ArchivesThe Game Table Podcast
Here at The Game Table Podcast, we explore a wide variety of tabletop games, including board games, card games, role-playing games, and more. We give you a brief overview of each game, explain the basics of how to play, and share our opinions to help you decide if it’s a good fit for your gaming table. Whether you’re a casual gamer or a tabletop game enthusiast, we’re here to help guide you through the exciting world of tabletop gaming.

Fateforge: Chronicles of Kaan – A Two Top Review

in Two Top Review on January 8, 2025 February 11, 2025

The Game Table Podcast

Fateforge: Chronicles of Kaan - A Two Top Review

00:00 / 1:06:50

Anna and Jared sit down at the Two Top table to discuss the app driven, epic story telling adventure dungeon crawling tabletop game, Fateforge: Chronicles of Kaan.

A very special thank you to Mighty Boards for providing a review copy. It was a fantastic surprise (one of the biggest of our year) and one of Jared’s top game of 2024!

Links for Fateforge: Chronicles of Kaan

Interested in purchasing?
Mighty Boards Website
Feb 2025 Fateforge: Chronicles of Kaan Kickstarter

Publisher: Mighty Boards
Designer: Gordon Calleja
Artists: Yusuf Artun, Mark Casha, Max Kosek, Antonio Muntean, Yamandú Daniel Orce, Arjuna Susini

BGG Game Link

Links for The Game Table Podcast

‘How to Play’ Music Background:
Song: Inspiring Cinematic Ambient
Artist: Lexin_Music – Aleksey Chistilin

Have questions or want to connect with The Game Table Podcast?
Check out our website: thegametablepodcast.com
Email us at thegametablepodcast@gmail.com
Check out our Linktree for easy access to find us online!
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Join the conversation on Discord: https://discord.gg/ZYKF3wdenJ
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Overview of The Game Table Podcast

The Game Table Podcast is an exploration of various board, card, and tabletop games. Hosted by Ian Mansfield and Jared Snyder, this podcast offers listeners a comprehensive look at different games, providing overviews, insights on gameplay, and personal thoughts to help you decide if a game is right for your table.

Each episode delves into a specific game, discussing its mechanics, strategies, and overall experience. Whether it’s a family-friendly game like “Once Upon a Castle” or a more strategic title like “Apiary,” we bring our enthusiasm and expertise to the table. We also share tips, reviews, and sometimes even the history behind the games they feature.

Listeners can expect a mix of humor, detailed analysis, and genuine passion for gaming, making it a perfect companion for both seasoned gamers and newcomers alike. We also encourages community interaction through our website, social media, and Discord.

End of Year Review and Looking Ahead to 2025

in Featured Table Review on January 1, 2025 January 30, 2025

The Game Table Podcast

End of Year Review and Looking Ahead to 2025

00:00 / 1:15:44

Happy New Year Everyone!!! Ian and Jared give an end of year review of 2024, discuss their successes and failures, and look ahead to 2025. We hope your New Year is a blast and that 2025 is incredible!

Games Looked at in End of Year Review

Disney Villainous
Apiary
Heat: Pedal to the Medal
Ticket to Ride: Legacy
Let’s Go to Japan
Star Wars: X-Wing
Akropolis
Sea Salt & Paper
Cat in the Box: Deluxe Edition
Harmonies
Star Wars: Outer Rim
That Time You Killed Me
Parks
Parks: Roll & Hike
Distilled
Campaign Trail
Rock Hard: 1977
Redwood
Zombicide
Age of Comics: The Golden Years
*Reminder, as an Amazon Associate, we earn commission from qualifying purchases.

Links for The Game Table Podcast

Background Music:
Clavier-Music

Hi, I’m Clavier. I’m a composer and pianist. I make piano music, Orchestral soundtracks and Ambient music. My Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0v0X8EUY8KmXXumeZet5mJ My passion for music drives everything I do, and I am constantly striving to create works that touch the hearts and souls of my listeners. If you’d like to support my work, the best way to do so is by subscribing to my YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@claviermus

Have questions or want to connect with The Game Table Podcast?
Check out our website: thegametablepodcast.com
Email us at thegametablepodcast@gmail.com
Check out our Linktree for easy access to find us online!
Follow us on Instagram
Join the conversation on Discord: https://discord.gg/ZYKF3wdenJ
Check us out on Boardgamegeek

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Overview of The Game Table Podcast

The Game Night Around Christmas – A Game Table Podcast Christmas Parody

in Featured Table Review on December 24, 2024 January 30, 2025

The Game Table Podcast

The Game Night Around Christmas - A Game Table Podcast Christmas Parody

00:00 / 5:29

Joyful Game Night, Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays from The Game Table Podcast! We hope you have a wonderful time with friends, family, and loved ones. May this Christmas parody bring you a little joy as you gather round your own gaming table for game night during the holiday season.

