Gen Con 2022 saw the return of over 50,000 attendees (and four days of non-stop gaming) to Indianapolis -- and, most importantly, the return of Christina and Shoe to the big show! We invited Twitch streamer and content creator Amanda Panda to join us to discuss our experiences and the hot new games. Topics this episode: Christina (host): Hot games of Gen Con (15:31) Amanda (guest): Lighter party games of Gen Con (34:16) Shoe (producer): Games that flew under the radar (50:34)...
Aug 18, 2022•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 93
Since you can download the fantastic and completely free Sunshine City from Coffee Bean Games , we invited designer Peter C. Hayward to talk some of our favorite lighter and heavier games in the roll & write genre. Shoe tries to articulate the idea of "hybrid" games of multiple ideas coming together to form one new product, and we discover Peter's complete fascination and almost encyclopedic knowledge of games you can play in a car. Plus, Peter reveals details about an upcoming game to be pu...
Jul 07, 2022•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 92
Johnny O'Neal, one of the brother cofounders of Brotherwise Games (publisher of Unearth , Call to Adventure , and the recently successfully funded Castles by the Sea ), drops by Going Analog to discuss his design philosophy and asserts that every game needs to be shorter . We're pretty sure that's the takeaway. We also figured the co-designer of Boss Monster (in which you play as, well, the end-of-dungeon boss monster) would have thoughts about why it's so fun to to be so bad (ahem, play the "ba...
Jun 23, 2022•51 min•Ep. 91
Tim Fowers, indie designer and publisher at Fowers Games , intrigues Christina and Shoe with the concept of "anticipation" and how it plays into dopamine-filled play. And because Tim is such a marketing mastermind, he drops a Fugitive 2 tease about...46 minutes into this episode. Christina talks to Tim about Paperback and Hardback , Fowers Games's two popular word/spelling games...and listen for a shocking revelation from Tim! Topics in this episode: Tim (guest): Anticipation in games (15:12) Sh...
Jun 09, 2022•54 min•Ep. 90
Matt from YouTube's Board Game Bollocks drops by to (somehow successfully!) not swear while chatting about his gaming lifestyle, nihilism, and how Americans are so "happy and bouncy." Our topics this week: Christina (host): Our favorite animal-themed games (10:36) Mike (editor): Board gaming as a lifestyle (19:59) Matt (guest): The rising prices of board games and their implications (32:27)...
May 27, 2022•47 min•Ep. 89
It's rematch time! Amanda Panda , board game Twitch streamer and content creator, returns to argue over three fresh new matchups -- and we're throwing hands ! Our matchups for this sequel: Christina (host): Namiji vs. Tokaido (12:27) Shoe (producer): G.I. Joe Deck-Building Game vs. Transformers Deck-Building Game (23:31) Amanda (guest): Kingdom Builder vs. The Guild of Merchant Explorers (40:48)...
Apr 28, 2022•58 min•Ep. 88
Mik and Starla of Our Family Plays Games join Going Analog to talk about the state of diversity and inclusion in the board gaming community, why they felt the need to start their new OFPG Voices channel, and which crowdfunding games we're most excited to get delivered soon! Topics this week: Starla (guest): The current state of diversity and inclusion in the board gaming community (8:22) Mik (guest): Why we started OFPG Voices (21:53) Christina (host): Crowdfunding games that we're most excited ...
Apr 14, 2022•46 min•Ep. 87
The Going Analog gang has recovered from their Vegas trip to Dice Tower West. So how does this convention stack up to their other faves? What did they play? And how's the new remake of one of their fave board games? Topics this week: Christina (host): Our highlights from Dice Tower West and our tips for attending a convention (11:01) Jess (contributor): Comparing our favorite board game cons (23:35) Shoe (producer): Libertalia vs. Libertalia: Winds of Galecrest (37:57)...
Mar 31, 2022•50 min•Ep. 86
The Going Analog Podcast hosts our first full-time board game illustrator, and it's KWANCHAI MORIYA . He even showed up to our house with beef jerky! The prolific and versatile illustrator of many of your favorite games (including Dinosaur Island , Capital Lux , In the Hall of the Mountain King ) recently commemorated his 100th piece of board game art, so we had to celebrate with him on our show. Topics this week: Kwanchai Moriya (guest): What are some board games that you consider hidden gems? ...
Mar 17, 2022•59 min•Ep. 85
Some friends from The Op join Christina to swap gaming stories and imagined celebrity gaming stories! Pat Marino (Game Design Manager and designer of Court of the Dead: Mourner's Call and Cuphead: Fast Rolling Dice Game ) and Wes Ferrer (Lead Playtest Coordinator), with topics in hand, get on the Going Analog Podcast to discuss: Christina (host): If you could teach a game to any celebrity, real or fictional, whom would you pick? (9:38) Wes (guest): What makes a game an "instant classic"? (19:07)...
