Merchants Cove
365 Day Challenge Table Top

365 Days of Board Gaming – June Recap

June was actually down a little bit. As the weather got nicer, it wasn’t that I played games less often, it was more that I pulled out some new or bigger games. I did get a number played and I did get my #2 game of all time played and introduced to some new players. But that did then raise a question for me as I was playing that game, is it still my #2 game of all time? That’s something I’ll have to think about when it comes to redoing the list in October. But I wasn’t able to quite keep pace with where my board gaming needed to be to stay on my goal.

But let’s work our ways onto the games that I did get played and see which ones top the list for the month of June.

A Gentle Rain – 5 Plays

This one got played a lot on stream last month. A Gentle Rain is really such a relaxing game. I should probably pull it out and play it again some evening. The game play is simple, but I don’t feel like I need to think much about it. A good solo only game that is a nice quick play and a chance to relax and let my mind clear.

Tainted Grail – 2 Plays

Normally this would have given me a few more plays. I count each session we play as multiple games depending on where we go with the chapters of the story. But we are on Chapter 7 now, and our first session we finished up Chapter 6, second session started Chapter 7. That means only two plays of this. And I get to play it again tomorrow. I’m still really loving Tainted Grail. it is such an epic story driven game.

Merchants Cove – 2 Plays

A new game for me this past month was Merchants Cove. It is a fun asymmetrical game where players are running their own little engine to try and score the most points possible. You can read my full review of it here. The game play just works for me. It takes a bit to play for such a light game but I like how the engines work, and I like how the different characters play. Plus there is just enough interaction with loading the ships to make it interesting, but not so much to make it feel cut throat.

Xenoshyft Onslaught – 2 Plays

A game that I always love to play, I talked about it in my Top 10 cooperative games over on Malts and Meeples.

Then I immediately got it played the day after. Xenoshyft: Onslaught is so much fun. It’s a game that I don’t win often, but I still love it. And when I play it, I want to play it again. I think t hat I’ve played this game around a dozen times and maybe won twice. But it always feels so close. And it is a fun deck building game that does some different things.

Medium – 2 Plays

Another new game for me, Medium was picked up on a whim at Target. A friend had demoed it at GenCon and thought it was fun, and I thought the concept was fun. Medium has two players trying to match up words. Or come up with the same word between two words. If it’s cat and turtle, what is the word that links the two or is between the two? Animal would make a lot of sense for that, but pasta and turtle that might take a bit more time (shell) and cat and spaceship, might be even harder. Can you match it up in three guesses, it’s fun and good for a laugh.

Homebrewers – 2 Plays

Almost forgot to add this one to the list, in fact if you saw this right away it wasn’t there. Homebrewers is such a fun game. I got to play two players again and I love it for the engine building. You get to create crazy homebrew and see who is the best brewer. Plus at the end, I always like to decide if I’d try the beer or not. The answer is basically always yes, I’d try it, but there are a number where I’m not sure if I want to drink a full pint of it. If you want a fast and light engine building game, Homebrewers is great.

Railroad Ink Challenge – 2 Plays

Yet another new game, Railroad Ink Challenge is just another version of Railroad Ink, but it adds in even more to the game. Another one that I played on Malts and Meeples, you can watch it played below. It just adds to Railroad Ink in a really fun way. You now have goals you want to complete. Can you get them done in time, how well can you score, the game is just a blast and worth checking out for a roll and write.

Blood Rage – 1 Play

This is my #2 game of all time. And while I did have fun playing it again and it won’t ever leave my collection, I do wonder if it’ll stay at #2 come October. I like this drafting and dudes on a map game. There is a lot of strategy and a lot of fun in the game. And I got to play it four player which is pretty rare, I’ve normally played it two player. The winners both had different strategies and the two of us lagging behind were going for more of a Loki style strategy. It was fun to see all the different options, and I’m kind of ready to play it again just have some revenge.

Aeon’s End – 1 Play

Now, technically this was another new game for me. I have played Aeon’s End War Eternal several times. But now that I own everything for Aeon’s End, I finally played the base game. Aeon’s End is another deck building game that does some different things. I like fighting the giant monster, I like trying to keep the town alive, and I like how different each giant monster is. I think I will start playing Aeon’s End Legacy on Wednesday over on Malts and Meeples. Join me if you want to see more Aeon’s End there. I really think it’s a very good cooperative deck building game.

Clever Hoch Drei – 1 Play

Yup, I played all the Clever games again. They are just such nice roll and write games. And now I’ve taught a lot of people, so it makes it really easy to get to the table.

Hues and Cues – 1 Play

So Hues and Cues is a pandemic purchase. I got it because it was one that could be played via Zoom. But, I think it is more fun in person. Like most games, it is easier to just talk across the table and it helps up the silly level of the game. Sometimes you just want to play something is silly and a good time. Hues and Cues doesn’t force silliness, but gives a lot of good laughs. Plus it’s tricky to give one word clues or two to get people to guess a color. So there is lots of time to chat while playing without slowing down the game.

Super-Skill Pinball
Image Source: WizKids

Super-Skill Pinball: 4-Cade – 1 Play

Another o ne that I played on Malt and Meeples, I won’t post the video this time. But check it out over there if you want to see how Super-Skill Pinball plays. The game is a lot of fun and gives you some good choices. The thing I always come back to with Super-Skill Pinball is that it is the most thematic roll and write that I’ve played. Does it feel just like playing a pinball machine, it’s can’t really, but the mechanics all make so much sense, and as you get combos it just works so well. And it does truly try and have a theme and ends up with a solid theme to it.

Ganz Schon Clever – 1 Play

What, more Clever roll and writes? No shock there. I still think the first is my favorite, but I can get some really great games of the third one at times.

Doppelt So Clever – 1 Play

Yes, the final Clever game. Right now I almost always play them as a trilogy. It is fun to see how well I can do across all three of them. And sometimes the answer to that question is not well at all, and other times I end up with a really high score.

Sushi Go Party! – 1 Play

I got to play this two months ago and then this month. I actually like the fact that I had some time off from it. We were playing it fairly often, but now I’m ready to play it more. Sushi Go Party is a fun drafting game, and now I own 4 different promo cards for it. So I can play with even more variety than I normally would And I will say that some of the promos are a lot of fun. Sake gives you three points but then the next card is drafted blind. That one is just goofy, but somehow thematic at the same time.

Onirim – 1 Play

Final one that got played is Onirim. Another solo game, Onirim definitely gives you a bit more to think about than A Gentle Rain, but still not too much. I think my only real knock on Onirim is that it can be a bit fiddly. While I have streamed it, I almost prefer Onirim for when I’m watching a sporting event or something like that and want to keep my hands busy. I don’t need to be completely engaged but it gives me something to do.

Yearly Stats

Half way through the year and I have 166 plays under my belt. That is 48 different games and 18% of my current collection. This month was interesting because like I said, there were some bigger games in there. Blood Rage, Xenoshyft, and Merchants Cove were all games that might have gotten played twice or might have had more games played in those evenings if they didn’t take as long.

Tainted Grail still leads the way with most plays. Followed by Deadly Doodle, Dice Throne, Ganz Schon Clever, and Metro X, so a huge game and three smaller games. But 10 games are at the 5+ plays or more for the year. And I feel like 18% of the collection played isn’t that bad. Though, I hope by the end of the year to have that pushing into that range of 1/3 of my collection played or more.

Which of my games last month do you want to play most?

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