The Board Game Secret Show

Epizódok

• From Z-Man to Play-to-Z | 30 Years of Board Game Publishing | BGSS ep_023 30.06.2026 2ó 4p

  One of the most storied résumés in the entire board game industry. Zev founded Z-Man Games, published 🦠 PANDEMIC and the first English 🌾 AGRICOLA (and basically invented the "animeeple" by deluxing it), signed the original ENDEAVOR, spent seven years exploding the WizKids catalog with ~100 games, and now runs his own publisher — ✨ PLAY TO Z.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━🎙️ IN THIS EPISODE, WE GO DEEP:💰 The real economics of conventions🏆 Why Origins beats GenCon for a premiere🃏 The CCG days & Shadow Fist🤝 Betting on co-op when NOBODY wanted it📦 Under-printing Pandemic🌶️ His (spicy) take on expansions📜 IP licensing headaches & the Middle-earth project🚀 Crowdfunding, paid previews vs. review copies🔮 What's next for Play to Z👉 If you care at all about how the board game industry ACTUALLY works, this one's a masterclass.━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━🔗 LINKS⚔️ Siege Perilous — LIVE on Gamefound now (through July 14)▶ https://gamefound.com/en/projects/play-to-z/siege-perilous✨ Everything Play to Z has going▶ https://www.playtozgames.com/❤️ Support My Work — Join Cardboard▶ https://crdbrd.app/━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━🎧 TOO LONG TO WATCH? THIS IS NOW A PODCAST!🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-board-game-secret-show/id6785378165🟢 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/033GRnTDINaxqcoJksaCl4🔵 Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/01414914-23bd-4f4c-a29f-50daa231f364━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━⏱️ CHAPTERS00:00 ▸ Intro — who is Zev Schlasinger00:39 ▸ Origins & how the con has changed03:04 ▸ Why publisher attendance is dropping04:15 ▸ Conventions are marketing — money is gravy05:03 ▸ The ROI secret: premiere something new06:56 ▸ Why release at Origins instead of GenCon🃏 THE CCG YEARS09:07 ▸ From CCGs to board games — the Z-Man origin09:53 ▸ Always a gamer: wargames, Magic & judging11:31 ▸ Grave Robbers From Outer Space changes everything13:16 ▸ Breaking into board games & the "Rio Grande wall"16:40 ▸ How you found games to sign back then18:33 ▸ Selling off Shadow Fist / leaving CCGs23:38 ▸ Would he ever do a CCG again?📈 BUILDING Z-MAN24:49 ▸ When did Z-Man feel like a success? ("one disaster from bankruptcy")28:21 ▸ Under-printing Pandemic & Agricola / print runs33:04 ▸ Lead times then vs. now / the Soothsayers reprint🦠 THE BIG HITS36:01 ▸ Meeting Matt Leacock & signing Pandemic38:03 ▸ Betting on co-op when nobody wanted it42:22 ▸ Play to Z's philosophy: engaging & different43:31 ▸ Signing Agricola, the $70 euro risk & animeeples48:48 ▸ Publishing the very first Endeavor52:40 ▸ Zev's honest take on expansions🏢 Z-MAN, WIZKIDS & IP1:05:00 ▸ Why he sold Z-Man (and kept working there)1:07:28 ▸ The WizKids years — 100 games in 71:11:47 ▸ The reality of working with IP & licensing1:20:54 ▸ The Middle-earth game & Asmodee's curation✨ PLAY TO Z & THE INDUSTRY TODAY1:27:08 ▸ Why start Play to Z — hitting the ground running1:29:40 ▸ Crowdfunding — why he resisted it for so long1:33:02 ▸ Crowdfunding vs. bank loans & publisher risk1:39:37 ▸ Paid previews, review copies & marketing ROI1:47:27 ▸ Social media & staying transparent with the community1:52:29 ▸ Board games vs. digital / BGA & the tactile future🎯 WHAT TO PLAY NOW1:54:40 ▸ Play to Z's lineup — Siege Perilous, 23 Knives & more1:56:52 ▸ The most slept-on Play to Z game2:00:45 ▸ Late-year releases — Dogs of War, Soul Journey2:03:21 ▸ Where to find Siege Perilous & wrap-up━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━#boardgames #boardgamedesign #zmangames #pandemic #agricola #tabletop #playtoz #boardgamepodcast
• Let’s Talk Rolling Deep & More w/ Peter C. Hayward | BGSS ep_022 24.06.2026 3ó 15p

