May, 1997

The Living Room Floor

Most of the new stuff is scattered around the living room. After about four weeks, I'll pick stuff up and actually put it away in the Game Cabinet (give or take a bit depending on other demands on my time).

Gaming News & Commentary

Letter from the Editor - notes and introduction to this month's issue (May)

Games and Cheese - Bruno Faidutti checks in from a French alternative Gathering
Leaping Leprecons - Annie Shillabeer on roleplaying cons and Guiness consumption

Spiel des Jahres Nominations - the short list for German Game of the Year
Mensa Games of the Year - the best of the US brain games
The German Game Hits of 1996 - a surprising survey of sales in Germany

Extra!

Spiel des Jahres 97 - Mississippi Queen takes the prize!

Conventions and Gatherings

European GEN CON 1997 - August 28th-31st (Leicestershire, England)
Northern Virginia Gamers - events for 1997 (Virginia, USA)
Ramsdencon - June 13th-15th, 1997 (Essex, England)
1st Mind Sports Olympiad - August 18th-24th, 1997 (London, England)

Stump the Net

May's Queries - have you ever heard of these games?

All the King's Men - Scott Custer was overwhelmed by the replies
Italian Cards - Kevin Charles is no longer dying
Okey - Moeminoe on the trail of this Turkish card game
Wooden Games - Sally and Nicholas Brookins search for Carom variants

Letter Box

10,000 Variant - Greg Aleknevicus with another version of this folk classic
Ashes of Empire - Harald Topf, Frank Juedes, and Matthias Esken with the scoop
Chinese Cards - Joe Celko writes in to describe interesting finds from Chinatown
Dune - Mark Bassett defends the honor of this venerated game
Game Orders by Mail - Derek Hohls with a dissenting opinion about Fine Games (sic)
Knightmare Chess Expansion et al - Bruno Faidutti with the latest on his endeavors
Formule De in the Netherlands - Erwin Broens reports on the new edition and a new track
Serial Killers and Bocce Balls - M. Allen with a random report on a satiric game
Tigris & Euphrates - Kevin Jacklin has good news about this upcoming Knizia release
Und Tschuss - Eddy Richards with a rules clarification
Wildlife Adventure - Matt Macander with a variant and call to action

Letter Box - Extra!

Kogin & Intrigant cards - Chris Baylis is your source
Maulwurf Companie - Chris Boote objects points out the holes in this game
Palmyra rules clarification - Steve Kurzban settles a long standing debate
The Serial Killer Boardgame - Kevin Maroney comments his own Valentine's Day massacre

Game Reviews

Nuremberg 97 - Siggins has two thumbs down for the first of the new crop
Bohnanza / Beananza - hard tradin' down on the bean farm
CrossCribb - a clever little Cribbage variant
Legend of the Five Rings - Beiden Pass - leaping out of the CCG pack
Die Maulwurf Company / Mole in the Hole - musical holes just doesn't sound right...
Mississippi Queen - Ab Die Post Seafarer?
Die Ritter von der Haselnuß / The Knights of the Hazelnut - a nutty game by Teuber

Game Bits

Note that the PostScript files in the rules below should be downloaded to your hard disk and then printed using the appropriate application (lpr on Unix, BBedit or others on Mac, ?? on Windows, etc.).

Hispania Errata - release notes for this history of Spain
The SPI Compendium - Greg Costikyan's history of this once influential company

Marracash Reference Card - your guide to fleecing tourists (PostScript)

Original Game Rules

Hi Rollin' - a Stack variant from the designer of Herbs, Michael Petty

English Game Translations

The Most Wanted List - rule sets at large and unaccounted for

Abilene - cattle rustlin' and cow pokin' in those heady days before cholesterol
Alaska - four wheelin' in the Arctic
Banque / Bank - manipulate the market for fun and profit
Bohnanza / Beananza - hard trading on a bean farm
- Bloomfield Summary
- Soubeyrand Translation
Buro Crazy / Bureau Crazy - climbin' the corporate ladder
For Sale - real estate scams made (too?) simple
Hollywood For Sale - all that glitters is not on the gilded screen
Johnny Controletti - psycho loan shark, qu'est-ce que c'est?
König & Intrigant / King & Conspirator - El Grande 2: The CCG?
Lang lebe der Konig! / Long live the King! - great bits but why are we electing a king?
Lowenherz / Lionheart - who will be king when Lionheart dies? Maybe you!
Manitou / Great Spirit - Tribe Goldseiber goes hunting for a theme
Marracash / Marracash - fleecing tourists without all the heat and sunscreen
Mississippi Queen - paddlewheel steamer racing
Nimm's Leich! / Grave Robbers! - the desicated corpse of a great game system
Njet! / No! - the game of denial
Die Ritter von der Haselnuß / The Knights of the Hazelnut - valiant squirrels vs. sneaky thieves
Schwarzmarkt / Black Market - scarcity is the mother of inflation
Shanghai - another Sackson design is jumped in a dark alley...
Die Siedler Seefahrer / Seafaring Settlers - the long awaited expansion to Teuber's megahit
- Moo Translation
- Ingram Translation
Die Siedler Kartenspiel Turnierer-Set /
Settlers Cardgame Tournament Expansion - more Settlers mania
- Tufts Translation
- Ingram Translation
Suppenkasper / Poor Eater - a good game for a diet
Tichu - there are several rules corrections in this version
Und Tschuss! / So long! - the latest word in musical chairs
Venice Connection - canal building in a tile laying package
Visionary - architectural blind man's bluff
Zum Kuckuck! / For the birds! - devilish birds steal anything that isn't tied down

French Game Translations

Bohnanza - Je crois qu'il pioche !
Igel Argern / Les Hérissons pressés - le jeu de course hérissons ultime
Die Maulwurf Company / La Compagnie des Taupes - le jeu de trous et taupes
Die Ritter von der Haselnuss / Les chevaliers de la noisette - écureuils vaillant v. voleurs sournois

Traditional Games

Roman Board Games - a wonderful resource for games to play at toga parties

Game Software

Dominoes, etc - 42 and other popular Texan variants (Windows, HP 100XL/200XL)

The Front Door

Impact 1 - the strategic, new, 3D space game
McGartlin Motorsport Design - purveyors of fine auto racing games
Phil O'Neill Games - makers of Ransom, Toilet Humour, and other fine games
Shrink - from Bundex Games
Yggerasill / Studio Grafix - an innovative new game company

Other Places

Dash, Inc - an up and coming new game company with three products out
Evo - for when you're bored with Chess (free download of pdf version)
Antique Games Auction - the Big Game Hunter brings home the goods
The Lateral Thinking Page - a great game for two or more
Wolf Ihlenfeldt's Game Translations - a few very good English translations of German games

The Game Cabinet - [email protected] - Ken Tidwell