Mar 03, 2022•53 min•Ep. 84
Agricola vs. Caverna? We've discussed that hundreds of times, and the obvious right answer is Caverna. But what about 7 Wonders vs. 7 Wonders: Architects? Calico vs. Cascadia? And a more recent classic clash, Funkoverse vs. Unmatched? We brought on Amanda Panda , aka Panda8ngel, board game Twitch streamer and all-around enthusiastic gamer, to give us her opinions, we all agree: Shoe is wrong. Our match-ups on this episode: Shoe (producer): 7 Wonders vs. 7 Wonders: Architects Christina (host): Ca...
Feb 17, 2022•55 min•Ep. 83
Mike Gnade, founder/CEO of Rock Manor Games (Set a Watch, Lawyer Up, and the upcoming Seas of Havoc) is our guest this week. The topics we each picked: Christina (host): What deck-building games do we first show to newbies? And then after they need to graduate to something more advanced? Mike Gnade (guest): Which Kickstarter board games pleasantly surprised you? And which disappointed you? Shoe (producer): How do you go about culling your board game collection?...
Feb 03, 2022•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 82
David Sirlin, President of Sirlin Games, drops by to do a deep dive into video game influences on his tabletop designs, especially with the new Puzzle Strike 2! We also discuss how push-your-luck mechanisms and designing a board game universe. Our chosen topics this week: David Sirlin (guest): How his game design draws from video game influences Christina (host): Push-your-luck in game design and some favorites in that genre Shoe (producer): Building a board game universe...
Jan 20, 2022•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 81
We're slamming the door on 2021 and looking forward to the new year! Older games we're itching to get to the table, long-awaited games we're anxiously waiting for, and neglected shelf-of-opportunity games that are finally coming due -- we bring back prolific content creator Ruel Gaviola to talk about them all! Topics this week: Shoe (producer): Which older games are we excited to get to the table this year? Christina (host): Which 2022 games are we excited to play? Ruel (guest): Which games are ...
Jan 06, 2022•1 hr•Ep. 80
Even though we've cautiously emerged from our social bubble, we figured we'd bring back our neighbor-friends and former bubble-ers James Hudson (Senior Director of Tabletop Games at Skybound ) and Tom Twedell to discuss/argue about the games we played this year! Party Game of 2021 Light Games of 2021 Medium Games of 2021 Heavy Games of 2021 Favorite New-to-Us Games of 2021 What's a medium vs. heavy game anyway? Turns out we obviously don't know! Check out a list of our winners below. 2021 Game o...
Dec 23, 2021•57 min•Ep. 79
We love playing games in-person! But sometimes you want to scratch that board-gaming itch for a few minutes in the middle of the workweek. Or during a "break." Or, well, all the damn time. Playing asynchronously on Board Game Arena lets you do just that...a lot. Just don't tell our bosses. Our BGA play pals Emerson Matsuuchi (designer of the Century series, Specter Ops, Reef, and the upcoming Foundations of Rome) and Jess Yi (frequent Going Analog contributor) join Christina and Shoe to gab abou...
Nov 18, 2021•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 78
Peter C. Hayward (founder of Blue Beard & Jellybean Games and designer of quirky games like Scuttle!, The Lady and the Tiger, and the upcoming That Time You Killed Me and Robotopia) joins Christina and Shoe to gush about so many mutually favorite games! Topics this episode: Shoe (producer): What are some of your favorite board games that feature robots? Christina (guest): Which game do you secretly wish you had designed? Peter (guest): What have different games done with the worker-placement...
Nov 04, 2021•58 min•Ep. 77
Yes, our show is called Going Analog, so you know we love our video games -- but how do board games bring in the digital vibe that we love into the tabletop medium? Luckily, we found the perfect guests to ask: Level 99 Games , the publisher of video-game-inspired fare such as the recent Bullet series, BattleCON , and Exceed ! Joshua Van Laningham, Production and Design Lead at Level 99, and Ferdinand Capitulo, Head of Media at Level 99 and the Cardboard Stacker himself, join us to discuss which ...
Oct 21, 2021•51 min•Ep. 76
Kellen Laker, Red Tank from the popular podcast Board Game Barrage, joins Christina and Shoe to discuss Innovation and...fine, some games other than Innovation, too. Plus, we're old hands at gaming these days, so what do we try to keep in mind when introducing brand spanking newbies to tabletop games? And what stands out to us as the best marketing we've seen in the board game biz? Topics this week: Christina (host): Which games do you consider your favorite "Forever Games"? Kellen (guest): Main...
Oct 07, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 75
Designer Nikki Valens (Legacy of Dragonholt, Eldritch Horror, Quirky Circuits) drops by Going Analog again to discuss recent favorite co-op games, crafting mechanisms, and their latest project, the ambitious co-op, campaign-based Artisans of Splendent Vale. Plus, which designers and artists would we pair together for our ultimate game-design dream teams? Games mentioned on this show: Intro: Eldritch Horror Mansions of Madness Arkham Horror Legacy of Dragonholt Quirky Circuits Artisans of Splende...
