Convention Talk: Safety

As a continuation of the ghosting topic I discussed earlier, safety should be a concern for con goers.

It’s an unpleasant topic to discuss, and for the most part, most cons are a very safe environment with little worry about personal safety.  Having said that, it is important to take practical steps to make sure your con is worry free and you come back with great memories.

Parking Garages

It was reported earlier this year that there were assaults/robberies in a couple of the parking garages in Indianapolis.  There are no security guards or people watching inside the garages, so if you are going to your car late at night, be aware of your surroundings.  If you can get a group to go back to the cars, even better.  Be prepared for anything if you are walking alone to a car.  Have your  cell phone out and keys at the ready, and follow your inner instinct that says beware (don’t ignore that inner voice that says watch out!).   Having some mace or pepper spray at hand is a good idea, too.  If it looks dicey, turn around and walk out.  There are a lot of law enforcement officers out and about at all times in the streets (on bicycles and horses), so help is available if you need it.

ATMs and Credit Cards

ATMs are really convenient, but they are a magnet for criminals to steal your information.  Skimming — grabbing your magnetic information and your pin with add on devices — is on the rise, and there have been reports of modified ATMs in hotel lobbies.  Criminals put fake slots on the machines, then mount hidden cameras to get your pin when you type it in.  It’s really hard to tell if an ATM has been tampered with, frankly, but look to see if the slot fits correctly and isn’t loose or odd looking.  If your card doesn’t fit in smoothly, try another ATM.  Hide your pin with your other hand when you put in the numbers as they can’t use your info without your pin.

Check your bank balance frequently if you are using ATMs — you can alert your bank to fraud if it occurs.

If you plan on using credit cards at the vendor booths and other places such as restaurants, call your credit card company or bank ahead of time and let them know what you are doing.  It can avoid your card being pinged for fraud if they know you are getting charges from stores all over the US and abroad.

Secure Your Valuables

Petty theft of badges, personal items, and money does happen.  Keep your stuff close at hand, zip up your bags or backpacks, and keep things out of your pockets if they are easy to get to.  Thieves are really clever and can distract you and be off with your stuff before you know it.  With 70K attendees and over 200,000 people going in and out, there will inevitably be some bad apples at the con.  Just be aware that you can end up being a victim of opportunity if you leave your stuff out and are distracted.

Stay organized!  I have terrible trouble with this myself, but making sure you have a spot for your cash, cell phone, identification and credit cards that you can easily get to but is secure.  Fumbling around and digging in bags always ends up with items on the floor, and you may not see them fall.  Bring a minimum of things to avoid this problem — a bag full of stuff gets disorganized quickly.   Use good backbacks or carryalls that have pockets for items so they stay in one spot and you can find them easily.

Keep track of your cash expenditures — it’s not a safety issue but if you are missing some, you will know right away.

Obviously, make sure if you get a wad of cash from the sale of magic cards or games you don’t wave it around.  Most of the booths can help you be discreet about it, but be aware there are probably 100 people watching you get the cash.

Don’t leave money, your cell phone or credit cards on the counter while you transact business.    Count your change!  People make mistakes.

Check your bags before you leave a booth.   Do you have all of them?  Take an inventory often.

When you are demoing or playing games, put your items in a place where you can keep an eye on them at all times and they aren’t in the open.   Wrap bag straps around your chair legs to discourage snatch and grab attempts.

Magic cards are especially vulnerable to theft, since the criminals can just grab your collection and go sell them immediately.

Separating cash into two places, one even in your shoe, can be helpful.  You won’t lose it all if something unfortunate happens.

It’s never a bad idea to use a waist pouch that goes under your clothes for your valuable stuff.  They sell nice ones fairly inexpensively at places like TJMaxx and other discount stores.   It’s a great solution to carry extra cash or an emergency credit card.

Tickets to events should be handled as carefully as cash — since they can be used by anyone.

I don’t know if there would ever be a reason to remove your badge from around your neck, but obviously if you do, keep an eye on it!  Badges are going to be a coveted item this year.   Badges can fall out of their holders, so a quick check every now and again that it’s still there and secure is a good idea.

