They're Called Victory Points -- Table Talk (and friends)

When you go on vacation, how do you take your game collection? Obviously, you need to take them, you’ll need to play them. But what about all those boxes and bits? What games are good for various situations? Don’t worry, Taylor and Alice have you covered.

Surrealist Dinner Party

Paint the Roses

Exit: The Advent Calendar

The Initiative

Agricola

Azul: Queen’s Garden

Art Robbery

5211

Mint Rails

Travel Carcassonne

Travel Catan

Square Meal

Iota

Set

Quirkle

Point Salad

Sea Salt and Paper

Solitaire

Pass and play apps for specific games you like

Hive

Uno

Codex Naturalis

Just One

Tsuro

Dreamscape

I Guess This is It

Fuji Flush

Tricky Tides

Rage

Wizard

Diamonds

Folk games mentioned:

I’m going for a picnic on the moon…

TCP (Taboo, Charades, Password)

Picture Telephone

Card Games That Don’t Suck

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In the grand tradition of annual “best of” lists, Taylor and Alice offer you a list of the best games for extremely specific people. All of which are actually good.

Games Mentioned:

Fairy Trails

The Gallerist

Masterpiece

(also Mastermind)

Taco Bell Party Pack Card Game

A Gentle Rain

Patchwork

SHH

Consentacle

USPS: Great American Mail Race

Down

Palm Island

I Guess This Is It…

The Acts of the Apostles

That Time You Killed Me

RATS: High Tea at Sea

Love Letter

Aroma

Just One

Mint Works

Mint Rails

7 Wonders Duel

Decorum

Battle Sheep

Giant Throw Throw Burrito

Villainous

The Great Dalmuti

Castles of Burgundy

Surrealist Dinner Party

Obsession

Arthur Goes to the Library

Rory’s Story Cubes

Praise

Bus

Check us out at https://theyrecalledvictorypoints.com/ or on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/theyre_called_victory_points/!

Taylor and Alice talk about why they love/hate games about feelings in this meandering and contemplative third episode. What is your experience of games about feelings? Do you tolerate them? Try to get all your friends and family to play them with you? Wish you could instead stay in the land of Beige Traders forever?

Games mentioned:

Sea Salt and Paper, yes again

Ticket to Ride

Framework

Color Monster

Holding On: The Troubled Life of Billy Kerr

I Guess This Is It

Zen Tiles Solo

A Mending

Not mentioned, but worthy of your attention: Variations on Your Body by Avery Adler

Check us out at https://theyrecalledvictorypoints.com/ or on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/theyre_called_victory_points/!

Table Talk 002: A Chat about First Plays

When you play a game for the first time, what do you look for? How do you play well? What makes a first play fun? Or, for that matter, a second or 50th?

Featured in this episode: new, improved sound quality, two bleeped swears, and the following games:

Sea Salt and Paper

Sushi Go

Azul: Queen’s Garden

Azul: Summer Pavilion

Quirkle

Dreamscape

Jericho

Poker

Neotraditional Ama

Clank

String Railway

7 Wonders

Read more from the Daily Worker Placement team at dailyworkerplacement.com and follow us on Instagram at @dailyworkerplacement.

Check us out at https://theyrecalledvictorypoints.com/ or on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/theyre_called_victory_points/!

Welcome to our conversation, featuring unprofessional bag crinkling and table-smacking!

Games talked about in this podcast:

Century: Spice Road

Viticulture

Azul: Queen’s Garden

Shifting Stones

Town 66

Canopy

Great American Mail Race

Miyabi

Suburbia

Quacks of Quedlinburg

Tzolk’in: The Mayan Calendar

Parks

Settlers of Catan

Fog of Love

Discussion questions:

Has anyone else thought about this? What to you makes a good or horrible box liner? Do you store your games vertically or horizontally? What’s your favorite box liner?

and

Is happiness an illusion?

Thank you to the designers of the  game Symposium for their wonderful questions. Rundontwalk to get your own copy.

Read more from Alice, Taylor, and all the rest at www.dailyworkerplacement.com. 

Check us out at https://theyrecalledvictorypoints.com/ or on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/theyre_called_victory_points/!

In this episode David starts out by looking at what we get out of competing vs cooperating in tabletop games...

...and then things take an unexpected turn.

All music copyright 2022 by David Weiss.

Check out David's writing at The Daily Worker Placement.

Support us on Patreon!

Check us out at https://theyrecalledvictorypoints.com/ or on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/theyre_called_victory_points/!

If game design is an artform--and I believe it is--then it deserves an aesthetic framework and a language to discuss it and its potential. Hence FORMAT.

To discover what FORMAT stands for, in all senses, have a listen to Episode 3.

All music copyright 2022 by David Weiss.

Check out David's writing at The Daily Worker Placement.

Support us on Patreon!

Check us out at https://theyrecalledvictorypoints.com/ or on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/theyre_called_victory_points/!

If a game is "a machine for telling stories that end with players winning and/or losing", what are its components? And what energy drives it? That's what we're discussing this month. (Which is also a way of saying that new episodes will be dropping monthly.)

All music copyright 2022 by David Weiss.

Check out David's writing at The Daily Worker Placement.

Support us on Patreon!

Check us out at https://theyrecalledvictorypoints.com/ or on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/theyre_called_victory_points/!

Welcome back to The Game Changers. In the first episode, David catches you up on his 2021 and then plunges in to the first Big Question of Season Two: just what is a game?

Check us out at https://theyrecalledvictorypoints.com/ or on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/theyre_called_victory_points/!

Yes, that's right. It's taken over a year, but Season Two of The Game Changers is coming!

Check us out at https://theyrecalledvictorypoints.com/ or on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/theyre_called_victory_points/!