News Digest 147

This is a copy of the “script” we used to organise Brainwaves Episode 147. It is not a full transcript but should give you an overview of the news as we reported it. Quotes are in italics.

Headlines

Scam takes in major publishers 

• Boardgame Revolution is a promotion focused tabletop gaming group on facebook with some 80000 members 
• Recently scammers set about impersonating the social media manager for that group, Thomas Covert, targeting several boardgame publishers in an attempt to get free games. This story was first covered on Boardgamewire
• They used Thomas’ name to claim that the page was branching out into reviews.
• Thomas quickly realised what was happening and reached out to his contacts in the industry to let them know what was happening. 
• This didn’t stop several boardgame publishers sending games. Those publishers included Renegade Games, CrowD Games, and Devir.
• Devir were yet to send games out but said to Boardgamewire
  •  “Thankfully the original request fell through the cracks and we didn’t send the games on the first go-round. Then we halted the shipment after learning about the scam.
• CrowD games had sent a Collector’s edition of their game Bestiary of Sigilum, but have since managed to cancel the shipment and get their property back. 
• Games were sent to a variety of locations including California, Louisiana, and Florida.
• Covert told Boardgamewire
  •  “If we catch them we will prosecute to the fullest extent of the law, as this is not only identity theft but now involves mail fraud.”
• If you are a publisher who has been affected we will provide a link for a way to get in touch with Thomas. 

Ennie Awards open 

https://vote.ennie-awards.com/vote/2024

• The Ennie awards are the annual celebration of the tabletop RPG world. First started by RPG site ENworld in 2001 it has become 
• From the ennies site
  • The ENNIE Awards (the “ENNIES”) are an annual fan-based celebration of excellence in tabletop roleplaying gaming. The ENNIES give game designers, writers and artists the recognition they deserve. It is a peoples’ choice award, and the final winners are voted upon online by the gaming public.
• The public vote for the ennies are now open with many categories for RPG products to appear in. You can vote for categories such as best digital or non digital aid, art cover, art interior, and of course game
• Salvage Union which I/iain has recently done a first read on is up for Product of the year. It also appears in the Rules Category. 
• Shadowdark appears in a few categories, a game that seems to be on a lot of people’s lips at the moment 
• Discussion: I like that the Ennies exist but there are way too many categories. They should focus it down and not have so many. Game of the year and product of the year features some of the same games for instance. No Deathmatch Island? 

Spiel des Jahres

https://www.spiel-des-jahres.de/2024_preistraeger

• Every year the tabletop world hold its breath around this time of year as the coveted Spiel des Jahres prize is given out. 
• Although it is seen as ‘the game of the year’ for games released in the German language, the prize is better thought of as the best game for folk looking to explore beyond the more mainstream games they may regularly come across. Germany has a healthy boardgaming scene and the Spiel des Jahres is more about expanding people’s horizons, then declaring a single game ‘the best’. 
• The prize is split into 3 categories
  • The Kinderspiel des Jahres, the children’s game prize
  • The Kennerspiel des Jahers, sometimes referred to as the connoisseurs prize
  • And The Spiel des Jahres itself.
• All the games nominated for the prizes must have been released in the German language in the preceding year. 
• The winners for this year are
  • For the Kinderspiel, Die Magischen Schlussel, the Magic Key, by Markus Slawitscheck and ARno Steinwender, published by Game Facotry/ Happy Baobab, illustration by Camillia Peyroux
  • For the Kennerspiel, Daybreak, E-mission in Germany, designed by Matt Leacock and Matteo Menapace, published by Schmidt in German, illustrated by Mads Mountain
  • And finally for the Spiel des Jahres, Skyteam designed by Luc Remond, published by Cosmos/ SCorpion Masque and illustrated by Eric Hibbeler and Adrien Rives

Updates

Berserk Games Update

https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/2757485/article/44554066#44554066

