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KublaCon 2017 photo gallery – complete!

Wednesday, June 7th, 2017

Cthulhu demands you view the galleryOkay, the flood of KublaCon photos has reached its peak, and all are now neatly contained in OgreCave’s KublaCon 2017 photo gallery (over at our Facebook page). Final attendee count was reportedly 3,321 – a good sized show! See if you can spot yourself in our gallery, or rather, see if you got spotted by our photo crew.

We’re working on a few things behind the scenes, but as soon as we have goodies to share, we’ll serve them up. In the meantime, enjoy the pics, and tell us what you loved about this year’s KublaCon.

Posted in Board Games, Card Games, Conventions, Dungeons & Dragons, Geek Culture, Industry, Miniatures Games, Pathfinder, Roleplaying Games | No Comments »

KublaCon 2017 photo gallery

Friday, June 2nd, 2017

KublaCon 2017 logoThose of you who follow OgreCave’s Facebook page have already heard, but in case you missed it, the first half of OgreCave’s KublaCon 2017 photo gallery is up and running. Have a look, comment, like, and see if you got spotted at last weekend’s KublaCon Game Convention. We’ll have the other half added to the gallery in a couple of days, so check back early next week. Share and enjoy.

We’ll have more site news soon, so check back for that as well. Much to do.

Posted in Board Games, Card Games, Conventions, D20, Dungeons & Dragons, Geek Culture, Industry, Miniatures Games, Pathfinder, Roleplaying Games | No Comments »

Game Designer Eric Lang wins 2016 Diana Jones Award

Saturday, August 6th, 2016

At Gen Con 2016, the winner of this year’s Diana Jones Award for excellence in gaming has been announced as prolific and impressive game designer Eric M. Lang. Lang is known as the man behind Chaos in the Old World, the Living Card Game versions of A Game of Thrones and Star Wars, and more recently for the elegant Ragnarok-themed board game Blood Rage. Other nominees this year were ConTessa, an organization; Fall of Magic, a story-game by Ross Cowman, published by Heart of the Deernicorn; Larpwriter Summer School; and Pandemic Legacy published by Z-man Games. OgreCave congratulates all the nominees, and Eric Lang for his award this year.

Diana Jones Award press release follows:

THE WINNER OF THE 2016 DIANA JONES AWARD IS ERIC M. LANG

To say that Eric Lang is a prolific game designer is the punchline of a joke hilarious in its understatement. This year’s Gen Con, for example, sees the release of no fewer than four new Lang designs or co-designs: Bloodborne: The Card Game, The Others: 7 Sins, Arcane Academy (with Kevin Wilson), and HMS Dolores (with Bruno Faidutti).

A small sampling of Lang’s past designs include Blood Rage, Dice Masters (with Mike Elliott), 2010 Diana Jones nominee Chaos in the Old World, and Living Card Game designs for A Game of Thrones, Star Wars, and Warhammer 40,000.

And these games are not sausage, vomited from an assembly line and rushed to market carelessly undercooked. Rather, Lang’s games are perennial inhabitants of lists that laud both evergreen sales and – in the parlance of BoardGameGeek – “Hotness.”

The variety and quality of Lang’s co-designers speak to the joy of collaborating with him. It’s telling that those who’ve worked with him in the past would not hesitate to do so again, whatever the project. The top-shelf media properties that Lang has adapted for the tabletop demonstrate the trust that publishers put in Lang’s insight, skill, and ability to deliver.

Lang’s ludography is worthy of celebration on its own, but Eric’s sincere love for games, gamers, the gaming hobby, and the art of game design are exemplars not only for his immediate peers, but for those who strive in literally any field of endeavor. If you ran marathons, or raised children, or played heavy metal music with the same spirit that Eric brings to game design, you would exemplify the best spirit of those callings, and the world would be better for it.

It is the opinion of the Diana Jones Award Committee that Eric Lang exemplifies excellence in gaming. We are proud to award him our trophy for this year.

