Purple Phoenix Games Posts

August 26, 2022 /

We haven’t had a Golden Feather winner in quite some time, but Cascadia has done it! This tile-laying, token-drafting spatial puzzle impressed both Travis and me from our very first play. The artwork alone makes it fun to have on the table, and the strategy offered within is what takes…

August 17, 2022 /

I tend not to get involved in politics of any kind. This includes my favorite hobby. Now, I can see how one might be led to believe that Lucky Duck Games is a one-trick pony with their hybrid board games with app assistance. I must admit, at first I was…

August 12, 2022 /

I have come to many conclusions as I age. One. I actually will NOT stay young and spry forever. Two. People definitely can change over time. Three. I would be okay at creating planets if creating planets was EXACTLY like playing the game Planet. As I unfortunately wasn’t around to…

August 9, 2022 /

This past winter, I learned how to play euchre for the first time ever. I had heard of the game, but never actually played it – in my family, we were more into Dominoes. That being said, my introduction to euchre was quick and concise, and I was promptly thrown…

August 4, 2022 /

One of my favorite things about moonlighting as a board game reviewer is that I have the opportunity to have excellent relationships with other reviewers, designers, publishers, and gamers of all types. One such relationship is with Blue Orange Games. We have always been a fan of their games from…

August 2, 2022 /

Okay, what is happening here? Why is it that every game I play that has a super cute theme ends up being way more thinky than I expected it would be? Am I losing my mind? Probably, but I also need to realize that just because it looks like a…

July 28, 2022 /

I know, I know. ANOTHER pirate game? Yep! Some may feel that this theme is overdone. They would be quite wrong. There are so many themes in board games I thoroughly enjoy and of which I will never tire: pirates, Sherlock Holmes, fantasy, music, Disney, and absolutely no theme at…

July 26, 2022 /

Y’all have a favorite sport? Or couple of sports? What about a least favorite sport? My favorites are hands-down baseball and football (Chicago Cubs and Chicago Bears, respectively). My least favorite sport? Soccer. However, when I was asked to preview Soccer Duel from FireStorm Labs, I just had to say…

May 12, 2022 /

You ever play a game where you feel completely overwhelmed at first, but then slowly figure everything out just to fall in love with it? I really hadn’t… until Cytress. This thing is beastly, huge, and like 4 main games crammed into one experience and one box. I really wasn’t…

May 7, 2022 /

If you are reading this, then we can agree on a few things: board games are cool and interesting, silly themes are usually fun, and we are all kids at heart. I appreciate other gamers so much because we all share a common bond of experiencing good and bad games,…

April 30, 2022 /

One cool thing about the board gaming hobby is getting to experience so many different types of games! That being said, sometimes you get yourself a game and it doesn’t turn out quite how you expected. So instead of letting it take up space on your shelf, you can sell…

April 22, 2022 /

With the ever-stable popularity of the Harry Potter universe, we tend to see offshoots of similarly-themed games pop up all around us. We have reviewed several of these “magic folk showing off to one another to see who is the best” games: Apotheca, WizBang!, Studies in Sorcery, etc. What you…

April 16, 2022 /

I absolutely love a beautiful game. Being a gamer, I have seen and played many gorgeous games. However, the first time I set up Holi: Festival of Colors (just Holi from here), both my 5 year old son and my slightly older mother-in-law both commented on how awesome it looked…

April 8, 2022 /

I’ve mentioned before that Travis and I are currently playing a D&D campaign with another friend. I’m the DM and those two dudes are my ever-entertaining party. The adventure we’re running at the moment is Dungeon of the Mad Mage, which takes place in Undermountain. So imagine my surprise whilst…

March 30, 2022 /

A magical bakery in a forest co-owned by a quirky board game loving contestant on The Great British Bake Off? If there was ever a game specifically designed for my wife, this is it. She loves baking, cute card games, and that super-famous show (she was always a fan of…