• Berserk Games are the publishers of Tabletop Simulator, a PC programme that can be used to build simulations of boardgames. The programme came to prominence during the pandemic as the boardgame community sought ways to connect online. Effectively it became a platform for digital versions of boardgames much like Boardgame Arena or Tabletopia. 
• Way back in episode 86 we covered a story where the publisher of Three Kingdoms Redux and Race for the Chinese Zodiac had not been paid royalties by Berserk Games. Publishers can agree for their games to be put on the platform and get given royalties based on the sales for that particular module in Tabletop Simulator. 
• On July 13th Ken Leong Yeo, designer of the aforementioned games, posted to an ongoing thread about their dealings with Berserk Games. The publisher had finally had an email from Berserk Games and payment. The email read
  • Please find attached the Royalty Reports for Q1 2022, and Q2, Q3, Q4 2023, & Q1 2024 for the licensed DLC available on Tabletop Simulator. To ensure prompt payment, please return an invoice to this email address within the next two weeks.
• • We deeply regret the delays in delivering these reports and our recent communications. We fully understand the disruptions may have caused and are truly grateful for your continued patience and understanding. To express our appreciation and acknowledge the inconvenience, we have added a 15% bonus to your last payment and will apply the same bonus to these latest reports. Please do not include this 15% bonus in your invoices, as it will be automatically included in our outbound payments.
• • We have also upgraded our invoicing system to improve efficiency and accuracy in our future interactions.
• • To help us ensure that all future transactions are handled smoothly, could you please confirm or update your contact details, including your preferred email for PayPal payments and wire transfer information? We recommend PayPal for smaller payouts to minimize wire transfer fees and prevent any further delays.
• • Thank you for your cooperation and for continuing to trust in our business.
• Ken does go on to mention that he thinks some of the amounts may still be wrong, and that he has noticed that sales for some months are the exact match for others which was not the case. Despite this he says he has sent the invoices in order to try and close out the issues for the last two years. 

News

Hasbro names new WOTC President 

https://icv2.com/articles/news/view/57388/hasbro-names-new-wotc-president

• John Hight, former head of development and operations for the World of Warcraft game is moving to Hasbro. 
• Hight is taking the role of President of Wizards of the Coast and Digital Gaming Division. 
• Hight has 30+ years in the computer games industry after spending time at Sony, Atari, Electronic Arts and the 3DO company. 
• Hasbro CEO Chris Cocks, said of the hire
  •  “John’s love of D&D and Magic: The Gathering, combined with his leadership in video games, will be crucial as we expand our digital offerings to deliver what our fans crave,”

11 Concurso de Protojuegos

https://www.verkami.com/games-contest-2024

• 11 Concurso de Protojuegos, the 11th prototype board game competition, which is being held in Barcelona, Spain, is asking budding board game designers to submit their prototypes.
• The event is managed by Verkami, a European crowdfunding platform founded in 2010 by three brothers with a passion for art and culture, which helps artists turn their ideas into reality.
• The winner of the prototype competition will receive €100, a free Verkami listing to help them make their idea a reality, and support from a board game developer and distributor.
• Another 20 selected prototypes will win the DAU Barcelona prize, which includes €100 to help with attending the 13th Festival del Juego DAU Barcelona 2024. At the festival they will present their prototype to the public and to board game publishers at a speed-dating session.
• Last year there were 1,225 entries, of which 180 were selected to attend the prototyping event and of those 23 finalists and winners were announced.
• Entries must be received before Sunday, the 1st of September 2024.
• More details can be found on the Verkami website, which is in Spanish. Links in the show notes

Petersen Games

https://www.quimbleys.com/pages/pg-quimbleys-faq

Catalyst game labs announcement

https://www.catalystgamelabs.com/news/catalyst-game-labs-petersen-games-announce-relationship

• Petersen Games, the publisher of Cthulhu Wars, have had a lot of problems fulfilling Kickstarters over the last few years. 
• We covered their ongoing issues over the course of last year. This seemed to come to a conclusion in August when Petersen announced a partnership with Catalyst Games Labs to take on some of the logistics that Petersen couldn’t handle. 
• Well now it seems like that deal has fallen through but a new player has stepped into the ring to help out Cthulhu. 
• Quimbley Games seem to be a manufacturer and publisher of games and have cut a deal with Petersen Games to produce and distribute the designs of Petersen Games. 
• A video from Sandy Petersen, the head of Petersen Games, addresses the change in circumstances. In that video he says that Petersen Games will effectively becoming a design only studio. He is very effusive about the skills of the folks at Quimbley Games and that they will be able to deliver the current crop of Petersen Games Kickstarters.
• Quimbly Games are perhaps a little more cautious. 
• From the Quimbley Games page in a message entitled ‘A Special notice to all Petersen Games Kickstarter Backers”
  • First off, what you need to know is that Quimbley’s is NOT Petersen Games. Yes, we’ve stepped in to fulfill the Kickstarters and publish Petersen Games going forward, but we are a separate company with separate corporate leadership and a separate skillset. 
  • We are currently solidifying our plans to fulfill your games and will be providing much more information in the coming weeks, but we want and need YOUR input! We will be launching a community engagement feature within the next 2 weeks which will allow you to provide feedback on BOTH the creative AND production side of not only these games, but everything we produce. 
  • We will also be providing you, based on your collective feedback, with a number of additional options to choose from in making you whole on your Kickstarter pledges. Transparency is one of our key values, so please understand that this is not going to be a fast process. There are hundreds of injection molding tools to be made, and thousands of pieces of artwork and game component designs to be laid out to work with our special processes. 
  • As much as we want to make promises on when everything will ship, providing a “set in stone” timeline is difficult at this early stage. Our goal is to sell the current Petersen Games inventory we have in stock and gauge our production capacity as we work to finish building each additional phase of our factory.
• There is a bit more to that statement going into the details of what Quimbley are doing in terms of logistics to fulfill these Kickstarters. We will provide a link in the show notes.