Health Events

GenCon has emergency medical staff available if you feel sick or have a problem.  They have a room in one of the hallways.  It’s easy to get overheated or stressed in the crowds and all the chaos.  If you feel very ill, go see them.   Remember to drink and stay hydrated!  Bring a water bottle you can refill from a drinking fountain or faucet.

There will be a quiet room this year where attendees can sit and get away from it all for a while (listed in the catalog).  Take advantage of it if you can and give yourself a break.

As a final note, just be aware of your surroundings.  It’s so easy to get distracted and lose track of your things, allow people to get into your personal space that shouldn’t be there, or find yourself in a situation that you are uncomfortable with.  Think ahead, and stay as organized as you can.   And of course, have fun!

Do you have other tips?  Let us know!

 

Convention Talk: “Ghosting”

Now that GenCon has announced there will be no more sales of four day passes, and probably a very limited number of one day passes left, the chatter has turned to the practice of “ghosting” or coming to the convention without a badge.

There are two kinds of ghosting:  one is sneaking into events that require a badge, the other is hanging around in the public areas without a badge for the con.  Sneaking into an event is stealing — you are taking something other people paid for.  Hanging out in the halls just makes it more crowded.

This is the first year that GenCon has limited attendance.   Many people in past years bought four day badges at the con the day of the convention, but this is no longer possible.   Buying four one day badges is much more expensive ($270), if they will even be available.

It is prudent for GenCon to limit badges simply because occupancy codes make sure that if there is a problem, no tragedies occur with overcrowded venues.    Panicked, running crowds can literally trample people to death — so there are fire codes and other regulations on how many people can be in a building at any time to prevent it from happening.

The other reason to limit badges and attendance is the sheer number of people all trying to do the same thing.  Frankly, the vendor hall is already way too crowded, and if there are just too many people no one gets a good chance to demo games or browse the vendor booths. It makes sense for the GenCon organizers to say they have a capacity and they aren’t going over it.

So why not try to get in without a badge and see what you can enjoy?

First of all, there’s little you can do without a badge.  You can’t buy tickets to events or participate in most things.  They do check badges and ask for ID at the ticket booth.

Secondly, “ghosting” means you are crowding the halls and public areas and making it more uncomfortable for everyone else.  It really is crowded at GenCon — and this year it’s going to be wall to wall people who did pay for the con.  It also requires more staff to check badges at every access point to events and in the convention center, which just creates more lines and bottlenecks for legitimate attendees.

Trying to get into events without a badge, or with someone else’s badge is stealing.  GenCon, and other cons like it, work very hard to organize the event. Badge fees pay for the staff, the programs, the clean up, and everything else that makes the con a fun place to be.   If you don’t pay to get in, you are taking advantage of what others paid for to be there.

Edit:   The Indiana Convention Center policy is that it must be open to the public, so hanging out in the halls can be done — but please, there are plenty of places to meet outside the con in Indianapolis that aren’t nearly as crowded as the halls at GenCon.

Staff always check badges at paid events, so there’s no point in even trying to get in without a badge.  If you are going to try to get in with a badge from past events, they check that, too — if your badge is flipped, for instance, they ask you to turn your badge around and they do scrutinize them carefully (again, making more work for everyone because people try to cheat the system).

For those who do have badges, please keep an eye on them.   Sneaking in without a pass is one thing, but stealing someone else’s badge and using it is quite another thing altogether.  Let’s face it, it does happen.   With the sell-out, if you lose your badge you aren’t going to be able to purchase another one at the con.  So be careful!

If you didn’t get a badge, there are still ways to get a pass into the convention center.  Volunteer!  Vendors and GenCon need people to help out.  I am sure there are still opportunities to work.  AEG was asking for volunteers for their Big Game Night, for example (you will see me there).    As the con gets closer, confirmed volunteers will drop out, and there will be openings.   Check out the BoardGameGeek.com GenCon threads, or the GenCon Facebook page, or ask your favorite game publisher if they need people to work for them (you can find a list of all the game publishers attending on BGG).  It’s a little more of a commitment, but if you are determined to go,  it’s a legitimate way to enjoy the convention and it can be a lot of fun.

Dad, Dave & The Elephant – Episode 1

 

In this first episode, we talk about Origins, games, channel news, and a group review for Century: Spice Road.

