1 Player Podcast

This week I tell Julius all about the game SpaceCorp, by John Butterfield and published by GMT.  This game is played in three phases in which you explore colonize, the inner Solar System, then the outer Solar System and finally the nearby galaxies.  The game is based on the Galactican series by Ejner Fulsang. 1P 378 - SpaceCorp 2035-2300AD (BGG) Galactican series (Amazon)

This week Julius tells us about a game as big as a school bus!  Endeavor is a game about exploring the world's oceans solo, cooperatively or competitively.  It's a big game that sounds like lots of fun and very thematic. Endeavor: Deep Sea (BGG)

This week I talk with Mike & Olga Rimer of Caravel games.  They have been making video game content for years and years in the excellent D.R.O.D. series (Deadly Rooms of Death).  A few years ago, they released a solo puzzle game called Twisty Little Passages. Now they have Time Fenix coming to Kickstarter in a month or so.  We talk about all their games and then have a bit of a chat about tariffs and how they are trying to deal with so much uncertainty. 01:30 Caravel Games 05:00 D.R.O.D.: King Dugan's Dungeon (Caravel Games, G.O.G.) 12:05 Twisty Little Passages (Kickstarter) 20:15 Time Fenix (Kickstarter) 41:27 Tariffs

This week Julius and I talk about dexterity games.  It's not a category you see often when talking about solo games, but there are a few fun ones we've tried (mostly). 02:04 Flip Ships (BGG) 05:47 Nekojima (BGG) 09:50 What Lies Beneath (BGG) 12:30 Hunted: Mining Colony 415 (BGG) 15:43 Slide Quest (BGG) 21:20 Hoverkraft (BGG) 25:36 Menara (BGG) 31:14 Jenga (BGG) & Clever Girl (RPG Geek) 34:55 For Science! (BGG)

This week Julius and I talk about the smaller version of Terraforming Mars.  Well, one of the smaller versions.  The game is the very lovely  love-child of Terraforming Mars & Race for the Galaxy, Ares Expedition.  In this game, you are working to make Mars a habitable planet by managing the temperature & oxygen levels while raising oceans.  The theme is straight out of Terraforming Mars.  However, you do it by choosing actions and playing cards simultaneously, just like Race for the Galaxy. Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition (BGG) Terraforming Mars (BGG, Fryx Games) Race for the Galaxy (BGG)

This week, we talk about Harvest, the farming game from Keymaster Games, publishers of PARKS.  In this game, you are trying to farm and harvest your fields as often as possible.  It's a worker placement that can be soloed by playing against Gairy, the Dairy cow. Harvest (BGG, Keymaster Games)

This week Julius takes us back to the table with Lewis & Clark.  Go on a slow boat ride accoss the North American continent to explore lands acquired in the Louisiana Purchase and explore the yet unclaimed Pacific Northwest.  That is, not yet taken from the native populations of the are.

This week Julius and I explore a RPG about exploring a giant castle.  Giant doesn't do this castle justice though.  This is a world inside a castle so immense there are seas in it.  The castle is filled with room so large there are cities and villages in them.  You will wander around exploring and fighting Rooks, massive creatures made of stonework.  When you defeat one, you can gain powerful magic stones, Rookstones. Colostole is a solo RPG by Nich Angell. Colostle (RPG Geek, Colostle.com)

This week Julius and I talk about looooong games.  These are games that take 3 or more hours to play!  Serioulsy, these are the kind of games I wish I could play more often but find it hard to get out on the table... 03:44 7th Continent (BGG) 04:25 Sleeping Gods - Distant Skies (BGG) 08:28 Mr. President: The American Presidency (2001-2020) (BGG) 12:12 Cantalopp (BGG) 15:30 Silverton (BGG) 18:20 Kindgom Legacy: Fuedal Kingdom (BGG) 24:23 Ironsworn (RPG Geek) 26:52 Tales of the Arabian Nights (BGG) 29:00 Choose Your Own Adventure - The House of Danger (BGG)

This week, Julius introduces Fit to Print the newspaper layout game.  It actually sounds like a fun game with a timer.  In this game, you are buying the best stories and laying out on your newspaper to make the most captivating paper in town!  It sounds a big goofy but it also sounds really fun. Also, Final Girl contest reminder! Fit to Print (BGG, AEG)

This week I tell Julius and the audience all about Free Ride, the train game by Friedemann Friese and published by Rio Grande Games.  This is a fun pick-up and deliver game with quick turns that includes a solo challenge.  Hop aboard and hear all about the game and what I think. Also, listen in for the Final Girl Season 3 giveaway!

