Dan Apsey: 0:48

Hello and welcome to the Whose turn is it anyway, podcast all about our gaming group and of course board games. It's me dan. I am your first player and it's my last first player. Time. I've had such a good time. It's been fun. And I'm joined with Japles. I call him Japles. Hey Japles Hello,

JP: 1:07

Hey mate

Dan Apsey: 1:07

And Becks. Hey, today we're gonna talk about boardgames classics and their influences but first, how are we all doing?

JP: 1:15

Very good.

Becky: 1:16

I finished work today. So I am happy as happy can be.

JP: 1:21

As in you finished ready for Christmas. Which'll be weird for our listeners, because this will be released in January. So have you

Becky: 1:29

back at work now? I'm miserable. No, I'm not. No, it's just that lovely feeling of I've never had a Christmas completely off because never ever, ever. Ever. Yeah, welcome to shift work in the NHS. But this year, in my new job role, I'm, I'm having a new leaf. And it's

JP: 1:46

just it's just for me that that period of when you break up. And I've always said this, I always prefer actually the days leading up to Christmas Day. And having that time off than the time off afterwards. And I don't know why. But I just I quite like the fact that the kids are off school. And you get to do all the fun lead up and build up things to Christmas. And that's the bit I use usually mess if I'm working all the way up to like Christmas. So yeah. And then suddenly it's like, oh, it's Christmas. Yeah, it's Christmas done by this over so done over before you've had a chance to get in the groove. So

Dan Apsey: 2:19

yeah, so with you both, if anybody just goes up to you and says, Oh, what are you doing for the festive period, you just go for on call.

Becky: 2:27

And I'm really excited about that. I'm really looking forward to just getting up and doing nothing, hopefully me and Kerley or play some board games or, you know, watch some telly and just just totally chill out. Yeah, which is gonna be really nice. We've been playing a lot of BGA so we could just watch something on TV that we already know like, I don't know, proper classics like Harry Potter, baby, play, but play whatever again at the same time.

Dan Apsey: 2:49

It's just nice. It sounds perfect. Perfect. Should we should we do the thing

JP: 2:57

is always ready to do the right thing. So the thing

Dan Apsey: 3:08

let's talk about hex, Bex to start with you

Becky: 3:12

haven't played anything new recently. So I thought I'd talk about when I got to play quadropolis. So I didn't actually play my copy but got it off of I'm counting that as getting it off my shelf of shame because I have played it even though it's not my actual copy it was Adrian's copy and he showed me how to play and I was really really surprised actually really liked it kind of a it reminded me a little bit of almost like a roll and write, so you've got like objectives you got to try and get you can pick from a dwindling number of things. You can't pick something on the same line as someone else picked so you kind of you spent quite a little bit getting don't pick that one don't pick oh they picked it dammit I need to whole rethink the whole strategy which is my life don't usually have the backup plans. I

Dan Apsey: 3:59

just go this is because of your husband. Yeah.

Becky: 4:05

Yeah, it was really good you so you're basically building a city, townscape reminded me a little bit like SimCity so on the side where you put in your thing there's kind of five five numbers five sections I guess on your map like it's five and there's in each little section there's also the one numbers one to five so you can put a thing that's on the first row or that let's say the second row you can either put that in any of quadrant two or any number two thing is in in a quadrant so you've got like a small amount of places you can put a thing so you might decide to put parks next to high rise flats or I think there's ports involve I didn't go down the port line but it yeah however many of something you've got that kind of gets up at the end so you can kind of go down a strategy and restart I was just or whatever to picking any old random thing because you don't really know your first game do Yeah, that was really yeah we'll definitely do it again nice some nice pieces as well

Dan Apsey: 4:58

played a long time ago. I can't remember much too much about it now. But I did enjoy Why don't want to play it but I find it it's quite similar to kind of all like suburbia kind of scratches the same kind of itch. I think it's probably slightly heavier but not much way your city builder textiles and it's especially the new version is very pretty. The deluxe edition was pretty. If you can get a copy of it. I think it's massively out of print. I think I think people sell secondhand copies but it's really really nice. love the game. Yeah. Well, I

Becky: 5:33

will play that again. I don't think it's necessarily Kerley's thing. Strategy. Yeah. So it's not there's no luck. There's no dice rolling. There's none of that. Other than, you know, like I said, someone can block the thing you want it. But that's again, that's not luck. It's picking stuff. It made me think it's a bit puzzling for him.

Dan Apsey: 5:54

I think a big part of the puzzle was No,

Becky: 5:57

I want to say because he doesn't generally win them. I'm only saying that because he's not here.

Dan Apsey: 6:05

Bullshit.

Becky: 6:05

Where is he from? Oh, I didn't realise he was from Lancashire. It. Know, he's, yeah, he prefers to heavy strategies, because he likes the working out. And the combo, we think there's no kind of combos with this isn't quite tactical.

JP: 6:20

So you're reacting to situations all the time? Well,

Becky: 6:24

that's not how I played it, which is maybe why I lost, you're kind of building your tableau, you're building your thing. And the only kind of interaction you have with people is if they pick something from the line you wanted, and you can't, yeah, go for a different one. So do you roll the dice? I'm wondering now, know what I think. I don't know. You pick a number. Yeah. So I think there's, there's no, this makes this better, that then makes that better. Other than picking the right kind of landscape, you know, go for having high rise next to Parks is a good combo. But it's not like, Oh, I do this thing that springs off of that. And then that's like, you know, the way that Kerley likes playing? By liked it. It's good. Thanks to Adrian for teaching that.

JP: 7:08

Because he's been waiting for him to do that. Yeah. It's not his fault.

Becky: 7:11

I hadn't said Adrian, will you teach us please?

Dan Apsey: 7:13

Jayples ? What have you been up to? If you've been playing,

JP: 7:16

though, I've been playing all sorts of stuff. I was actually going to talk about a game I don't think I've talked about on the podcast before and I have I can't remember. So maybe a good one to talk about, which is a game called franchise,

Dan Apsey: 7:28

I think. I think you'll find that you mentioned that in episode four. No,

JP: 7:31

no, that's too many bones. Yeah,

Dan Apsey: 7:38

it's got that episode literally logged in the

JP: 7:41

others I don't know. Can't remember. No franchise. So franchises is a game I've had for good two, maybe three, maybe four years. And it's a game that's pretty much all about spreading over America, it's not a pandemic. But the opposite. You want to spread all the franchises all over America. So the board is absolutely bonkers. It's an Ian O'Toole designed board. But you look at the map of the US. And you've got all the different cities and landmarks in LA, Chicago, New York, all that kind of stuff. And then in between them all there's like roads and routes. And it's just like Ticket to Ride. But it's It's bonkers to look at, I'll show you after the podcast just show you what I mean. But so you've kind of got five different routes, connecting all these different areas and they vary in degree of cost that you would travel across those routes. So you've got like a simple guidelines, which will be like free to expand across and all the way up to a big purple or Pinky, thick Road, which cost like $8 to expand and when you look at it, it's like oh my god, like this thing is an assault on the eyes, but weirdly all kind of makes sense. So the premise of the game is that you start in one of these towns in America and you're like representing a franchise of you know, burger chain or a laundromat or a car garage or whatever it is. So yeah, so how many plays is on your turn you'll you'll gain income depending on how many cities you're in, the more cities you in, the more obviously income you're going to get better cash and then you will expand to one of the neighbouring towns or cities that you have presence in and depending on the routes you take all the different lines will depend on how much money you spend to basically expand into those areas. And then you can kind of if you've got presence in any of the cities you can increase your market share and actually increase the amount of the little I love little wooden houses your franchises that are in that cities you kind of expand your influence but doing that means you end up kind of earning less money which is counterintuitive

Dan Apsey: 9:48

because it like a business economical simulator little bit i because this is right up my street

JP: 9:53

Yeah, little bit. Sounds really good. Really, but it's not really complicated. It's very kind of straightforward. Yeah. So yeah, you can expand and the reason why you want to expand like your market share in a city is because you want to score that city. So when you've got the majority and some of the cities have begun, they've got like seven slots on there where the houses go. So if you've got four of those in your colour, you'll score that because you've got majority. So obviously we got other players in there that are trying to jostling for for majority don't want to score that city. So all the cities are different sizes like eight all the way down to two. So some are really quick and easy. Some are a lot more difficult. Obviously the biggest cities will give you or income and you've kind of spread it around like that. So once you've kind of decided yeah, we want to expand into cities you already and you put your franchise on the market that you've expanded to which could be wherever and then you would score those cities if you had gone majority and if the region those cities are in and then all the towns are filled up as well you'd score that region and it's very clever and I'm not gonna go into the intricacies of it because otherwise I'd be doing rules teach but it's quite clever on some cities you want to be in but you don't want to score them because if you've got like three franchises on a say and the the player has the majority they have to leave just one of theirs in and you get to leave all of yours in into that space which means you can more likely to score the region then you will just see and that might be more points for you it just clever