Game Storage: I Bought All These Games, Now What Do I Do With Them?

Part One: Shelving and Other Storage Solutions

Eventually, for most board game enthusiasts, the conundrum of storing is going to happen.

Most board gamers start out with just one or two games that fit nicely on a shelf or in the closet, but once the bug hits, a dedicated shelf becomes a requirement.   And then maybe another one.  Then a third…and now you need to maximize space.

So what’s the best way to store games?  And why should you care?

First of all, modern tabletop games hold their value.  A game kept in good condition, with an intact box with no scuffs, dishing of the top or bottom, or crushed corners, is worth something.  Don’t ever tape a box with sticky tape – it will tear the paper– or stack games 5 or 6 high, as the weight from the top games will dish the bottom boxes.   If you have kept your games in good condition, they can be sold on or traded to other gamers.  But they have to be in good shape and well taken care of if you want to get a good trade or price for them.

Plus, they look so pretty on display!  The box art is meant to be appreciated.

Storing games in a climate controlled environment, away from damp, heat, and excessive humidity will keep the playing boards from warping and in good condition.  It goes without saying that smoking around cardboard board games makes them really smelly!  It’s almost impossible to get smoke odor out, too.

Display Shelving

There are some great shelving options out there now.  Here are some of the more popular choices.

One of the standards for game storage, due to the depth of the unit, as well as the sturdy construction, is the Kallax shelf from IKEA.

It also comes in white, and in a half size from this one.  The problem with a shelf from IKEA is you really need to live near a store to pick it up (shipping is exorbitant) and you need to build it.  This shelf runs around $140.00.

I have a half Kallax, shown here in use:

As you can see, the shelves are quite deep and tall enough for Euro game boxes.  It’s a very heavy piece of furniture.

More commonly available from WalMart is the Better Homes and Gardens shelf, which looks similar.

However, it is not exactly the same in quality as the IKEA model, so you have to decide if convenience is worth a slightly less well constructed product.  You also have to build this one, but it’s a lot easier to get.  Selling for about $70, it’s much less than the Kallax.

A thrifty option is to find shelves at a local charity or resale shop.  My local Habitat for Humanity always has a selection of bookshelves.  I have found some really nice, quality shelving for $30-$50, so it’s worth checking out.  Just make sure a shelf is sturdy enough to hold your games, and deep enough to fit the boxes vertically and horizontally.  Game boxes can get tall and bulky.  Bookshelves often don’t have the shelf width and height you need to store games but there is usually quite a variety to choose from.  I have not yet found a Kallax but one can dream…

Another option is track shelving, which you can build if you have the space and the ability to change your walls (they are permanent, so if you rent, it may not be an option unless you want to patch and paint when you leave).  Find track shelving at places like Home Depot.  This is the bulk of my game storage.  The advantages are it’s not that expensive, it’s extremely versatile, and it looks nice.

The system uses vertical hangers like this:

…and prefinished boards that sit on brackets that attach on the hangers.  The beauty of this system is you can make your shelf heights adjustable, and the boards are quite wide, so you have deep shelving.

Here is an example of track shelving:

You can also get boards that are finished in a wood grain.  One small issue is the brackets create a lower space than the rest of the shelf, so you have to find a shorter game to store there!

Now that you have a shelf, how do you store your games?  Vertically or horizontally?

If you check out the box art on many Euro games, it becomes clear that they are meant to be stored vertically, like books.  Vertical storage is advantageous for a couple of reasons – it frees up more space, and keeps the boxes from dishing and getting damaged.  Games stored this way are also more accessible.  Many game boxes are roughly the same height and width, which makes a pretty shelf display.  Some games, though, are just too long or big to store vertically, so they have to be stacked horizontally.  Three or four high is probably the most you ever want to stack, and make sure to put the heavy games on the bottom!  Weight dishes the bottoms and the tops, and bows out the sides.  Crushed boxes decrease the value, a lot, and they don’t look very nice.

For games that have lots of cards, it can make sense to store them horizontally unless you are sure the insert won’t have cards flying all over if it goes on its side.  Those games tend to be heavy, as well, especially with expansions.