This week Julius tells us about the small game Welcome to Reckoning.  This 1 player game by Mike Heiman set in a wild wild west with cosmic horrors.  Gotta love those cosmic horrors.

This week we talk about a Vital Lacerda big-box game on wine making.  The game is the 2016 release of Vinhos: Deluxe Edition.  It's a fun game that lets produce wine, compete in wine fairs, sell and export.  All this in an effort to become the pre-eminent wine producer of Portugal.  It's a pretty neat game with an interesting theme but maybe too big for me. Vinhos: Deluxe Edition (BGG, Eagle-Gryphon)

This week, we look at a year of gaming.  Well, sorta.  We look at games that have a year in them or somehow use the flow of time in them.  It was harder than expected, but we found a few games that do have a pretty decent sense of time passing. Check out the sample fancy map someone drew for Cartographers: 02:30 Creature Comforts (BGG, KTBG) 04:30 Project Ecco (RPG Geek, More Blueberries) 07:55 Cartographers (BGG, Thunderworks) 11:50 Hostage Negotiator: Career (BGG, VRG) 16:50 Pandemic Legacy: Season 1 (BGG, Z-Man) 19:05 Fields of Arle (BGG, Asmodee) Honorable mentions Tzolk'in: The Mayan Calendar (BGG, Buried Without Ceremony) Fox Curio's Floating Bookshop (RPG Geek, Lost Ways Club) The Quiet Year (RPG Geek) Legacy of Yu (BGG)

This week Julius and I look at a game about growing magic herbs and plants in a communal wizard's hedge.  Position your helper sprites to help you get the most plants from this shared garden.  This is an interesting game of area control in which, each turn, you are placing plant patches to trigger a variety of powers and increase your control over the garden.  This game's solo experience closely mimics the multiplayer game using a bot that doesn't really add any time to the play.  In fact, because of player analysis paralysis, it may be faster.

Julius and I talk about Bot Factory but Vital Lacerda.  Mostly Julius describes the game and I talk about how much it reminds me of Kanban and how I want to play either of those two games.  Bot Factory is based on Kanban in both the theme of managing a factory and the mechanics which are simplified quite a bit without making it a simple game at all. Bot Factory (BGG, Eagle-Gryphon) Kanban EV (BGG, Eagle-Gryphon)

This week we look back at a classic co-op game, Castle Panic. Monsters have decided to attach your castle in a clearing surrounded by dangerous woods.  Waves of monsters charge the castle.  Fortunately, the clever design makes it hard for the monsters to get at your castle and your highly trained warriors (knights, archers and fighters defend the castle), each specializing in combat on a certain type of terrain.  This is a pretty simple and accessible tower defense game that has had a relatively recent art upgrade and continues to be fun, if a bit simple. * Castle Panic (BGG, Fireside games)

This week tells us about a Monster High-ish game called Mythic Mischief.  In it, you play a group of monster kids in school, trying to cause mischief in the library and get one of the rival cliques in trouble.  It's a head-to-head sportsball type game of out-maneuvering your opponent's team members so they get caught by the library's Tomekeeper.  The game also features a solo mode that sounds pretty fun to me.  You can get one of two different base games, each with a different set of factions as well as stand-alone expansions, each consisting of a new faction. Mythic Mischief (BGG, IV Studio)

  04:20 - Roll Through the Ages: The Bronze Age (BGG, Eagle-Gryphon) 08:55 - Cartographers (BGG, Thunderworks) 14:40 - Yahtzee! (BGG) 17:40 - Dungeon Dice (BGG) 22:45 - Railroad Ink (BGG) 27:39 - OctoDice (BGG) 31:27 - Clip-Cut Parks (BGG) 34:28 - Three Sisters (BGG) 36:23 - Catan: The Dice Game (BGG)

This week we talk about the game Aleph Null by Tony Boydell and published by Capstone Games.  The art is by Alex Leigh and music by Nicholas O'Neill.  I did not include music as I mentioned I might do, primarily because I didn't see it available on-line for public consumption. Anway, this game is about summoning the demon Baphomet, the Sabbat Goat.  It's a bit creepy and would be creepier if not for the excellent and light-hearted art by Alex Leigh.  Either way, it's a really fun game in which you are trying to cast a ritual to summon Baphomet by playing cards from your hand and slowly using them up to do magics with the hope of finally completing the ritual as expected. Aleph Null (BGG, Capstone Games)

