A con report, a solo game about coming out, and big news brewing in the Spielaverse.

Mike McMann gives us a day by day account of his adventures at Origins Game Fair.

Paco Garcia joins us for a Meal segment and we discuss the inspiration behind and meaningful discoveries possible through his deeply personal solo rpg Closet.

Last but not least, a new (and very exciting) chapter begins for The Spiel Foundation.

Listen in for some great gaming conversations!

During the Second World War, thousands of French citizens fled to the wilderness (the maquis) rather than be sent to work in Germany. Those who fled became the core of the French resistance, the Maquis. Working in small groups, they gathered intelligence and fought fascist forces when and how they could. They were constantly outnumbered and undersupplied.

Fortunately, they had support from abroad.

The British led Special Operations Executive built a network to conduct covert operations and unleash a campaign of sabotage behind enemy lines. The SOE are most well known for laying the groundwork for the invasion of Normandy and supporting the Maquis. 

In War Story: Occupied France, you and your fellow players form a team of SOE agents. During the waning months of 1943, your team will conduct three missions to prevent the destruction of Maquis forces in the small town of Morette. Guided by choose-your-own-adventure style booklets, can you gather the intel, equipment, and allies needed to stop the relentless Officer Heidenreich? Each mission will put the talents and tactics of your team to the test. Time is short. Each decision could be the difference betwen survival and utter ruin.

Read on to learn why we love War Story: Occupied France.

Onion pie, killer aliens, and a car sold to fund a game convention. 

Roger Leroux grabs a seat at the table for a Meal segment, offering up a delicious traditional onion pie recipe paired with a card game about crying onions.

We visit Gubbins in Co-Op Corner and he introduces us to The Captain is Dead. Can your starship crew work together to escape the clutches of killer aliens?

KC Ogbuagu joins us from Nibcard Game Cafe in Abuja, Nigeria to chat about his amazing career and life in games. His dedication runs so deep he sold his car to fund AB Con, now the largest and longest running game convention in sub-Saharan Africa.

The land many think of as the United States was taken by force from hundreds of indigenous tribes. The so-called Indian Wars were waged for over 300 years, spanning well into the 20th century and their result was genocide for millions. The majority of these once thriving civilizations have been utterly crippled, conquered, or simply destroyed.

Within this greater conflict, Burn the Fort focuses on a specific era - the western invasion of indigenous lands in the latter half of the 1800s. The construction of the transcontinental railroad accelerated expansion and colonization. Military fortresses were built to provide stability to the conquering army and encourage more settlers to move west and claim land.

Players in the game take on the role of historic indigenous warriors resisting colonial invasion. Use cards to enhance your tribe's ability to fight back. Gather and trade arrowhead tokens to unlock abilities. Manage alliances with other warriors, knowing colonial powers are actively working to erode them. Time is short. If the Golden Spike is laid and the railroad connecting the coasts is complete, mass colonization will be impossible to stop. You must attack relentless lines of wagons heading west to slow expansion, hoping to collect enough fire tokens to burn the colonizer’s fort to the ground.

Read on to learn why we love Burn the Fort.

A diatom is a single cell micro algae, a type of plankton, found in Earth’s waterways. They make up over half the biomass in all oceans and produce a massive portion of the oxygen in our atmosphere. Diatoms have iridescent silica shells which produce colorful displays, thus earning them the moniker “jewels of the sea.” Their shells form simple symmetrical geometric shapes.

In the 19th century, as microscopes opened our eyes to this magnificent unseen world, creative naturalists began arranging diatoms into artful mosaics on glass slides. This was an incredibly painstaking process, washing and placing each tiny delicate diatom into patterns.

In this game, each player is a dedicated naturalist, creating microscopic mosiacs from diatoms you collect from a nearby pond. There are many factors to balance when deciding what tiny shapes to collect and where to place them on your board. Create the most pleasing arrangement to score well and win the day.

Read on to discover why Diatoms is Major Fun!

A trio of guests join our table.

Bruce Voge stops in for a chat about games based on ideas or topics that seem downright un-gamifiable. Is it possible to game the ungame-able game?

Toy maker and promoter Jason Hsieh tells us about his favorite game, What's the Point, AND... we talk about the toll tariffs are taking on his small business.

Last but not least, Lucio Rodriguez shines the Back Shelf Spotlight on Heroscape, a genre bending battle game with a huge following that has found a second life.

In the pantheon of French cuisine, there is a holy Trinity: wine, bread, and cheese. As a small cheesemaker in France, you want your work to be admired, respected, and (most of all) savored by palates far and wide.

Assign your staff to a rotating game board shaped like a wheel of cheese, one wedge at a time. You’ll gather ingredients and provide hard, soft and blue cheeses to your patrons. Each wedge provides a different audience and a different way to score - a shop, a restaurant, a festival or a distributor.

How will you enhance your operation? New equipment? Larger milking stations? New recipes or special orders? Timing is the key. Strike a balance  between competing forces and you’ll carve out a prestigious place in France  for your Fromagerie!

Read on to learn why we love Fromage!

In Odin, you will play Viking villager cards to gain favor with the Allfather. Send cards from your hand to Valhalla by surpassing the value of your neighbor’s contribution. This is a modern twist on a classic climbing or “ladder-style” game. Start with a single card. Each card or set of cards must be higher than the last. Points are bad in Odin, meaning lowest score wins. Assemble the best combinations of like colors or numbers to shed your cards before everyone else.

Read on to discover why Odin is Major Fun!

Season 20 begins with flourish and 3 Gs. Growth, Gubbins, and GAMA!

Growth: We introduce a new format for the show, allowing the podcast, the award programs, and the Spiel Foundation time and space to grow.

Gubbins: Co-Op Corner, a new segment hosted by our very own Gubbins makes its debut. We explore Zoo Break. Try to keep pandas, meerkats, snakes, rhinos, tigers, elephants and other critters from escaping into the city.

GAMA: Erwin Susara and I recap our adventures at the GAMA Expo, taking a deep dive into the event, the organization, and our hope to build an even greater community for the foundation and beyond.

In our season finale, two award winning games earn our Meeple Crown for 2024. These games embody the essence of Major Fun and The Spiel of Approval. Congratulations to Life in Reterra and Daybreak!