Once you have them on the shelf, then the decision of how to organize them is your next challenge.  As you can see, above I have them by designer (Knizia and Feld are all together, but then it’s a hodge podge), or maybe just how they fit on the shelf will work.  You can go by color, alphabetically, by genre, player count, complexity, mechanic, theme…just don’t drive yourself crazy.  Good luck!

Beyond Shelving

I have seen storage solutions where even large games are stored in large plastic bags or containers, which can make sense if you have space issues or the original box no longer holds the game and expansions.

My dog managed to destroy the box for my copy of Castles of Mad King Ludwig, so I now use a plastic scrapbook case for the game.   Craft and hobby stores, such as Michael’s, Hobby Lobby, and Joanne Fabrics all have interesting storage solution ideas.  Try the scrapbooking areas for inspiration.

Bagging games in jumbo plastic ziplock bags (I think they are gallon size) is a great solution if you want to pack a full-size game for a trip, especially if you are flying and have limited luggage options.  I love the look of game boxes, but sometimes it’s more efficient to ditch them.  Just save those boxes somewhere.  Saving expansion boxes is more debatable – I don’t save them myself, although some buyers will ask for them.

For long term storage, plastic tubs that seal are really the best solution.  Cardboard boxes are too vulnerable to vermin and damp, so put them in plastic.  Label those tubs — you’ll never remember what’s in there in a month or two.  Hopefully you aren’t storing your games for too long, though — if you aren’t appreciating them or playing them, send them on to a new home that will.

So much for the big games, but what about the small ones?  As you can see in the Kallax photo, I have small games in a basket.  The Kallax can also hold removable drawer units that can store small games. Sounds good, but there is an even better solution that makes all those tiny games storable, and portable:  ditch the boxes and get a photo storage box at the hobby store:

It’s called an Iris Photo Keeper, and sells for around $21 (full price is $40 at Michael’s but wait until they are on sale).   Pro tip:  at the store open the case and check to make sure the boxes inside close well — I have found the Iris are better made than some of the other brands.  The photo keeper is great for storing and getting small card, dice, and micro games to a game night.  Just keep the original game boxes in case you want to move any along in the future.  It’s portable, convenient, and frees up a lot of space and clutter.

Here is (one) of mine – I have several!  I have my small games labeled inside, with player count.  It’s not the prettiest labeling job, but at least I know what’s in there.

Hopefully these ideas have inspired you to display your game collection proudly.  Have your own storage solutions?  Share in the comments!

Next: Part 2: Storing Inside the Box

I Think You Meant Something by Saying That

by Mindy Basi

There are certain comments heard at the game table that can give you a heads-up as to what’s going on during game play.  Although a phrase or comment might seem simple enough, it just might mean a little bit more in the context of how the game night is going.  Have you heard any of these comments?

“Whose turn is it?”

Typically, this is a polite way of saying somebody at the table is taking way too long on their turn.  In fact, it could be that one player has taken so long people have actually forgotten whose turn it is.   Conversely, it could be that a player isn’t indicating when they have finished, or the next in turn order isn’t paying attention.

For the majority of games, it’s either indecision or wool gathering, but in a small number of cases the turn order changes or gets interrupted, causing confusion about who goes next.

When this question comes up a lot, it might be time to implement solutions, such as encouraging those who take too long on a turn to think about their moves ahead of time, perhaps offering help if it’s appropriate, or having players do actions that affect only themselves while the next player starts her turn.   If it’s inattention by one person, then they aren’t engaged and maybe they need to play another type of game that keeps them interested.  Sometimes you just have to accept that some people take too long on their turns.  If the offender is around the same skill level as everyone else but just likes to deliberate every move, there’s not much you can do about it unless you are really good at giving pointed stares.  If other players say it to you, apologize and hurry up!

“May I see the rulebook?”

Obviously, saying this is purely situational, but in most instances there is probably something going on that is causing a conflict.

If you hear this phrase while you are explaining a game, it could be your fellow gamer is not an auditory learner and needs to read to follow along.  That’s ok, everyone learns differently.  However, you might consider that your teaching style could use some improvement if the other players aren’t following and asking to see the rulebook themselves.  For new players, unless you absolutely must see the rulebook, paying attention to the explanation is the courteous thing to do.  When you teach, make sure you know the game beforehand so you aren’t looking up the rules (although let’s face it, it happens).

