Episode 141: 2011 Holiday Gift Guide
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Release Date: Nov. 28, 2011 Running Time: 190 min. Listen Now: Download: Subscribe via iTunes: See sidebar for other subscription options |
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Games for the naughty and the nice. With over 40 game suggestions in 10 categories, you're sure to find a great game for someone this holiday season.
Complete Show Notes continue after the break.
2011 Holiday Gift Guide
The organizing principle for this year's Game Buyer's Gift Guide is a simple one: quality and availability. All the games on the list have been published within the last 12 months or so and should be available from multiple brick and mortar and online retailers. In some cases, the games are only available in Europe, but not to worry, these games can be ordered from the German version of Amazon and can easily arrive in time for the holidays.
We have broken the list into 10 different categories: Party, Card, Dexterity, Kids & Family, Genre, Oddball, Dice, Co-Op, Euro, Small Press
While the list is certainly not comprehensive, we're betting a lot of people on your list might enjoy games from one of these categories. If you decide to order a game from our list, feel free to let the shop or retailer know you heard about it on The Spiel.
We hope everyone has a great holiday season filled with fun and games!
Party Games
Ticked Off BGG | Buy It: Amazon
Pictomania BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Amazon.de
Crappy BIrthday BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Rumble in the House BGG | Buy It: Amazon
Honorable Mention:
Who Would Win? BGG | Buy It: Amazon
Card Games
Tschak! BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Stich-Meister BGG | Buy It: Amazon
On the Cards BGG | Buy It: Surprised Stare
Honorable Mention:
A Few Acres of Snow BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Core Worlds BGG | Buy It: Stronghold Games - Preorder
Mundus Novus BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Dexterity Games
Angry Birds: Knock on Wood BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Mogel Motte BGG | Buy It: Amazon.de
Fliegende Teppiche BGG
Ascending Empires BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Honorable Mention:
Geistesblitz BGG | Buy It: Amazon.de
Kids & Family Games
Kalimambo BGG | Buy It: Amazon.de
Bears! BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
K2 BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Honorable Mention:
Monster Falle BGG | Buy It: Amazon.de
Genre Games
Mansions of Madness BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Battleship Galaxies BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Blood Bowl Team Manager BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Fortune & Glory BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Honorable Mention:
Legend of Drizzt BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Ankh Morpork BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Oddball Games
Dr. Shark BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Dungeon Fighter BGG | Buy It:
Mondo BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Tante Trudel's Trodel BGG | Buy It: Amazon.de
Honorable Mention:
Caveman Curling BGG | Buy It: Kickstarter
Poseidon's Kingdom BGG | Buy It: Fragor Games
Dice Games
Alien Frontiers BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
King of Tokyo BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Quarriors BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Bears BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Honorable Mention:
Square Shooters BGG | Buy It: Amazon
Co-Op Games
Yggdrasil BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Flash Point: Fire Rescure BGG | Buy It: Starlit
Sidibaba BGG
Panic Station BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Honorable Mention:
Euro Games
Strasbourg BGG | Buy It: Starlit
Walnut Grove BGG | Buy It: Amazon.de
Kingdom Builder BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Trajan BGG | Buy It: AllGames4you (Germany)
Honorable Mention:
Ninjato BGG | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Small Press Games
Omen: A Reign of War BGG | Kickstarter for 2nd Edition!
Potion Making Practice BGG | Right Games | Buy It: Ebay
Engage BGG | Table Tactics | Buy It: Boards & Bits
Eruption BGG | Stratus Games | Buy It: Amazon | Starlit
Picks for Dave
Aquileia BGG
Santiago de Cuba BGG
Mil-1049 BGG
Fistful of Penguins BGG
Casa Grande BGG
Picks for Stephen
Ankh Morpork BGG
The Road to Canterbury BGG
Miscellany
Music credits include:
Flibberty Gibbet by Twink, The Toy Piano Band | YouTube
Peppermint Bee by Twink, The Toy Piano Band | YouTube
I Like Bananas Because They Have No Bones by The Hoosier Hotshots | download song
Errata
I'm sure there are some goofs in there somewhere. Let us know if (when?) you find one!
In the Small Press Category one of my honorable mention games is 1955: The War of Espionage NOT 1950 as stated on the show.
Comments
Adding to my list
I think the holiday gift guides are my favorite Spiel episodes. So many great games to try and buy! At the top of my list is probably On The Cards -- it sounds like what Fluxx should have been. Can't wait to give it a try. And it's on my Christmas wish list, so I might have it soon... And Strasbourg is quite high up there as well.
In the category of recent acclaimed simultaneous puzzle-solving games, do you like Mondo or Uluru better?
logic or pattern recognition?
Thanks, Josh. We always have fun putting our lists together. :)
As for Mondo/Uluru, I suppose it comes down to whether you like logic puzzles or pattern recognition more. Or whether you like really fast puzzles or puzzles that take a little more time. Uluru has a strong logic component and has a shorter time limit. Mondo is more about pattern recognition on the tiles and has a much more relaxed time limit. Hope that helps!
HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE?
I do not understand why you listed so many games that are unavailable for the 2011 holiday season??? Is this not a 2011 holiday gift guide???
they are available - check the links
Not sure what you mean. There are links listed by each game in the guide showing where you can purchase them right now.
In addition, we made it clear on the show that, yes, some of the games are only available in Europe at the moment. In the internet age we live in, that is certainly no impediment for buying/giving gifts, especially when one can get flat rate shipping through Amazon.de.