Boardgames To-Go

Fairplay's final scouting results

Essen 2004 is now over, and Fairplay's scouting report is finalized. Here's the complete list of every game that got at least 10 votes. I'd prefer to use 25 as the cutoff, but that left off too many games. Were there fewer votes this year, or maybe more games overall that spread out the votes? As before, I transformed their voting system into a 10-point scale similar to what's familiar from Boardgamegeek, the Internet Top100 list, and so on.

Winners
Im Schatten des Drachen (In the Shadow of the Dragon) is an expansion/2-player version for Rückkehr der Helden. Not my kind of game. The next highly ranked game is Alea's not-yet-ready Louis XIV. It's typical for Alea to test or show their upcoming game at Essen. I'm glad it's so good, but it won't be available for months.

But the next one, Ys, is one to look for. Limited edition from a new company...this had all the makings of a wait-and-see game. It sure got high marks, though, and from plenty of people. I hope I can track down a copy.

Penki is a Pretty Wooden Abstract, so not for everyone (remember my comments earlier about niche games?). Normally I'd be interested, and I guess I still might be. But another X-in-a-row game?

Oltremare is one that Mik Svellov said good things about before the show, and that's certainly proved to be right. It was a limited edition game. "Was," because I heard they sold all of the copies they brought to Essen. I imagine more will be produced, though that may take a little time. Or perhaps there are some available at distributors. Jenseits von Theben (Beyond Thebes) is the next highly rated game, also limited edition. Did it sell out? Note the limited number of votes, though. Take it with a grain of salt.

Oh, heck...I'm too tired to write any more about these games. Anyone can read this table. I'd be very careful about choosing any near the bottom of the list. Might be some real stinkers down there. I've certainly crossed a couple games off my wishlist after seeing these scouting results and reading some online reports. I've added a few to the list, too.

