www.theblisspages.com - board games
www.theblisspages.com - board gamesLinks on this page: My games : game session reports : buying games : Essen games fair : useful sites : downloads
I played a lot of board games in my youth (e.g. Quirks, Sopwith, Sorcerer's Cave, Alaska) but stopped playing them, mainly because my former partner didn't like playing games. A few years ago, I rediscovered them, especially German board games, which combine good gameplay with short rules. Read how I got back into board games. If you want to buy me a game, see my wants: board games.
I have been to several all-day games events in Saltdean. Read my report on the latest, Pasteboard and Plastic V, or my reports of earlier days, Pasteboard and Plastic IV and Pasteboard and Plastic III, or even Saltdean games report November 2005 - the first Pasteboard and Plastic event. Pasteboard and Plastic VI is scheduled for 12 July 2008, so put it in your diary now!
Last year, I went to play Spammers, I game I've had for a few years, but when I opened it, I found that instead of two different packs of cards, I had the same pack twice, rendering the game unplayable. I could have given up at this point, especially as the game is from the States, but instead emailed Atlas Games. Within a couple of hours, I received a reply, and a few days later, received two new packs of cards from John Nephew, the president of the company. This level of customer service is fantastic, and very welcome. Thanks, John!
I was in the Argus on Monday 20 October 2003, which has coverage throughout Sussex.
They printed an article on theblisspages boardgames and I featured in the editorial for two weeks.
See my 15 minutes of fame.
As a result of the article, I was contacted by Martin Devereux of the Brighton Boardgames Club who meet in Brighton on Tuesday evenings.
Graham Lipscomb, author of Creeper & Colliding Circles, which was sold in Essen a couple of years ago, also emailed me. Graham still has a few copies left, which he is selling on his website at www.grahams-games.co.uk. He also has a new dice spelling game, Dicewords.
The Weekly News, with a readership of 275,000, also ran an article about me on their 21 April 2004 issue with a couple of photos. I was then contacted by a reader in Northumberland wanting rules for Mah Jongg.
I have about 400 games, including 55 of my children's games. You can see the ones I've catalogued so far on BoardGameGeek (hint - click on a letter or on ALL to see the list!). I plan to highlight particular games or types of game periodically. Submissions are welcome!
We run weekly sessions in West Sussex, usually on Wednesday or Friday nights, and have run 323 events since November 2001. Click on the Essen 2001 picture below to find out about some of the players. We welcome new players. If you're interested in coming along, please email me your name, address and telephone number and I'll contact you with forthcoming dates and venues. I haven't been able to attend many events recently, but hope to get to a few more soon.
Below are forthcoming events and reports from the last month. Click here to see earlier events.
| Date and time | Venue | Players | Report |
| Wed 16 Apr 08 at 20:00 | Tony's | Mike Richard Tony |
We started with The Thief of Bagdad, which I haven't played before. There were some interesting mechanisms, but it is difficult to hold back the leader. We finished with a perrenial favourite, Carcassonne. It is the first time for years that I have played without any expansions, but as usual, the farmers were the key to a winning score. |
| Wed 23 Apr 08 at 20:00 | Mike's | Mike Steve Tony |
We played the starting rounds of Friedrich knowing that we wouldn't be able to finish in an evening, so decided that we would stop at 23:00. I don't know much about the historical context of Frederick the Great, but this didn't matter too much. I found the cards strange, based as they are on packs of playing cards. Against my expectations, I enjoyed myself, and look forward to finding enough time for a full game. |
| Wed 30 Apr 08 at 20:00 | Mike's | Joseph Mike Steve |
We started with a fun game brought by Steve(!), Mordred, which had a healthy dose of chaos, along with some difficult choices. We finished with a game of Labyrinth, and I'd forgotten how good this is. I must get it out again when my children next come round. |
| Wed 07 May 08 at 20:00 | Mike's | ||
| Wed 14 May 08 at 20:00 | Mike's | ||
| Wed 21 May 08 at 20:00 | Mike's |
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One good source for second-hand games in the UK is charity shops. Although there is a lot of dross, you can also find some great games - I've picked up such gems as Fair Means or Foul, Magic Carpet and Cafe International.
I've also bought many games from Playin' Games at 33 Museum St, London WC1A 1JR.
Online, I often buy from adam spielt in Germany. They are particularly good (surprise, surprise) for German games. You can order in English (click on Warenkorbsystem cart system, then English). Their prices are competitive and delivery is very quick.
I have also bought games from Gamesale. They are particularly good for second-hand games. Their prices are competitive and delivery is also quick.
Another source I have used is MNG, who sell second-hand games by mail-order. This used to be run by Eamon Bloomfield, but has now been taken over by Andy Merritt. Email Andy at andy.merritt@ntlworld.com for details and lists.