  Board game designer Peter Hayward (Rolling Deep, Things & Rings, That Time You Killed Me) sits down for a wide-ranging, 3-hour conversation about what actually makes a game fun, why he's stepping back from designing to chase screenwriting, and how he reverse-engineered the feeling of Balatro into a tabletop roguelike.We get into the apex of game design, the difference between fun, satisfaction, and winning, why Flip Seven sparked a friendly fight, the $120k debt that nearly ended it all, the "offer he couldn't refuse," and the absurd timeline that took Rolling Deep from first prototype to Kickstarter in under six months.🎲 Rolling Deep hits Kickstarter June 23rd: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/bitewinggamesnick/rolling-deep-and-eureka-dice-adventure-roguelike-and-campaign⏱️ CHAPTERS0:00 Cold open0:42 Designer vs. salesman: the dream nobody warns you about1:37 The real daily grind of a working designer3:02 Willow, his sisters & "external processing"5:27 23 Slack channels with his sister8:44 How does Peter have fun?9:07 Fun vs. satisfaction vs. winning11:02 The apex of game design11:48 Making "dumb apes feel clever"12:32 Puzzles, Sudoku & writing sitcoms15:47 Intrinsic vs. extrinsic joy22:20 Breaking So Clover (and co-op games)23:59 Is Flip Seven even a game?25:29 The threshold of agency26:03 Why Flip Seven might be a top design of 20 years30:34 Being a board game "sommelier"32:30 The Candyland question33:40 Why he's ending the Fun Problems podcast34:50 The screenwriting dream & getting into the US39:02 A "typical" day & external obligations43:12 $120k of debt to a net worth of zero44:32 The offer he couldn't refuse50:14 The ridiculous Rolling Deep timeline51:36 The Cuphead artist & the cover53:42 Why Peter designs mechanics-first55:05 The three hooks: mechanical, component, thematic1:08:42 Falling in love with Balatro1:09:31 What Balatro actually is1:24:08 So what is Rolling Deep?1:30:39 Translating planet cards into mushrooms1:33:08 Turning interest into a real decision1:38:13 Bosses & engine destroyers1:43:41 Jokers become tableau rows1:48:13 Broken combos: feature or bug?1:55:21 "Use the paints already on the tray"2:04:48 Custom dice faces & the rules budget2:19:11 Discovery cards2:28:35 Achievements & roguelike unlocks3:02:00 Going full-time: fuck around and find out3:07:45 Peter's other income streams3:09:40 Building an "engine" on YouTube3:11:17 Wrap up#boardgames #gamedesign #rollingdeep #kickstarter #tabletop #balatro
• We Talk Board Games & Books w/ ⁨@ZeBoardandShield⁩ | BGSS ep_21 15.06.2026 1ó 48p

  I need your help to keep this going. The #1 way you can support me is join my community here: https://crdbrd.app/Zeshawn from Board and Shield has played over 500 board games — and he's just as deep in the book world as the board game one. In this episode of the Board Game Secret Show we go all the way down the rabbit hole: how a Game of Thrones version of Risk pulled him into the hobby, why he merged books and board games onto one account, the narrative campaign games worth your table (Dragon Eclipse, Oathsworn, Spire's End), a hot take that might get him canceled (Castles of Burgundy is overrated), and his complete all-time Top 10 — including why Black Rose Wars will NEVER leave the #1 spot.We also cover the board-game-to-book pipeline: what to read if you love Blood Rage, the cozy parallel to CozyStickerville, and the standalone novels every gamer should pick up.🎲 Follow Zeshawn here:@ZeBoardandShield https://www.instagram.com/boardandshield/https://www.tiktok.com/@boardandshieldThe #1 way you can support me is join my community here: https://crdbrd.app/—————————————————⏱️ TIMESTAMPS—————————————————0:00 — Cold open / teaser0:30 — Who is Zeeshan & Board and Shield1:03 — How we connected on TikTok2:34 — Cross-posting TikTok / IG / YouTube + why he hates editing5:08 — Being authentic beats high production6:07 — His first videos: nerves, photos → talking to camera7:53 — Will we ever get long-form? The monthly-recap idea9:29 — The origin story: Game of Thrones Risk changed everything13:08 — Champions of Midgard & his first worker placement14:31 — Getting people into the hobby (the gateway-game problem)16:13 — Top 10 lists & the YouTubers that hooked him18:26 — Books or board games — which came first?18:53 — Between Two Fires: a horror book deep dive21:57 — His reading journey & the deluxe-edition parallel to board games25:01 — Why he merged books + board games onto one account27:21 — Niching down vs. being yourself (and dealing with haters)29:13 — Booktok creators worth following — and how huge that world is31:39 — The golden age of Lord of the Rings board games33:35 — There and Back Again & the "cozy" debate34:22 — Cozy Stickerville obsession37:15 — Corey Konieczka (Twilight Imperium → Cozy Stickerville) & Vantage41:33 — Narrative campaign games: Dragon Eclipse & Oathsworn44:04 — Dragon Eclipse as an arena battler ("I wish it were Pokémon")47:03 — Can board game writing ever match a real novel?48:32 — Tainted Grail & the Spire's