board games

Discovering the Joy of Yahtzee Through Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics

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“The millionaire, the mansion, the yacht!”

Quoting the late Notorious B.I.G. as I shook my dice, I was two fives short of scoring a five-of-a-kind. Doing so would net me a whopping 50 points; easily the single largest point opportunity in the game. Though I’ve yelled the Biggie quote dozens of times with no luck, it finally paid off on this final throw. Five-in-a-row. 50 points. Jett wins.

Despite the immediate salt, my wife Steff calls for another rematch. We were already hours deep into this extended Yacht Dice session and would end up playing many more. I may have never discovered how fun Yacht Dice (better known as Yahtzee outside of the game) is had it not been for a series of events that led to me picking up Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics.

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I Had to Grow Up Before I Could Play Dungeons & Dragons

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Fog is setting in. Knifey McStab, Charlotte, and Marla have their hands full against a horde of zombies. Having retreated in a previous turn, I wan’t close enough to help my allies by stabbing a zombie with my rapier. Digging deep into my repertoire, I grabbed some tinder off the dry ground and use magic to create four makeshift torches. Before ending my turn, I launch them towards the heat of battle, allowing my party to finish the fight with a clear view of our opposition. As icing on the cake, I kick on the Auto-Tune to sing the song that a bard would when lighting the battlefield for their comrades.

This past weekend, I had an amazing time playing and streaming Dungeons & Dragons for the first time. Thank you Jason, Kris, Rachel, Mat, and Jon for sharing this experience with me. Though it’s literally taken us years to set this session up, my journey to get here goes way further back.

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Settlers of Catan Review

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Settlers of Catan – or just Catan as it’s known these days – is still a giant in the world of tabletop gaming. Originally released in 1995, the game has since sold over 22 million copies and is often cited as the spark that ignited the modern wave of tabletop gaming.

Though I’ve been a tabletop gaming enthusiast for a number of years now – and have an unopened copy of Settlers of Catan sitting on my shelf – my wife and I never found the right time to play. At last, thanks to our friends Brendan and Matt, we’ve finally crossed Catan off of our bucket list. Many years after the fact, is the island of Catan still worth settling?

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Carcassonne on Nintendo Switch Review

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Simple to learn, difficult to master, and providing a unique challenge every time, Carcassonne is a tabletop gaming classic. It’s no stranger to the world of video games either, as it’s made some fantastic appearances on mobile and the Xbox 360.

It goes without question then that the much newer Nintendo Switch version should provide a better experience then, or at least one comparable to those older iterations. Right?

…right?

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Twitch and Live Streaming Beyond the Bounds of Video Games

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“Person Playing Video Games” is probably the single largest form of content that exists in the world of live streaming. There’s nothing wrong with that. Will be the first to admit that the vast majority of my streaming content is in that format. I also have no shortage of amazing memories that have come from game streaming. Odds are, this type of content will be my bread-and-butter for the foreseeable future.

Even so, I have ambitions of doing more within the medium. Boss Rush – a talk show I host with Jason, Mat, Jon, Kris, and Rachel – is just the start.

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DnD 101 with Jason, Kris, Rachel, Mat, and Jon!

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Our adventure (technically) begins here! Jason from Downstab.com graciously guides us through the character creation process and an example scenario. If you have any interest in learning how to play Dungeons & Dragons, definitely check this one out!

Click through for the full stream and shoutouts!

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Want to Learn More About Fuser? Info Regarding Harmonix’s Next Game Are Hidden Right Here!

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Harmonix’s new game Fuser isn’t set for release until the fall of 2020. We don’t have much in the way of concrete information about the game, but I bet we can deduce a lot about it from their 2017 hybrid video game/board game/card game DropMix!

As soon as Harmonix unveiled the game, I knew I had to make a video about Fuser and its connection to DropMix. Besides being able to speak to a subject I’m passionate about, it gave me the opportunity to play more DropMix for b-roll! In case you missed it the first time around, listen to the mix here!

Buy DropMix Now From Amazon.com

[Purchasing through this Amazon affiliate link gives me a small commission without adding any extra cost or effort to you. Thanks for your support!]

Deep Sea Adventure Review

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(NOTE: Received this game as a gift from Kris and Rachel over at Double Jump. Thank you!)

Take a deep breath cause we’re going under! Deep Sea Adventure is a press-you-luck board game where two-to-six players will venture into the abyss as scuba divers with visions of fishing out the best loot. However, it’s every scuba diver for themselves and it doesn’t take much for someone to compromise the mission for everyone. Will you bring back hoards of treasure? Or will your finds slip through your fingers and fall to the bottom of the ocean?

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It’s a Bop? DropMix Freestyle Test Mix!

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I’m in the process of making a video about a pair of DJ-centric Harmonix games: Fuser and DropMix. Part of that video involves B-roll of me playing the latter.

This was an opportunity to test out a bunch of stuff, from my new weighted base camera rig, to mobile screen capture, to YouTube’s copyright limits. If you’re seeing this post, the video sneaked through! Please don’t snitch!

Anyway, here’s a freestyle mix I whipped up while working on that project. Certainly mot the cleanest run, but it has its moments. If I do come back to DropMix video content, I think it’ll be through rehearsed mixes. Enjoy the beats!

Buy DropMix Now From Amazon.com

[Purchasing through this Amazon affiliate link gives me a small commission without adding any extra cost or effort to you. Thanks for your support!]

What We Can Learn About Harmonix’s New Game Fuser From its Hybrid Card Game DropMix

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Harmonix’s next game will put players behind the wheels of steel. Fuser will give players access to over 100 songs and the ability to mix-and-match elements of each to create your own mash-ups. The game is set for release on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch in the fall of 2020.

In the wake of the game’s announcement, we’ve gotten a pretty decent look at how the game will work thanks to preview coverage from gaming outlets. I’m not one of the lucky few whose gotten to play the game, but I have a ton of experience with Harmonix’s card game that provides the foundation that Fuser is built upon: DropMix.

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