Grail Tales: Board Gaming – The Wobbly Hobby

I was just thinking – board gaming is a strange hobby!

There are probably countless others with similar traits that aren’t jumping to my mind right now, but board gaming feels pretty unique. Think about it:

  • Board gaming requires other people for it to work (unless you play solo games 100% of the time). And if you don’t have other gamers around you when you’re ready to play, you have to rope (possibly) unwilling contestants into the arena.
  • The things we use in the hobby (board games) are forms of entertainment that are designed to be used regularly. Even playing a game 10 times in a day probably won’t break it. Try watching the same move or reading the same book over and over and over!
  • It could be an extremely cheap hobby to get into and pursue, yet many of us end up buying game after game (after game) when we have plenty of perfectly good ones already.
  • And, related to that, this hobby can take up a lot of space in your home!

I’m not knocking the hobby, it’s just weird and often annoying that it is this way. I mean, it took me ages to realise that if I buy dozens of games in a year I probably won’t find the people to play them with me – certainly not play them enough times to go deep into the design. And I still struggle with wanting to buy games because I want them, when really (maybe) I should only buy games that I would be happy to play but that I hope the people I know will play as well. Where the collecting side of the bobby ends and the playing side begins is a really difficult see-saw to balance.

Just yesterday I heard of someone who only owns and plays (regularly) the board game Root. That’s their game. And of course, there are those who only play Catan, or Magic: The Gathering, or Monopoly and Uno. And sometimes I wish I was one of them (as does my wallet and my shelving).

So I’ve come up with some dos and don’ts for myself so that my hobby doesn’t break my bank balance, my family’s patience, and stays as fun as it can be. Feel free to follow these Rules to Game By 🙂

  • Rule no. 1: Try to play with people I don’t know more often. This is difficult with no large conventions, etc., near me, but when the opportunity pops up, I will try to take it. I am not a very social person, so this rule isn’t so much about meeting new people (not that there’s anything wrong with that) as it is (very selfishly) about saving money. The more I play, the more games I will discover that I can add (or remove) from my wishlist.
  • Rule no 2: Try before I buy. This may be difficult, but I feel if I stick to a small number of purchases that are bought “sight unseen” and try my best to focus my spending on games I have already tried and know will be good for me, I think I will keep my collecting in check.
  • Rule no 3: Have a budget. I know that sounds easy but each week games pop up on Kickstarter or are announced that you never knew were coming. I must be strict with this or else I will go broke! Remembering rules 1 & 2 will help me do better at rule 3.
  • Rule no 4: Don’t coerce people into playing games. It’s just not nice. And it can be very selfish, I mean, we’ve probably all done it – pushed someone who didn’t really want to play a game into a game you wanted to play just so you could get it played and then it wasn’t really that great for them and they were even harder to get interested next time… You don’t NEED your partners/families to be gamers. It would be VERY VERY COOL if that was the case (sniff) but they are lovely people with their own loves and interests and you don’t need to force them to do something they don’t want to do. Gaming is not for everyone. And no matter how hard you try, person X may never become a gamer. Just as you may never become a knitter or a go-karter or a rock climber. Board gaming is weird – it needs other people (usually) to work at its best, but I think I need to find other gamers somehow, before I start forcing more non-gamers to suffer through what I want to play…

Phew! Sorry, I’ll take a breath now 🙂

Maybe I’m being too hard on myself – this is a hobby after all, and it should be fun. But I also don’t want gaming to be a stress or a weight around my neck.

What do you think? Do you wish this uber-great hobby was different in its nature? Have you learned to tame it? Do you have any rules to control your spending or other symptoms of a board gaming addiction?

Anyway, it’s food for thought. As for me, I’m going off now to play something new with someone new! (Actually no, I’m going to spend 20 minutes on boardgamegeek. Seeya…)

– David
Grail Games

Grail Tales: The biggest game changer in 10 years

If someone asked me, “What has been the biggest game changer in the last 10 years?” there would be many ways to attack the question.

One could say, “The answer is Gloomhaven,” as it totally changed what could be sold on a game store shelf (cost and size-wise) and shot to the number 1 ranking on BGG. But then, each of the top 12 ranked games on the site were released since 2015, so perhaps what we are seeing with Gloomhaven is an impressive game riding high on a wave given impetus from an influx of newer gamers and the Cult of the New. I mean, 80 of BGG’s top 100 were released in the past 10 years (2011-2021)! This is totally not how the list looked just a few years ago. (And that’s fine.)

The No.1 Game!