			Votes
Game	Publisher	Rating	Total	1	2	3	4	5	6
Im Schatten des Drachen	Pegasus	9	17	11	4	1	1
Louis XIV	Alea	9	36	21	10	4	1
Ys	Ystari	9	44	23	12	9
Penki	HiKu	9	12	3	9
Oltremare	Mind the Move	8	66	27	30	6	1	2
Jenseits von Theben	Prinz Spiele	8	12	5	3	4
Feudo	Zugames	8	15	7	2	6
Memoir 44	Days of Wonder	8	19	8	4	7
Das Zepter von Zavandor	Lookout Games	8	58	23	23	5	6	1
Scottish Highland Whisky Race	JKLM Games	8	20	8	6	5	1
Struggle of Empires	Warfrog	8	26	8	12	5		1
Die dunklen Lande	Hans im Glück	8	13	2	9	2
Im Auftrag des Königs	Adlung	8	28	6	16	5	1
Wie ich die Welt sehe...	Abacus	8	41	7	27	5	2
De Ontembare Stadt	The Game Master	8	27	7	13	5	2
Munchkin 2	Pegasus	8	23	6	10	5	2
Black Elephant	LudoArt	8	21	5	10	4	2
Himalaya	Tilsit Éditions	8	34	11	14	5	2	1	1
Leapfrog	Fragor Games	8	37	7	19	9	1	1
Jambo	Kosmos	8	22	5	8	8	1
Old Town	Clicker Spiele	8	65	13	33	11	7	1
Team Work	Adlung	7	17	3	9	3	1	1
Reef Encounter	R&D Games	7	27	2	18	4	3
Flix Mix	Adlung	7	20	5	6	8		1
Niagara	Zoch	7	90	15	40	26	9
Chinagold	Bambus	7	31	4	15	10	2
Ins Innere Afrikas	Phalanx Games	7	21	6	7	3	5
City and Guilds	JKLM Games	7	18	2	9	6	1
Friedrich	histogame	7	12	2	6	2	2
Baubylon	Clemens Gerhards	7	11	1	7	1	2
Geschenkt (...ist noch zu teuer!)	Amigo	7	106	20	46	23	15	2
Große Geschäfte	BeWitched-Spiele	7	44	10	15	12	5	2
Der Prestel Schlossgarten	Prestel	7	31	4	17	5	3	2
Neuland	Eggert-Spiele	7	54	10	22	12	9	1
Spank the money	Gigantoskop	7	24	5	8	7	3	1
Meisterdiebe	Zoch	7	80	8	41	19	10	2
Typo	Cwali	7	36	5	14	12	5
Sole Mio	Abacus	7	27	2	13	9	3
Wings of War	Mad Man's Magic	7	18		12	5			1
Meine Zwerge fliegen hoch	Pegasus	7	14	4	3	5	1		1
SeaSim	Cwali	7	61	6	26	22	6		1
Telebohn	Lookout Games	7	13	2	5	4	1	1
Der Untergang von Pompeji	Amigo	7	139	11	61	48	19
Tanz der Hornochsen	Amigo	7	115	11	49	41	8	6
Carcassonne - Die Stadt	Hans im Glück	7	85	9	35	27	12	2
Razzia	Amigo	7	53	5	23	17	6	2
Der Graf von Carcassonne	Hans im Glück	7	24	1	13	7	1	2
Dicke Dämonen	Edition Erlkönig	7	39	2	19	12	5	1
Goldbräu	Zoch	7	119	8	48	48	14		1
Bootleggers	Eagle Games	7	19	1	9	5	4
Die Tore der Stadt	Queen Games	7	11	1	4	4	2
Sackwas	Witt-Spiele	7	11	2	4	2	2	1
Im Schatten des Kaisers	Hans im Glück	7	72	10	24	23	12	3
Flandern 1302	Queen Games	7	89	11	34	24	13	7
Capt'n Kidd	Bambus	7	19		8	9	2
In 80 Tagen um die Welt	Kosmos	7	35	5	10	15	2	1	2
Die Weinhändler	Amigo	7	76	1	31	32	10	2
Railroad Dice - Deutschland	Wassertal Spieleverlag	6	30	3	11	9	4	3
Colossal Arena	Fantasy Flight Games	6	14		7	3	4
Garten-Zwerge e.V.	Argentum	6	33	2	10	15	5	1
Boomtown	Face 2 Face Games	6	26	1	10	9	5	1
Piranha Pedro	Goldsieber	6	144	17	49	42	21	10	5
Schätzbold	Lookout Games	6	33	3	14	5	7	4
Kablamo	Gigantoskop	6	28	4	10	6	3	4	1
Moguli	Abacus	6	14		4	8	2
Pompeji	CardChess	6	48	4	13	20	5	6
UFOs! Fritten aus dem All	Argentum	6	14	1	2	8	3
Block It!	The Game Master	6	16	2	5	3	5		1
Bohnaparte	Amigo	6	10		4	3	2	1
DRG	Themenspiele Meppen	6	10		4	3	2	1
Candamir	Kosmos	6	102	8	25	34	28	6	1
Employee of the Month	Dancing Eggplant Games	6	30	1	8	14	3	4
Feenbalz	Krimsus Krimskrams-Kiste	6	15		4	7	3	1
Metallurgie	Argentum	6	23	1	5	11	3	3
Karibik	Winning Moves	6	98	7	24	35	20	9	3
Bad Hollywood	Krimsus Krimskrams-Kiste	6	10		1	7	2
Piratengold	LudoArt	6	28		4	16	7	1
Hexenhammer	Sphinx Spieleverlag	6	26		5	14	4	3
Jochen der Rochen	Zoch	6	14		3	5	6
Die Gärten der Alhambra	Queen Games	6	73	5	12	30	16	7	3
Frantic Frankfurt	Kronberger	5	38	2	5	13	15	2	1
Sicilianos	Zoch	5	14	1	2	4	4	3
Submarine	Winning Moves	5	71		11	30	20	8	2
Skaal	Tilsit Éditions	5	33	1	4	11	13	4
Knock! Knock!	Jolly Roger Games	5	12	1	2	3	3	2	1
Clocktower	Jolly Roger Games	5	15		3	3	6	2	1
Das Prestel Nasenspiel	Prestel	5	11			5	5		1
Popeln	Sphinx Spieleverlag	4	31	2	5	3	11	8	2
Bloody Legacy	Surprised Stare Games Ltd.	4	17		4	6	1	1	5
Ligretto2	Schmidt	4	13		3	1	4	5
Hispanola	Pro Ludo	4	23		1	10	6	2	4
Media Mogul	JKLM Games	4	12		1	5	2	1	3
Gruftmeister - The Directors Cut	YunGames	4	10		1	2	4	2	1
Powersoccer	Eggert-Spiele	4	18		1	7	1	6	3
Casanova	KidultGame	3	14		1	1	6	5	1
YES	Ravensburger	3	17			2	8	4	3

Yet more Essen scouting

Fairplay posted a substantial update to the scouting report, now with data through the end of Friday. With the time change, I imagine the Saturday-ending update ought to be out soon, too. There'll be one more on Sunday, but I bet the ratings are already starting to settle down. The current set of data has at least ten ratings for each game. Now the best and best-missed games appear to be...