End games53:08 — Sponsor break: Cardboard54:01 — Getting board gamers INTO books56:08 — Legends & Lattes: the cozy book pick57:06 — Can a book capture the *feeling* of a board game?59:36 — Standalone book recs (The Sword of Kaigen, Blood Over Bright Haven)1:00:21 — The paid-content & publisher journey1:03:36 — Staying selective + the one publisher he hasn't worked with (Awaken Realms)1:04:40 — Auto-buy publishers & designers: Board & Dice + Stefan Feld1:05:41 — HOT TAKE: Castles of Burgundy is overrated1:08:38 — Favorite Board & Dice game (Teotihuacan)1:09:46 — Windmill Valley & Danny Garcia1:11:20 — More hot takes: Ark Nova & Viticulture1:14:07 — THE ALL-TIME TOP 10 — #10 Marvel Champions1:17:36 — #9 Avalon1:19:09 — #8 Nusfjord1:21:13 — #7 Blood Rage1:22:23 — #6 Primal: The Awakening1:23:31 — #5 Dominion1:26:36 — #4 Santorini1:29:30 — #3 Inis1:30:57 — #2 Spirit Island (is it really cozy?)1:33:01 — #1 Black Rose Wars (the forever #1)1:38:09 — Breaking into the list: Grimm Coven1:44:15 — The future of Board and Shield & where to follow him1:45:20 — How he finds time for all of it1:46:37 — Closing thoughts: the stories behind the hobby#boardgames #boardgamecommunity #tabletopgames #booktok #blackrosewars
• The Unhinged Takes of ⁨@BigPasti⁩ + Much More | BGSS ep_20 06.06.2026 2ó 50p

  BigPasti makes $1,000 a month on YouTube, refuses every free game publishers send him, and is building his own game designed to make you miserable. So we sat him down and ran through 20 of the spiciest board game takes on the internet — Earth, Secret Hitler, Zombicide, FOMO, sleeving, AI art, and whether the designer even matters.Agree? Disagree? Drop your own hot take in the comments. 👇🎲 Back his game, SUNLIT'S EULOGY, on GameFound: https://gamefound.com/en/projects/dear-euthyphro-studio/sunlits-eulogy📺 Subscribe to BigPasti: https://www.youtube.com/@BigPastiSupport this show by becoming a member: https://www.crdbrd.app/pricingJoin the Secret Club Here: https://www.crdbrd.app/hub/clubs?club=the-board-game-secret-showWant to work together?: https://crdbrd.app/hub/creator/neon_gorilla━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━⏱️ CHAPTERS━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━0:00 Intro2:58 Who is BigPasti3:31 How the channel blew up4:21 He makes ~$1K/month (and won't take free games)13:11 Why he refuses publisher copies18:10 His game: Sunlit Eulogy (the religion game)32:03 How Sunlit Eulogy actually plays49:14 Designed to make you miserable51:09 TAKE: If you bring it, you learn it52:10 TAKE: A game is 90% discovery58:43 TAKE: Bad rulebooks & the 30-second rule1:02:22 TAKE: House rules aren't cheating1:05:37 TAKE: Camel Up is the best game ever made1:08:12 TAKE: Did you even play the game?1:11:34 TAKE: Suboptimal play is still playing to win1:12:45 TAKE: Don't trash a borrowed game1:14:22 TAKE: Sleeving is a waste of time1:18:12 TAKE: "Good mad" is good game design1:30:10 TAKE: Multiplayer solitaire is boring1:33:48 TAKE: Can you trust BGG ratings?1:40:28 TAKE: What even IS a game?1:45:51 TAKE: All games are art1:53:00 TAKE: Looks-maxing wins1:53:52 TAKE: Be honest about player count on the box1:56:15 TAKE: Complexity isn't depth2:02:18 TAKE: Secret Hitler is a baby game2:05:02 TAKE: FOMO is the sin of the decade2:13:42 TAKE: Zombicide is Funko Pop board gaming2:14:35 TAKE: Earth is hollow2:16:16 TAKE: AI art is cringe2:27:26 TAKE: Reveal your income2:31:29 TAKE: Does the designer matter? (Phil Eklund)2:44:26 Wrap-up + the thumbnail A/B challenge━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━#boardgames #boardgame #tabletop #hottakes #bgg #boardgamereview #gamefound #kickstarter
• He Made 40+ Elder Scrolls Videos | BGSS ep_019 04.06.2026 1ó 53p

  Daniel from@thinkgaming fled his country in 2022 with no job, no money, and no plan. Three years later he's running one of YouTube's most dedicated nerdy strategy channels — 500+ hours into Elder Scrolls, the official How-to-Play creator for Too Many Bones, and somehow he's never missed an upload week.We talked about losing everything in a single day, sleeping on a friend's couch in London, why he treats his channel like a library instead of a newsstand, and what it actually takes to build a niche board game channel without selling out to the algorithm.If you've ever been told "the only way to grow is top-10 lists and preview videos," this episode is your permission slip to ignore that advice.Support this show by becoming a member: https://www.crdbrd.app/pricingJoin the Secret Club Here: https://www.crdbrd.app/hub/clubs?club=the-board-game-secret-showWant to work together?: https://crdbrd.app/hub/creator/neon_gorillaChapters0:00 — Cold open1:24 — Fleeing Moscow with nothing6:15 — The bus across the border9:14 — Discovering the Global Talent visa10:25 — Falling into board games (Mice and Mystics → Gloomhaven)14:23 — Finding purpose during visa limbo16:11 — The first (failed) YouTube channel20:03 — "A library, not a newspaper kiosk"23:26 — Hobby vs. business: the Ali Abdaal scale31:55 — Ikigai and the why behind the work34:17 — The two things he's most proud of35:50 — Two jobs, never a missed week44:30 — Watching metrics without serving them49:58 — Only covering games he actually loves57:44 — Family, Cheltenham, and the introvert problem1:04:08 — "I have to do this. This is my mission."1:14:15 — Going deep on Grimcoven1:24:03 — Too Many Bones and the Wave 2 wait1:29:15 — Filming the official Too Many Bones tutorial1:32:41 — Elder Scrolls vs. Too Many Bones1:39:17 — Why he still hasn't reviewed Elder Scrolls1:49:03 — Advice for aspiring creators
• The IV Studio Episode | BGSS ep_018 30.05.2026 2ó 6p

  @iv-studio-games started making commercials for Nike, Amazon, and Bad Robot. Then one Christmas, Zac invited Austin over to "just make a board game" — for fun, for nostalgia, no plan. That became Moonraker. Six years later, IV Studios is one of the most design-forward indie publishers in the hobby — shipping on 9-to-12-month timelines, running 800-person community tours, and somehow maintaining a reputation for quality across many titles while Austin keeps losing his rondels every time he goes on vacation.We talked about the moment they stopped making ads and decided to make the thing itself, what it actually looks like when three designers with contradictory ideas have to build one game, why they published their press kit publicly, and what Zac wrote a 120-page screenplay for. (It's a board game. It ships next year.)If you've ever wondered how a small team ships beautiful games on time while also designing the next five and running a community tour — this is the blueprint.Check out Altera: https://gamefound.com/en/projects/iv-studio/alteraCheck out Honors End: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ivstudios/honors-endCheck Out Realm of Reckoning: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ivstudios/realm-of-reckoningSupport this show by becoming a member: https://www.crdbrd.app/pricingJoin the Secret Club Here: https://www.crdbrd.app/hub/clubs?club=the-board-game-secret-showWant to work together?: https://crdbrd.app/hub/creator/neon_gorillaChapters0:00 — Cold open0:34 — Intro1:48 — Animation studio to board games: the origin4:22 — Ten years making ads for Nike, Amazon, and Bad Robot5:34 — "We wanted to make the thing, not the thing talking about the thing"5:59 — The Christmas break that made Moonraker9:29 — "Grossly underqualified" — Austin runs the division anyway13:22 — When did they actually believe this could be real?15:06 — Six months in: "You should stop paying me"18:32 — What happens when the design team disagrees?24:03 — "Don't go on vacation — they'll take your rondel"27:52 — Who leads a project and how does it get handed off?28:46 — "You don't know anything until it hits the table"30:22 — The cutting room floor and the games that came back31:55 — Time to Panic was designed in a weekend (while Austin was traveling)36:16 — Moon Rollers and why it doesn't feel like a small box game38:40 — Toby Arnell and why Tend is a game they couldn't have made themselves43:09 — Tend's complicated Kickstarter — their lowest ever45:30 — How does one small team ship this many games?48:19 — Everyone wears multiple hats (and tariffs killed the hiring plan)49:27 — Direct to consumer, FLGS, and the Amazon experiment53:25 — Would IV Studios survive without crowdfunding?55:41 — What crowdfunding lets them do that nothing else can57:50 — 800 people on the Altera tour and how feedback actually gets used59:50 — How to parse feedback when half the room says opposite things1:01:46 — The playtest mistake Zach had to stop and correct1:03:38 — Danny Garcia barely plays his own games1:05:34 — Where IV Studios stands on AI1:09:22 — Designing for play 1 vs. play 501:11:38 — Why Leder Games impresses Zach as much as it does1:13:23 — "The cover is the most important part of the game" — Zach disagrees1:15:24 — Old Kings Crown