We demand you stop, collaborate, and listen to this episode of Flip the Table, where we dive into the endless complexity of the Vanilla Ice Electronic Rap Game! Featuring the "Electronic Beat Box Microphone," players cover up pictures of Vanilla Ice using harshly colored rhyming words while jockeying for position on a thin piece of 1990's-era cardboard. Complete a stanza, and not only do you score big points, you get the pleasure of rapping your frankenrhyme for everyone at the table! Does the p...
Sep 11, 2014•58 min
Once again, we attempt to lift up some rocks while we stand on our heads as we return to the Star Wars universe! In Star Wars: The Interactive Video Board Game, you and up to 5 other rebels invade a partially constructed Death Star, using a combination of plucky astromech droids and the awesome power of The Force to plant enough heavy explosives to blow it to kingdom come. But be careful! A VHS-based Darth Vader and a single wandering Stormtrooper seek to thwart your efforts (because good is dum...
Aug 30, 2014•57 min
In an instance of obvious pandering to Internet cat worship, this week we're covering the Thundercats board game from 1985! We take on the roles of anthropomorphic feline space travelers who brave mutant attacks and library-like forests in a race to finish the final battle by ourselves and snatch the glory from our fellow travelers. Is there fun to be had in this game, or are we chasing a mysterious red dot that was never really there? Download, HO!
Aug 15, 2014•59 min
Though some of this week's panel are teetotalers, that will not stop us from reviewing this 1987 classic about everyone's favorite Boston bar! The Cheers board game, based on the situation comedy of the same name, pits the patrons and staff against each-other in a hybrid trivia/dexterity game. Is the brutal "Normie's Olympics" too much of a challenge for even the most sober of panelists? Will this TSR-produced classic deliver on the implied promise of dungeons and/or dragons in a Boston pub? Pul...
Aug 01, 2014•1 hr 6 min
It's another sportsball-themed episode as we take on two games featuring America's Non-MMA Pastime, the historic game of Baseball. First, we attempt to screen out the shouts of angry parents as we play The Approved Little League Game from the 1960's...a chart-based simulator featuring all the high-octane thrills of choosing how many pitches not to swing at. Then, it's The Baseball Card Game, a team-branded rummy style game which has the guts to implicitly claim its own definitiveness by having a...
Jul 18, 2014•1 hr 5 min
Let the wondrous, futuristic technology of magnetic tape transmitting images into a cathode ray tube transport you into the world of Isaac Asimov's Robots! In this deduction game, players take the role of futuristic gumshoes solving an attempted murder. Pay close attention to the VHS tape as well as randomly drawn clues to figure out whotriedtodunit. Was it a filthy "Earther," filled with discontent about their living conditions and a hatred of the sun, or was it a smug "Spacer," living in their...
Jul 03, 2014•1 hr 5 min
Hi, therrre! Even a note from Epstein's Mother won't excuse you from listening to this week's Flip the Table, as we explore the extended canon of the Welcome Back, Kotter board game. Ben and Niki join us as we roll and move our way through a dirty Brooklyn classroom, trying to string together a single sentence while under the watchful eye of a loveable, mustachioed mentor/poker player. Will this title inspire us to achieve greater things and transcend our sweathog status, or will we be children ...
Jun 20, 2014•57 min
Happy 2nd BANCE-iversary to Flip the Table! We're kicking off our 3rd year with one of the biggest IPs in the world of gaming as we take on Pokemon...but not the good kind like you want. In Pokemon Master Trainer, players race to accumulate tiny, adorable monsters as they build up power for the final battle at Indigo Plateau. Collect all 3 of a Pokemon's evolutionary levels and enjoy a massive bonus. But is it enough to take down Team Rocket in the end, or will you be left crying like a kid with...
Jun 05, 2014•1 hr 8 min
In the early eighties, Steven Spielberg brought to life a pop culture phenomenon with a few simple ingredients...namely, a Speak & Spell, a saw blade, some Reese's Pieces, and a yearning for home. However, if you blend a bit of Roll & Move into the mix, you get the E.T. board game by Parker Brothers. This blockbuster tie-in pits players against each-other in an epic duel of helpfulness as they compete to assist E.T. in building his communicator device and fleeing Earth's horrible, smog-f...
May 16, 2014•53 min
The game show boom of the early-to-mid 2000's featured lots of push-your-luck, big money shows...but only one was hosted by Danny Tanner. Contributing Flipsters Ben and Niki join us for a look at the 1 vs. 100 DVD game, a party game where one lucky player competes for huge stacks of DVD cash while everyone else tries to spoil it for them. Answering questions keeps you in the game while you try to outlast "The Mob" on your way up the ladder. Is it fun enough to keep playing until your inevitable ...