Winners (rating 8+): Ys, Louis XIV, Oltremare
Losers (rating 5-): Popeln, Submarine

Gosh, not many titles despite there being much more data. I expect that's because the ratings are normalizing around 6-8, just like they do on Boardgamegeek. That's the middle part of the bell curve, where almost all games end up. I think for my next look at the data I'll reach down to rating 7 and up for winners, and to 6 and below for "losers."

First scouting report

There's not really enough data to go on yet, but Fairplay magazine has posted ratings from the first day. Almost no games have even 10 ratings yet, and none have 25 yet (the minimum I prefer to use). So we really should wait a few more days.

But who can wait?!? :-)

OK, if I set an absolute minimum threshold of 5 ratings (which could come from a single playing of a game!), a few early winners & losers reveal themselves.

Winners (rating 8+): Geschenkt, Niagara, Carcassone:The City, Piranha Pedro, and Master Thief (Meisterdiebe)

Losers (rating 5-): Frantic Frankfurt, Popeln, Schatzbold

How accurate is Fairplay's Essen scouting?

Every year the folks from the German game magazine Fairplay set up a booth at Essen. Besides pitching subscriptions, they collect informal rankings for the new games from Essen attendees. These are shared on the web after the event (during?). The ranking system isn't the familiar 10-point scale we commonly use in the English-speaking world. Instead, it's based on a school grade system, only rather than A-F or a 4-point scale it's a 6-point scale, with 6 being worst.

It's simple enough--just look for the games scoring between 1 and 2, but today I tried inverting & transforming 2003's Fairplay results to a 10-point scale. Once I did that, I could then compare their average Essen scouting scores with the game ratings on Boardgamegeek. (I used the raw averages from BGG rather than the Bayesian ones. I don't think it really matters.)

The point of all this is to see how good of an indicator the Essen scounting reports are. Do they do a good job finding the best games in just a few frantic days? Or are there good ones that slip through? Worse, are there games with good buzz that later fall flat?

I look at this comparative data and come away with the conclusion that the Essen scouting is pretty good, but not great. Put another way, it's good overall, but with some notable exceptions. Last year, the Essen scouting kind of missed Santiago. You can't really say the same about Carcassonne:The Castle--there was lots of attention paid to it--but the later opinion of that game was notably higher than the early buzz at Essen. Over-expectations, perhaps? Attika is somewhere in between. It didn't have the attention of The Castle, but was much more visible than Santiago. It's just that the opinion of the game rose even higher after the event. (It was still a Top Ten game in the Essen scouting, accurate enough.)

Yinsh is special in that it's a niche game. Abstract fans love it. Not just abstract fans, but it's reasonable to expect a game like that will suffer a bit in broad polling. I'm less sure what to make of Einfach Tierisch, the German remake of Knizia's High Society. Why didn't it get higher marks in the scouting report? Maybe just because it IS a remake, and attendees of the fair are more interested in new titles. Is Warcraft a niche game, too, or just one that Americans/Brits with more fantasy wargame background can appreciate.

Perhaps more significant are the handful of titles the Essen scouts really liked, but whose buzz cooled off pretty quickly. Last year, that was Maya, Ludoviel, and Logistico. How can you guard against that when looking at this year's scouting report? I'm not sure.

Picknick Panik is what happens when the scouting report includes only a limited number of votes from a skewed sample of fans. Not that many of these ratings are statistically valid--this is just an extreme case.

I don't think too much should be made of discrepancies or any other analysis of the low-end games. Yeah, BSZZZ! shows lower in BGG ratings, while King Arthur shows a bit higher. We might be dealing with degrees of mediocrity, though, so it's not worth much attention.

Looking forward to 2004's scouting report, then, what should we watch out for:

1. Niche products. The people that already like these will like them, but the broader polling results will make their scouting scores a bit lower.

2. Low number of votes. Fairplay tends to screen out games receiving less than 10 votes in their online posting, but I think you need 25-50 votes before you can be very confident with the results. Many of the games receiving few votes are coming from small/unknown publishers where your risk is higher already.

3. Kids games. I already filtered out the games intended just for children in the results below, but Fairplay doesn't.

4. Over-expectations. If there's a game with lots of anticipation (Carc:The Castle, King Arthur), then if it turns out to be merely good, not great, the ratings will be lower due to disappointment. But it still may be a fine purchase. (Perhaps the Tresham & Wallace games could apply here.)

