Episodes
James and Erin have pieced together a lovely episode for listeners on Patchwork, a game by Uwe Rosenberg of Agricola fame! This game gains points for a uniquely pleasant experience and also not being Agricola! Join us also for a rich tapestry of philosophical talk on game groups and game styles!
Published 04/30/18
Over the Tabletop rises to greatness as always with Stone Blade Games' Ascension! A solid deckbuilder that's been around for several years and has several expansion/standalone games, it's been a go-to game for James and Erin, with wins on both sides. Or not! It's hard to tell, because the game is enjoyable enough (pretty art! appealing victory tokens!) not to worry about winning or losing. Co-producer Solstice also offers her thoughts! (spoiler alert, they are "Meow!")
Published 04/09/18
We're back with a on-location report from local gaming convention TotalCon! We offer our thoughts on some newly sampled games such as Vampires vs. Unicorns and The Exorcism at the House of Monkton Falls! We also review longtime favorite, Hero Realms from White Wizard Games! This episode also brings an update on the Android Netrunner legacy game we've been playing/bickering over for several months. Give a listen!
Published 03/17/18
We return with Twilight of the Gods, a fun outing from Victory Point Games that James likes a lot even though Erin has won every game thus far! The game, much like Magic with some twists, has an expansion up on Kickstarter right now. Also this episode, Solstice meows in the background, causing immediate cuteness meltdowns; Erin grumbles a bit about card terminology; and we recap our San Francisco trip!
Published 02/25/18
We cast our net wider this week while discussing the board game oeuvre of a favorite game maker, Small Box Games! They're a solid game developer with a strong Kickstarter presence, grasp of different game mechanics, and making gold coins look like delicious cheeseballs. Also in this episode, Erin can't open her tea, James has super vacation brain, and Solstice audibly climbs into a bag! Join us!
Published 02/09/18
It's unanimous, folks! A game that James, Erin, AND Co-Producer Solstice KitKat all enjoy! This week's episode has us playing Mission to Planet Hexx, a delightful romp through space and even though Erin lost and is feeling surly about it, she's STILL jazzed to try again. It's a brand-new day! It should also be noted that James still can't stand Ticket to Ride.
Published 01/26/18
This week, Over the Tabletop plays Witches of the Revolution from Atlas Games and it's ... fine? Erin is unexpectedly aggro about how great this deckbuilder with a cooperative twist could have been and James is intent upon spoiling The Last Jedi for listeners. (Don't worry, we've sonically excised the spoilers!) Come for our discussion of how awesome Occult Candyland would be and what our top five favorite TV shows might be!
Published 01/10/18
The weather outside is weather, but inside your ears, it's a new episode of Over the Tabletop! This week, we see if things end happily ever after with Dark Tales, an engaging card game with lots of replayability. Come for the game discussion, stay for the warping of the Duck Tales theme song and lots of unwelcome Little Mermaid and Spin Doctors references!
Published 01/04/18
Ever have one of those games that's super popular, well-crafted, and just plain ol' not for you? Arkham Horror might be that game for James and Erin. It's chock full of juicy story, twists and turns, and growing madness, but that impending sense of doom and seemingly insurmountable odds ... aren't always what you want in a fun game night. Give a listen!
Published 12/20/17
It's another installment of Over the Tabletop, a weekly-ish podcast dedicated to two-player board games! This week, we discuss Epic PvP from AEG and Fun to 11 Games. Described as a "shufflebuilding" game, Epic PvP offers quick gameplay with up to 72 (probably) different character combinations James and Erin discuss the importance of reading ALL the rules to properly enjoy a game as well as our fave Diablo character classes!
Published 12/13/17
Sometimes your gameplay will be less for the beer-and-pretzels set and more for the milk-and-cookies crowd! Make holidays magical by getting the whole family/chosen family/friends/people stranded at the airport involved! This week, we offer up a few family-friendly suggestions for games that work well for the non-gamers in your Christmas coterie/Solstice suite/Hanukkah huddle/Yule crew. We also as is our wont, have a decidedly explicit discussion of the serial murder-centric television...
Published 11/30/17
We're back, with a look at one of James' favorite games of all time and a game that Erin acknowledges is certainly very well constructed. This living card game (code: you can buy packs of cards forever and always and make your partner shudder about how complex things will get) combines some solid asymmetrical play with a bit of bluffing and usually, for Erin, some tears. 
