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Category: Board Game

  • A Geeky Discussion About “Gateway Games”

    A Geeky Discussion About “Gateway Games”

    Our board game club, Board Guimas, has a relatively active user group that talks about all things game related. A couple weeks ago one user commented about which gateway game was the most interesting (in their opinion) of the most popular five. This coincided with some similar discussions I’ve had with Michelle and another friend…

  • Farming (Game) In Portugal

    Farming (Game) In Portugal

    My grandpa Finazzo was a farmer in Minnesota, he had a farm and a tractor and the whole shebang. Like most farmers he supplemented his income in a variety of ways but his core identity was related to tending to his crops. I imagine sometime around 1979 someone saw the new board game The Farming…

  • I Want To Be The Head Wizard In Charge!

    I Want To Be The Head Wizard In Charge!

    Today I’m going to talk about one of our favorite board games, Argent: The Consortium, in which players battle to win the most votes and become the new chancellor at the magic university where you all work. Don’t run out and buy the game yet, I have a lot to say about Argent and depending…

  • February Decor

    February Decor

    We have made it through one of the rainiest seasons in Portugal (and much of Europe) in decades. Thankfully we didn’t have any water related problems of note, but it did mean we spent a lot of time indoors January and early February. Back in Medford our house had, over the years, slowly gained specific…

  • December Viewing: Baby Don’t Hurt Me

    December Viewing: Baby Don’t Hurt Me

    Way back in 1993 Haddaway asked us “What Is Love” and every December Michelle and I sit through a bunch of films trying to see if his answer, “baby don’t hurt me” is correct. Technically this month is my romantic comedy counter to Michelle’s fear filled October, but every year a few other genres sneak…

  • Ark Nova: A Zoo Building Boardgame

    Ark Nova: A Zoo Building Boardgame

    In reality building and running a zoo seems like a nightmare to most people, except maybe Matt Damon and a handful of zoologists. Today I hope to tell you how the experience translates into a board game, specifically Ark Nova. Released in 2021 by first time developer Mathias Wigge and currently rated as the #2…

  • Friendsgiving 2025

    Friendsgiving 2025

    I am absolutely food obsessed. This is not a new development. Food and memories of holidays, people, and places are pretty much inextricably linked for me. I remember baking cookies with Gram Novotny when I was too tiny to reach the counter (I had to stand on a step stool or chair). My passion for…

  • Game Night At The Finazzos

    Game Night At The Finazzos

    Near the end of May we discovered a board gaming club (Board Guimas) in Guimarães. They have weekly Wednesday meetups at a local restaurant called O Rei dos Cachorros, monthly gatherings in the mall at Fnac, and various other more informal gatherings. We have been making friends, playing tons of board games (you may have…

  • All Aboard The Train To Mexico

    All Aboard The Train To Mexico

    I’ve never really played a lot of tile placement games. Before moving to Portugal I played online Mahjong Solitaire, the occasional game of Carcassonne, and Upwords (which feels more like a word game). Andrew generally favors games like Blokus more than me. We didn’t own dominoes and none of our fellow board gamers in the…

  • Don’t Run Away From Complex Board Games!

    Don’t Run Away From Complex Board Games!

    Last week Michelle talked about how when we look for new board games we try to find a gap in our collection. A good example is that I love space themes and gravitate towards them so they are over represented. We track our games on a Google sheet so we can quickly pick out a…