Tempted to try this with my English-speaking group and really push "no-preparation" with on-the-fly translation. Would of course try to keep an outrageous French accent going throughout the session...

Alright, that's this year's edition of Eurovision Bingo sorted. Nieces appeased, and their parents will be pleased that they won't get pestered about it now.

Had my eye on this project: a dexterity, polyomino-stacking game themed around nebulae collapsing into stars. Some push-your-luck, not wanting to make a tower too stable or unstable. Crowdfunding now at (EN interface): www.ulule.com/nebulae-orig... #boardgames #brettspiele #j2s /1

All these interesting 2-player games out there... and yet those are the ones I find hardest to get to the table as we're usually at least 3. :(

Types of Board Game https://xkcd.com/3235/ I can't believe Candles of Vienna caved to commercial pressure and added the Goku expansion. Explain xkcd: https://www.explainxkcd.com/wiki/index.php/3235

whoever this is, they are amazing

Okay, very niche British culture, but this entire thread is delightful

Good to see poking fun at generated images is in vogue on BGG.

Not sure whether to laugh or cry at someone making this: sweepthestrait.com Minesweeper but not with your typical rectangular grid.

Although not frequent, I always enjoy reading new posts by Sarah Shipp on integrating theme into board game design. This is her latest, the script for a talk she gave at GAMA. shippboardgames.blogspot.com/2026/03/gama...

- So you got a French copy of Eternal Decks? - Yup. - And you're now learning it so you can teach 3 Germans to play it on Wednesday? - Yup. - Alright, have fun. Gotta say, it is one dense little box. Lot of game packed into it. #j2s #boardgames #brettspiele

I didn't get to play it at #fij2026 but an interesting mechanic from The Royal Society of Archeology is the worker placement slots. According to the strength of you worker, they are placed in the corresponding sector of the semicircle. /1 #j2s #boardgames #brettspiele

It's also an example of the failure of recommendation systems. When purely algorithmic, you'd just laugh about weird recommendations. Now, there's always that suspicion that it's being pushed to you because someone paid for it. Shows the importance of finding reviewers you vibe with and can trust.

Whoops, got the wrong numbers for Spiel 2025. Have a correction and adding UKGE figures UKGE 2025: 43,000 sq m - 72,000 attendees Spiel 2025: 77,500 sq m - 220,000 attendees FIJ 2026: > 60,000 sq m - 110,000 attendees

So, expanding into that final Hall certainly makes sense for the number of attendees. Just as a comparison: Spiel 2025: 62,500 sq m - 220,000 attendees FIJ 2026: > 60,000 sq m - 110,000 attendees Not clear for the FIJ how much of that was in the tents outside, but no wonder it felt less crowded!

Time for a little roundup I suppose. I had a good time at #fij2026, interesting games, a good atmosphere and warm, friendly people to meet and play those games with. - Lots of small game: trick-takers, grid-based tableau builders and duo/duel games on display 1/ #j2s #boardgames #brettspiele

And another example of the interesting cross-fertilisation going on between board games and computer games. The Mist is a Metroidvania in board game form. 1/ #fij2026 #j2s #boardgames #brettspiele

Ants are apparently a popular theme at the moment. Microlonies is a pretty brisk game that uses a mancala-esque system where you take all the ants from one section of your nest and leave one in each room on your path from that room. 1/

Not a new release but amazing anyway: A comedy rpg based on the premise of the USSR winning and taking Communism into space! #fij2026

A big appeal for heading to #FIJ was the Nuits du Off: evening events where designers can playtest their games. Tested out Yurei: Ghosts of Enoshima, a Pandemic-esque game of villagers trying to save their island from curses and ghosts. #fij2026 #j2s #boardgames #brettspiele

Panorama, a nice simple game where you ride around in a hot air balloon and build your landscape. Points are scored by multiplying animals and plants in contiguous area and 3 random bonus contracts drawn at the start of the game. #fij2026 #j2s #boardgames #brettspiele

Fond memories of FTL? Solo or 2-player version that seems very reminiscent from the explanation. No demo available unfortunately. #fij2026 #boardgames #brettspiele

And an early version of Praestigium, an upcoming Kickstarter campaign. Interesting combo builder where you play as the heads of competing magic schools. I love the board design, where the board itself has slots so it acts as a stand. #fij #fij2026 #boardgames #brettspiele

Got to try Sanibel at #fij2026. Good feeling, simple to pick up but makes you think about your actions and what other players are doing. Nice mechanics as well. #j2s #boardgames #brettspiele

On my way to Cannes for the #FIJ. Currently in Munich, trying to live vicariously through other people already there, but people not tagging their posts is making it harder! #fij2026 #j2s #boardgames

Orloj last night. The set up and teach might seem a touch intimidating but the actual game flows quite nicely and intuitively - some big action chains but most were pretty manageable. Minor quibble: the clock is already built, you're only doing the decoration. #boardgames #j2s #brettspiele #spiel25

Posted a breakdown on BGG of changes I observed in the prototype of Blood Rage: Valhalla I played at Essen Spiel #spiel25 #boardgames #j2d #brettspiele boardgamegeek.com/thread/35975...

Thanks to a friendly Dutch contingent who had a spare space in their reservation, was able to try out The Presence. Moving around a haunted house with an ambiguously friendly/wrathful spirit. Very nice feel and good pressure to not waste actions. #spiel25

Played a few rounds of Bohemians, a nice, fairly simple but interesting card game. Mostly cosy except for the jobs and hardship cards which really don't pull their punches about the life of a struggling artist. Picked up a copy myself. #spiel25

People sharing info on sold out games here: boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/360... Check carefully though, some only sold out in a specific language or in Ghost Lift's case, they said they will have some more copies today (but not many!) #spiel25

Also had time for a full game of Leylines, also from @arcanewonders.bsky.social. Cute update of an older pick-up and delivery game.

Checked out Raas: A Dance of Love from @arcanewonders.bsky.social colourful game of trying to assemble sets and advancing tracks to increase multipliers. Or pick up a juicy bonus from dials with adjacent die with the same number or colour. #spiel25

Had a quick round of the new Joyride expansion. Definitely needs as many players as you can get for maximum chaos. Think I prefer it to Heat. #spiel25

If you wanted a copy of Freya's Swamp, based on how busy it is already, then all I can say is: good luck! #spiel25

And we're off! Well, in the waiting pen after a brief steam bath in the packed U-Bahn #spiel2025

Well, had wanted to set this up before now. But hey, still before SPIEL Essen at least!