New episode is up, and it was one of my favorite so far. Not only did I feel like I'm getting closer to the heart of what I'm trying to do around here, Scott was a very gracious guest who has made some of my favorite games in my collection.
Here are a few things we talked about during the interview that you should check out.
First off, just check out the kickstarter for Heroes of Land, Air, and Sea. Not only is it a really cool game, it's Scott and Gamelyn trying to defy the expectations that their audience has of them. Creativity should always be encouraged, and I'm hoping this game delivers on the promise of their best game yet. Personally, I find it hard to imagine something topping Tiny Epic Kingdoms, but I guess it's not trying to be TEK.
Also, I talk about some of my favorite Scott Almes games and favorite non-Scott Almes games that deliver a big game punch in under an hour. Here are the games and links to their BGG profiles.
3 Fave Scott Almes Games:
Tiny Epic Kingdoms, the game that started the Gamelyn & Almes collabo. I love the punch this game delivers while still broadly being an economic game. I bring it up in the interview, but this shares a shockingly high number of concepts as Scythe, though with a very different implementation.
https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/148951/tiny-epic-kingdoms
My go to lunchtime economic game. Again, I love the playful twists on classic fantasy themes, and the central mechanic is elegant, smart, and fun. And damnit Jerry, why'd you have to go and ship cows!?
https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/155969/harbour
While I don't think Tiny Epic Defenders is the most inventive coop game available, it delivers a fast, easily repeatable experience that is fun, strategic, and man do I love seeing those big bads show up at the end.
https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/155708/tiny-epic-defenders
3 Fave NON-SA Games for lunch-breaks:
The flexibility of 7 Wonders at player counts from 3-7 are unparalleled. Some people also love the 2 player variant, but if you are going to play 2 player, just get 7 Wonders Duel instead. The original makes the cut on the list though because so few games feel this strategic yet have this much flow at high player counts. Invite the whole team to lunch!
https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/68448/7-wonders
I know I'm going to get flak for this, but I think Splendor imitates much bigger traditional euro concepts in a distilled, fast playing form. The weight of the chips, the progressive economy... This is a perfect game for lunch time.
https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/148228/splendor
One of those classics that stays evergreen. Both incredibly approachable and yet so brutally cutthroat at high levels of play, I think Carcassonne is one of the most versatile games in my collection.
https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/822/carcassonne
Lastly, while you are at it, you should also check out Podcast Episode 21 featuring Michael Coe of Gamelyn Games. We talk about Scott and Michael's relationship, the foundation of the company, the original theming for TEK and TED, and why he felt it was so important to take down the initial kickstarter(s) for Heroes of Land, Air, and Sea (I'm never gonna drop that oxford comma!)