Friday, November 20, 2009
BoardGameGeek.CON
Also, I received my twelve contractually obligated promo copies of Revolution! the other day. All the playtesters also got a copy. For future reference: help me playtest and maybe you'll get a nice game out of it someday.
Speaking of which, I head up to Xenia tomorrow for some playtesting with a high school gaming club. They really helped me out last year. I have three more prototypes for them this year. I have two more just at the brink of being ready for other people to test, but there just wasn't time to get them ready. There is a small chance that I will have them ready for the great Thanksgiving family week. Maybe I'll even get them to the table if I keep reminding everybody about the free playtester copy they got the last time!
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Meeting Yehuda
Monday, November 2, 2009
The Independent's Essen Article
Friday, October 30, 2009
Third Floor Gamers
BTW - I got my first royalty statement today! $$$ . . . well, maybe more like $ . . . still. :)
Monday, October 26, 2009
Revolution! At Essen

Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Welcome Google Image Searchers!
While you're here, how about checking out Revolution!? You just searched for Wil Wheaton, so I know you're a geek--and geeks love my new board game (Wil sure does)! BTW, if you're not a geek, my sincerest apologies (just between us, Revolution! is really more for cool people anyway).
Anyway, thanks for stopping by and artificially inflating my blog hits!
Monday, October 5, 2009
Wil Wheaton Mentions Revolution!

Thursday, September 17, 2009
Revolution! Reviews
Revolution! also got a positive review from Sam Healey (sometimes co-host of The Dice Tower with Tom Vassel). He mentioned to me that Revolution will be featured on the podcast in an up-coming episode.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Revolution! in Madison, Wisconsin

Tuesday, September 8, 2009
YottaQuest Demo
One big group played Parthenon most of the night. I got in on Battlestar Galactica (with Pegasus expansion) towards the end of the evening. The humans went down hard to the many Cylons. I'm not quite sure how I feel about this game yet. It was very complicated, but there is an interesting dynamic at work what with all the mistrust and treachery involved.
Overall, it was not the most effective promotional experience I've had. On the other hand, about 15-20 more people now know of my game's existence and may end up trying it out soon. Maybe my session at Sci-Fi City Thursday will be more productive.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Revolution in the Cincinnati Enquirer

Thursday, August 27, 2009
Cincinnati Demo Dates
September 8 (Tuesday) 6:00-10:00 at Yottaquest in Mt. Healthy.
September 10 (Thursday) 6:00-8:00 at Sci-Fi City in Northgate Mall.
I also just finished an interview with the Cincinnati Enquirer, so there might be a story in the paper this weekend. Maybe. :)
Friday, August 21, 2009
French Review
Monday, August 17, 2009
Some Nice Pictures


Saturday, August 15, 2009
Revolution in the Business Courier
Friday, August 14, 2009
Back from GenCon

I also got to sign a few autographs ('cause I'm famous now--at least about six people think so)! Anyway, I had a blast meeting lots of different people and explaining the game to them. Almost everyone who played really seemed to like it. GenCon was packed, though I haven't been in a few years. Parking is $25 now! Yikes! Fortunately, SJG graciously reimbursed me.
And I got to (finally) meet Mr. Phil Reed himself. He seems like quite a nice guy with a head for the business side of things. He spent most of the day thinking up bold new visions for the future and talking to important people--time well spent. All in all, a productive and fun day!
Here are a few more pics:




Thursday, August 13, 2009
Revolution! Is Now Shipping
Monday, August 3, 2009
Revolution Reviews
Friday, July 31, 2009
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
GenCon 2009
Friday, July 10, 2009
Some Favorable Reviews
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Revolution in Nashville

