Episode 91: Present & Accounted For - 2009 Holiday Gift Guide
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91: Present & Accounted For 2009 Holiday Gift Guide Release Date: Nov. 23, 2008 Running Time: 164 min. Listen Now: Download: Enhanced Version - MP3 Version Subscribe via iTunes: Enhanced - MP3 See sidebar for other subscription options |
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A package deal. We kick start this holiday season with over 50 game suggestions in dozens of categories and for budgets of all sizes.
Complete Show Notes continue after the break.
2009 Holiday Gift Guide
Having many years of experience in retail, most people who need help shopping ask one of two questions:
I need a gift for someone who's X years old
OR
I need a gift for a someone who really likes X.
As we did in 2008, we are using the second question as the basis for our gift guide. The following list of suggestions is divided into categories of interests. 24 of them, to be exact. While the list is certainly not comprehensive, we're betting a lot of people on your list share one or more of these passions. We include games across the spectrum from party and kid's games to games for non-gamers and games for the hard-core geeks.
We hope everyone has a great holiday season filled with fun and games!
Animals
Fauna BGG
Duck Duck Safari BGG
Honorable Mention: Snow Tails
Science Fiction
Space Hulk BGG
Ad Astra BGG
Honorable Mention: Space Alert, Galaxy Trucker
Art
Dixit BGG
World Without End BGG
Honorable Mention: Master's Gallery, Modern Art: The Card Game, Kachina
Food
Restaurant Row BGG
Bacchus' Banquet BGG
Honorable Mention: Wasabi, King's Breakfast, Primordial Soup, A la Carte
Collecting
Traders of Carthage - BGG
Lookout Games:
Agricola (BGG), Le Havre (BGG), At the Gates of Loyang (BGG), 1853 (BGG)
Ubongo Series - BGG
Ubongo, Ubongo Extreme, Ubgono: The Duel, Ubongo 3D
Alea Medium Box Series:
Alea Iacta Est BGG
Alea Big Box Series:
Macao BGG
Cars
Formula D BGG
Hurry Cup BGG
Honorable Mention: Automobile
Construction & Building
Ystari Box BGG
Master Builder BGG
Honorable Mention: Roll Through Ages
History
A Brief History of the World BGG
Agricola BGG
Honorable Mention: Automobile, 1960: Making of the President, Die Macher, Here I Stand
Fantasy
Middle Earth Quest BGG
Dungeon Lords BGG
Honorable Mention:Age of Conan, Talisman: Frostmarch, Thunderstone
Music
Opera BGG
Turandot BGG
Honorable Mention: Schrille Stille, New Orleans Big Band, Songburst, Trumpet
Gambling
Dice Town BGG
The Adventurers BGG
Honorable Mention: Long Shot, Fauna
Sports
Subbuteo Table Soccer Episode 44
Long Shot BGG
Honorable Mention: Duell, Pizza Box Football, Box of Golf
Gardening & Farming
Finca BGG
Tulipmania 1637 BGG
Honorable Mention: Agricola: Farmers of the Moor BGG
Math
Torres BGG
Take It Easy BGG | Burley Games
Honorable Mention: Santiago, Lost Cities, Acquire, Carrom
Horror
Ghost Stories BGG
Witch of Salem BGG
Honorable Mention: Touch of Evil (with Something Wicked and Hero Pack), Scary Tales, Zombie Mosh
Books
Tales of the Arabian Nights BGG
Pillars of the Earth BGG
Honorable Mention: War of the Ring, A Game of Thrones, Fury of Dracula, Age of Conan
Parties & Entertaining
You Robot BGG
Long Shot BGG
Honorable Mention: Wits & Wagers (with Expansion), Letter Roll, Bezzerwizzer
Technology
Zooloretto for iPhone Link
Scopa 09 for the iPhone Link
Scopacards Link
Magic: The Gathering on Xbox Live Arcade Link
Puzzles
FITS BGG
Qwirkle Cubes BGG
Honorable Mention: Ubongo 3D, Baffle, Pandemic
Westerns & Cowboys
Dice Town BGG
Bang! BGG
Honorable Mention: Pony Express, Wyatt Earp, Boomtown, Gnadenlos
Travel
Hotel Amsterdam Link
Dominion Seaside Link
Honorable Mention: Endeavor
Shopping
