Shut Up & Sit Down

Are current events getting you down? In this episode of the podcast, Ava and Quinns discuss a selection of games that might make real life seem a little cheerier. There's the threat of drowning adorable animals in Isle of Cats (02:43), the demon invasion of Planet Apocalypse (12:53), the startling cruelty of Antiquity (24:17)and the bum-punishingly long Western Empires (46:01).

Quinns, Tom and Ava voyage boldly into the great boardgame unknown, this time without Matt’s assistance on the technology side of things! The result? A podcast that’s deeply flawed. Am I going to triple-check the edit to make sure the audio isn’t slipping and sliding around, crashing into itself like an ouroboros of waveforms? I’m sure you’ll be able to guess the answer to that question by just listening to it. This week, we get covered in eldritch goop while talking about Cthulhu: Death May Die, barraged by dice AND pirates in Madeira, turned into candles with a Thousand Year-Old Vampire, and utterly BAFFLED by the interlocking systems in The Defence of Procyon III! We’ll also be talking a little about the games we’ve looked at recently, and discussing that stream.

You, at the back! Was it you that ordered a chat sandwich? Was it with ramble bread and discussion filling - extra… stream schedule? Look. I spent ages trying to make a joke about this podcast being ‘like a sandwich’ - with the strong base of classic Eurogames (Terra Mystica and Hansa Teutonica) wedged between the spicy hot filling of Root Underworld and Frosthaven. But there you see my problem; the filling is on the outside and the bread on the inside and that just ‘AINT a sandwich, chief. And then where does Mr Cabbagehead’s Garden fit in? The pieces are all there, but my brain won’t make them fit - the sandwich metaphor falls apart like a… like a… wet… sandwich. Dang it, just listen to the podcast. This week’s episode is extra chunky and was a lot of fun to edit! I Hope YOU (yes, you!) enjoy, and have a great weekend!

Look, I’m really sorry that I sat on the podcast intro music but what am I supposed to do, check every seat for audio files before I sit down? I know it’s a bit crushed and quiet, but if we give it enough love and care then it’ll spring back soon enough, I’m sure - and I can always do my own version of the music for the time being… Oh the podcast is meant to be out… today? I’ll see what I can do… This podcast may contain traces of trains - perhaps more than a trace, even, as Matt and Quinns discuss both Russian Railroads and 1889: History of Shikoku Railways in the space of just one hour. I know, it’s all getting a bit exciting. Squashed between those discussions like a fun filling in a games sandwich, Tom yammers on about Calico, Pax Pamir 2e and Watergate; games that somehow all contain the same levels of tension and despair in spite of their wildly differing themes.

‘Ello ‘ello ‘ello, wot’s going on ‘ere then? Looks and sounds like there are three english men crammed inside one english cupboard talking about a series of “board games” from who knows where. That’s a recipe for disease-based disaster right there. Let’s see what we’ve got in here then... City of the Big Shoulders? You’re certainly crammed shoulder-to-shoulder in here, though one of you is a bit smaller than the others. I’ve heard it’s as good an economic euro as any, though I, for one, prefer my commodity speculation games a little less beige. Last Bastion? I’ve heard that one’s a pretty dandy co-operative game, but personally I felt the fantasy redesign was a little lacking. Wait, I swear on me nan’s ghost that I saw more games in here when I first burst in. Are you hiding ‘em? What’s that on there? Is that a game on your mobile device, Mr Lees? Is it Vlaada Chvatil’s classic tableau-builder, Through The Ages? You of all people should know those is contraband, as they remind people of ‘the time before’, wh

Welcome to the loosiest, goosiest episode of the Shut Up and Sit Down podcast yet, where three adults try to have a conversation via the internet without talking over each other all of the time. Experience the mixed results contained therein, and marvel at how 5 games are thinly spread over an hour of your real lifespan like an existential marmalade made of cardboard and opinions. What games, I hear you ask? I was getting there, no need to get impatient. This week we’re going to be talking about bobbing around on an ocean of average in Flotilla, drinking some questionably garnered tea in Alubari: A Nice Cup Of Tea, and pelting druids with rocks in Cairn. Sandwiched amidst these activities one can find a brief segue through the eccentric Tokyo Game Show, and a brief visit to the ancient tabletop colossus that is The Castles of Burgundy. Also in this podcast: meandering chats about how the team is faring under quarantine, and a few brief teases of potential bread-based content.