So, if I was to answer the question with “Gloomhaven,” would I have to add the caveat that really, it’s the poster child for how the entire “scene” has possibly changed…? Or is that unfair?

There’s also another possible answer: Pandemic: Legacy Season 1, which was such a revolutionary game when it released (and also shot to number 1 on BGG in a style never seen before). And while it wasn’t the first “legacy” game, it certainly was the game that cemented what a legacy game was, and has remained the high water-mark for that style of design. But… there haven’t exactly been an influx of legacy games in the way that the original Pandemic (co-op games), Dominion (deck-building) and 7 Wonders (card drafting) were the flagships for new major trends in game releases just before our 10-year cut-off for this question. So while Pandemic Legacy changed gaming, it may not be a massive game-changer… Or is that a merely a difference in semantics?

Was the No.1 Game!

Still other possible answers could include Azul which showed that an abstract game can be cool (and a MAJOR seller), and games like Terraforming Mars, Spirit Island, Great Western Trail and Brass: Birmingham which continue to wave the euro flag, all the while trying to do something different in their zone.

There’s been mega-successful “hybrid” games like Scythe and Blood Rage, and games with broadly popular settings like Wingspan and Everdell. And then there’s The Crew which is the only small card game in BGG’s top 120… Oh! And don’t forget Love Letter – the game that ushered in a micro-game craze and rained overseas game publishers upon Tokyo’s Game market for a number of years, introducing an influx of Asian game design sensitivities to the rest of the world.

Yes, any of these games (and probably countless others) could be held up as a “game changer” – the apex of board games over the last decade, making others stop and take notice, and even try to follow in its footsteps.

But I choose something different to name as my game changer. And really, this whole preamble has been a tease because I don’t actually want to talk about a game at all!

The biggest game changer of the last ten years has undoubtedly been Kickstarter.

Kickstarter has been spoken about at length by everyone in the hobby at some point so I won’t go on and on here, but thinking on this recently, I believe it really must be stated again – love it or hate it, Kickstarter has changed the industry – how games are made, how games are bought, what games are made, what games are bought, and how gamers connect with publishers and designers. There are stats everywhere showing the Tabletop Games are the most important category on Kickstarter – the revenue collected has been immense. Kickstarter has literally blown the doors off the board gaming world. (Yet Kickstarter still doesn’t provide tools for campaign creators beyond what something like Notepad could do on Windows 95, but I digress.)

It’s changed what games are made, not just because “the little guy” or the “niche” design may find an audience, but because now, publishers have a ready-made marketing tool that can tell them that yes, actually, a deep 2-hour game about rescuing sea-horses DOES have an audience.

It’s changed how games are made, not just because stretch goals and receiving money upfront allows publishers to be more audacious and cost-effective in making a game, but because having such games in the gaming harbour causes all boats to float higher – the standard of what is expected out of components and quality has risen across the board.

It’s changed how games are bought, not just because customers may now easily buy a game direct from a publisher, but they now (generally) have few qualms about handing money over early for a game they haven’t seen. Live demos and in-store displays and promotions are still beneficial but not as much as they used to be. By the time most games show up at a Gen Con or Essen or FLGS, many customers will have heard of it, know what it is, or even own it. This has meant that many distributors and stores have lost a lot of their revenue and sway. Kickstarter has also given customers a direct communication tool with those who are making the games they have bought!

It’s changed how success is measured, not just because one can compare like board game campaigns for like, nor simply because a campaign with 1000 backers has obviously done better than a game with 200, but, because these numbers are now public, success and sales are more easily seen, predicted and analysed. (This is still not a science, nor does it always equate that success at Kickstarter equals success at retail, or vice versa, but it is clearer than it used to be.)

It’s changed the “feel” of the entire industry, not just for all the above reasons, but because Kickstarter – a crowdfunding/pre-ordering system/social media hybrid – has made some older forms of communication between gamers feel flat and outdated. Kickstarter is where it’s at – the hip place to be (for many), and this means that browsing for new projects on Kickstarter has become the most important and exciting online habit for many gamers since it’s popularity skyrocketed.

Up and up and up!

I do not know what the future holds and have no predictions. Will Kickstarter remain at the forefront of our hobby, dragging the players and customers along with it (usually happily and with twinkles in their eyes, but sometimes kicking and screaming)? I assume so, but it’s hard to say in this ever-evolving and always-changing 21st century world. But one thing is for certain – the digital space is no longer simply where a gamer goes to look up rules questions or to post a review. The digital and analogue worlds are now intertwined in such a way that it is difficult to find a new board game that has not been touched in some way by the changes in our industry brought about by the crowdfunding juggernaut that is Kickstarter. Kickstarter has taken games to a new level in regards to production design (metal coins, anyone?), variety (Brass, Blood Rage, Parks and Exploding Kittens are all Kickstarter games) and accessibility (a content creator in Hawaii may have their game bought by someone in Rio, Sydney and Hong Kong).

