dead of winter

Forget Terminators. The thing about artificial intelligence that you should be worrying about is how it's creeping into the creative aspects of board-game-making.

Plaid Hat Games Marketing Manager Niki Shults and Multimedia Director (and newly minted game designer of Freelancers: A Crossroads Game) Donald Shults join our podcast this week to tell us about how A.I. is being talked about around the office. We also take a closer look at the publisher's "Crossroads" system and chat about about how our non-board-game hobbies affect our board gaming.

Timeline:

• 5:49 - Christina's game pick: Next Station: London. 
• 8:55 - Niki's game pick: Mountain Goats. 
• 13:37 - Donald's game pick: Skate Summer. 
• 17:42 - Christina's topic: The evolution of Plaid Hat's "Crossroads" system.
• 35:28 - Niki's topic: The rise of A.I. in the board game space.
• 47:05 - Donald's topic: Have your hobbies influenced what board games you play?

Plaid Hat CEO Colby Dauch and Marketing Manager Niki Shults team up to discuss some hot (spiteful content creation, life with mega publisher Asmodee, etc.) and not-so-hot (Candy Land??) on the Going Analog Podcast this week. They've put out some incredible and memorable board games over the years, so give them a listen!

Timeline:

• 4:00 - Christina's game pick: Motor City.
• 6:20 - Niki's game pick: The Guild of Merchant Explorers.
• 11:54 - Colby's game pick: Candy Land. Yes, that Candy Land.
• 17:24 - Colby's topic: The intersection of video gaming and board gaming.
• 35:36 - Christina's topic: Talking Plaid Hat's life before, during, and after the huge Asmodee aquisition.
• 53:33 - Niki's topic: Mean and spiteful content creation -- does it have a place?

Becky takes to the mic as our new "First Player" to chat about playing games together on the same team (well sometimes).

FIRST PLAYER: Becky
OTHER PLAYERS: Adrian, Tambo & Rob

OVERVIEW
Becky steals the first player token from Davey to start her run of episodes and focusing on co-operative gaming and it's various forms.  In this episode you'll learn:

- Becky nearly walking away from Spirit Island but having a redeeming game where it finally clicked has saved the day
- Adrian playing the "NEW" Sabika at Gaming Rules HQ and telling us his thoughts on the game
- the various experiences of co-op gaming within the group, why they enjoy it, some problems with it and much more
- how the group would survive on a desert island, who's a cannibal and oh and what games they would play
- about Tambo's accidental mulligan in Perseverance Chronicle Mode which he's pleased about

LINKS REFERENCED IN THE SHOW
N/A

EPISODE CHAPTERS
0:00 - TURN 1 - Player Count
0:59 - TURN 2 - Let's Talk About Hex
1:10 - Tambo - Codenames
3:35 - Adrian - Sabika (NEW)
9:29 - Rob - Marvel Champions
13:13 - Becky - Spirit Island
15:06 - TURN 3 - Main Event - I get by with a little help from my friends (co-op gaming)
15:25 - The various categories of co-op gaming
16:04 - Gloomhaven
16:42 - Mansions of Madness
17:46 - Pandemic
25:19 - Spirit Island
29:22 - Do we think it changes the dynamics of the group in co-ops?
33:43 - The backstabbing of semi co-ops
36:05 - The ups and downs of being the traitor / villain
42:58 - The negatives of co-ops
52:17 - Do we think there will be more innovation in co-op games?
56:17 - TURN 4 - Question Time: What are our desert island games?
1:02:28 - TURN 5 - The Penultimate Turn: What's Coming Up?
1:02:49 - Rob - Star Wars Outer Rim
1:04:44 - Adrian - The War Room Teaser - Chinese flag stickers have turned up
1:07:33 - Tambo - Perseverance Chronicle Mode Game 2
1:09:34 - Becky - Zuuli
1:13:10 - TURN 6 - The Final Turn

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Board Games Dripping With Theme

What's your favorite board game theme?
Which board game has the most immersive theme?

Theme is often the hook that brings you into a game, but it's also the clothes the game wears and the language we use when we talk about the game.

In this episode we talk about just some of our favorite games that are dripping with theme.

04:02 Dead of Winter
18:15 Chronicles of Crime
32:45 Star Wars Rebellion
45:53 Black Orchestra
55:01 Flashpoint: Fire Rescue
1:01:36 Battlestar Galactica: The Board Game
1:14:09 The Adventurers: The Temple Of Chac
1:24:39 Nemesis

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