Hey, my friends, and yes, it is that Tuesday favorite day of the year is Mardi Gras down in my hometown in New Orleans. So welcome everyone. This is episode 113 of Maple to Maple and it is tantalizing top titles of 2025. That's right, I remain PJ. And with me again, as promised, is Adam. Me tabletop vibes. Super super stoked to be back again in the booth. That's right. I kind of scared you with all the Mardi Gras. I don't think you expected all this. Tuesday I'm just stoked.
And PJ was dancing before this, so like. I was I shouldn't wear. My beads. I should have been shirtless. That's what I should have been anyways. Well. It's a it's a family. This is a family. Exactly exactly. So as promised last week we looked back at 2024. This week, we're looking forward to 2025. Guys, please thanks for listening, but please make sure that you like and subscribe to
all the streaming services. Please put comments below if you're watching on YouTube. I really thank you so much. Also, before we do anything else, Adam doesn't know I'm going to do this, I want to just take a moment of silence really quickly. A friend in our community in the in the hobby recently passed away.
I don't know all the details, but everyone who's on Instagram probably knows about it. That's Jennifer from Rawls Plays Games. And I just wanted to recognize in our shared grief with the lost of our friend Jennifer. And with that, we're going to keep honoring her memory by going. We're going to look forward to the titles of 2025. These are the ones we're looking forward to. If Jennifer were here, she'd be looking forward to them too. Right.
Yeah, yeah. And even on Instagram right now, they've been doing a lot of celebratory posts in memory of her. So our hearts and prayers go out to the family. Yeah, we finally made it to 2025 top games that we're looking forward to. That's right. So. Technically, we did our top 2024 in 2025 and now we're actually doing. We caught up. Yeah, we caught up. So. So take it away, Adam. Start us off 2025.
What are you looking forward to? OK, so none of mine are actually in any order, but I just threw them out there. I'm going to go with the first one that we talked about last time. It's Luthier by Peverson. The games, man, this game is just beautiful as all get out. You're like in the music world, making instruments, right? In some old I, I'm going to say Victorian era. It's probably wrong, but it's in, it's not our era. And so it is wonderful. It is Patterson Games has been
incredible. I've only seen demos. I think you had an advance review copy I. Did I covered? It so so you you got to see more than I did other than what a demo could show. Yeah, yeah, I didn't get to play, but it looks, it looks, it looks fantastic. Yeah, it is 100%. I mean, and I play music so like it kind of like speaks to me way more than than not, I guess you could say, right? So absolutely, I'm also looking forward to that. It was on my list so I'm scratching it off as we speak.
Great minds, you know this. No, that's a good one. I think it's on everyone's list. It's Yeah, it's going to be a hot one for 2025. I want to tell you the one that I'm. I think it's going to surpass distilled. It might, it might, but I think more people drink whiskey then play play music. I don't, I don't know. I don't know, still this solid. This still is a solid game. Distilled. Was the was the Distilled was the first game that Katie and I played in our collection in 2025.
Really. Yeah, was the first game January 1st? I think that's the first game. Well, I didn't play because I my buddy played with a few guys, but that's the first game that I was going to play with you guys. Yes, yeah, you were supposed to, but you were just. You're just too busy and fancy, man. I mean, I do move. Around a lot. I have a hard time sitting still all the time. So I want to talk about the game that I'm looking forward to. Yeah, I'm really excited. It's coming out soon.
It's Galileo Galilei by Pink Troubadour Games, which is supposed to be distributed, I think, in the United States by Capstone Games. Again, I'm not seeing a demo I've not seen. All I know is yeah. I see I need this game. Galileo was incredible. His story is amazing. And the whole thing is you're you're astronomers and there's going to be science and things are going to happen. I don't. I don't know a lot about it, but the theme, the theme has got me excited. Dude, that's where I was.
I saw space and I saw a Euro game and I was like, yes, it looks, it looks like the pieces look really nice. And I was like, Yep, I'm in for this. Let's go. Yes, let's go. So that's Galileo Galilei. I really can't wait. Pink Troubadour Dance Games, partnering with Capstone. I'm not sure how that partnership works, but hopefully we'll get, hopefully we get publisher designer on the show and talk about it. That'd be cool. That would be great. Yeah.
I need to get. I need to get Patterson Games to come on and talk about Luther, because I Yeah, well, they can talk about Luther and just, they can talk about whatever they want. Let's be honest. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, they've made some big. They've made some big moves actually. They've actually got like 3 new people on their team. Exactly power. Moves to grow the company they got, they had distilled, they had expansions and then they had luthier. So they're coming up.
