Here is the board game (and board game-related!) news that caught our attention for the week ending March 20, 2020.
Gaming News
- As we all work together to figure out how to deal with the pandemic, I want to take a moment at the outset to please, please, please urge everyone to practice social isolation and follow the recommendations of the CDC and other responsible government agencies. I miss my game nights as much as anyone, but our health (and safety and the health and safety of those around us) is much more important. We will get through this.
- GeekDad Jonathan Liu has a post this week on “Gaming at a Distance” with tips on how to continue playing games while also staying away from people. It’s definitely worth the read.
- All game store tournaments and events have been canceled in my area, and I hope in yours as well. Along those lines, Z-Man has postponed tournaments for Carcassonne and Pandemic through the end of the year, and will allow stores that already purchased Reign of Cthulu tournament kits for this year to use them in 2021. Fantasy Flight has suspended all organized play events through at least June 1. At this point, it’s safe to assume any convention or event between now and at least the end of May will be canceled as well.
- We all hope the worst of this will be over by sometime in the summer, and as of now, Gen Con is still planning to happen as scheduled. You can still buy badges and we here at GeekDad are stll planning to be there and host our annual Gaming with GeekDad event. Obviously if things change we will update this.
- People are facing an uncertain economic future, and Kickstarter campaigns are showing it: we’re seeing a much higher than normal number of Kickstarter campaigns fail or get canceled. If you have the means, now is the time to go back games you’re interested in, and if you don’t, consider backing games you like at the $0 level so that you can be informed when they relaunch once things recover.
- In happier news, The Op has announced not one but two new games based on Spongebob Squarepants. Spongebob: Plankton Rising takes the company’s popular Rising series to Bikini Bottom, while Trivial Pursuit: Spongebob will test your knowledge of the popular franchise. Both games are due to be released in conjunction with the planned release of the Spongebob movie at the end of May, but that, of course, depends on theaters reopening, so for now: TBA.
- The Op has also announced Friday the 13th: Horror at Camp Crystal Lake, which will join their recent line of movie-themed titles. The press-your-luck competitive game is due out this summer.
- Cryptozoic is trying to help encourage staying at home with a “Stay Home, Play Games!” sale, promising “lower than Amazon” prices on their best-selling games.
- Renegade has announced Cat Tower, due this summer. A “stacking game featuring papercraft cats,” it looks like it’ll be a great game for the cat lover in your life.
- Renegade has released Stellar, the game about stargazing.
GeekDad and GeekMom Reviews
- Jonathan Liu reviewed Skulls of Sedlec.
- Michael Knight reviewed Kung Fu Panda: The Board Game.
- Elizabeth MacAndrew reviewed Trekking the World.
What We’re Playing
Finally, here’s what the GeekDads played this week:
- Greg Howley played Above & Below and RoboRally.
- Jonathan Liu played MetroX, Robinson Crusoe, Pandemic, and SpyCon.
- Rebecca Angel Maxwell played Skip-Bo.
- Michael Pistiolas Love Letter, Zingo, and Gloomhaven.
- Michael Knight Kung Fu Panda: The Board Game and Plunder: A Pirate’s Life.
- Sophie Brown played Tatsu, Star Wars: X-Wing, Bandido and Fluxx.
- I played The River (this week’s featured image), Campaign Trail, and Ancestree.