Links for The Game Table Podcast

Background Music:
Song: T’was the Night Before Christmas
Artist: Steve Oxen

Have questions or want to connect?
Check out our website: thegametablepodcast.com
Email us at thegametablepodcast@gmail.com
Check out our Linktree for easy access to find us online!
Follow us on Instagram
Join the conversation on Discord: https://discord.gg/ZYKF3wdenJ
Check us out on Boardgamegeek

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Overview of The Game Table Podcast

Hues and Cues – A Kid’s Table Review

in Kid's Table Review on December 18, 2024 January 30, 2025

The Game Table Podcast

Hues and Cues - A Kid's Table Review

00:00 / 31:15

Faith, Joy, and Anna sit down at the Kid’s table and take a look at the color communication deduction game, Hues & Cues from the OP games.

Links for Hues and Cues Board Game

Interested in purchasing? https://amzn.to/4gluDea
Note: As an Amazon Associate, we earn commission from qualifying purchases.

Publisher: The OP Games
Designer: Scott Brady
Artists:

BGG Game Lin k

How to Play: Watch It Played

Links for The Game Table Podcast

‘How to Play’ Music Background:
Song: Inspiring Cinematic Ambient
Artist: Lexin_Music – Aleksey Chistilin

Have questions or want to connect?
Check out our website: thegametablepodcast.com
Email us at thegametablepodcast@gmail.com
Check out our Linktree for easy access to find us online!
Follow us on Instagram
Join the conversation on Discord: https://discord.gg/ZYKF3wdenJ
Check us out on Boardgamegeek

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Ian on BGG

Hues and Cues Description from the Publisher

What hue do you think of when we say “apple”? Hues and Cues is a vibrant game of colorful communication where players are challenged to make connections to colors with words. Using only one and two-word cues, players try to get others to guess a specific hue from the 480 colors on the game board. The closer the guesses are to the target, the more points you earn. Since everyone imagines colors differently, connecting colors and clues has never been this much fun!

Gather around with three to ten people to play a quick and simple game with a prism of possibilities! First, a “cue giver” hides a specific color they’ve chosen out of a deck of cards. There are 480 shades on the board in front of you! After getting one- and two-word cues, everyone places their marker on which color they think is being described. “Coffee.” Is it dark brown, as in freshly brewed? “Au lait.” With milk. That means I should pick a lighter shade!

Use examples from everyday life, from nature to pop culture, or materials and moods. Everyone around the table gets a turn to give cues and guess. The better your hints or guesses, the more points you earn. Play off others’ experiences to narrow down what they have in mind!

Overview of The Game Table Podcast

Sandbag – A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews

in A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews on December 14, 2024 January 30, 2025

The Game Table Podcast

Sandbag - A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews

00:00 / 21:35

Jared wraps up the week of celebrating Bezier’s Year of the Card Game by taking a look at the trick avoiding, hand manipulating game, Sandbag.

Links for Sandbag

Interested in purchasing? https://amzn.to/4gdUFjD
Note: As an Amazon Associate, we earn commission from qualifying purchases.

Publisher: Bezier Games
Designer: Ted Alspach
Artists: Greg Bartlett

BGG Game Link

How to Play: Before You Play

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Sandbag Description from the Publisher

You’ve joined a hot air balloon festival in which the goal is to go higher than your opponents. Dump as many sandbags as you can — and try to gain rockets as well! — to send yourself higher and higher to win.

Sandbag is a trick-taking game of avoiding tricks, manipulating trump, and reconfiguring your hand of cards. In each of the three rounds, you configure your basket with two face-up cards; the most common color among all players’ cards is the trump suit. Each trick, players either play from their hand, play a sandbag (to sluff, that is avoid winning the trick), or play one of their opponents’ face-up cards. During the round, it’s possible for the trump to change as the number and kind of face-up cards are exchanged for face-down sandbags. Five rocket cards worth negative points are in play each round, and you want to win these while avoiding the sandbag cards because in the end the player with the lowest score wins.

