You see, pirates need to be well fed and boozed in order to be effective scourges of the sea. Without the proper provisions, they are nothing but rejects from the SS Minnow."

Dead Man's Treasure by David Popp: "Like pirates and treasure? Like blowing up your enemies with cannons? If so, Dead Man's Treasure by Playroom Entertainment is for you."

Dragon's Gold by Greg Schloesser "This is one of the very latest designs from Bruno Faidutti, creator of last year's popular Ohne Furcht und Adel. It is also the latest in the EuroGames series of 'Blue' games, which are designed to be fairly easy to learn and playable in a relatively short period of time. True to the aim of the 'Blue' games, it plays to completion in about 40 minutes or so."

El Grande by Greg Schloesser "If you are a hard-core wargamer whose stomach turns at the sight of any game that does not include hexes and cardboard counters, then don't give El Grande a second look. If, however, you appreciate games with strategic decisions, beautiful components and loaded with FUN, then El Grande is for you."

Europa 1945 - 2030 by Greg Schloesser: "1945: Europe lies in ruins. After 1500 years of internal conflicts, the Second World War again plunged the nations of Europe into barbarism and horror. Is Europe doomed to be plagued by eternal conflict? Not if the European Union can help it!"

Fantastic Forces by Jason Mical: "Every Booster contains one oversized figure, either a giant figure like the towering Yellowjacket, or a double-based figure like Ghost Rider on his motorcycle."

Game Summit by Marc Acquino; "Zombies! This thing rocks. It comes with 100 plastic zombies - or at least, it will once that container gets over here from China. Everyone was playing this at the show, and it was a fun game. Everyone who wanted Grave Robbers from Outer Space for the genre should get this as well."

Gouda Gouda by Greg Schloesser "This is one of the latest released by Euro Games and is part of their line of games targeted for young children. I haven't been terribly impressed by other games in this children's line. Both Savannah Cafe and the bizarre double-release of Snail's Race / Snail's Pace left me unimpressed."

Horus by David Popp: "Looking to explore and subjugate the lands of ancient Egypt? That's what Horus, the latest offering from Mayfair Games, is all about."

Hunters and Gatherers by Greg Schloesser: "The game is not a variant or addition to Carcassonne; it is a stand-alone game that can be played without owning or even having played the original Carcassonne. However, there is no mistaking its similarities to the original as the mechanics are essentially identical."

Infernal Contraption by Tim Kidwell: "With mechanical parts named Chthonic Grinder, Quantum Vacuum and Vicious Siphon, players might ask what they've gotten themselves into."

Java by Greg Schloesser "It is a test of one's skills and mental capacities. I don't want to make every game I play such a 'thinking' experience, but when I am in that mood, this game will rank right up there with those few games I bring to the table."

Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jenny Maaske: "Descend into a dormant volcano, cross a turbulent sea and escape a volcanic eruption with Mayfair Games' Journey to the Center of the Earth."

Liberte by Greg Schloesser "From the moment I first heard word of this game I knew I just had to have a copy. The French Revolution is a fascinating period in history and, sadly, there have only been precious few games designed utilizing this rich period in history"

Mech Warrior - Firepower by Kevin Goddard: "Firepower is an offense-heavy set that introduces House Kurita and mission combat enhancement cards (CECs) to the MechWarrior play environment."

Medina by Greg Schloesser: ""Medina is at its heart a tile placement game, but instead of flat, 2-dimensional tiles, the game uses impressive three-dimensional wooden pieces to represent the palaces, roofs, walls, towers and people. This really makes a tremendous difference in the overall experience and enjoyment level. It also creates quite a spectacle at the conclusion of the game when you step back and survey the completed city."

Memoir '44 by Greg Schloesser: "Days of Wonder has filled the void with a wonderful production of Memoir '44, adapting the simple yet fun-filled game system pioneered in Battle Cry to World War II, with emphasis on the Allied invasion of Normandy."

Meridian by Greg Schloesser: "The game involves the struggle for control over a series of islands. The idea is to attempt to gain control of the majority of cities on an island, thereby dominating the island and scoring victory points."

Merchants of Amsterdam by Greg Schloesser: "Die Kaufleute von Amsterdam (Merchants of Amsterdam in English) loosely recreates a 100 year history of The Netherlands, tracing their rise and fall as an economic power. Players each compete to grab mastery in several locations: shipping, Amsterdam districts and regions of the world."