Sep 23, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 74
Have a bunch of two-player games you want to play? You and your partner can't agree on which ones to play? Try a Partner Swap (trademark forthcoming, and get your mind out of the gutter)! Board game TikTok champions Raina and Phil from 1 Minute Board Games took a random Wednesday off and swapped partners with Going Analog: Phil and Shoe played head-to-head two-player card games, and Christina and Raina played twice as many games together in the same amount of time. Were we still all friends afte...
Sep 09, 2021•57 min•Ep. 73
Famed board game designer Dr. Reiner Knizia ( Tigris & Euphrates , Lost Cities , Modern Art , and tons more) graces Going Analog with his bowtied presence. (You won't be able to hear the bowtie, but trust us that it was there, and it was glorious!) We ask Reiner for some juicy stories about some of his most acclaimed designs and what he thinks about current board game trends...and then we spring a trivia quiz on him at the end -- just a sampling of what we do on The Board Game Quiz Show . Ho...
Aug 26, 2021•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 72
New game publisher Bitewing Games has not one, not two, but THREE Reiner Knizia games to offer in their upcoming Kickstarter. How does a brand spanking new publisher sign the famous, prolific (famously prolific?) German designer Reiner Knizia? We invited Nick Murray and Kyle Spackman, cofounders of Bitewing Games, to chat with Christina about how it all went down! Plus, we have opinions about our favorite game genres and game length vs. enjoyment. Topics for this week: Christina (host): What are...
Aug 05, 2021•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 71
Jeremy Howard, solo gaming expert from Man vs. Meeple, joins Christina and Shoe to personally recommend some great solo games and convince everyone that solo gaming is here to stay! But which games need that multiplayer aspect? Topics for this episode: Shoe (producer): What are some good solo games we should check out? Jeremy (guest): Solo gaming during the pandemic...here to stay or no? Christina (host): What do we look for in multiplayer games that solo gaming can’t scratch the itch for? Games...
Jul 22, 2021•53 min•Ep. 70
As US game groups start meeting up again, we chat with fellow social bubble-r James Hudson (Skybound Games) about quarantine's effects on us as gamers, which games surprised us, and the unintended effects of COVID on board game shipping and logistics. (Last topic = sad James) Our topics for this show: Shoe (producer): Board gaming outside of the social bubble: what it's been like so far, what's changed, what are the challenges? Christina (host): Games that surprised you over the pandemic James (...
Jul 08, 2021•48 min•Ep. 69
Suzanne Sheldon and Mandi Hutchinson from the Dice Tower Podcast take some time off to do...another podcast with Christina! Listen for our board gamer origin stories, how we balance other hobbies, and Christina and Suz strongly recommend some games to Mandi from Uwe Rosenberg (one of our favorite designers). The games mentioned in this episode: Intro: Fields of Arle Christina's topic: Our board-gamer origin stories Monopoly Mouse Trap Power Grid Bohnanza Chess Checkers Trouble Frustration Domino...
Jun 24, 2021•52 min•Ep. 68
Things are a mess around the world, but many of us are just starting to socialize again. So what will we be playing first with our long-lost gaming buddies? The prolific Jonathan Cox from JonGetsGames joins us to discuss this and more. Our chosen topics: Christina Ha (host): What board games are you most excited to play with your friends, post-lockdown? (2:24) Jonathan Cox (guest): How do we define "elegant design," and what are our favorite examples? (17:20) Mike Zipkin (editor): What difficult...
Jun 03, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 67
All the cool kids are on TikTok, so Raina and Phil from 1 Minute Board Games make Christina and Shoe honorary Gen Z-ers this week! We discover Raina's allergy to real-time games, Phil's addiction to Android: Netrunner, and Christina needs to shut up about Innovation. Our topics for this episode: Christina (host): Favorite real-time games (3:57) Raina (guest): Which games do you and your partner not agree on? (15:21) Phil (guest): Games that we feel are the epitome of a board game mechanic (35:51...
May 20, 2021•56 min•Ep. 66
YouTube creator and BoardGameCo founder Alex Radcliffe stops by the show! Our picks for topics this week: Alex (guest): How important is theme? Have you kept mediocre board games purely because of a great theme? And what games do you love despite their theme? Shoe (producer): What are some interesting facts that we've learned from playing board games? Christina (host): How did the pandemic affect online retail sales? What gaming trends popped up during stay-at-home? The games discussed in this e...
May 06, 2021•51 min•Ep. 65
Husband-wife team Ryan and Malorie Laukat of Red Raven Games (Sleeping Gods, Above and Below, Megaland) stop by with a few gaming topics in hand: Christina (host): Our ideal "3-course meal" of board games Malorie (guest): Culling our collections Ryan (guest): How our gaming tastes have evolved over time The games discussed in this episode: Intro: Above & Below Near & Far Empires of the Void II Eight-Minute Empires Roam Sleeping Gods Megaland Now or Never Surrealist Dinner Party Christina...
Apr 22, 2021•56 min•Ep. 64
