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This Board Game Life

This Board Game Life is a family-friendly board game podcast from Mark and Rob, two friends who love the tabletop hobby. Every two weeks they share what they’ve been playing, talk through the latest board game and crowdfunding news, and dig into a topic from the hobby, from Gen Con debriefs and award winners to gaming fatigue and how games have evolved. No industry insiders or professional critics, just honest opinions from two gamers about the games hitting their table. Find unboxings, reviews and playthroughs on YouTube at @ThisBoardGameLife, with show notes at thisboardgamelife.com.

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20 episodes
fortnightly
Avg 1 hr 36 min
English

Episodes 20

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#133
Wednesday · 2 hr 2 min
Battlestar Spiel 133
Watch the video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=960nmWX7SVc Rob and Mark are back discussing the reprint of Battlestar Galactica, Cons, recent news, and games that they played recently. Enjoy! Games discussed in this episode include: The Gang, Harmonies, Knarr, Bordeaux, Enchanted Ivy, The King’s Dilemma, Tzolk’in: The Mayan Calendar and The Networks: Primetime. Chapters 00:00 Intro 01:40 Recent Plays 08:53 Bordeaux 12:31 Enchanted Games 21:27 Tolkien Mayan Calendar 26:27 Dorf Romantic 30:54 Shelfie Stacker 34:38 Upcoming Releases 43:51 Battlestar Galactica News 1:07:23 New Version Wishlist 1:11:50 Convention Talk 1:21:44 Gen Con Experience 1:35:38 Las Vegas Cons 1:47:36 Essen Shopping 1:50:48 Crowdfunding Roundup 1:59:30 Diablo Unbound 2:01:07 Final Thoughts
#132
October 14 · 1 hr 48 min
Cruises and Awards 132
Watch the video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JuBqQmab_Y Mark and Rob are back with another episode! The guys talk about recent gaming, news, and then tackle board game cruises and the strangeness of the Gamefound Awards. Enjoy! Games discussed in this episode include: Spooktacular, Thunder Road: Ignition, Shadow Hunters, The King’s Dilemma and Dice Throne: Vanguard. Chapters 00:00 Intro 02:47 What We Played 23:40 News And Announcements 34:30 Dice Tower Cruise to Alaska 1:15:30 Gamefound Awards 1:38:49 McDonalds Tangent 1:42:20 Crowdfunding Damage
#131
October 3 · 1 hr 28 min
Fatigue 131
Watch the video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRJpbbcZmvk Mark and Rob are back discussing news, recent gaming, and then go on to talk about burning out from gaming. Enjoy! Games discussed in this episode include: 20 Strong: Nemesis, Camel Up (Second Edition), Night at the Zoo, Drillers and Bordeaux. Chapters 00:00 Intro 02:00 What we played 25:00 Industry News 34:05 Gaming Fatigue 51:50 Is Gaming to Mainstream? 1:08:10 Crowdfunding Corner
#130
September 16 · 1 hr 14 min
Evolution 130
Watch the video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XDhpinur5ns Mark and Rob discuss the news, recent gaming, and how games have evolved over the years. Games discussed in this episode include: Star Trek: Space Hunt and King of Tokyo Godzilla.
#129
September 2 · 1 hr 4 min
Intellectual Props 129
Watch the video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztNLqTyvey0 Rob and Mark discuss the news, some recent games that they played and then discuss how they have been pleasantly surprised with IP games lately. Games discussed in this episode include: Mountain Goats: Legacy, The Game Makers, Kingdom Crossing, Luthier, Planet Unknown and Space Base.
#128
August 20 · 1 hr 30 min
Crowdfunding Too Costly? 128
Watch the video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhftLbLy9hc Mark and Rob discuss the news, recent gaming, and some of the surprise hidden costs of a crowdfunding campaign. Enjoy! Games discussed in this episode include: Star Trek Chrono-Trek, Star Trek: Captain’s Chair – To Boldly Go, Jump Masters!, Night at the Zoo, Ostia, Shadow Hunters, Mountain Goats: Legacy, Dragons of Etchinstone and Camel Up (Second Edition). Chapters 00:00 Intro 04:10 What We Played 42:00 News 48:40 Is Crowdfunding to Costly? 1:24:50 Crowdfunding Corner
#127
August 5 · 1 hr 37 min
GenCon 2026 The Aftermath 127
Watch the video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUxdoMB7TMQ Rob and Mark talk about recent news, recent gaming, and have the Gen Con 2026 debrief. Games discussed in this episode include: Pandemic Legacy: Season 2, Sniper Elite: The Board Game, Cover Your Assets, Zombicide: White Death – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Timecrash, Mountain Goats: Legacy, Architects of the West Kingdom, Viscounts of the West Kingdom, Magical Athlete, Escape: The Curse of the Temple and Terraforming Mars. Chapters 00:00 Intro 04:20 What We Played 24:55 Industry News 38:28 Rob's GenCon Experiance 1:32:10 Crowdfunding Corner
#126
July 22 · 1 hr 8 min
GenCon 2026 126
