A remake, a new take and an expansion walk into a bar. The barman says, “what’ll it be?” They all reply “something fresh.”

Was that too mean? I think that was too mean, especially since at least (and also at most) two of the games discussed in this episode are pretty great. And one of them is okay. We revisit the classic Terra Mystica in it’s new more thematically demure incarnation, we explore how Raising Robots riffs on Wingspan and Efka finally gets to play the expansion to his favourite game of all time - Sidereal Confluence. Let me tell you folks - it’s been bifurcated.

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0:00 Cold Open

2:48 Intro

3:43 Age of Innovation: A Terra Mystica Game

33:22 Raising Robots

53:23 Sidereal Confluence: Bifurcation

Age of Innovation, Raising Robots, Sidereal Confluence: Bifurcation

“What’s good?” you might ask me. Oh, nothing. Nothing at all. Just board games. Three specific board games that are, in fact, good and COINCIDENTALLY are all featured on this episode of Talk Cardboard. What a treat! A threefer. A co-op boss battler that’s good, a solo deck-builder that’s good and, wait for it, a EUROGAME that is very good! It’s good games vibes only. Enjoy!

If you’d like to check out our bonus episodes - become a patreon supporter on https://patreon.com/nopunincluded

0:00 Cold Open

2:00 Intro

3:17 Unmatched Adventures: Tales to Amaze

22:08 Witchcraft!

38:41 Revive

Unmatched Adventures: Tales to Amaze, Witchcraft!, Revive

This episode we only cover two games, but we had so much to say it ended up being a full length episode anyway. Which isn’t a surprise really when you end up with two follow ups for two massively succesful games. It’s the follow-up episode! And if you strain your thinking really hard, you could even argue that this very episode is a follow up to previous episodes, and thus thematically represents the games themselves. It’s nice when things like that line up perfectly. Please enjoy our chatter on 7th Citadel (sequel to 7th Continent) and Wyrmspan (sequel to Wingspan).

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0:00 Cold Open

0:38 Intro

2:44 7th Citadel

34:15 Wyrmspan

7th Citadel, Wyrmspan

There is a duality in first time plays, at least when you’re playing with a mind to reviewing. One path leads to potential, the other to the bin. A first time play can reveal quirks and kinks that promise an interesting second or third or fourth and beyond plays; exploration and indulgence. It can equally reveal a design you never wish to revisit. On today’s episode - two board games. Arcs and Salton Sea. A remix of space board games and a trudge through the bleak world of mining lithium. Each a representative of both polar opposites of first impressions.

Articles and websites discussed in the episode can be found here:

Vote for your favourite podcast in the BGG Awards: https://boardgamegeek.com/geekawards/boardgame

From Wingspan to Wyrmspan: An Accesibility Journey - https://boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/157687/from-wingspan-to-wyrmspan-an-accessibility-journey

Rolling with Two: Wyrmspan - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ifMREbPv1Zk

Colorbling Games - https://colorblindgames.com/

If you’d like to check out our bonus episodes - become a patreon supporter on https://patreon.com/nopunincluded

On to the timestamps:

0:00 Cold Open

1:46 Intro

2:49 Flavor Text

9:13 Salton Sea

41:46 Weight vs Subject

45:02 Arcs

1:15:03 Outro

Salton Sea, Arcs

Dear listeners, it’s never been clearer to us that board games have entered into a new era - the era of the size race. Each month publishers are competing to release a bigger campaign game than the one before and in terms of scope, Agemonia is definitely in the running for the lead. In terms of box size it’s no slouch either, looking eerily similar to that 32 pound Frosthaven box. To provide some contrast and levity, the second game on this episode is Terra Nova, a sleeker, slimmer, smaller and shorter version of its big sibling - Terra Mystica.

If you’d like to check out our bonus episodes - become a patreon supporter on https://patreon.com/nopunincluded

On to the timestamps:

0:00 Cold Open

1:46 Agemonia

41:34 Agemonia content warning start

45:49 Agemonia content warning end

48:22 Audience Correspondence - Salton Sea

55:52 Terra Nova

Agemonia, Terra Nova

I don’t know about you, but I think there’s something special about the momentum of two player games. The tension, the back and forth. The sensation of making a clever move is so much more palpable than in any other player count. Today we’ll take a look at three two player games, each interesting in its own way, and also two more on our bonus episode.

Our friend Jon from JonGetsGames has designed a game called Spring Cleaning, which we mention in the episode, you can pre-order it here: https://www.newmillindustries.com/store/p/spring-cleaning-preorder or you can play it online on boardgamearena.