And yeah, So what do you have next for us that you're looking forward to? All right, so this one is also in the space theme. OK. Gallic Galactic cruise, Yeah. It's on my list too. Is it? Yes, Come on. So Quinceaner games I think is how you say it. Yeah, it is Kinson Kinson Key Games I. Just combined them together. Yes, yes. Galactic cruise, you're literally running a cruise ship in space. Like when I saw this, I was like, yeah, I have to have this one.
It's deluxified to all get out and beautiful. And I was like, this is just comical because like, I'm like, you're like running your own spaceship, but it's a cruise ship as a spaceship. Yeah, yeah. So I I did not get a chance to play test it in the first exposure play test hall, but I was at a table next to it play testing something else. It's huge. It's a table hog. It's got a huge table presence and like you said, it is all about managing a cruise ship.
So I think the impression that I get is it's not like Grand Austria hotel, but I feel like there's some resource management because you're going to be fulfilling customer orders, things that you would expect on a cruise ship, right? Yeah. But in space. Yeah, it's, I know. I don't know. I'm a space person, so I just love space. I most games that are like in space, I just draw close to that. That's astronauts. Space things. I'm with you. I'm with you. I feel you.
In fact, so much so that that was on my list too. So see. There we go. Great minds. I'm pretty sure we probably have some couple more. I got a feeling we do. I'm saving. I do have 3 for last and these are Katie's picks. She told me these are her three that she wants me to talk about. So I'm going to save those for life. So my next one is Iliad by Bitewing Games. It's I think it's coming out in the third quarter of this year. So you are again, I'm not seeing
this. I only know what you know, promos that have come out, promotional videos and whatnot. You're it's set in the Trojan War. So you were immersed in Homer's story of the Trojan War through the Iliad. So yeah, it it seems to be, I don't know, it looks, it looks good again. I'm. Curious how that I'm curious how that like plays. That sounds really cool.
Yeah, I don't know. I don't know if you're taking on the role of individuals like Achilles, Agamemnon, Hector, or you're taking on the role of gods and you're going to choose sides. There are some, there is a card driven aspect to Iliad. I could. You can definitely tell that and the artwork is amazing. So be on the look up look if you're into Greek mythology. Yes, right. So good. And I'll. Yeah, Iliad by Bitewing Games. I wish I could say more, but it looks really cool, right?
I mean, yeah, I'm. Going to have to do some more research on that for sure. There's a lot of future potential for development if Iliad is is successful.
Expansions go lower. Yep. Well, then you, you can immerse yourself into the Odyssey on the you know, and then and then if you really want to do it, you could cross into Roman literature and can you could do Virgil's I need, which kind of the I need was written meant to be the conclusion of it's the story of what happened to the Trojans who managed to escape Troy and they made their way westward through the Mediterranean. The Romans believe that they were inherent.
They were genetically linked and historically linked to the ancient Trojans through their lore and Virgil Ania really plays that out. So I get that would be a great. Game that would be super cool. Oh my. God, because you have all the gods and there's drama and there's so many things happening. So we'll see. Yeah, that sounds awesome. I'm excited for it. So look out for Iliad, my Bitewing games. Right.
All right. My next one is my Lucky Duck Games, the Dark Quarter. Super stoked for this. And so appropriate. Huh. Yeah. And so. Appropriate it's it's based in New Orleans. It is. You are a like spiritual detective in like in New Orleans, solving like paranormal activity cases. So if you've played Destiny's, it is the darker version, more streamlined, upgraded, supposedly better version of Destiny's, which Destiny's is already like. I love Destiny's.
We play it all the time. Yeah, but dark quarter, man, it's going to be so awesome. You get that spooky feeling get like and is supposed to be way more in depth on character building in the in the app and things like that where like they it remembers like bad choices and good choices and repercussions. That's cool. And I went, of course, like all in deluxe, give me everything. I bet you did. Yeah. Yeah. We thought about it. So here's here's the danger. And I'm sure this is true.
First for anybody. Well, no. Well, now whenever a board game comes out, that's about either a theme, a topic that you know really well, right, Right. Or a place that you're from. OK, so I saw it more. Like nitpicky and like. Yeah, because, you know, it's like, because. You're familiar with it. Yeah, exactly right. Because, I mean, you're. Going to be like this is this isn't?
Right, because I'm, I'm walking the streets of the French Quarter, you know, in my formative teenage years, right, growing up in Louisiana. And I'm like, the art looked good. Yes, the art looked good. The storytelling seemed sound. I didn't take issues with that. My fear is they're going to, they're going to lean too much. They're going to go too far with the voodoo and the supernatural. Yeah, that is all real, right? It is. It is there. So I was a little nervous and I
said, you know what? I'm gonna pump the brakes. Yeah. I'm not gonna back it. And we're gonna see. None of my friends here in Springfield are gonna back it. So if I see it again, Jen Connor or something, I'll pick it up. Later, Yeah. I mean, like we were all like, we all played Destiny so much and everybody loves it. We saw like the dark version and murder mystery style and I was like, Yep, this is gonna be like, we're gonna be playing this forever.