and the second-game problem1:17:48 — Do they actually design for the 100-play game?1:19:04 — The guy who played Tend solo through 200 scratch sheets1:20:48 — Why Austin gives every content creator his personal number1:25:40 — Publishing the press kit publicly after the backlash1:28:47 — 100 tens and 100 sevens vs. 100 nines and 100 twos1:31:38 — "The worst thing we could possibly do is bore you"1:34:32 — Mythic Mischief: the outlier1:36:06 — Realm of Reckoning: the pitch1:40:07 — How Moonraker became a co-op game (Honors End origin)1:42:26 — The card-tucking breakthrough1:45:08 — "I'm a quarterback co-op player and I hate that about myself"1:47:16 — 9-to-12-month turnarounds (and why Honors End is late)1:47:38 — Austin wrote a
• Hangin’ With @BoardGameHangover | BGSS ep_017 23.05.2026 1ó 52p

  Two Latvian guys, one YouTube channel, zero plans to stop — I sat down with Jānis G and Jānis T from Board Game Hangover to talk about building one of the most creatively ambitious channels in the hobby from Riga, Latvia, going viral with Eternals, refusing publisher money on principle, and what it actually costs to do this full time.We get into the messy reality of running a board game channel you love — failed outdoor videos, box-sliding rituals, child labor allegations, two years without a paycheck, and why they're "cowards" who won't launch a Kickstarter. Plus a lightning trivia round featuring a truly catastrophic guess at the Monopoly man's name.Board Game Hangover: @BoardGameHangover Support this show by becoming a member: https://www.crdbrd.app/pricingJoin the Secret Club Here: https://www.crdbrd.app/hub/clubs?club=the-board-game-secret-showWant to work together?: https://crdbrd.app/hub/creator/neon_gorilla— CHAPTERS —0:00 Intro0:32 Meatball & Worker Placement Dad Joke1:18 Their First Board Game Obsessions7:26 How the Two Giannises Met9:16 Latvia's Board Game Scene14:27 Starting the Channel in 202015:44 Evolving Away From Top Ten Lists20:18 Going Full Time22:15 Their Biggest Failures (The Outdoor Video)23:03 David's Camping Disaster ("Nobody at All")27:35 Growth Story & Getting Recognized at Essen32:35 Production Value & The Box Slide → Box Throw39:15 The Team ("Child Labor on Our Channel")40:12 Favorite Series to Make47:33 The Eternals Video Nobody Expected51:09 Covering Older Games vs. Chasing the Hotness55:27 "We Don't Take Publisher Money"1:01:35 Living Off Savings & Finally Getting Paid1:06:13 "We're Cowards" — Why No Kickstarter1:07:05 Review Copies: "Not Really Free"1:13:03 Do You Still Love It? (Follow-Up Reviews)1:18:19 Sons of Anarchy & Never Going Back1:22:13 How Many Plays Before You Review?1:29:49 Responsibility to Publishers1:37:23 TRIVIA ROUND1:48:54 Top Three Channels — "We're Not Leaving Until You Tell Us"1:50:44 Outro
• Dani Garcia is a Genius | His Rise, Design & Diables | BGSS ep_016 20.05.2026 1ó 17p

  Danny Garcia has quietly become one of the most thoughtful designers in board games — and in this episode, we go deep on exactly why. We talk about his unconventional design process (he builds entire games in his head before writing a single note), his obsession with action selection, why theme always comes first, and what it means to share your culture through cardboard.We also get an extended look at Diabolus, his upcoming crowdfunding game inspired by the Ball de Diables — a Catalan fire festival Danny has attended over 100 times. It's unlike anything he's designed before.In January, Danny announced he had been diagnosed with ALS. His resilience and dedication to doing what he loves, for as long as he can, make this conversation even more meaningful.Support People Like Dani Here: https://fundaciomiquelvalls.org/es/ela/Support Research Here: https://www.als.org---Go Follow Diables: https://gamefound.com/en/projects/saltandpepper/diablesSupport this show by becoming a member: https://www.crdbrd.app/pricingJoin the Secret Club Here: https://www.crdbrd.app/hub/clubs?club=the-board-game-secret-showWant to work together?: https://crdbrd.app/hub/creator/neon_gorilla---00:00 — Intro: Who is Danny Garcia?01:10 — Danny joins / host expresses his admiration01:45 — Is Coming of Age underrated?03:25 — "I was winning 1,995% of the times" — the luck debate04:08 — The frustration mechanic: thematic brilliance explained07:09 — Danny's background: 15 years in the video game industry08:40 — How he discovered Euro games (hint: a table across the room)10:49 — The night Brass changed everything11:23 — Learning to design by watching Rahdo12:28 — Weight preferences: tactical vs. strategic15:16 — "You make the games you want to play"16:34 — Danny's design process: no notes, just thinking17:23 — Building the entire game in his head before prototyping18:34 — Waiting for ideas to arrive (and why forcing it doesn't work)20:14 — Ideas coming at midnight — and redesigning the next morning21:12 — How he had 5 games signed before anyone knew his name23:21 — Getting publishers to take a chance on an unknown designer25:10 — Why he sends "unfinished" games to publishers on purpose26:09 — The mistake most new designers make: over-polishing28:40 — Choosing the right publisher for each game29:08 — Why Barcelona's theme was non-negotiable30:48 — Theme-first vs. mechanics-first: how Danny evolved32:25 — Why theme is now the only way he can generate original ideas34:35 — Diabolus: the game, the festival, the inspiration36:50 — The Ball de Diables explained — and why the drums had to be in the game39:42 — Danny's design signature: action selection41:03 — Why action selection is where originality lives44:42 — How action selection works in Diabolus47:48 — The main board modules and how scoring works51:34 — The social media mechanic — why it's in a medieval fire festival game54:15 — How Diabolus compares to Danny's other designs55:47 — Reinventing yourself with every game (Stefan Feld, Tomas Holik)58:29 — Games with lasting replay value / what Danny returns to01:00:19 — How Danny designs replayability into his games01:01:18 — The Barcelona expansion: does it make the base game better?01:02:16 — On designing expansions: "publishers ask, I prefer something new"01:04:38 — Why Danny never holds back content for future expansions01:05:47 — Does he ever regret a design decision after release?01:06:19 — His recent themes: Catalonia, culture, childhood, home01:07:33 — Using board games to share your culture with the world01:09:47 — What's coming: Gaudi, Windmill Valley dual, an archaeology + time game01:11:29 — Positive interaction as a design philosophy01:13:03 — His obsession with time travel (and a game being designed around it)01:14:15 — Do aliens exist? Does Danny believe in time travel?01:15:39 — Final words on Diabolus01:16:26 — Closing
• He Left America & Became Asia’s Board Game Expert | @CardboardEast | BGSS ep_015 17.05.2026 2ó 21p

  Jay runs @CardboardEast one of the most unique channels in the hobby. He spent nearly 20 years living in Taipei, learned Chinese and Japanese, and became one of the best windows into Asian board game design the English-speaking world has. Now he's back in the US as Marketing Manager at Bézier Games.We talked about what drew him to Taiwan, the Tokyo Game Market experience, what Western publishers get wrong, and what the data says about who's actually buying board games.Go Follow @BezierGamesInc and @CardboardEast Support this show by becoming a member: https://www.crdbrd.app/pricingJoin the Secret Club Here: https://www.crdbrd.app/hub/clubs?club=the-board-game-secret-showWant to work together?: https://crdbrd.app/hub/creator/neon_gorilla00:00:00 - Intro & "Vendor Boy"00:02:38 - "I've fooled everyone — I'm actually incredibly shy"00:07:36 - How Cardboard East started00:08:24 - "I left America before the iPhone"00:11:28 - Why he moved to a country where he couldn't speak the language00:12:34 - The typhoon story00:17:50 - Day to day life in Taipei00:19:52 - How board games entered the picture00:21:51 - Discovering board game cafes in Taiwan00:24:49 - Taiwan's board game design culture00:29:04 - Why trick taking games never get old00:35:16 - How localization works (the Love Letter story)00:38:11 - The business model of Asian publishers00:40:19 - Tokyo Game Market vs Western conventions00:43:28 - Can an English speaker navigate Tokyo Game Market?00:44:51 - "You just buy on vibes"00:49:55 - What Japanese games have that Western publishers don't00:54:55 - Crowdfunding — where it started vs where it is now01:02:35 - "The cover matters more than the gameplay"01:04:51 - The board game industry is like video games in the 90s01:05:40 - Tariffs and the board game economy01:12:16 - Why he left cybersecurity for Bézier Games01:13:51 - Life as a one-man marketing team01:24:45 - "Every day is the f***ing Super Bowl"01:27:06 - Meet Jessica — who's actually buying board games01:39:19 - Zombie Princess deep dive01:47:21 - Game Makers — Bézier's biggest game in years01:55:28 - Haunted Mouse01:59:13 - Warp 9902:05:01 - Hot takes02:12:47 - One Asian game you need on your radar right now02:18:22 - Outro