If you’d like to check out our bonus episodes - become a patreon supporter on https://patreon.com/nopunincluded

On to the timestamps:

0:00 Cold Open

2:04 Intro

4:08 Run

24:31 Haggis

37:07 Harrow County

Two Player Special: Run, Haggis, Harrow County

Hello boardgamers and boardgamees, how are your MEEPLES? Do they need feeding? Watering? Some TLC? Or do they just need a good dose of the Talk Cardboard podcast to refresh that wooden noggin? Well worry not young meeple trainer, we’ve got a new episode digitally bumbling its way to you right now.

A real smorgasboard of delights this week as we take a look at three very different games to suit very different needs. Spectral is a strange melange of deduction and Keyflower style bidding? Does that even work? Does it make sense? Is Ryan Courtney the only designer that can pull this off?

Talking of designers that can pull things off, how about none other than Reiner Knizia himself, who, believe it or not, designed another game. Except he designed this one quite a long time ago and also made a very fresh expansion for it right now. Through the Desert is a mean mean classic and Bazaar is a mixed bag of modules to add some zest.

And finally, a board game based on a beloved video game (unofficially) that doesn’t just work but maybe even surpases its insipiration? Leviathan Wilds is the tabletop version of Shadows of the Colossus and there are moments when it towers above it.

Find more episodes on https://nopunincluded.com/podcast

If you’d like to check out our bonus episodes - become a patreon supporter on https://patreon.com/nopunincluded

On to the timestamps:

0:00 Cold Open

1:05 Intro

3:03 Spectral

30:25 Through the Desert (+Bazaar Expansion)

56:55 More letters on Salton Sea

1:01:40 Leviathan Wilds

Leviathan Wilds, Through the Desert (Bazaar), Spectral

Cute, but deadly! We used to dance under that name but you could also use those three words to describe today’s selection of games.

Harvest is a farming worker placement game so cloyingly sweet you could squeeze condensed milk out of it. Is it good? Jury’s still out.

War Stories: Occupied France is the unlikely combination of Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective and Undaunted - how does that even work? We’ve got the scoop.

And finally… Dorfromantik: The Duel. Last year’s adaptation of Dorfromantik to board game form was low key our favourite light tile layer. But now naturally come the spin-offs and we’ve got some takes.

If you’d like to check out our bonus episodes - become a patreon supporter on https://patreon.com/nopunincluded

On to the timestamps:

0:00 Go Listen to So Very Wrong About Games

1:34 Cold Open

3:35 Intro

4:30 Audience Correspondence - Horror Games

12:25 Harvest

28:30 Audience Correspondence - Haggis

30:44 War Story: Occupied France

48:40 Audience Correspondence - More Haggis

51:26 Dorfromantik: The Duel

1:00:24 Outro

Harvest, War Story: Occupied France, Dorfromantik: The Duel

Vroom vroom it’s time to kaboom! Or something along those lines because today’s feature game is all about smashing cars into other cars. It feels like we’ve seen this type of game over and over through time, from Rock’n’Roll Racing to Mario Kart to Twisted Metal to Carmaggedon - the world is full of games that let you cause car accidents on purpose. But let me tell you, it’s never been done like that in cardboard. Joyride is a delight!

And there’s other games too! We take a look at the somewhat bland and reliable Invincible: The Hero-Building Game and the charming Wilmot’s Warehouse in its new board game incarnation.

If you’d like to check out our bonus episodes - become a patreon supporter on https://patreon.com/nopunincluded

On to the timestamps:

0:00 Cold Open

0:39 Intro

1:44 Audience Correspondence: Qualia

5:29 Joyride: Survival of the Fastest

30:58 Audience Correspondence: Standardized Size

34:29 Invincible: The Hero-Building Game

53:19 Audience Correspondence: More Haggis Letters

55:29 Wilmot's Warehouse

Joyride, Invincible, Wilmot's Warehouse

Folks, folks and folks, please come join us for a marvelous carboard celebration through time, energy and cities. Gaze your eyes to Paris in 1920 and marvel at the deductive action of Kronologic. Now turn those eyeballs further east towards Germany and amaze yourself with the fantabulous power of Nucleum and finally, fly up and up and up and then look down for a birds eye view of cities in Cities. It’s a show like no other and that show is called Talk Cardboard.

For more NPI please visit https://nopunincluded.com

If you’d like to check out our bonus episodes - become a patreon supporter on https://patreon.com/nopunincluded

On to the timestamps:

0:00 Cold Open

2:48 Intro

3:42 Audience Correspondence: Convention Demo Learning

8:45 Kronologic: Paris 1920

19:52 Audience Correspondence: Board games in libraries

25:29 Nucleum + Nucleum: Australia

1:09:31 Audience Correspondence: Wilmot's Warehouse

1:13:26 Cities

1:25:40 Outro

New tracks tagged #no pun included