Episode 267: ACD Expo 2026 Recap

This week, Doug and Michael recap their experiences at ACD Expo 2026, one of the tabletop gaming industry’s premier retailer trade shows held in Madison, Wisconsin.The hosts discuss the biggest trends from the show floor, including the growing popularity of trading card games and trick-taking games, along with standout titles from publishers across the industry. Highlights include upcoming releases such as Fox Grove, Frosted Blooms, For All Mankind, One Round?, Thunder Road: Ignition, Trickarus, and many more.Join us as we share our favorite discoveries, discuss emerging trends, and take a look at what’s coming next in tabletop gaming.

In this episode Doug and Michael follow-up on some Spiel des Jahres News and Speculate on Bluey Catan. They also discuss games ending in ties and the allure of weird games. Then, they play a game of Troll er No about Return to Dark Tower and Marvel United. Lastly, the finish with a monthly game roundup including titles such as Lost Cities, Cozy Stickerville, Lone Wolves, Catan: On the Road, and Cloudspire.00:00:00 - Introduction and Follow-Up00:10:13 - This Week In Gaming00:22:45 - What's On Your Mind: Ties in Gaming00:29:03 - The Allure of Weird Games00:35:43 - Troll or No: A Game of Reviews00:55:24 - Monthly Game Roundup00:56:33 - Lost Cities00:59:11 - Cozy Stickerville01:05:49 - Lone Wolves01:10:19 - Catan: On the Road01:16:25 - Cloudspire

In this episode Doug and Michael discuss the latest news in gaming, including the Spiel Des Jahres nominees. We also discuss gamer's and their obsession with box sizes. We play a round of game night hypotheticals that delves into collection size, game costs, and personal or family gaming. We finish the episode some older titles we've played recently including New York 1901, Steam Time, and Legendary: James Bond.00:00:00 - Introduction and Follow-Up Discussions00:05:52 - This Week In Gaming00:31:36 - What's On Your Mind?00:42:50 - Game Night Hypotheticals01:01:28 - Retro Retread: New York 190101:07:55 - Steam Time01:13:47 - Legendary: James Bond

Join Doug and Michael as they explore the latest in board gaming, including the Board Game Geek Awards. Doug discusses a recent flea market experience. Michael features campaign games in Play or Pass, such as ISS Vanguard, Cloudspire, Kinfire Chronicles, and Arydia: The Paths We Dare Tread. We finish off the episode with Campaign Chronicles as we dive into a spoiler-filled breakdown of Pandemic: Season 1!00:00 - Introduction and Overview01:04 - This Week In Gaming: Board Game Geek Awards30:06 - What's On Your Mind? Flea Market Experience42:00 - Play or Pass: Campaign Games59:15 - Campaign Chronicles: Pandemic Legacy Season 1

This week we'll be discussing some of the latest headlines including a slew of game announcements. We'll chat about what’s on our mind like solo games and deck-building. We play the Great Game Guessing Game and try to figure out what the game Ulcer is about! Lastly we finish up by analyzing whether games such as Kingsburg, Sushi Go Party!, and Great Western Trail are underrated, overrated or perfectly rated!00:00 - Introduction to Board Game Radio01:26 - This Week In Gaming21:57 - What's On Your Mind?33:38 - The Great Game Guessing Game Begins56:13 - Goldilocks: Game Ratings Discussion

In this episode, we explore the latest in board gaming, including reprints of Guillotine and The Voyages of Marco Polo and Mensa Select Winners. We explore the concept of lifestyle games, their impact on the hobby, and share insights on promoting the hobby. We play a game of Redacted Reviews. To close the show we talk about what we've been playing including Citizens of the Spark, Luthier, Magical Athlete, and Emberheart.00:00:00 - Introduction00:03:07 - This Week In Gaming00:20:08 - What's On Your Mind?00:35:37 - Redacted Reviews: The Game Guessing Game00:52:13 - Monthly Game Roundup: What We've Been Playing

Join us as we explore the latest in board gaming, share insights on unplayed gems, and discuss the evolving landscape of collectible card games. We also Blind Rank some games!Chapters00:00:00 - Introductions00:01:12 - This Week In Gaming00:24:51 - What's on Our Mind?00:39:42 - Blind Ranking Board Games00:53:53 - Shelf of Shame Support Group

This week, Doug and Michail discuss some of the latest headlines, like the reprinting of Mechs vs. Minions. They also talk about large publishers crowdfunding and content creator objectivity. Then we debate smart money and stupid money in the hobby and finish by revisiting our top games from 2016!00:00:00 - Introduction00:02:17 - This Week In Gaming00:21:43 - What's On Your Mind?00:37:08 - Stupid Money, Smart Money01:00:03 - Top 10 Games of 2016board games, crowdfunding, game industry, game reprints, hobby trends, game design, industry challenges, content creation board games, 2016 top games, game design, Scythe, Mansions of Madness, Clank, gaming experiences, game collection, game value, hobby games

Join us as we explore upcoming releases from The OP, discuss the balance between old and new games, and play a fun game of Troll or No with Andrew from The OP. We even chat about what games we'd play with the most unlikely of table guests!00:00:00 - Introduction00:03:45 - Publisher Spotlight00:29:13 - Troll er No?00:41:03 - What's On Your Mind?01:01:52 - Who's At the Table?

Join Doug and Michael as they explore the latest in board gaming, including new game announcements, discuss whether being terrible at a game influences our opinion of that games, and share the games we've been playing in the Monthly Game Roundup.00:00 - Introduction to Board Game Radio04:01 - Ad: Gaming Snack Mittens07:20 - This Week In Gaming21:22 - What's On Your Mind?35:52 - Monthly Game Roundup