Literally Anything Else

Today, as we launch our episode, it is day 2 of the Board Game Design Virtual Summit 2023!

In this episode, Chris and Myron welcome Joe Slack to the show. Joe is a game designer, publisher, author, and instructor. Joe has several games in publication, including Relics of Rajavihara, King of Indecision, Zoo Year’s Eve, and others he’s co-designed like Four Word Thinking. In his spare time Joe writes books on game design and teaches three online courses covering everything from game design 101, to taking games from creation through publication, to how to successfully crowdfund your game. 

Joe is the creator, founder and host of the Board Game Design Virtual Summit too! Originally launched in 2020, it's back with a vengeance this year, and we'd love to see you there supporting a friend of the show (if you can, of course)!

Today, as we launch our episode, it is day 2 of the Board Game Design Virtual Summit 2023!

We had the pleasure of discovering this amazing event when we spoke with Joe and are excited to bring you this episode to enjoy with your week board-learning, board-designing, board-networking, board-building and of course, BOARDGAMING!

Also, later in 2023, his newest game - 14 Frantic Minutes is scheduled to be released!

Join Chris and Myron as Joe takes him through his journey from early childhood gaming with family, to his discovery of modern board games like Pandemic, to his entry into board game design and instruction. 

You can find Joe at his website, and you can find more information about his courses and the 2023 Board Game Design Virtual Summit at The Board Game Design Course. 

You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher

Or find us at: boardgamechats.com; [email protected]; Facebook and Instagram

In this episode Chris and Myron welcome Joanna Piekarska from Rebel Studio to the show. Joanna works in marketing by day and also owns and runs a gaming cafe by night. She’s a true renaissance woman, who has studied multiple fields and disciplines, and takes on new hobbies to keep things interesting. She works for Rebel Studio, a Polish boardgame publisher, which produced Chris’ favorite game from last year - Chronicles of Avel. Chronicles of Avel is a cooperative family game where the heroes must work together to accomplish their goals. It has a fun character creator and inventive equipment holding system that requires characters to make strategic choices about what they carry into battle. Like many previous guests, Joanna’s love of gaming came from spending time with family playing cards and Monopoly. Her early introduction to modern board games included Magic: The Gathering and Jaipur, and discovery of board gaming cafes which opened up a whole new world of experiences. Rebel Studio also publishes Meadow, a set collection game which is Instagram famous for its beautiful artwork, and San Francisco - an urban planning game from Reiner Knizia. Joanna loves to attend gaming expos as well, and you may find her at Essen, GenCon, and other conventions in 2023. 

You can find Rebel Studio at their website, on Facebook, and YouTube. 

You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher

Or find us at: boardgamechats.com; [email protected]; Facebook and Instagram

In this episode Chris and Myron welcome Joel Bodkin to the show. Joel is an illustrator and product designer by trade, who publishes his own games and supports the creativity of other game designers with Featherstone Games. Joel created Featherstone through his love of design, boardgaming, and collaboration with his son and daughter. Joel brings his training in product design and illustration to all aspects of his games, aiming to deliver a cohesive product experience from the moment you unbox his games. Everything from the magnetic closing mechanism, to the inside-the-box artwork has been carefully crafted to create excitement and support the theme.

For Joel, game unboxing is like the opening credits to a movie, where you try to draw the audience into your story. Joel has published two games with Featherstone Games - Open Ocean and Winterhaven Woods. In early 2023 he will be relaunching Dinositters!, which he co-designed with Maxwell Freud. Join Chris and Myron as they learn more about Joel’s creative process, his family-oriented approach to game design, and how he’s trying to reduce plastic waste with his games.

You can find Joel Bodkin on Instagram and Facebook. 

You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher

Or find us at: boardgamechats.com; [email protected]; Facebook and Instagram

This episode with Chris was dope. We really had a great discussion, again, focused on systems of game development and some crossover into his past life, as the holder of "a certain kind of skills, that are literally unbelievable super science lab stuff!" 

We laughed, we cried in this one. There's something for everyone. 

Enjoy this Kickback!

