Table Talk Goes To 1977 And Beyond

Saturday on Table Talk William Pankratz from Games By James and I discussed some new items in the store, upcoming crowdfunding games, and a few new things we have been playing that we are enjoying.

We started out the show with William telling us about the game "Cities" by Devir Games. Cities is a tile-laying game where you draft projects and arrange them in your play area. It is played over 8 rounds in about 40 minutes.  The game also has over 100 3-D buildings that give your personal city that real big city feel as you build it.

He also told us about another new game from Devir called "Rock Hard 1977." Rock Hard is a very thematic game about being an up-and-coming rock star where you try to increase your chops, songs, production, fan base, and get record deals on the way to acquiring the most fame. The really cool fact about Rock Hard 1977 is it was designed by Jackie Fox a member of the 70s rock band "The Runaways" with Joan Jett and Lita Ford.

We then spoke about several games getting ready to launch on various crowdfunding platforms. One of those included Emberleaf by The City of Game, the makers of Isle of Cats. In Emberleaf you are an animal "Emberling" trying to rebuild your home by exploring the wilderness, gathering resources, and clearing away dangerous areas. The game has deck building, tile placement, engine building, and resource management mechanisms.

Another was "Ecologic" by Ecologic. We are both intrigued by Ecologic. The game looks like a cross between "Wingspan" and "Earth." The art is phenomenal! The base game plays up to 4 but you can get it up to 7 players by purchasing expansions. The designer says he created the game with mechanics to show the relationships between plants, fungi, and animals.  Ecologic is the first project for a new designer so it will be interesting to see how it does.

William and I also mentioned some games that are getting a new look or deluxe upgrade. The first was "Puerto Rico Special Edition." The Special edition will have dual layered boards, 30% larger building tiles, a new art style, 3-D minis of the workers and ships, and metal coins. If you are a fan of Puerto Rico and deluxe versions it is definitely worth a look.

Another was the 30th Anniversary edition of "Robo Rally" where you use programmed movement to move your robot around a factory floor. The 30th-anniversary edition is blinged out with dual-layered boards, wooden tokens, metal priority tokens, painted minis, 4 new double-sided game boards, and will now play up to 8.  There is also a "Transformers" version which came out earlier this year.  You can pre-order the 30th-anniversary edition here.

You can tune into Table Talk every other Saturday at 8:10 a.m. opposite the Woods Garden Show to hear us discuss everything board gaming.  We often have guests from Minnesota-based game designers and companies on as well.