5. Remakes. Looks like the Essen attendees aren't wild about remakes, maybe because they're sometimes surprises. But there's nothing wrong with a good remake. (Watch out for Razzia/Ra.)

Even with all of that, there will be inaccuracies. What else can you expect? Last year, Maya was rated by Essen attendees significantly higher than Santiago, and now that looks like a bad call. That'll probably happen again, and the only way to avoid it is to wait much longer before you spend your money. Best of all, of course, would be to try before you buy.

Here's a graph showing my 10-point converted Essen ratings versus what's on Boardgamegeek. Following the graph is the full table showing all of the titles and their two scores.

Game	BGG	Fairplay
Princes of the Renaissance	7.9	8.5
San Juan	7.7	8.4
Yinsh	8.1	8.4
Maya	6.6	8.4
Fresh Fish	6.9	8.2
Railroad Dice	6.8	8.0
Attika	7.6	7.8
Finstere Flure	7.2	7.8
Pingvinas	6.9	7.6
Ludoviel	5.8	7.6
Zauberschwert & Drachenei	6.2	7.6
Feurio	6.6	7.5
Iglu Pop	7	7.4
O Zoo le mio	7.1	7.4
Subulata	7.1	7.4
Logistico	6.5	7.4
Tom Tube	7	7.2
Age of Mythology	7.1	7.2
Bridges of Shangri-La	7.2	7.2
Global Powers	6.9	7.1
Die Fugger	6.8	7.0
King Me!	6.5	7.0
Santiago	7.6	7.0
Dracula	6.6	6.9
Die sieben Siegel	7.1	6.9
Flaschenteufel	7.1	6.8
Cronberg	6.4	6.8
Schwarzarbeit	6.1	6.7
Fantasy Pub	6.7	6.7
Picknick Panik	4.2	6.6
Industria	7.2	6.5
Top Speed	7	6.4
Kogge	7.1	6.4
Carcassonne - The Castle	7.7	6.4
Lawless	6.2	6.4
Mamba	7.2	6.3
InterUrban	6.8	6.3
Anno 1503	6.6	6.3
Lucky Loop	5.5	6.2
Borgia	6	6.2
Bonobo Beach	6.4	6.1
Ruhe in Frieden	5	6.1
Maka Bana	6.7	6.0
GRO: Battle for the Petri Dish	5.8	5.9
Sunda to Sahul	6.5	5.9
Alexandros	6.4	5.9
Intrige	6.9	5.9
Nuggets	6.2	5.9
Einfach Tierisch	7.4	5.8
Die wilden Fußballkerle	6.3	5.6
BSZZZZ!	4.2	5.6
Yellowstone Park	5.2	5.4
Fluxx	5.6	5.4
The Kookaburra Game	5.2	5.2
Hoppla Lama	5.4	5.0
Clue - The Card Game	6.1	5.0
Turbo	4.7	4.9
Warcraft	6.8	4.8
Tomb Raider	5.8	4.6
Coyote	6.8	4.6
King Arthur	4.8	4.4
Crocodile Pool Party	5.2	4.3
Fliegen	5.9	4.0
Secret of the Tombs	5.1	3.3
Wo ist Jack the Ripper?	5	3.1

Essen excitement

Every year when Essen rolls around I go through the same process: piqued interest, an effort to not get carried away by it, and eventual giving in to the excitement. Even though I know a lot of the heavy-hitters are released at other times during the year (like Nuremburg), Essen still has more interest. That's because there are many more publishers, large and small, with many more titles. Some will have a lot of buzz before the show, some will get sort of a "hidden gem" reputation (that I often feel is forced), and several others won't get much attention at all in the nearterm, only to have it build slowly later. Essen is fun as a spectator sport.

A couple years ago we would place a big order to Germany to get these games. Now more than ever are being released here in America in English language editions. Also, the Euro-Dollar exchange rate is still lousy, taking much of the fun out of these orders. We'll still place one for the games that aren't being translated or imported, plus some of the inevitable post-Essen blowout sale titles. (Last year everyone seemed to be selling Giganten for about 12 Euro, for instance.)

When does Essen start, anyway? I don't think it's quite yet, but it must be close. Just enough time for me to list the games I'm excited about (or at least interested in) before the more informed opinions start streaming in. To do this I'm of course using the amazing Essen Preview put together by the folks at Gamefest. No more piping Spielbox-Online through a machine translator to try to make sense of the German game news. Yea! I'm going to have to place another game order with Gamefest.com as a thank-you.