This week Julius and and daughter join this week to talk about the very lovely Wild Gardens.  This is a game about foraging for natural ingredients to put into your delicious recipes. It's a beautiful game that reminds of Studio Ghibli animations - think Totoro.  Wild Gardens (BGG, Rose Gauntlet)

This week I talk about a small solo RPG called Anamnesis.  This is a game about forgetting your past and then rediscovering who you are.  I found it hard to start because you begin with no information and you are making it all up as you go along!  That even goes for the setting!  I found as I played, the story comes together nicely and I have had a really good time every game I've played. Anamnesis(RPG Geek, itchi.io)

This game seems to come up again and again and it's for good reason.  Pandemic is a classic games in line with the likes of Monopoly, Clue or Scrabble.  Fight off diseases ravaging the world in an effort to save humanity.  This game has inspired variants, legacy games and made cooperative games popular.  It occurs to me that we didn't credit the game.  It was designed by Matt Leacock and originally published by Z-Man games. Pandemic (BGG, Z-Man Games)

While still struggling slightly (very slightly), Julius and family recorded an episode about tragic games.  That's right.  These week we look at games that are overall about sad events.  No tragedy here though, it's a very fun episode! 02:00 Endangered (BGG) 03:55 Leviathan Wilds (BGG) 05:30 Anachrony (BGG) 07:45 Pandemic (BGG) 11:20 Mysterium ?? (BGG) 13:00 Horrified (BGG) 14:30 Under Falling Skies (BGG) 15:07 Purim (BGG) 18:57 The Spill (BGG) 20:39 Flatline (BGG)

This week we talk about Deck of Wonders, which currently has an expansion out on Kickstarter.  I'd hope to get this episode out with plenty of time for listeners to decide if they want to back this.  Saddly, Hurricane Helene set back my production schedule and the Kickstarter ends in just a couple of days. This game is a light deck construction game similar to Magic: The Gathering.  In fact, it draws some inspiration from that game.  However, this one is much lighter and more accessible because of that.  Also, the card pool is a bit smaller :) Deck of Wonders (BGG, Kickstarter Expansion)

I am still struggling with outdoor home internet. Julius and family picked up my slack and recorded an episode. This week's game is the sequel to The Search for Planet X.

This week again no episode. I was affected by Hurricane Helene. My family is fine but we are with out power going on four days now. It will be a few weeks before I can get the currently recorded episode out. 

This week Julius tells us all about climbing behemothic monsters, also known as Leviathans.  In this game you are trying to remove crystals from Leviathans all while they fight back.  It's a cooperative game that can be played solo and uses a book with 17 diferrent monsters, each its own board.  It is actually a pretty unique sounding game and I enjoyed learning about it. Leviathan Wilds (BGG, Gamefound)

This week I talk about a gamebook from Fervent Workshop called What Lies Beneath.  It was designed by Chris Scaffidi and the art is by Jason Glover, who has also designed quite a few games of his own. In this gamebook, you wake up in a dungeon with no memory of who you are or what you are here.  What's worse is you seem to have some sort of creepy cancerous growth on your arm.  You need to get out of here and figure out what is going on.  It's an interesting gamebook with some very novel mechanics. You get to play as one of 6 character classes.  If you die, you can take any earnt experience points and apply them to the next character you make.  Hopefully, this time you are able to survive long enough to get out of this dungeon. What Lies Beneath (BGG, Fervent Workshop)

This week Julius and I are back with a Popular Mechanics episode.  The mechanic this time around is "animals".  That is, we are talking about games with animals in them and feature animals. Oh, we also resolve a contest about 6 minutes in.  If you have entered any recent contests on this show, listen in to see if you won. Anyway, animals!  These are games that feature animals in the theme! 05:21 Arkham Horror: Barkham Horror (BGG, FFG) 06:39 Contest resolution 10:23 Agricola (BGG) 12:20 New York Zoo (BGG) 15:22 Food Chain Island (BGG, ButtonShy) 19:11 Bullfrogs (BGG) 22:18 The Animals of Baker Street (BGG) 23:47 Honey Buzz (BGG) 26:03 Defenders of the Wild (BGG) 27:40 Nekojima (BGG)

This week it's not actually episode 350 but just a filler to let you know things are busy around here.  We'll be back in a few weeks.  In the meantime, don't forget to enter in the Ragemore contest!

