Over the Tabletop

Two people. Many, many games. One very good cat. Over the Tabletop is a podcast dedicated to discussing board games, card games, and dice games that play well (or not!) with two people. Because scheduling game days with more than two is hard, frankly. Join James and Erin as they travel through their games collection, go on theoretically-related tangents, and pat their very good cat, Solstice.

Dungeon Squared and Wetworks! 02/01/2020

Dungeon Squared and Wetworks! Coming to us from Ringstrue Games (thank you!), we're coming back to you with our reviews of Dungeon Squared and Wetworks! Both are fun, easy to pick up and play, and work well for two players! There's deckbuilding, dungeon crawling, espionage, set collection, hand management, and more across the two games. Give a listen! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/12974759

Epic Spell Wars: Annihilageddon! 01/03/2020

Epic Spell Wars: Annihilageddon! Over the Tabletop tears right into 2020 with a game that's truly EPIC .... because that's part of the title. It's Epic Spell Wars of the Battle Wizards: Annihilageddon and it's got 100 percent more deckbuilding, 100 percent more two-player capabilities, and probably 75 percent more poop jokes than all previous Epic Spell Wars. Join your friendly neighborhood Battle Wizards for a full run-down of the game and way fewer spicy takes than usual because, well, it's winter. We're tired. /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/12610373

All Manor of Evil 11/30/2019

All Manor of Evil We'll be honest, this episode is way late, but trust us, it's been a Month. At some point BEFORE the Month, we played All Manor of Evil, the product of a successful Kickstarter! A Lovecraftian card game with a neat trick of working well for two players, give a listen to see what we think! (Because we don't actually remember, other than our review being quite positive!) /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/12229805

Roll and Writes! 10/14/2019

Roll and Writes! Like rolling? Like writing? You'll love this week's games! Join Over the Tabletop as we discuss Imperial Settlers, Brikks, and That's So Clever, three games that let you toss some dice, press your luck, and keep track of your gaming destiny with those tiny little mini-golf pencils! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/11634119

Boston Festival of Indie Games, 2019 edition! 09/16/2019

Boston Festival of Indie Games, 2019 edition! Welcome to Season 3 of Over the Tabletop! We're kicking off things with an adventuresome journey to rapidly expanding local-to-us indie game festival, BostonFIG! Come for our reviews of some brand-new two-player games, stay for those trademark Over the Tabletop shenanigrams! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/11277296

Renegade! 04/21/2019

Renegade! The jig is up, the news is out, we've finally found ... a game that is well-crafted and great for solo play but not quite as flavorful for two players. It's Renegade, from Victory Point Games, a game that James and Erin appreciate many aspects of and are excited to play NOT with each other! We also discuss what makes for a good solo game and appreciate the attention paid to proofreading Renegade's instruction booklet! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/9474824

Aeon's End Legacy! 04/04/2019

Aeon's End Legacy! We're back and Erin is TIRED this episode, but it's a lively discussion regardless of our newest cooperative deckbuilder, Aeon's End Legacy! We're fans of the story aspect of the game, which pits us, a couple of scrappy Breach Mages against villains daring to destroy the probably picturesque village of Gravehold! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/9271136

Gloomhaven! 03/07/2019

Gloomhaven! It's the biggest ... well, certainly the heaviest ... game we've played yet! Gloomhaven from Cephalofair Games offers a meaty gameplay experience to go along with weighing some 20 pounds or nearly one and a half stones! James and Erin also discuss the utility of house rules for a more enjoyable gaming experience, as well as a SHIFT IN POWER on Over the Tabletop's Twitter account! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/8906651

Exorcism at the House of Monkton Falls! 02/15/2019

Exorcism at the House of Monkton Falls! The name is a mouthful, but luckily we here at Over the Tabletop find this biweek's game quite delicious! Exorcism at the House of Monkton Falls from The Screaming Brain is one we playtested last year and Kickstarted. It scratches that cooperative, race-against-time, spooky mystery itch without feeling like it's impossible to ever get that house clear! Also this week: Erin REALLY wants to copyedit your game's instruction manuals and James celebrates Galentine's Day. /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/8661545

