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 May 15, 2008
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Patrick Korner
This section contains the columns of Patrick Korner.
About Patrick Korner:
Patrick Korner is an avid gamer and gaming commentator who has penned numerous articles, reviews and interviews relating to the world of games and the personalities that inhabit it. Patrick is also a prolific translator, having provided German-English translation services to various game publishers including Abacusspiele, Kronberger, Uberplay and Z-Man Games - not to mention the scores of updates that form a large chunk of Rick Thornquist's annual Essen and Nuremberg gaming convention previews.
Patrick is an active member of the Terminal City Gamers, Vancouver's premier gaming club. He is married and spends much of his free time trying to teach his 2-year-old daughter the joys of gaming. Patrick also owns a dog, who has sadly yet to show much interest in games.
Patrick currently resides in Coquitlam, a suburb of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
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HeadlinesApril 9, 2008 - Patrick Korner: Gathering of Friends 2008March 29, 2008 - Patrick Korner: Essen Game Recap - Quick Hits and Thoughts December 3, 2007 - Patrick Korner: Better Late Than Never? AKA Essen 2007 Review September 14, 2007 - Patrick Korner: Interview with Sebastien Pauchon September 7, 2007 - Patrick Korner: Mini-Interview with Mark Kaufmann of Days of Wonder April 23, 2007 - Patrick Korner: GoF 2007 Review - Eggertspiele April 3, 2007 - Patrick Korner: The Gathering Storm November 21, 2006 - Patrick Korner: BattleLore Discussion with Eric Hautemont (DoW) October 26, 2006 - Patrick Korner: Essen Report - Wednesday (Press Day) October 24, 2006 - Patrick Korner: Hotel WiFi And Other Fibs October 14, 2006 - Patrick Korner: The Anticipation is Killing Me…or is it the Typing? August 31, 2006 - Patrick Korner: A Farewell to Thursdays |
Articles
Patrick Korner: Gathering of Friends 2008
Howdy folks! This is not an article, but it’s not a figment of your imagination either. Rather, this post/column/entry/article will serve two purposes:
1) To let you know that I’m at the Gathering of Friends 2008 until Sunday, and
2) To let you know that instead of finding time at the end of each night (which is impossible) and fighting with wi-fi, I’ve elected to track what I play and do, etc. via Twitter - which I can access easily through my Blackberry.
So. If you want to know what I’ve played, what I thought of it, etc., point your browser to:
www.twitter.com/mongoose01ca
Hopefully it won’t be a full serving of bland boringness - the idea is to use the 140 character limit Twitter imposes to keep my posts lean and mean and cut right to the chase.
In other words, not anything like how I usually write, full of byzantine twists and turns, nested parentheses and obscure references. This should be...interesting.
Enjoy!
pk
Posted by Patrick Korner on April 9, 2008 at 03:12 PM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: Essen Game Recap - Quick Hits and Thoughts
I know, I know. I write nothing of substance for the better part of several months, then both a review AND a column show up within a week of each other. Why is this? Well, there are two possible explanations:
a) A disturbance in the Force, or
b) I needed a break from work’s Fiscal Year End Insanity and decided that since I’ve no time to actually PLAY games, I may as well write about ‘em again, just to prove to myself that I still know how.
In any case, here I am. And the nice thing about having dragged my take on Essen out to the bitter, bitter end (i.e. well past Nurnberg but thankfully before my batch of Nurnberg titles arrives) is that I’ve actually played a huge number of my Essen acquisitions. And I’m gonna tell you what I think of ‘em. Settle in, folks.
Posted by Patrick Korner on March 29, 2008 at 04:00 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: Better Late Than Never? AKA Essen 2007 Review
Between Real Life™, two extra weeks of vacation in Europe and the time it’s taken to actually play through a pile of the games I returned with from Essen, it seems like it’s been forever since I actually wrote something.
Oh, it HAS been forever?
