This time Shelley and I enjoy Piatnik's mass-market game for Essen 2025: Elixirus by Dickie Chapin from Piatnik Piatnik is always a publisher we peruse at Essen, because they make inexpensive games that possibly fit our wheelhouse (like 2024's Calcada) youtu.be/_htplpcj3pk

This week Shelley and I check out a couple of family-friendly games and still challenge the gamer in us: Elixirus by Dickie Chapin from Piatnik Market Fresh by Wolfgang Kramer and Michael Kiesling from Avalon Hill @hasbrogames.bsky.social traffic.libsyn.com/garrettsgame...

We've had a difficult week; Shel's dad died yesterday & we lost good friend Ken Tidwell Wednesday. No reviews this week. Before Steve passed, I recorded this clip as a tribute. Check out The Game Cabinet & all of information that Ken provided: www.gamecabinet.com traffic.libsyn.com/garrettsgame...

This time Shelley and I get puzzly with blue and white porcelain patterns from Russia in Gzhel by NIkita Sorokin from Hobby World youtu.be/YKXCpTPROGk

This time Shelley and I explore the very early days of computing in the 19th Century, along with Ada Lovelace's role in a BIG Euro-style game of dice drafting and action selection: Ada's Dream by Toni Lopez from Alley Cat Games youtu.be/zZPkUgdt-CA

Garrett's Games 1043! This week Shelley and I make patterns with porcelain pottery and build computers while dealing with 19th Century society. First up is Gzhel by Nikita Sorokin from Hobby World followed by Ada's Dream by Toni Lopez from Alley Cat Games traffic.libsyn.com/garrettsgame...

Shelley and I challenge our dexterity as we build a 3-D tower for Toto the cat to climb in Cat and the Tower by Masakazu Takizawa from @arcanewonders.bsky.social youtu.be/nsJtdUccWOw

This week Shelley and I check out the "Official Game of Spiel Essen 2025" Fair Enough by Friedemann Friese from Skellig Games We get cards into our hands, then try to get the played to gain points and make sets. youtu.be/ZmKOLvqO13Q

This week Shelley & I check out the 'official game of Essen 2025' Fair Enough by Friedemann Friese from Skellig Games then we work to build a tower for cats (though we could have done it competitively too!) Cat and the Tower by Masakazu Takizawa from Arcane Wonders traffic.libsyn.com/garrettsgame...

We pull another fun smaller card game off the shelf to round out the week, adding a small expansion to change up gameplay. Pixies with the Flower Power Expansion by Johannes Goupy from @pandasaurusgames.com ! youtu.be/28Rxfj-D_KI

This time Shelley and I pull a Spiel des Jahres finalist off the shelf once again to check out a fun, small expansion that has just come out. Faraway by Johannes Goupy and Corentin Lebrat from @pandasaurusgames.com with the Under Starry Skies expansion. youtu.be/40hV9N3p3Dw

Shelley and I check out this remake of a classic Reiner Knizia design with a new technological twist to handle the Dutch Auction that's an essential part of the game. Merchants of Andromeda by Reiner Knizia from @allplay.bsky.social ! youtu.be/fXe3I2zzivE

GG&G 1041! Merchants of Andromeda by Reiner Knizia from @allplay.bsky.social . Faraway + Under Starry Skies by Johannes Goupy & Corentin Lebrat from @pandasaurusgames.com Pixies + Flower Power by Johannes Goupy from @pandasaurusgames.com traffic.libsyn.com/garrettsgame...

One of the games we HAD to get when wandering around Essen 2025 (but then slipped through the cracks of the 'must play' list) is Peanuts Talent Show! by Koudai Tateno and Root from CMON A fun trick-taking and deck-building game with great artwork! youtu.be/FykQVU0japQ

Garrett's Games checks out Italian cheese! Shelley and I check out the 'brother' of sorts to one of our favorite games of the past two years (Fromage) with new ways to store, trade, and sell cheese: Formaggio by Ben Rosset from R2i Games youtu.be/y0_ylkGrEY4

Just in time for TAX week in the US - GG&G1040! We check out a wonderful sequel to a favorite Formaggio by Ben Rosset from Road to Infamy Games then we enjoy a game with Charles Schultz artwork Peanuts Talent Show! by Root and Koudai Tateno from CMON traffic.libsyn.com/garrettsgame...