May 02, 2014•57 min
For the first time since our very fourth episode, it's a Chuck Woolery themed Flip the Table as we take on the game you've played all your life...but never quite like this! TV Scrabble is the 1987 board game based on the TV game show, which itself was based on the 1948 board game (give yourself a minute to parse that sentence). This game brings the rotating sets and Woolerific game show action home as players solve crossword-style clues to score points, while avoiding the dreaded "Stopper." But ...
Apr 18, 2014•1 hr 1 min
Take a trip with us to the 90's, where the world's most dangerous criminals were often pursued and captured by young children. In "Where in the USA is Carmen Sandiego?" players travel the US searching for stolen national landmarks, obtaining a warrant, and arresting criminals with extremely punny names. This board game version swaps the cumbersome nature of reading an encyclopedia for the streamlined simplicity of multiple choice questions...but can our panel of gumshoes stop VILE with their kno...
Apr 04, 2014•59 min
In this special double-episode, we're replacing all our limbs and taking on two games of Bionic proportions! First, we step into the track suit of Steve Austin (The other one) in The Six Million Dollar Man game, where we'll spin and move our way into brick walls until we prove which OSI agent is the real deal. Then, in The Bionic Woman, we'll travel around a sort of 70's fantasy landscape rescuing children for big points! Does this Bionic hardware stand the test of time, or has it become obsolet...
Mar 21, 2014•1 hr 5 min
Enjoy this special edition gold-colored mp3 as we pick up our wooden swords and embark upon The Legend of Zelda! This board game features multiple players controlling a single Link as he travels the vast overworld of Hyrule and flips over random enemy tiles until he defeats Ganon or someone dies. Does the panel have sufficient hearts to survive this journey, or will they be left with a dead battery and a corrupt save file?
Mar 07, 2014•57 min
We're taking off our shoes and ascending the twisty pipe-slide as we prepare to descend into The McDonald's Game from 1975! This super-rare, super-retro title pits Ronald, Grimace, Hamburglar, and Birdie against each-other in a hamburger-slinging game of listening, memorization, and quick-thinking. We race to complete each-other's orders to score points...and strategically decide when to intentionally mess them up. This game will definitely make you hungry, but will it make you happy? Flip the T...
Feb 20, 2014•1 hr 3 min
Bullwhips! Stubble! Mine carts! Choosing things! All the most famous hallmarks of the Indiana Jones franchise...upon which the Indiana Jones DVD Adventure Game is based. We choose a Harrison Ford pawn and work our way through a modular dungeon as we fight exotic thugs and avoid dangerous traps in search of ancient artifacts. Once the temple is thoroughly looted, players race to the exit to avoid being crushed by stuff in the name of archaeology. Does this game deliver a thrilling adventure to fo...
Feb 08, 2014•1 hr
It's game night on the gridiron as Flip the Table meets VCR College Bowl! This VHS title from the early 80's simulates college football as players draw cards and watch exciting clips to inch forward slowly in this high stakes game of VIDEO ACTION! It's bone-crushing tackles combined with soul-crushing gameplay...will the panel's limited football experience be enough to get them to the end zone? Ready! Download! HUT-HUT-HUT!
Jan 24, 2014•52 min
Vampires! Witches! Monsters! All sorts of ghoulish terrors await you behind the Doorways to Horror! Featuring COLORSCAN(TM) technology, this 1986 VHS bidding game advertises "over 8 million different encounters" where players watch clips of (probably public domain) horror films while casting magic spells on various creatures to earn gold certificates. In this video adventure of menacing monsters and punishing puns, will the panel have the nerve to survive? Plus: in our Battle of Wits, the panel ...
Jan 10, 2014•57 min
The bedazzled trophy is back! It's our super-sized 2013 End of Year Special, where we answer questions from Flipsters all over the globe, and give our awards for the best and worst games we played all year! Plus, our special Season Finale Battle of Wits features our first ever fan-created battle! Who will become the 2013 BoW champion? Will it be decided with anything remotely resembling game balance? And...we have a special gift for all our listeners! This episode is HUGE! Like, literally larger...
Dec 28, 2013•1 hr 42 min
Say "Hasta la vista" to boredom and get ready to join us for a rousing game of "Terminator 2: Judgement Day"...a board game based on the blockbuster film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. This game sees players racing to collect floppy diskettes and Terminator parts while fleeing the dreaded T-1000 as they prepare for the deadly final battle at the local steel mill. Will this game get a "Thumbs-up," or will it become self-aware and destroy us all? Plus; we dig into Arnold's back catalog in the Bat...