It might be that your favorite game has so many confusing icons and procedures you can’t get through a round without looking something up.  Player aids can help, so if you love a game and it doesn’t have any, find some on BGG.com or make your own.   Consider that some games (*cough* Race for the Galaxy) have so many icons and have such a learning curve that it might be better to find something else to play if you have new people, reserving the icon-heavy games for a regular group that knows them.

It could be that a rule needs clarification.  A game that needs constant clarification, however, might end up finding its way to the trade pile eventually.  There is nothing worse than everyone either arguing about a rule or an interpretation, or waiting around while another player scours the rulebook to figure out if they can legally do some clever move on their turn.

If someone grabs the rulebook in the middle of the game, and it’s not icons or definitions, it might be they are suspicious a rule is being broken somewhere, or someone isn’t playing correctly.   That can be a problem.   Good game play is built on trust.

“I play with this house rule.”

House rules can be handy to fix one flaw in what is otherwise a great game, but beware.  Removing components or altering game play can end up tipping the game balance so in the end nothing works exactly as the designer intended it.  The best example of this is Monopoly, where house rules made it easier but turned it into a game everyone loves to hate (it’s just not that good, even if you play it as intended).  Use house rules judiciously, and explain them clearly for new players.  If a game needs too many house rules it probably needs to be replaced with something better.  There’s only so much you can do to fix a fundamentally broken design.

“Have you played many board games?” – or “what kinds of games do you play?”

If someone asks you this before you sit down to the table, they are trying to assess your skill and experience level.  If you haven’t played many games, say so.  Let people know what you like.  Honesty really is the best course for questions like these, because once you are knee deep in hour two of resource management and meeples, you may wonder why you aren’t playing Dixit with the other group.

If they ask it after you have come in last in a game, it’s more of an assessment of  your performance, or perhaps they are trying to be nice, in a backhanded way.   It’s still a rude thing to say.   “What would you like to play now?” is much nicer.

Accommodating a new player’s tastes and skill level is a friendly thing to do.  Honesty on everyone’s part is also beneficial.  Be forthright about what kind of commitment and skill level a game requires.  A group can say, “this game is complex, takes about 30 minutes to explain, and takes 2-3 hours.  Are you still interested?”

Players, know what kinds of games you like to play.  That way, you don’t get sucked into games you dislike or that make you feel uncomfortable.  If you aren’t in the mood for a brain burner like The Gallerist, dislike co-ops, hate coming up with funny phrases, don’t like lying to other players, or guessing things from weird pictures, be forthright about it.  Not every game is for everyone.

What if you take a chance and on turn one you realize you would rather gouge your eyes out than play another round?  If you want to leave, do it soon enough that it doesn’t change the game state (and realize that many games require an entire new board set up with a different number of players, or can’t even be played if you bail).   Be polite about leaving but realize it can be disconcerting for the other players.  The better alternative is play it through, do your best, and never play it again.  You can’t form an opinion on what you prefer if you don’t try out different types of games.

Explaining what players will be doing in a game before starting is a good way to make sure everyone has a good time at game night.  “This game has us all telling creative stories,” or “this is an aggressive game with lots of tactics,” or “this is a co-op where we all work together to win,” or “this game is complex and takes about 2 hours,” helps people decide what they want to do.  No one wants to have to leave a game or sit and be miserable.   On the other hand, encouraging people to try something new is a good way to be able to have variety of games people will play, and lets everyone get games they like to the table.  Experienced gamers, be flexible — you might think  you don’t like a certain genre, but some games can implement a mechanic well and in a different way.

On a final note, you may think someone’s game should be burned in a pit, but you don’t have to say it.  “it was interesting,” is all you have to say.

“I am going to leave now.”

If this isn’t said at the end of the night, your game group might have a problem.   If a stable game group or a welcoming environment is important to you, make sure that a player isn’t leaving because of a conflict with another person, a bad time in a game, a lack of games offered that they want to play, or some other reason you can correct.   “Is everything ok?” said privately can sometimes get you an explanation.  However, it’s very important to respect people’s personal space and privacy if they don’t want to talk.  If something did happen at game night to cause discomfort or an issue, it’s up to the game group to address it.   That’s a topic for a whole other article!