Death Note: Confrontation! 01/31/2019

Death Note: Confrontation! Come hear the audible sighs of relief as Erin realizes she doesn't need to know *anything* about anime to play -- and enjoy -- Death Note: Confrontation! This two-player deduction game pits super-sleuth L against the mysterious Kira as both race the clock (there's no clock, but it's a fairly quick game) to win! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/8473421

Legacy of Dragonholt! 01/18/2019

Legacy of Dragonholt! James makes a baseball joke and we choose our own adventure with Legacy of Dragonholt, a roleplaying game that doesn't require a GM or lots of fiddly math to play or even other people to play! That ticks all of Erin's boxes and it's a fun, accessible adventure that seems like it'd be ideal to get young people or new-to-gaming folks interested in roleplaying games and THEN THEY'LL BE TRAPPED AHAHAHAHAHA. /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/8307755

Duelosaur Island! 01/04/2019

Duelosaur Island! We spent so much time thinking about whether we COULD play Duelosaur Island, we didn't .... no, actually, we did spend a lot of time thinking about whether we should -- and we agree that we AND YOU should play it! A purely two-player game from Pandasaurus Games, Duelosaur Island blends dice drafting, resource management, a little bit of take that!-style action, and comes up with an enjoyable visit to the world of dino DNA, risk management, and excitement! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/8136329

InBetween! 12/21/2018

InBetween! Over the Tabletop went on the road to see some stuff and play some games! Join us for a chat about The Uncommons, a board game cafe in NYC and the games we played there, including InBetween, a fun, quick battle between the forces of good and evil! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/8007020

Thunderstone Quest! 11/19/2018

Thunderstone Quest! Over the Tabletop returns with an update of an older deckbuilder, Thunderstone Quest! The game, which has an expansion set running on Kickstarter now, streamlines the play in a very effective way, eliminating a lot of the unnecessary math from the old game, much to Erin's approval! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/7621352

Direwild! 11/08/2018

Direwild! This week, we're on the cutting edge with our review of a super-new game, from Iron Horde Games! This one was our Game of the Con at GenCon and we're excited to take a more comprehensive look at a fun, tricky, and rewarding twist on game mechanics! Join us as we build our decks (some of us more successfully than others) and crawl cooperatively through a dungeon, all with the help of puppies and kittens! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/7491113

Alchemy! 10/22/2018

Alchemy! It's potion-making time! We're back with a look at - a quick, portable "Apprentice Duel" version of a larger game and we really like it for all of those reasons! In advance, we apologize for an extended bit about digestive problems, none of which occurred during the playing of this enjoyable game that mixes set-matching with a bit of "mess with your opponent" fun! From Aviary Games, this is one we really enjoyed from Boston FIG! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/7276634

Boston Festival of Indie Games 2018! 10/04/2018

Boston Festival of Indie Games 2018! We make our triumphant return to the Boston Festival of Indie Games to check out locally-grown gaming goodness. We report on a few promising options, check out a new-to-us game (Alchemy from Aviary Games!), and discuss Erin's short attention span when it comes to anime as well as James' commitment to smart scheduling when it comes to game cons and dog festivals! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/7129855

Villainous! 09/14/2018

Villainous! It's so much fun being evil! At least we THINK it is, as we try out Disney's , a new game from Wonder Forge that combines hand management, mess-with-your-opponent opportunities, and variable player powers! We take on the roles of the likes of Maleficent, Ursula the Sea Witch, and Captain Hook and ... it's not bad? /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/7044708

Supershow! 08/28/2018

Supershow! This podcast episode is scheduled for ONE FALL! We're back on our wrestling-themed game enthusiasm with a card game that has quite delighted us over the last few weeks -- it's SRG's ! With a dash of dice rolling luck, clever card play, and some thematic role-playing, it's one we've welcomed into our regular game rotation! Also listen as Erin loses a bet and gets active on social media! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/6978332