Favorites

Im Auftrag des Königs -- I have a weakness for Adlung games, and usually find at least one keeper every Essen. Nothing really jumps out at me from the list of new titles this year, not like other years with good descriptions or established designers. This is the only one that looks promising in 2004.

Geschenkt -- Ah yes, the quirky or innovative card game. These are the sorts of games that fall through the cracks of the various translator-publishers.

Der Untergang von Pompeji (The Sinking of Pompeii) -- After Carcassonne and Die Fugger, I'm willing to go on Klaus-Jürgen Wrede's name alone. (Of course, there's some danger in that, like last year's Yellowstone Park from Uwe Rosenberg.) A good theme and some tile-laying mechanics also help seal the deal for me.

Die Weinhändler -- A compact little card game of auctions & set collecting from the designer team that brought us Santiago. I can't see why this wouldn't be worth a try.

Metallurgie -- Ooh, cool theme, mechanics that could work, and nice graphics on the box. That's enough for me to try a card game.

Seasim -- I was recently on the fence about tracking down a copy of the generally-unappreciated Visjes. So I'm delighted that a new & improved version is now available.

Farfalia -- It was interesting to read the author's story of this game's development by the publisher.

Letter Poker, Lucca, Out! and Wordfinger -- I'm charmed by the idea of these little one-card giveaway games from da Vinci. I wonder how I can get them?

Mystery Train -- The promotional micro-expansion for Ticket to Ride. Why not?

Ice Cream -- Designed by a friend, and with an especially family-friendly theme.

Carcassonne: The City -- Can't wait! This is the game I'm most excited about seeing. I love the deluxe treatment for a favorite game.

Wings of War: Watch Your Back -- We've had fun with the first set, so the next one is an automatic purchase.

Reef Encounter -- Not sure how this will play, but the theme and limited number of copies sucked me in.

High Bohn Plus -- The only Bohnanza expansion I really enjoyed, I've just been waiting for an English version.

Maybes

Sole Mio! -- I always liked the idea of Mamma Mia more than I enjoyed the game itself. I don't see why I'd need a sequel/expansion. But like I said, maybe. It's cheap & small, which certainly works in its favor.

Razzia -- In general I like the idea of card game versions of board games. If they'd done a straight translation here, I'd be all over it. But I don't like this retheming (Uberplay's is worse), and if what I heard is true about "disaster tiles" being removed from the game I won't like it at all.

Tanz der Hornochsen -- Here's a board game version of a card game. I don't care for this development path nearly so much, but 6 Nimmt is so charming I may give this a chance.

Abracadabra -- As a little card game from a publisher showing promise, this should just about be an automatic purchase for me. If the theme were different, it might be. I've had enough monster & magic themes to last me a lifetime.

Kablamo -- Has the potential to be this year's Bang! (no pun intended)

Piranha Pedro -- Very nearly a must-buy for me on the strength of Annawerk design team, but I wasn't fond of Attika or Attribut, so I'll hold off. (I really enjoy Verrater, Meuterer, and Lift Off.) Plus now I've played it on BSW, and I think it may even be too light for me.

Akaba -- A delightful theme and game equipment (a "puffer" to scoot flying carpets about the board), but I'll wait to hear if there's any gameplay going on in this dexterity game. The good ones have it, the bad ones don't.

Carcassonne: Die Katharer and The Count of Carcassonne -- I've got everything else so far (gold box plus last year's Spy & Scout micro expansion). Might as well get these, too, when I get a chance.

Im Schatten des Kaisers (Shadow of the Emperor) -- Last year my wife and I toured the part of Europe that had these Electors, so the theme hits home.

Presidential Election -- I can certainly have fun with the theme, but especially between now and the real election . . . no way to get the game that quickly, and in any case I'm happy to play Mr. President.

Ozeanien -- Seems like this would be a lock for me, since I'm such a fan of Entdecker. However, I've played with this online, and it feels just like a little scoring puzzle using Entdecker tiles, without the enjoyment of the larger game.

Candamir -- I used to think I liked most everything that Teuber did, but have since found that wasn't true. I like exploration games, but was glad I held off on Anno 1503. This is definitely a wait-and-see.

In 80 Tagen um die Welt -- I'd like to try it first, but from all accounts this is an attractive, light, nicely produced boardgame. The sort of family-friendly game that wins Spiel des Jahre awards. That's what I like.