So that's my number. Whatever we're on. That's a, that's a good dark, dark quarter, dark quarter by lucky Duck, I think. It should be fulfilling soon, I heard. It should. It should be. You know. You backed it, so you probably got the e-mail alerts that let you know. Yeah. Feels like it's getting closer. So my next one, I know it's one that is probably on your list as well. I know you've seen it. I know that you've played it, and that is Brink. Oh wow.
By by Ivy Studios. So we're going into space again. I forgot about Brink. Oh my God, are you kidding me? It's not on my I've backed it all in everything and it that is a great game. I played it too. I know you did, and so I'm just going to say that I can't wait and I want you to tell us about it based off your play.
Yeah. So it's like, it's honestly kind of like Catan, but it's not like that's a horrible representation of what it is. But you're in space, you have resources, everybody has their like player boards and you're trying to fly your spaceship around and like take over sectors, I guess you could say, get resources and then you can switch off these resources. And then there's like tracks and everything. It's like Euro EE, the board. Like, it's got tracks, it has tracks.
I love track and it's space and then even the addition I got all the tiles are holographic. I'm I don't know how I feel about this yet. Because your eyes while you're playing. Oh. Sure, right. Like, I don't know, but it's going to look cool no matter what, so I'm stoked for it. Ivy Studios crushes it as usual with production is outstanding and that's a blast. Absolutely. So that's Brink. Yeah, I totally forgot about that. Yeah, that's. Great. I can't believe it.
I thought it was going to be on your list. OK, well, great. So that's Brink by Ivy Studios. It's coming out this year. Look for it. OK. What do you have? My next one, Nemesis Retaliation. Is that what on your list? It so it's not it's not on my list. I'm looking forward to it. But yeah, we, we backed it too. We went all in on this. I had to, I think because we backed it, what, two years ago. It's been a while. It's been a long time.
Well, it's kind of comical right, so like nemesis bass nemesis OG nemesis amazing with the karna morphs right like play it harder mode, death mode. I mean, like, it's amazing. So I was looking for that game when it first came out. By the time I buy it literally the next week. And this is when I first started getting into board gaming, right? And they dropped Nemesis, whatever the second one was. Lockdown.
Lockdown and I was like, you got to be freaking kidding me because like I just paid a crap ton of money for Nemesis, OG Nemesis, and then they just dropped this other one and I actually played Lockdown. It is really cool the night and the day and night or the the lights being able to turn on and off in lockdown is very cool. We played with Steven Nashville board game guy. Yep. And we had and and every time you play Nemesis, it's an epic camp. It's epic.
Like some craziness happens. Something that you're always like this is memorable. Like, that's what I love about Nemesis. One moment it's always somebody's like, this is easy. And then the next round, all hell breaks loose and we have 14 like aliens. The Queen's out and you're like, right, You just had to say something, right? Yep, Yep. So I want I want to. That's a good one.
I want to point out. I know that I've said it before on the show and people may be like PJ, how can you even enjoy Nemesis, right, which got a trainer mechanic and I'm famous for hating trainer mechanic. You are. It is not in my mind, it's not a trader mechanic. It's a cooperative game where there's a potential that you have an objective. Objective. Yes, that doesn't that doesn't necessarily work with everyone else, right? But it's not like trader.
Mechanic either. No, I feel like a trader mechanic is you betray the entire group. Right in in that game, you have objectives that could betray others, but it's not a betrayer mechanic because it's a choice. You don't have to, right? Right, because you could just go for getting off the off the ship. Calling it, but it's what I'm looking forward to with retaliation is now we all have guns and we're armed to teeth,
right? Yeah. And, and we've got good combat dice and we're going to go and retaliate. What is that going to? What is that going to look like? Is it going to be completely cooperative? Or will you have an objective that maybe doesn't mingle like like Nemesis like? It's got to have both I would assume and can. My question is, can you shoot fellow teammates? So playing enough board games, I know you will. Yeah. Playing enough board games?
Typically you can't, right? Yeah. Like you can't do you can't do even in Nemesis and Nemesis lockdown here. Yeah, right. So I don't know. I don't know, but I think it'll be cool. Yeah, it'll be cool. I'm. Very stoked about it so. I'm I'm, I'm looking forward to things getting so bad. Like things are just, you know, there's so many monsters, so many aliens, right. And we're we're about to be over on and I just want to in my best Bill Paxton voice. Game over, man, game over. Who knows?