A few months ago, I received an email from the Super Game Company recommending I tried their new games, 5 in a Row Challenge and Grand Empire. Unfortunately, I see from BoardGameGeek that they only shipped to the USA. I also suspect they have gone under as their website has disappeared. Still, they deserve a mention, if only because they mentioned my 'nice bright shirts'!
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Essen is the premier games fair in the world and is held annually. You can get maps of the halls and lists of games and exhibitors from the Merz Verlag site. I also thoroughly recommend Brett & Board for information on games and Essen. Anyone going to Essen for the games fair is unlikely to see much of the city, so you might like to take the virtual tour! or visit the main Tourism in Essen site.
Joseph found cheap flights from Gatwick to Cologne, which necesitated a short rail journey, but were a lot cheaper. Four of us went together, leaving at 03.30 Thursday 13 October and returning about midnight on Friday 14. See essen 2005 for my report of the trip. I am planning to sell some of my games to help pay for the trip. See my gots page for a list.
gamefest has a lot of information about new releases for Essen, and the German website Spielbox is also interesting - if , unlike me, you're a German-speaker.
Joseph couldn't resist another visit, but again I couldn't afford it.
Joseph went to Essen from Wednesday 27 - Saturday 30 October, and bought me Reef Encounter.
Joseph and Richard went again, but I couldn't afford it.
Even if I had gone, I'm not sure where I'd put any more games!
Even without going there, thanks to Joseph, I bought Railroad Dice, Carcassonne Die Burg, the free Carcassonne expansions Späher and König, and a signed copy of the limited-edition Cronberg (Cronberg was produced as 1,450 regular editions and 50 collectors' editions).
I found enough information on Kulkmann's G@mebox to be able to have a go of Die Burg.
It also had rules for Späher and König. Both Railroad Dice and Cronberg come with English rules, but you can download updated rules for
Railroad Dice here.
The German website Spielbox has plenty of information about Essen games releases, but as I don't speak German, it was of limited use.
This year the Essen Games Fair was on from Thursday 23 - Sunday 26 October.
Joseph's comments from the fair:
I bought myself 16 new games: Attika, Anno 1503, Kogge, Logistico, Railroad Dice , Carcassonne Die Burg, Carcassonne Konig und Spaher tiles, Die Fugger, Pingvinas, The Kookaburra Game, Rette sich ver Kann, Alexandros, Floraida, Bridges of Shangrila, Cronberg, and Industria. I didn't get the 2F game as I guess someone will order it in due course, and Maya I should probably have got but didn't. The showpiece game of King Arthur with the AI by Knizia flopped, and was being discounted around the halls. I would recommend Attika which looks top notch, the pick of the crop from the fair.
I look forward to playing these (and probably buying some more of them!)
Joseph and I went in 2002 too, from 17th - 20th October. We stayed at Hotel im Girardet Haus, Girardetstraße 2-38, 45131 Essen (Tel. 02 01 / 87 88 00 + 87 88 080). It's only five minutes walk from the exhibition, but is quite expensive (about £70 per night). We met up with old friends and games players including Richard Minson, Richard and Reb Harding and Mark, Mark and Nick from Swindon, amongst others.
Here's a list of games I bought (and the ones I didn't)
I went to the Essen games fair in Germany in 2001, an experience which I thoroughly recommend! I bought 30+ games and have played most of them. I've listed them here with my ratings. Over 147,000 visitors attended the show in total.
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Here we're having a short break before diving back into the heaving halls for the next buying frenzy! I'm the one on the left in the bright shirt. Please click on the image to enlarge and find out who's who - back
to return |
If you want a laugh, check out the Spielboy website.
I recently received Time Control from Thompson Industries for review. Written by gamers for gamers, it looks interesting and I will schedule some testing time soon and post a review. There's a good introduction to the game on the Thompson Industries website.
I went to an all-day games event in Marcham in November 2002. See my Marcham games report for more details.
I went to an all-day games event in Saltdean in November 2005. See my Saltdean games report for more details.
Thanks to everyone who has allowed me to offer these files for download. Enjoy!
Lowenherz English rules in Word format submitted by Steve.
Kugelblitz or Ball Lightning English rules in Word format submitted by Mike Bliss.
Der Herr der Ringe - Das Duell English rules in Word format submitted by Steve.
Am Rande des Gletschers Précis of English rules in Word format submitted by Steve.
Odins Raben Précis of English rules in Word format submitted by Steve.
Die Fursten von Florence Player Aid in Excel format submitted by Fiske.
Trans-America English rules in Word format submitted by Joseph.
Wildlife English rules in Word format submitted by Steve.
Bau Auf! English rules in Word format submitted by Steve.
Pinocchio English rules in Word format submitted by Steve.
Wie Hund und Katz English rules in Word format submitted by Steve.
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: © Mike Bliss 2008