It’s the last cast of the year, and over the Christmas break Iain McAllister is rebuilding the HQ. Thankfully the studio isn’t affected and the team gather for one last time in 2020 to cover companies going bankrupt, Gencon announcing new dates, Alexa grabbing more games and the return of RPG corner. Headlines Sans Detour goes under https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/sansdetour/confrontation-classic-the-legendary-skirmish-game/comments https://www.chaosium.com/blogstatement-about-ditions-sansd...
Dec 21, 2020•24 min•Ep. 80
It’s Christmas time at Brainwaves HQ and the two Iains are decorating the tree! It shines magnificently in the corner of the Brainwaves studio as the team cover sinkings, new awards, old awards, Wizards dropping the ball (or should that be snitch?), and the feud between Uri Geller and a card game. Headlines The Zenobia Award https://www.dicebreaker.com/companies/the-zenobia-award/news/zenobia-award-historical-board-game https://zenobiaaward.org/who-we-are/ GAMA Makes more Changes to the Origin A...
Dec 07, 2020•35 min•Ep. 79
The Brainwaves team are back to bring you the best in Tabletop Gaming News. This week they cover the sad closure of Girls Game Shelf, troubles in a galaxy far, far away, legal troubles here on earth, convention cancellations, interesting kickstarters, and much, much more. Headlines Girls’ Game Shelf shuts up shop https://girlsgameshelf.com/2020/11/not-goodbye-but-hello/ Asmodee moves Star Wars minis from FFG to Atomic Mass Games https://www.atomicmassgames.com/special-announcement Gale Force Nin...
Nov 23, 2020•32 min•Ep. 78
Viva le Revolution! Iain Chantler leads the charge in strike action at the Brainwaves studio! After a brief negotiation involving coffee, the team resolve their differences by coming together behind the mics. This cast we cover new studios, old money, sad partings, pay deals, auctions, and more! Headlines Critical Role announce boardgame studio https://critrole.com/announcing-darrington-press-our-game-publishing-company/ Ex-Blizzard dev starts Tabletop game studio https://warchiefgaming.com/2020...
Nov 09, 2020•31 min•Ep. 77
The team is excited to bring you their first cast live from Essen! Turns out it’s been cancelled. Boo. Gathering themselves and retreating back to the confines of their hotel room the team diligently bring you the latest in tabletop gaming news: Wizards getting sued, more awards, chess cheating continued, rappers, pokemon and much, much more! Headlines Wizards taken to court over Dragonlance Books https://www.geeknative.com/99114/racism-and-sexism-blamed-for-ruining-multi-million-dollar-dragonla...
Oct 26, 2020•32 min•Ep. 76
The cast has hit 10000 downloads and Iain M is throwing a party! He does seem to have forgotten about having to record the cast though. The show must go on and the team wrangle karaoking interns out of the studio and get down to the business of recording cast 58. This time round they cover Origins Awards, Magic meets the Walking Dead, Covid impact on Scottish stores, new crowdfunding sites and much more. Iain M has been hard at work in the basement on his latest news gathering invention, the Rum...
Oct 12, 2020•33 min•Ep. 75
Jamie has returned from the depths of the Brainwaves HQ with the help of Iain C and large quantities of caffeine. As Iain M gets them back in the studio and calms things down the team get back on the news wagon. This cast covers the return of an old friend, more awards, Critical role’s charitable side, old games, new money and much more. Brainstorm returns as the team discusses whether bigger companies should use crowdfunding at all. Headlines Hero Quest Returns https://hasbropulse.com/products/...
Sep 28, 2020•37 min•Ep. 74
Jamie’s back from travels and Iain M has had a nice long sleep. Too long though it seems as they missed the last cast! Making up for lost time the pair, Iain C is fixing the coffee machine, cover Eric Lang leaving CMON, updates from previous reports, Avalon Hill changing hands (sort of), and much more on this edition of Brainwaves. Headlines Eric Lang leaves Cool Mini or Not(CMON) https://twitter.com/eric_lang/status/1299401294201917441 https://cmon.com/press/eric-lang-steps-down-from-his-exec-r...
Sep 14, 2020•28 min•Ep. 73
Welcome to Idle Thoughts our spin-off podcast where the team get together and talk about games they have played recently. This cast was formerly a patreon exclusive that we would occasionally share with the main feed, but it is now going to be a regular fixture of our release schedule. Patrons still get it early and extended, as we do for the Brainwaves cast. This is a recording of our opinions about a bunch of games that we played when we met up recently in Glasgow to actually play some games t...
Aug 24, 2020•37 min•Ep. 72
The deluge of news is finally slowing and the team takes a well deserved rest in the gardens, whilst still bringing you the latest information from the world of tabletop. This cast covers the Ennie Winners, Roll20 boom, Combat Wheelchairs, Asmodee going alone, Starfinder returning to Alexa and more! As the storm clouds gather overhead the team discuss the relationship between publishers and reviewers and where the line lies between reviews and paid content. Headlines Ennies announced https://enn...