Oops.
Never mind, then. Um, sorry I’m late? In any case, rather than the usual blow-by-blow account of what I did and what I played and who wore what and what the smoke level in the fairgrounds was like and, and, and… Yeah. Rather than that, this article will hit the high / low points of my trip, vignette-style, so as to give you an overall flavour of the fair without having to wait for days before the end of the story is told. So, off we go.
Posted by Patrick Korner on December 3, 2007 at 07:09 PM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: Interview with Sebastien Pauchon
Sébastien Pauchon started designing games “seriously” only four years ago, but his first published game, Yspahan (Ystari, 2006), is an innovative blend of area majorities, dice rolling and special actions that did more than get nominated for Germany’s prestigious Spiel des Jahres award – it served notice that a talented designer had broken onto the gaming scene. Sébastien, who hails from Switzerland, is one of a rapidly expanding group of French-speaking designers whose efforts attract more and more attention each year. In addition to Yspahan, Sébastien has co-designed (along with Bruno Cathala and Malcolm Braff) a pair of more recent titles: Animalia (2007) and Jamaica (planned for release this fall), both promotional products for a Swiss insurance firm and therefore rather hard to procure abroad (although that may be changing – read on…).
Sébastien was kind enough to take some time out of his busy schedule to answer a few questions.
Posted by Patrick Korner on September 14, 2007 at 03:29 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: Mini-Interview with Mark Kaufmann of Days of Wonder
Days of Wonder has been in the news quite a bit recently – from Ticket to Ride Nordic edition to the recently-announced Memoir ’44 Air Pack, there seems to be a fair bit going on – not to mention some fairly strong fan reaction! I thought I’d send DoW’s Mark Kaufmann some questions on these and other topics, and he has graciously answered them in detail, including a fair amount of info I haven’t seen published elsewhere yet. So, without further ado, I present a mini-interview with Mark:
Posted by Patrick Korner on September 7, 2007 at 05:44 PM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: GoF 2007 Review - Eggertspiele
So, another Gathering of Friends has come and gone. And once again it was the highlight of my gaming year (mind you, between Essen and the GoF, there’s not much else on the calendar...). A few things to get out the way first:
1) Huge thanks to all who attended, played games with me, chatted with me, laughed with me, and generally made my time in Columbus as much fun as it could possibly have been. And an especially huge thanks to Kris Gould and his minions who went over and above the call of duty to supply the food table with more food than you could shake a pawn at. And lest I forget, thanks above all the rest to Alan for having such a great party and seeing fit to invite me to it.
2) The week’s Most Astonishing Moment (tm): Air Canada performing completely as advertised on both the flight there and back. No lost luggage, no late departures, efficient transfers in Toronto, and sufficient space there and back to let me upgrade to Business and enjoy a little creature comforts en route. Truly a magnificent achievement.
3) My biggest regret over the 5 days I was there: Missing out yet again on a chance to play a game or two with Mike Siggins. Mike’s writing is what mine aspires to be on its better days; there are few others who can meld insight, humour and critique into as heady a brew. Next year, Mike!
My original intent was to try and post ‘live from the floor’ but once again technical difficulties (not to mention my own innate laziness) took over. So you’ll have to be satisfied with post-event reporting as in previous years; I’ll see about finding a few nuggets of information to set my scribblings apart from the crowd.
So onward. Instead of trying to read my terrible notes and recreate the days one-by-one, I’m going to focus on one or more publishers each installment and discuss what’s up with them in a little more detail. Today, I’ll talk about the latest Eggertspiele release as well as a little of what’s coming up from the Peter and the rest of the Hamburg crew.
Patrick Korner: The Gathering Storm
So, how ya been?
Yes, it’s me again. I know, I know, it’s been a while. But here I am, rising Phoenix-like from the ashes of too many good intentions to list, with the firm intention of posting semi-regularly during the Gathering of Friends - or at least for the duration that I’ll be there, which is, as usual, far shorter than I’d like. But such is the life of a married man with full-time job - how I wish I could be a jet-setting retiree like some other Canadian (with great hair) I could mention, but alas such is not to be.