In this episode, Chris and Myron welcome Jason Perez to the show. Jason is a psychotherapist and board game cultural consultant interested in expanding the universe of what board games can offer to everyone. Jason has a pretty simple and beautiful philosophy that to be human is to be different and bring different perspectives to humankind. He’s passionate about fighting CASE, cultural appropriation, stereotyping and erasing. Jason explains that games can and should be as diverse as human beings are, and that the ideas presented in games can both represent and reproduce the culture. Building towards a gaming space that welcomes authenticity, not just diversity, is what he’s trying to create.

Join Chris and Myron as they explore what the future of board gaming could be if we’re so bold as to seek it out.

You can find Jason on YouTube at One Stop Co-op Shop or Shelf Stories, on Twitter, and Facebook.

You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher

Or find us at: boardgamechats.com; [email protected]; Facebook and Instagram

This is a little throwback to "simpler days". Enjoy the show while I'm resting y'all!

In this episode Chris and Myron welcome Anna Raymer-Parks to the show. Anna is a lover of games and competition, having grown-up in a family of card-players. She also happens to be Myron’s wife and a member of the Board Game Chats team. Chris explains why he thinks Anna is an omni-gamer, and the label really seems to fit well. Whether it’s playing cards, boardgames, video games, or even lawn-darts, Anna loves to play and to win. She’s also on a mission to rebut some of Myron’s less complimentary commentary from past episodes of the show. Join us to get the true story about Anna’s infamous Loonacy concussion, and whether she’s really as competitive as we’ve been led to believe. 

You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher

Or find us at: boardgamechats.com; [email protected]; Facebook and Instagram

Treat Yo-Shelf with Melanie Barr

In this episode Chris and Myron welcome Melanie Barr to the show. Melanie is a board game enthusiast and co-host of The Boardgame Specialists podcast. Melanie’s passion for board games really began when playing Catan with her siblings growing up, but blossomed after her brother gifted her King of Tokyo one year for her birthday. Melanie lives in a small town in Alberta called Didbsury, and is active in the local gaming community and conventions like FallCon. She’s built a thriving community of friends on social media through her love of games. Join Chris and Myron as they learn about Melanie’s journey navigating loss and lending help to others through her love of games.

You can find Melanie on Instagram and Facebook, or check out her videos and podcasts on  YouTube. 

You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher

Or find us at: boardgamechats.com; [email protected]; Facebook & Instagram

This is part 2 of Chris and Myron’s conversation with Keith Matejka. If you haven’t already listened to part 1, we recommend you start there and finish with part 2. In this episode Keith shares more details about creating Roll Player Adventures and what’s next for Thunderworks Games.

You can find Keith at [email protected], Twitter, and Facebook. 

You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher

Or find us at: boardgamechats.com; [email protected]; Facebook & Instagram

In this episode Chris and Myron welcome Keith Matejka to the show. Keith is probably best known as the designer of Roll Player, a fantastic dice drafting game where you build an RPG character sheet as you go. He’s also the founder of Thunderworks Games where he publishes his own work, and titles from other designers as well. With Roll Player Adventures, Keith takes us deeper into the world of Ulos with an expansive cooperative storytelling game. Keith has so many insights to share on his evolution from working in the video game industry, to working full-time as a board game publisher, that we had to break his episode into two parts. In this first part, Chris and Myron talk to Keith about his journey from video games to board game publishing, and the tremendous success of Roll Player. Make sure to stay tuned for Part 2 where Chris and Myron learn even more about Roll Player Adventures. If you are a fan of Roll Player and Roll Player Adventures make sure to check out the wiki Keith mentions in the episode at World of Ulos. 

You can find Keith at [email protected], Twitter, and Facebook. 

You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher

Or find us at: boardgamechats.com; [email protected]; Facebook & Instagram

In this episode Chris and Myron welcome Ryan McDougall to the show. Ryan currently works for Lion Rampant Imports, a game distributor in Ontario, Canada. He was also the owner of The Blue Dog Cafe in Brantford, Ontario. Ryan was first introduced to the world of modern board games by his brother-in-law. What started with a couple games of Munchkin and Diplomacy eventually blossomed into a full-fledged hobby and a career.    Ryan believes that there’s a game out there for everyone, you just have to be introduced to it. There’s potential in every box for surprise, exploration and new-found joy. Join Chris and Myron as Ryan recounts his journey, and shares some tips on finding the right game at the right time.  You can find Ryan on Facebook.

You can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher

Or find us at: boardgamechats.com; [email protected]; Facebook & Instagram