Aug 17, 2020•40 min•Ep. 71
Excavating Iain Chantler out from underneath a huge pile of news the team are reunited and set about the latest developments in Tabletop gaming with enthusiasm (or at least workman-like efficiency). This episode we take a look at the Spiel des Jahres, Uk Games Expo Award shortlists, a whole bunch of financial news from across the industry, Mind Sports Olympiad. Also the return of RPG corner where the team uncovers tales of HORROR! Headlines Spiel des Jahres Winner announced https://www.spiel-des...
Aug 03, 2020•35 min•Ep. 70
On this special episode of Brainwaves we chat to two of the people behind Project Nisei, a fan run continuation of the Netrunner card game. Serenity, Community Manager, and Jonni, Design lead, join Iain and Iain to chat about the challenges of keeping a worldwide community going amidst the current crisis, how the game is continuing to evolve, their plans for forthcoming releases, and the best way for new players to get into this fantastic game of cyber criminals and the corps who hate them. Jonn...
Jul 27, 2020•57 min•Ep. 69
The HQ is on red alert as the news tubes fill up with more information than they can handle. Setting the interns on the problem Iain M and Jamie set about getting the podcast done to reduce the strain on the system whilst Iain C is lost somewhere in the piles of news! This episode we report on the return of Golden Bell to crowdfunding, Wizards having more employee troubles, Twitter Bans, Scrabble bans, deaths, awards and loads more! Headlines Golden Bell Studios launches crowdfunding site https:...
Jul 20, 2020•31 min•Ep. 68
Iain M thought he was going to have a nice relaxing time in the Brainwaves studios over lockdown but no! There is so much news that it is threatening to bury the entire HQ! Together the team dig into the giant piles to bring you only the best nuggets of news; CAH revelations continue, WOTC part ways with artist, Ennies deals with their own controversy, AI taking over and much, much more! Headlines Cards against humanity head ousted https://www.cardsagainsthumanity.com/statement/ https://medium.c...
Jul 06, 2020•32 min•Ep. 67
After the rose tinted glasses of episode 50 we put on the harsh specs of reality and dive into this week’s news. Together the team cover the cancellation of Origins Online, Wizards of the Coast banning cards and striving for diversity, Cards Against Humanity abuse allegations, Golden Bell tolling once more, Everything Board Games imploding and much, much more. Headlines Origins Online Cancelled amidst mass walkout of guests over silence on American protests https://kotaku.com/board-gamings-indus...
Jun 22, 2020•35 min•Ep. 66
Brainwaves Statement on the U.S. Protests Hello everyone, before we get to the cast proper we wanted to take a moment to address how the Brainwaves team feels about the current situation in America. We feel that even though our voice is small, it is important to speak up when events like this occur. As 3 white guys we will not pretend to understand what the black community has experienced worldwide during our lifetimes and for centuries beforehand. However we do stand with the protesters who are...
Jun 08, 2020•51 min•Ep. 65
Iain C is having some outside time in the Brainwaves garden, leaving Jamie and Iain M to get on with the business of the cast. This week we cover convention cancellations, Avengers’ board game night, BGG Geek Game store, Spartacus returning, Hot Zones for free and more. In Brainstorm we discuss the possibility of a silver lining to all the convention cancellations: are release schedules going to get a little more spread out? Headlines Coronavirus cancels conventions Uk Games Expo https://www.ukg...
May 25, 2020•36 min•Ep. 64
It’s time for the most coveted prize in the boardgame award season calendar, The Golden Brains! These coveted prizes are only given out on this cast to categories of our own devising, number two will shock you. Of course we still have time to bring you the best in tabletop gaming news: comic relief DnD, Wingspan sweeps awards and picks up some controversy, Frosthaven rocks Kickstarter, Asmodee takedowns, Union negotiations and much more! In our Brainstorm we look at the thorny subject of boardga...
May 11, 2020•35 min•Ep. 63
This week on Brainwaves Iain Chantler is on trial for crimes too heinous to write down! With the proceedings out of the way the team gather to pour over the last fortnight in boardgame news: CMON trading statement, Kickstarter cuts, Game store owner arrested and companies support for your FLGS. We look at Roll20 and the ways it can help you roleplay online. The Trial https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PAaTLcQq_D4&app=desktop Headlines Cmon Trading Statement https://cmon.com/news/cmon-april-2020...
Apr 27, 2020•32 min•Ep. 62
The Team are all together in Brainwaves HQ and Iain C has made his way back from the non-euclidean geometry of the coffee machine. Joining Jamie and Iain M they dive into the news ocean once more to bring you the juiciest pearls. This week they cover the Far Verona cancellation, the passing of a TSR founder, CMON trading woes, Asmodee generosity, Z-Man on Pandemic and much, much more. Iain M has been busy putting together a new corner of the studio to help out those stuck at home with online gam...