And so here we are.
Patrick Korner: BattleLore Discussion with Eric Hautemont (DoW)
Days of Wonder has carved out an enviable niche as a publisher known for putting out imaginative, high-quality games whose hallmarks are engaging gameplay and top-notch production values. Thanks to the breakout success of Ticket to Ride, a game which won the coveted Spiel des Jahres award in 2004, the company has been growing, taking on more challenging and involving projects. By far the most challenging and ambitious to date? The upcoming release BattleLore, which promises to bring the DoW experience to an entirely new arena: fantasy combat.
Eric Hautemont, one of the principals behind the company, was kind enough to spend an hour of his time chatting with me about BattleLore as well as DoW in general; the results of this highly interesting and wide-ranging discussion form the basis of this article.
Patrick Korner: Essen Report - Wednesday (Press Day)
After waking up much refreshed and partaking in the first of several wonderful breakfasts at the Hotel (they may not have wireless internet access where promised, but by gum the Germans know how to put on a breakfast spread), it’s time to head out to the fair, rolling suitcase in tow. Of course, my rolling suitcase is rather rull - a pair of games I’ve arranged to sell / trade as well as the binders of Magic cards I mentioned from my last missive.
And I have to take this rolling behemoth on the train.
Yippee.
Patrick Korner: Hotel WiFi And Other Fibs
Well, I’m back from Essen. Did you all enjoy my on-the-scene reports as much as I enjoyed writing them?
No?
Well, that’s because of two things:
1) I didn’t write them, and
2) You didn’t read them.
Well.
Patrick Korner: The Anticipation is Killing Me…or is it the Typing?
This will be short, shorter than my future at-large articles, but I did want to post a quick set of thoughts about the Blessed Event (tm) which is rapidly approaching.
That’s right, Essen, baby! I’m getting geared up for massive crowds and even greater sleep deprivation already. I leave Monday, arrive Tuesday, and will most likely have my usual rough time sleeping on the plane. So if I’m vaguely zombie-ish when I get there, you’ll know why.
I will (hooray!) have my computer with me and will be putting up my own thoughts of what I see and play - fairly short and sweet, of course, but more than I usually do ‘live from the floor’ - I usually leave that stuff to Rick (who seems to be gradually approaching the RickCam, a 24/7 webcast of all he says and does while at a convention - on second thought, I’m not sure I’d be into that).
I, as with most others, have some games already pre-ordered, including all of the Czech Board Games line-up, Ur from What’s Your Game, Metromania from Spiel-ou-Face, Reef Encounter expansion from R&D, and a few other odds and sods. Thus far the list of must-buys is short, but as usual it will creep upwards as I play and end up liking far more games than is good for me. The initial buzz on Die Saulen der Erde is promising, but there is apparently some German text on the cards that (while no problem for me) might put off others I game with.
And speaking of German. Man are my fingers tired. This year has been another banner year for the Essen Preview, and big thanks goes to Rick as usual for compiling information from about a zillion sources. Me, I translated. And translated. And translated some more. I’ve lost count of how much, all I know is that every morning, I’d look at the Spielbox website with somewhat of a mixture of anticipation and sheer terror… But it’s over! Whee! Sorry, went a little nuts there.
So to all those I’ll be seeing again, looking forward to seeing you! To those unable to make it, I’ll try and get in a game, lift a pint (er, liter) and eat a little extra good solid German food for ya! Gamers know that Christmas comes 2 months early, and I’m nearly there…
See you on the floor!
pk
Patrick Korner: A Farewell to Thursdays
Well, it was only a matter of time.
Eventually, NFL football would return. Ah, the crunch of bodies, the dislocation of joints, the fines for excessive end-zone celebrations…
But that’s not what this column is about.
