Re-Roll: This Week’s Tabletop Game News for the Week Ending January 14, 2022

Here is the board game (and board game-related!) news that caught our attention for the week ending January 14, 2022.

Gaming News

• Badges for Gen Con 2022 go on sale at noon on January 30. The organizers have already stated that proof of vaccination will be required for all attendees and that everyone will have to wear masks as well. As of now, they have not clarified if boosters are required to be considered vaccinated (but please get your booster regardless). Badges that were rolled over from 2020 can either be used this year or refunded.
• The animated TV adaptation of the hit D&D podcast Critical Role has a new trailer and a release date: January 28 on Amazon Prime Video.
• Tabletop Simulator has been in the news a lot this week, and unfortunately not for what Berserk, the company behind the online board game simulation tool, would want. It began last week with a series of tweets from user XoeAllred explaining how she had been banned multiple times from the TTS global chat for merely mentioning the fact that she was trans, saying that the ban was because the site’s moderators felt mentioning one’s sexual orientation and gender identity was “political” or not “family-friendly.” After posting a very weak apology, they followed up with a longer apology that was at least… longer, which also included the announcement that they were removing global chat from the app while they “reassess [their] moderation process as clearly, we have some shortcomings.” XoeAllred said, however, that the moderator who had initially banned her was still a moderator, and that no one from Berserk has reached out, saying the response was “too little too late.”
• WizKids is set to release Free Radicals, a new game from Treasure Cats designer Nathan Woll. The game will allow players to take on one of ten factions and attempt to collect resources in order to prove that their faction should be in charge. The game will retail for $60 and is due on shelves in February.
• Portal Games will be bringing the popular game Gutenburg to the US, Australia, and New Zealand. The game was a hit at Essen last year, and Portal is co-publishing the English edition with Granna. The game is due out in March.
• Hot the heels of their “strategic investment” from Asmodee, Exploding Kittens has announced that Carly McGinnis will be taking over as president. McGinnis was most recently Head of Production, Sales, and Logistics for the company. 
• Toy Fair 2022 has been canceled.
• According to ICv2, the Nuremberg Toy Fair organizer Spielwarenmesse eG has acquired the Internationale Spieltage SPIEL event in Essen. The Essen event’s top leadership is not changing, but according to the article, the acquisition will ensure the survival of the iconic gaming convention. 

GeekDad Reviews

Here’s what we reviewed this week:

• Michael Knight reviewed Yucatan.

  Related Post

  1. 3 GeekDad-Approved Titles Make the 2022 Spiel des Jahres Nominees

     Nominations have been announced for this year's contenders for the Spiel des Jahres.

  2. GeekMom: A Toast to ‘Better Call Saul’ With a Zafiro Añejo Stopper Craft

     Even in the worlds of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, the littlest details can…

  3. Crack the Case in ‘The Key: Sabotage at Lucky Llama Land’

     Three suspects have been apprehended sabotaging rides at a theme park. Can you piece together…

What We’re Playing

Finally, here’s what the GeekDads played this week:

• Robin Brooks played Deadzone, Elector Counts, and Kingdomino, our featured image this week.

• Jonathan Liu played Puzzle Strike 2.

• Michael Knight played Yucatan.