Jobs, Opportunities, and Events

https://www.facebook.com/groups/TabletopJobs

Tabletop Scotland 2024

• 6th to 8th September 2024
• Highland Hall, Royal Highland Centre, Ingliston, EH28 8AU
• We are doing the pub quiz 

Berlin Brettspiel Con 2024

• The annual German board game convention, Berlin Brettspiel Con, is famous for its focus on playing games and seminars, while over 90 exhibitors will be showing their portfolio of current and upcoming games for the German-speaking market.
• The convention is taking place in Berlin, as the name says, on Saturday the 20th of July and Sunday the 21st of July.
• For the first time, the event takes place at the Estrel Congress Center, so note the change in venue. The change was mainly due to issues with keeping visitors cool during the hot summer days at the previous location.

Board Game Raffle in Aid of The Trussell Trust / UK Food Banks 

tabletopgamesblog.com/raffle-july/

• Oliver is running a monthly raffle in support of The Trussell Trust, which runs a large number of food banks across the UK.
• Tickets are £1 and you can win prototypes or review copies of games, which have been played a few times, but are still in very good condition. Sometimes there are also brand new games on offer.
• In July, you have the chance to win review copies of Abandon All Artichokes from Gamewright, Undermined! Pairadice City from Devilyfly Games, The Net Zero Game 2050, Plutocracy from Doppeldenkspiele, Pier 18 from Alley Cat Games and Bad Trevor from Fist Bump Games – but check out the raffle each month to see what is up for grabs.
• All proceeds, minus platform fees, payment charges and postage costs, go directly to this amazing charity that campaigns for a future where nobody needs to use emergency food.

AB Con

• The African Boardgames Convention needs your help to put on the show in 2024. 
• The group behind the convention promotes boardgaming all over Nigeria and are hoping to bring the 2024 edition of their show to life. They self funded in previous years but financial circumstances mean it is harder for them this year. 
• From the Kickstarter 
• “In 2023, for the first time in our history, AB Con held for 2-days and it was self-funded. This was a deliberate action as we build towards hosting a 4-days conventions in the future. “
• [
• 1:46 AM
• ]
• “This year, AB Con is taking a bigger step. The convention will host the first people’s choice game award, conduct a pre AB Con tour in 5 University campuses, reintroduce game influencers award all in the biggest hall in an AB Con history. We are also creating a budget for documentation to equip us as a source for partnership and funding from private entities and the Government in coming years.”

Patreon Shoutouts

Kevin Bertram

James Naylor

https://naylorgames.com

Shaun Newan
game-a-lot.fun/en
facebook.com/gamealotboardgames

Our Patreon

https://www.patreon.com/thegiantbrain

Fanroll

https://fanrolldice.com/ref/2783

Outro

D&D Stamps

Thanks to Richard Simpson from We’re not Wizards for bringing us this story

https://shop.royalmail.com/dungeons-&-dragons-prestige-stamp-book

• 184 years ago, the Penny Black, the world’s first postage stamp was issued. And since then, postage stamps have gone downhill. But no longer. 
• This year, not only do we have stamps from the US Postal Service but also the Royal Mail (formerly Consignia) to celebrate the 50th anniversary of a little role playing game by the name of Dungeons and Dragons
• WE covered the USPS stamps in episode 134, but the Royal Mail stamps have recently been announced and will be available the 25th of July for the TTRPG fans and philatelists
• There are the eight special stamps with pictures of some of the most famous and fearsome adversaries characters might combat in the game, from fan favourite Owlbear to fan favourite Mimic and fan favourite Red Dragon.
• Also included is a Miniature Sheet which has headshots of members of a diverse party, reflecting some of the characters you can play– Tiefling Rogue, Human Bard, Halfling Cleric, Elf Fighter, Dwarf Paladin and Dragonborn Wizard.
• Alongside these is a ‘prestige stamp book’ “packed with images, stamps and stories” 
• Whereas the USPS stamps had images from throughout the history of the game, the Royal Mail set have all been created by Wayne Reynolds who has created art for many roleplaying games, most notably Pathfinder.
• Also there’s a UV surprise, each of the special stamps has a holographic logo on them. 

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