This was the first time my parents got to see the finished game, and I think they were impressed. So, Revolution has now made it from Minnesota to Louisiana. A few BGG threads also indicate that it has reached New York and San Francisco as well. Looks like the crack team of marketing gurus at SJG know their stuff. Or at least they know their crack . . .
One final note: It looks like I will be attending GenCon on August 14 (a Friday). Revolution should be available for purchase during the con. Come by the SJG booth to get a cool limited edition signature on your box or just come to challenge the master himself! See you there!
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Ted Cheatham's Origins 2009 Report
Monday, June 29, 2009
Demos At Yottaquest


BTW - Revolution now has 29 ratings on BGG. Just one more will give it an official rank . . .
Friday, June 26, 2009
Origins Visit

Now all we have to do is get the "munchkin haters" on board--you know who you are. I met a particularly famous one today, Tom Vasal of The Dice Tower, and, with the help of David Miller of Purple Pawn, tried to convince him to give Revolution a try. He indicated that a review copy of the game would be most welcome (hint, hint, Will . . .). I played two games of Revolution today and came in second both times, mainly because Randy doesn't like losing without taking someone with him!
I also met a few more famous people. Peter Mayhew--Chewbacca was there, although I did not technically meet him. But I did see him from a fairly close distance. And I learned how to play Dominion with David and again later with my Axis & Allies buds. What a surprisingly fun game! Not at all the Magiced-up card game I mistook it for. All in all, it was a very good day.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
It's Here!







Monday, June 22, 2009
The Official Rules

Also included in the update is a link to the official rules. I think they turned out very well! They broke the round into four phases: Espionage, Bidding, Resolution and Patronage. This does an excellent job of including all the necessary parts in an elegant way. My preferred rule about keeping losing and tied bids has indeed been included as an optional rule. And some of you may need to check the playtester section--they included quite a few of the names I submitted. All in all, I am feeling very upbeat and ready to see how things go from here.
FYI: I'm still planning to be at Origins on Friday and possibly some on Saturday. Feel free to look me up (you might try the SJG exhibitor area or the Axis & Allies play area).
Monday, June 15, 2009
A Sad Board Game Story
Revolution update: I am NOT going bankrupt. The printer will soon be loading them onto the boat. The updated release date estimate is the end of July. Soon, soon . . .
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Update . . . Sort Of
I recently took some interesting photos with my brother and some mean looking AR-15s. We are both wearing the Revolution shirts he made me for Christmas. There is some question has to the wisdom of posting them here, but you can see them on Facebook if you send me a friend request.
I also am currently working on a few more games, though more slowly than in previous months. I currently have two prototypes sitting on publishers' shelves waiting for glory. I wonder if they are waiting to see how Revolution does before they commit. I'm pretty curious about that, too.
Revolution currently has 25 ratings (30 are necessary for an official rank), and BGG now offers you the chance to become a "fan" of your favorite games. Revolution currently has zero. :( Maybe you can help turn that around. I'm hoping things will get stirred up a bit once the game is finally released.
For anyone whose interested, I'm planning to be at Origins (Columbus, OH) at least a day or two. Word has it that Phil Reed may be in attendance, and I would very much like to meet him. I suppose there is a chance that a few copies of Revolution will also be there. Fingers crossed!
Update on the update: Phil Reed is not coming. Also, they're going to send me a copy of Revolution next week!
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Back From London

P.S. - I also highly recommend the steak & ale pie!
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Spring Gathering 2009