Posted in Board Games, Card Games, Conventions, Game Design, Industry | No Comments »

OgreCave video: KublaCon 2015, Goodman Games, Cheapass Games

Friday, October 16th, 2015

Because we got some great footage at KublaCon 2015, we’re doing our best to ambush you with some of it (Flashback Friday, anyone?). We’ve included a general look at parts of the convention, but also managed to talk with Joseph Goodman of Goodman Games, as well as James Ernest of Cheapass Games. Some of what we discussed has hit game stores by now, but Joe and James both reveal some plans for the future. In particular, Joe describes new features of Dungeon Crawl Classics and his plans for Fritz Leiber’s Lankhmar setting, while James tells us about the Kill Doctor Lucky Kickstarter campaign (which just started and runs until November 13th – check it out).

We’ll have more vids posted soon, so if you have the chance, subscribe to our YouTube channel, and stay tuned!

Posted in Board Games, Card Games, Conventions, D20, Dungeons & Dragons, Game Design, Geek Culture, Industry, Interviews, Roleplaying Games | No Comments »

OgreCave video: Luke Laurie, CelestiCon

Saturday, September 5th, 2015

Around the Cave these past few months, Real Life (TM) has been busy, so gaming has suffered. But even hibernating ogres need to stretch, wake up, and hunt for good gaming now and then. To facilitate a good hunt for everyone, we have a new(ish) video from CelestiCon (going on this weekend in Fremont, CA. Okay, yeah, this is from the 2014 show – we’re way behind on posting this). Get a glimpse of this great convention for game enthusiasts of all varieties, listen to Luke Laurie from the League of Gamemakers talk of the League’s mission and CelestiSpiel, a haven for game developers to test game prototypes, and come out to the show this weekend if you can.

Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel, or listen to our large library of audio podcasts. There’s more hibernating goodies dislodging every time the Cave Dwellers manage to wrestle them into submission.

Posted in Board Games, Card Games, Conventions, Game Design, Miniatures Games, Roleplaying Games | No Comments »

OgreCave Audio Report 2.0 – March 2015

Sunday, March 15th, 2015

OCAR 2.0 logoWe’ve got a lot to say in the latest OgreCave Audio Report episode. First, we talk of DunDraCon 2015, wherein Allan describes some of the things he saw at the show. Then we hit Kickstarter hard, describing a variety of projects, both completed and upcoming, while voicing thoughts on what the crowdsourcing site should really be used for. Finally, one particular volunteer at PAX East is making the entire organization look bad, so they’d really better get a handle on the situation ASAP – and not by simply ignoring it.

Click here for show details and to listen to the new episode. Watch here soon for DunDraCon 2015 pictures, and everything else we’re up to as well.

Posted in Board Games, Card Games, Conventions, Industry, Podcast, Roleplaying Games | No Comments »

OgreCave Audio Report 2.0 – January 2015

Thursday, March 5th, 2015

OCAR 2.0 logoIn our first show of the new year, we’re already covering a lot of ground. In just the first half of the podcast, we go from Allan’s first impressions of Dungeons & Dragons: Fifth Edition to Mike’s obsession with space games, and back around to enjoying Magic: The Gathering after many years of abstinence. Then we drag out a pair of surprise gaming artifacts, speak of upcoming conventions, and more.

Click here for show details and to listen to the new episode. As always, share and enjoy. We’ll have a report on the happenings at DunDraCon 2015 in our next episode.

Posted in Board Games, Card Games, Dungeons & Dragons, LARP, Miniatures Games, Pathfinder, Podcast, Roleplaying Games | No Comments »

OgreCave video: DunDraCon promo

Friday, January 23rd, 2015

For the Cave dwellers, the start of convention season is heralded by DunDraCon. Now that the annual gaming event and its impending awesomeness are nearly here, this seems like the time to premiere our DunDraCon promo video. Take it away, Sparky! (Be sure to subscribe on YouTube to see all of OgreCave’s video goodness.)