Black Molly -- To be honest, I'm mostly interested because of the name alone (my daughter's name). I wasn't impressed with Atta's Ants.

Goldbrau -- I think I want this, except that I already know someone in my local group that owns it.

Struggle of Empires -- Actually, the Martin Wallace games I've played have only been okay. The ones I prefer are the lighter ones, like Way Out West and perhaps La Strada. Definitely not the train games. I'm not at all sure about this one, as much as I like the subject matter.

Karrabik -- Sounds promising, but I'll wait to try it on BSW first.

Other comments

Mall World -- Looks kind of interesting, thanks to Mik's writeup on Brett & Board, but I know others in my local gaming circles will get it, so I'll wait & see.

Pitchcar Mini -- A neat idea, but I've already shelled out enough money and shelfspace for my own Carabande and Action Set.

I love the little Haba games that come in tins, but they're hard to get over here. The American mail order shops don't import them, and neither do the German shops list more than a couple.

Friedrich -- As interesting as this is, there's no sense spending the bucks to import a 3+ hour wargame when I've got other choices already.

I'm curious about all of the lavishly produced Ludoart games, but I wonder who will really buy & play them. I traded away my own copy of Marracash last year, so I don't foresee spending huge bucks on an all-wooden version.

I say I appreciate what publisher Phalanx is doing, but I've yet to put my money where my mouth is. Part of it is that they haven't really made these light wargames light enough for me. I already knew A House Divided could go a little long, and I tend to avoid Berg's games. Now here's something on WW1 from Ted Racier, but I'm just starting to play Dunnigan's old WW1 from S&T Magazine. That Heart of Africa title looks to be more innovative in its subject, at least.

Game stores with RSS feeds?

Gamefest sets the standard for RSS feeds from an online game store. These are currently used for news & release info. But what about putting blowout sale lists on an RSS feed? That would be slick. I'd especially like to see the German shops do this. (He says, after having recently skimmed Adam Spielt, Magnus Spiele, AllGames4You, and Playme.de for Essen season blowouts.)

Vacation NON-gaming

I'm writing this entry from 30,000 feet or so, winging my way back home from a week's vacation in Hawaii. Pretty great, I know, but that didn't extend to any games. I brought a half-dozen small ones, hoping to play some with my wife and/or kids during the flights or especially at our rented condo. I have to pack these games on the sly otherwise my wife will ask, "Why are you bringing so many?!" Actually, she asked the same when I unpacked the suitcase on Maui! The reason, of course, is that you can't count on just one or two games being a hit with mostly nongamer family members. As long as they're small and you've got the room, where's the harm?

Well, it didn't work out this time. Even when it does work, like my trip back in July, we only play a few of the ones I bring. This time we didn't really play any. Partly that's because I was only with my immediate family (my brother is the one I can most easily get to try games). But also it was the heat. Some heat is expected when you vacation on a tropical island--I know that!--but this trip was unseasonably warm. I've read theories that people play more games in areas with poorer weather, especially cold & wet indoor weather. This was just the opposite, warm & balmy. Even steamy. Under those conditions, no one wants to play a game sitting at a table--they want to go to the beach or pool.

I love the beach & pool, too--that's why we come to Hawaii. Snorkeling, body surfing, just swimming in the waves... it's all good. But after a full day of that I'd love to play a game or two on the lanai (balcony) while hearing the waves crash. Nope. It was still too warm & sticky for anyone to want to do that. I guess I need to take my family vacationing someplace where they have sleet to turn them into gamers. :-)

Even if the family games didn't happen, I was hoping to catch up on emails, this blog, maybe submit a Geeklist... those sorts of things. Nope, even I kind of lost my enthusiasm for it while on the vacation. I did at least check my emails, and one play-by-web game of Wallenstein wrapped up during the week. I even logged onto BSW once through the simple dialup line and played one game of St. Pete.

Also, it's not quite right to say I did NO gaming. My daughter is the one most likely to play something, and she was in the mood for two kids' games most adults dread: Go Fish and War. I brought a standard deck of cards, but we also bought a Hawaiian themed one. Simple or even mindless as those games are, it was still fun to play with her. I played a lot of War when I was very little, and I still enjoy its drama. :-) (For the first 20 minutes.)

Curious what I packed? I went with Flowerpower, Tally Ho!, Starship Catan, Hick Hack, Get The Goods, Bohnanza, Wurmeln, Die Fugger, Canal Grande, Battletech flip books (Lost Worlds style), Fluster, and that deck of cards.