Dan Apsey: 11:21

to play it two player

JP: 11:22

as it plays two Yeah, yeah. Two or three players you use section of a part of the board Yeah, put like tokens on it says no go Yeah, so it just makes the board smaller but for players pretty much where it's at you want all of the board you want yeah the flexibility of just kind of getting in each other's places and blocking is actually clever because the certain spots on on the board that you know if you go there no one can put a franchise in that location you don't go round and sometimes that's a more expensive route that have to take and earn a lot more money but it's quite quick plays in like 90 minutes and it shut it actually is quite clever for what it's doing the kind of gifts that tickets are variety feel kind of style game but it's just a little bit more to it that yeah, and turns really quick because I'm going to do this do that it's pay that money got done you'll go I

Dan Apsey: 12:16

always say that like my itch beyond Ticket to Ride but to give you the same flavour has always been brass. Yes. But then I think the learning curve between Ticket to Ride and brass is quite high. Yes a big jump so we just say franchise sort of fits in the middle so I

JP: 12:30

think so. Yeah. Yeah, I mean, that's the other game of it. So we just played with Josh because kind of training him up for Christmas Eve Christmas Eve games. And I'll talk about The gig that night. I really want to play that same sound that will be a feature that our Christmas Eve from games but I just thought it might be nice to play a few more franchise Yeah. Okay. It's not the best not the worst, but just nice. Nice. Nice about you mean

Dan Apsey: 13:00

i It's December which obviously you'll be here it doesn't January but December is like the busiest month for me ever so I don't get to sort of cram too much in but on my table has been nothing but stonemaier games I've been playing I played wingspan today with wife and we've had a couple of games of tapestry as well but it's been mainly nothing but stonemaier stuff. And you know, it's you always want to say that wisdom my game stuff and it's good stuff and I've been following their stuff since then since the very beginning since viticulture and kind of seeing how big that company has kind of grown but in a respectful and in a good way and and I'm always looking at their newsletter to see what's kind of next. I think I think with wingspan I think they're just churning out that bad boy, it's milking. They are so good milking the cow dry but it's but it is good. And you know, and you got to do if they release a wingspan expansion, I know that another one is coming, you know, is a cash machine for them. You know, they're just gonna sell and sell and sell and sell but it is good. It does a variety. Yeah. And when you think you take wingspan and you see how much it's changed in terms of how many other like mechanics we've added into the game but not overbearing. So I'd like the game in mechanics around in mechanics and then the other the nectar and there's nothing there's nothing that's that's too much to teach. At base level.

JP: 14:22

I still haven't played the nectar on Oceania. Yes, no, sorry. Asia, Asia.

Dan Apsey: 14:30

No, no. Yeah. Yeah. Later

Becky: 14:36

on, changes it up a whole set.

JP: 14:40

And then I'll just never played it a

Dan Apsey: 14:42

bit more not point Salady, because I think that's that's not right. But it's not like that. But your score tends to increase. It's very, it'd be very unlucky if you've got something kind of below 80. I think when I say that today. My score was was only just at 81. I think if you get to kind of I think most of the games now I've played tend to be that the players tend to get over 80 or over 100 I

Becky: 15:09

just get excited by the birds and just pick them on the fly.

Dan Apsey: 15:16

Pretty this bird? No points.

Becky: 15:19

But that's

JP: 15:21

the opposite end of my strategy.

Becky: 15:23

I don't have a strategy, but I'm playing that game. I like it because it's just Oh, that'll look nice. They're back. games with this Oh lovely Have

JP: 15:34

you played the other lifestyle my games the ones that we don't talk about a lot we obviously talk when wingspan we talk about tapestry for him yeah that that's one that springs to my mind one

Dan Apsey: 15:44

that came out but was the first one was Kickstarter no I played at once and it's okay okay but it's it's nothing groundbreaking but it's you know this is early but it's still good and people do still like it and and it's got a place yeah there's not one that I've really kind of loved or anything but then the the major one after that besides yeah and I love scythe I it doesn't get to the table that often doesn't either but it is good and I when I first played it done very fun I first played it I put on social media on Twitter that I didn't understand the hype. And Jamie you saw it didn't you love but other than that the game is very very good and it plays nice and if you're in it but it mixes so many different things in there but and it and to be honest, it all is like chuck these ingredients into a bowl mix up and hope for the best and what comes out as a lovely nice fluffy cake. It's really not here. You've got you've got resource management, you've got area control. You've got a good theme in there and it all blends together really nicely.

Becky: 16:53

Kerley says Ive played scythe, but I don't remember it at all

JP: 16:57

I don't live with

Becky: 17:02

secret secret in this call you know the cupboard No, I don't I don't think I have I've definitely never played it.

Dan Apsey: 17:12

Kerley's very good at scythe. I've played against couple of things. It's yeah, it's it's over in 90 minutes. Wow, that was quick.

JP: 17:25

She was another thing

Dan Apsey: 17:30

again, another game that's been complemented very well with its expansions. Yeah, I agree with with the wind Gambit one would do with the airships and the rise of fenris adding the two extra fractions in there. It's great. It's great ya know, so my games can't be good and tapestry that we've mentioned it before tapestry is one of my favourite things.

Becky: 17:52

When did that get released tapestry?

Dan Apsey: 17:55

I'm guessing 2019

JP: 17:58

Before COVID

Becky: 17:59

Something really really stopped me from wanting to play that I don't know why. I think it was the box I just had absolutely no interest, it's a civ game

Dan Apsey: 18:09

that doesn't play like a civ game

Becky: 18:11

I saw that kind of map and I was like oh no not interested I really like it and and I don't I don't think I realised it was a stonemaier game maybe if I had you might give maybe I would have given it more yeah

Dan Apsey: 18:28

I'm a sucker for a succession track Yeah, I'm I'm all over

JP: 18:32

Move up a track and get something yes yes

Dan Apsey: 18:35

please. This one and it ties in with the next one my next time changing

Becky: 18:40

and that's why I'm making it because I can't build that into my thought process. I think we're getting better at it I'm getting better

Dan Apsey: 18:46

play of tapestry the more because if I can do that you have you know, even now I've been planted capital 100 against tapestry yeah, sometimes I have a real stinker. Sometimes it goes very well I like me you went on BGA cracking score

JP: 19:00

400 and whatever, first time I broke 400. Yeah. And again for a while

Dan Apsey: 19:05

someone online posts like this is like a perfect game I saw the other day I think someone put it on either on on X formerly known as Twitter or Facebook where they said they're like seven and appoint guests or how many player or the player count was on BGA as well so it's only based game

JP: 19:21

mad must be a perfect combination man.

Dan Apsey: 19:24

It's a shame to not bring any more content out for tapestry because I really do have a love for it. I

JP: 19:30

think it's probably done I think it is I think I'd

Dan Apsey: 19:33

like to think that they were going to do not a religious track that's you go in into our territory that you might upset a few people but I was thinking maybe a spiritual track of some kind Yeah, and that could just add another track in there I don't know I am a great colleagues do you want I love tracks six tracks I love tracks I love track and

JP: 19:53

I want it and a big hexagon map yeah the tracks on the side yeah,

Dan Apsey: 19:57

yep so today's main event is talking about boardgame classics and their influences. Let's have a trip down memory lane shall we? Now I this is the only episode that I would say that obviously that I'm that I'm first player on that the M word is not banned. You may say the M word. And I reckon it will get mentioned a few times. I mean it should do, you're looking at me last y'all might get mentioned will ever get ever mentioned that

JP: 20:40

if you ask anybody like what game they played as a child Yeah, and let's all face it. We all probably really enjoyed this game as a child.

Becky: 20:50

I think for me games were even more special because

Dan Apsey: 20:54

yeah

Becky: 20:55

yeah games were more special because I do have sisters older sisters, but they are quite a lot older like 20 years older. Yeah. So game to me when they would bring their children round, which was not a rare occurrence but it wasn't like a every weekend thing. Yeah. So for me to actually get to play game with family was a big deal. So we did play Monopoly and we did like it yeah,

JP: 21:19

we did. I'm not sitting here going. I mean, would I play Monopoly now No, not at all. What I learned

Dan Apsey: 21:25

was we mentioned the word can you like in post can you get the sound effect of mine yeah, no, sorry. Carry on.