Will that happen? I don't know. I don't know. So my next one, we're going to go in the completely opposite direction. We're leaving. We're leaving space. We're going beautiful and gentle. That is La Patisserie Rococo by Eagle Griffin Games, where you are in Rococo, France and you are managing a patisserie serving up pastries to the nobles of France. Yeah, Right. Oh my God, it's gorgeous. It's a gorgeous game. The artwork is fanatic, fanatic. It's fanatical. It's phenomenal too.
It's fanatical. I'm fanatical about how phenomenal. Yes, Exactly. Now. Yeah, the cards are gorgeous. That linen finish? Games they do great job with, yes, everything they put out. They also published Roko Co, right? Which so they're famous for publishing like Vital Laserto's games all through Eagle Griffin. Roko Co is not a Lacerda game. La Patisserie Roku Co is not a Lacerda game, but the artist Ian O'Toole. Right. Who he does everything, so it's
going to have. A recently funded or fulfilled Kickstarter, though they did. Wasn't like some like music thing. It'll we'll talk about it today. Oh, OK, you got it on there. It's it's on the list. Nice. So the beauty of Eagle Griffin is even in the design, right. The boxes still fit in a calyx, although they're a little longer. That's OK. The boxes are solid, thick cardboard. They usually come with a very good insert so you don't have to.
Yep, very key. And one of the things, the detail of Eagle Griffin games that I love and La Patisserie Rococo is no different. Sure. On the sides of the box in the middle, there's that little cut out. Yeah, the little for. Your yeah for your fingers so you can pull the lid and that's incredible so. Think about. They think about things. Yeah, yeah. I'm looking forward to, I'm looking forward to playing Rococo and then La Patisserie Rococo.
Like. As a day of celebrating now the beauty is Lafleur by Duxomium just was just fulfilled and we got it we got our copy and it takes place in Rococo, France, where you're trying to order the flowers to host the party Rococo you're making the clothing la patisserie you're making the pastries so that. Could be 3 games on the table at once and just start taking turns just walking around. Well, I mean, OK, I love that you think my game table's that big. We can make it work.
We we could could we could we make a rococo table at gemcon? Really awesome. Just it's like all the same like theme and yeah, OK. Do you want to, do you want to make you want to pick up the flowers? Do you want to make the pastries or the clothes? Where do you want to lie? I'm going. Exactly. Yeah, I'm with you. I'm with you on that one. You know where else in Louisiana there's some great patisseries in the traditional French style and that you could pick up during Mardi Gras.
So, yeah, yes, yes. So that's my next one. That's awesome. What's on deck for you? OK. So mine I guess we're going to stick with the the food era thing. OK. And I'm going to go with food chain magnet. Oh yeah. So this is actually an older game that I believe lucky Duck. I think it's lucky Duck took back over on game found and I think it's lucky Duck. I'm pretty sure might not be, but regardless, food chain magnet, they reprinted it and they like went like they went like crazy.
I went crazy. It is the highest level Kickstarter I have ever backed. Wow, Yeah, that's a lot, Yes, so. Like the pizzas, like the buildings, everything. They deluxified the living daylights out of it and it looks super cool. But did they change the game? That's the question. Full disclosure, I abhor this game. It's very, very long, crunchy and hard. It is flawed on levels of flaw. Let's hope they fixed it.
I mean, you basically my problem with Food Chain Magnate is you play it your first turn, you have to do this one thing and on your second turn you have to do this thing. So basically I have to follow a path and I have to follow a specific path otherwise. Right, SLC. SLC fixed it or not, huh? Yeah, yeah, the production quality is crushing it. I'm sorry how pretty it looks. If the game is garbage I'm not playing it. That's that's pretty sure, but at least it will.
Look good for pictures if it comes down then. I will be fair. I'll be honest. I didn't know. I didn't know the lucky duck had picked it up. I was like, why are they remaking this game? Like I was raging quietly behind my aunt, but looking at my phone going, why are they remaking this? Because it is. It is like my absolute I hate this game and just have vowed to never play it, ever bring it up. I've walked, I've walked away
from tables. I. Actually have never played it though, so like every time I went to go play it somebody they already had a fill a full table and they end up playing something else. So we'll see. Actually Jason, my previous partner, that's his one of his favorite games. That's why pretty much why we backed it. So I was like, cool, I have a luxified pieces. Let's go ahead. If Jason's watching this, hey, I'm sorry. We'll see how it goes.
But I will say that Jason plays a mean game of distilled, so he does. He plays a mean game of everything because he is. That's how his brain works. Sure. If you get him to break, you know you've you're on a good check. That's the tracks. Damn that track. All right. Not on my duck, not on my duck games, but adjacent we did. Puerto Rico, they did. They did. Awakened. Yeah, Awakened wins did that, Yeah. Anyway, Puerto Rico's a good game too. We're not looking forward to that one.
