You tell me: time for some sun....

Off to Florida tonight for a week of warmth (thank goodness!)  And of course the toughest choice is what games to subject my in-laws to.  Any suggestions?  I picked up Jambo to play with the hubby in the airport while we're waiting and I'm definitely bringing Tichu and Liar's Dice.  Hmmm....  How big is that suitcase again?

You tell me: favourite game designers...

Managed to play a game of the new Ticket To Ride: Asia team expansion last night and loved it.  My favourite series of games now has an option for clever partnership play and it felt quite rewarding when you worked together with someone to complete a ticket.  I am reminded again and again of how much I enjoy Alan R. Moon games, whether it be a game in the TTR series, the lovely Elfenland, the interactive and nasty Oasis, or the brilliant and under-rated card game Gloria Picktoria.  He is the tops for me right now with Knizia, Sackson, Friese, Kramer, and Wallace following not far behind.

Who is your favourite game designer and why?

You tell me: game design as art....

On Monday night at our local games night, I got to play the wildly overproduced Days of Wonder game Colosseum.  And overall I enjoyed it although it dragged on for more than two hours.  But I couldn't help feeling that there were just too many details, too many pieces, and too many options - I felt that it could have been pared down.  I had that nagging feeling that I'd rather just be playing The Princes of Florence, which this game seemed to be based upon.  Not surprisingly, I then noticed that Colosseum, like Princes, is a Wolfgang Kramer collaboration and it kinda made sense that this felt like a remake.

But there is something far more elegant and tightly woven about the mechanics in Princes compared to Colosseum.  In Princes, one spends 7 rounds (2 more than Colosseum) trying to build beautiful works of art but the choices are simpler and quicker yet much tougher and the player interaction, although subtler, affects play more.

Princes remains one of my favourite games, despite rarely being played now, and it has always struck me as the pinnacle of design, a true work of art in a similar sense that a mathematician might consider a gorgeous proof.  

What designs do you consider elegant, artful, masterful?  Why?

You tell me: Dominion Cornucopia preview....

Dale Yu, one of the lead developers of the Dominion series, has posted pics of the new cards on the Opinionated Gamers website. 

After looking at the deck, I know at least one player who will HATE them.  But she always plays a "few action cards, lots of treasure" strategy.  What do you think of the new cards?  Or do you even buy Dominion expansions anymore?  (Cuz if you don't have Prosperity, you sure are missing out....)

You tell me: vacation gaming...

I'm lucky to be getting away from this awful winter for the upcoming week and I'm even more lucky to have a partner who's willing to play game after game with me whilst chilling in the tropics. I think I struck gold when I found this guy.

What games do you play on your vacations? Would you bother bringing them with you or am I just nuts?

You tell me: blogs and websites...

You obviously take a look at this blog for info and rants.  What are your websites, blogs, online dabblings, board-game related or otherwise?  Add 'em to the comments and grab some readers!  If it's game-related, maybe it'll even end up in my blog-roll....

You tell me: your favourite FLGS...

Just had another great experience with the owner of http://www.germangames.com/.  Although his site is simple to look at, it is updated weekly, easy to search, very cheap prices, and his selection of new and obscure European titles is fantastic.  I just picked up London, Martin Wallace's latest from Treefrog Games, through him and didn't have to pay any of the extra shipping that would have occurred if I'd ordered directly from the UK.  Not only is his warehouse blocks from my house in Kitchener, Ontario, saving me on all my shipping costs, but he is a super-nice guy with a new kid and I'm happy to support him. AND HE KNOWS WHAT HE'S TALKING ABOUT!!!!  I get so annoyed with merchants who always recommend Settlers or Carcassonne to confused customers, not because they've played them, but because it's their biggest sellers. 

What is your favourite games merchant website or Friendly Local Gaming Store (FLGS, get it?)  Why?  C'mon, give them some props and maybe some new business, too!

You tell me: Carcassone, a classic?

DC Gamer writes about his election of Carcassonne into the BGG Hall of Fame.  Funny, you know, I've tried to like Carc but every game just leaves me sour.  I find the tile draws WAY too luck-based (and that is coming from a guy who would marry Ticket To Ride if he could) and each game never seems all that balanced.  I also have found in the 3 or 4 games I've tried of it, that the scoring and majority rules are not half as simple for other players to grasp as people say. 

Obviously, I'm in the minority here but I just don't see the appeal.  What am I missing?

ASIDE:  I do agree with giving props to Carc for bringing us the Meeple.  Bravo to that!

You tell me: holiday gaming...

What games will you be playing back home this holiday with the family and/or friends?  How many new rulesets will your grandma be subjected to?

You tell me: your most played games....

Writing a blog about board games means one should try and play a variety of games, not only to remain knowledgable and up-to-date, but also so one doesn't keep posting about the same damn things all the time.  Unfortunately, our group of friends tend to get hooked on certain games.  There was a good 5-6 months where we ONLY played Dominion and for the last  year or so every evening has ended with a couple hours of Tichu.  This last month I've found that all I've wanted to play was Agricola (which is quickly becoming an all-time favourite, up there with Ticket To Ride and Acquire). 

What game is your group obsessed with?  Which games do you keep going back to night after night?

RELATED:  Dominion: Prosperity is now available and I can't help but want to play it.  More treasure and bigger points could get us back into Dominion....

You tell me: Spiel des Jahres 2010

Nominees for this year's Spiel des Jahres award should be coming out near the end of this month.  Thought I'd see what you all think the nominees for this year could be...

You tell me: boardgames as art...

One blogger describes at Infarrantly Creative how she frames and hangs boards from board games as art work. I think I'd much rather hang a Cranium game than play it anyways...

What boards do you think are worthy as artwork on a wall?

(Tipped off thanks to Michaela.)

You tell me: Christmas

What games are you giving out for Christmas (if you celebrate) and why?