Apr 13, 2020•35 min•Ep. 61
Brainwaves HQ is a lonely place for Iain M to be on his own: Iain C is self isolating, and we’ve sent all the interns home for safety. Contemplating what to do next he is thankfully joined by Jamie who has returned from his walkabout, and a very special guest. Together they look at the impact Covid-19 has had on the boardgaming world before turning to news of companies splitting, awards being announced, and games companies reacting to counterfeiting. In Brainstorm we look at ways you can still e...
Mar 30, 2020•37 min•Ep. 60
Iain and Iain were off in Harrogate over the last weekend, and haven't had the time to put together the usual Brainwaves cast. To fill the gap we are releasing one of our older Idle Thoughts episodes featuring the original team of Iain, Jamie and Sam. We hope you enjoy their thoughts on the games they played round December 2018.
Mar 16, 2020•22 min•Ep. 59
Iain Chantler has established a Robot Fight Club in the basement of Brainwaves HQ and who better than James Hewitt to help him get it setup. Iain McAllister is enthusiastic about the idea but James really needs to help out around the place if the club is going to stay, so he joins the Iains on the cast. This episode we cover Kickstarter unions, DTRPG categories, Hasbro Finances, Replacement policies and more. In Brainwaves we cast our eye to the new Federal Trade Commision rules on influencers a...
Mar 02, 2020•40 min•Ep. 58
Jamie is gone and Iain is hiding below the recording desk. No not that Iain, the other one. Checking up that their Patreon money isn’t going to frivolous expenditure, the Executive Producers turn up for a performance review and join the team behind the mics. This episode they cover notorious Kickstarter company Golden Bell, Wizards of the Coast setting up games studios, more awards, Archaeological finds and Iain takes his first trip to RPG corner which is definitely not filled with lizards. Head...
Feb 17, 2020•36 min•Ep. 57
It’s week two of intern training and it’s Iain’s turn to get Iain behind the mic as Jamie is off doing….something. They start off by covering the latest developments at Monolith games and when Jamie eventually turns up, without coffee, all three of the team cover Kickstarter Boardgame finances, Mythic getting sued, Kickstarter Union updates, charity efforts by gamers, Warhammer 40k escape rooms and mainstream boardgames. In our Brainstorm we answer a question posed by a follower: What RPG would ...
Feb 03, 2020•34 min•Ep. 56
The Brainwaves studios are dusty, Jamie has been sleeping under a desk and there has been some confusion over who was booking the next guest. Luckily we have a spare intern lying around, Iain Chantler, who helps out on this cast and makes us both look like consummate unprofessionals. On our first Brainwaves of 2020 we cover FFG layoffs and cancellations, new DnD, Tabletop Art initiatives, small game, big games and pre-order systems. In our Brainstorm the team read the signs, chuck runes up in th...
Jan 20, 2020•36 min•Ep. 55
Happy New Year everyone! Iain did some interviews down at Dragonmeet 2019 (not 2020 as he says repeatedly throughout) and now you can hear them as well. He spoke to giants of the UK RPG podcast scene The Smart Party and some of the indie board game publishers. Hope you enjoy! Loke Battlemats https://lokebattlemats.com/ Ruined Sky Games https://www.ruinedsky.com/ The Smart Party https://smartparty.wordpress.com/ Hercules Game Studios https://www.after-london.com/role-quest Play For Keeps https://...
Jan 06, 2020•15 min•Ep. 54
The plans for the award show have gone awry so Iain and Jamie retreat to RPG corner to discuss their nominations for the year in games. Best Short Game Tortuga 1667 https://facadegames.com/products/tortuga-1667 Cockroach Poker https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/11971/cockroach-poker Tabletop Scotland https://tabletopscotland.co.uk/ Best Rulebook Villagers https://www.sinisterfish.com/games/villagers/ Bargain Quest https://www.renegadegamestudios.com/bargain-quest-landing-page Paul Grogan - Gami...
Dec 23, 2019•42 min•Ep. 53
Brainwaves HQ is undergoing a bit of a revamp in preparation for our awards show. With the news room inaccessible and construction everywhere Iain and Jamie do the cast themselves. On this show they cover world champions going away, Uno politics and boardgames in old age. Removing themselves to the crackling fire of RPG corner they cover a couple of recent announcements before looking back on the year for The Giant Brain. We hope you will pour yourself a glass and join us. Headlines Go Champion ...
Dec 09, 2019•32 min•Ep. 52
Iain has big plans for the first Giant Brain convention but Jamie is not so sure. Luckily our convention correspondent Mark Cooke is back from Essen with lots of excellent advice. This episode the team cover abuse allegations, industry deaths, awards and more. Iain’s been working on something in the basement and it proves very useful when getting to the core of what convention organisation is all about. No interns were harmed in the making of this episode. Headline Industry distances itself from...
Nov 25, 2019•34 min•Ep. 51
