Release Date: June 13, 2011 Running Time:  147 min. Listen Now: Download: Enhanced Version  MP3 Version Subscribe via iTunes: Enhanced - MP3 See sidebar for other subscription options

Kids at heart. From magnetic wizards and sliding monsters to racing worms, we review the nominees for the most prestigious award for children's games, the Kinderspiel des Jahres, and try to predict the winner.

The Nominees: Magician's Kitchem, Monster Trap, There's A Worm In It
Recommended List:  Der Grosse Kullern, Kissenschlacht, Zicke Zacke, Das Grosse Tier-Rätsel, 1000 Une Ein Schatz, Pappsatt, Grimaffen, Kleine Frschmusik, Magors Lesezauber, Banana Jump, Schätzinsel, Escape from T-Rex
Predictions:  Our favorite, our selection, who will win

Complete Show Notes continue after the break.

Release Date: June 6, 2011 Running Time:  142 min. Listen Now: Download: Enhanced Version  MP3 Version Subscribe via iTunes: Enhanced - MP3 See sidebar for other subscription options

There can be only one. Winner, that is. We review the nominees for the most prestigious award in gaming, The Spiel des Jahres, and try to predict the winner.

The Nominees: Qwirkle, Forbidden Island, Asara
Recommended List:  Geistesblitz, Blockers, Uluru, Mondo, Skull & Roses, Sun Sea & Sand, Freeze, Safranito
Predictions:  Our favorite, our pick, who will win

Complete Show Notes continue after the break.

Release Date: May 30, 2011 Running Time:  140 min. Listen Now: Download: Enhanced Version  MP3 Version Subscribe via iTunes: Enhanced - MP3 See sidebar for other subscription options

The secret is butter. We whet our appetites with an in-depth review of The Secret of Monte Cristo, followed by a look at two games first published in magazines.

News & Notes: Walking Dead x2, Dragon Rampage, Kittens in a Blender
The List:  The Secret of Monte Cristo
Back Shelf Spotlight:  Awful Green Things From Outer Space
Truckloads of Goober:  Farkle Frenzy
Playbill:  Great Western
Game Sommelier:  5 games based on UNESCO World Heritage sites
Mail Bag:  Pastiche feedback, alternat tv series, Nedderman dice

Complete Show Notes continue after the break.

Release Date: May 16, 2011 Running Time:  146 min. Listen Now: Download: Enhanced Version  MP3 Version Subscribe via iTunes: Enhanced - MP3 See sidebar for other subscription options

True Colors. Grab your brush, step up to the easel and join us for a review of Pastiche, a game about mixing paints to create famous works of art.

News & Notes: Alien Frontiers translated, Nedderman Custom Dice, Lancaster
The List:  Pastiche
Back Shelf Spotlight:  Masterpiece
Truckloads of Goober:  Back-of-the-board art
Playbill:  Munchkin Zombies
Game Sommelier:  5 games to use on a reality TV show for gamers
Mail Bag:  Periodic Table dice, Toruro on Pagat, Sommelier feedback

Complete Show Notes continue after the break.

Release Date: May 2, 2011 Running Time:  157 min. Listen Now: Download: Enhanced Version  MP3 Version Subscribe via iTunes: Enhanced - MP3 See sidebar for other subscription options

From Hell. Slip into the foggy gaslit streets with us for an in-depth review of Letters from Whitechapel, a game where players try to plan or prevent Jack the Ripper's killing spree.

News & Notes: Hasbro woes, Deadwood, Uncle Chestnut's Table Gype
The List:  Letters from Whitechapel
Table Talk:  The Game of Great Detectives - Sherlock Holmes
Back Shelf Spotlight:  Bakerstreet
Game Sommelier:  5 games Tom & Eric (The Dice Tower) are terrible at but love to play
Mail Bag:  yucata.de, TableCon, dice pics

Complete Show Notes continue after the break.

Release Date: Apr. 18, 2011 Running Time:  161 min. Listen Now: Download: Enhanced Version  MP3 Version Subscribe via iTunes: Enhanced - MP3 See sidebar for other subscription options

Unleashed. We celebrate 5 years of The Spiel by wagging The Long Tail of gaming, reviewing 9 old obscure and off-the-wall games.

News & Notes: boardga.me, Show Business, Upper Deck: Evolution
The List:  Irondale
Playbill:  R.U.M.B.L.
Back Shelf Spotlight:  Muzundrum, Senet, Image
Truckloads of Goober:  Astron, Sinking of the Titanic, Lie Detector, Robot Quiz
Game Sommelier:  5 games that are more fun to lose
Mail Bag:  Sommelier suggestions, Shapeways dice, Catapult

Complete Show Notes continue after the break.

Release Date: April 4, 2011 Running Time:  138 min. Listen Now: Download: Enhanced Version  MP3 Version Subscribe via iTunes: Enhanced - MP3 See sidebar for other subscription options

It's not easy being green. We delve into a treasure trove of fantasy themed games including Defenders of the Realm and Thunderstone: Dragonspire.

News & Notes: Fortune & Glory, Artus, SdJ Scholarship, 2010 industry report
The List:  Defenders of the Realm
Playbill:  Thunderstone: Dragonspire
Back Shelf Spotlight:  Advanced Heroquest
Truckloads of Goober:  Catan Tables
Game Sommelier:  5 games where people can jump in late
Mail Bag:  Sommelier responses, Studio Descartes, Robo Derby Express

Complete Show Notes continue after the break.

Release Date: Mar. 21, 2011 Running Time:  126 min. Listen Now: Download: Enhanced Version  MP3 Version Subscribe via iTunes: Enhanced - MP3 See sidebar for other subscription options

What's the rumpus? We dive into the dark waters of international smuggling for a review of Cargo Noir plus three other brand new titles: Nightfall, Chronicle and Shake 'n Take.

News & Notes: Hike, Mirror Mirror, Winter Tales
The List:  Cargo Noir
Playbill:  Nightfall
Table Talk:  Chronicle
The Kid's Table:  Shake 'n Take
Game Sommelier:  5 gamerly games improvised from classic games
Mail Bag:  Lost die, Balloon Tardis, Dave turns 28

Complete Show Notes continue after the break.

Release Date: Mar. 7, 2011 Running Time:  156 min. Listen Now: Download: Enhanced Version  MP3 Version Subscribe via iTunes: Enhanced - MP3 See sidebar for other subscription options

Synchronize your watches. We fire up the TARDIS for a time travel adventure, including a review of the clock winding brain burner Khronos, a look back at a classic Doctor Who title, and a dive into the history of the sand timer.

News & Notes: Guards! Guards!, Awful Green Things, China Daily article
The List:  Khronos
Back Shelf Spotlight:  Doctor Who: The Game of Time & Space
A History of Games in 100 Objects:  The Sand Timer
Game Sommelier:  5 games improved by removing dice
Mail Bag:  Ludology, Uno float pics, German game company map

Complete Show Notes continue after the break.

Release Date: Feb. 21, 2011 Running Time:  155 min. Listen Now: Download: Enhanced Version  MP3 Version Subscribe via iTunes: Enhanced - MP3 See sidebar for other subscription options

We the people. We break out the powdered wigs to review Founding Fathers, a game where players write or rewrite history by creating the Constitution.

News & Notes: Cheapass Games, English Fauna, Bits, Mohenjo-Daro
The List:  Founding Fathers
Truckloads of Goober:  Carcassonne anniversary items, Secret of Monte Cristo
Designer's Workbench:  Games as simulations
Game Sommelier:  5 potentially offensive games
Mail Bag:  Moons are not planets, Facebook Q&A

Complete Show Notes continue after the break.