But yeah, that's. Yeah. I, I will say 27th my my next one I'm super looking forward to as well, but I did not, I did not back it on Kickstarter and that is Revenant by mine Clash Games. Oh yes, it is very, very beautiful. We're back in space again and it just, it just looks incredible because you're, you're building a fleet and I, I love fleet, yeah, logistics and fleet combat. And you know, I'm not into single ship and single fighter. Kind of I really. Like when you can combat.
Armada Well, well, I love armadas and I love fleets and and Revenant is perfect. Didn't back it, didn't back it SO. Actually I have not as well. I didn't do it. I wanted to. I was on the fence. I wanted to. I didn't know enough about it. I hadn't played. I saw it. I don't essentially really like how it looks. OK, it's beautiful. But I don't like like there's not enough deluxified Ness for me to pay to pay that like amount of money because I want
like I want like a decent mom. Like it doesn't look like there's a lot there. I'm assuming there is though, because they make wonderful games. They do avoid fall Ironwood. I mean a bunch of good games. So. Yeah. So the quality production should be solid, yeah. It's going to be. I just like when I looked at it, it wasn't like beautiful, all the things I have to have this, but I like. But inside I heard it was amazing Europe. And I was like, now I'm curious.
Yeah, I would have thought it was going to be on your list, to be honest. It's definitely crunchy Euro kind of car driven. I thought about it. It's yeah. So be on the lookout for Revenant by mine Clash Games guys. Yeah, super cool. What's next? My next one, and maybe it's on yours. We'll see richer Path of Destiny. That's not on my list. That's 2025. They could lie to all of us and it could be three years from now. I don't know. I got an update saying that it's it's getting.
It's like on a ship in the middle of the Atlantic somewhere. Well, if it's on a ship then it'll be 2025, yeah. We'll find out. Yeah. Yeah, they did a whole new thing I think I'm trying to remember to be honest, because it's been such a long time ago that I backed it. We also did a giveaway and gave away a free deluxe. We bought 2 copies all in and we gave away one on the channel.
So that's really cool. But yeah, I'm just stoked for I don't I love the Witcher. The Witcher board game is has let me lead off with this has a ton of flaws. OK, there's a lot of problems with it, but it is amazing. It is a blast of play. You home brew some stuff.
The community like the cool thing is the community kind of wrapped around it and like created like fixes because like it sticks to like the the lore of Witcher, like the where the essence of the Witcher is, which is like everything. But then it just needs some tweaks and things like that, Which it was cool to see the community come over and be like, Hey, we love this. Here's all the fixes that we can
make. And, and I can't remember who makes it, but they came back and they ended up updating and given a rule cue and facts. But it's great. But the new one is supposed to be even better. It has like, I think it is cooperative in some weird way. Interesting. Yeah, if I can remember correctly, trying to see if I can pull it up. I think it's cooperative though. Interesting. Yeah. So I'm looking forward to that. Very cool. OK, Witcher. Witcher's good. It's it's.
Yeah, Path to Destiny. Yeah, it's not my jam, but it's it's still good storytelling, so. One to five competitive, oh oh, competitive player tableau building card game where it's become one of the characters taking part in the most iconic story. So you get to, like, live that person's character through the story as it unfolds. Well, there you have it. I love it. Yeah.
OK. So my next one I'm really looking forward to this is Abemus Papam, which is Latin for Abemus Papam. We have a Pope, which is kind of which is, which is, well, it's interesting. So it's by Salt and Pepper games. It's supposed to be I think a quarter 3Q3 release 2025. So it's really interesting and timely, right? Timely because Pope Francis's health is been fading quickly.
So when the Pope passes away after a time of mourning, the College of Cardinals come together in Rome and they have conclave. And that's what this game is about. Essentially, you are you're in a conclave and you're trying to choose the next Pope, right? And so the end of the game, you you announce habemos Habam. We have we have a Pope and it's it's yeah, it's interesting. And if it's coming out in the third quarter, coinciding with
and none of this is connected. And, you know, they're a movie. Movie conclave just came out. This board game is coming out. And, you know, we may have a real life conclave. We hope, we hope not soon. But, you know, and we pray for the health of Pope Francis. But, yeah, so this is a board game that could become very real, Right, Right, right. For this year. Do you know what kind of style of game that they're making with it? So there's not a lot of information.
I there's, there's Tableau building it. I don't know if it, I don't know that it's worker placement. I think it's going to be Tableau building an auction like voting, because the core of Conclave you, you, you cast votes. I wonder if somebody like at the table that you're voting like that person, yes. Yes, that is what you're doing
essentially right. So whenever you're whenever you, when you watch on television during a conclave and they have black smoke, that means that that the Cardinals cast their vote and they did not. No one got a majority. So no one was elected, right. So then when you see the when you see the white smoke, it means they passed a vote and they've elected a new Pope from their ranks. If. They don't elect somebody.
