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Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig Secrets and Soirees board game

Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig: Secrets & Soirees – expansion game review

The king is at it again!

More crazy castles to build with your neighbors plus options to go it alone!

Last year we reviewed a fun game from Stonemaier Games called Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig. It was a mash up of two games we really enjoy — Between Two Cities and Castles of Mad King Ludwig. And they did a fantastic job bringing those two games together in yet another enjoyable game.

So of course we were excited to get a chance to review this new expansion, Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig: Secrets & Soirees.

And it’s time to share our thoughts about the expansion game!

May 23, 2021 Trent 1 Comment 2-player, 3-player, 4-player, 5-player, 6-player, 7-player, 8-player, castles, cooperative, solo, Stonemaier Games, strategy, theme, tile-laying

Board Games Cooperative Games Game Reviews

The Lord of the Rings: Journeys in Middle-earth board game review

It’s been a while since we’ve reviewed an epic board game. Well, we’ve got a doozy for you today!

The Lord of the Rings: Journeys in Middle-earth is a monster of a game from Fantasy Flight Games that we included in the Gamer Games section of last year’s Board Game Gift Guide.

It’s an epic game based on an epic story. But although the characters and themes are based in The Lord of the Rings lore, the adventure is completely new.

Like the Fellowship itself, the game is a cooperative experience for you and up to 4 of your friends. You’ll battle powerful foes, discover lost treasures, uncover forgotten lore, and customize your skills according to your role within the Fellowship.

Darkness will rise, shadows and corruption will expand and you’ll have to take a stand to survive.

March 16, 2021March 15, 2021 Trent 0 Comments 2-player, 3-player, 4-player, 5-player, campaign, fantasy, Fantasy Flight Games, Lord of the Rings, luck, solo, theme

Board Games Family Games Game Reviews

Metro X Board Game Review

Years ago, when my wife and I took our long-anticipated trip to London, we were super excited to see so many sites. But we knew the first step to seeing them would be getting there!

So we headed to the Underground and pleasantly discovered the wonderful world of the Tube.

And now when we play Metro X, we can’t help but recall our fantastic week in London.

That’s because the Metro X board game is all about navigating your subway map in optimal fashion!

February 20, 2021February 20, 2021 Trent 3 Comments 2-player, 3-player, 4-player, 5-player, 6-player, Gamewright, luck, simultaneous, solo, write

Board Games Family Games Game Reviews Kid Games

Smart Four Connected board game review

Growing up, I loved playing a 3D version of 4-in-a-row game called Score Four.

Playing it made me feel so clever because I could look for tons of ways to get 4 in a row. I wasn’t limited to the 2-dimensional way to get 4 in a row like in Connect 4.

However, my siblings didn’t like playing it as much as I did, so the game sat on the shelf a lot. It’s hard to play a 2-player board game when you don’t have another person to play against.

But with Smart Four Connected, by Giiker, all that has changed!

January 16, 2021 Trent 1 Comment 2-player, digital, Giiker, physical, remote, solo, strategy

Board Games Cooperative Games Family Games Game Reviews

Break In: Alcatraz Game Review

It’s June 11, 1962, the day you’re going to break into Alcatraz.

Yes, you read that right. You’ll be breaking into the most secure prison in the world to break 4 inmates out. Months of planning has gone into this daring operation and now it’s time to act.

At least it will be if you’re playing Break In: Alcatraz!

From the publisher, Playmonster: “Throughout this collaborative experience, you must work together to follow a series of clues and solve puzzles to unfold multiple layers of the game and move deeper into the prison to help your friends escape! You’ll encounter many obstacles and characters along the way…this game provides the thrill and challenge of an escape room, combined with the experience and world-immersion of a movie”!

Do you have what it takes to break into Alcatraz?

December 12, 2020June 21, 2021 Dane Trimble 2 Comments 2-player, 3-player, 4-player, 5-player, 6-player, cooperative, deduction, escape room, PlayMonster, solo, strategy

Board Games Family Games Game Reviews

Healthy Heart Hospital Board Game Review

In Healthy Heart Hospital players assume the roles of doctors and hospital administrators attempting to bring prestige back to Healthy Heart after the previous administration left it a mess.

Prestige is earned by curing patients and expanding your hospital. If players are able to make it through the ambulance card deck, they win the game. If players go broke or run out of places to put dead patients, they lose.

Do you have what it takes to bring Health Heart back?

November 19, 2020November 19, 2020 Dane Trimble 0 Comments 2-player, 3-player, 4-player, 5-player, cooperative, luck, solo, them, Victory Point Games

Card Games Cooperative Games Game Reviews

Adventure Games: The Dungeon game review

Although it may feel like all of 2020 has been scary, the official day for scary stuff — Halloween — is next week!

We’ve posted in the past about great games to play on or around Halloween (like Gloom or Hit Z Road). And this year, we have a few more to add to the mix. Just the other day we reviewed Scooby-Doo! Escape from the Haunted Mansion.

And the game we’re reviewing today has a number of similarities to Scooby-Doo! (minus the Mystery Inc gang). It’s a cooperative game Kosmos released last year in their “Adventure Games” series called The Dungeon.

Are you ready to take on The Dungeon?

October 19, 2020October 19, 2020 Trent 0 Comments 2-player, 3-player, 4-player, adventure, cooperative, Kosmos, solo, story

Board Games Cooperative Games Family Games Game Reviews

Scooby-Doo! Escape from the Haunted Mansion game review

“I would have gotten away with it too if it weren’t for you meddling kids!”

If you recognize that statement, then you must be familiar with Scooby-Doo!

The question is, does your family have what it takes to solve the mystery at Lord Fairmont’s haunted mansion?

Of course, you’ll be channeling the skills and hijinks of Mystery Inc. with Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy, and of course Scooby-Doo!

October 14, 2020 Trent 0 Comments 2-player, 3-player, 4-player, 5-player, cooperative, solo, story, The OP

Board Games Family Games Game Reviews Kid Games Party Games

Blinks Game System Review

There’s been a big meshing of digital and physical board games over the last decade.

Many physical board games have taken on digital form and can be a blast to play with friends at a distance. And other physical board games have incorporated a digital element that we love for extending the gameplay — such as the cooperative games Star Wars: Imperial Assault, Descent: Journeys in the Dark 2nd Edition, and Mansions of Madness 2nd Edition that we love using the app to play the bad side.

Well, today we’ve got something quite different from anything we’ve reviewed in the past. It’s actually a digitally-driven complete game system called Blinks!

But it doesn’t use any computers, mobile devices, or apps. All the game data and rules are stored in the hex game pieces themselves!

The cool thing is that each hex game piece, called a Blink, stores the information/rules of one game. And that Blink “teaches” the other Blinks the rules of the game and then they’re all in!

September 4, 2020September 8, 2020 Trent 0 Comments 10-player, 2-player, 3-player, 4-player, 5-player, 6-player, 7-player, 8-player, 9-player, Blinks, colorful, digital, solo

Card Games Cooperative Games Family Games Game Reviews Kid Games

Time isn’t your friend in Math Rush

How good are you at math?
Will it make a difference if you’re calculating over and over with a timer ticking away?

In Math Rush by Genius Games, you and your fellow players race against time to cooperatively play your cards to accomplish various goals.

It may sound simple, but when the timer’s ticking away, you’ll quickly find there’s more to think about during the game than just addition and subtraction.

We know because the challenge of this simple-sounding game caught us by surprise.

How well will your family do?