Dec 13, 2013•59 min
It's our first ever LIVE podcast, recorded at BGG.con 2013! Our guest Eric Summerer from The Dice Tower joins us as we play Saved By the Bell from 1992, a pick-up-and-deliver game where players earn points by hanging out with the gang from Bayside and going on a date with both Zack AND Slater! Race around the school while avoiding detention and asking your friends uncomfortable questions about their classmates. Enjoy 54 unique(ish) images of the Bayside gang and collect your favorite ones to sco...
Nov 29, 2013•52 min
They had faces of foam rubber and hearts of gold...but do they have what it takes to make a great board game? Flip the Table investigates as we play The Muppet Show! This late 70's title features the wacky Muppetational stylings of Kermit, Fozzy, Miss Piggy, and the whole gang, and thrusts them into a madcap world of clinical, tactical movement. Which Muppets will reach the footlights and take their place on the big stage? How in the world does the mysterious Double Spinner factor in? What do St...
Nov 08, 2013•53 min
In this special episode, we play 3 generations of games about the FABULOUS, SIXTY-MINUTE Price is Right! First, we go all the way back to the sixties and enjoy the trick-taking madness of Bid it Right: The Price is Right...where we fight over bowling balls and jigsaws to see who can earn the most cash. Then, it's a trip to 1986 where we play The Price is Right Board Game...a game which blends basic appraisal skills with a little Dungeons & Dragons. Finally, we play the 2008 Price is Right DV...
Oct 25, 2013•57 min
This week, Flip the Table returns to the wacky world of Mad Magazine for a trip back in time to the Cold War...where the White Spy and Black Spy eternally engage in an epic duel on behalf of vague (but menacing) government agencies. Welcome to Spy Vs. Spy: The Board Game, where you and up to 3 others can build tunnels in search of deadly bombs and inexplicably bring them back to your home base, presumably while lit. Use tiles from your hand to build routes, and play your sabotage tiles to block ...
Oct 11, 2013•59 min
Way back in 2001, when the dot-com bubble was bursting and the Internet was crumbling to dust in front of our eyes, one company had the foresight to create a time capsule of what would most assuredly be a distant memory 12 years later...a way to teach generation after generation about the thrill and excitement of online auctions. Now, in 2013, contributing Flipsters Ben and Niki Turner stop by to play the eBay Electronic Talking Auction Game! We let the soothing voice of the electronic squawk bo...
Sep 26, 2013•58 min
What problem has ever been solved by "Less power"? No important one, that's for sure. This week, we play the Home Improvement board game, where players roll, move, and grunt their way through the magical world of drywall, circuit testers, and subjective answers to trivia questions. It's a game that combines a little bit of Talisman, a little bit of Monopoly, and a whole lot of home improvement (the activity, not the sitcom). Who will be the first to capture the crown of command complete their jo...
Sep 13, 2013•1 hr 1 min
What do you get when you combine rubber bands, six sided dice, and The Prisoner's Dilemma? The Olympics, of course! This week, we're playing the Bruce Jenner Decathlon game from 1979! This vintage Parker Brothers title features Olympic Gold Medalist turned Kardashian stepfather Bruce Jenner guiding you through a magical journey through 10 track and field events which play out suspiciously like the same 3 mini-games repeated over and over again. Flick plastic discs at rubber bands and exercise yo...
Aug 30, 2013•58 min
This week, it's the Doctor Who Time Travelling Action Game!!! Oooh-WHEEE-Oooooooooh!!! WHEEEEE-oooh-WHOOOOOOOO!!!! Woooooo-OOOOOOh-oooooooh, Doooooo, d-doooooo... (Dum-da-da-dum, da-dum-da-da-dum, da-dum-da-dum) WHEEEOOOOOOOO, woooooo-OOOOOOOH!!!! Plus: Wrong Scattergories.
Aug 16, 2013•1 hr 7 min
We hope you've brought your Cliff's Notes, because this week's episode is about Pride and Prejudice: The Board Game! Based on the timeless Jane Austen novel which celebrates its 200th anniversary this year, this roll and mover pits players against each-other in a 19th century smackdown to find out who is the king and queen of regency life. Listen as the Flip the Table panel fails miserably to understand anything about Pride and Prejudice, guessing blindly at trivia questions about the novel as w...
Aug 02, 2013•58 min
Come join us in a world where stone warriors protect the city by night...and everyone kinda sounds like they belong on the Enterprise. We're playing Gargoyles: The VCR Board Game; a VHS pack-in with the Disney movie which was a special bonus feature long before DVDs brought us hours of deleted scenes. Spin and move your way to the Xanatos building within 20 minutes to defeat Jonathan Frakes before he unleashes horrible robot doppelgangers on the city of New York. If nobody makes it to the finish...
Jul 20, 2013•55 min
