157 – Gen Con wrap up with Izzy, Jace, and Nick – The Family Gamers Podcast

We’re back with even more Gen Con coverage! Let’s wrap up our con season with the Martinellis’ impressions of Gen Con. Isabelle and Jace both attended with their parents.

What’s Gen Con like from 3 feet off the ground?

Jace liked “playing games”. His favorite was Rhino Hero Super Battle.

Izzy’s favorite was Food Fighters from Kids Table Board Gaming (with 3 expansions!)

Jace also really liked a spitting Alpaca game called Hackin’ Packin’ Alpaca at the Mattel booth.

Inquiring minds want to know- dragon bracelet for Izzy? NO!?

Dragonrealm from Gamewright was also a big hit.

Nick got Sushi Roll & Sushi Go Party (need more players!)

The food trucks are cool, even if Izzy only ate from the same pizza truck every time.

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SNAP Review: Go Cuckoo!

Elliot tells us about this all-ages dexterity game from HABA. Find out if your family should Go Cuckoo!

Read the transcript and see more images.

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So Nick, what was Gen Con like this year?

Nick got in Wednesday, and waited in will-call line for Izzy’s wristband.

Thursday morning was great: grabbed press badge right at 7:30 and went for breakfast. They couldn’t access their hotel room easily to go dump off purchases and grab snacks, so they tried to plan better than they had in past years. Nick and his friend usually stay right in the convention from 10am (open) until close, trying to make the most of every moment.

Nick says that the convention felt less crowded Thursday and Friday than it has in the past. Not sure why, since more tickets were sold.

One of their most memorable moments: “launch party” for Terror Below (Renegade) – since they had backed the Kickstarter, they got to pick up their copy and get a tutorial on the spot. And artist & designers signed the box! They also got to meet Becca Scott from Geek & Sundry.

Let’s talk about some of the games!

Starting with Big G Creative:

• Trapper Keeper
• Keepin it Saxy – entry level coop game themed to keep Kenny G in his groove all day long
• Carpool Karaoke (James Corden) – you will sing.

Bermuda Pirates – dexterity game from FoxMind. Bring your boat from the dock (corner) to the island (center). Don’t get sucked into a “whirlpool” (secret magnet areas), or your treasure will go flying.

From HABA:

• Honga – Action selection / worker placement, but also a race up the pyramid.
• Adventure Land – Andrew & Anitra have had this one for a while. All pieces start near the upper left corner. You can only move pieces to the right and down, and grab resources as you go.
• Mountain was on display. A big memory component. We’ll check it out at PAX Unplugged!
• Also the Unicorn Glitterluck series. Nick & Jace played the Cloud Stacking game, which is surprisingly hard for a cooperative dexterity game.

The kids absolutely loved the giant version of Meeple Circus.

Fairy Season from Good Games – trick taking game – “the biggest hit for everyone who has played it so far”.

Sushi Roll from Gamewright – it’s like Sushi Go! with dice (obviously). Roll the dice and put them on a conveyor belt. Draft one die to your plate, and pass the “conveyor belt” to the next player.

Fluttering Souls (also from Good Games Publishing) – set collection with butterflies. Draft from a pyramid into your butterfly collection.

Dragonrealm adds area control to the core mechanics from Dragonwood.

Funkoverse games – Batman, Joker, Harley Quinn, Batgirl. Double sided board. Knock out characters and then let them cool down before you can use them again. And since you can combine sets, maybe a “girl power” game with Hermione, Batgirl, and Blanche?

Deckscape (from DV Giochi)- a bit like Unlock; just a deck of cards. It teaches you how to play as you go.

Unfair expansion (from Good Games)

Roll and Writes: Criss Cross, Boomerang, Dizzle, and Encore

Galaxies (tentative title from Sphere Games) – light up board with marbles! Really cool.

The OP had cool games: Die Hard, Toy Story, and Furry Foodies – cats push food off the table so they can eat it. Try to avoid broken plates!

Ultra Pro had a game called Lions, and Tigers, and Bears, Oh My! – a simple Yahtzee-type game: a roll-and-keep push-your-luck game.

Other highlights:

Seeing really cool cosplay

Matching shirts for the whole family.

Meeting Elizabeth Hargrave.

Met up with Stephanie from Sugar High Score!

Find Nick Online:

Look for him in our Facebook community, or email him: nick@thefamilygamers.com. Also Twitter: @shreddemon and Instagram: @shreddemon.

Find Us Online:

Facebook: @familygamersaa and thefamilygamers.com/community
Twitter (X): @familygamersaa
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or join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord! thefamilygamers.com/discord

Or, for the most direct method, email us! andrew@thefamilygamers.com and anitra@thefamilygamers.com.

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