It’s all the twos on episode two two two, as two of us chat about… uh… two times two (four) big topics. The chaps talk about football (!!!) and why it’s so neat to go to events you might not normally attend. Back in much more familiar territory, we bring you a battle report from Salute 52; a miniatures wargames event run by South London Warlords. If that weren’t more than enough, then we’re also talking about the wonderfully wordy Landmarks by Floodgate Games, that combines vocab with map exploration to great effect (and may well lead to heated arguments between you and your friends, honestly). Plus Enigma Quest’s Escape Arcade is like a modern Crystal Maze you can explore (and hopefully escape). All that, and probably some more twos we haven’t thought of, on Ep222.

Head to the tabletop with us, as we review the piratical Captain Flip from PlayPunk, and the fiendishly family-friendly EXIT Kids: Riddles in Monsterville from Kosmos. Plus a dissection of what makes The Ultimate RPG Game Master’s Worldbuilding Guide from James D’Amato such worthwhile advice to read. All that, and what Jurassic Park is really all about, on Ep221.

It’s a bumper episode, so let’s get straight into it: we played so many games and saw so much stuff at AireCon, so Ep220 is all about it. There’s dexterity push-you-luck Strike, Witcher spin-off Gwent: The Legendary Card Game, the gorgeous Australis, nostalgic Divide & Conker, and smile-inducing board games like G.R.I.M. INC. and Things in Rings. And Fishing. And new hotness Daybreak. And incredible paints from Two Thin Coats. AND one of our favourite RPG experiences ever in The Ghost and Tales from the Loop. All that, and even more AireCon miracles, on Ep220.

On the tabletop, us four oldies take to the battlefield with the deeply strategic and surprisingly accessible Battalion: War of the Ancients from Osprey Games, and dive beneath the waves in Pacifica from Thames & Kosmos. Meanwhile, in the courtroom, we take a look at Capcom’s shockingly generous compilation Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy, and then pronounce judgment on Marvel’s latest, Captain America: Brave New World. All that, and getting some paint on the brush, on Ep219.

Having your world turned upside down is one thing, but having a whole new dimension added? The Plucky Squire from All Possible Futures digs into this idea with approachable puzzles and tricky action. Meanwhile Wizards Cup from Pandasaurus Games is a two player magical duel with gorgeous art and a tight little footprint. Speaking of footprints, Katmai: The Bears of Brooks River from Osprey Games has ones in the shape of bear paws, as grizzlies compete for the ultimate prize: fish (of course). And Medical Mysteries: NYC Emergency Room from Identity Games has us playing House, diagnosing patients cooperatively in a race against time. All that, and the perils of neat squash, on Ep218.

Is Civilization from Avalon Hill and Gibsons Games still able to command 10 hours of your attention more than 40 years after its initial release? Can The Roottrees are Dead outdo Hypnospace Outlaw at Internet nostalgia and Return of the Obra Dinn at amateur sleuthing? Blending poker and heists, do we have a good enough hand to win The Gang? Are Ritz crisps? You have questions, we have answers. All that, and a bag of cola, on Ep217.

We find out why Fireside Games’ co-op boardgame Castle Panic remains a masterpiece and how its wonderfully welcoming all-ages version My First Castle Panic brings in younger players while remaining entertaining for adults. Then a look at why the sheer amount of planning for a weekend playing Avalon Hill’s Civilization has been an early part of the overall joy of running this epic length event game. And the reasons why 100 years of Nosferatu has done nothing to take the sting out of the vampire’s bite. All that, and Nora going door-to-door, on Ep216. 00:00 - Two Tuna Buses in a row, plus our favourite bedtime readers 08:48 - Nosferatu 26:01 - Preparing for Civilization 44:29 - Castle Panic and My First Castle Panic On this episode were Kris (@DigitalStrider) and Peter (@XeroXeroXero). Our Spotify Playlist brings together lots of great thematic music inspired by the stuff we talk about. Links to where you can find us - StayingInPodcast.com Note: sometimes we'll have been sent a review copy of the thing we're talking about on the podcast. It doesn't skew how we think about that thing, and we don't receive compensation for anything we discuss, but we thought you might like to know this is the case.

Logging on to our (impressive!) virtual reality future with Meta Quest 3S, why we’ve head back to Stardew Valley after the embarrassment of riches included in the Stardew Valley v1.6 update from ConcernedApe, and returning to a classic with Amanita Design’s Samorost. All that, and a sheep (or a pariah?), on Ep215.

