It is remarkable to reflect on how much hobbies can demand of us, and certainly board gaming is no different. Setting aside the administrative, economic, and social burdens; we then have to spend so much time teaching, setting up, and tearing down. Alas! 23-step processes for general set up prior to the 12-step individual player board set up. It was not always thus, but here we are.

01:42 AYURIS: Voidfall (Nigel Buckle & Dávid Turczi, Mindclash Games, 2023)

Games Played Last Week:

07:15 -Shackleton Base: A Journey to the Moon (Fabio Lopiano & Nestore Mangone, Sorry We Are French, 2024)

13:37 -Cthulhu: Death May Die--Fear of the Unknown (Rob Daviau, Eric M. Lang, and Marco Portugal, CMON, 2024)

17:48 -Barony: Heroes (Marc André, Grail Games, 2025)

21:04 -Netrunner: System Gateway (Zoe Cohen, McGregor Crowley, June Valencia Cuervo, Max Chippington Derrick, Gregory Tongue, and Jade Wesley, Null Signal Games, 2021)

34:37 -Planepita (Eisuke Fuijinawa & Kazunori Hori, SzpiLAB, 2022)

40:50 -ALIEN: Fate of the Nostromo (Scott Rogers, Ravensburger, 2021)

44:47 -Endeavor: Deep Sea (Carl de Visser and Jarratt Gray, Burnt Island Games, 2024)

News (and why it doesn't matter):

50:05 Germán P. Millán's Covenant

50:35 Blood Rage: Valhalla expandalone to be on crowdfunding

53:52 Little Soldiers: green army men miniatures game

54:38 SVWAG Con (July 25th-July 27th) SOLD OUT

55:34 Topic: Setup and Teardown

Apparently the American custom of the "push present" can trace its roots to the Anglo-Indian tradition of the "baby bauble", although in the latter case jewellery is the more standard gift (instead of, say, boardgames). Can we acknowledge that baby bauble is a much less crude term? Let's try to be classy here, people. There is already enough about childbirth that is fraught.

Games Played Last Week:

2:07 -Galactic Cruise (T.K. King, Dennis Northcott, and Koltin Thompson, Kinson Key Games, 2025)

6:31 -Cerebria: The Inside World (Richard Amann, Viktor Peter, István Pócsi, Frigyes Schőberl, Nick Shaw, & Dávid Turczi, Mindclash Games, 2018)

12:53 -Phantom Division (Pete Ruth & Mark Thomas, Phantom Horizon, 2026)

23:19 -Space Gits (Mike Hutchinson, Planet Smasher Games, 2025)

28:03 -Earthborne Rangers (Andrew Fischer, Brooks Flugaur-Leavitt, Andrew Navaro, Adam Sadler, and Brady Sadler, Earthborne Games, 2023)

30:00 -Dro Polter (Paul Schulz, Oink Games, 2023)

33:14 -Shackleton Base: A Journey to the Moon (Fabio Lopiano & Nestore Mangone, Sorry We Are French, 2024)

40:56 -TONKS (Apocrypha_Now, Web-published, 2023)

News (and why it doesn't matter):

43:41 Flurry of Friedemann Friese: Formidable Farm, Fearless, Five Families

44:45 Open registration for SVWAG Con (July 25th-July 27th) on Eventbrite! https://tinyurl.com/25s6p5jd

45:14 Feature Game: 7 Empires (Mac Gerdts, PD-Verlag, 2024)

Walker's approach to parenting eschews what he sees as the coddling endemic in other families. He believes in competition above all else, where newbs must be pwned and even babies must git gud. "L2P" is his family motto. Some appalled anthropologists tried making a documentary about the Walker household, but they were forced to tone it down and release it as Squid Game.

01:21 AYURIS: Through the Desert (Reiner Knizia, KOSMOS, 1998)

Games Played Last Week:

02:56 -Pocket Paladin (Joe Klipfel, Mythfield Games, 2025)

09:44 -7 Empires (Mac Gerdts, PD-Verlag, 2024)

21:10 -A Gentle Rain (Kevin Wilson, Incredible Dream Studios, 2024)

24:37 -Flip 7 (Eric Olsen, The Op Games, 2024)

25:31 -NMBR 9 (Peter Wichmann, ABACUSSPIELE, 2017)

27:44 -Earthborne Rangers (Andrew Fischer, Brooks Flugaur-Leavitt, Andrew Navaro, Adam Sadler, and Brady Sadler, Earthborne Games, 2023)

31:23 -Everdell (James A. Wilson, Starling Games, 2018)

35:12 -Shackleton Base: A Journey to the Moon (Fabio Lopiano & Nestore Mangone, Sorry We Are French, 2024)

40:47 -Animal Upon Animal (Klaus Miltenberger, HABA, 2005)

News (and why it doesn't matter):

45:16 Open registration for SVWAG Con (July 25th-July 27th) on Eventbrite! https://tinyurl.com/25s6p5jd

47:38 Support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/svwag

48:12 Law 96 threatens hobby game stores:

https://www.ctvnews.ca/montreal/article/hobby-shops-say-it-will-be-game-over-for-their-businesses-due-to-quebecs-language-law/

49:49 Topic: Small Box, Big Game

"Because of the long-standing mutual enmity between Meany and Brown, Meany was named among the suspects in The Case Of Encyclopedia Brown’s Mangled Corpse. Meany denied the allegations.