• ❯ Mike is my Co-op Sommelier | BGSS ep_014 | OneStopCoOpShop Conversation 12.05.2026 2ó 38p

  Mike Kelley of One Stop Co-op Shop sits down to talk the real side of board game content creation — review ethics, publisher horror stories, and much more. Then we break down his framework for what actually makes a great solo or co-op game, using his recent reviews as the lens. Plus: an unannounced mech game reveal you won't want to miss.Subscribe to @OneStopCoopShop Join the Secret Club Here: https://www.crdbrd.app/hub/clubs?club=the-board-game-secret-showWant to work together?: https://crdbrd.app/hub/creator/neon_gorilla00:00:00 - Intro00:04:43 - How Mike took over One Stop Co-op Shop00:16:49 - How many plays before you review a game?00:19:27 - The scathing review that was totally wrong00:38:36 - Why he's never taken a dollar from publishers00:40:34 - Calling out channels that do crowdfunding deals00:43:20 - Do personal relationships bias your reviews?00:44:48 - "I was probably nicer than I should have been"00:45:05 - 20+ hours a week on top of a full-time job00:57:56 - Game design origin story00:59:54 - Salvation Road: "I literally sang a song begging for money"01:02:12 - Publisher horror stories01:04:03 - NEW GAME REVEAL: cooperative mech arena01:07:18 - Getting paid (for the first time) to design a solo mode01:10:40 - His best video ever — that he's embarrassed by01:13:16 - "You can't lie on a playthrough"01:14:28 - Salvation Road is getting a fantasy retheme01:20:13 - Spirit Island and the venture capitalist problem01:23:58 - What makes a great solo/co-op game?01:24:18 - Time to table01:33:23 - Luck and randomness01:44:27 - Session length01:47:05 - Replayability and asymmetry01:53:08 - Tactical depth01:58:44 - Automata design02:18:22 - Challenge curve02:19:36 - "Spirit Island often has a boring ending"02:23:10 - Win rate: 20% vs 75-80%02:24:29 - Cooperative tension and the alpha player problem
• The Man Behind Board Game Bollocks | BGSS ep_013 09.05.2026 2ó 5p

  The NSFW Episode Beware ;)My @BoardGameBollocks conversation. He is human, hilarious and incredibly thoughtful. Whether you agree with his takes or not I can assure you this conversation shows a side you almost surely have never seen before. If you don't know Bollocks then even more reason to sit down with us and hang out for a while.Join the Secret Club Here: https://www.crdbrd.app/hub/clubs?club=the-board-game-secret-showWant to work together?: https://crdbrd.app/hub/creator/neon_gorillaFollow Bollocks here: https://www.youtube.com/@BoardGameBollocks TIMESTAMPS:0:00 - Board games in a digital world: getting real people in a room0:48 - Fan messages that warm a coal heart1:41 - Running 104 miles (London to Oxford) for charity3:47 - Training for ultras: slow and steady wins the race9:14 - How it all started: Magic Robot and 1970s childhood games11:42 - Defending Monopoly as a gateway game12:15 - Fighting Fantasy game books and spending 2p pocket money14:08 - Discovering D&D at school (1985) — the cool kids played it17:14 - Why 1st Edition AD&D is still the best (and why the DM WILL kill you)22:29 - Games Workshop glory days: White Dwarf, Dungeon Quest, Blood Bowl24:08 - University, a philosophy degree, and coming back to board games25:00 - Discovering board game YouTube / Wil Wheaton's Tabletop26:49 - Why he started his channel: rough naval city, not a posh boy27:45 - First video: iPhone 4, Railways of the World, absolutely horrific29:35 - Getting comfortable on camera and building confidence31:04 - "What if a football hooligan did board game reviews?"33:27 - No paid or sponsored content. Ever.33:54 - Bands, music, and a guitar solo he's proud of34:59 - Getting kids into board games (and why he had them in the first place)36:52 - Games are for human interaction: playing with his 74-year-old mum37:47 - Nemesis and the wife who got eliminated and sat waiting for her lift home39:11 - Three kids: 15, 12, and 9 — all trained correctly42:14 - SU&SD and other channels: respect, but they don't speak to him43:23 - Channel philosophy: nasty, aggressive, funny — walking the tightrope44:47 - Getting banned from Board Game Geek and telling them to do one49:03 - Dealing with critics: "Where's your Godfather?"50:35 - Recognition at UK Games Expo: selfies and people shouting across rooms52:07 - Making videos: film degree, no script, all