new york slice

#65: 2017 In Review

Happy New Year! We’re back once again with our first episode of the year and our customary recap of the year that was. We take a look back at the biggest news stories in gaming and beer in 2017, share our favorites in a pile of categories, discuss our six favorite beers of 2017, and of course our top six games of last year as well. We’re tying this episode up with responses from our new DM Slack channel’s “Final Round” topic: What was the biggest surprise in gaming for you in 2017? Enjoy!

2017 Superlatives:
Best Artwork:

Danielle: Near and Far (Red Raven Games)
Jake: Flipships (Renegade Game Studios)

Best Non-mini Components:
Jake: Dice Forge (Libellud)
Danielle: Photosynthesis (Blue Orange Games)

Biggest Disappointment:
Danielle: Photosynthesis (Blue Orange Games)
Jake: Yamatai (Days of Wonder)

Game I Wish I'd Played More from 2017:
Danielle: The 7th Continent (Serious Poulp)
Jake: Dojo Kun (CMON)

Best Older Game I Played for the First Time in 2017:
Danielle: Bora Bora (Ravensburger)
Jake: Rococo (Eagle-Gryphon Games)

Best Party Game:
Vegas Wits & Wagers (North Star Games)

Best Card Game:
Danielle: Herbaceous (Pencil First Games/Dr. Finn Games)
Jake: Matryoshka (White Goblin Games/Terra Nova Games)

Most Innovative Game:
Danielle: The 7th Continent (Serious Poulp)
Jake: Magic Maze (Sit Down!)

Favorite Beers of 2017 Six-Packs:
Jake:

  • Burial Beer Co. “Houtenhamer” Double-Barrel Imperial Stout. Asheville, NC. 10% ABV, 60 IBU.
  • Perennial Artisan AlesMaman” Barrel-aged Imperial Stout. St. Louis, MO. 11.5% ABV.
  • Side Project BrewingSaison du Blé” Imperial Stout. St. Louis, MO. 6% ABV.
  • Bearded Iris Brewing “Chasing Rainbows Three” New England IPA. Nashville, TN. 5.8% ABV.
  • B. Nektar Meadery “#DragonsAreReal” Cherry chipotle mead aged in New Holland Brewing - Dragon's Milk barrels with cacao nibs. Ferndale, MI. 14.0% ABV.
  • Burial & Interboro & Run the Jewels “Stay G-O-L-D” IPA. Asheville, NC. 6.0% ABV, 50 IBU.

Danielle:

  • Boiler BrewingQuintuple Dog Dare” Imperial IPA. Lincoln, NE. 18.4% ABV.
  • Good Road Cider WorksAvogadro's Trail” Semi-sweet Mead. Charlotte, NC. 7.8% ABV.
  • Epic Brewing CompanyBig Bad Baptista” Mexican Coffee inspired Imperial Stout. Salt Lake City, UT. 12% ABV, 65 IBU.
  • B. Nektar Meadery#DragonsAreReal” Cherry chipotle mead aged in New Holland Brewing - Dragon's Milk barrels with cacao nibs. Ferndale, MI. 14.0% ABV.
  • Edmund's OastKvass” Kvass. Charlotte, NC. 2.6% ABV.
  • Founders BrewingFrootwood” Barrel-aged cherry ale. Grand Rapids, MI. 8.0% ABV.

 

Favorite Games of 2017 Six-Packs:

Jake's Picks:

Downforce
Restoration Games
Designer:  Rob Daviau, Justin D. Jacobson, Wolfgang Kramer

Matryoshka
Terra Nova Games/White Goblin Games
Designer: Aaron Dill, Sean Sweigart, John Kovaleski

Flipships
Renegade Game Studios
Designer: Kane Klenko

Danielle's Picks:

5-Minute Dungeon
Wiggles 3D
Designer: Connor Reid

Azul
Plan B Games
Designer: Jun Sasaki

Seikatsu
IDW Games
Designer:  Matt Loomis, Isaac Shalev

We Both Picked:

The 7th Continent
Serious Poulp
Designer:  Ludovic Roudy, Bruno Sautter

Sagrada
Floodgate Games
Designer:  Adrian Adamescu, Daryl Andrews

Near and Far
Red Raven Games
Designer:  Ryan Laukat

Section Timestamps:

Intro

01:00 Show Housekeeping

02:32 Announcing the Draft Mechanic Slack Channel!

05:27 Meta Mechanic, 2017 by the numbers

08:27 Preface to the Superlatives

11:43 Biggest News Stories of 2017

25:10 Superlative Categories

55:34 Our Top Six Beers of 2017

71:20 Grey Fox Games sponsorship spot

72:08 Our Top Six Games of 2017

96:48 Final Round: Biggest game surprises

103:41 Outro

#40: A Feast for Odin / Burger Up

Draft Mechanic Episode #40: A Feast for Odin, Burger Up, Paris Connection, Star Trek Ascendancy, New York Slice, and a buffet of beer news

Kickstarters:

Monikers: The Shut Up & Sit Down Nonsense Box
Can't Stop Express
Food Truck Champion

Recent Plays:

Paris Connection
2010, Queen Games
Designer: David V. H. Peters

Star Trek Ascendancy
2016, Gale Force Nine
Designer: Aaron Dill, John Kovaleski, Sean Sweigart

New York Slice
2017, Bezier Games
Designer:  Jeffrey D. Allers

Six Pack Review:

A Feast for Odin
2016, Z-Man Games
Designer:  Uwe Rosenberg

On Tap Beer Pairings:

Burger Up
2016, Rule & Make
Designer: Matthew Parkes

Beer News:

-Georgia Beer Laws Could Be Changing
-'Let's Open the Tap': Montana House Supports Expansion of Craft Beer Production
-Customer Sues Walmart Alleging 'Fraudulent' Marketing of Its 'Craft" Beer
-Cathay Pacific Introduces Betsy Beer - The First Hand-Crafted Bottled Beer Brewed to Be Enjoyed at 35,000 Feet

Section Timestamps:

Intro

01:00 Intro / Housekeeping
02:41 News: Golden Geek Awards
05:17 News: Scythe Digital, Expansion, and Iron Harvest
07:37 Kickstarter: Monikers: The SU&SD Nonsense Box
11:24 Kickstarter: Can’t Stop Express
13:32 Kickstarter: Food Truck Champion
15:34 Recent Plays: Paris Connection
19:59 Recent Plays: Star Trek Ascendancy
25:39 Recent Plays: New York Slice
33:15 Six Pack Review: A Feast for Odin
33:52 A Feast for Odin: Rules Walkthrough
38:45 A Feast for Odin: Discussion
69:17 A Feast for Odin: Final Thoughts
71:05 Recent Plays: Burger Up
79:02 On Tap: Burger Up
83:18 Beer News Bites
92:08 Outro