And I, for one, am so glad that Kickstarter is here and cannot wait to see what the future holds!

– David (Grail Games)

Grail Games @ Essen Spiel

Hi everyone!

Due to Australia’s border still being closed, we were not able to attend Gen Con or Essen this year – the world’s two largest board game conventions.

We thank our friends at Kolossal Games for selling some of our products at Gen Con on our behalf a couple of weeks ago!

As for as Essen is concerned we have some great news! Our friends (and French partners) Matagot are not only going to sell Grail titles at Essen, but they have opened an online store that allows everyone to pre-order for pick-up at the show (or even home delivery after the show)!!

There’s some great bundle deals and amazing prices on there from a number of brands. Why not check out what Grail has to offer while you are there, including our newest game: Hibachi 😀

https://matagot-friends.com/essen2021

I hope everyone who attends has a safe and exciting few days in October!!

– David
Grail Games

Grail Tales: The Gardens and I

From right to left: Sydney City, The Opera House, the Gardens, and boats!

Speaking generally, most Sydneysiders love the outdoors. When people ask me why we don’t have many board game shops, or any notable game cafes or even a gaming convention of any size here, my go-to answer is, “It’s hard to sell board gaming when everyone’s down at the beach.” Of course, there’s more humour in that response than known fact, but it is true that most Sydneysiders are outdoorsy people.

It’s probably because our town was built on the ocean. And we love being in or near the water whenever we can. Heck, even our traditional foods at Christmas are mostly all seafood. And even before the foundation of Sydney – for at least 30,000 years – the people of the Eora nation have lived, played, laughed and died here – in and around the beautiful ocean that laps against our shoreline.

For me, however, the greatest place to be in Sydney isn’t sitting on the golden sands of one of its 100+ beaches, but sitting on the green grass of its Royal Botanic Garden. The Gardens stretch from Sydney harbour, around Farm Cove to Mrs Macquarie’s Point and then south to Woolloomooloo. They include a whopping 51 hectares (when you include the neighbouring Domain) of prime real estate. The Gardens is big enough to hold Government House, the Conservatorium of Music and the NSW Art Gallery… but most of the time, all you see are plants, trees, and the harbour itself. AND WATCH OUT FOR THAT BIN CHICKEN IT’LL GRAB YER LUNCH!

A bin chicken wanders around the city looking for its next victim…

The Gardens are easy to find. Take a walk northwards through the city and you’ll end up at Circular Quay (formally known as Sydney Cove, and formerly known as Warrane), the main hub for Sydney’s water-based public transport and home to the best views of the empowering Sydney Harbour Bridge and the inspiring Sydney Opera House. Follow the path along the foreshore (stepping on the metal indicators under your feet showing where the shoreline actually was in 1788) and you will come to the white sails of the Opera House on Bennelong Point. Before turning right to enter the Botanic Gardens, you must look left across the bright blue harbour to the bridge once more, before following a number of paths through the iron and sandstone gates into the expansive, meditative green spaces of The Gardens.

The Gardens at the north of the CBD (the green bit)

And I wish I could go there every day. I, like many who live here, have an attachment to The Gardens. I visited many times as a child for picnics or walks, and since joining up with my wife, we have seen concerts, wandered aimlessly, and even gotten engaged within its borders.

The Gardens don’t really feel like a park, nor like a natural wilderness… more like something in between. It is manicured but also feels natural. Probably this is due to the fact that the Botanic Gardens are actually a collection of smaller gardens. There’s the Rose Garden, the Herb Garden, the Succulent Garden, the Fernery, the “First” Garden, and between all these are paddocks of grass and countless enormous native fig trees.

Go to The Gardens to see the flying foxes or the lorikeets, but mostly, go there because within its borders the city’s steel buildings and its busy streets can be seen but cannot be heard. Go there for a piece of Aussie paradise. 