What happens? Then, well, then there's a whole lot of I don't there's there's yeah, I've they they go, they go, they go back and forth. That's a. That's a. That's an interesting concept for both. Yeah, because you have to, you have to essentially build alliances, right. So like we're at the table and we really want, you know, we want Brian to be the next Pope. And I've I've got these other players who are like, we agree, Brian, but say you and Jason,
don't you want someone else? And it's like, so we have to convince you. So it's a little bit competitive. It's competitive. It's it's competitive where you're trying to be cooperative, right? You're trying to bring everybody together so that we can elect a Pope. So yeah, it's interesting. I think it's a cool game. I don't know if it'll be timeless. Like if I get a copy, is it going to sit on my shelf forever? Is it a game I'm going to want to play it that that is my concern.
But I'm I want to play this game so badly. Setting aside the current health of Pope Francis, because that's not relevant, I want to play this game whether we have a healthy poke or not. I don't know about the replayability. And unfortunately, the only way to play a game is to buy the game. So there you are. Or let your friend Jason and Adam buy a copy or get a review copy or do all that. Yeah. And then I just hop up there. I mean, exactly. That's it, that is.
It so that sounds interesting. Like it Habemus Papam by Salt and Pepper Games. Yeah, interesting look for that. Yeah, that sounds great. Yep. All right. How about how about you? Yeah, What you got? I'm going back to the food thing again. OK. Critter Kitchen just got delivered. Literally is on my table over there. There is so much Dang stuff in this box.
It is amazing. It looks really cool and I kind of like so I started off like kind of in the hobby of playing fast rival restaurants, which is a great game by gap closer games. My family loves it. They'll play that game every single day for like 25 times and it's great. I have all the expansions I got to help play test the newest expansions, forks and something fun. But this Critter Kitchen game looks really cool and the deluxe version is beautiful.
Everything that's come with it. They have trays and everything that's in there to help, you know, make sure all this stuff goes back. Into the Box Love a good
organization place. Seven though I didn't even know that when I backed it yeah which is kind of like gives me that like 7 wonders feel you know so I'm really curious I might try to bust it out I'm having game tanks tonight so I might try to bust it out tonight but I also haven't put it all the way and I haven't learned it so that makes. So let's be clear, this is a game that you're looking forward to for 2025 that you just received just a year.
So, so quarter one, it's hitting people's homes. Yeah. And it might be hitting my Rose Bros table. Yeah, I'm still so critical. Gamma Expo was last week and everyone was posting pictures there. Critter Kitchen, everyone was talking about it. So that's exciting. So be on the lookout for that. Yeah, guys. So this is my last one. The next three are my wife's choices. So this is my last. My last choice. Actually, No, we're starting with my wife's. I don't have any more.
I thought I did, but then I realized, look at my list. You already took chose it. So I have three more titles, and these are all while they are titles I'm looking forward to, these are specifically Katie's choice. I like it. OK, This is what Katie wants to see and she's looking forward to it. And that is Knitting Circle by Flat Out Games. Was that happening? Yeah. It was. It was. There was sample copies of Jimmy Con, yeah. And then Hick starter and it's due to, it's due to deliver.
Deliver. Why I couldn't remember that word deliver this year. So it's based off of Calico? Yeah, the cat game. Yep, Yep. With the cat, it's cats and quilts. The artwork is done by Beth Sobel, who did Calico, who also did Cascadia. Because, you know, Flat out Games and AG are teaming up together. This this game looks like a lot of fun. And Katie was like, we're getting this because it's got cats. And that's pretty much all there
is to say that. Does sound really fun I the only knitting game I've ever played is Arch Gravels. Yes, we have that. That's an amazing game. Yeah, my parents love that game a lot. That's a lot of fun. That is a lot of. Really good for teaching children about color. Oh, yeah, My, my daughter. Because like, you know, there's, there's purple. There's a lot of colors, yeah. There's like the whole like Gambit.
And so every time we're fulfilling, I was helping her learn colors and do order fulfillment. What does this say? Get those things from the thing. She'd get them back out. That's cool. Worked. It was like a duel. That's cool. And I think Knitting Knitting Circle will be similar to that. The artwork is, I mean, it it's it's straight out of calico. So, you know, orange cats and knitting. Yeah, I mean.
That's awesome. Say no more, but that's on Katie's top 3, so. That's awesome, I like it. I didn't even, I didn't even get a vote whether the game is good or not. I don't know anything about it, but I know she's like, you know, you do what the wife says, right? Yes. That's it. Happy life, happy life. Yep, and it's even better when they take a board game and tell you to buy it. That makes my heart happy.