Becky: 21:47

I played it. I enjoyed it. And yeah, I spent many fun hours playing that but one of my more favourite ones I have to say was Guess who? I loved Gess who and they're both looking at me now like get out? No.

Dan Apsey: 22:02

No. Like

Becky: 22:04

It had a place, was it the bin? Oh come on

JP: 22:17

great I made a joke about

Becky: 22:20

I loved Guess who and I came up with totally the biggest cheats question ever.

JP: 22:25

Okay,

Becky: 22:26

I'm looking forward to this. Do they have an E in their name

JP: 22:31

broke guess who. Oh, yeah,

Becky: 22:33

I broke guess how does is used to always use play with the was it the red or the blue board? I don't know. I picked one of them anyway, and I actually moved the people around so because I would always ask that question to unsuspecting people and then it got banned just say

Dan Apsey: 22:50

in the official errata we can't say

Becky: 22:56

so I actually put them on the people in so I knew which exact like the first like layer and a half or whatever you could go to jump straight down because they haven't got e's or whatever. You

JP: 23:04

If I was playing against you, I'd invest in a label maker and I rename them all

Becky: 23:12

if you showed me any any of the pictures of the people I could still tell you when it goes to quiz. We totally Christmas quiz. You could have gone teachers would have been good. I should I probably could have I probably spent enough.

JP: 23:26

Winter for this year, Chris. Christmas. No. Thanks, Bill.

Becky: 23:31

Yeah, Bill was bold and he had the head the shape of an egg.

JP: 23:36

You haven't there wasn't Tom wasn't there?

Becky: 23:38

Yeah. Yeah. Tom Big was Percy. Yes. Eric had a sailors hat. Yeah, Eric kind of saying that I'm keeping this content.

JP: 23:51

Yes, do

Becky: 23:54

I love to get so another one of my favourites was Chinese checkers. Yeah,

JP: 23:57

I love star star. I never learned how to play it.

Becky: 24:03

And I have the same tactic for that every time as well.

Dan Apsey: 24:09

Pieces in an E formation.

Becky: 24:14

Centre align right down the centre and then you could hop all the way through every time. Nice.

JP: 24:21

See, sounds like you've got these old games figured out.

Becky: 24:25

Wrong from now. We'll figure it out. So

Dan Apsey: 24:28

let's go around the table. Tables that start with you. All right, what is your first ever board game? Memory?

JP: 24:37

I think my first ever board game memory. I'll say aside from monopoly is Is Lost Valley of the dinosaurs. Right? This old old game from Waddingtons. And I can remember the TV advert now sitting on my four Channel TV with no remote control that we used to have to go and press the buttons to change weirdly side story, that television the channel that channel selecting buttons is actually like a calculator because if you want to channel three, you can put a press one and two at the same time. Yeah, kind of three will come on mine. When we figured out my name is crazy. I was like This is amazing. What a bet. I bet

Becky: 25:20

you could only do that for four. Yeah, yeah, but you can only do that for channel three. Yeah,

JP: 25:24

number four. Well, let's try number four, but one and three. Ah must be the circuit so I remember the game but I never played it so nicely the game is you control your team of explorers they all are Indiana Jones you kind of type dudes. And, and the map is hexagon map. And actually time it's a lot of plastic in here you had a volcano at one end, and you had a temple in another corner with gold coins. And you had these caves on one side with these T rexes that live in these caves and the eyes on the T Rex as well. This is what I remember, if you can pull a picture, you find the eyes are like painted on really weirdly. So the light is T rex is really cool and really wonky. Hi,

Dan Apsey: 26:13

Googly painted. Yeah.

JP: 26:17

I've got monkey eyes. But what was really cool was a pterodactyl that had like a spring activated like mouth that he could use to pick, pick the characters up and move them and drop them around and things and then the other swamp monster in the middle as well, which looked like a weird snake thing. So the idea is that the premise of the game is really simple. You have to go to the temple, you need to grab a coin and bring it home. That's it. And you've got four dudes to go off and do it. You can acquire bullets, cards and guns which you can choose those have guns.

Becky: 26:53

Yeah, yeah, yeah, sure, sure. They're not

Dan Apsey: 26:54

the dinosaurs that goes guns rappers do you

JP: 26:59

basically shoot the shoot the dinosaurs, so they go away and scare them off a little bit just so you can get around? I mean, the game is really basic. And I had to literally watch a video in preparation for this episode because I couldn't really remember it. I was like, I love this game. It's got really strong memories. And

Dan Apsey: 27:15

this is amazing. There's a picture on on BGG Lost Valley the dinosaurs of Julian Courtland-Smith, who was the maker of the game and he's in the Earls Court trade fair in London promoting it in 1985

Becky: 27:34

somebody wearing a dinosaur costume and this is a real dinosaur Of course.

Dan Apsey: 27:38

Pfizer probably

Becky: 27:41

happy lady wearing a hat like an Indiana Jones hat. And yeah, a guy in a black leather jacket. That's a good picture. I

JP: 27:50

love that love that. Yeah, just it gives me the feeling I can remember being around one of our neighbours house on the street where we grew up, just playing endless over and over and over and over again and just just being sucked into the world of dinosaurs. Like it was just cool. I there's nothing else like it. And for me that is it's actually like spurred me on to kind of create my own board games I mean they were shit but create my own board games as a kid and there were four a four pieces of paper sellotaped so it's like like a two by two grid. And I would draw my own spaces and other drama little worlds for the characters to go and I've made my own little meeples of paper and card or whatever I could get my hands on and it will be a roll and move because that's all I know. Yeah. I'll go back three spaces oh no go around the wheel of death and and she Yeah, that that just are some great Sunday afternoons just sitting and drawing board game maps and just colouring them in and I was so proud. I wish I kept some of them because I think in my mind they looked amazing. I did exactly the same I think if I look at it now like

Becky: 29:06

I don't think I ever I don't think I've ever created a board game I remember trying to create like a Sonic the Hedgehog level.

JP: 29:14

I want you to level well.

Becky: 29:18

I wanted to make like a like a bit of paper on a like a wheel like you yeah yeah, because I had this racing game that was obviously on like a roll I remember that so I remember trying to create because I wasn't allowed to computer on because we couldn't afford by the Sonic the Hedgehog. Yeah. And that was it was definitely crap I would have made music while I did the thing but yeah, I don't think I ever tried to create a probably like snakes and ladders or something. near Christmas

JP: 29:54

was a little bit more of the weight of my game. anymore I

Dan Apsey: 30:00

was my childhood but it was the baby was the baseline of the music. Dim dim that was that was amazing.

JP: 30:10

This is my good times when I was so good a good time. It

Dan Apsey: 30:15

was getting those 50 rings and it was getting that big ring at the Oh yeah, that was Yeah. Dum Dum Dum Dum. Dum Dum Dum Dum Dum Dum. Laughter

JP: 30:30

about you, me yeah.

Dan Apsey: 30:32

I got you know, I, I played a lot of board games as a child. And I remember, I remember like collecting board games a lot when I was when I was growing up. And I remember like you said about making your own board game. I remember going to boot sales a lot. Anybody who was international doesn't know what a boot sale is. That was where you go into a random field. And people would sell their stuff out of their car boots

JP: 31:02

It's a sad Sunday afternoon. It was Yeah, but it was so popular in the 80s and 90s.

Dan Apsey: 31:08

But it was a great place to pick up boardgames. And I remember I remember picking up my first ever copy of monopoly and I remember picking up my first copy of Cluedo and but Well, I used to live it's quite secluded. So the only person I could play with was my brother. And at the time, he was too young. So I just remember just collecting a lot of board games myself, just running through them on my own just going through them and then really enjoying the artwork or enjoying the pieces. And I even remember making my own car boot sale game. Yes, I made a car boot sale board game. I remember I remember the designing I guess like a 3d paper car. And then all of them had a boot and you could go around people's boots and buy items to put in your boots.

JP: 31:51

Economy game

Dan Apsey: 31:54

was it rolling move probably. I can't remember but I that's I think it was it was called the boot sale get a boot sale. Yeah, highly original

Becky: 32:04

thought. I love this. That's just totally taken me back to I think probably our first family board game, which was I want to say it was called Dingbats. Yeah. Do you remember that? Cards? And it was still you can Yeah, but it was way too difficult for me. I was very young didn't have a clue what was going on. I really desperately wanted to play I really wanted to play with like, I think my mum used to play with my sister. She lived with us at the time. And so wanted to play this game and know the answers you know like when you'd watch your dad do like a crossword puzzle and he knew the answers and it's like oh one day I'll one day I'll know the answer. I'll be there

Dan Apsey: 32:42

my game for that was was blockbusters yeah yeah. Was it Milton Bradley that did it. It was all there or Waddington's I can't remember but it was that I remember getting the whopping watch of of questions and not knowing a single answer to any of these at all because this is so cool. Look at these plastic environmentally friendly pieces.