This week a sick Albert tells Julius all about Hallertau.  It's a really interesting worker placement farming game by Uwe Rosenberg.  Yes another one!  As per usual, this is a fun game with lots interesting choices, cool mechanics and more bits that fit in a normal sized box.   Hallertau (BGG)

In which we resolve a long standing contest for The Last Lighthouse and then discuss the solitaire legacy game Kingdom Legacy: Feudal Kingdom.  This is such a neat sounding game that Julius convinced me to order a copy!  That rarely happens.

This week Julius tells us about the Lookout Games city building game, NEOM.  It's a game about building a futuristic city but really it's a tile drafting game like 7 Wonders but with tile placement. NEOM (BGG, Lookout Games)

This week we talk about the (cozy?) game of animal crime fighting.  This game is set in the Edwardian world of Sherlock Holmes.  You are a mixed group of animals trying to solve animal crimes happening in and around Baker Street.  It's a fun little game that is more akin to a Choose Your Own Adventure book than anything else. The Animals of Baker Street (BGG, Iello)

Julius is back!  To celebrate, we talk about rondel games, a subject he is much more familiar with than I.  We explore a few games that feature Rondels.  As usual, I try to stretch that definition a bit. 02:10 Red Cathedral (BGG) 05:15 Transmissions (BGG) 08:20 Coldwater Crown (BGG) / New Bedford (BGG) 11:35 Ora et Labora (BGG) 12:50 New York Zoo (BGG) 17:10 Patchwork (BGG) 17:45 Indian Summer (BGG) / Cottage Garden (BGG) 18:38 Dreams of Tomorrow (BGG) / Dreams of Yesterday (BGG) 20:03 Merchants of the Dark Road (BGG) 25:28 Pandemic: The Cure (BGG)

This week we finish ranking the Simply Solo games designed by Scott Almes and published by Button Shy Games.  Find out which are my favorite top 3 of the six games. Simply Solo Series (BGG, Button Shy Games) 04:00 Ugly Gryphon Inn (BGG, Button Shy Games) 09:21 Fishing Lessons (BGG, Button Shy Games) 19:56 Food Chain Island (BGG, Button Shy Games)

This week I look at the Simply Solo series from Button Shy Games.  This is a collection of solo games all designed by Scott Almes, of many other games fame (Tiny Epic series, Warp's Edge and many more).  In this two-part show, I rank the games from least to most favorite and focus on the last 3. Don't forget to enter the contest and win a copy of The Last Lighthouse. Simply Solo Series (BGG, Button Shy Games) 09:19 Usurmountable (BGG, Button Shy Games) 15:25 The Last Lighthouse (BGG, Button Shy Games) 22:06 The Royal Limited (BGG, Button Shy Games)

This week I bring Lord the Rings the Card Game from Fantasy Flight back to the table.  This is a game that honestly, is often on the table.  It's by far my most played game.  I enjoy the deck construction and fun adventures of this game.  It's still a great time to get into the game too.   Lord of the Rings: LCG (BGG, FFG) A Long-extended Party (aLeP) free third-party content for the game

This week Julius is out so I have my very own dream quest as I talk about the game In Dreams by Jamie Thul & Mike Berg.  It's an interesting little solo journaling game using a deck of unique cards and a little bit of AI magic.   In Dreams (BGG, Side Room Games, PnP Arcade)

This week Julius and I go out on a limb and talk about miniatures gaming.  Turns out this isn't a subject we really know much about so we struggle to come up with some good examples of it.  Still, I think the episode is useful if you are curious about miniatures gaming and want to find out a bit about what that is. Also, check out the new YouTube channel for an alternate way to listen to the show. 08:55 Elder Scrolls: Call to Arms (BGG) 10:30 Rangers of Shadowdeep (BGG) 13:30 Adventures of Robin Hood (BGG) 16:05 Solo Wargamer's Guide (BGG) 18:00 Mice & Mystics (BGG) 23:45 Too Many Bones (BGG)

This week Julius is back (but staying far far away from my teleporter).  He talks about being lost in space in the game Unsettled in which you are exploring new planets while lost in space.  It's a big big episode about a big big game!