Oh man, I love that I. Don't remember which one, but Joy was like, you have to buy this, this is really cool. And I was like, say no more, I will go buy it. Yeah. And then add to that cart that we are buying that one. One game. Exactly. Right. I love it. I love it. What else do you have next? Yeah, talk to me. So we are going to go into this fun new world that's been popping off like crazy town. OK. OK, dual. So I'm going to pick.
There was a bunch to pick from, but I'm going to go with a Zul dual. They're also making Flamecraft dual. They're also making. It's like the season of two player games, which I'm very excited to see that publishers have started looking at the fact that you might not have a 5A46. You two player games for whoever partners, girlfriends, boyfriends, whatever, everybody, two players, people games. It's kind of like, it's really great to see so. More and more school.
Is classic. Yeah, more and more couples are gaming and joining the hobby, and more and more singles in the hobby are meeting because of the hobby. I think publishers are taking notice and so. So it's really cool to see that. I mean, it works out for them. They already have like a like a game that's core and then now they're tweaking it to make it a two player game. So yeah, that looks cool. And Flame Craft Duel was on Gamma. I saw a bunch of pictures for that at Gamma. Last week.
So I always get nervous when they make a two player version. I don't know why, because in a lot of cases they're better than the big player version. So Professor Meg posted some pictures of flame crap duel. Her description was just spot on. What? I mean, I was like, OK, Yep. Right. I'm going to love this game. My wife's going to love this game. We're going to play this game. Yeah, I was really playing. Flamecraft itself. Yes, yes, we played it a geek way.
Katie loved it and we went and bought it when Geeko it was over so. It is beautiful. Did you go? Did you get all the stuff for it? We have since purchased upgraded like the food resources and things, but yeah. It's a great, it's a great game. It's a great, it is lightweight game, yes, but like, I have to always check myself as a Eurogamer. I want it to be more in depth, right? I'm like, why can't we make this harder? Right?
My only qualm with the entire game, though, is this moving those cards when like you move your guy and they move. That is the only thing that just makes me like it's just messy and I like tidy board game areas while we play right, So like for me that like just makes me frustrated because like people are bumping it and like what cards here, what was here and they're sliding around. But that's the first word problem games. Oh yeah. Oh yeah. So let's go to Katie's number 2.
Yeah, Katie's number two. I promised you I would talk about it. And that is Speakeasy by Vital Lacerda. It's supposed to be fulfilled quarter 4 of 2025. So I guess this is going to be a Christmas gift. We're going to be playing this at Christmas time. I. Love the concept of this game. This is so great, right? That whole prohibition area era in America and you're, you know, trying to deliver alcohol to speakeasies and man, and it's and it's Alserta. It's Alserta.
So if you want a heavy heavy weighted, yes. I'm really stoked. I think my brother-in-law Flow actually picked it up, I believe. OK. So I'm excited to. Tell you, yeah, yeah, yeah. So it's it was on my list, but Katie's like you better put it on the list. So I'm just like, yeah, it's just going to be your number two. Yeah, right. Speakeasy by Vital Lacerda, Eagle Griffin Games. It's going to be awesome. I. I'm hoping that next week or oh, I'm like, I'm hoping that I get
to see it soon played out. Yeah, yeah, because I want to so. I want more OK. My next one. Yeah, let's. Go down. Let's make sure I did that. This one is already because we have two more games, right? I have one more. I have Katie's, Katie's number one, which, yeah. Parks, second edition. Yeah, I've been seeing this around. Yeah, they changed the entire so I love parks. I tell anybody whoever plays this game, it's like if you want to play a calming game, it's calming.
Like it just makes you feel at Zen in my opinion. Like there's no, I don't really care what happens. I just like trying to find and gain a pretty park and like learning about what that park has. Like the little description, like some fun fact. It plays really well too. If it's a four player game, but they've remade it and it's the second edition and they changed the entire layout. Really. It's all different colors now. It's pretty vibrant. The other one was kind of like woodsy.
OK. I guess that's that word. And now it's all changed, which looks kind of cool. Well, OK, I. Don't know if it plays different but if they they remade. It So I'll tell you when our group gets together here in town, we play some of these cozy games. We play some of these smooth, calming games and violence erupts. Violence let there. Be violence, Cascadia, Cascadia. When we play Cascadia it is like. Do you know I've never played that game?
Well, it's like. I'm not even a real board gamer. Oh, you're not? Exactly. Like get out, get off my, off my. Chest. Yeah, this will be the last time that tabletop odds is on Maple to me, no. No, he learns how to play and has played at the stadium. I actually own it. I own it. Well, then you need to play it. Yeah, There you go. There you go. It's a sign. So my last game I'm looking forward to in 2025. But this is also Katie's number one, right?