Just leave the busy city behind…

When I talk to First Nations friends I am often aware of their closeness to “Country.” They are connected to Country in a way I have not been gifted with. I was born in my country but not of it. I am always envious of their cultural connections to Place. I get a glimpse of what it’s like to be “in Country” when I go to Sydney’s Royal Botanic Gardens. There I feel, quiet, centred, home. Partly through nostalgia, partly because the place gives me a sense of a greater history, and partly because it’s just so pretty. Not only that, it’s a place where you can just go walkabout. Countless nooks and crannies exist throughout its spaces. Walk around a corner or past a tree and you’re likely to see a statue you’ve never seen before, a bench with a beautiful view you hadn’t noticed previously, or a couple having a picnic AND YOU’VE JUST WALKED THROUGH THEIR FISH AND CHIPS, YOU JERK!

Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House can just be seen behind the trees.

At Gen Con in 2019, designer Matthew Dunstan (also originally from Sydney) pitched me a game about walking through an English garden that he had co-designed with Brett Gilbert. It was the second time that convention that I gave myself enough time to play through an entire game (rare in a face-to-face pitch) because I was just so enthralled. It was simple and clean in its rules but enjoyable and nicely tactical to play. By the end I saw I had had an almost zen-like experience as I watched my garden grow and physically walked back and forth through it many times during the game (in the form of meeples). It gave me the same feelings that walking through a nice park should and do give me. I was sold. Funnily enough, from memory this was not the main game Matt had wanted to show me that day. I could have been imagining it but I felt he was a little surprised that this drafting and tableau building game about making a park was the one I most fell in love with. But now you all know me a little bit, you probably see it was no surprise 🙂

We went our separate ways and over the next few months we came up with ideas to add variety to the game so each session would feel a little different. The guys also came up with the idea of adding specific locations, or monuments, that players could earn when they laid cards in certain places, adding a layer of depth to the gameplay.

And then it hit me – if we put this game in a specific, actual, factual park, then the plants, statues and landmarks that we add into the game are decided for us. We also would find both boundaries and inspiration in the design space because choosing one park would help determine what could and couldn’t be in the game. I think you know which park we chose 🙂 Now this super fun design had a real sense of place.

The box cover!

I simply cannot wait for this game to come out. This game has become my passion project – not just because I instantly fell in love with the gameplay, but because the setting of the game is so dear to my heart. When Kerri Aitken (who has never been to Sydney) started turning in art pieces for the game I became very emotional. This place – the place where I had spent countless hours with my wife and family, and even got engaged – was going to be in a game for the world to see! Kerri just captured the feel of the place perfectly – even the lighting – and I can see myself laying down a picnic rug or taking photos, or pointing out something to my kids when I go through the cards she has illustrated. I’m just so proud of this game, and I thank Kerri, Matt and Brett for giving me this opportunity.

Australia is almost nowhere to be seen in pop culture – few movies, TV shows, or board games have put us on the world map. To have your home represented fondly in a game is a really special and empowering thing. I mean, when I “see” the Opera House or Fort Denison in this game, I remember the times I went there as a kid – or since – and smile. When I look at the Arthur Phillip fountain I do consider the fact that he was the lead of the enforced occupation of this land by the British, but I also remember the time my boys and I ran around the huge edifice and pointed at all the statues upon it. The game makes me smile because it shows a piece of me to the world.

I hope you may come along and visit The Gardens with me in our new game. It’s coming to Kickstarter at the end of August, 2021. It will then release at retail as soon as we can after that (assuming we fund)! We have some great treats in store during the campaign, but more than that, what excites me most about The Gardens is its core, clear gameplay that is totally accessible but also gives players plenty to think about. We have plans for future expansions as well, so hopefully this ride will be a successful one. Then we can all keep visiting The Gardens – even if it’s only on our tabletops 🙂

Box cover and what a player’s board may look like at the end of the game.

The Gardens – designed by Matthew Dunstan and Brett J Gilbert and illustrated by Kerri Aitken – is for 2-4 players and takes no more than 45 minutes to play. It is a card drafting game where players take turns to select cards to add to their player board, building a portion of Sydney’s Royal Botanic gardens as they go. After placing a card, a visitor pawn in the card’s row must walk to the new card, but everything they see or do along the way will earn the player points. Landmarks and variable scoring conditions add extra layers of thought to the game.

– David Harding
Grail Games

Photographs in this blog post are from Wikipedia and available to use under the CC license. Please check out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Botanic_Garden,_Sydney for more info.

Grail Games to continue the Manhattan Project story

It was announced today that Grail Games has acquired the rights to publish the Manhattan Project family of games, originally published by Minion Games out of the US.

Sadly, the rights became available after the death in 2019 of Minion‘s much-loved founder, James Mathe. The Manhattan Project line includes The Manhattan Project and its expansions, The Manhattan Project: Chain Reaction, The Manhattan Project: Energy Empire, and The Manhattan Project 2: Minutes to Midnight.

