Opinionated Gamers

  • Dale Yu: Review of Portals

    Portals Designer: Maxim Istomin Publisher: CrowD Games Players: 1-4 Age: 10+ Time: 20 min/player Played with copy provided by publisher The great wizard Dominick Dey discovered a way to travel between different worlds using elemental magic, and spent centuries bringing … Continue reading ...

  • Dale Yu: Review of Invincible the Dice Game

    Invincible the Dice Game Designer: uncredited Publisher: Mantic Games Players: 2-4 Age: 10+ Time: 30 minutes Played with review copy provided by Flat River Games The Guardians of the Globe are recruiting for an open spot in their group of … Continue reading →

  • Dale Yu: Review of Stamp Collection

    Stamp Collection Designer: Michael Schacht Publisher: Trefl Players: 2-4 Age: 8+ Time: 45 minutes Played with review copy provided by Trefl In Stamp Collection you will play the role of philatelists whose goal is to gather a collection of unique … Continue reading →

  • Unboxing – Let’s Go! to Japan KS edition

    Well, I’m not normally one for unboxing posts – in part because we deal with text here on the OG – but I just got my production copy of Let’s Go! to Japan – and man, it’s beautiful.  Thought I’d … Continue reading →

  • The Gates of Valhalla Swing Open… Again: The Return of Heroscape

    Simply put, a game system that has been dead for fourteen years is back from the dead… and this time, it looks like the publisher understands what made Heroscape so special. When I last wrote about Renegade Game Studios beginning … Continue reading →

  • Matt Carlson: Review of Legacy of Yu

    While fans of wargaming have been playing both sides of a battle for decades, the idea of playing a boardgame solo has recently seen a large uptick in broader gaming circles. Many boardgames advertise a “solo mode”, allowing gamers to … Continue reading →

  • Dale Yu: Review of Lab Notes

    Lab Notes Designer: Darrell Louder Publisher:Greater Than Games Players:2-5 Age: 14+ Time: 40 minutes Played with review copy provided by Flat River Group (distributor) Class is now in session for Lab Notes! This roll-and-write game features the brain teaser challenge … Continue reading ...

  • The Ascending Empire(s) Strike Back: A Preview of Ascending Empires Zenith Edition

    Back in the summer of 2011 – which, for those of you who don’t like to do math, was nearly thirteen years ago – I reviewed Z-Man Games’ “weird & wonderful cross between a dexterity game like Carabande or Catacombs … Continue reading →

  • Dale Yu: Review of Compounded – the Peer Reviewed edition

    Compounded – The Peer reviewed edition Designer: Darrell Louder Publisher: Greater Than Games Players: 2-5 Age:14+ Time: 45-60 minutes Played with review copy provided by Flat River Games (distributor) Amazon affiliate link: Compounded is a game about building chemical … Continue ...

  • Winners of 2024 As d’Or Awards Announced

    On February 22, the winners of the 2024 As d’Or, which is France’s national game award, were announced.  Here they are, in the award’s four different categories, together with each game’s designer and publisher: General Games Trio (Kaya Miyano) – Cocktail Games … ...