Sandbag is a highly interactive trick-taking game for 3-6 players that excels at higher player counts!

Overview of The Game Table Podcast

Scram! – A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews

in A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews on December 13, 2024 January 30, 2025

The Game Table Podcast

Scram! - A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews

00:00 / 18:31

Jared jumps back into the Bezier card game celebration and begins an attempt to clean up the leftover mess with the campground clearing game, Scram!

Links for Scram! Catalog

Interested in purchasing? https://amzn.to/4gt1hKt
Note: As an Amazon Associate, we earn commission from qualifying purchases.

Publisher: Bezier Games
Designer: Ted Alspach
Artists: Agus Muqith

BGG Game Link

How to Play: Before You Play

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Scram! Description from the Publisher

After hiking a local trail, you and your partner have returned to a campsite completely ransacked by pesky critters. Team up to clear your campground of critters before your neighbors. Scram! is a fun & fast team based card game that plays 1 vs 2, 2 vs 2 & 3 vs 3!

Each animal has a different card value, and many have a special action. Be careful, there may be critters who are still hiding and waiting for the right moment to present themselves!

Call out “Scram!” when you think your team has the fewest animals in your campsite; but will your team be able to toss out the troublesome trespassers before your neighbors?

Overview of The Game Table Podcast

Rebel Princess Deluxe Edition – A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews

in A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews on December 12, 2024 January 30, 2025

The Game Table Podcast

Rebel Princess Deluxe Edition - A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews

00:00 / 22:44

It’s Anna’s turn to jump into the fray of The Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews as she sits down at the Featured Table to review Rebel Princess Deluxe Edition – the somewhat sassy reimplementation of the classic trick taking game of Hearts.

Links for Rebel Princess Deluxe Edition Catalog

Interested in purchasing? https://amzn.to/4gt1hKt
Note: As an Amazon Associate, we earn commission from qualifying purchases.

Publisher: Bezier Games
Designer: Daniel Byrne, José Gerardo Guerrero, Kevin Peláez, Tirso Virgós
Artists: Alfredo Cáceres

BGG Game Link

How to Play: Before You Play

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Rebel Princess Deluxe Edition Description from the Publisher

Snow White, The Little Mermaid, Cinderella, and many other legendary princesses are celebrating a five-day party. The Prince Charmings, who have not been invited, will try to infiltrate the ball to propose marriage to the girls. As a princess, you have to avoid marriage proposals and remain single and independent after the celebrations.

Rebel Princess takes place over five rounds, representing the five days of a party, and each round has a special rule that makes each game totally different. The general mechanisms are those of trick-taking games, in which each player plays a numbered card into each trick, following one of the four suits in the game. The player with the highest number of the suit that started the trick takes all the cards of that trick — but that’s not necessarily good as players want to avoid taking cards with Prince Charmings, who each bring one marriage proposal, aside from the enchanted frog who brings five proposals. The player with the fewest marriage proposals after five rounds wins.

Importantly, each player assumes the role of a different princess and has a special ability that they can use once per round. Compared to the original edition, Rebel Princess Deluxe Edition features:

A new “Rebel of the Ball” mechanism to allow players to catch up if they are falling too far behind
Two new Princesses and six new Round cards
Princess cards upgraded to thick punchboard tiles
Round cards upgraded to Tarot-sized cards with rules text on each card
Balance tweaks to existing rules, rounds, and princesses

Overview of The Game Table Podcast

Seers Catalog – A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews

in A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews on December 11, 2024 January 30, 2025

The Game Table Podcast

Seers Catalog - A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews

00:00 / 29:38

The celebration continues with Seers Catalog – the next card game on the list of our week of Bezier card game reviews. Ian sits down at the Featured Table to discuss all of the latest and greatest items that you NEED to protect yourselves against the werewolves in this ALMOST card shedding game.

Links for Seers Catalog

Interested in purchasing? https://amzn.to/4 1qCd2I
Note: As an Amazon Associate, we earn commission from qualifying purchases.

