Episode 120: Sun, Whisky, and Sea Monsters
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Release Date: Feb. 7, 2011 Running Time: 103 min. Listen Now: Download: Subscribe via iTunes: See sidebar for other subscription options |
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Island hoppers. We travel to Samoa, Atlantis and Scotland to review Hotel Samoa, Survive: Escape from Atlantis and Glen More.
News & Notes: Qwarriors, King of Tokyo, Geekway to the West
The List: Hotel Samoa
Table Talk: Glen More
Back Shelf Spotlight: Survive: Escape from Atlantis
Game Sommelier: 5 games to connect Uno and Mah Jongg
Mail Bag: Gong cases for Crokinole, Toruro-Booray connection
Complete Show Notes continue after the break.
News & Notes
Geekway to the West Link
$25 for 4 great days of fun and games in St. Louis. Register using the link above
Quarriors Link
Upcoming dice building game from Wiz Kids with 130 custom dice.
King of Tokyo Hits Store Shelves in March Link
New Monster smashing dice game from designer Richard Garfield and French publisher Iello.
The List
Hotel Samoa Official Site | BGG | Buy It
Tourists arrive by plane every turn from a different country and with different needs. Use a single bid card to improve your hotel and attract the best bunch of vistors to your resort in this family friendly blind bidding game.
Back Shelf Spotlight
Survive: Escape from Atlantis Official Site | BGG | Buy It
The island of Atlantis is sinking and it's your job to guide as many of your people to safety as you can while avoiding perilous dangers that lurk in the water: sea monsters, sharks, whales, and giant squid! Reprint of the great Parker Brothers Classic.
Table Talk
Glen More Official Site | BGG | Buy It
Strategic tile laying game with Scottish clans competing for chieftans, landmarks, and whisky.
The Game Sommelier
The Challenge: 5 games to connect Rattus to Last Call
Next Challenge: 5 potentially offensive/controversial games
Mail Bag
Gong Cases for Crokinole Boards Link
Thanks to Paul Marshall for this ingenious solution to travelling with your Crokinole board. Gongs Unlimited sells 80 CM gong bags perfectly sized for Crokinole boards.
Toruro and Booray
Thanks to Andrés Pabon for pointing out the (now) obvious connections between Toruro and Booray.
Andrés has translated the rules (pdf) to Toruro for us in Episode 73.
Miscellany
Music credits (courtesy of IODA promonet) include:
No IODA tracks this time
Non-Ioda Music:
Do It Your Own Way by The Voodoo Trombone Quartet | buy the track
Siva Faiaoga (Traditional Samoan dance) | link | buy Fa'a Samoa album
Pei Oa Uma by Jerome Grey | buy the track
Muy Sabroso Blues by Lalo Guerrero | buy the track
Pua'a Choux from All-Time Tahitian Favorites | buy the album
Potii Moorea from All-Time Tahitian Favorites | buy the album
I'm sure there are some goofs in there somewhere. Let us know if (when?) you find one!
Comments
new web host - send me email!
Due to a complete web site and email meltdown and woeful/inept customer service, I was forced to do a spur-of-the-moment site migration over the past two days. We are now running live on our new host and everything (fingers crossed!) seems to be working well so far.
The important thing is I need to run our email accounts through their paces. I've heard from several publishers in the last couple weeks that they couldn't reach us via email. Now that we are set up on a new email server and I have more control over spam filters and such, I need to test things out.
I'd love to hear from some Spielers so I can make sure things are working. Drop me a line!
stephen@thespiel.net
Found You
Welcome to your new site - finally found you after clearing out my cache.
You can switch your DNS, but you can't hide.
I declare Dave's 5 degrees of separation null and void as he reused Dos Rios which was in my Your Move entry.
As a mathematician I still contend that 5 degrees should be four games plus the final destination game, in which case Dave could still have got there because Red Planet could easily leap you to Mahjong via the Red Dragon tiles. honours even.
I used to have 'Escape from Atlantis' back in the 1980s - I picked it up in a charity shop. Pleased to see it back in print and bummed that I do not still have my original. I do not remember it as that good of a game although the new goober sounds awesome.
and, yes indeed, Samoa are a good rugby nation. Many of their national team play in the New Zealand league so they get the benefit of some excellent coaching. Let's hope the influence of American Samoa does not draw them to the technically inferior American Football.
That comment should put the cat amongst the pigeons :-)
stirring the pot?
Welcome back, Pikey. New digs look a lot like the old digs, eh?
Trying to get us ugly Americans to take the rugby bait, eh? Sorry, but rugby is cool! Admittedly, not as cool as real football, but it is amazingly rough and fun to play. When I was at uni in Nottinghamhshire for a semester, we had an intramural game every week with some teams in Grantham and I have never been so tired and sore... and happy to see a pint waiting for me afterward.
Leave it to you to go all Knizia with our "degrees." I'll have to call Dave out for cheating on Dos Rios!
Bubble and squeak
I agree that rugby isn't as cool as real football. While I don't follow it avidly, I always enjoy watching the World Cup and the Liverpool/ Chelsea game this weekend was also entertaining.
Just taking the spoon there in case Pike's arm was getting tired.
reality bites
Real football season just ended. I don't know what you mean, Gregory...
I don't mind an occasional soccer match, but I'd rather play Subbuteo than watch it.
Besides all of these second tier sports don't hold a candle to curling.
Curlers
I haven't had my hair curled in ages. Is it a sport now?
I have to confess that watching subbuteo is not very exciting but I still prefer it to all those guys dressed in padding at the fruit bowl.
By any other name...
"I haven't had my hair curled in ages. Is it a sport now?"
Sure it is. Haven't you heard of roller derby?
broom stacking
Mock away if you must, but name another sport that encourages a wee dram (or two) whilst playing (keeps you warm of course).
You can have your hooligans at the soccer pitch any day. I'll take my broom stackers. :)
Actually, no, Virginia...
Oh dear. I was hoping Steerpike would be the one to have this talk with you but... well, look I know it's fun to pretend and... but, you see, there comes a time... oh gosh, I can't... I know this is going to be hard but...
J.K. Rowling made it all up okay? Quidditch isn't a real sport.
Oh, I feel awful. What? Uh, yeah. Yeah, the Easter Bunny is coming. (One thing at a time; one thing at a time...)
Hmmm.. name another sport that encourages a wee dram... what you mean there are some that don't?
crestfallen
A boy and his broom...
You really know how to crush a guy's hopes and dreams...
Guess we'll have to stick to the rocks for now.
Spoonerisms
thanks for picking up the spoons Gregory.
I knew Stephen would reply while I was out of the kitchen. There are plenty more in the cutlery draw if you want to keep things going :-)
Just getting to this episode
I just have to say that I love the Sommelier challenge. And can't wait to hear what you've come up with. I have some ideas of my own, probably not even games that would normally be considered controversial...but the way we play them takes them to a dark and wrong place.
Also, I really want to try out Hotel Samoa, that sounds really interesting.
intrigued / afraid
I am intrigued by what games would be on your list based on how you play them. And a little afraid! :)
This means you'll have to post them after the next episode here on the site.
As for my list, I tried to take the challenge from a slightly different angle (thanks to a nudge from a fellow Spieler). Stay tuned!
giant squid
I forgot to include a link to the Giant Squid expansion for Survive.
How can you go wrong with wooden cephalopods? Link