Are there other phrases people say at the game table that are more than they seem?  Add them in the comments section!

Please Welcome Chris King to the team

I recently decided to bring on new contributors to To the Table. At this time, please welcome Chris King.

I have known Chris for about a year and a half or so and he is one of my local friends that I game with.

Chris plays a lot of games with his family, logging hundreds of plays of Ticket to Ride. Chris is also a fan of two-player games as well as many traditional card games. Chances are if you say the word ‘Tichu’ and Chris is within earshot, don’t be surprised if he rolls up and wants to play.

Chris has done reviews for books and will now be contributing to reviewing modern board and card games. I hope his perspective will help you in your game buying decisions.

To the Table – 2016 Designer of the Year

By David Taylor

In 2015 I had started out with an idea I had called “The Cardboard Bridge.” As a guest on the Meeple Syrup show, a question was asked about an opportunity for content in the boardgame community. I had responded with a need to offer more exposure for the creators of the games we enjoy. My first installment was my Designer of the Year for 2015, Alexander Pfister, where I talked about him and his games.

This year I am proud to announce my choice for Designer of the Year for 2016. Let’s get to know him. Without further ado, my choice is Kane Klenko. I had an opportunity to interview Kane and I wanted to share more about him.

To The Table’s 2016 Designer of the Year

LET’S GET TO KNOW KANE

Kane Klenko lives in Wisconsin along with his wife and 2 sons. Outside of game design, Kane works in the real estate industry as a mortgage closer at a bank. Kane has been designing games since 2010, with his first published games coming in 2014 with Mad City from Mayfair Games’ Fun Fair line, and Pressure Cooker from Rio Grande Games. Both of these games are real-time games, where the driving mechanic of the game is time.

One of Kane’s first published designs

In 2015, Dead Men Tell No Tales, published by Minion Games was released. This game was not a real-time game, but a cooperative game that uses the classic action point allowance system with some interesting twists. It is a pirate-themed game where players are trying to loot a burning ship.

Kane’s first published strategy game

In late 2015, early 2016, Renegade Game Studios released FUSE, which is yet another real-time game. I asked Kane, what his attraction to real-time games was. Kane responded: “Before I started designing real-time games I had only played one or two of them. Early on, when I was first starting to design, I was thinking about why video games are so much bigger than board games. One of the things that stuck with me was the real-time nature of most video games. My goal is to have most of my games accessible to a mass market audience, so I thought that real-time games might be a way to do that. Once I started designing them I was hooked. The playtests were always fun and lively, and I seemed to have a knack for coming up with new real-time mechanics.” 

In 2016, Renegade Game Studios released Covert at Gen Con. This game is a strategy game that uses a unique dice placement mechanic for choosing actions. To me this showed Kane’s maturity as a designer, with Covert coming in #3 on my top games of 2016 and at this point is my favorite game that he has designed. I asked Kane if there was any back story for Covert. Here is what Kane had to say, “In December 2014 I was reading the rules to Bora Bora, hoping to play it sometime soon (which didn’t happen). After reading the rules I had the thought that it would be fun to try to design a medium weight Euro dice game.” Coming off of his design work with FUSE, Kane said he wanted to challenge himself to make a heavier game using dice. I was really surprised when Kane revealed that the design for Covert, which is a bigger game, was done in only a few months.

One of my top games of 2016

Kane makes an appearance in the game as one of the characters. This was a promo card that was in Santa’s Renegades.

Kane is in his own game!

I asked Kane what designers have inspired him. At the top of the list are Reiner Knizia and Wolfgang Kramer. These two are also some of Kane’s favorite designers. Kane says he loves that they have a wide range of styles, and that even their heavier games are intuitive and streamlined. He also appreciates Vlaada Chvatil in that he tries to be innovative and try new things. Kane says he is more inspired just by playing different types of games, or even movies, tv shows, random conversations, etc. Kane states, “My mind is always thinking about the next game, and anything can trigger what that will be.”