Bull in a China Shop BGG
Basari (or Edel, Stein & Reich) BGG
TV & Movies
Star Trek Monopoly: Compendium Edition BGG
Battlestar Galactica with Pegasus Expansion BGG
Honorable Mention: Doctor Who Solitary Story Game
Military History
Conflict of Heroes: Awakening the Bear BGG
Command & Colors: Ancients BGG
Honorable Mention: Manoeuvre, Hammer of the Scots, España 1936, Memoir '44
Games for Dave
Alea Iacta Est BGG
Macao BGG
Expansion: Ystari Box BGG
Games for Stephen
Okko BGG
Android BGG
Expansion: Ghost Stories: White Moon BGG
Miscellany
Music credits (courtesy of Ioda Promonet) include:
"Season of Joy" by Sounds of Blackness - buy the track
"Oh Hanukkah" by Gods of Fire - buy the track
"Christmas Song" by The Swingle Singers - buy the track
"Joy to the World (Mocean Worker Remix)" by Cathedral Brass - buy the track
"Chag Semayach" by Bozzi Records - buy the track
"El Lechón De Chachete" by Yomo Toro - buy the track
"The Somerset Wassail" by Magpie Lane - buy the track
"Jingle Bells (Dan the Automator Remix)" by Dean Martin - buy the track
"Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies (Red Baron Remix)" by Berlin Symphony Orchestra - buy the track
"Good King Wenceslas" (Patrick Krouchian Remix) by CSSR State Philharmonic - buy the track
"Dont Plan No Party This Christmas" by Mel Brown & the Homewreckers - buy the track
Errata
I'm sure there are some goofs in there somewhere. Let us know if (when?) you find one!
Comments
'Twas the month ere the busiest time in the biz...
…and stirring on the forums- oh dear no, it’s Is.
He’s chipper; he’s chirpy. He says, “Great show, guys!
I’m sure you’re just dying to hear my replies.
My cheers for Monopoly, my take on the news,
Questions on song rights for heavy metal Jews.
May I say that for me it's a bit of a mystery
That you missed the new Chrononauts for students of history.
And for shopping there’s Gift Trap! For shopping there’s Spree!
And Klunker is also occurring to me.”
With a scroll from his pocket he says, “Just a bit more,”
Then you watch as the paper rolls over the floor.
But what should creep up behind as he basks in himself
But a quietly murderous psychotic elf
Who bludgeons the bore with a huge candy cane.
It cracks him out cold! You imagine the pain!
“So sorry,” says another elf, “for being so violent
But we thought you lads might like one night to be silent.
Blang has anger issues and rarely gets the chance
To work through these- wait, he’s removing his pants!
Bling and Blong! Quick, wrestle him back to the sleigh!
You know the boss frowns on our working that way!”
Then bundling the crumpled form into his sack,
He says, “Now don’t worry, we’ll soon bring him back.
We’ll just keep him quiet until the New Year.
Now on Knizia! On Friese! Let’s get out of here!”
But you hear them exclaim as they’re soaring away,
“You don’t have to win! You just have to play!”
speechless
I'm speechless, Gregory. Nicely done. Thanks for turning your literary talents to the latest show.
I love the image of Knizia and Friese as reindeer. But who's driving the sleigh? Uncle Pennybags from Monopoly? Mr Sackson? Mr Gygax? :)
PS: I thought about Klunker for the shopping category but it's not as available as it once was, so as a gift it might be harder to come by.
Broad Scope
argh - too many games ! Does not compute !
Mammoth show with some 'interesting' recommendations, mostly from the slightly left of centre mind of a certain Mr Coleson.
I've downloaded Scopa09 onto my iPhone and now I'm hooked. See you on the Scopacards website :-)
Scopa fix
Glad I can help spread the Sopa addiction far and wide.
Dave did get a little too creative dodging some of the categories, but at least the games he recommended were good ones.