Commentary - The Thoughtful Gamer https://thethoughtfulgamer.com Board Game Reviews, Analysis, and Strategy Wed, 13 Jul 2022 21:34:14 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.1 https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/cropped-TTGlogoWHITELETTERS-5-32x32.png Commentary - The Thoughtful Gamer https://thethoughtfulgamer.com 32 32 124167274 Reviewers: Stop Saying “Not for me” https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/07/13/reviewers-stop-saying-not-for-me/ https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/07/13/reviewers-stop-saying-not-for-me/#respond Wed, 13 Jul 2022 21:34:10 +0000 https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/?p=3818 I know a good number of you are probably upset, or at least skeptical, right now because of how I’ve titled this article. But, if you give me a bit of your time and hear me out, I think I have a good case for why you should eliminate the phrase “not for me” from …

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The post Reviewers: Stop Saying “Not for me” appeared first on The Thoughtful Gamer.]]> https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/07/13/reviewers-stop-saying-not-for-me/feed/ 0 3818 4 Thoughts About Board Gaming in Digital Space https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/06/24/4-thoughts-about-board-gaming-in-digital-space/ https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/06/24/4-thoughts-about-board-gaming-in-digital-space/#comments Fri, 24 Jun 2022 20:36:00 +0000 https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/?p=3736 When I, along with the rest of the world, began to realize that we’d be spending a lot more time at home in early 2020, I knew that I’d need to get used to playing board games online. It never quite happened. I’ve certainly played my fair share, but I couldn’t help shake the feeling …

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The post 4 Thoughts About Board Gaming in Digital Space appeared first on The Thoughtful Gamer.]]> https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/06/24/4-thoughts-about-board-gaming-in-digital-space/feed/ 1 3736 Methods of Board Game Criticism https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/05/27/methods-of-board-game-criticism/ https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/05/27/methods-of-board-game-criticism/#comments Sat, 28 May 2022 04:47:32 +0000 https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/?p=3654 This article is a loose continuation of some of the thoughts I offered here and here. I have a keen interest in how we analyze board games, not just because that’s what I do, but because the state of criticism in the internet age is so dire. I’m not just talking about board games here, …

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The post Methods of Board Game Criticism appeared first on The Thoughtful Gamer.]]> https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/05/27/methods-of-board-game-criticism/feed/ 2 3654 How Board Games Communicate https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/05/22/how-board-games-communicate/ https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/05/22/how-board-games-communicate/#respond Mon, 23 May 2022 02:42:19 +0000 https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/?p=3558 This article is sort of a continuation of this article from last week, inspired by discussions on twitter mostly located here and here. I made two claims in last week’s article that I want to dive into more deeply. The first is that board games communicate ideas. The second is that they do so in …

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The post How Board Games Communicate appeared first on The Thoughtful Gamer.]]> https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/05/22/how-board-games-communicate/feed/ 0 3558 Criticism is Conversation https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/05/14/criticism-is-conversation/ https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/05/14/criticism-is-conversation/#comments Sat, 14 May 2022 12:33:20 +0000 https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/?p=3546 A little over a decade ago on a night like tonight I’m probably outside, briskly walking through the cool Pennsylvania evening, talking on the phone with Amber like my life depends on it. In many ways it does. I’m walking in the shadow of the college I just unceremoniously abandoned. I couldn’t continue because whenever …

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The post Criticism is Conversation appeared first on The Thoughtful Gamer.]]> https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/05/14/criticism-is-conversation/feed/ 2 3546 Entrepreneurial Foresight: Market Lessons in Brass https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/05/03/entrepreneurial-foresight-market-lessons-in-brass/ https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/05/03/entrepreneurial-foresight-market-lessons-in-brass/#comments Wed, 04 May 2022 01:54:23 +0000 https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/?p=3518 This is part 2 in a series about economic concepts in board games. You can check out part 1, about Sidereal Confluence and trade, here. When I first started playing modern board games I was delighted by Power Grid, with its crude simulation of supply and demand. As an economics nerd I loved how elegantly …

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The post Entrepreneurial Foresight: Market Lessons in Brass appeared first on The Thoughtful Gamer.]]> https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/05/03/entrepreneurial-foresight-market-lessons-in-brass/feed/ 3 3518 On Deluxification https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/04/12/on-deluxification/ https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/04/12/on-deluxification/#comments Tue, 12 Apr 2022 06:14:08 +0000 https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/?p=3496 After seeing the announcement for a new, super-deluxe version of Castles of Burgundy, I was prepared to sit down and write a screed. Sure, the original is widely considered to be ugly, and even though I don’t share that sentiment, I’d welcome an improvement. Not a lot of details have been released about Awaken Realms’ …

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The post On Deluxification appeared first on The Thoughtful Gamer.]]> https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/04/12/on-deluxification/feed/ 8 3496 Why Hubris is a Great Board Game Theme https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/01/26/why-hubris-is-a-great-board-game-theme/ https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/01/26/why-hubris-is-a-great-board-game-theme/#comments Wed, 26 Jan 2022 08:07:50 +0000 https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/?p=3319 When I wrote my article about theme a few months ago I made a quick remark about eurogames, asking, “I mean, from a literary-thematic point of view, what’s the typical eurogame about? What kind of ideas does it play with? That efficiency wins?” This warrants more examination. I meant it as a bit of a joke, …

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The post Why Hubris is a Great Board Game Theme appeared first on The Thoughtful Gamer.]]> https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/01/26/why-hubris-is-a-great-board-game-theme/feed/ 2 3319 Reviewers: Describe The Game For What It Is https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/01/14/reviewers-describe-the-game-for-what-it-is/ https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/01/14/reviewers-describe-the-game-for-what-it-is/#respond Sat, 15 Jan 2022 04:42:13 +0000 https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/?p=3306 If there’s anything I’ve become more aware of in my nearly five(!) years of reviewing board games, it’s that I don’t need to feel obligated to cover every single aspect of any game. If the point of reviewing is to communicate the experience I had playing the game, some parts are simply irrelevant to that …

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The post Reviewers: Describe The Game For What It Is appeared first on The Thoughtful Gamer.]]> https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2022/01/14/reviewers-describe-the-game-for-what-it-is/feed/ 0 3306 The Thoughtful Gamer’s Super-Mega 2021 Holiday Gift Guide Spectacular https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2021/12/16/the-thoughtful-gamers-super-mega-2021-holiday-gift-guide-spectacular/ https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2021/12/16/the-thoughtful-gamers-super-mega-2021-holiday-gift-guide-spectacular/#respond Thu, 16 Dec 2021 05:54:13 +0000 https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/?p=3260 The time has come for everyone to scramble for those last minute Christmas gifts to pile up under the tree and once again The Thoughtful Gamer, well-known around the globe as an authority on all things new and hot in the board game-o-sphere, is here to help with all of your shopping needs.  In case …

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The post The Thoughtful Gamer’s Super-Mega 2021 Holiday Gift Guide Spectacular appeared first on The Thoughtful Gamer.]]> https://thethoughtfulgamer.com/2021/12/16/the-thoughtful-gamers-super-mega-2021-holiday-gift-guide-spectacular/feed/ 0 3260