'It’s true that Detective Brown and I didn’t see eye to eye, but I would never do something so downright dirty rotten as murder him,' Meany said. 'Besides, it’s a matter of public record that, at the time the crime was committed, I was at the North Pole watching the penguins.'"

-"Idaville Detective 'Encyclopedia' Brown Found Dead In Library Dumpster", The Onion

01:42 AYURIS: Zoo Vadis (Reiner Knizia, Bitewing Games, 2023)

Games Played Last Week:

4:12 -Sky Team (Luc Rémond, Le Scorpion Masqué, 2023)

7:20 -Ofrenda (Orlando Sá & André Santos, Osprey Games, 2025)

12:51 -Galactic Cruise (T.K. King, Dennis Northcott, and Koltin Thompson, Kinson Key Games, 2025)

20:05 -Twins (Reiner Knizia, Oink Games, 1996)

23:59 -Clinic Deluxe Edition (Alban Viard, AVStudioGames, 2019)

28:23 -Stationfall (Matt Eklund, Ion Game Design, 2023)

37:46 -Great Western Trail: New Zealand (Alexander Pfister, eggertspiele, 2023)

40:45 -Schotten Totten 2 (Reiner Knizia, IELLO, 2020)

45:18 -Corps of Discovery: A Game Set in the World of Manifest Destiny (Jay Cormier & Sen-Foong Lim, Off the Page Games, 2025)

News (and why it doesn't matter):

49:13 Balance updates to Fromage

50:17 Tianxia by Daniele Tascini & Antonio Petrelli, another "T" game by Board&Dice

50:39 Burned by Stone Circle Games will have a crowd sale on The Game Crafter soon

51:19 Open registration for SVWAG Con (July 25th-July 27th) on Eventbrite! https://tinyurl.com/25s6p5jd

51:45 Topic: Pulling Levers

We generally frown on ad hominem here at SVWAG, ensconced as we are in our glass houses. In the case of Jean-Jacques Rousseau (known affectionately as "Ja-Jay" by no one), though, who wrote extensively about proper methods of childhood education, we shall report that he confessed to rather callously sandbagging his lover into abandoning their children (Rousseau claimed there were five of them, though records are tricky). Way to be a douchebag, Jay-Jay.

01:47 AYURIS: City of the Great Machine (German Tikhomirov, CrowD Games, 2023)

Games Played Last Week:

03:36 -River Rats (Mathijs Jansen & Robin Stokkel, Four Suits Studio, 2025)

08:08 -The Gang (John Cooper and Kory Heath, KOSMOS, 2024)

09:47 -SCOUT (Kei Kajino, Oink Games, 2019)

11:47 -Storm Raiders (Shem Phillips, Arkus Games, 2025)

13:36 -Tigris & Euphrates (Reiner Knizia, Hans im Gluck, 1997)

16:17 -Corps of Discovery: A Game Set in the World of Manifest Destiny (Jay Cormier & Sen-Foong Lim, Off the Page Games, 2025)

21:58 -Dogs of War (Paolo Mori, CMON, 2014)

25:27 -Stroganov: Turukhan (Andreas Steding, Game Brewer, 2024)

32:48 -Veiled Fate (Max Anderson, Zac Dixon, and Austin Harrison, IV Studio, 2022)

40:29 -Jekyll & Hyde vs Scotland Yard (Gaëtan Beaujannot, Olivier Cipière, and Geonil, Mandoo Games, 2023)

News (and why it doesn't matter):

43:56 SEAL Team Flix follow up Phantom Division! Stealth! Tactics! Flicking! on Kickstarter

44:29 Pacific Command, fleet miniatures game, by Osprey and Mike Hutchinson

45:41 Agricola Special Edition on Gamefound

47:43 Catacombs Alpha, new minimalist Catacombs starter, on Kickstarter

48:25 Open registration for SVWAG Con (July 25th-July 27th) on Eventbrite! https://tinyurl.com/25s6p5jd

49:17 Topic: The Social Contract

I've read several different accounts of the battle of Sekigahara, and I swear there's no mention of Kevin Bacon or anyone bleaching their hair. How am I to know if Pony Boy stayed golden?