A mega massive wrap up of all our favourite things we discovered in 2024, including: Codenames, Duolingo, The Rise of the Golden Idol, Thank Goodness You’re Here!, Thunder Road Vendetta, Hundreds of Beavers, Essen, Balatro, Midnight Mass, One Shot RPGs, Dungeon Crawler Carl, Deadloch, The Lord of the Rings Adventure Book Game, Wilmot’s Warehouse, Godzilla Minus One, Cyberpunk 2077, Tomb Raider I-III Remastered, Death’s End, and the works of Simon Stålenhag. All that, yes ALL THAT, and the pants option always available, on Ep214.

We’re getting ready for a gaming Christmas! From the board game stack we’re setting our timers and taking in the fireworks show spectacle of Skyrockets: Festivals of Fire from Floodgate Games, figuring out if we prefer apples, oranges, or Gandalf in supersmart trick taker My Favourite Things from Play For Keeps, and forging fine art and trying to get away with it in Belratti from Kosmos. Away from the table and onto the track (via the couch), we frankly can’t believe how good the racing is in completely free PlayStation 4 and 5 game My First Gran Turismo from Polyphony Digital happens to be. All that, and a Hot Frosty, on Ep213.

We’ve smashed through the single page RPGs Pride and Extreme Prejudice and Crash Pandas from Rowan, Rook and Decard, and also gotten to the tabletop the kid-friendly The Colour Monster from Devir and Kosmos and Stomp the Plank from The Flying Games and Hachette. Plus a closer look at Color Gray Games and Playstack’s stupendous sequel The Rise of The Golden Idol. All that, and, yes, it’s one of His, on Ep212.

Spookily funny party game Ghosts Can’t Draw (Big Potato Games), strategic sci-fi in Undaunted 2200: Callisto (Osprey Games), the frighteningly good Agatha All Along, and a David Mitchell mystery series called Ludwig; there’s loads of great geek stuff stuffed into just under an hour of audio. All that, and tooth chat, on Ep211.

A full report on our trip to the biggest board game show in the world - Spiel Essen - plus our favourite games from the show; Gibberers by Hobby Japan, The Chronicles of Berg by Rybysel Games, and Final Girl by Van Ryder Games. Then back at home we catch up with The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 2. All that, and lightning striking twice, on Ep210.

Why the digital edition of Codenames from CGE Digital just might be 2024’s best digital adaptation of a board game, Castle Combo from Catch Up Games and Hachette is a winning combination of tableau-building and card drafting, and the joys of a local Oktoberfest. All that, and how it’s all kicking off in here, on Ep209.

Doing it live with Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Live In Concert, stacking shelves in CMYK’s Wilmot’s Warehouse, travelling with Catch Up Games’ Faraway, and being lied to with Odd-Meter’s Indika. All that, and teasing a child, on Ep208.

Our board game review this episode is Wolfgang Kramer and Hachette’s Expeditions: Around the World, then we go hands-on with Coal Supper’s cheeky British slapformer Thank Goodness You’re Here!, plus we’ve been watching the awesome whodunnit Deadloch. All that, and a well-worn bleep button, on Ep207.

It’s equal parts video games reviews and board games reviews on this episode of the podcast, with our takes on Extra Nice’s SCHiM and Bethesda’s Quake, as well as Brotherwise Games’ Dungeon Kart and Thames & Kosmos’s My Island. All that, and old men, on Ep206.

Following in grandma’s footsteps with Ravensburger’s Garden Heist, saying goodbye to a whole era of movies with Marvel’s Deadpool & Wolverine, and stepping into the exclusion zone with Osprey’s Zona Alfa. All that, and snowballs, on Ep205.

On this episode of our gaming and geek culture podcast, we’ve got video game reviews of mysterious adventure This Bed We Made from Lowbirth Games, as well as character platformer Kirby and the Forgotten Land from Nintendo, plus a board game review of evolutionary tile-place-em-up In the Footsteps of Darwin from Hachette. All that, and curious culinary currencies, on Ep204.

Storytelling-strong, narrative-rich video games are the catch of the day, with reviews of Still Wakes the Deep from The Chinese Room, as well as Don’t Nod’s Jusant, plus we go hands-on with Courtisans by Pandasaurus Games. All that, and what’s up, doc, on Ep203.