Becky: 33:06

Like an old version of Trivial Pursuit now you've no idea what the no no none at all.

Dan Apsey: 33:12

I always thought the Trivial Pursuit when I was a kid was incredibly dull. Just looking at the board the box itself is not inviting whatsoever I think dark blue is not inviting and I'm the only pieces are quite nice on the pie piece at the wedding is a wedge piece. And that's about it but even then that's a rolling move. And it's just as though

JP: 33:33

Lets face it, it is dull

Becky: 33:35

We still play it at Christmas now at the Kerley household but we don't play with the board at all. We just take it in turns asking each other questions. Yeah, yeah, scoring down and that just solves all the nonsense. Yeah, we

JP: 33:45

played not it's not the historical one. Just you know, we got our show actually bought outsmarted, which is a quiz game. I've seen that one very kind of trivial pursuit ask but it's all kind of done on an app. So the question is always updated. So you don't have these cards that are certain? Yeah. And that's quite good, because you kids can have their kid friendly ones. And you can have the hard adult ask question. Yeah. And they can play but it's the same sort of idea. Go around, and things like Peter Griffen,

Dan Apsey: 34:15

say the word what? Now I want to say fantastic for fantastic for steak. Steak steak. Small amount of peas. Watch. Cool, cool. Okay,

Becky: 34:31

so Oh, Mouse Trap,

JP: 34:34

huh? Yeah.

Becky: 34:36

That was probably one of my earliest I don't know

Dan Apsey: 34:39

what I think actually now that you've mentioned it that I think that was the first boardgame that was in my mind

Becky: 34:45

as much fun creating the thing as it was. Oh,

Dan Apsey: 34:50

yeah, it was all about building building. Travel. Yeah, building that and then they re released it in the early 2000s And then the toilet on the top. Yeah, sounds good. absolutely dreadful.

JP: 35:01

Not as good nowhere near as good so I got it for Caitlin when she was about three or four. OOOh we're in for such a treat Caitlin? I did same we got I don't remember there being a toilet. No.

Dan Apsey: 35:16

Read on it. And it's like,

JP: 35:17

I think they've gone back actually. Yeah.

Dan Apsey: 35:20

I think they have gone back. Yeah. And it was a great game. Right. Another good one. Yes. Kerplunk. And that was good as the not just the noise of the marbles and all come down. Not meant do that, but it was just very therapeutic noise. But yeah, that's another classic

JP: 35:38

question and it's just do it.

Dan Apsey: 35:40

Which ballgame did you play that made you want to try more? What was the kind of the like your version of a gateway game of like today's kind of games? What would be your childhood gateway game? Me? Yeah, go for a job. Yeah,

JP: 35:55

I think for me, there's one Christmas sticks out. And it's the obvious answer. But me and my brother, we got a board game. Ah, I got HeroQuest. And he got bloodbowl. Which, um, I would say bloodbowl especially is not entry level. No, but both got to it. Do you like tables with numbers and references? Yeah. Because again, for you. But he adored that game, he, you know, I can just remember his face is amazing. And I'd say with HeroQuest, which is easier to play a lot easier. And I don't know that just remember that Chrismas as being quite special. And we, probably every day, like that two weeks or whatever we had off school every day, we play both of them. Obviously, football, the beginning would be a, you know, a bit of a crap fest because we're like, trying to learn it and go What the hell's going on, but we got there. Yeah, and we got them. He was a bit older. So it kind of helped. But I think that whole HeroQuest thing for me, then led me on to what else is there. And that kind of led me into Space Crusade, which is basically HeroQuest but in Space, but it had a little bit more oomph to it. And again, this is another one I researched because I needed to just remind myself how Space Crusade works. And you kind of have these four square tiles and you have less cross section of walls with doors on and you basically set in Warhammer 40k universe which I knew nothing of at the time. And you pick your squad I think it was what Blood Angels Ultramarines and Imperial first, the red blue and yellow. And they all look the same but they've got different deck of cards that you can load out your your team and and I think your pick your team and go out alive. One heavy weapons do love a dude with a power glove and sword and some guys with I think I'll call bolters with it or something like that little guns with a little something like that. And then you just send them on to the ship light. And it's a bit like aliens where you've got these blips that like your motion trackers that are moving around. You don't know what they are, that you can they're kind of moving and you soon as they get in your line of sight, they flip over and then suddenly, oh my god, it's a dreadnought or it's a gretchin or something else. I can't remember. So

Dan Apsey: 38:17

I never played the board game but I play the the what I say never played I played the Amiga version of Space Crusade. Yeah, yeah. And that was how I got into space. It was fantastic. Great. I never played HeroQuest. Growing up at all. I wish I did. But it wasn't ever sort of like, pushed on me. I never fought for it. Never. It never got bought or anything. So I didn't get that experience. But Space Crusade. I got it on the Amiga. And it was absolutely fantastic. right up my street.

JP: 38:45

Yeah, I think if I had to play them again, like HeroQuest or Space Crusade or play Space Crusade, I think, yeah, because I think he's got a bit more about it than HeroQuest. Yeah.

Dan Apsey: 38:55

But then hear requests got recently, obviously, you know, crowdfunded again. And people got all over.

JP: 39:00

Kickstarted. And it was Yeah.

Dan Apsey: 39:02

I always say, you know, like, if you go, No, take take the classic Super Mario Bros. Yeah, I am 37 years old. I have bought Super Mario Bros in every form eight or nine different formats since I was a child. And the reason why I've done that is because I want the nostalgia hit. And I want to, I want the experience of how I had it when I first played it when I was five or six. I'll never get that feeling ever again. Even though even though I just released it as a Game Watch. on its own. I might get it and I'm playing. I'm like, It's not hitting. It's not hitting. Yeah, it's but it's not doing it. It's just not that we'll never do it never did. And I think yeah, well, it seems like here a question like that. And Space Crusade. I think if I went back and played it, yeah, it would just not have the same feel.

JP: 39:52

Well, we've kind of like, evolved with our gameplay and the games have evolved, don't they? So I think you know, if you ever go back and I'm not played here request since but I know some people in the group have gone back and played it on like, what what is this? And I think it is really just, you know, riding on that nostalgia wave. And if you're going back to those games, just to go you know, we used to play this we understand this a bit chunky around the edges and it's a bit you know, bit iffy in, in game design. And, you know, our standards today is fine, does it you know, it's like watching an old film and the special effects are absolutely not sharp,

Dan Apsey: 40:31

but then it's respect Acting for its time. Exactly.

JP: 40:33

There's no need to do that. I think it's kind of like I get it. It's not the best. Yeah, great. Yes. Did we have fun? Or if you can enter into the spirit of it and ghost just have a bit of a laugh? Yeah. Then Fair enough. Yeah. Like

Becky: 40:45

most of the games that I played as a child were things that were quite interactive like Pictionary. Articulate but a bit older, though. So it's about shouting out the quickest, being the quickest with a thing. And I'm not bad at that. As bad as I am at normal games. So I think I still have a massive soft spot for those kinds of party games where it's about describe the thing to that person. Get them to do a silly you know, hum a tune and get someone to guess it. Like I still love that game. I still love that because because I'm not too bad. Yeah, comparatively. Yeah. So you know, those articulate those kind of Yeah,

JP: 41:26

I love articulate even today. Oh, it's brilliant. So describing games. Yeah.

Becky: 41:32

And if you can get on like a level with someone, it's just

JP: 41:36

brilliant. You say one word, and they go like, Bugs Bunny like, yes. All right. Everyone

Becky: 41:40

else is like, wow, yeah. You just get into like it. Yeah, you can get into like a beautiful little zone. Like a hive mind? Yeah, yeah, that kind of, I think because to me, and maybe this is what I'm searching for when I play games, which is why I like playing groups, right? Like why solo games just aren't interesting to me necessarily. I think it's because of that excitement of having people around having friends. I don't mean to be like, Oh, I've got no friends. But the excitement of having people around this and occasion, maybe the kind of the showing off a little bit as a kid that that kind of that kind of thing. And I think that is still, that's still really important to me when I'm playing games is people are together, we're having fun, it might be difficult, and you know, you probably won't win. You know, who's going to win, you know how you can see how this game is gonna move forward. But you're all together and you're having fun, which is, I think why I disengaged so quickly if there's big gaps between turns. People aren't really engaged with what's happening. They're just being very much. This is my thing. Nothing else matters. That doesn't interest me as much because yeah, it's not the occasion. Yeah. Like it was when you're a kid. Yeah. Yeah, that

Dan Apsey: 42:56

makes sense. Makes perfect sense. For me. Playing games that I wanted to sort of dive in more, I think it has to be it has to be monopoly. I remember having I remember being absolutely obsessed with monopoly. And thinking that the mechanics of going around the board and collecting properties and try and mastering the craft of the game was just was fascinating to me when I was a kid. And people always say nowadays, it's like, well, you play play Monopoly is what you do for your hobby. Yeah, mate. Well done. I don't know. I wouldn't even touch it, you know. But I did.