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Posted in Board Games, Card Games, Conventions, D20, Dungeons & Dragons, Geek Culture, Industry, LARP, Miniatures Games, OgreCave, Pathfinder, Roleplaying Games | No Comments »

OgreCave Audio Report 2.0 – December 2014

Monday, December 29th, 2014

OCAR 2.0 logoWe’re back, and ready to talk all things gaming. To wrap up the year and prepare for new things, we have a brand new episode of our long-dormant (hibernating?) podcast show, the OgreCave Audio Report. Now redubbed 2.0, the relaunch episode has Mike and Allan talking of the holidays, Kickstarter goodies, interpersonal issues in game groups, and GamerGate, among other things.

A more complete write-up will follow, but for now, enjoy the new episode, and happy holidays!

If you haven’t already heard our other podcast show, OgreCave’s Gaming News Update, click through and have a listen – we’ve cornered quite a few game industry luminaries over the years.

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Posted in Board Games, Card Games, Geek Culture, Industry, Miniatures Games, OgreCave, Pathfinder, Podcast, Roleplaying Games | No Comments »

OgreCave video: Japji Khalsa at KublaCon 2014

Tuesday, August 26th, 2014

In our final KublaCon 2014 video, we manage to grab a few minutes with Japji Khalsa, Executive Producer and founder of KublaCon. In this video, we learn about the CCG-derived origins of the convention, how game designers use the show for their own nefarious ends, and some of the latest improvements to the overall KublaCon experience. You’ll get a small tour of Hyatt amenities, a few words from this year’s exhibitors about the convention, and glimpses of other KublaCon activities, between segments. In all, if you haven’t figured out KublaCon is “The Khan of Cons” yet, you simply haven’t been paying attention!

Have a look at all six KublaCon videos, and be sure to subscribe on YouTube to get all our upcoming video coverage. We’ll have some new things soon. No, really.

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Posted in Board Games, Card Games, Conventions, Game Design, Geek Culture, Industry, Interviews, Miniatures Games, Roleplaying Games | No Comments »

OgreCave review: Pathfinder Adventure Card Game

Thursday, July 17th, 2014

Pathfinder Card GameSometimes the whole roleplaying group just can’t meet up, but you still need some roleplaying time. Many games have tried to capture the essence of RPGs in another format, with varying degrees of success. Due to a lack of other roleplaying activity, Demian has been playing the Pathfinder Adventure Card Game from Paizo Publishing, Mike Selinker’s game design that translates the Pathfinder RPG into card game form. The Pathfinder card game has become popular enough to prompt plans for an Organized Play program starting next month. But what did Demian think of it? Read today’s new review to find out.

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Posted in Card Games, Dungeons & Dragons, Pathfinder, Reviews, Roleplaying Games | No Comments »

OgreCave video: Gamer apparel at KublaCon 2014

Thursday, July 17th, 2014

The KublaCon 2014 coverage is continuing on OgreCave’s new YouTube channel with a short look at gamer apparel. In this installment, we talk with Phil Lacefield Jr. of JBM Press about the t-shirts he sells at dozens of conventions. Then we speak with Derek Cochran of Knitnut By JL to learn about the hot trends in knitted caps and accessories. To round things out, we get another perspective on t-shirts and gamer tastes from David Inman of Nerd Kung-Fu. Bits and pieces of other KublaCon activities are interspersed between these interviews.

Have a look, and be sure to subscribe on YouTube to get all our upcoming video coverage.

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Posted in Board Games, Card Games, Conventions, Geek Culture, Interviews | No Comments »

2014 Origins Award winners announced

Monday, June 16th, 2014

Origins logoThe 40th annual Origins Awards were given out Saturday night. The details of said nominees and winners are a bit hard to find, so we thought we’d compile them for you here. Or all the ones we could find, at least.

