Shut Up & Sit Down

Card Games That Don’t Suck: Egyptian Ratscrew

This week, our series on the best games that you can play with a 52 card deck gets violent.

Egyptian Ratscrew plays a lot like Jungle Speed, except with more fire. Literally. This is the first game that SU&SD has covered with a greater than zero chance of ending in flames. Also, huge thanks to Gnalistair on YouTube for pointing out that the game gets even better if you require players to first slap their forehead before slapping the table.

If you like the look of the Carte Rouge puzzle deck in this video, the Kickstarter is right here.

Leave a comment

Podcast #99¾ – Running from the Board Game Police

a bounty of beans, an unexpected tribunal, an underworld panty raid, breasticles

In this episode, Matt, Quinns and Ben report live from a secret hideout. Matt’s been breaking the rules of Gloomhaven (discussed at 26:54) while Quinns has been ignoring the laws of new, superb expansion Bunny Kingdom: In the Sky (50:12), and the cops could bust them at any moment. The group also discuss the bizarre Undo games (02:56), the video game-inspired Super Motherload (10:05), the delightfully three-dimensional ShipShape (20:42), the wild grasping of Lords of Hellas (36:20) and the disappointment of Cerberus (48:02). Thanks to our amazing community, podcast transcripts are available here, and are usually completed within a week of the podcast’s release.

Leave a comment

GAMES NEWS! 02/09/19

palace summerin', park cuttin', monocle poppin', worms

Quinns: Sorry I’m late to the doc, Ava. I put too many news-chillies on my news-pizza last night, and it has caused problems with my ability to use the news-toilet.

Ava: Hey! Adding the word news to everything is MY thing. Let me make you some news-peppermint tea, while you decide if you need any news-ointment for your poor, spicy news-bum.

Quinns: I thought I’d put you on the back foot by talking about my body, but I just feel like I’ve opened Pandora’s Box. Which isn’t the only thing that’s been opened this morning, let me tell you.

Ava: THAT’S ENOUGH OF THAT! TO THE NEWS.

82 Comments

Review: Dune

a dry boy, a wet quinns, lubricated oligarchs, riding the worm

At long last, the final instalment of SU&SD’s “Worm Series” is here. Today, what began with Matt’s Silk review now reaches its dramatic conclusion.

In other, less important news of people waiting a long time, after a wait of 30 years the legendary Dune board game is again being made available. But have the years been kind to this game? Is it still a classic? And how long will Quinns be able to go before recommending Jodorowsky’s Dune?

Have a fantastic weekend, everybody.

Leave a comment

Tactics and Tactility #2 – With your eyes closed

full of grunts and giggles, arcane indications, an act of trust

[Every two weeks, Tactics & Tactility explores the culture and magic of tabletop. To read more, check out the series’ archives or Ava’s original Tactics & Tactility blog.]

Ava: Some games begin with a ritual. An incantation of instructions that call forth the playing field.

Some games have an exchange of secrets. Something hidden. Choices to be made, information shared, and not with everyone, not by everyone.

When this happens, we do something incredibly simple, incredibly mundane. It’s an unusual enough social ritual that it brings magic, uncertainty, dread and wonder.

Sometimes, when we play games, we close our eyes.

I’m playing Just One, at the local pub, and it’s my turn to be led towards a particular clue with the help of the other players. I pull a card, call out a number, and wait while everyone thinks and scribbles. When everyone’s ready, I close my eyes…

19 Comments

Review: Piepmatz

the baron of blackbirds, relentless oatmeal, bad seed, big egg, a boy on a hog

Quinns: Piepmatz is a profoundly beige card game for 2-4 players about songbirds fighting over a bird feeder. Now, I should be up front- this game is not a best-in-show card game, as I talked about in my recent 6 Nimmt review.

But you know what? I think it comes very close indeed. I’ve loved my time with it, and it’s now nesting in my game collection.

Let me tell you how it works. This design’s a little fussy, so bear with me. “Pretty rough teach on this one,” as I learned never to say on podcast #89.

50 Comments

GAMES NEWS! 26/08/19

lovely lumps, paste on paste on paste, great wet trail, diseased fruit

Quinns: Ava, you must dampen the news and lift it to my forehead. Brighton is experiencing the last big, thick heatwave of the summer. I don’t know if I’ll survive.

Ava: It’s not just Brighton! It’s a bank holiday, so air all across the United Kingdom has turned into a thick, hot porridge, and I’m so glad we get to slip into a nice cool bath of news together.

Quinns: Ah, I forgot. Not only do the banks get a day off, so does air.

Not news, though! The news never stops, and we never stop never stopping it. Onwards!

80 Comments

Review: Silk

the goof generator, snarfing up stragglers, meat-tarts

At long last, Shut Up & Sit Down’s campaign for “More Worms in Games!” has borne fruit. Disgusting, wriggling, glistening fruit.

Silk is the first published work from designer Luis Ranedo, as well the first game from artist Roc Espinet. Considering that this this is their first effort, here at SU&SD we can’t wait to see what beautiful, nasty business they get up to next.

Have a great weekend, everybody!

Leave a comment

More Fun Stuff for SHUX 2019 announced!

big box secrets, big game mania, and an english minute

Quinns: Have you got your ticket for SHUX 2019 yet? Because the big show is just six weeks away, and our team is up to our elbows in SHUX prep, stuffing it full of games, shows and special features.

Matt’s packed our very best announcements into the above 2 minute video, but here are some high points…

Pandemic designer Matt Leacock and Gloomhaven designer Isaac Childres are going to be on our stage, talking about their games!
I’ve signed up to do a terrifying, high-octane stage show compressing the history of board games in 60 minutes!
You’ll be able to play one of the intense social games from hit Korean show The Genius!
Our free library now has in excess of 1,000 games!
You get a free game and a limited-edition pin upon arrival!
Kids under 10 get in free!
Fully wheelchair accessible!
Exclamation marks!!!

My anticipation for SHUX ’19 is reaching boiling point. How much more excited can a man get? I intend to find out.

Leave a comment

Card Games That Don’t Suck: Eleusis

possibly the only crossover we'll ever have with scientific american

This week, our series on the best games that you can play with a 52 card deck gets EPIC.

Eleusis (rules reference here, tips here) might end up being the most thematic game in this series. This game has God, scientists, experiments, prophets, even false prophets. Bizarre setting aside, it’s also a pretty great game that asks 4-8 players how much they’re willing to stake on their own deductive powers.

Leave a comment

Feeds