Becky: 43:33

But then you sound really snobby. When you're not. I don't mean you. But I mean, when one says, Oh, I don't play Monopoly. Yeah. Because what we mean is there are so many other better games that are easier to understand. And everyone can enjoy. Yes, but

Dan Apsey: 43:45

there wasn't back then. No, no, there wasn't there wasn't anybody from monopoly. I tried to find other games that were kind of give a similar vibe so that there was a few out there. Like game of life was was one that people like to sort of venture into. And I remember

Becky: 44:01

I've never played it as well

JP: 44:03

go for bro for broke. That's the one that instantly come to my mind. Because I love the premise of you start with a million. Yeah. And you've just got to lose it. So you're just spending a million you're basically betting on horse races and just trying to stop this money as quick as I quite like that.

Dan Apsey: 44:19

Yeah, even today, I think with that, there's no one no one has brought a game out where you have to like get rid of all your money. And no one's ever done that again, I suppose I suppose in some way. It's kind of almost unique.

JP: 44:29

Yeah, he was he quite unique. I think he took the game a life and then spin it on his head. Yeah, she just went alright. Okay, let's do this. But in reverse. Yeah. But it was quite cool.

Dan Apsey: 44:37

Game of Life. The only game that the modern game that springs to my mind is the pursuit of happiness. Which I never remember who made the game. But it came out in 2012 2013, something like that. It was originally Kickstarter, where you're going through the life of yourself, how can I pick your education, whether you get married, so on and so forth, but I personally didn't like it. I think a lot of people did like it. But it wasn't for me. Again, trying to find that kind of game that had that kind of unique kind of playstyle where you're you're going through your life, pursuit of happiness,

JP: 45:08

talking about monopoly killer back in the day. And it just popped in my head like this quite nice having this conversation because I'm literally in the 80s right now. No frills on facts. But again, I always thought was always superior to monopoly even back then was a game called Hotel. And I think that was an MB games. My be wrong. Yeah. And it's literally, you have the road that goes around as spaces on the side. And you have these hotels that are themed around kind of different stereotypical hotels if they would be in Australia or New York or Japan or whatever. Always remember the Japan's like Fujiyama, and the enterprise was like the big skyscrapers and you literally would go around, you'd buy the plot of land where the hotel would be, and then you can build the buildings and there were proper chunky 3d Hotel pieces that you go right building one bang. That's the remake. Okay, so the same premise, same premise. I've got hotel tycoon actually, yeah. And then you buy like the facilities of the hotel, which is like a like card that slots around the hotel. So visually is very, very appealing. Yeah. So so very, very appealing. So as you kind of build this border, all these miniatures, no matter what size your miniatures, but these things are on there, and then you put entrances on the front of the road. So when people land on them, and they will stay for the night so it has that monopoly Yes, field property kind of property selection before the episode but your memory of Renault is very good. Just bringing out game memory. Mr. Fujiyama

Dan Apsey: 46:53

has been one of the companies

JP: 46:56

want to stay in the Fujiyama?

Becky: 47:00

Like, this is really interesting. Like that memory is so seared in your brain. I was

JP: 47:07

five. Well, I still remember the Fujiyama hotel from a game night you know you 35 or whatever. 1974 it originally came up, was it Oh, yeah. Oh, no. but my neighbours had it? Yeah, we used to be friends with our neighbours and let's play or wanted to play all the time. But yeah, that I was four is better than monopoly. Although it was kind of the same thing. You roll dice you go around the board.

Dan Apsey: 47:35

Look at him what it looks like that came out in 1974 they read it really good for its age.

Becky: 47:41

They little models are actually quite impressive. What's more appealing

JP: 47:45

I think, to the eye. And I think when you look at games like well, monopoly you look at the board and going you know, is what it is. Yeah. And you look at Hotel and you go wow, yeah.

Dan Apsey: 47:58

high rise high rise is a modern board game that came out Yeah. It's got like those kind of modern skyscrapers and all the heights rolling heights of it

JP: 48:05

as well loved it. Loved it. And yeah, sorry, I'd have to go on. Cool. That's really cool.

Becky: 48:10

I think that's kind of the opposite to that where the pieces are the most basic and just so boring. It's not even true. Is risk Yeah, another total classic Kerley really loved it, this was probably one of the first games that I remember us playing before we went into games. Illuminati was one of them Steve Jackson game yeah we have that we used to have like Illuminat nights where loads of us ould play. And yeah risk I think Kerley had the Lord of the Rings version yeah the regular version.

JP: 48:42

I think you have two versions you had one that you play with the one he kept well we had

Becky: 48:48

they used to be still got it. We have got them like they used to be in one of the houses that we lived in I distinctly remember it but the pieces in that how boring

JP: 49:01

probably yeah angle free pointed drawing

Becky: 49:05

curved on so much more with that but it's got staying power hasn't it? That game is still there. it's yeah, it's still around I think it makes made me think of like old men with this little you know stick pusher kind of that the games that Adrian

JP: 49:24

boring Yeah.

Becky: 49:26

But I guess you've got your tactics something you hide out in Australia go from there.

JP: 49:30

I've never played it. Never played I don't know why. Obviously

Dan Apsey: 49:35

like Game of Thrones is like risk on on steroids. Yeah. And you know how that plays? Oh, yeah. So bring that down at a much more scale version. And it's not as tight and it's more isn't totally random. It's more random Yeah.

Becky: 49:49

It can last for an entire day. Week Yeah.

Dan Apsey: 49:55

You want I would rather sit on a couch it's got its place I have to be in the mood a happy mood would

Becky: 50:02

I play it now? Absolutely not

Dan Apsey: 50:03

I plan on a themed once a maybe Lord of the Rings I did have the Star Wars ones the the prequel one and the sequel trilogy one they had what they had one of each go out Yeah, I had those. It has its place without risk. I think you wouldn't have other games like it's important it's very important isn't one area control mechanics started with the game like risk axes and allies that kind of thing. Without

JP: 50:26

Yeah, whenever rebellion would I start was rebel No. So no, thank you risk

Dan Apsey: 50:31

would to I know Twilight Imperium still exists as it does, you know? So yeah, it does. It's very, very important. Yeah, yes. Nice. So what game backs from your childhood? Would you never ever touch again? With a bargepole? And why? Here they are. Here is your games from your child on the table.

Becky: 50:56

I have to be honest, Scrabble.

Dan Apsey: 50:58

Oh.

Becky: 51:03

Do you know why? Why? Because I

JP: 51:06

hate words.

Becky: 51:07

No. Opposite. absolute opposite. So, you know, I'm not going to say I'm the most eloquent of eloquent people.

JP: 51:18

Any of us.

Becky: 51:19

I like words, I like linguistics. I can think of some really good ones, and they score crap. And I get delivered. And you can have a two letter Qi whatever Qi Qi Qi,

JP: 51:34

right and a dictionary.

Becky: 51:37

That is just bollo to me. It makes me angry. And I have played the Words with Friends. I've played the Scrabble like yet lovely. And you just have to know a handful. And we can all do that. It's not clever. It's not big. It's not clever. Five words. You know? They didn't think there's gonna get this to you. I'm not gonna lie. I'm lovin every five words that are not. That's the real word for sure. But you don't use them. Yeah. Why does that score more than some really fancy pants? You know? Lardy Dorward that I can think of? That

JP: 52:07

someone will know the answer to this is a very

Becky: 52:09

good point. Why I want to play Bananagrams instead. Yes, that's about how many words do you know how many words can you get out rather than what boggle? Yeah, exactly that much rather play that Scrabble. And, you know, it makes me sad because my mum really liked it. And I wanted to like it. I want to still like it. It's sort of in honour of her. But I don't like it because of exactly that. It's all about do you know that the secret you

JP: 52:36

start your game gamifying words in a way to get points rather than

Becky: 52:43

be about your vocabulary. Knowing these really kind of obscure words that nobody else knows.