If you're looking for a GREAT game to play with friends who aren't 'gamers' for some after-dinner fun, check out Ito by Mitsuru Nakamura from @arcanewonders.bsky.social youtu.be/CHWTEbkqfH8

For our first game this week, Shelley and I check out the beautiful 2023 release which we had only played as a 5-player game previously, but now LOVED with just the 2 of us: World Wonders plus its expansion by Ze Mendes from @arcanewonders.bsky.social youtu.be/YZ4ZQH8wFhw

GG&G 1039! This week it's two very different @arcanewonders.bsky.social titles - one co-op for up to 10 players, and the other strategy game with awesome bits: Ito by Mitsuru Nakamura and World Wonders and its Expansion by Ze Mendes traffic.libsyn.com/garrettsgame...

Shelley & I delve into the sweet life in the HUGE and HEAVY game with spectacular bits Sweet Lands by Totsuca Chuo from @devirgames.bsky.social and Uchibacoya youtu.be/u7PtxNRqqHg

This time on Garrett's Games, Shelley and I explore mystical forests, placing tiles and trying to be the first to get all of our pieces successfully placed in Tulikko by Nicolas Melet and Jerome Soleil from @pandasaurusgames.com youtu.be/4jj_nyRViMw

This week on Garrett's Games, Shelley & I play a family-friendly tile-laying game: Tulikko by Jerome Soleil & Nicolas Melet from @pandasaurusgames.com then dive into DEEP game about desserts Sweet Lands by Totsuca Chuo from Uchibacoya & @devirgames.bsky.social traffic.libsyn.com/garrettsgame...

For our second video of the week, we check out another Arcane Wonders' release with another interesting twist on the trick-taking genre. Onstage by Michael Orion from @arcanewonders.bsky.social! youtu.be/w2UttrlkwSo

Shelley and I enjoy an awesome sequel to a great Spiel des Jahres winner Qwirkle Flex by Susan McKinley Ross and Reiner Knizia from Mindware and Schmidt Spiele youtu.be/nyLYXLr3gng

Shelley & I check out a new sequel to the Spiel des Jahres winner Qwirkle Flex by Susan McKinley Ross & Reiner Knizia from Mindware & Schmidt Spiele then we try out another interesting twist on trick-taking Onstage by Michael Orion from Arcane Wonders traffic.libsyn.com/garrettsgame...

Shelley and I check out this small-box dexterity game where we draft cards and then take their 3-D counterparts to place on our plates: Buffet Boss by Daryl Chow from @arcanewonders.bsky.social youtu.be/oBATDEcmCRo

This week on Garrett's Games, Shelley and I take on the BIGGEST 'draw and draw' game we've ever played. Two sheets to mark, as well as a scratch off card??? There's a LOT in Tend by Max Anderson, Zac Dixon, Austin Harrison, and Toby Sarnelle from IV Studio youtu.be/l2sbwFtkoIk

This week head to another planet in the draw & draw behemoth Tend by from IV Studio then we try to pile the best food on our respective plates in Buffet Boss by Daryl Chow from @arcanewonders.bsky.social traffic.libsyn.com/garrettsgame...

Shelley and I check out this fun shedding game with two ways to get rid of your cards. Number Chain by Woojin Yang from @arcanewonders.bsky.social and Korea Boardgames youtu.be/xhr6F5R9H1s

Shelley and I spend some time building 3-D fountains populated with multicolored fish and lily pads in Fountains by Kedric Winks from The Op Games youtu.be/cLq3n5_SkWw

Garrett's Games 1035! This week Shelley and I build fountains, then try to string nubmered cards together in a shedding game: Fountainsby Kedric Winks from The Op Games and Number Chain by Woojin Yang from @arcanewonders.bsky.social traffic.libsyn.com/garrettsgame...

Shelley and I delve into more trick-taking goodness with a twist in Piñatas by Reiner Knizia from @allplay.bsky.social! youtu.be/P_rLJcjmilg

Shelley and I travel a circular board to puck up various colored cubes and deliver them to fantasy shops in Leylines by Daryl Andrews and Wolfgang Kramer from @arcanewonders.bsky.social. This is a title based on the SdJ winning Kramer design Auf Achse from 1987. youtu.be/GPFHcvInl2c

This week we pick up & deliver items to fantasy shops in Leylines by Daryl Andrews & Wolfgang Kramer from @arcanewonders.bsky.social Then we head into the land of trick taking once again for a new twist in Pinatas by Reiner Knizia from @allplay.bsky.social traffic.libsyn.com/garrettsgame...