DISCLAIMER: The thumbnail for this podcast contains more business than is actually contained in this podcast. Instead, on this short, sleepy episode, a tired old Matt and a sickly young Tom have a meandering chat about just four games. ‘That’s not enough games for my Friday night podcast-listening session!’ I hear you cry, panicked and approaching a point of crisis. Fear not, listener, as this winding little journey will take you through the staggering highs of Stockpile, the crushing lows of Big City and Orleans Stories, before a twist ending where they were all Nemesis all along. Not only that, but there are tiny little trails along the way - a tease of City of the Big Shoulders, for sir? Maybe a trickle of Little Town? It’s all here and it’s all in audio form on this very 105th Shut Up and Sit Down Podcast.

Welcome, diners, and take your seats for what will surely be a smashing dinner service at the very 104th Shut Up & Sit Down podcast. Enjoy a salty fish supper alongside Oceans, a haggis and a whisky with Glen More II: Chronicles, or a rubbery old hot-dog with Rallyman GT. All options are served with opinions from our cardboard sommelier Matt Lees, and a side of steaming hot takes from our acrylic potwash, Tom Brewster. Speaking of sides, this week’s podcast features a smorgasbord of canapes, vol au vents and other esoteric snacklets in our detour through Tom’s exclusive, invite-only Party Game Zone™. You can find us in the cordoned off area, chatting about a series of games that you could bring to a party, and smattering of games that you should bring to a party. No +1s are permitted, and BYOB(oardgames). We also have a post-dinner keynote speech about recent videos on the site - including the palpably divisive review of Bunny Kingdom. Quinns and Tom aren’t on speaking terms after that one, on account o

Look out! Podcast #103 is charging towards your fragile human body like the untameable beast of content that it well and truly is. Be shocked, as we wrangle with Clinic! Gasp in horror as we consume Irish Gauge… whole! And last but not least, be kind of bummed out as we talk about why Maracaibo is... a bit bad? This episode also features fleeting special guest appearances from Clipcut Parks, Food Chain Magnate’s latest expansion; The Ketchup Mechanism, and two games with ‘letter’s in their name. Technically all the games have letters in their name, but these ones literally have letters in their name. You’ll see what we mean. We also talk a little about recent video reviews! Well, one video review, because Quinns got so excited about the prospect of playing Azul: Summer Pavilion, that he forgot to talk about his review. It has that effect on people.

In this episode of the podcast we dive back into Suburbia, explore The King’s Dilemma, and dabble with Abomination and Finger Guns at High Noon as well as plenty of others. We also have a rather lovely reading of Tactics and Tactility by Ava Fortfox, as a break from all of this ghastly pod-wrestling. 4:03 Chocolate Factory 8:51 Abomination 14:23 Finger Guns at High Noon 20:14 Goat ‘n’ Goat 25:07 Suburbia Deluxe Edition 33:49 Vindication 44:56 THE BIG QUESTION 47:28 The King’s Dilemma 59:39 Caylus 01:06:23 Tactics and Tactility 01:10:44 War of Whispers 01:18:31 Undaunted Normandy

Recorded live at PAX Unplugged 2019, Matt and Quinns rattle through a plethora of games! Roads & Boats, Vadoran Gardens, Slide Quest, War of the Worlds, Fantastic Factories, Paranormal Detectives, Blitzkrieg!, Ecos: First Continent, Valley of the Kings, Medium, Confident, and Bus. Also available to watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/aJT_r7WynKg