2014 Origins Awards nominees and winners:

Best Roleplaying Game
13th Age – Pelgrane Press
FATE Core System – Evil Hat Productions, LLC
Mummy: the Curse – White Wolf Game Studio
Numenera – Monte Cook Games
Shadowrun: Core Rulebook – Catalyst Game Labs

WINNER: Numenera (Monte Cook Games)
FAN FAVORITE: Shadowrun: Core Rulebook (Catalyst Game Labs)

Best Roleplaying Supplement
DC Adventures Universe – Green Ronin Publishing
Heart of the Wild – Cubicle 7 Entertainment
Transhuman – Posthuman Studios
Night’s Watch – Green Ronin Publishing
Eternal Lies – Pelgrane Press

WINNER: Night’s Watch (Green Ronin Publishing)
FAN FAVORITE: DC Adventures Universe (Green Ronin Publishing)

Best Board Game
Trains – Alderac Entertainment Group
Time n Space – Stronghold Games
Space Cadet: Dice Duel – Stronghold Games
Krosmaster Arena – Japanime Games
City of Iron – Red Raven Games

WINNER: Trains (Alderac Entertainment Group)
FAN FAVORITE: Trains (Alderac Entertainment Group)

Best Collectible Card Game
Pokemon Black & White: Legendary Treasures – The Pokemon Company, Intl.
Pokemon Red Genesect Collection – The Pokemon Company, Intl.
Yu-Gi-Oh! Battle Pack 2 – Konami Digital Entertainment
Yu-Gi-Oh! Super Starter V for Victory – Konami Digital Entertainment
Yu-Gi-Oh! Legendary Collection 4: Joey’s World – Konami Digital Entertainment

WINNER: Pokemon Black & White: Legendary Treasures (The Pokemon Company, Intl.)
FAN FAVORITE: Pokemon Black & White: Legendary Treasures (The Pokemon Company, Intl.)

Best Traditional Card Game
Love Letter – Alderac Entertainment Group
DC Comics Deck-Building Game – Cryptozoic Entertainment
Boss Monster – Brotherwise Games
Clubs – North Star Games
Marvel Legendary: Dark City – Upper Deck

WINNER: Love Letter (Alderac Entertainment Group)
FAN FAVORITE: DC Comics Deck-Building Game (Cryptozoic Entertainment)

Best Children’s, Family, Party Game
Walk the Plank – Mayday Games
Three Little Pigs – Iello
My Happy Farm – 5th St. Games
ROFL – Cryptozoic Entertainment
Choose One! – Looney Labs

WINNER: Three Little Pigs (Iello)
FAN FAVORITE: Walk the Plank (Mayday Games)

Best Game Accessory
Krosmaster: Fire & Ice – Japanime Games
Shadowrun GM Screen – Catalyst Game Labs
Fate Dice – Evil Hat Productions, LLC
Space Gaming Mat – HC+D Supplies
Pathfinder Battles: Skull and Shackles – WizKids Games

WINNER: Space Gaming Mat (HC+D Supplies)
FAN FAVORITE: Pathfinder Battles: Skull and Shackles (WizKids Games)

Best Miniature Figure Rules
Marvel HeroClix: Avengers Vs X-men Starters – WizKids Games
Battletech Alpha Strike – Catalyst Game Labs
Judge Dredd – Warlord Games

WINNER: Marvel HeroClix: Avengers Vs X-men Starters (WizKids Games)
FAN FAVORITE: Marvel HeroClix: Avengers Vs X-men Starters (WizKids Games)

Best Historical Miniature Figure/Line
Fife & Drum: Revolutionary War – Fife & Drum
Highlander Force – North Star Military Figures
Fate of a Nation: Arab Israeli Wars – Battlefront Miniatures
Red Army: 28mm Russian Infantry – Wargames Factory
Devil Dogs and Dragons – Empress Miniatures

WINNER: Fate of a Nation: Arab Israeli Wars (Battlefront Miniatures)
FAN FAVORITE: ? – still looking for this info

Best Historical Board Game
SOS Titanic – Ludonaute
Navajo Wars – GMT, designed by: Joel Toppen
Freedom: The Underground Railroad – Academy Games
1775: Rebellion – Academy Games
Francis Drake – Eagle Games

WINNER: 1775: Rebellion (Academy Games)
FAN FAVORITE: 1775: Rebellion (Academy Games)