Posted by Patrick Korner on August 31, 2006 at 03:00 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: It’s Not The Size Of Your Boat…
Well, there was a gap in my continuing commentary on the state of the gaming industry last week, wasn’t there. I wish I could say that aliens ate my homework, but sadly they insisted that it wasn’t good enough. Something about having been forever spoiled by the aroma of Al Bundy’s socks…
Okay, and we’re back.
This week, I wanted to write about the obesity epidemic that is sweeping North America.
No, not THAT epidemic.
Posted by Patrick Korner on August 10, 2006 at 03:00 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: Of Geese And Golden Eggs
If this is Thursday, then it must be time for another insightful, incisive column from me, right?
Or, failing that, another rambling dissertation that my three loyal readers will find interesting.
Here’s a quote that some of you may find interesting:
“The entire R&D team would have to be hit by a bus before we’d reprint Mana Drain.?
- Mark Rosewater, R&D Director for Wizards of the Coast
Now try this one on for size:
“Only idiots will cheer when the Power Nine are reprinted. To the intelligentsia, they’ll realize it for what it is: The death knell of Magic the Gathering.?
- The Ferrett, Webmaster of Starcitygames.com (A popular MtG strategy site)
Huh? PK, what the heck are you on about now?
Posted by Patrick Korner on July 27, 2006 at 03:00 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: Tempus, Tempus
Howdy again!
Boy, almost missed getting this article in, but hey – I said I’d try and keep regular, and thanks to Metamucil…oh wait, I meant writing regularly. Oopsie.
Anyways, I’d mentioned at the end of last week’s article that I wanted to write about Tempus this time around. And so I shall.
My primary conclusion about Tempus? Here you go:
Posted by Patrick Korner on July 20, 2006 at 03:00 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: Rules Writing 101
Life’s funny sometimes. Sometimes, you have lots of free time and can devote endless spare cycles to your passions. Other times, you’re in up to your neck and sinking fast.
The past several months have been more like the latter, which has resulted in my not being able to fulfill my BGN obligations as well as I’d have liked. And for that I apologize.
However, miracle of miracles, you’re reading these words. How is this possible?
Simple:
Outsourcing.
Posted by Patrick Korner on July 13, 2006 at 03:00 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: Lost In Paradise / Cleopatra
Well, I’m back and writing again.
Hmm, no applause. Gee, thanks. Well, in any case, I should be back from my somewhat longer than expected hiatus as of this week. Why no column for the past month? A combination of two things:
Thing the First: Crappy / Nonexistent internet service at the hotel I was at in Hawaii.
Thing the Second: Crappy / Nonexistent free time upon return from said vacation thanks to real life having piled up while I was away.
In any case, I’m back. Whee!
Posted by Patrick Korner on June 9, 2006 at 11:48 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: No Column This Week - Vacation
No column this week while I take my family on a well-earned vacation. I will try and get back to it next week!
pk
Posted by Patrick Korner on May 4, 2006 at 03:00 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: Gathering of Friends 2006 Report - Part 2
Welcome to the second installment in my Gathering of Friends reports, which, if all goes according to plan, will cover the rest of my second day as well as Day 3. Now, normally I like to use the ‘first paragraph’ feature here at BGN to tease you, gentle reader, by hinting but not outright giving away what the rest of my column will be about.
So why should today be different? Dunno… I suppose it’s because I’m feeling charitable or something. Today, you’ll find description and first opinion on the following games: Masons, Augsburg 1520 and Hart and der Grenze, along with my usual scintillating wit and a little bit on some of the other games I played.
Onwards!
