Game Salute: A New Kind of Publisher?

some actual journalism, an actual rant, pixel lincoln, don't suck
Game Salute: A New Kind of Publisher?

Since our last foray into Actual Journalism was so well received (It was? — Mark.), we’ve decided to give it another go. This time, we take a look at Game Salute, a company headquartered deep in the hinterlands of New Hampshire, a state that somewhat resembles in shape a standard reference pear.

Game Salute styles itself as a new kind of publisher, one that does much more than handle marketing and fulfillment (fulfillment meaning “getting the game out to customers”, from receiving, to warehousing, secure storage, picking, packing, shipping, tracking, sales to stores globally and customer service).

Among the flexible services they offer are solutions for other publishers, and, intriguingly, managing Kickstarter campaigns, boasting such success stories as Alien Frontiers, as well as unique titles ranging from Chicken Caesar to Pixel Lincoln.

It was started as a response to the many pain points its CEO Dan Yarrington saw in the board game industry. To find out how the cure compares with the disease, we sent Actual Journalist Mark Wallace off to have a good long chat with Yarrington, and he came back (from a phone call, not from New Hampshire) with this exciting and informative Q&A!

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Lucky Podcast Number Seven ft. Leigh Alexander

Bag o' rattlesnakes, Cosmic Zap, Mr. Stevens, Dani, Eyes forward please

Paul: Yes, yes, we have a seventh podcast for you, for all of you, even you there, at the back. Please form an orderly queue here and pick up your free copy. In this podcast we bounce from topic to topic like kangaroos on trampolines in an earthquake, touching on the glorious Galaxy Trucker, the … Read more

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Games News! 17/06/13

hot finagling, the centre of the earth, the health phase, fridge failures, dammit paul
Rockwell

Quinns: IT’S HERE. Actually literally drop everything. Wok Star, the co-operative, real time game of running a Chinese fast food kitchen is now on Kickstarter. I heard about this game two years ago, and a reprint containing such dramatic extras as “Fridge Failure cards” and an electronic timer (instead of a sand timer) is finally upon us.

Just imagine. You and another 1 to 3 of your friends rolling dice together, racing to complete recipes against the clock. Spending money between “days” to buy new recipes. Arguing as Paul fails to collect enough tips. Again. If you have a friend called Paul.

“Warning,” the Kickstarter quips. “Wok Star may well result in high fives.” Well, that’s me sold. You’d better believe we’ll be bringing you the earliest possible review.

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SU&SD Ask… What card games might you play?

SU&SD Ask... What card games might you play?

Quinns: A wild tangeant appears!

I want to talk about card games. Not the pre-boxed ones we’ve been reviewing for years, though- I mean games you can play with an ordinary deck of playing cards, the kind that magically appears in your house when you hit 40 along with a bath salts and a printer.

We’ve been sent a copy of Decktet, you see, as well as this official book of Decktet games. This is a whole-new set of playing cards that appear to offer more complexity, colour and flexibility. We are INTRIGUED, but to put it through its paces we’re going to need Your Help.

What are your favourite games to play with a deck of cards, readers?

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Review: 1812: The Invasion of Canada

bourbon-basted, boke, skit scoodily cisnormative, ok I eat the tissue
Review: 1812: The Invasion of Canada

Last year we reviewed a very special game called A Few Acres of Snow. Now, it’s hard to say what’s weirder. That we’ve reviewed YET ANOTHER simulation of a Canadian war, or that a game called 1812: The Invasion of Canada is secretly great fun.

But that’s not all! This video comes packed with a tiny little Let’s Play of Jazz: The Singing Card Game, as well as the second ever instalment of Board Games With Brendan and a tiny cameo from Guts of Glory. Hot beans.

How’s everyone finding the videos-every-Friday thing? We’re having fun with it. It just feels correct, somehow.

Oh, and for everyone who misses our full episodes, you’ll have something to be very happy about at the end of the month. …What could it be, do you think?

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Games News! 10/06/13

lethal dribbles, Paul and the Trollfens
The Trollfens

Quinns: Cripes! Have you seen the news?! The government’s using the internet to spy on our most secret Facemails and Googlings. Don’t worry, though. SU&SD’s weekly games news is only ever good news, covering the hottest new inanimate objects that will never violate your trust.

