Honest Reviews. Smarter Play

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Adam has been writing about video games since 2014, and board game since 2018. Adam appreciates spending time with family and friends, and unwinding with cozy games like Stardew Valley (Video) and Mythwind (Board)!

Posts By Adam

Ice and Idols Board Game Review

If you’ve never heard of Inside Up Games you definitely are familiar with some of their games, most notably Perch and Earth. I’ve come to enjoy many of their games, despite not all of these game mechanics being my favourite. Perch, specifically, was really surprising to me! Ice and Idols was something I was VERY intrigued by when I saw it setup at a convention, and about 2 months ago Inside Up Game sent over a copy for us to…

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Star Wars Unlimited: A Lawless Time – Jabba the Hutt & Credits

Our friends at Fantasy Flight Games and asmodee Canada sent over two new starter decks for Star Wars Unlimited. These decks are part of the A Lawless Time release, and we quite enjoyed both decks overall. Asmodee also sent over a brand new Jabba the Hutt playmat and a Jabba the Hutt soft case. We’ve said it many times before, and I will say it again. Star Wars Unlimited releases some of my favourite trading card game mats of any…

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Sauros Components Overview and Impressions

When I saw that Sauros was available from online retailers in Canada for almost 50.00 CAD, I was a bit miffed – how could a light trick taking and tile laying game cost so much money. Our friends at Tangerine Games sent over a copy of the game through Ilo, and I had to see what was inside that made the game cost what it cost. Trust me, the price matches the production, no doubt about that. What I knew…

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Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig Board Game Review

If you’ve been playing board games for a significant period of time, the game Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig might sound familiar, even if you have never played before. That’s because this 2-7 player game is a mashup of Between Two Cities and Castles of Mad King Ludwig. Elements from both games have been combined to create something entirely new, although incredibly familiar. But will two good games in their own right make one epic game? ...

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Asmodee Distributing Ostia in North America with New Edition

Ostia is one of the more popular games to come out of Asia in recent years, and was recently picked up by Crafty Games for distribution in the United States. Asmodee has jumped in and will now be distributing a new version of the game for all of North America, called Ostia: Mariner Edition. Check out bits from the press release below! Asmodee North America today announced a new exclusive distribution partnership with Crafty Games to bring Ostia: Mariner ...

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Sunrise at the Studio Board Game Review

Pencil First Games has made some of our favourite little cards games we’ve ever played and so when they sent over Sunrise at the Studio over for us to review, we were really excited. With a great track record of releasing great games, we knew that at the very least, this would be a clever game with some great ideas. Would it work for us, though? Let’s take a look! In Sunrise at the Studio, players will be using cards…

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Tatsumi Components Overview and Impressions

When I first pulled the box for Tatsumi out of the shipping container I was immediately impressed with the overall look. It was giving me some serious Tsuro vibes! I wasn’t sure what to expect when I cracked open the box, but what was inside was incredibly impressive. Tatsumi comes with a nice insert with spots for everything, and a bit of room to spare. I assume this was either for some crowd funding extras that I don’t have, or…

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Kemet: Rise of the Gods Components Overview and Impressions

Kemet: Rise of the Gods has recently fulfilled its crowd funding campaign, and Matagot was nice enough to send over a copy of the expansion, along with the big storage box, for us to review. We already talked at length about Kemet: Blood and Sand which we said was really well produced, so this will just focus on what else comes in the box, and how much we like the storage solution! If you want to know about cardboard quality,…

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Kemet: Blood and Sand Components Overview and Impressions

Kemet is a well loved board game with a strong and passionate player base. I’ve never had the privilege of playing Kemet, but have always been intrigued by what seems to be easy-to-learn gameplay yet deep, area control strategy. Two boxes came in for review, the 2.0 release of Kemet called Kemet: Blood and Sand, along with the Kemet: Rise of the Gods expansion and big box storage solution. In this article, we will simply be looking at Kemet: Blood…

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Stonesaga Board Game First Impressions

Stonesaga is an epic adventure board game where you explore a unique world, interact with various elements of it, craft items, eat food and so much more. You’ll be exploring the world around you, uncovering various secrets, learning to survive and finding behemoths. At its core, a lot of what you accomplish will rely on stats, equipment, dice rolls, etc. but there is so much more under the surface just waiting to be explored. Driven forward by multiple sessions ...

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Descent: Legends of the Dark Still Fantastic

I just recently got back into Descent: Legends of the Dark campaign with my father-in-law and I’m beginning to remember why I love this game so much. I recently watched a  bunch of  reviews of the base game and the expansion, and they were less than spectacular. While I recognize the issues people have, the gameplay and story remains compelling to me, and makes me wonder if Act 3 will ever see the light of day. Recent announcements from Fantasy…

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PlayStation Pricing Changes in Canada

PlayStation Canada is lettings consumers know that there are going to be price increases on PlayStation products in Canada that come into effect on April 2, 2026. This news comes on the heels of Nintendo also announcing pricing changes on their products. I could be wrong, but these mid-generation pricing changes are wild, and not something we generally see over the lifecycle of a console. Some of this is obviously due to a volatile world, where politics, ...

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Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection Review

I’ve been playing Monster Hunter Stories 3 for about a week now, and while a final review isn’t quite in the cards yet as I have more to explore, this is about as close to my opinions as I can get at the moment. And if all things remain equal, my thoughts on Monster Hunter Stories 3 won’t change drastically from this. Call it a review. Call it first impressions. Either way, this title is phenomenal. We are playing on…

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Frosted Blooms Board Game Review

Anytime you give my wife and I a game about flowers, and a game with tiles, it’s generally a combination that really works. It’s a great melding of a theme we enjoy and a mechanism we love. Frosted Blooms not only looks great, but provides exactly what we are looking for in a game experience – something easy to teach and easy to play, perfect for getting game night going, or winding it down. In Frosted Blooms, players are working…

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New Nintendo Game Pricing to get Mixed Reception

Nintendo put out a short release today talking about pricing for both digital and physical games, starting with the brand new Yoshi title and extending into the future. For digital only players this news will be a positive. Physical owners, however, might be less enthused. Starting with Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, Nintendo will now have separate suggested prices for digital and physical titles. This game in Canada will be 84.99 CAD for the digital release, ...

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