And it's going to play well with our game group. And that is Western Legends Stories by Colossal Games. We are huge fans of Western Legends. We love taking on the role of someone in the Wild West, you know, American West trying to get money, trying to evade the police or the sheriff, or if you're the sheriff, trying to catch the bad guys. So Western Legend stories, it's a legacy game and it's, you play your, your, you get to create your character like the very first, the prologue, right?
Every legacy has like a prologue, the map, the map expands. So in Western Legends, you usually have the saloon in the bank and the Sheriff's Office. There's a mine where you can go and get gold. You can mine gold. It's like the woods, like it doesn't have all that because the towns haven't been built yet. That's. Cool. So the towns get built over time, and you choose whether to be on a wanted track or the
Marshall track. I think there's a different name for it in this, but yeah, so it's a whole thing of imagine if you're Billy the Kid or your Wyatt or your Doc Holiday or these characters from American West history, but you're starting from the beginning. And that's how this game is going to play Origin. Story, right? Like, where did you come up? Yeah. That is exactly. Right. We talked about it, so it was in.
I literally had put it in my cart twice and I was like, I'm going to do it. I talked to PJ, he's really excited about this. This looks great. I love, I love Western. My goal, my dream as a kid was to be a cowboy. Obviously I'm winning. I'm doing it already. There you go. But like, I just, I don't actually end up getting rid of all of my Western Legend stuff. Really. I never got it. I got it to the table twice, people liked it, and then I never got it back to the table.
So I actually exchanged all my Western Legend stuff for Dark Towers. OK, well Dark Towers are pretty solid games. Yeah, and that's hit my table like way more than Western Legends do. So it sounds like you just need to come spend a weekend here. That's what I'm saying. We'll play Western Legends, be a cowboy. Yeah. On The Wanted track, because I'm going to take out everybody. I'm, I'm going to tell you there's a good weekend coming up
for you to come down. I'm going to tell you about it after we're done recording, so. Nice. But that's Western Legends stories, colossal games. I want to hear your number one. OK, so fun fact, my my number one in 2024 was CD Seti Yeah, and my number one in 2025. Currently this is Hold it Loose but Lost Ruins of Arnec Adventure quest. Chest. Chest Yeah I love Arnec, it was actually one of the first games I have ever pre-ordered as a gamer.
I also got the game master for CGE virtually and teach Lost Ruins of Arnec virtually and I just love the game. It's beautiful. I did. We have the cooperative version. Fun fact, I don't solo play a lot, so when I first started gaming, I would just throw away a lot of solo stuff because I didn't ever play solo when I first started like four years ago, right? Yeah, I come. The cooperative version comes out for lost rooms of our neck where you can play two player
and go through our neck, right? It's like Jumanji, our neck. Yes, yes. Which I thought was just brilliant. So my wife and I, I can all set up and I realized that I don't have the solo tiles anymore. But the fun part, the whole fun part about this is I reordered them and I was cleaning my game room and I found them in an expansion box that I thought I had gotten rid of. Of course you did. So I have them the whole time. So we've been, we played that and it's oh.
My gosh, that's great. The new one looks amazing. It does look amazing. We're looking forward to that as well, yeah. I hope it extends the player count to be honest. Like I want five players. I do too, but we talked about this last week in the 2024 episode. CGE is notorious for the four player Max. It is a good hard stop. It really is but for time. But like I usually have people that are like oh I'm in. I love that. That sounds so cool. Sorry for sucks the suck.
You should have used RSVP D quicker. Yep, but like Kunta Hora, 4 players lost friends were on Karnak, four players. Starship Starship captains four players. Yeah. I know it's seti, four players. Yeah, if if CG is listening to this, please start making inserts. Please guy, please please say I don't. I don't know because they partnered with folded space and inserts are the CG inserts are pretty incredible. OK, start putting them in the boxes on by.
That's right. Well. That's where I that's where I want it. You just need to. You just need to go to folded space and inserts. We just had delivered the SETI insert by folded space. Did you already? Did you already put it all away? Oh yeah, we played it today and then put it away. You need to send me a take a picture of what it looks like. We need a, we need a fifth player though. It needs to be 5 players.
So. So yeah, yeah, CG, if you listen to five players, I love it. So those are the top tantalizing titles of 2025. Yeah, Adam, thank you for spreading the good vibes. Always. Across the tabletop and joining me for episode 113 as we we keep going I've got the next episodes scheduled. We've got some great Co hosts who are coming on a little variety looking good. Well, you know. Debatable. But thanks again for joining me. Happy Mardi Gras to all y'all, and don't forget to let the good
times roll. Yes.