Matt and Quinns are briefly joined by Pip for an sleep-deprived natter about some interesting games. Obscurio (16:14) sounds like Wizard-Dixit with traitors, and incredibly summoned a cheer from the crowd simply for use of the word “acetate”. Tumblin’ Dice (21:05) got a little love, but probably deserves more than anyone can give it, before Matt then went on to talk about playing the award-winning RPG Mothership (24:50) - a sci-fi horror system that conveys the relatable experience of waking up after a very long time and immediately being attacked by stress. We were thrilled to find that many of those who’d managed to check it out at SHUX finally understood the hype from our review of Blood on the Clocktower (35:13) - a beautiful beast that is more than the sum of its frankly dastardly parts. Delving into Vast: the Mysterious Manor (39:58) - an asymmetrical game in which you can literally play as the mysterious manor - left us with mixed feelings about pacing but strong feelings towards skeletons, before we

In what is still definitely *not* our 100th episode, Quinns and intern Ben summon the energy to discuss their 12 hour game of Western Empires (02:32) and the byzantine challenge of Cloudspire (18:05). With these massive games discussed and dusted, there's talk of lighter stuff: Skulk Hollow (29:38), Teotihuacan: City of Gods (37:05), Yokai (43:06), Detective Club (46:57), and Combo Fighter (53:06).

In this episode, Matt, Quinns and Ben report live from a secret hideout. Matt's been breaking the rules of Gloomhaven (discussed at 26:54) while Quinns has been ignoring the laws of Bunny Kingdom: In the Sky (50:12), and the cops could bust them at any moment. The group also discuss the Undo games (02:56), Super Motherload (10:05), ShipShape (20:42), Lords of Hellas (36:20) and Cerberus(48:02).

Matt, Quinns and Ben are circling podcast #100 like talkative nerds circling a numerical drain. Quickly! Before they slip away, listen to them talk about the games We're Doomed (02:23), For Sale (10:00), Alien Frontiers (15:40), Wooly Wars (23:26), Air, Land & Sea (30:03) and Cerebria: The Inside World (40:11), as well as answer a lovely reader mail about which games have the best Endgame Energy.

Back from Belgium's fantastic Zomerspel tabletop convention, Matt and Quinns have brains full of feelings about "board games". But *which* board games? Those would be Taverns of Tiefan Thal (01:51), Carpe Diem (13:48), Luxor (26:47), Silk (33:13) and Rail Pass (49:37). The pair also discuss some of the video reviews they've been working on, including Pipeline (1:00:58) and Too Many Bones (1:06:54).

In this episode of the board gaming podcast, Matt and Quinns chat about Stay Cool (02:45), Power Rangers: Heroes of the Grid (09:01), Letter Jam (21:42), Welcome to Dino World (29:22), Rome and Roll (38:19) and Vampire: The Masquerade – Blood Feud (43:28). Finally, having recently discovered the joy of pencils, team SU&SD have learned about BOOKS! Specifically, the book Top 10 Games You Can Play In Your Head, By Yourself (49:35).

Just who are druids? What are they doing? And is it safe to "dip" with them? We can't be sure, but we can tell you that the following games are discussed in this podcast: Res Arcana (02:38), Dice Throne (11:50), The Insider (20:10), Three Kingdoms Redux (26:56), Isle of Skye: Druids (37:21) and Batman: Gotham City Chronicles (42:47).

Matt and Quinns explain that they are *not* alcholics in this Fastaval special episode. Games discussed include Hansa Teutonica (02:56), Deep Blue (12:02), Auto (15:50), Flamme Rouge’s unnamed campaign expansion (24:05), That’s Not Lemonade (35:43) and Mid-Life Crisis (45:23). Then, there’s a discussion of Danish tabletop convention Fastaval, and what makes it so magical. (59:18).

Matt, Quinns and intern Kylie are here for a 7 player special, formed by Watson & Holmes (03:00), Escape from the Aliens in Outer Space (12:14), and Bourré (19:55). Afterwards, they slim down for a couple of 3 player games, namely Gùgōng (27:34) and Chinatown (38:30). Finally, they answer a quick reader mail asking what table is best for board gaming, during which the discussion gets inexplicably heated.