Dan Apsey: 52:50

paperbacks are a good one. For an alternative to scrabble paperback. Good things about Yeah. Tim flowers game. Yeah, it is. And yeah, it's like a deck builder.

Becky: 52:58

But for words, okay.

Dan Apsey: 53:02

You buy other letters to chain it works together. It's really good. comes a little box.

Becky: 53:06

It should be something I'm interested in. What scrabble like it's got the things score points beat someone else by how many, but it's not about your knowledge of words. I guess I

Dan Apsey: 53:16

get that. You posted a very good point there. I don't get a chance to play Scrabble often Vicki's not a big fan of Scrabble

JP: 53:22

and I'm pleased to be fair I would play it Yeah. Yeah, I would not put me off I understand what you would totally get that I never really thought about it. No, no, no you post very good point I'll probably if I played it now I'll probably go Yeah, I probably

Becky: 53:36

bored because I can't get rid of it. My mum bought it for me and many many years ago so I will always have it somebody most sets out there. Yeah, there are people who will spend a lot of money there's you know, World Championships and stuff isn't there people really get into it and good. Lazy Susan spins around

Dan Apsey: 53:50

quite it's quite it's quite nice. But it's still Yeah,

Becky: 53:55

yeah, it's not for me no play

Dan Apsey: 53:57

Jayples

JP: 53:58

Monopoly is the obvious answer and it has to be I can't think of any of the

Dan Apsey: 54:05

old games would you not would you actually not playing again? No.

JP: 54:09

I refused. I feel bad about this right. I do feel genuinely bad. Yeah, because I got a counter argument. Yeah, we I've been to New Year's Eve party about five years ago and my sister in laws and they don't like yeah, do you want to Should we play Monopoly? And like the snobby me we've just got I can't Yeah, I feel but I do feel bad like I still want to play it Yeah. Can we play like anything else?

Dan Apsey: 54:42

Put your chance deck away

JP: 54:45

let's play this instead like yeah alternative so it wasn't like I just don't flat refusing to play it but let's play these things. I've got loads of games that honestly you will love these and and we did and they did they loved it and ended up buying I think I think viticulture was why I end up buying

Becky: 55:04

It's a fine game, it's just not for me.

JP: 55:08

Don't get on stage. I didn't know this, though. Don't get started. We didn't have the minutes.

Becky: 55:13

Yeah, let's just not go there. blush.

Dan Apsey: 55:15

Blush. Okay, now, I say no more. I understand exactly what you mean. Yeah, I got it.

JP: 55:20

So I yeah, I think for me, it has to be that because any other game. The blood bowls HeroQuest space crusades, the lost valley of the dinosaurs I would I would play any of those again. But for me for nostalgia reasons, but monopoly I wouldn't play for nostalgia reasons or any reasons.

Dan Apsey: 55:36

But what's what's the main reason why you wouldn't play Monopoly?

JP: 55:40

I think it's the the time investment for what you get out of it. Yeah,

Dan Apsey: 55:45

I can see that. Yeah, I think

JP: 55:47

that's what it is. It's like,

Becky: 55:48

what about if you're playing it properly with the proper rule? Yeah.

JP: 55:52

Yeah. Because people don't know they do this free parking where the money piles up in the middle. Yeah, all the

Dan Apsey: 55:58

money. That's the game of Monopoly.

JP: 56:01

And I think if I was to beat like, it was kids around the table, and they're like, Can we play this? And yeah, I play. Yeah, of course. I'm not a robot. Now I've word Absolutely. But I think it's just the game out of all of the games where I would try and back away from Yeah, if I could. I mean, I did die from playing the game. I would

Dan Apsey: 56:26

play it standard format, where you auction off the because you can finish a game in less than a minute true. Actually, it is you play it in its standard rule format is when you double double go when you land on go double it, or when you don't auction off properties, or you don't claim rent if you're in jail, which is my biggest bugbear those things are all the middle money, which is just stupid. I don't know. I don't know. But pay pay a tiny little and if you plan on free parking you get it? Do you know what do you know the most safest places on the Monopoly board?

Becky: 57:02

Is it jail? Jail is the safest place

Dan Apsey: 57:05

you can be. Yeah, there's math. How can that work is on a county

JP: 57:12

it's bullshit. I'm

Dan Apsey: 57:13

in jail and I'm loving

Becky: 57:17

jail. Has any other game had so many iterations?

JP: 57:24

You gotta respect it. Yeah, this

Dan Apsey: 57:25

reminds me right? I had a couple of weeks ago, I had a message from cots for tots. We love you. Obviously they are 100% But absolutely, we love you because we offer you and we send our money to you from the boardgame marathan couldn't they said to me when promoting the next mini marathon which is happening in a month's time. They said are you playing the Bristol version of monopoly there? How about no

JP: 57:50

no, sorry. It's called history. Isn't it? The board game but

Becky: 57:55

the neighbours game? It was meant to be as a kind of a tee. Yeah, this is what will happen

JP: 58:00

to corporate so yeah, I didn't get what happened a game design got stolen, and then turned into a corporate machine and rolled the damn game and made lots of money on it. Yeah. And poor comment was a female isn't it? Yeah, probably got nothing for it. But yeah, mad.

Dan Apsey: 58:16

Let's not talk about Hasbro

JP: 58:19

layouts. Yeah, no, I think it's the obvious answer for me, but I think it is what it is. Yeah,

Dan Apsey: 58:24

but yeah, I would play it and it would play I would play again. Because if it's played in the stock because I'm thinking about my children and like, based based on where I was when I was 5678 Growing up, it was a big deal. Monopoly a big deal. So if I had to kind of pass some of that stuff down to my children and my children are of that age I would I have no problems in doing that. However, there are other games that I did play as a kid where I probably would not connect for Ah, my father is so boring.

Becky: 58:56

I don't mind it

JP: 58:56

I was with Chell at a wedding recently, and they had Connect 4 out on the Lawn, was a lawn game, had a beer and plaey connect 4

Dan Apsey: 59:08

yes, that's okay. But like actually, you know getting out the the version of Connect 4 which my kids have and Go Daddy, would you want to play this? And I said I'd rather go and run into traffic, but as it's you go do it you know, but I didn't connect for probably for me, I can't stand the game anymore. Yeah, I played it to death and I've had enough of it. But it's again it has its place I understand. Didn't big potato make their own version with tiles get my bullets caught now just to just fall when the call

JP: 59:41

comes in like a little stack on a stack rack. Yeah, yeah. And you can literally take it outdoors with it. Yeah, it's literally just plus there's just literally like

Dan Apsey: 59:49

yeah, it's not quite like that because it's like a travel version of it quite like that. But as standard format Connect four is probably not for me anymore.

Becky: 59:58

I find really hard to plan it's still a child's game now. Pop up pirate.

JP: 1:00:02

I'm with you.

Becky: 1:00:06

It's the tension can't put the putting the sword in the thing. It's gonna

Dan Apsey: 1:00:12

if you're stabbed like that you'd jump in the air too.

Becky: 1:00:17

I was a kid. I did love it. But I hated that. I almost didn't want to play with those kinds of games. Yeah, Buckaroo

Dan Apsey: 1:00:26

was only good for when you could put your fingers in your mouth and try to say the word Welker I started like naughty word. I'll just make

JP: 1:00:40

my kids love pop up. Yeah, my kids. Yeah,

Dan Apsey: 1:00:44

bonus points you remember who made it?

JP: 1:00:47

Remember was told me told me it was tiny,

Dan Apsey: 1:00:51

but they never really made any other iterations of it because you can't really can you just a barrel with a pirate in the top right

JP: 1:00:57

with expansion? You mean I've been seeing pirates fighting each other

Dan Apsey: 1:01:06

like cannons on the Sun

JP: 1:01:10

know I'm now I'm in game

Becky: 1:01:12

I couldn't play anymore and that'd be Twister because I'm too old. You

JP: 1:01:16

know what? I played this recently? fairly early. Yeah, I did. We had a stretch beforehand. Do we? Were the games day at home with the kids and they picked all the games. I've been around Christmas Twister came out. What Yeah, got this. And I play Twister before them was drunk parties when I was in my 20s which was a lot more like sexy Twister sexy.

Becky: 1:01:38

Yeah.

JP: 1:01:40

This was not this was not sexy twist. This is twisted. Were you kids being quiet, you know in the Middle Ages and everything hurts. Oh my god. The next day. I couldn't walk like my thighs, legs. Everything was burning and aching. I felt like I've gone to the gym for about seven hours. It was ridiculously ridiculous. I couldn't go up the stairs when I go.

