Games Articles and Reviews

This page is an index to my reviews of board games and other articles I've written about games and related topics. Click on the link for the index or use the search feature to find what you're looking for.

Games reviews
Games-related articles

These articles were generally written for Games International, Flagship, Games & Puzzles or Games Games Games magazines. I will be adding more pieces as time allows (and when I can locate them in the case of older pieces!). Some articles are also in PDF format - click on the icon for this version. You will need Adobe Reader to view these. If you don't have it, you can get it from Adobe by clicking on the button on the right.

Articles and reviews are also published in my own 'zine, To Win Just Once.

Reviews

Reviews are listed alphabetically by (the first significant word in) the game's title. Where more than one edition of a game has been published, I give the English language version first (or the earliest if they're all in English). Links to the publisher and designer (the term I prefer to inventor or author) are provided where possible. The rating is my own, highly personal and subjective score for each game, where 1 is something I never want to play again and 10 is a brilliant game.

Index: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Title Publisher Designer Country No of
players Duration Rating
(1-10)

1825 Unit 3 Tresham Games Francis Tresham UK 2 4 hrs 7

Age of Steam Warfrog Martin Wallace UK 3-6 2-3 hrs 10

Amazonas Kosmos Stefan Dorra Germany 3-4 50 mins 8

Mayfair USA

Amun-Re Rio Grande Reiner Knizia USA 3-5 90 mins 9

Hans im Glück Germany

Antike Eggertspiele Mac Gerdts Germany 2-6 2 hrs 10

Bean Trader Rio Grande Uwe Rosenberg USA 3-5 90 mins 8

  (Bohn Hansa) Amigo Germany

Big Cheese Cheapass James Ernest USA any 20-30 mins 9

Blindside Hangman Alan D Ernstein USA 4 20-30 mins 6

Breaking Away Fiendish John Harrington UK 3-6 60-90 mins 8

Capone Amigo See The Mob

Carat Queen Dirk Henn Germany 2-4 30-60 mins 5

Check the Ripper ASS Alex Randolph Germany 2-4 20-30 mins 2

Chinatown Rio Grande Karsten Hartwig USA 3-5 60-90 mins 9

alea Germany

Cults Across America Atlas Jeff Tidball USA 2-6 1-4 hours 6

Devil Bunny Needs a Ham Cheapass James Ernest USA 2-5 30 mins 5

Dreizehnte Holzwurm Queen Wolfgang Kramer & Michael Kiesling Germany 2-6 30-60 mins 7