As part of this new agreement, Grail will also fulfil the outstanding Kickstarter campaign for Energy Empire’s Cold War expansion.

Stay tuned for more updates – Grail is flattered and very excited to be able to bring such a formidable group of games into its line-up!

– David Harding
President, Grail Games

Fjords is now on Kickstarter!

Grail Games is happy to announce that the classic tile-laying game Fjords is coming back – and you can support the reprint now on Kickstarter!

Click here to visit the Fjords campaign!

We are so excited to be bringing this long-awaited game back – with all new art (by Beth Sobel) and all-new mini-expansions (by Phil Walker-Harding)!

Stretch goals have already fallen thanks to our backers’ support. We have tried to keep the price for backers as low as possible, with the choice of a basic retail edition, or a more deluxe edition – exclusively for backers of our KS campaign 🙂 We hope you like what you see and may consider backing our project.

The game is due to deliver near the end of 2021.

Grail Games announces our 2021 schedule!

Wow! So much to say and so little bandwidth!

As part of Spiel Digital 2020, David Harding from Grail Games outlined all that we have planned for release and Kickstarter from now until the end of 2021. Sadly the internet decided this content needed to go into TWO livestream videos, so here they are 🙂

PART 1:

Games discussed:

  • Hibachi (by Marco Teubner)
  • Hibachi: Hot & Spicy (by Marco Teubner)
  • Whale Riders (by Reiner Knizia)
  • Whale Riders: The Card Game (by Reiner Knizia)

PART 2:

Games discussed (after recapping the above):

  • Yellow & Yangtze: The Royal Palace (Reiner Knizia)
  • Yellow & Yangtze: The Card Game (Reiner Knizia)
  • Medici: Reformation (Reiner Knizia)
  • Silicon Valley (Scott Almes)
  • Botanic Gardens (Matthew Dunstan & Brett J Gilbert)
  • Fjords (Franz-Benno Delonge)
  • ChuHan (Tom Lehmann)
  • Elevenses: The Guilty Party (David Harding)

PHEW! Thanks for your patience, but… HOW EXCITING IS THAT!?!!?!

Upcoming Kickstarter project: Hibachi!

Grail Games is thrilled to present Hibachi, a dexterity game inspired by the classic Safranito. Hibachi is a dexterity game, but tactics, timing, and money management all play a part. Get into the shoes of a chef of a hibachi grill, where you have to cook food in front of guests – and as quick as you can.

We’ve booked you a table on Tuesday, November 17th to find out who will be the most successful Hibachi chef!

Learn more about the game and subscribe to the newsletter to unlock new recipes before the launch!

-> https://bit.ly/Hibachi-prelaunch-KS

Share the link above, encourage your friends to sign in and unlock amazing content and expand your gaming experience before the project is live!

-> A unique theme and colorful artwork

Hibachi is the classic Safranito, but rethemed. The new theme brings the gameplay alive as players literally throw things onto the grill to cook their dishes. Hibachi benefits from a funny theme mixed with funtastic gameplay. Chefs are cute animals, the board is full of colorful ingredients, recipes are trendy… all thanks to amazing artwork by Kerri Aitken, who already worked with Grail Games on the draft & write travelling game Boomerang: Australia.

-> A unique mix of a dexterity and a euro game

Players must throw chips on the board, knocking other chips around with unexpected results, but they must also plan ahead, striving to build a strategy that will allow them to collect the ingredients they need. Hibachi’s mixed mechanisms keep the game feeling fresh. With a dash of interaction, stirred in with the meaningful decisions that are made every turn, Hibachi is a fun dexterity game for 2 to 4 players. Inspired by the long out of print and much sought after Safranito(released in 2010), now – with Hibachi – it’s time to rediscover this unique game!

-> Ideal for both family and expert gamers

Hibachi is an energetic and tactile game, with a fast pace. Rules are explained easily, making it simple to learn and play. Its unique mix of dexterity and strategy-building makes Hibachi the perfect game for almost everyone!

Families will appreciate the colorful artwork and the fun gaming experience Hibachi provides. Social gamers will also dive into the game, trash-talking and interacting as chips are thrown, hoping to influence what will happen, while planning what they themselves will do next. Even hardcore gamers will strive to beat their opponents and be the best chef in town, enjoying building a strategy to collect the precious cooking ingredients.

The upcoming Hibachi Kickstarter campaign will allow you to discover some unique components and additions from the original game. Join us on November 17th and subscribe now to our newsletter!

– The Grail Games Team