Publisher: Bezier Games
Designer: Taylor Reiner
Artists: Rob Loukotka and Christine Mitzuk

BGG Game Link

How to Play: Before You Play

Links for The Game Table Podcast

Jared on BGG
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Seers Catalog Description from the Publisher

The latest edition of the Seers Catalog has everything you need for stopping werewolves. Can you limit yourself to the essentials in time to save the village?

Seers Catalog is an almost-shedding card game in which each player tries to get rid of almost all of the cards in their hand. Each round, players have a unique set of artifacts that give them asymmetric abilities to help manage their hand of cards. When one player runs out of cards, the round is scored: Each card is worth -1, but if you have five or fewer cards in your hand, the lowest value on those cards is worth positive points! However, once you have five or fewer cards, you can no longer voluntarily pass, so holding on to a high-value card near the end of the round hoping for a big payout can result in total failure.

Overview of The Game Table Podcast

Xylotar – A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews

in A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews on December 10, 2024 January 30, 2025

The Game Table Podcast

Xylotar - A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews

00:00 / 20:59

Next on the list of our week of Bezier card game reviews is the deductive trick tacking game, Xylotar! Jared sits down at the featured table to take a look.

Links for Xylotar

Interested in purchasing? https://amzn.to/41qCd2I
Note: As an Amazon Associate, we earn commission from qualifying purchases.

Publisher: Bezier Games
Designer: Christopher Wray
Artists: Davi Comodo

BGG Game Link

How to Play: Triple S Games

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Xylotar Description from the Publisher

In the card game Xylotar, you’ve found the long lost xylotar schematics from the instrument originally designed by Bobby McColdsnap and Keifer Basset. This unique musical device was based on both xylophone and synthesizer technology in the mid 80’s. and was created as an alternative to the keytars of the era.

Without knowing exactly how it should work, play until you discover the sweetest sounds. The player who scores the most points has found the perfect balance of 80’s synthesizer rock and modern carimba-style melodies. Only then can you mass produce the xylotar, succeeding in your goal of achieving moderate commercial success!

In this trick-taking game players know only the colors of their cards and their relative order. Use deduction and observation to figure out the value of your cards, then bid to try to gain extra points.

Overview of The Game Table Podcast

Silver – A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews

in A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews on December 9, 2024 January 30, 2025

The Game Table Podcast

Silver - A Week of Bezier Card Game Reviews

00:00 / 25:26

Ian kicks off our week of Bezier Card Game Reviews with the social deduction, memory, and hand management game, Silver!

Links for Silver

Interested in purchasing one of the games in the Silver lineup?
Silver: https://amzn.to/3Zuirk6
Coin: https://amzn.to/4fbFPc7
Dagger: https://amzn.to/3D70Sz6
Bullet: https://amzn.to/4g5tQ0L
Note: As an Amazon Associate, we earn commission from qualifying purchases.

Pre-order:
Eye: https://beziergames.com/collections/all-games/products/silver-eye
Fang: https://beziergames.com/collections/all-games/products/silver-fang
Collector’s Edition: https://beziergames.com/collections/all-games/products/silver-collectors-edition-gold-pledge

Publisher: Bezier Games
Designer: Ted Alspach
Artists: Jason Boles, Andrey Gordeev, T. B. (II)

BGG Game Link

How to Play: Play the Game HQ

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Silver Description from the Publisher

Your village has been overrun by savage werewolves, which are represented by the number on each of the cards that make up your village. To get rid of these fanged fiends faster than the neighboring villages, use your residents’ special abilities and your powerful secret weapon: a silver amulet.

Call for a vote when you think you have the fewest werewolves, but be careful; everyone else gets one more turn to save their own village first…

Silver is a fast and engaging traditional card game with a werewolf twist! Everyone starts the game with five face-down cards, with everyone being able to see two cards of their choice. Cards are numbered 0-13, with the number showing how many werewolves the character on that card attracts, and each character (number) has a different special power.

On a turn, you draw the top card of the deck or discard pile, then either discard it to use the power of the card (but only if it came from the deck), discard it without using the power (ditto), or replace one or more of your face-down cards with this card; you can replace multiple cards only if they bear the same number, and you must reveal the cards to prove this, being penalized if you’re wrong.

Silver can be played as a standalone game or combined with Silver Bullet or other Silver decks. Each version of the game has different card abilities.