Dschungel Adlung Bernhard Naegele Germany 2-4 20-30 mins 3

El Grande Rio Grande Wolfgang Kramer & Richard Ulrich USA 2-5 90 mins 10

Hans im Glück Germany

Falsche FuFFziger 2F Friedemann Friese Germany 3-6 1½-2 hrs 9

Feudo Zugames Mario Papini Italy 2-4 2-3 hrs 4

Fifth Avenue Rio Grande Wilko Manz USA 2-4 60 mins 4

alea Germany

Foppen 2F Friedemann Friese Germany 3-6 20-30 mins 5

Formula Motor Racing Gibsons Reiner Knizia UK 2-6 90 mins 9

GMT USA

Fürsten von Florenz alea See Princes of Florence

Galopp Royale Goldsieber Klaus Teuber Germany 3-6 45-60 mins 9

Go West Phalanx Leo Colovini Netherlands 3-4 1 hr 6

Gothic Game Tolmayax Robert Wynne-Simmons & Nigel Andrews UK 2-8 1-2 hrs 7

Hornochsen Amigo Wolfgang Kramer Germany 2-6 60 mins 4

Ice Cream Face 2 Face Joe Huber USA 3-5 30 mins 4

Industria Queen Games Michael Schacht Germany 3-4 90 mins 10

Intrige FX Schmid Stefan Dorra Germany 3-5 1-1½ hrs 9

Just Wait Hangman Alan D Ernstein USA 3-5 30 mins 7

Keythedral R+D Richard Breese UK 3-5 90 mins 10

Keywood R+D Richard Breese UK 2-5 90 mins 10

King of the Elves Rio Grande Alan R Moon USA 2-6 45-60 mins 9

  (König der Elfen) Amigo Germany

Konzern Fanfor Valentin Hermann Germany 3-6 60 mins 6

Krieg & Frieden TM Gerard Mulder Germany 3-4 60-90 mins 5

La Città Rio Grande Gerd Fenchel USA 2-5 1-2½ hrs 10

Kosmos Germany

Liberté Warfrog Martin Wallace UK 3-6 1-2 hrs 10

Linie 1 Goldsieber Stefan Dorra Germany 2-5 60 mins 8

Lords of Creation Warfrog Martin Wallace UK 2-4 2-3 hrs 7

Louis XIV Rio Grande Rüdiger Dorn USA 2-4 90 mins 9

alea Germany

Maharaja Avalon Hill Craig Sandercock USA 3-5 5-6 hrs 7

Mamma Mia! Rio Grande Uwe Rosenberg USA 2-5 30-40 mins 7

Abacus Germany

Media Mogul JKLM Richard Huzzey UK 3-5 90 mins 6

Metallurgie Argentum Maik Hennebach Germany 2-4 45 mins 7

The Mob Gibsons unknown UK 3-6 1½-2 hrs 7

  (Capone) Amigo Germany

Mordred Warfrog Martin Wallace UK 3-4 45 mins 9

Neuland Eggertspiele Tobias Stapelfeldt and Peter Eggert Germany 2-4 1-2 hours 8

New England Railways Winsome Martin Wallace USA 3-6 2 hours 10

Old Town Clicker Stephan Riedel Germany 1-4 1 hour 8

Princes of Florence Rio Grande Wolfgang Kramer and Richard Ulrich USA 3-5 75-100 mins 10

  (Die Fürsten von Florenz) alea Germany

Princes of the Renaissance Warfrog Martin Wallace UK 3-6 2-3 hrs 9

Puerto Rico alea Andreas Seyfarth Germany 3-5 90-150 mins 10

Rio Grande USA

Really Nasty Horse Racing Game Upstarts! unknown UK 2-6 1½-2 hrs 8

Salvo! 3W Michael Smith USA 2 varies 4

Scepter of Zavandor Z-Man Jens Drögemüller USA 2-6 2½-3 hours 10

  (Das Zepter von Zavandor) Lookout Germany

Settlers of Catan Mayfair Klaus Teuber USA 3-4 60-90 mins 10

  (Die Siedler von Catan) Kosmos Germany

Shadows over Camelot Days of Wonder Bruno Cathala and Serge Laget USA 3-7 90 mins 9

Skallywaggs Bent Castle Workshops Ben Crenshaw USA 2-4 60 mins 8

Space Beans Rio Grande Uwe Rosenberg USA 2-6 45 mins 5

Amigo Germany

Special Delivery Kevingston Kevin Rolph UK 2-16 1 hr 4

Struggle of Empires Warfrog Martin Wallace UK 2-7 3 hours 10

Ticket to Ride Days of Wonder Alan R Moon USA 2-5 30-60 mins 8

TV Wars Avalon Hill Bob Nash USA 2-4 2-4 hrs 6

Ubongo Kosmos Grzegorz Rejchtman Germany 2-4 20-30 mins 4

University Games USA

Viking Fury Ragnar Brothers Ragnar Brothers UK 3-5 2 hours 8

Vikings are Coming! ASS Alex Randolph Germany 2 or 4 1-2 hrs 2

West Riding Winsome Han Heidema USA 3-6 3 hrs 10

Wildlife Uberplay Wolfgang Kramer USA 2-6 90 mins 10

Clementoni Germany

Zepter von Zavandor Lookout See The Scepter of Zavandor

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Articles

Articles are listed in reverse chronological order: most recent first, oldest last.

Spiel '07 - a report from the 2007 Spiel games fair: PDF version
Toy Fair 2007 – a report of the new games on show at the UK’s annual showcase.
Spiel '06 - a report from the 2006 Spiel games fair: PDF version
Toy Fair 2006 – a report of the new games on show at the UK’s annual showcase.
Spiel '05 - a report from the 2005 Spiel games fair.
Toy Fair 2005 - a report of the new games on show at the UK's annual showcase.
Spiel '04 - a report from the 2004 Spiel games fair.
Toy Fair 2004 - a report of the new games on show at the UK's annual showcase.
Toy Fair 2003 - a report of the new games on show at the UK's annual showcase.
Spiel '02 - a report from the 2002 Spiel games fair.
Toy Fair 2002 - a report of the new games on show at the UK's annual showcase.
Spiel '01 - a report from the 2001 Spiel games fair.
Toy Fair 2001 - a report of the new games on show at the UK's annual showcase.
UKBCGC 2000 - a report from the UK's Board and Card Games Championship.
Toy Fair 2000 - a report of the new games on show at the UK's annual showcase.
TV Wars - The Pevans Option - alternative rules for this game that remove much of the luck element and reduce the playing time.

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