Best Historical Miniature Rules Supplements
SAGA: Varjazi & Basileus – Gripping Beast
Flames of War: Fate of a Nation – Battlefront Miniatures
Force on Force: Classified – Osprey Publishing

WINNER: ? – still looking for this info
FAN FAVORITE: ? – still looking for this info

Best Historical Miniature Rules
Fields of Fire 2nd Edition – Proving Ground Games
Fire and Sword – Wargamer
Chain of Command – Too Fat Lardies

WINNER: Fields of Fire 2nd Edition (Proving Ground Games)
FAN FAVORITE: Fire and Sword (Wargamer)

Best Miniature Figure Line
Malifaux: The Guild’s Judgement – Wyrd Miniatures
HeroClix: Wolverine and the X-men – WizKids Games
MERCs Mini’s (Shock Trooper, Spy, Eagle, Beacher) – MegaCon Games

WINNER: Malifaux: The Guild’s Judgement (Wyrd Miniatures)
FAN FAVORITE: HeroClix: Wolverine and the X-men (WizKids Games)

Best Game Related Publication
Khan of Mars – Evil Hat Books
Fire for Effect – Catalyst Game Labs
ICv2 – Editor: Milton Griepp
Dork Tower – Editor: John Kovalic
TableTop – Wil Wheaton, Felicia Day/Geek & Sundry

WINNER: TableTop (Geek & Sundry)
FAN FAVORITE: TableTop (Geek & Sundry)

As usual, it’s a great list of game products, and OgreCave extends hearty congratulations to all the nominees and winners.

As you can see, a few details are missing (and if you’ve got them, please, let us know in the comments). Why? Mainly because this is cobbled together from a variety of sources, but not from GAMA’s Origins Award page. As of this post, the GAMA site had neither the nominees nor winners listed. Now, GAMA has been quoted before as not wanting to become the Oscars of tabletop gaming (funny, since it’s an academy that puts forth the nominees), but not advertising your awards on your own site? That’s just shooting yourself in the foot.

I say, if fans and publishers want to build up your brand for you, give them the tools to do so – or at the very least, don’t sabotage the process. But maybe that’s just me.

Posted in Board Games, Card Games, Conventions, Game Design, Geek Culture, Industry, Miniatures Games, Pathfinder, Roleplaying Games | 2 Comments »

2014 Diana Jones Award shortlist announced

Thursday, June 12th, 2014

This year’s nominees for the Diana Jones Award have just been announced, and as always, the selections are thoughtful and varied. Two publishers and three games made the list. The nominees are:

  • Evil Hat Productions, the folks behind FATE, Dresden Files, Don’t Rest Your Head, and more.
  • Hillfolk by Robin Laws (Pelgrane Press), which had a tremendous Kickstarter drive.
  • Paizo Publishing, the Pathfinder folks, long confirmed to be outselling D&D.
  • ROFL! a party word game with illustrations by John Kovalic (Cryptozoic Entertainment).
  • Terra Mystica, a strategy board game of terraforming (Feuerland Spiele/Z-Man Games).

Check out the full press release below for details of why each deserves the nomination, and let us know what you think. Who would you give the lucite pyramid to?
(more…)

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Posted in Board Games, Card Games, D20, Dungeons & Dragons, Game Design, Geek Culture, Industry, Pathfinder, Roleplaying Games | No Comments »

Gaming News Update – KublaCon 2014 (Thomas Denmark/Studio Denmark)

Tuesday, June 10th, 2014

OgreCave newscasterSo, we made our annual pilgrimage and got out to KublaCon 2014 – The Khan of Cons – and had a great time, as always. We came back with plenty to share, so let’s start with a Gaming News Update interview with Thomas Denmark of Studio Denmark. Tom gave us the details on his upcoming RPG, Warriors of the Red Planet, for which he also did the fantastic artwork. Tom is responsible for such memorable game designs as Dungeoneer and Murder of Crows, so there’s no doubt we’re looking forward to seeing this desolate-yet-stylish old school game. Friends, gamers – lend us your ears.

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