Games Played Last Week:

01:42 -MicroMacro: Kids--Crazy City Park (Johannes Sich, Edition Spielwiese, 2025)

04:20 -Good Puppers (Chris Cieslik, Asmadi Games, 2021)

07:38 -23 Knives (Tyler J. Brown, Play to Z, 2025)

15:13 -TEAM3 GREEN (Alex Cutler & Matt Fantastic, Brain Games, 2019)

20:04 -Marabunta (Reiner Knizia, Space Cowboys, 2023)

21:28 -Ra (Reiner Knizia, alea, 1999)

23:13 -Ra: The Dice Game (Reiner Knizia, Rio Grande Games, 2009)

26:16 -Moving Company (Guo Jiahui & Wu Ying, Whales Entertainment, 2025)

31:42 -Santorini: Riddle of the Sphinx (James Van Niekerk & Paul Saxberg, Roxley, 2025)

37:30 -The Crew: Family Adventure (Thomas Sing, KOSMOS, 2024)

42:07 -Hot Streak (Jon Perry, CMYK, 2025)

43:42 -Flip 7 (Eric Olsen, The Op Games, 2024)

News (and why it doesn't matter):

45:09 Open registration for SVWAG Con (July 25th-July 27th) on Eventbrite! https://tinyurl.com/25s6p5jd

46:35 Tabletop Tycoon acquires the rights to Eric Lang CMON designs: Blood Rage, Rising Sun, Ankh, Arcadia/Starcadia Quest

48:48 Follow-up to SEAL Team Flix: Phantom Division on Kickstarter! (Pete Ruth, Mark Thomas)

50:52 Sniper Elite: Operation Kraken on Gamefound

52:02 Feature Game: Rumble Nation (Yogi Shinichi, Hobby Japan, 2017)

Walker and Mark almost come to blows over Flip 7 this week. Their disagreements over the merits of the product (Game? Experience? Way of Life? Sub "Roll a 6, Win a Cookie" distraction?) have long simmered, but the fundamental schism can no longer be ignored or papered over. They finally have it out.

02:27 AYURIS: Knarr (Thomas Dupont, Bombyx, 2023)

Games Played Last Week:

03:36 -Autobahn (Fabio Lopiano and Nestore Mangone, Alley Cat Games, 2022)

06:39 -Scythe (Jamey Stegmaier, Stonemaier Games, 2016)

09:47 -Fairy Tale (Satoshi Nakamura, What's Your Game?, 2008)

15:00 -Moon (Haakon Gaarder, Sinister Fish Games, 2023)

18:17 -Spots (Alex Hague, Jon Perry, and Justin Vickers, CMYK, 2022)

21:13 -ito (326, Arclight Games, 2019)

28:06 -Deep Rock Galactic (Ole Steiness, MOOD Publishing, 2022)

31:45 -Flip 7 (Eric Olsen, The Op Games, 2024)

News (and why it doesn't matter):

35:50 Recall from Alion by Dr. Ø; pseudo-sequel to Revive?

38:07 Open registration for SVWAG Con (July 25th-July 27th) on Eventbrite! https://tinyurl.com/25s6p5jd

38:40 Topic: What Makes Longer Games Worth It?

"Observers brought attention to [Gritty's] appearance, which could be construed as frightening, while The Guardian described him as an "acid trip of a mascot." Response to Gritty's introduction was immediate and sharply mixed, with many fans on social media expressing bewilderment and some fright at his appearance. Public perception of Gritty became increasingly positive as Gritty's antics, which subverted the cuddly, family-friendly appearance and demeanor of other NHL mascots, gained more attention on social media."

-Wikipedia

Games Played Last Week:

00:56 -Can't Stop (Sid Sackson, Playte Games, 2023)

04:01 -Tigris & Euphrates (Reiner Knizia, Hans im Gluck, 1997)

13:09 -Hansa Teutonica: East Expansion (Andreas Steding, Argentum Verlag, 2010)

19:06 -Pandemic: Fall of Rome (Matt Leacock & Paolo Mori, Z-Man, 2018)

22:03 -SpellBook (Phil Walker-Harding, Space Cowboys, 2023)

24:40 -Skara Brae (Shem Phillips, Garphill Games, 2025)

29:52 -Sausage Sizzle (Inka and Marcus Brand, 25th Century Games, 2012)

32:07 -Unstoppable (John D. Clair, Renegade Game Studios, 2025)

38:41 -Toy Battle (Paolo Mori & Alessandro Zucchini, Repos Production, 2025)

40:38 -Leviathan Wilds (Justin Kemppainen, Moon Crab Games, 2024)

43:48 -Men at Work (Rita Modl, Pretzel Games, 2019)

News (and why it doesn't matter):

49:10 Lunar Rush expansion: Innovation

49:30 Open registration for SVWAG Con (July 25th-July27th) on Eventbrite! https://tinyurl.com/25s6p5jd

49:58 Lord of the Rings: Fate of the Fellowship

51:18 Please support us on Patreon! www.patreon.com/svwag

53:32 Feature Game: Hot Streak (Jon Perry, CMYK, 2025)

[EDIT] We neglected to disclose that this was a review copy provided by the publisher. We apologize for the omission.