ad-lib, bullet points only58:53 - Reviews vs top ten lists: where the views actually come from1:00:09 - Are we heading for a board game crash? Market saturation parallels1:05:06 - The Catan moment (1995), Zombicide, and Kickstarter bloat1:06:32 - The psychology of anticipation: why games sit on shelves unplayed1:08:05 - How Kickstarter killed game development: selling you the game in pieces1:10:07 - Expansions: when they work and when they absolutely don't1:13:53 - War Room all-day session and games the wife refuses to touch1:16:59 - Tom Vassal and respecting anyone who puts their face on camera1:19:07 - UK Games Expo press pass drama: Vanguard Tactics can do one1:20:02 - This is a hobby, not a business — and that's exactly the point1:21:41 - Life is cyclical: the board game market will go back to basics1:25:19 - Gary Gygax changed the world, but designers are running out of ideas1:28:49 - Obsession: the last game that truly blew him away (2018)1:33:10 - Kickstarter and the game discovery problem1:35:00 - Best designer of the last 5 years: John D. Clair (Space Base, Mystic Vale)1:38:22 - AI-generated board game content: "Someone went on ChatGPT and made a script"1:40:37 - AI in board games: why the table itself is safe from digital takeover1:43:02 - AI as a tool for indie publishers: if the game's good, who cares?1:44:22 - There's no such thing as originality: Picasso, Van Gogh, and 12 musical notes1:46:11 - Wrapping up: 30 years left and must choose games more wisely
• This Board Game Channel Is A Hidden Gem | BGSS ep_012 | The Grove 05.05.2026 2ó 4p

  Eleven friends from college in central Arkansas turned game night into a YouTube channel — and they're in debt doing it. In this episode I sit down with Matt, Eli, and Robert from The Grove Games to talk Twilight Imperium betrayals, why they refuse to trash a game even when it's bad, and what it actually takes to build something real in the niche of all niches.🔔 Subscribe to @TheGroveGames : https://www.youtube.com/@TheGroveGamesJoin the Secret Club Here: https://www.crdbrd.app/hub/clubs?club=the-board-game-secret-show—————————————————————————⏱ TIMESTAMPS0:00 Intro & cold open0:36 Hot dog hypothetical & desert island game picks2:21 Solo picks: Ten, Void Fall, Cosmic Encounter6:06 Desert island game durability problem8:13 Would you design a game on the island?9:45 Stone Saga & the crafting system that surprised me11:02 Aphantasia, hyperphantasia & how it affects rulebook learning13:02 Visual imagination & reading rulebooks16:23 Meet The Grove — 12 people, one channel17:11 How a 12-person friend group stays together after college19:23 How The Grove all met (college RAs and dorm life)21:43 Taco Bell is ruining us financially24:50 How board games entered the picture27:01 Why you need to play Twilight Imperium IV31:25 The great 5 vs 6 player TI4 debate33:40 14-hour game days, lunch break rules & secret texting35:10 The psychological warfare of TI4 alliances36:41 Galactic nukes and the Embers of Muaat39:35 Holding a secret winning path for an hour (chest pains)40:15 The 3D printed TI4 trophy40:53 Blood on the Clock Tower44:08 Grove game nights: 20 people, custom lights, full immersion45:07 Chris Couch Games & Holiday Hills47:08 Garden Club vs Pedal — the debate48:44 What it means to give a game a 1050:55 "When my brain starts to buzz" — the flow state ten53:50 The Grove's review philosophy57:52 Do you have an obligation to report the bad?1:00:28 How many people are actually in The Grove?1:04:03 Are you compromised by knowing designers?1:05:06 Everyone has a full-time job — this is pure passion1:07:15 The Earth playthrough disaster (6 days, no sleep)1:10:19 How to get noticed by publishers when you're small1:12:57 Algorithm vs. depth — the niche content trap1:15:44 Their worst video has 150,000 views (and they hate it)1:16:46 Why do they actually do this?1:17:39 Bonanza filming sessions & the grind origin story1:22:07 Playing Arcs in 94° heat with no AC1:24:38 Advice for small creators trying to grow1:32:39 How they landed partnerships with major publishers1:33:27 Cold emailing 40 publishers a week1:37:19 Authenticity as the only real strategy1:40:33 The Ivy Studios relationship story1:48:26 Dream publishers they haven't worked with yet1:55:26 What's next for The Grove1:57:33 Eli's big goal: become the go-to How to Play channel1:58:11 Could The Grove and Cardboard work together?2:00:27 How they built a studio in a detached garage2:00:54 Wrap up