Posted by Patrick Korner on April 27, 2006 at 01:26 PM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: Gathering of Friends 2006 Report - Part 1
Let’s see now… I’m tired, haven’t eaten properly in quite a while, and yet keep reminding myself how much fun it all was. Clearly, I’ve just returned from Alan Moon’s annual Gathering of Friends, also known as “the most fun a gamer can legally have in the state of Ohio?. The Gathering is an invite-only event where all the games are free, you get invited out for dinner every night – always on the tab of some fat-cat publishing executive, of course – and all attendees are guaranteed of having their prototype picked up for publication.
Okay, I may have stretched the truth a little there. The reality is: You go and play games with a whole pile of really great folks, from our gracious host Mr. Moon right on down through the guest list, and occasionally try and take a break from the games to take care of little things like eating and sleeping. And, if you’re like me, the smile doesn’t completely fade until you’re back home and re-immersed in the boring world you managed to leave behind for a little while.
Since it’s the ‘in’ thing to do, I suppose I should put my thoughts about this year’s Gathering of Friends down in some quasi-permanent form too – like a report or something. If only I had some kind of regular forum in which to express myself…
What, rec.games.board is pretty much dead? Man, nobody tells me anything… Oh, hang on a second. I know – I’ll do the report here!
Posted by Patrick Korner on April 20, 2006 at 12:54 PM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: Thoughts on New Games
Hello!
For some of you, the upcoming week isn’t any different from any other.
For others, the upcoming week is like Disneyland and Universal Studios all rolled into one.
With no line-ups.
Yes, the annual Gathering of Friends is nearly upon us, and yours truly will be attending for the second time. And yes, I’m nearly giddy with anticipation, even though I’ll only be there for about half the time (there are some things gaming is more important than, but my daughter’s third birthday is not one of them…).
But that’s not what this column is about.
Fooled ya!
Posted by Patrick Korner on April 6, 2006 at 03:00 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: No Column This Week
Sorry for the late notice, but no column from me this week. Why? Fiscal Year End. Also known as “That time of year when you wish you could run to Yemen and stick your head in the sand to avoid having to finish your year-end reporting”.
Next week, I’ll have stuff on a pile of newly-released games (the box arrived last night, hooray!) from Abacus, Amigo and Schmidt to make up.
See you then!
pk
Posted by Patrick Korner on March 30, 2006 at 03:00 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: Aha!
This week’s column was supposed to be about the new Ticket to Ride: Marklin Edition, but my copy hasn’t made its way into the Great White North yet.
Oh well.
Then, it was supposed to be about all the great new games I’ve played in the past week, except that I didn’t play any.
Oh well.
So what exactly IS this column about? Well, there were lots of options. A compendium of my favourite Seinfeld episodes? Nah, too Rick. A synopsis of my favourite Beatles tunes? Again, too Rick. A statistical comparison of all the German designers, complete with annotations and insightful analysis? Nope, I think Larry already did that.
And then it hit me.
Posted by Patrick Korner on March 23, 2006 at 03:00 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: Legal Briefs
A slightly shorter column this week as the real world has once again done its best to intrude upon what really matters.
(That’d be games, by the way)
Have you noticed that there seem to be more and more stories in the gaming news these days about lawsuits, litigation and other examples of the worlds of Law and Boardgames colliding? I have. And I’m trying to figure out why.
Posted by Patrick Korner on March 9, 2006 at 03:00 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: History Lesson
History was always one of my least favourite subjects in school – although that was probably in large part because of the way it was taught. You see, I went to a private school modeled after the public schools in England (I know it’s confusing, but such is England) and, well, that meant a lot of British ex-pats doing the teaching.
And when a British ex-pat, especially one whose love for Britannia knows no boundaries, a dedicated monarchist to boot, does the teaching, it can mean only one thing:
Time to memorize the reigns of all the Kings and Queens of England, from 1066 on up. Oh joy.
Posted by Patrick Korner on March 2, 2006 at 03:00 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: Winning the B Final
Well, as you may or may not have noticed, the Olympics are on again. Every two years, we get to put the “we are all one? crap aside and concentrate on beating the tar out of other nations, just the way we like it. Yes, the IOC folks will tell you it’s all about sport and friendly competition and global community, but you and I know what it’s really all about:
Medals.