They might violate everything else, mind you. Cthulhu Wars is a new Kickstarter that’s shattered its funding goal faster than any other board game I’ve ever seen. “The marketplace today has many boardgames featuring the Cthulhu Mythos,” the page starts. “In these games you strive to avert the impending catastrophe. But in Cthulhu Wars you ARE the catastrophe!”

CRIPES!

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SU&SD Play… Galaxy Trucker: Anniversary Edition

the worst miss world victory in history, is that voyager, bowie, picard, riker
SU&SD Play... Galaxy Trucker: Anniversary Edition

Oh my goodness! The Anniversary Edition of Galaxy Trucker is here! It’s huge! And it weighs in at 8.82lbs, which is MORE THAN MOST BABIES.

Galaxy Trucker has been one of SU&SD’s favourite babies since we reviewed it in our sixth ever episode, the Vlaada Chvátil Special. It’s a game of building spaceships out of sewage pipes, launching them on “profitable” adventures, then crying as they fall apart like lego in a tumble drier. It’s just so inventive, and so, so funny.

If you haven’t got it yet, the Anniversary Edition is an absurd quantity of game. You get Galaxy Trucker itself, BOTH expansions (“The Big Expansion” and “Another Big Expansion”), AND some extra bits.

Just watch. Watch, and see how much you need this box in your life.

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Review: Netrunner

trenchcoats, rain-slick, spinal modems, hostile takeovers, Bickleshire
Review: Netrunner

Quinns: Finally, after six months of waiting and countless allusions on the podcast,
Android: Netrunner is back in stock and OUR REVIEW IS HERE. Click here to head over to the mighty Eurogamer.

Oh, and what a surprise! It’s the best collectible card game we’ve ever played.

“Here’s a game defined by inescapable tension. Playing as either side, you’re always able to make grim estimates of how far you are from victory, while the other player could win at any point. Worse, even the most lovingly crafted deck will often feel like a second antagonist. Both sides need programs, yes, and events and resources, but you’ll need money for all of those, and so sitting down to play Netrunner absolutely feels like you’ve taken a seat under a sword of Damocles that you’ve fastened there yourself.”

Oooh, yes. We like this one. Go read!

I’m actually playing in a Netrunner tournament with some friends this Sunday. We’ve all agreed not to look online for tips, but I wonder if we had anyone keen to give me NBN tips in the audience… ?

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RPG Review: Shooting the Moon

creepy orbits, jefferies tube makeouts, the boogermobile, true love
RPG Review: Shooting the Moon

Leigh: When you first asked me to do pen and paper roleplaying with you, my first thought was of mans sitting around the table doing spreadsheets about their spaceships. Even though you told me Shooting the Moon was about falling in love, I have to admit I was a little skeptical, you know? Like, “okay, rolling for my stats now, Strength, Intelligence and Hotness”.

When we talked about Tease, we both seemed to feel that that systems, stats, and — all right, I’ll say it, nerdery — bear the odour of un-romance. Yet this isn’t like that.

Quinns: No. Who knew? Shooting the Moon is a game that lets 2 or 3 players coax an honest-to-god love story out of the ether. But then, it’s not really a game about falling in love, is it? It’s a game about falling through the cracks of love. A game of struggle, of heartbreak, and – as the front of the book teases – finding out what you’ll do for love.

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SU&SD Will Now Cover Indie RPGs!

slow jams, spooky hexagon, porcelain unicorns, we have to save the zoo
SU&SD Will Now Cover Indie RPGs!

[Today is a momentous day in SU&SD history! We’ve fixed the toilets on level eleven. But also we’re expanding our remit from board and card games, to add just a little coverage of something else you can buy in a game shop: small, or “indie” roleplaying games. Anyone remember our review of Fiasco last year? Yes! Just like that.]

To help us out, we’d like to welcome back irregular SU&SD contributor Leigh Alexander. But who is she? Why is she here? And what is an indie RPG?]

Quinns: Who are you? Why are you here? And what is an indie RPG?

Leigh: Hi! I’m a gaming and culture writer who writes primarily about videogames, boardgames are finally getting under my skin thanks to SU&SD, and you KNOW what an indie RPG is, punk.

Quinns: It’s true. Indie RPGs take the format of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons and their ilk, with players sat around a table, rolling dice, pretending to be half-elves and what have you, but with a focus on story instead of simulation. Suddenly, these books offer low-maintenance games that you and your friends can finish in a single evening.

And oh my GOD! They’re all so fascinating!

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