The (Hot) Dog Days of Summer

GenCon will be here in two weeks.  As always I am excited but I can’t honestly say what or which game I am the most excited to see.  I am most eager to be with and see old friends while spending 1:1 time with my youngest son. 

Usually my summer game playing is exploding as the summer passes.  Unfortunately, I have played few games this summer, but the games I have played have been wonderful times.  On Tuesday July 10, I drove to northern Germany to meet a legendary game designer and game collector, Bruce Whitehill.  It was a wonderful time and he and his wife were very kind hosts.  As the night came to a conclusion, he had shared with me several prototypes that will most likely be published by a European game company.  My favorite game was themed in the Australian outback.

I am planning to attend game night tonight at Pulp Fiction Comics and Games in Lees Summit.  King of Tokyo and Mondo will hit the table.  King of Tokyo is a fun dice and card game about monsters smash about the city.  It resembles the game of King of the Hill that I remember playing as a child.  Mondo is a tile laying world creation game.  Both games have beautiful graphics.

I read a wonderful article in the Kansas City Star Magazine today, “A Good Death” by Judith Valente.

Hello My Lonely Friend

Well it has been awile since I have posted. Honestly there are multiple reasons. Gaming has been less, but I have enjoyed several new games recently: Circus Train and Infiltration. I hope to get infiltration to the table again this weekend. Please pray for my cousin David who is battling cancer and it's complications.

A Grail Find From My Childhood

While visiting my very good friend in Detroit, I stumbled onto a game from my childhood; Merry Milkman. While not a challenging game compared to today's games, I have very fond memories playing it with my parents. What ever happened to that game? It is a spin & collect game with very neat game components given its age, 1955! There were two versions, one had three trucks for three players, and the other had four trucks. Many thanks to Robin who allowed me to recapture a piece of my childhood.

As of late I have been thinking about my collection including how to grow it, manage it, and where to draw the line. My collection has grown tremendously this past year. Presently, I am feeling as if the collection lacks focus/boundaries. I have games that I love to play and games that I love to own but will rarely play. I have games that I consider a work of art, and games that I use to grow my collection through trading or Ebay. I have often contemplated the "Jones" theory. Cull games that are replaced by better games/mechanics.

While I doubt Merry Milkman will get played, I love the idea of recapturing my childhood. Owning Merry Milkman supports my wife's theory that I am a big "kid."

The Second Annual Sid Sackson Board Game Fan Fest

The Sid Sackson Board Game Fan Fest – Are you a fan or newcomer of Sid Sackson board games: Acquire, Focus, Can’t Stop, Buy Word, & I’m the Boss to name just a few? If so, please join us as we celebrate these wonderful games as I am hosting the second annual event at Gencon. Multiple copies of these games will be available to play. Rules will be taught if you’re a new comer. Prizes /swag for all participants. BGM1230497 Saturday August 18, 2011 6pm.

My Five & Dimes; 2011 Games Played

2011 was a wonderful year in gaming. I got in 280 played games this year that spanned 92 different games. This was up from 239 plays in 2011. My favorite games this year were Puppet Wars, Innovation, and Le Havre. Acquire was the only game that made last years and this year’s 5 & 10. Three games that I enjoyed very much that made it to the table, that I have waited to play well over a year was Sid Meier’s Civilization, Tails of the Arabian Nights, and Le Havre. While 7 Wonders made my 5 & 10, I don’t care for it much, and have traded it away. While I will play it if my group wants to play it, I certain it will not make my 5 & 10 list next year. I predict that Quarriors will make it next year as well as Acquire as it is my #1 game of all time.

The 5 & 10's

Ticket to Ride 34
Ascension; Chronicles of the Godslayer 32
Hive 15
Settlers of Catan 15
Innovation 10
Quarriors 10
Tigris and Euphrates 10
Werewolf 8
Roll Through the Ages 7
Acquire 6
7 Wonders 5