We all have our favorite games and so I had asked Kane about his. His reply, “This might seem like a lame answer, but my honest 2 favorite games are Covert and the upcoming Flatline. I probably shouldn’t pick my own games, but I guess that makes sense since I can make my games whatever I want them to be. I worked on them until they were my favorites. Other than those, I’d say my favorites are Ra, Dominion, and Pandemic. They all have one main thing in common for me: a simple and unique mechanical hook, and accessible and fun gameplay. That’s what my goal is with my games, and I think those 3 games nailed it. Every time I play Pandemic I still am amazed at how brilliant that card mechanic is.”

WHY I CHOSE KANE KLENKO AS DESIGNER OF THE YEAR

I have been familiar with Kane’s designs and his games since they started releasing in 2014. For me personally, I am not a big fan of real-time games, so typically they don’t hit my table, so Mad City and Pressure Cooker are not in my collection. However, I do appreciate the designs and the effort to make them. I did enjoy Dead Men Tell No Tales and I thought the game was well designed and showed a forward direction in Kane’s design ability. I like the action point allowance mechanic with the twist of being able to pass action points to other players. This was a clever idea that works well in Dead Men Tell No Tales.

Although FUSE released in December 2015, it really did not start showing up until 2016, so I will go ahead and say that Kane had 2 releases in 2016. It was with these 2 designs that I saw Kane really mature in his game design. FUSE uses the real-time mechanic along with dice that results in a super tense cooperative game that is 10 minutes of adrenaline. Although I don’t own FUSE, there are people in my gaming group that do own it and at this point is the only real-time game I will play (at least for now).  I still have not won the game and I will probably blame our group for not addressing the issue that we only have 10 minutes to save the world, so time is of the essence.

Covert is the game that made my choice for Designer of the Year very simple. Covert was on my Gen Con Games of Interest Geeklist and when I first played it, I knew the game was going to be one of my top games of the year. In Covert, the actions players take are dictated by where players place their dice on these rings. Each ring has space for 6 dice, 1 space for each pip side. What makes this design really shine is that when players go to place their dice, they can only be placed in the open spaces adjacent to a die that has already been placed.

This dice placement mechanic………I love it!

This unique dice placement mechanic showed me that Kane upped the ante in game design. And it is this maturity in game design that warrants Kane being selected as my Designer of the Year.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR KANE

Of course I had to ask Kane, what he was working on and what he had coming out. So based upon what he could discuss, here is what Kane has coming up in the near future. First, this Spring, Kane’s favorite game Flatline will be coming from Renegade Game Studios. Yes, Kane has 3 games published by them and he likes working with Renegade and they like his designs.

Flatline……Think of it as FUSE for gamers

An expansion for Dead Men Tell No Tales called Kraken is in the works because Kane says “the game needs to be harder, right??”

I asked Kane : Any plans for more strategy games like Dead Men Tell No Tales or Covert? Kane did reveal this: “I do have one game that should be out at Gen Con that is closer to that weight, but probably a little lighter. Other than that it’s just whatever inspiration hits and I get excited about. I literally have new game ideas every day. I can’t work on them all, so I just write them down and move on. Sometimes there’s an idea that just won’t let go, as was the case with Covert. When that happens I just go with it, whether that’s a 10 minute filler or a 90 minute strategy game. I never know what’s coming next, and it’s kind of fun that way. Sometimes there’s a plan, like with an expansion, and I’m hoping Covert does well enough to warrant an expansion, because I already have some good ideas tested and I want to see it get made.”

WHERE CAN YOU MEET KANE?

One of the great things about this hobby and industry is the convention scene. Kane attends one major convention: Gen Con. Other than that, he goes to conventions that are local to him such as  Gameholecon in Madison and Nexus in Milwaukee. He also attends Protospiel to test out his game designs. Kane says, “Wherever I am though I go to meet with publishers, make connections, and show my games to people. I’ve never gone to a convention to actually play games.” Kane says he is planning on attending  BGG.con this year, probably  running demos for his 2017 releases.

BRINGING IT ALL BACK

I am proud to name Kane Klenko as my choice for 2016 Designer of the Year. He has shown great strides in his game design ability, especially with Covert. I am looking forward to his future work and I am glad that he took the time to share a bit about himself for you to read. So again congratulations to Kane and I wish him much success both for 2017 and in the future.