This week Julius and I return to talk, yet again, about Sentinels of the Multiverse.  This time we change things up a bit and talk about new content.  First, we talk about the Cauldron expansion for the  original editions.  Then we talk about the Definitive Edition and our thoughts on that.   The Cauldron

This week I'm talking about another solo RPG.  It's Star Trek Captain's Log by Modiphius Games.  Due to some technical issues, I ended up recording alone.  Hopefully any problems are resolved before the next recording.  Sorry Julius! This is an interesting game in which you create a character to tell stories that feel like an episode of any one of the TV  series.  It's a versatile system that is worth checking out if you are a Star Trek fan.  Just be ready for a bit of a struggle to find the fine.

This week Julius is out so I have a special guest.  A podcast listener, ChrisOkay, comes on the show to talk me into playing Expedition to Newdale.  The game will eventually get played by me but that is probably years away.  Technically, I did play it a couple of times when I first got it... one solo and one with my son.  Chris thinks I should play it sooner and really get it on the table.  So, he tells me all about the game.  I have to admit, it sure sounds fun! Newdale is actually the 3rd game in the Longsdale series but only the 2nd soloable game.  I have the other game in the series, Tybor the Builder and have yet to play that either :| Expedition to Newdale (BGG) Oh My Goods! Big Box (BGG) Tybor the Builder (BGG) Here's the cards I mentioned in the show.  You can follow the path from the next game I'll be talking about (Star Trek Captain's Log) all the way down to Newdale, a lifetime away!

This week Julius and I discuss set collection solo games.  We each bring three games that we think include set collection in the mechanics and are interesting solo games.  Just a footnote here... I am right about Agricola.  The first set of three sheep gets you a point.  After that, every set of two sheep gets you a point!  If you disagree, just let me know. 08:15 Onirim 11:00 Pandemic: The Cure 13:25 Agricola 19:00 Isle of Cats 23:22 PAX 26:00 So You've Been Eaten  

I accidentally used Podbeans AI processing.  Let's see how it sounds.. the description below is from their's. Welcome to Episode 334 of the One Player Podcast, where we dive headfirst into the unique game systems of '20 Strong' and 'Solar Sentinels'. Join our host Albert as he navigates through the intriguing mechanics, quality of components, and player strategies of these engaging board games. First, Albert explores '20 Strong', a solo game based on dice allocation and stat-tracking. Understand the game's high-quality components, unique mechanics, and criticism about the glittery dice. Despite being light on theme, Albert describes '20 Strong' as strategically captivating and provides an in-depth review of its gameplay. In the second part of this episode, Albert shifts focus to the cosmos with the game, 'Solar Sentinels'. Our hosts shed light on their firsthand experiences of this complex game. Though the game's theme elicits differing reactions, the hosts agree on the game's strategic challenge that revolves around managing three different character card attributes. The final segment invites you into the captivating world of dungeon crawlers. The episode provides intriguing discussions about the play dynamics, balance within games, and the aesthetic aspects of the game. Deftly uncovering the intricacies of '20 Strong', 'Solar Sentinels', and dungeon crawlers, the One Player Podcast caters to both beginners and seasoned players looking to up their game.

This week's game is Dungeon Pages, a roll and write by Jasons Greeno & Tagmire.  It's a roll and write dungeon crawl game.  It was initially released once over the course of a year.  Each week you would get a new dungeon page.  Effectively a hero with their set of five dungeons to explore.  Each of those pages is a quick campaign game that can be played in under 30 minutes!

This week Julius and I talk about Bullet ♥︎ and, really, Bullet ★. These games are in the style of Bullet Hell video games were bullets are flying all over the place in overwhelming quantities.  It's a really fast playing simultaneous play game with a timer.  Julius find the timer optional and I appreciate that because it makes the game sound more fun to me.   Bullet ♥︎ (BGG) Bullet ★ (BGG) Bullet series (Level 99)

This week's episode I tell Julius all about the game Red Cathedral, in which you are tasked with helping to build St. Basil's Cathedral in Russia.  It's an interesting game with beautiful artwork and a very simple AI for the solo gamer.  Fortunately, I did most of the talking this week.  Julius's audio was a bit garbled and I was unable to clean it up.

This week Julius and I look at Mathy and try to figure out if the subject adds up for us.  We had some conversations I thought were interesting in what makes or doesn't make a mathy game while presenting six different examples.   07:00 Sprawopolis (BGG) 08:50  Castles of Burgundy (BGG) 15:20 Friday (BGG) 17:15 Cartographers (BGG) 19:45 Search for Planet X (BGG) 21:30 Racetrack (mistakenly called Vector Racing) (BGG, Wikipedia)