Mutant Mayhem by Jason Mical: "Marvel HeroClix: Mutant Mayhem combines characters from across the space-time continuum in a method intended to produce and represent, pardon the language, mayhem. One of the finest examples of the Mutant Mayhem release is the Shadow King

Pirates of the Crimson Coast by Kevin Goddard: "Schooners are a new ship type to enter the race for gold! When a schooner ends its movement, it can rotate on its stern as a free action to face in any direction."

Pirates of the Revolution by Jason Mical: "Pirates of the Revolution is another winning entry into WizKids' Pirates roll call. The combination of exciting historical figures and ships, new game effects, and the American fleet will make the race for treasure even more exciting."

Pirates of the Spanish Main by Jason Mical: "Each ship's damage is recorded by removing its masts; when a ship has no more masts, it sinks, so players can either dig the gold they need out of the ground, or let their opponents do the hard work and let their guns take care of the rest!"

Quintessential Character Series by Lloyd Brown III: "Mongoose's Quintessential Character series provides an in-depth look at each character class, offering 128 pages on a single character class. The impressive length taken to describe each class allows the series to focus on each class in great detail."

Ra by Jonathan Degann "First, while Helmut Wresnik's description of the scoring captures every detail, it doesn't capture the sense of just how many different ways there are of scoring, and how each one has it's own character"

Rheinlander by Greg Schloesser: "Sadly, the game evokes little if any of the warm feelings I harbor for that Germanic piece of heaven. Even utilizing the theme, the game could have been set just about anywhere: the Thames, the Nile, the Danube ... heck, even the Mississippi River with feuding landowners. Oh, well, Herr Knizia isn't exactly known for his form-fitting themes."

Rommel in the Desert by Mike Hayman: ""Rommel lowered his binoculars then sat back and surveyed his map for a moment, noting the red marks representing the unknown British units surrounding his goal - Tobruk. Then goaded into action, he gave his command, "Gerade Aus! Afrika Korps, Anschluss!"

Serenissima by Greg Schloesser "At some point, deals and diplomacy will fail as greedy players will covet thy neighbor's ports and galleys laden with commodities. Combat is an option."

Talisman by Craig Johnson: "Fourteen characters - including the likes of an elf, dwarf, wizard, warrior and thief, among others - are provided, each with its own strengths and weaknesses"

Ten Days in Asia by Sue Brettingen: "Overall, 10 Days in Asia, with its mix of strategy and luck, is every bit as fun as the other 10 Days games, and maybe even more so to those who know less about this region of the world and want to learn more."

Ticket to Ride: The Card Game by Tim Kidwell: A particularly nasty and sometimes devastating tactic players can use is "train robbing." If a player can place more of a particular suit of cards than another player, that player's cards are removed from play."

Tikal by Jonathan Degann: "I would say that this is a most "gamerly game". Lots of hard decisions, very competitive. I enjoyed it quite a bit, and I usually prefer the chewier games. To me, it is an Entdecker that works. It has the battle for control of Entdecker, but doesn't have the luck/geometric visualization of Entdecker that I dislike."

Time Pirates by Greg Schloesser "Players travel between the epochs following time lines. These paths labeled '1' or '2', make it possible to move in two different directions from each epoch. These same paths, however, are followed by the time police when their movement is triggered by drawing a time police chit from the cloth bag."

Valley of the Pharaohs by David Popp: "One of my favorite lines from the movie "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" is in the middle of a big fight sequence when Sean Connery turns to Harrison Ford and says, "You call this archaeology?"

Vikingatid by Greg Schloesser: "The idea is to eventually conquer various areas, thereby earning precious victory points at the conclusion of each turn. To conquer an area, one must first subdue the local armies and then construct both war camps and trading camps in that territory"

Vox Populi by Greg Schloesser "Try as I might, I just can't find it in myself to really like this game. The theme is great and the mechanics are interesting, but it just doesn't work. I regretfully give Vox Populi the "thumbs down"."

War of the Ring by Marc Shayed: "When the members of the Fellowship split off they can act as "leaders" for armies and can influence a nation to enter into a war."

Zombies! by Greg Schloesser: "The components are surprisingly quite good. It's hard to argue with the 100 plastic zombie miniatures or the six plastic "Shotgun Guys". The cards are full color and sturdy with some nice, campy artwork which helps evoke the 'B' Horror movie atmosphere. The 30 map tiles are a bit thin, but still work just fine."

Zombie Fluxx by Tim Kidwell: "Zombies abound in Zombie Fluxx, the newest addition to Looney Labs' Fluxx line of card games. Each deck of Zombie Fluxx comes with 100 cards and an instruction sheet with rules for playing basic Fluxx or playing with undead baddies.

---

---

---