. Thus, when we discuss tile-laying games, we perforce will cover all of them, each and and every one, and failure to specifically mention any title means it does not exist and must be scrubbed from all records as a revisionist lie. 01:41 AYURIS: Kutná Hora:…
"A quipu usually consists of cotton or camelid fiber cords, and contains categorized information based on dimensions like color, order and number. The Inca, in particular, used knots tied in a decimal positional system to store numbers and other values in quipu cords. Depending on its use and the amount of information it stored, a given quipu may have anywhere from a few to several thousand cords.…
We are staunchly body positive here at SVWAG, but we do prefer our bears fat. "Let me have about me bears that are fat," said Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, or he would have, had he known about the glory that is Fat Bear Week. I guess Caesar wouldn't have been totally down with the democratic aspect of the whole voting thing, but whatever! Exercise your franchise and vote for the moist chonkers…
We tempt fate and refer to a number of third rails in the hobby community. For one, we acknowledge a loss in Regicide Legacy, which reliably summons the chattering mobs. Further, we mention both Star Trek and Star Wars, so undoubtedly we get a detail "wrong" that will "justify" a detailed response. Look, we're experts here. We completed the Kobayashi Maru in under 12 parsecs. We're regular callers…
"Well, that was your mother And that was your father Before you was born dude When life was great You are the burden of my generation I sure do love you But let’s get that straight" -Paul Simon, "That Was Your Mother" 01:34 AYURIS: Nucleum (Simone Luciani & Dávid Turczi, Board&Dice, 2023) Games Played Last Week: 04:04 -SILOS (Reiner Knizia, Bitewing Games, 2025) 09:34 -Ayar: Children of the Sun…
On this day of Labour, we offer our solidarity to you. We also offer our labour, because we don't take many days off. No union for us in the opinion mines! I'd complain to my manager, but since that's me, I guess I'd be inclined to ignore it. Classic conflict on interest. The gibbons only complicate the org chart in unhelpful ways. Games Played Last Week: 01:01 -Hot Streak (Jon Perry, CMYK, 2025)…
I've always chafed at the conventional wisdom that young goats are good at trick-taking games. Or, at least, ones where you are not incentivized to go null. Do they hold their cards in their cloven hooves? Do their dead eyes come to life when contemplating the vagaries of trump suits? It must be true, though, because I have it on good authority from a cartoon rabbit that tricks are for kids. 01:23…