GenCon Recap! 08/15/2018

GenCon Recap! We're baaaaaack from GenCon, having patted all the cats Indianapolis had to offer, collected all the Scotty's Brewhouse dice, and tried several new games! We'll talk about some highlights (! !), some interesting updates (Thunderstone Quest!) and more. Come get the inside scoop on our favorites! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/6926653

GenCon Preview! 07/28/2018

GenCon Preview! With just a few short days before GenCon 2018 dawns, we're back with our preview of highly-anticipated-by-us games and events during this year's event! Join us for us for all the best tips for making the most of not waiting in line at Noodles & Company during GenCon! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/6860901

Cat Lady! 07/12/2018

Cat Lady! It's Erin in board game form -- Cat Lady! We come back from a bit of a hiatus with a light, fun look at a light, fun game. Co-producer Solstice gives this charmingly illustrated card drafting game two cat-thumbs up (and she can, because she has thumbs!) as do we! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/6803766

Twilight Struggle! 05/27/2018

Twilight Struggle! We played this mid-dayish, but it's Twilight Struggle! A card game evoking the Cold War between the U.S. and USSR, involving strategy, cunning, and wit, so of course James won several rounds. Erin is still a fan, though, and so is Co-Producer Solstice, so give a listen and see if you might enjoy this classic offering from GMT Games! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/6637846

Shards of Infinity! 05/18/2018

Shards of Infinity! From the people who brought you Ascension comes a game reviewed by the people who also recently brought you a review of Ascension, it's Shards of Infinity! Over the Tabletop's fondness for deckbuilders really comes to life in this one, once we figured out how to actually play it. Erin's running on a high of five games won and she's not even bothered by the fact we weren't playing correctly! Give it a listen! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/6608206

Patchwork! 04/30/2018

Patchwork! James and Erin have pieced together a lovely episode for listeners on Patchwork, a game by Uwe Rosenberg of Agricola fame! This game gains points for a uniquely pleasant experience and also not being Agricola! Join us also for a rich tapestry of philosophical talk on game groups and game styles! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/6538058

Ascension! 04/09/2018

Ascension! Over the Tabletop rises to greatness as always with Stone Blade Games' Ascension! A solid deckbuilder that's been around for several years and has several expansion/standalone games, it's been a go-to game for James and Erin, with wins on both sides. Or not! It's hard to tell, because the game is enjoyable enough (pretty art! appealing victory tokens!) not to worry about winning or losing. Co-producer Solstice also offers her thoughts! (spoiler alert, they are "Meow!") /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/6458311

Hero Realms! And a TotalCon report! 03/17/2018

Hero Realms! And a TotalCon report! We're back with a on-location report from local gaming convention TotalCon! We offer our thoughts on some newly sampled games such as and ! We also review longtime favorite, Hero Realms from White Wizard Games! This episode also brings an update on the Android Netrunner legacy game we've been playing/bickering over for several months. Give a listen! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/6375085

Twilight of the Gods! 02/25/2018

Twilight of the Gods! We return with , a fun outing from Victory Point Games that James likes a lot even though Erin has won every game thus far! The game, much like Magic with some twists, has an expansion up on right now. Also this episode, Solstice meows in the background, causing immediate cuteness meltdowns; Erin grumbles a bit about card terminology; and we recap our San Francisco trip! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/6298924

Small Box Games! And Keep! 02/09/2018

Small Box Games! And Keep! We cast our net wider this week while discussing the board game oeuvre of a favorite game maker, Small Box Games! They're a solid game developer with a strong Kickstarter presence, grasp of different game mechanics, and making gold coins look like delicious cheeseballs. Also in this episode, Erin can't open her tea, James has super vacation brain, and Solstice audibly climbs into a bag! Join us! /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/6244706

Mission to Planet Hexx! 01/26/2018

Mission to Planet Hexx! It's unanimous, folks! A game that James, Erin, AND Co-Producer Solstice KitKat all enjoy! This week's episode has us playing Mission to Planet Hexx, a delightful romp through space and even though Erin lost and is feeling surly about it, she's STILL jazzed to try again. It's a brand-new day! It should also be noted that James still can't stand Ticket to Ride. /episode/index/show/overthetabletoppodcast/id/6190779

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