Lumberjack Jenga (a review of Toc Toc Woodman)

The life of a lumberjack. The smell of the forest, the sweat on your brow, the satisfaction after a hard day's work. But what if this life also involved a tiny ax, a bark-only harvesting method, and lots of laughs?

Well, then you'd be playing Toc Toc Woodman. And you'd probably be having a good time to boot.

Guide to Gaming: Two's Company, Three's a Crowd--Good Games for Two (and More)

This is a gaming blog. I don't think I need to sell you on the pleasures of gaming. We all know this simple truth: life is hard sometimes, and a good game with good friends is good medicine.

Of course, finding friends to play games isn't always the easiest. There are the occasional (or even weekly) game nights, but the friends most readily at hand are likely found in the home. The friend I play games with the most (and also my favorite gaming partner) is my wife, but finding a good two-player game can be difficult, especially if you want to maximize your gaming dollar. I don't often buy games that don't have a two-player mode (unless they are obvious group games, like The Resistance), and a good two-player mode is often what keeps games hitting the table and off my BGG trade list. Since I've had some false starts and some successes, I thought I'd put together a brief guide for others who might be in the same boat.

What follows is a list (with some commentary) of good multiplayer games that are fun with two to help you get the most out of your gaming dollar. (I've also added a brief list without commentary of some two-player-only games that are worth your time.)

News Bits: 4/15/2013

A fairly light week as far as news is concerned, but there's some good stuff here nonetheless. Here it is, the NEWS:

Z-Man Games reveals Pandemic triptych [Link] Z-Man Games revealed the final artwork for the In the Lab and On the Brink Pandemic expansion covers this week, and all three games form one long photo. Is this a compelling enough reason to buy the new edition? Maybe, just maybe...

My Year in Games: 2012

Starting near the end of April 2011, I began to track every game I play (give or take a few, I'm sure) on Board Game Geek. And starting in January of 2012, I gave an overview of the games I played in the previous year, namely my "nickels and dimes" (games played 5+ and 10+ times, respectively).

It's time to continue that tradition. Here's my list of nickels and dimes from 2012, along with some commentary and a comparison to my list from 2011.

Tabletop Shuffleboard (a review of Crokinole)

This game takes up most of our kitchen table.

If I ever tell you that I have bad luck in contests, you have my permission to hit me. I've won lots of stuff over the years, and I usually use the excuse, "Well, it was a shallow pool," downplaying the role luck played in my being chosen.

But how do I justify winning a headlining Board Game Geek contest with thousands of entrants?

Twice?

You might want to just hit me anyway.

One item I won on the Geek, and also the highest-valued item I've won, was a brand-new Crokinole board from Mayday Games. Crokinole is an old dexterity game that is very well received but normally cost prohibitive to own. Mayday Games has sought to rectify this with their new line of tournament boards. But how is the quality? Do you get what you pay for?

(Gaming) Life after Baby

As followers of this blog are well aware, I experienced a major life event in the last few months: the birth of my first son. While I am so grateful to have him around, there is one area of my life that has required a lot of adjustment: gaming.

My primary gaming partner before the Farmerlet arrived was my wife, but now with the (understandable) demands on her time, our gaming interactions have changed. So what have I been up to in the recent weeks? Find out below!

FDQ: What Do You Play to Relax?

Some days you don't want to play Agricola. Or Troyes. Or a game that burns your brains out. Some days you had a tough day at the office, or the babe you love so much has been screaming nonstop. Some days you need a stiff coffee, a cold piece of pie, and a relaxing game of...what? That's today's question: What game do you play to relax?

@FarmerLenny answers:
This has been in my thoughts lately, now that we have a new child in the house. While I often prefer the 60-90 minute games, my wife, who bears the brunt of the wee lad's whines and screams, if she wants to play anything, prefers to keep it light. And that's okay. So what games get played in our house when we want to relax?

Canasta is an old favorite. Canasta is a breezy game that can allow conversation or not, and since my wife and I have played this game for years, it doesn't require the brain power of some of the newer, shinier games. (Even newer games that are easy often require more brain power than the old stand-bys.) Jaipur is another game that can be relaxing. We also play Drop Site to unwind.

More recent acquisitions are Through the Desert (though playing with pastel camels after Easter seems unseasonal), Roll through the Ages, and Crokinole. I like the first two because they have some strategy and skill, but there aren't a lot of moving parts to monitor. I like Crokinole because all it is is moving parts. All of these games work well because they are played in rounds that usually last 10-20 minutes. They're easy to pick up and set down. And best of all, they allow us to be together and feel like we're doing something, even if it's not farming in the seventeenth century.

@Futurewolfie answers:
Honestly, playing board games in general is pretty relaxing to me.  Whatever hits the table, it's a chance to step back from the frenetic pace of digital life.  Even some of the more complex games throw less information per second at your eyes and brain than your average website.  Still, it's true, some games are more brain-burning than others and i'm not going to squeeze in Twilight Imperium for a quick break.  Most of the "relaxing" games I play with my wife, and we most commonly play Dominion.  Although Pandemic has seen quite the resurgence lately with the addition of the On the Brink expansion, and since it's cooperative there are no hard feelings at the end (except, perhaps, disappointment at a loss).