Guilty Pleasures

"Hi my name is Grey, and I have a guilty pleasure."

"Hi Grey, welcome to Guilty Pleasures Anonymous."

As the board game hobby has exploded over the past dozen years, it has created a gamer know as the "game snob." The game snob looks down on those who play games that are beneath them. Games that are random, games that have dice, games that are collectible, games that don’t come in a box & have "pretty" wooden bits...... Magic the Gathering is one such game. Game snobs don't play MtG or would ever admit to having played it. I love to play Magic the Gathering. Yes that’s correct, I LOVE TO PLAY MAGIC THE GATHERING, and I am proud to say so.

I no longer buy MtG cards nor keep up with the rules, banned cards, restricted cards, general news, and FAQs. I began playing MtG around the end of Unlimited through Fourth Edition. Instead, I have maintained about a dozen decks that I pull out a couple times of year. My decks aren't tournament decks but fun decks such as my white/green flying elephant deck, my 5 color Slivers deck, or my mono green elf deck that includes an Inquest cut out green/red Santa Claus King of the Elves card.

I have some amazing early cards including two sets of the power nine. Maybe I'm just foolish but yes, I play them.

I was always attracted by the storyline, game mechanics, and art. Having met some of the artists has been a real thrill. I love to play Magic the Gathering! I also love grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup!

Please check out some other guilty pleasures.
Flashlights Are Something to Eat
Pop Rewind
Goodwill Hunting 4 Geeks 

RED Part Deuce

I just had to write a second post about seeing Red.  Snoopy and the Red Baron is such a classic duo.  The game was published in 1970.  The box cover claims that it is a skill and action game, but today's gamer terms would call this an action dexterity game.  As the Red Baron fires blue and white marbles, Snoopy must dodge the blue ones while catching the white ones in his dog house. Great Fun!

Have more fun with RED
Dork Horde Snoopy's Pals
Calvin's Canadian Cave of Cool  Smokin Hot!!!!!!!!!!
Goodwill Hunting 4 Geeks Its near and dear to his heart!

I Play the Color Red

This weeks League assignment has me "seeing red," or in gaming terms "playing red." Are you up for the challenge? Can your inner gamer go strong? Well if you are, how many game tokens can you identify? These tokens represent 40 different games. Some games have more than one token. Trickery indeed!

When you ask most gamers to think of the most influential "red" game.......? There is only one possible answer, Dungeon & Dragons Red Box.  The Red Box was first released in 1981, and then re-released in 2010. 

 

Wizards of the Coast will release Original Dungeons & Dragons RPG, a "Premium Reprint" of the very first D&D releases later this year. The white box was originally released in 1974.

 

 

 

Go check out what other League members are "seeing red."

That Figures ''A Review Retrospective in Red.''

Nemesis Complex Defines the Red Skull
Branded In The 80's  I hope that blood does not make you squeamish!

 

 



 

The Art of Board Games; Something Old & Something New Part 1

As I have blogged in the past, board games are a work of art. This is part 1, in a 10 part series. Each post will feature something old & something new. Parker Brothers first published Innocence Abroad in 1888 and Fantasy Flight published Chaos in the Old World in 2009. Andrew Navaro designed the board. If you look closely, you can see that it laid out on stretched leathered skin. In the game Chaos, you play on of the vile evil gods in the world of Warhammer.

Innocene Abroad may possibly be the first ever licensed product. In 1869 a book titled Innocence Abroad was published by Mark Twain.

The game has a unique mechanism for it's time period, as each player has two tokens, and must make a CHOICE about which piece tomove. One pawn affects how much debt they incur, and the other pawn travels accross the board into bad situations.  The details accross the board were given such great care.  If you can almost imagine boarding that steam boat!!

 

 

 

 

"Silence you ninny!" 5 Reasons to Collect Lost in Space Memorabilia

Oh my "there's a lot of space out there to get lost in......."

If money was of no concern, I could jump start a fine "Lost in Space" collection with 5 quick purchases at Hakes Americana & Collectibles.  "Lost in Space" was a science fiction television show that ran for three seasons in the 1960's.  As the Robinson family prepares a mission to Alpha Centauri in the Juipter 2, the stow away, Dr. Zachary Smith has something else planned entirely.  "Never fear, Smith is here!"

     "Oh! the pain, the pain."

5.  Lost in Space Remco Helmet If I owned this I would wear it for my Dork Horde photo!

4.  Lost in Space Motorized Toy Robot  "Danger Will Robinson, Danger!" Enough said.

3.  Lost in Space Switch N Go Toy

2.  Lost in Space Milton Bradley Game  In this game of luck, players must travel over the wild and hazardous unknown planet.

