Ludology 360 That Old Black Magic

Erica and Sen speak with CMYK's Alex Hague about having two of the most popular racing games on the market right now in Hot Streak and Magical Athlete. Are they racing against each other to the top of the sales charts or is there something else behind the surface level thematic similarities that accounts for their success?

Designer and historian Amabel Holland ([email protected]) joins Erica and Sen on a trip down memory lane as she tells them about the highlights of her deep dives into discovering the often unknown designers of the mass market games of the 60s and 70s in North America. You can watch Amabel's historical journeys at https://www.youtube.com/@Hollandspiele  If you're interested in learning even more about older games and their creators, we host over 40 episodes of Biography of a Boardgame compiled by Scott Rogers right here on the Ludology Network! Just use the search bar at the top of the page at www.ludology.net.

Recorded in Summer of 2026, Sen talks to Ethan Yen at a cafe in lovely Wortley Village in South London. They discuss design philosophies and Ethan's solo RPG "Fetch My Blade" (which happens to be on Kickstarter for a few more days - check it out!) https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hitpointpress/fetch-my-blade-a-journaling-roleplaying-game

Erica and Sen talk amongst themselves and discuss the topic of complexity in games from multiple angles. Whether you're choosing what to play at game night or designing the next big hit, complexity is something that impacts tabletop gaming maybe more than you think!

Once again, Sen was in la belle province, recording at FLIM when he heard about *another* convention in Montreal! Ludicon offers open gaming, competitions, and merchandise in the heart of the city every November. Alain Fragman and Mario Haché brought Ludicon to life in 2024 and the 2026 edition will be on November 6-7-8 at Montreal's Palais des Congrès. They tell Sen all about the event and how it came into being in this installment of Pros and Cons.  Check out www.ludicon.ca for more info. Sen hopes to be there this November, so come join him! (Side note: If you're interested in learning more about the Society of Curiosity's 5-bedroom B&B that is an overnight escape room experience in a Victorian manor, sign up for more info here: https://www.societyofcuriosities.com/immersive-overnight/manor-of-curiosities/ and check out Episode 29 1 Curiouser and Curiouser at  https://ludology.libsyn.com/webpage/ludology-291-curiouser-and-curiouser to hear the purveyors of fine escape experiences describe their venue.)

This week, Erica and Sen speak with Dr. Marc Engfield and Shawn Roske about the game they co-designed to explore and address issues surrounding managing Chronic Pain. Using Sarah Lynne Bowman's theories of Transformational Play as the backbone, "The Pain Clinic" has pairs of players take on the roles of a patient who is experiencing chronic pain and the doctor who is treating them. For more information about this game, please contact the creators at: [email protected]  or [email protected]  

Sen and Erica talk with Steenz (www.oheysteenz.com), a St. Louis cartoonist and professor, about the graphic novel she illustrated, "Side Quest: A Visual History of Roleplaying Games". In the book, Steenz and co-creator Samuel Sattin take readers on a journey through time and space as they look at the historical roots of Roleplaying Games around the globe. Steenz talks about her own relationship with RPGs as well as what she found most fascinating while doing the research for the book. 

Erica is just getting back from Japan and Sen is in Montreal for FLIM, so we're going to drop an interview from last year's inaugural Festival Ludique International de Montreal in which Sen speaks with designer, Herb Stanway, about the multi award-winning game, Crash Factor.  To help you see exactly what Sen and Herb are talking about, check out the images of Herb's prototype on BGG: https://boardgamegeek.com/image/6850545/crash-factor

Sen and Erica are joined by Marc-Antoine Doyon, organizer behind the Festival Ludique International De Montreal (www.leflim.com), a free outdoor gaming festival that takes place from July 24-26 in Montreal's Latin Quarter. Marc-Antoine talks about what it take to bring something of this magnitude to life and what attendees can look forward to in the festival's second year.

Sen and guest host George Drayer (formerly from Meeple Syrup) speak with Jesper Myfors, the original art director of the game that changed the face of modern nerdom, Magic: The Gathering. They talk to Jesper about his involvement with the game, his role as art director, and his insight on evolution of the M:tG.