board game blogger, gives us his experienced take on the uk games industry...
in the second of our GUEST POSTs, Mark Rivera, a So, what do I think about the current state of our wonderful hobby?
It’s never been better!
1) The choice available is outstanding as there are games to suit pretty much any style and theme preference.
2) There are a lot of really nice people in the hobby who are really keen to share their love of games with others.
3) Wider media coverage in the UK is beginning to happen. New board game cafes will help spread the word.
It’s never been better!
1) The choice available is outstanding as there are games to suit pretty much any style and theme preference.
2) There are a lot of really nice people in the hobby who are really keen to share their love of games with others.
3) Wider media coverage in the UK is beginning to happen. New board game cafes will help spread the word.
"There are games to suit pretty much any style"
4) UK Games Expo is really growing now and definitely worth going to but more local cons are starting to pop up which can only help the hobby.
5) Kickstarter is becoming main stream and will help. Having said that. There is a lack of originality in board games on Kickstarter and that damages the hobby. Just how many Zombies or Cthulhu Space or Fantasy games do we really need?
5) Kickstarter is becoming main stream and will help. Having said that. There is a lack of originality in board games on Kickstarter and that damages the hobby. Just how many Zombies or Cthulhu Space or Fantasy games do we really need?
And a bit about me....
I started Boardgames on Blighty in January 2010 because I just enjoyed writing and talking about games and thought I'd enjoy having a go at blogging. 4 years later and... yeah, I've done a fair amount of reviews and posted news items and Essen experiences, etc. It's been fun.
I am primarily a war gamer so Boardgames in Blighty leans towards them although I've done reviews on other types of games as well. I'm at the point now where I have to be very selective in terms of what games I review due to time constraints. Also, there are just a lot of games and with the arrival of Kickstarter, its increased even more. On top of that, I am designing games, with Luchador! (pictured) being the most recent and this too takes time away from blogging as well.
In a nutshell, here is what you need to know about Boardgames in Blighty -
1) I do short, pithy reviews. I'm not going to describe games in great detail. Why should I spoil your journey of discovery?
2) I tend to review less complex games as I prefer to play them and again time constraints prevent me playing complex games.
3) I review War games and Ameritrash style games mostly as those are the games that I tend to enjoy.
I enjoy the media side of the gaming hobby and have met some wonderful people in the UK who do it as well. There are a number of good UK bloggers/podcasters, each with their own way of doing things so if you like my approach, cool but there are others to choose from as well.
Edited by Tom Batchelor
I am primarily a war gamer so Boardgames in Blighty leans towards them although I've done reviews on other types of games as well. I'm at the point now where I have to be very selective in terms of what games I review due to time constraints. Also, there are just a lot of games and with the arrival of Kickstarter, its increased even more. On top of that, I am designing games, with Luchador! (pictured) being the most recent and this too takes time away from blogging as well.
In a nutshell, here is what you need to know about Boardgames in Blighty -
1) I do short, pithy reviews. I'm not going to describe games in great detail. Why should I spoil your journey of discovery?
2) I tend to review less complex games as I prefer to play them and again time constraints prevent me playing complex games.
3) I review War games and Ameritrash style games mostly as those are the games that I tend to enjoy.
I enjoy the media side of the gaming hobby and have met some wonderful people in the UK who do it as well. There are a number of good UK bloggers/podcasters, each with their own way of doing things so if you like my approach, cool but there are others to choose from as well.
Edited by Tom Batchelor