1.  Lost in Space 3D Action Fun Game This spin and move game is three levels high!  Great 3D graphics.

Check out what my fellow bloggers have to say........

Fortune and Glory Days

The Robot's Pajamas

Lair of the Dork Horde

 

The Oscars; "Nice work, turkey!"

"Oscar Goldman" #$&@#& I can't believe I forgot that Oscar.  The 6 Million Dollar Man was a motivating factor to rush home after school and finish my homework so I didn't have any reasons to miss each episode.

Oscar Goldman: "Steve Austin, astronaut: a man barely alive
Gentlemen we can rebuild him. We have the technology.
We have the capability to make the worlds first bionic man.
Steve Austin will be that man. Better than he was before
Better, Stronger, Faster!"

While I love movies, I rarely ever watch the movies that win an Oscar.  Although "Skyfall" did win an Oscar for Original Song.  My favorite movies from this past year were "Skyfall, The Avengers, and Moonrise Kingdom."

The theme of movies and the Oscars has lead to several board games.  Many if not most are trivia based.  However, there is one game that is strategic and somewhat interesting.  It is called Hollywood Blockbuster aka Dream Factory. It was designed by Reiner Knizia, and published in 2000 by several different game companies.

The goal of the game (aside from winning!) is to produce the most valuable movies over the course of four rounds.  The central game mechanics are auctions and set collections. The game plays 2 - 5 "directors" who bid on actors, cameras, effects, music, guest stars and agents in the quest of completing the most valuable movie.

Some of the movie titles included are Star Battles, Tomorrow's Golden Eye Never Dies, Silence of the Cannibals, Dances with Buffalos, Raiders of the Lost Biblical Receptacle, and Gopher Shack!  Silly stuff indeed. 

This past Sunday, I had the chance to play a new game called Kemet. It is an Egyptian themed light war game that uses area control, and worker placement.  It plays 2 - 5 but might suffer from "king-making" in a 3 player game.  It uses a common but not overused mechanic of battle cards to resolve battles.  Each player has the same set of 6 battle cards.  Each card is either strong in attach, damage or defense while being weak in an opposite category.  Which card will your opponent play?  Will they attack in strength or go for damage.  Each player chooses one card and blindly discards a second battle card.  Thus through use of clever hand management, can you defeat your opponent and gain a victory chip?

Please check out some of my fellow LoEB bloggers thoughts on this topic:
AEIOU and Sometimes Why
Top Hat Sasquatch
Shezcrafti

 

 

Happy Birthday, Mr. President...Don't String Me Along!

By accident or by chance I have joined an elite pop culture blogging troupe called the League of Extraordinary Bloggers, which is hosted by the blog Cool and Collected;Cool and Collected.  Better late than never was never so true.  The League is celebrating it's first birthday, and it has motivated me to write weekly even if it has only been a month.

 

 I have missed out on some great topics that would have been fun to blog on; spys, spacemen, pirates, ninjas, zombies, the old west, what ifs??, dream jobs, holy grails & white whales, prized posessions, sweet rides, March Madness (Rock Chalk Jay Hawk, Go KU!,) when I was 12, Saturday morning cartoons, movies,  places to visit, road trips, holidays, the state of pop culture, and holy cow (I can't believe I missed this one) - how to destroy the death star?  Some topics that might be interesting in the future could be; things that I wished would be remade, remakes that should have never happened, who would win???, the Pink Panther & crimes of the century, music to my ears, WWII & the greatest generation, old meets new, aviation, "shh don't tell anyone" - my collecting secrets, Races/NASCAR, nautical, books & authors, and before the American Pickers were picking, I found.....  No mater the topic, I'm in all the way!

 

This past Sunday I had the chance to play a game that has been on my list to play for sometime now.  In fact I have not even seen a copy in the wild until last night.  The game appears very simple, so simple it is hard to believe that it might be fun.  The game is call String Railway.  It was designed Hisashi Hayashi and is currently published by FoxMind games.  It plays four games, over five rounds.  The goal is to lay out your railway using colored string from station to station that maximizes your score.  Really??? Colored string??  Yes, and it was fun.  Well worth the wait. 

Before I sign off this week, I want to wish The League a Happy Birthday, and yes I have a birthday themed game called Crappy Birthday . The game was designed by Brian and Amy Weinstock and published by North Star Games.  When its your turn, its your birthday and each other player gives you a Crappy gift.  As you go through your gifts, pick the one that you like the least, that player then recieves a point.  The first player to 3 points, wins. 

Check out some fellow League Bloggers;
Fortune and Glory Days
What Ever I Think Of...