Published 11/15/17
What happens when two overly-into-Salem-adjacent-media folks find a game with this theme? Lots of praise for said game (a worker placement game we enjoy!!), along with takes that are hellfire-hot about other things we DON'T like. Listen for James' opinions on The VVitch and Erin's weirdly specific historic references, and our review of DPH (not NPH) Games' "Affliction: Salem 1692!"
Published 11/01/17
We're on the edge, the edge, the edge, the edge, the Edge of Humanity! Luckily, this precipice is a pretty cool place, since we both really enjoyed the game. Give a listen as we discuss our playthrough, as well as Erin's sneaky It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia references, a confusing rainbow pin, and James' strongly-held opinions about game boxes!
Published 10/25/17
A fun extra this week for you fine folks, in addition to our review of Legend of the Five Rings (spoiler alert, Erin can't hold her honor) -- an interview with game designer Luca Vince Caltabiano, creator of the upcoming Neon Knights 2086. We talk Kickstarter, game design, and the value of a thriving gaming community. Enjoy!
Published 10/18/17
We take a deeper dive into Geek Fever Games' Druid Dice, a fave from our recent gaming con experience! Come for our playthrough of a game that is Tetris meets Candy Crush meets Super Puzzle Fighter and stay for our favorite druid-related media, including James' list of things he'd rather do than watch the Nic Cage remake of "The Wicker Man!"
Published 10/11/17
We got out and saw some stuff and now we're back! This week, we discuss a local game con, the Boston Festival of Indie Games. It's a great way to try out some new games and games in development, including Phoenix Covenant, Visitor in Blackwood Grove, Druid Dice, Adventures of the Cimmerian Forest, Pinball Showdown and more! It's also a great opportunity for us to test out our editing skills after some really bizarre tangents. Join us!
Published 09/27/17
This week, we take our drift compatibility out for a spin with Zothren Invasion, a semi-cooperative card game that pits pieces of giant robots against somewhat reptilian alien invaders! Aw, darn, we didn't discuss the movie Alien Invaders. We do, however, chat about Pacific Rim, the genesis of Erin's love of square dancing, and why sometimes house rules are necessary in gaming.
Published 09/13/17
This week, we're rolling them stones, wood, and possibly house-themed dice with Castle Dice! It's more commonly known around the Over the Tabletop royal court as one of the few resource management games James enjoys. Join us as we discuss some quality castle movies (Bitchy Paul Giamatti in Ironclad!), make up some inappropriate parody songs about college football, and score a hat trick of cursewords!
Published 09/06/17
We return to our regularly scheduled program of editing the more ribald of our game commentary with The Twelve Doctors, an obscure print-and-play game that we both enjoy, despite Erin being terrifically bad at it. Join us as we discuss our favorite Doctors, come up with a stunning array of synonyms for boners, and offer up some stern words for avocado toast fans!
Published 08/30/17
We'll be honest, friends, we go a little off the rails (primarily in good ways) in this mostly-unedited episode as we find ourselves playing a game that's entertaining in lots of ways and also not in a few key other ways. Thrill to James' tight five on eliptony and Erin's childhood misunderstandings of classic horror movies! 
Published 08/23/17
This week, rather than playing a game, we bring you our tried-and-true advice for having a .... well-rounded experience at GenCon, the nation's premier gaming convention, which kicks off its 50th event this week in Indianapolis. Over the Tabletop knows gaming AND knows Indianapolis. so listen up as we give you all the tips that are fit to print and the ones that aren't, including proper photo etiquette, curiously detailed commentary on where and how to imbibe your favorite gaming spirits, and...
Published 08/16/17
We flex our head-to-head fighting muscles this week with Exceed from Level 99 Games, a great game that always does exactly what you might think to our expectations! We also discuss one of our favorite kickpunching movie stars, Scott Adkins, and debate exactly how many Universal Soldier movies one really needs to watch to understand the mythos. We also select winners of our custom dice bag contest! Spoiler alert, everyone wins!
Published 08/09/17
It's a combat for the ages .... mostly between Solstice and Erin's unattended feet, as we dive into Ophidian 2360, a futuristic gladiatorial card game! Join us in our game ludus as we discuss our fervent love for TV shows about gladiators including 'Spartacus: Blood and Sand' and James calls for challengers on a particularly controversial pop culture topic.
Published 08/02/17
Iä! Iä! Cthulhu fhtagn! Join us for some arts 'n' Lovecrafts as we flee toward the eminently speakable enjoyment of Lost in R'lyeh, an Uno-esque card game from Atlas Games. Will Erin rise from the deep by actually winning a game? WHO CAN SAY?
Published 07/26/17