Dan Apsey: 1:02:02

Oh, my back is tweeking Just listening to this. This is my idea of

JP: 1:02:10

lunges. Aren't you in a squats? And you're you're in weird positions? Yeah. Kids had a great time that

Dan Apsey: 1:02:18

I think my kids would love that. But it's not for me not No, no, no, I think you might be right there. I think twice. That might be my I don't think I could do it anymore. So is there any gains from the past that you feel have made an impact in your tastes and preferences in today's board gaming facts or do you reckon? Well, the

Becky: 1:02:40

only game that I can think of playing that? That sort of I mean, it wasn't a child but yeah, this game of Illuminati that I bought from a comic book shop that I used to work next door to?

Dan Apsey: 1:02:53

It wasn't crack. It was it was Krackers.

Becky: 1:02:55

Krackers. Yeah. Krackers. Yeah, I bought that from Krackers in

Dan Apsey: 1:03:02

Tony.

Becky: 1:03:02

I used to work for his brother next door. Anyway, Tony. Yeah, so I bought. I bought Illuminati from comic shop in Taunton Krackers. And it was an event, like people would come round for that game. It was in the time when I probably just left home. So we had the party house, because we were the one of the first like, of our friend group to not live with our parents. So then your house becomes party house. Yeah. And we played Illuminati, loads, loads and loads and loads. And it seemed quite, I don't know. Not quite risky. But it's a game where it's not, you know, monopoly. It isn't something that is, it's quite all these, you know, I remember one of the cards or something like motorcycle gangs, something it was quite conspiracy.

JP: 1:03:55

But

Becky: 1:03:55

yeah. Yeah. And it felt kind of like, oh, you know, this is this is so alternative, which is, you know, at the time you live when you think you're very, very alternative and just like everybody else who's alternative and different.

Dan Apsey: 1:04:07

I thought that when I bought the Dick Tracy board game, turns out, I wasn't and it was really shipped off. I remember that. I

JP: 1:04:14

just forgot. I think Tracy Tracy. Okay, that was

Dan Apsey: 1:04:17

bad. Sorry.

Becky: 1:04:20

Yeah, it was, what I've been trying to recreate is that idea that a game is an event, people come round with the sole purpose of getting together to play a game. Yeah,

Dan Apsey: 1:04:29

it's a social thing. Absolutely. Is one of them. I'm sure everyone else has the same

JP: 1:04:35

tools. So I think the game I think that kind of springs to my mind is the one that lifted the bonnet of Wow, the all the possible. Thinking probably was bloodbowl. I've never played it when I think it's the fact that when you look at the box, you think this looks Cool as F right. There's basically orcs and dudes to scrapping on the front end. I've never played looked cool. It just looks to me as American football, but you kill each other. Okay. I mean, I mean, and then you look for the rulebook, and the rulebook is full of awesome artwork. And, you know, you just thumbing for any learning about all the different kinds of teams and stuff this week and read the rules, and then you go, Oh my God, there's rules. There's a lot of rules. There's lots of tables and lots of things to reference and, and then when you kind of get through that experience, and then you're playing it and yeah, fun either excitement of learning that well at the time of quite complex game and achieving the fact that actually I can get to the side of that and enjoy that complexity, it might it might be kind of one of the reasons why I enjoy learning. Maybe because I love learning games, as you all know, I love that process of box open pop, rulebook, organise, play through before anyone even comes around.

Becky: 1:05:58

It's a new world, isn't it? What you're doing? When you

JP: 1:06:03

knew the other thing, the other game was kind of adjacent to that the time as a kid was advanced HeroQuest. Yeah, which I never had played. And never, yeah, never never got to the table. But I always managed to kind of get the game out and read for the book and get excited about the possibilities of this would be awesome if we could that never quite kind of happened really, for whatever reason grew up and life and stuff like that. So I think that whole process of going through learning something quite complicated and and feeling like, I could overcome that. And get to the other side and go, Yeah, this all makes sense to me. And don't get me wrong. I love the social side of board gaming. And I think, you know, the games that had with me and my brother was all I had access to at the time. And I think actually a lot of the games where we were playing. I'm not sure like my friends at the time who were playing maybe the the cluedo's and the monopolies fried unleash bloodbowl might have been tried a few times, but football being a one v one,

Dan Apsey: 1:07:09

and then some people you're recruiting the orchestra for this Yeah. and gotten then some people don't?

JP: 1:07:15

And that's like today, yeah, it's no different is it? No, I think that that's had a lasting impact must have. And maybe it laid dormant for a long time. Because I had, you know, a choir, a big board gaming surge as a child and early kind of teens. And then it kind of went away just as, you know, secondary school kicks in and, you know, hormones kick in, and then you leave home and then you're doing this and you're doing that. And yeah,

Dan Apsey: 1:07:42

I think for me, mine is this is a blend of both of yours really, I remember like yourself, kind of falling, not falling out of love with Wargaming. But kind of just life gets in the way when you get to a teenager and, and emotions run high. And you kind of you know, you discover women, and life just changes, doesn't it until you kind of get older. But then I remember sort of getting to my sort of early 20s. Me and the wife getting together. And board gaming did sort of come back in my life where it was more like kind of the Hasbro kind of classes was to sort of come in again and go oh, this is what I used to do from my childhood so that so I can see that these things from my childhood had an impact. So this all came back in my 20s. And again, that was was the strangest is you can still buy now was pivotal in how my brain kind of went. Yes. You know what, I really like this. Let's see if I can find something else. And this is where it ties in with you. Beck's is again called the cube based on the ITV TV.

JP: 1:08:51

Welcome. Thank you.

Dan Apsey: 1:08:52

Yeah, so it was nine lives remaining. It was it was the cube. Now the reason why the cube boardgame was significant because we bought it and rather than just playing it as a couple or whatever. And you had like these physical challenges, like in the in the TV series where you had to like in a ball and a couple.

JP: 1:09:08

Bounce it three times. Yeah,

Dan Apsey: 1:09:11

but we used to get friends around. And we would say, look, here's this, if we want to chuck in 10 pound into the pot, and the person who wins the night gets the pot. And we do that. And we should do it all the time. And it was it was great fun. And it was like well, you know what, I'm playing a board game kind of, but it's more social event, it was definitely an event people would come around like a house full of like, 15 of us playing this silly game where we but someone would walk home with a with a cash pot and everyone would like but they'd be like, yeah, it was great. It was great fun, and it was good. And I would put on the sound effects from the TV series. We'd have a good laugh and it was from that moment on I went to what I'm enjoying this social thing. I'm enjoying playing a board game of some sorts. Let's read let's try and visit something else that maybe is a little bit more advanced a bit more you know more crunchy and go from there. Yeah. And then from that moment, Agricola was was was Agricola came into my life and civilization the board game and Gears of War and adapted from that went up. But that was kind of a pivotal point for me. But the social side of it is what is important, I think will always kind of stay because it's the most important part of working for me Ah, so peeps, would you rather? I got a good one for you. Here it comes. Would you rather go back and bring all the classic games from your childhood to your adult life? Or take games back from now? To the past to your child self? Let's discuss mould.

JP: 1:10:53

There's a morality thing here. There's

Dan Apsey: 1:10:55

something going on.

JP: 1:10:56

There's an education thing. There's like, Could I handle it? That's the big thing is that he

Becky: 1:11:01

can't handle it now.

JP: 1:11:05

So, oh,

Becky: 1:11:07

I'd have another like 20 years of practice. I'd be a master by now.

JP: 1:11:11

Thing is, the thing is, I got a look at my own kids. This is my barometer right. When I was a kid, right access to the games that we had access to. That's what we played. And I look at my children, and they've got access to the games I've got now. Yeah. Okay. And it astonishes me how many 789 year old pick up some of these games? And I'm like, and not just pick them up, but actually just boss them as well. Yeah. How the hell yeah, yeah. And so would I have been able to do that at that age? Having access to that knows different people? Right. Hmm.

Dan Apsey: 1:11:52

I'm currently having a word with my nine year old so I haven't come on yet. Because he wouldn't be able to

JP: 1:12:00

know. Yeah,

Becky: 1:12:01

I think I'd probably be better at them then than I am now. I think I've got thicker as I've got older.