That’s right. Gold, silver and bronze are where it’s at, regardless of what those in fourth place on downwards will have you believe. Oddly enough, Canada has finally realized that personal bests, while great and all, aren’t quite what the country is looking for – just in time to seriously ramp up for the 2010 games, which (what a coincidence!) are being held in Vancouver, Canada. Seems that we’ve taken a page out of the book of our American neighbours and started funding our athletes, since shivering in the dark and eating Kraft Dinner three times a day wasn’t getting the job done for some strange reason.
But I digress from my real topic today: What do you play for when the win’s out of reach?
Posted by Patrick Korner on February 23, 2006 at 03:00 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: OotB + RGG = ?
Whenever two large-ish companies enter into an agreement or such, there’s usually a lot of “what?? followed by “how?? and such. I don’t know what it is, but we seem to have pre-conceived notions about what competition in the marketplace should look like, and whenever something happens that shows us our notions are false, we get kind of confused and, well, squirrelly. Usually nothing that a nice hot cup of tea can’t cure, thankfully. And a blanket. And maybe a cheese sandwich (Hey, let’s play spot the reference!)
Well, one of those “what?? events took place the other day, when Out of the Box and Rio Grande announced a partnership agreement in a somewhat vaguely-worded press release. What does the deal mean? Is this the long-awaited advent of strategy games in the mass market? Does this spell doom for both companies, as (as one wit on Board Game Geek put it) they’re now large enough for Hasbro to become interested?
Well, no. The straight goods, straight from Out of the Box’s Matt Mariani (Marketing) himself:
Posted by Patrick Korner on February 16, 2006 at 03:00 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: The Sky Is Falling?
What, today is Thursday? Hmm, I suppose that means I’m late with today’s article. Oh dear. And I was just starting to recover from the last round of beatings…
Actually, it’s very simple. This past week has seen a flood of last-minute Nurnberg news that needed translating, and I just couldn’t find the time to write a column in there as well. Ergo, column is late. But still of the finest quality!
I’ll start this week off with another peek at Nurnberg. Thanks to a number of German / European gaming sites, we were able to read up on some of what was released (or is pending release, since quite a few of the games on display aren’t actually shelf-ready yet). And, true to form, there are always some games that showed up out of nowhere to surprise Rick and myself, no matter how diligently we scoured the Net for information before the event. The biggest surprises? Here they are:
Posted by Patrick Korner on February 9, 2006 at 04:39 PM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: The Curse of Experience
I had a chance to get together with a friend of mine to play some games the other night, and he said something that struck a chord with me. I’m paraphrasing a little, but it boils down to this:
“Settlers of Catan is a game I feel I can introduce to anyone. Puerto Rico I can’t play with newbies anymore because it will inevitably be a frustrating game thanks to the newbie’s sub-optimal play.?
Well.
Posted by Patrick Korner on February 2, 2006 at 03:00 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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Patrick Korner: Nurnberg Musings Part 2
Hello once again!
Time for the second half of my Nurnberg 2006 musings, so let’s jump right in!
*Splash*
Hmm. That wasn’t quite what I meant. Towel off, m’kay?
While I’m waiting for y’all to put on fresh (dry) clothes, I’ll mention that I just got back in from a quick trip to Los Angeles / Santa Barbara, which is why this article is a touch short. Y’see, even though those sunnier climes are within the same time zone as me, it’s still oddly tiring to fly. Mind you, I was fortunate enough to fly Business Class on the way home, and I must say it’s the only way to go. A seat that’s actually comfortable? An in-flight meal? Sweet. And even better when you don’t have to pay the extra cost, right? Oh yeah.
Good, you’re back. Onwards!
Posted by Patrick Korner on January 19, 2006 at 03:00 AM in Columnists > Patrick Korner
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