Shelley and I get our creative gardening gloves on, drafting plants, insects, and decorations for our respective gardens in Pergola by Michal Golab Golebiowski and Przemek Wojtkowiak from Rebel Studio youtu.be/FOLSUdYHkNQ

This time Shelley and I check out one of the games that's been gathering dust on our shelves for too many years. Does it still belong there? Trambahn by Helmut Ohley from Mayfair and @lookoutgames.bsky.social ! youtu.be/ajU6y60UfX0

Our first video of the week celebrates our ability to read each other's minds as we play cards to cooperate and achieve 40 different challenges in Take Time by Alexi Piovesan and Julien Prothiere from Libellud! Be sure to SUBSCRIBE and give us a thumbs up! youtu.be/ZOY5umo_JqI

GG 1033! Two 2025 releases, and 1 from 2015: Take Time by Alexi Piovesan & Julien Prothiere from Libellud Pergola by Michal Golab Golebiowski & Przemek Wojtkowiak from Rebel Studio Trambahn by Helmut Ohley from Mayfair & @lookoutgames.bsky.social traffic.libsyn.com/garrettsgame...

Shelley and I check out the small-box 'draw & draw' game where each player has 4 cards and adds numbers to create paths: Fantastic Trails by Jordy Adan from NSV Thanks to our sponsor this week - @drfinnsgames.bsky.social ! youtu.be/ripEzzqxVKI

This week: Fantasy Brewers by Michael Schacht from @grailgames.bsky.social Position meeples to gain goods & workers to get money & score the most points! youtu.be/_oI2goWHq-o Thanks to our sponsor @drfinnsgames.bsky.social - check out his forthcoming 2-player book of Strategy & Word Games!

GG&G 1032! Fantasy Brewers by Michael Schacht from @grailgames.bsky.social then we get card and try to create the best ant trails in the draw and draw game Fantastic Trails by Jordy Adan from NSV traffic.libsyn.com/garrettsgame... Thanks to our sponsor @drfinnsgames.bsky.social !

Shelley and I own movie theaters & try to make the most money in Popcorn by Victor Saumont from IELLO youtu.be/-5myqG8kIr4 Thanks to @drfinnsgames.bsky.social Order his solo book here: www.amazon.com/Finns-Book-S... Check out the new book here: www.kickstarter.com/projects/drf...

Shelley & I check out: Dr. Finn's Book of 2-Player Strategy and Word Games @drfinnsgames.bsky.social with EIGHT games that are a fun mix of hidden scoring and head-to-head choices. The book debuts 2/23/26 on Kickstarter: www.kickstarter.com/projects/drf... youtu.be/Na7e_M-speA

This week we check out a different sort of board gaming experience: a cool book of EIGHT games Dr. Finn's Book of Solo Strategy and Word Games youtu.be/hPvmC8cXKTQ Thanks to @drfinnsgames.bsky.social for their sponsorship, and make sure you SUBSCRIBE to support our continued content creation!

traffic.libsyn.com/garrettsgame... GG&G 1031 This week Shelley & I check out 2 game BOOKS from @drfinnsgames.bsky.social Dr. Finn's Book of Solo Strategy & Word Games Dr. Finn's Book of 2-Player Strategy & World Games Then we check out another from Essen 2025: Popcorn by Victor Saumont from IELLO.

Older TItles We Need To Play Soon! We are making a resolution to get some of these older titles back to the table and talk about our experiences with them after at least 7 years of collecting dust. youtu.be/F2eeNBtA4go

Shelley and I roll dice, then choose dice pairs and write values for scoring on one of two player boards in Clickety Clack by Ralf zur Linde from NSV youtu.be/q6p2joR1tgk

This week Shelley & I chuck dice & fill in rows in Clickety Clack by Ralf zur Linde from NSV then we head to Japan and strategically place our ronin figures into cities to do actions & funfill contracts in Ronin by Emanuele Ornella from @queengamesus.bsky.social traffic.libsyn.com/garrettsgame...

To finish out the week, Shelley and I build up a city filled with canals in Tolleno by Gilles Turbide from @sitdowngames.bsky.social youtu.be/I7e16t1NcL4

Shelley and I build up our own ponds with cards of frogs and environments in Pondscape by Tomas Holek from Pink Troubadour and @capstone-games.com youtu.be/RxhmfEzmhvM