Mark and Rob hit the mics discussing recent gaming, some news, the SDJ award winners for 2026, and the releases that they’re anticipating for Gen Con 2026. Games discussed in this episode include: Panda Royale, The Game Makers, Champions of Midgard, Container, Captain Sonar, Mechs vs. Minions, Oak, Wondrous Creatures, Masters of Renaissance: Lorenzo il Magnifico – The Card Game and Space Hulk: Death Angel – The Card Game.
#125
July 8 · 1 hr 14 min
Express Crowdfunding Insanity 125
Watch the video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xcPAyrBh4x0 Mark and Rob are back with another game filled episode. We start off with what we have been playing lately, dive into some news, then Mark gets a little heated over some Express Crowdfunding insanity. Enjoy. Games discussed in this episode include: My Father’s Work, Skull, Wondrous Creatures, Gloom in Space, Panda Royale, Zombicide: White Death – Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Timecrash, The Game Makers and Space Hulk: Death Angel – The Card Game.
#124
June 25 · 1 hr 36 min
The Deluxification of Games 124
Mark and Rob are back talking about recent gaming, news, Origins Awards, and dive in on deluxifying games. Games discussed in this episode include: Space Hulk: Death Angel – The Card Game, Zombicide (2nd Edition): Washington Z.C., Five Tribes: The Djinns of Naqala and Wyrmspan.
#123
June 14 · 1 hr 44 min
Expansioning 123
Mark and Rob talk about the recent games that they've played, go over some newsworthy items from the past two weeks, and do a deep dive discussion on game expansions. Games discussed in this episode include: Zombicide (2nd Edition): Washington Z.C., The Great Wall, Azul, Car Wars: The Card Game, Shadowrun: Crossfire, Blood on the
#122
May 30 · 2 hr
TBL CON 2026 122
Rob and Mark discuss the news, the SDJ2026 nominees, and TBLCON2026. Games discussed in this episode include: Dungeons, Dice & Danger, Spooktacular, Spite 'N' Malice, Zombicide (2nd Edition): Washington Z.C., The Witcher: Old World, The Castles of Burgundy: Special Edition, Concordia, Elder Sign, Castaways, Escape: The Curse of the Temple, Jambo, Targi, Fleet, Dark Pact,
#121
May 13 · 1 hr 5 min
Golden Geek 2026 Winners 121
Mark and Rob discuss recent gaming, the news, and then go over the Golden Geek award winners. Games discussed in this episode include: Dark Pact, King of New York, Forest Shuffle, Shadows over Camelot, Zombicide (2nd Edition): Washington Z.C. and XCOM: The Board Game.
#120
April 29 · 2 hr 8 min
Gateway Games 120
Mark and Rob discuss news, recent gaming, and then go into a discussion on what games to play when introducing people to the tabletop gaming hobby in 2026. Games discussed in this episode include: The Witcher: Old World, Zombicide: 2nd Edition, Excalibur, Istanbul and Cities.
#119
April 17 · 2 hr 22 min
Reprint vs. Reboot 119
Mark and Rob talk about the games they played in the past two weeks, cover the recent news, and then go into a discussion on reprints and reboots of various games. Games discussed in this episode include: Cartographers, Tricky Traders, Labyrinth: Chronicles, Concordia, Pandemic Legacy: Season 2, Aggravation, Puerto Rico 1897: Special Edition, Phantom Ink,
#118
April 1 · 1 hr 46 min
The Neurochemical Reward System 118
Mark and Rob discuss recent gaming, the news, and do a deep dive on winning in games. Games discussed in this episode include: Rack-O, Flip 7: With A Vengeance, Blood on the Clocktower, Shadow Hunters, Apiary, The Mandalorian: Adventures – Clan of Two Expansion, The Mandalorian: Adventures, Tatsumi, Alibis, L.L.A.M.A. and Labyrinth: Chronicles.
#117
March 23 · 1 hr 45 min
Socializing 117
Mark and Rob discuss the games they've been playing, cover recent news, and then discuss the social aspect of the board game hobby. Enjoy! Games discussed in this episode include: Moonrakers, Coup, The Mandalorian: Adventures, Wonderland's War, Tatsumi, Labyrinth: Chronicles, SETI: Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, Moonrollers, Wizard's Academy, King of Tokyo: Monster Box and Hercules
#116
March 4 · 1 hr 34 min
Publisher Roadmaps 2026 116
Mark and Rob discuss games they played recently, the news, and what some publishers posted as 2026 roadmap releases. Enjoy! Games discussed in this episode include: The Search for UAPs, Hansa Teutonica, Magical Athlete, Blood on the Clocktower, Captain Sonar, Shadow Hunters and Draft & Write Records.
#115
February 23 · 1 hr 32 min
Awarding 115
Mark and Rob talk about the games that they played recently, cover recent news, and then discuss game awards. Enjoy! Games discussed in this episode include: Nemesis: Retaliation, Pandemic Legacy: Season 2, Shackleton Base: A Journey to the Moon, Dominion, Forest Shuffle, Fluxx: The Board Game, Railway Boom, Wonderland's War and Moonrollers.
#114
February 4 · 1 hr 15 min
Gaming Hopes for 2026 114
Mark and Rob discuss recent gaming news, some games they played recently, and what they would like to see happen in 2026 within our hobby. Games discussed in this episode include: Unlock!: The Escape Room Game – In Pursuit of the Iron Mask, The Hobbit: There and Back Again, Blood on the Clocktower, Puerto Rico

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