I had to come by myself this time, but my old buddy Tom J. volunteered to partner up. We faced off against veteran opponents Geoff and Steve. We gave them the Allies and five IPCs for the bid. Things went downhill for them from the start. The dice gods were not cooperative. Germany came at Russia with everything. The Allies chose to ignore Japan, to their ultimate peril. I was able to expand the co-prosperity sphere to a substantial size.
But things were not so easy. Five allied bombers reduced Germany to a crawl. Their invasion forces took up permanent residence in Paris. We lost the Luftwaffe in a successful, but ill-planned, naval operation. We were forced to retreat from Caucasus. Not good. Then . . . Germany and Italy held on. An Allied attack on Italy was just barely thwarted. Meanwhile, Japan started pushing massive numbers of tanks into Persia and India for the push north. After seven brutal hours, the Allies conceded their defeat.
Thanks for the game, guys! And props to Greg for another great SG event! Hope to see you all at Origins.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
SJG: Where We're Going
Saturday, March 28, 2009
To the Printer
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Amazing Article: Monopoly Killer
BTW - this article also justifies my family's long-standing Monopoly rule about properties going up for auction if a player chooses not to buy it. Apparently, it cuts the play time in half.
(H/T - Purple Pawn)
Monday, March 16, 2009
Revolution! At New York Toy Fair
Friday, March 6, 2009
Interview with Eric Martin
Monday, February 23, 2009
Candyland Birthday

The astute reader will see where this is headed. Candyland is an entirely predetermined game from the onset. Assuming no extra shuffles are necessary, perhaps by using three decks in the initial shuffle, once you pull that first card there is nothing you can do to change things. Your fate is sealed – you just don’t know where it will lead. This set-up differs from a game in which one rolls dice or shuffles cards several times during play, effects which subject players to completely random effects as the game progresses.
So now we see the confusion: How can the most random game possible also be the least random game possible?
A potential answer, perhaps, lies in quantum mechanics, specifically in the infamous Schroedinger’s cat analogy. For the uninitiated, here is the analogy: A cat exists with a cyanide capsule inside a sealed box. Every second the cat remains in there, there is a certain probability (p) the capsule will open, killing the cat instantly. When you open the box, will you find a dead cat or an alive cat? Was the cat dead or alive before you opened the box? The obvious answer upon opening the box is that there is a certain probability (P) that the cat has died in the given time, and a certain probability (1 – P) that the cat is still alive. Once you open the safe, you know for certain one way or another, an action called “collapsing the wavefunction” (for reasons I won’t get into here).
The interesting part comes from the state of the cat before opening the box. While no observers are around, the cat is said to be both dead and alive at the same time. This is, of course, a silly result, and it is often refuted with an easy claim that the quantum universe does not apply to a macroscopic one. (Half of all quantum effects cancel out once you are dealing with just two particles; a single mole is composed of 10^23 atoms, hence the cat is never both dead and alive.) But at the quantum level, this sort of thing does happen, this situation does exist.
The question here: Can we consider a theoretical random color spectrum with a given probability of turning up each turn as not macroscopic in nature and therefore applicable to quantum effects? Or is each card a macroscopic entity, with the information imprinted upon it being dependent upon the card itself, thereby leading to a nullification of any and all quantum effects? Is any possible quantum effect here largely canceled due to the number of cards necessary to play a complete game?
Wow, wasn't that fun? Now for some real fun. Here are my house rules for making Candyland a truly enjoyable family (not just little kid) experience:
Instead of using the deck of cards to move, deal out five card to each player and play from this hand of cards. If you play a red, move to the next red and so on. You may also choose to skip your turn and play a card on someone else, causing them to move backwards to the indicated color (or character). Now you have more decisions to make, instead of just the one (should I waste my time by playing this silly game or not?). Enjoy!
Monday, January 26, 2009
New Links Added
Sunday, January 18, 2009
BGG Hot List

Revolution! made the BGG Hot List today! From the moment I started this project years ago, I have always had a burning desire to see my game make this list--even for a day. Now it's happened!
Wow, I'm not sure what to dream about next . . . maybe a firm release date and strong sales numbers . . . :)
Thanks, all you fellow board game geeks!
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Getting Some Attention
Update: Games Fanatic (Polish) and Deck & Board (Italian). Also CosimShop (German).
Friday, January 16, 2009
Release Announced!

The Steve Jackson Games version of Revolution! will be released in April 2009! It looks like they've done a superb job with the cover, and I'm sure the rest of the game will be great, too. Hats off to Phil Reed and all the guys at SJG.