News

In A World Where Tiny Metal Dogs Rule All... You think of the cinema, you think of overpriced popcorn, Arnold Schwarzenegger cardboard cut-outs and Fast and Furious 23, or wherever we're up to now. You don't necessarily think of Monopoly - until NOW! Coming soon to a screen near you... 'I Hate My Family Now' is the classic rom-com tale of a board game ripping apart relationships and destroying the bonds of love. Joking, of course - they haven't accepted any of my title suggestions. But it's true! There is a Monopoly movie in the works, with the script to be written by Andrew Niccol, who wrote The Truman Show, so I expect good things. This isn't the first time somebody's tried to turn Monopoly into something good - Ridley Scott wanted to do a film on the game, but Universal didn't like that it was 'an attack on greed'. I'm curious to know how it'll be done. And who's gonna play the thimble? 

There One Day, Gone The Next. Following America's recent (and ongoing) controversy over the confederate flag, with several high-profile shopping outlets and associations - like Walmart and Nascar - removing the flag from their merchandise and events, it was no surprise that others quickly followed suit. Amazon is the latest place where you won't find images of a confederate flag on anything - including board games. If you know historical or war games at all, you'll know they stick firmly to the facts of history, meaning players can re-enact real battles with accuracy. Awkwardly, this includes board games on the Civil War. Even more awkwardly, some of these games bear the confederate flag in their artwork and components. Battle Cry, published in 2010, was a game featured and sold on Amazon up until June 23rd, when the whole product page mysteriously disappeared. I'm never gonna argue against the symbolism of the confederate flag and the awfulness it represents for a lot of people, but I think we have to err on the side of sensibility here. The poor bloke who made the game has lost a chunk of potential sales, and all his game did was stick to the facts. You can't pretend something that happened didn't happen, and you can't sweep history under the rug - Sunday morning hangovers have taught us that!

All My Dreams Came True! That time I wished on a shooting star, that time I blew out candles on my birthday cake, that time I tore apart a whole turkey with my teeth just to get the wishbone - it's finally happened! My dream for a real life Angry Birds is now a reality! Which is great, 'cos my iPhone was cheating. There's no way I missed that many shots. I was the best, man. A true champion. A maverick in my field. If you're not sure what the heck I'm on about, Angry Birds is a game previously-only-seen as an app on phones and tablets. It involves you pulling back a slingshot loaded with different kinds of birds, and shooting them at little green pigs dotted across the landscape. You must CRUSH the piggies. CRUSH THEM. This tabletop version of Angry Birds is available on 3D printing software, and allows for creativity and craziness. Go print!

Game Of The Week - Tantrix. A little like Hive, Tantrix is a strategy game that uses hexagon pieces. Unlike Hive, there are no bugs - just a never-ending, loop-de-looping roller coaster of coloured lines that YOU - yes, YOU - must use to make the longest line of your chosen colour! "It's easy," you think. "I played 30 minutes of RollerCoaster Tycoon on the computer once. It'll be a doddle." While your attitude is admirable, remember that other players can block you and change your line when you least expect it! Then there's 'Gobble', another variation of play. Split the tiles between you and fire your engines - it's a race to see who can play all of their tiles first! And if you weren't overwhelmed enough, there's another 34 puzzles for you to wrap your heads around! Guaranteed to fill a sunny South Wales afternoon. And the day after that. And possibly the day after that! 

Do you enjoy fun? Then come along to our Board Game Bar this Monday! From 5-10pm, we'll be at Urban Tap House playing games and drinking beers! They've just launched their spectacular new menu, too - thank god The Pizza Burger survived the revamp! That shizz is b-e-a-uuutiful! Come along and join us for a whole night of fun, for just £3 entry!

Next weekend, join us for Magic! It's just one week until the MTG Origins pre-release hits the Rules of Play store! For brand new cards a week before general release and some exclusive promo stuff you won't get anywhere else, come along and join in! New players are more than welcome - pre-releases are a great place to dive straight into the action, so what are you waiting for?! 

New Releases / Restocks / Coming Soon!

New Releases Coming Next Week! I'm having a 'woah' moment... we'll be getting in The Great War from Richard Borg, the guy who made Battle Cry - which is featured above in one of our news segments! One of his games disappears from Amazon, and a new one pops up in Rules of Play!; also new in will be Peloponnes; Albion's Legacy; Eminent Domain - Microcosm; and (ooh, look! H. G. Wells! Tom Cruise! MONSTERS!)... it's War of the Worlds!