Dan Apsey: 1:12:06

But then you could say that about languages known for a while that you are also you study languages now, but they say that when you're a child, you can learn languages easily and if you are an adult, learning an instrument as well. So give someone give an eight year old an acronym because go learn it yourself. Come back to me and tell me what you're

Becky: 1:12:27

able to do it I did better than then definitely. I'm almost sure about that. Because my dedication level was back then. Were so much better than they are now and the time factor. I be so much better at games now. Modern day distractions now today. Oh, just being an adult wasn't able to go to work and crap on that work thing. I

JP: 1:12:46

think thinking about it, pondering it so good one this i i wouldn't take the games I've got now to my past. No, no. Because I don't think I'd appreciate them like I do now. Because they will be probably regarded as the retro old nostalgic feeling even though actually mechanically the same. I quite like the fact that that's in the past. That was like the past thing. This is what I've got now. You know what I mean? Yeah. So it's be able to like yeah, J the line between the two kind of selfish insula but yeah, and what what was it you

Dan Apsey: 1:13:33

sorry to go back and bring all your classic games from your childhood to your adult life? Yeah. Okay, or take games from now back to the past your child

JP: 1:13:41

Yeah, I'll bring some of the history back like last rally the dinosaurs so I stood

Dan Apsey: 1:13:45

I never played that. I played Dizzy Dizzy dinosaurs. Remember that? A little green dinosaur and he used to wind that bastard up and then he got around all over the place like I don't know he's on something and then he will hit over over all the characters and I'm trying to knock them off the ball.

JP: 1:14:05

I've just thought of another historical awesome game. A key to the Kingdom do not remember key to the Kingdom just classical

Becky: 1:14:14

Crossbows andCAtapaults great game crossbows and catapults I never played it but Kerley raves about Yeah,

JP: 1:14:23

just Yeah, you get to the kingdom you jumped through whirlpools and opens the board I'd like a book on that yeah, I

Becky: 1:14:31

didn't play those kind of games when I was a kid. So I definitely take games now back then you can be better. Well not just that I think I would be better at them even if I forgot everything about them. I would definitely be better at them than I am now. Sure, I'm an experienced but I think I would have I would have given them more time I would have studied them. And I would have you know, I think learnt how it works and that would have only improved my brain yeah now for me

Dan Apsey: 1:15:01

definitely I would bring the child to games back up this day some classics in their in their frustration, frustration. Ludo is romantic, which then got changed to a slam O Matic. Hasbro we get the pop o matic was that was yeah, that was that was what about the Aussie dice so that they never lost it but it was so therapeutic but then don't hit it too hard or the pieces come out and that was more frustrating for the quarter frustration. So let's get on to our penultimate turn. So folks what's coming up? We got round the corner Becks.

Becky: 1:15:45

Well, I want to get another game of Septima in because I've been thinking about it a lot. And I still need to get these games off my shelf of shame. They're still photosynthesis, trees, trees nice dice hospital, but then I'm off work now. So I don't want to be doing that.

Dan Apsey: 1:16:01

No, it's good. Can you play the theme tune of casualty in the background while playing? Dad

JP: 1:16:14

can you start the game of dice hospital with some unrelated person who's just going about their daily life is about to happen

Dan Apsey: 1:16:23

and then you have to screw up Charlie Fairhead.

Becky: 1:16:26

They get intubated at the wrong end of the tube and I'll be honest about no that's not how it's done. Yeah. Yeah. So dice hospital.

Dan Apsey: 1:16:35

Did you get the to get the expansion pack with the 3d? No,

Becky: 1:16:38

no, I only bought the pink baby dice. Yeah. And I didn't want the expansion. No, no, I bought it at the first UKGE that was one of my massive huge My arms are gonna fall off stack of purchases happy. I was living my best life and yeah, that's the two main ones I actually want to get what get played. Yeah. And I've got a really interesting one that no one's going to play with me. It's called Stellar. And it's part of the Dixit universe. Okay. But I know that Kerley isn't gonna want to play that.

Dan Apsey: 1:17:12

Do you own Dixit?

Becky: 1:17:13

No. No is this I bought it because I really liked the artwork. I mean, you know, saying what I did I researched the game at all. No, no, no, I haven't even played Dixit. No, no, I haven't. But this you

JP: 1:17:25

learned mysterium I like

Dan Apsey: 1:17:28

I know Kerley doesn't like it. I like mysterium. Yeah, again for the artwork, though. I like the game as well.

Becky: 1:17:35

I think that's yeah, oops, curio

Dan Apsey: 1:17:37

Obscurio is the same. I got both. So

Becky: 1:17:40

yeah, I would I would like to play those. I would like to and I'm really looking forward to when mycelia comes out. But thats ages away

JP: 1:17:48

to go there for that. So yeah, I'm looking forward to well, I'm continuing my little Lacerda round Robin. Recently, I played the new inventions age of innovation on the table topia recently and then I managed to get Kerley to play another Lacerda. Recently, Lisboa well done, which was which was tough. Yeah, he was not looking forward to this. He wasn't he really wasn't. He was like I've got this tomorrow. And he turned up and bless him, he watched a vid kind of knew the jist and talked him through kind of the economy of the game. And, and off, we went and got to about 60 70% of the way in the game.He said I really like this, then we were just relaxed. It's passed th test, so it's just nice to find a certain game that he likes, because now you can't just like them all. You can't. You don't like one that's fair, and you give it a fair shake. He likes this one. And it's like bananas, like the art of the possible. So like the weather machine we like? Really like Kanban would you like so? Yeah, I think it was quite nice to show him Lisboa as it's one of my favourites. And yeah,

Becky: 1:19:09

sounded surprised when I asked, Did you like it? And he's like, Yeah, I did. And I was just as surprised as he sounded like, yes. Yeah,

Dan Apsey: 1:19:16

I need to give it a go. Well, I've not given yeah, I've tried a lot of sort of Lacerdas,

JP: 1:19:20

Get a game gaming. But yeah, I'm looking forward to just continuing that exploration that go around the game. So I think there'll be getting videos in soon and nice. Yeah, keep playing on me. Nice.

Dan Apsey: 1:19:33

Nice. Nice about you. mini marathon. Yes, yes, it's around the corner. Not long to go least you will be this weekend. So 12 hours of board gaming, goodness for Cots for Tots. Just a little taster session before our main event, which happens in August. So we're gonna get that going and hopefully well, it's capped at 100 tickets and we're gonna be sold out so it's pretty good. Doing well. So good. Yes. All doing well.

Becky: 1:20:02

Great thing to look forward to this year isn't made like this. It's gonna be amazing. We've got the mini marathon. Yeah. full board gaming. Yeah.

JP: 1:20:10

And the Devon board game weekend. That's just in the first team.

Becky: 1:20:17

UKGE Yeah, love.

Dan Apsey: 1:20:19

I love love last year.

JP: 1:20:21

Great. Now highlights. I think that's such a lot. Yes. To

Becky: 1:20:26

mean 24 hour marathon. Yes,

Dan Apsey: 1:20:29

it's gonna be just think about the runner. Win.

Becky: 1:20:34

Nice thing in the future for

Dan Apsey: 1:20:38

most for me once once it's all done and I get to look back and I get to see everybody in the hall and it's a nice vibe and it's really good and it's in it's a nice proud achievement

JP: 1:20:46

for this mini marathon. Like you just focus on the gaming open gaming Yeah,

Dan Apsey: 1:20:53

I can do that I can get everybody in and I can I can have a go and gaming, the wife's working and morning finished in the afternoon I'm hoping I can go and grab her mid of the day and and bring her along as well. So I'm getting her involved because so she's got involved in every every marathon and apart from last year's Yeah. But I think nice to get her done as well I've already got babysitter sorted so Yeah, can we go looking forward to it we're

JP: 1:21:16

going to be there so yeah the time this episode is released I think it's this weekend this year on the nice nice so yeah if you still have tickets left which I doubt

Dan Apsey: 1:21:25

by this point will be now but you never know is not inquire within

JP: 1:21:28

We'll keep the link on the show notes if the links not there means he hasn't got any tickets? No. You'll hear all about it at some point awesome sauce.

Dan Apsey: 1:21:39

And with that our final turn is wrapping up and victory points are about to be scored. Thanks everyone for listening. If you've enjoyed the show, please like subscribe and review on your podcast player of choice and we ask you to share the podcast with at least one other person who would enjoy this. Also if you want to support the show and become a subscriber to help shape our future content. You can visit us on our page on coffee spelled K O F I and that's it for me with my with my first player runs. Thank you so much for listening and I will pass the baton to Tambo

JP: 1:22:08

yeah Tambos first time be the first player.

Dan Apsey: 1:22:11

Yes then I know I'm one of those episodes and looking forward to it.

JP: 1:22:13

Yes, got some cool stuff coming up. So good new perspective, new discussions. Looking

Dan Apsey: 1:22:19

forward to it. So we'll be back next time with another episode but until then,