Blog search

Back from Helcon!

Another Helcon is gone (well, they're still playing, but I'm already back home) and boy, it was a good one! We started games on the train to Helsinki. Robert managed to get himself to the wrong train (for some reason...

Posted by Mikko on November 4, 2007 12:57 PM

Two-player card games: Schnapsen, WYSIWYG

I made a return to Schnapsen - I had tried it once before, about five years ago. It's an extremely tight two-handed trick-taker. It's an ace-ten game, played with a 20-card pack with all the non-scoring cards removed. It seems...

Posted by Mikko on October 15, 2007 8:01 PM

Tarots

I finished reading the second volume of A History of Games Played with the Tarot Pack (haven't received the first volume yet, it's coming from US while the second one was sent from UK). It's a marvellous book, highly recommended...

Posted by Mikko on October 13, 2007 7:41 PM

Thursday session: camels and cards

Another Thursday session, this time with plenty of people: we had three games running at the same time. It was good, because that meant I was able to skip Bang!. Instead I played Yspahan. The game included two newbies...

Posted by Mikko on September 20, 2007 8:57 PM

Thursday session: Hart an der Grenze, Funny Fishing, cards

The second Thursday session drew six players, then two latecomers. We could use more, but this was certainly enough to get games going. It was nice to see some new faces. We warmed up with a quick round of...

Posted by Mikko on September 14, 2007 11:48 AM

First Thursday session: Ubongo Mini, cards

I've started a new weekly game night. My wife wants me to see other people than her and Nooa, basically. That's perfectly fine with me! Our first night had a good turnout of seven people, so we got two...

Posted by Mikko on September 6, 2007 8:56 PM

Significant commercial card games

Here's a question in the form of a GeekList: Which are the most significant commercial card games?...

Posted by Mikko on August 22, 2007 10:26 AM

Card game books

I'm looking for good books on card games. I don't want just rule compilations or strategy books, but basically anything else on card games. I've already ordered David Parlett's History of Card Games, but what else is there? Any suggestions?  ...

Posted by Mikko on August 21, 2007 10:12 AM

On The Spot Games

Yesterday I got a bunch of games from On The Spot Games. All the games are designed by James Ernest and Mike Selinker, and aimed towards somewhat mass-market crowd, I'd say - they are very simple games, some definitely aimed...

Posted by Mikko on November 8, 2006 7:53 AM

Geocaching card game

I wouldn't post this, but I know I have a geocacher or two in my audience, who might be interested... First to Find! is a trick-taking game about geocaching. Game homepage has some artwork. First to Find!--> The cards look...

Posted by Mikko on September 4, 2006 8:25 AM

Margin for Error preview

I got a copy of Margin for Error, the first game from Sagely Games, to test. Unfortunately I can't see myself having an opportunity to test the game in near future, so I thought I'd write a bit of a...

Posted by Mikko on August 5, 2006 12:38 PM

Frank's Zoo

I notice I have reviewed Frank's Zoo a long time ago on my Finnish site, yet a review hasn't appeared here. Let's fix that.Frank's Zoo--> Frank's Zoo (aka Zoff im Zoo) is a climbing game with a twist. The animal...

Posted by Mikko on July 17, 2006 10:53 AM

Drahtseilakt

Knizia's Drahtseilakt reviewed in Finnish. Drahtseilakt Relationship Tightrope--> Drahtseilakt is a Knizia trick-taking game from 1999, republished in 2004 as Relationship Tightrope by Überplay. This review is based on the original German edition. Based on pictures, the new edition looks...

Posted by Mikko on July 10, 2006 7:31 AM

Touché

This Finnish review of Touché has been up for a while. Well, better later than never... Touché--> Touché is a simple game, where players are trying to form patterns on the board. Each round is play a card, draw a...

Posted by Mikko on June 12, 2006 3:19 PM

Touché

Since I got it, I might as well try it, right - so we cracked open my brand-new copy of Touché. The game is simple enough: play card to place a token on a matching square on board. The goal...

Posted by Mikko on May 25, 2006 10:12 AM

For Sale

Another review from my Finnish site: For Sale. For Sale--> Stefan Dorra's For Sale is definitely one of the better small auction games. It's a two-part deal that's done in about fifteen minutes. Two rounds of bidding In the first...

Posted by Mikko on May 10, 2006 3:26 PM

Diabolo

Here's a review of Diabolo in Finnish. Diabolo--> Diabolo is a light-weight card game from Michael Schacht, the designer of Coloretto, one of the more popular filler card games.Coloretto--> Diabolo is a struggle between heaven and hell. Players play cards...

Posted by Mikko on April 7, 2006 5:44 PM

Havoc: The Hundred Years War

Here's a review some of my readers have been waiting for: Havoc: The Hundred Years War. That's the Finnish review, here's my opinion in English:Havoc--> I first played Havoc: The Hundred Years War at the Sunriver Games demo table in...

Posted by Mikko on February 28, 2006 8:11 AM

Gargon

A review of Gargon is up on my site. Gargon--> Gargon by Rüdiger Dorn is a small card game from Amigo. Gargon is one of those kind of traditional, yet quirky games. The idea is basically a trick-taking game, but...

Posted by Mikko on January 27, 2006 8:44 AM

Blue Moon

Blue Moon is a fantasy world developed by Reiner Knizia and at the same time the first game set in that world. A board game is on the way, so it won't remain the only Blue Moon game for a...

Posted by Mikko on January 25, 2006 1:23 PM