06th Nov2024

‘Star Wars Unlimited: Twilight of the Republic’ TCG Set Review

by Matthew Smail

Since we first reviewed it back in March, Star Wars Unlimited has gone from strength to strength. We didn’t spend much time with the second set of cards (Shadows of the Galaxy) but we have been lucky enough to get our hands on some early Twilight of the Republic product. This set consists of 257 […]

10th Oct2024

‘Nucleum’ & Nucleum: Australia Expansion’ Board Game Review

by Matthew Smail

I know that most people won’t believe me when I write this, but reviewing board games can often be quite difficult. Sometimes, I accept, it’s dead easy. You love the game, it’s nice and simple, the components are good and the words just flow. On other occasions, I find myself reviewing a game like Nucleum, […]

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08th Oct2024

‘Nova Roma’ Board Game Review

by Matthew Smail

Of all the themes I might name for board games, Ancient Rome – alongside trains – might be the most popular. Not a month goes by where I don’t see a new game, whether it be a war game or a strategic eurogame that the idea of advancing the glory of Rome doesn’t come into […]

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30th Sep2024

‘Barbarian Kingdoms’ Board Game Review

by Matthew Smail

Barbarian Kingdoms is a fairly rare treat, offering a legitimate board game experience that supports up to six players without any real compromise as the player count gets higher. It’s a relatively quick and simple game with straightforward objectives and rules, but the asymmetry of each faction and their leader brings emergent strategy that isn’t […]

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27th Sep2024

‘Stranger Things: Upside Down’ Board Game Review

by Matthew Smail

CMON have a funny habit of releasing games we weren’t expecting with little or no warning – often at inexplicable moments in time. Designed by the master of remasters and campaign games himself (Rob Daviau), Stranger Things: Upside Down breaks the mould slightly by being neither a remake nor a campaign game – but nonetheless […]

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25th Sep2024

‘Army of the Dead: A Zombicide Game’ Board Game Review

by Matthew Smail

When I first saw Army of the Dead: A Zombicide Game, I was a bit shocked. Not only is this a Zombicide game that took me completely by surprise, but I also noticed Netflix branding on the box, and the obvious likeness of Dave Bautista as a leading character. Not only did I not know […]

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05th Sep2024

‘Robinson Crusoe: Collectors Edition’ Board Game Re-Review

by Matthew Smail

With a re-release of the game now available, with some updates and additions, here’s a new look at the board game Robinson Crusoe in a brand-new Collectors Edition… Whilst we love reviewing board games based on movies and TV series here at Nerdly, there are relatively few based on eighteenth-century literature like Robinson Crusoe: Collectors […]

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04th Sep2024

‘A Feast For Odin’ Board Game Re-Review

by Matthew Smail

With a re-release of the game now available, with some updates and additions, here’s a new look at A Feast For Odin… Certain things in popular culture – whether movies, games, records or even board games – come with an aura of expectation around them that can be a little unfair. In the board gaming […]

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21st Aug2024

‘Doomlings: Deluxe Bundle’ Board Game Review

by Matthew Smail

Sometimes the most enjoyable games are some of the simplest – those with light rules and attractive components, and often a fast playtime. Where Doomlings is concerned, most of these things apply – this is a fast-paced, attractive game that kids love (thanks to its cute artwork) and that almost anyone can play. It’s not […]

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12th Aug2024

‘The Mandalorian: Adventures’ Board Game Review

by Matthew Smail

Whilst Unexpected Games is a relatively young publisher with only a few game credits to its name, the backing of legendary designer Corey Konieczka brings a lot of weight with it. The Mandalorian: Adventures is the first licensed game that Unexpected Games has published, but Konieczka himself has worked on countless big IP’s as well […]

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11th Jul2024

‘Star Wars: Bounty Hunters’ Card Game Review

by Matthew Smail

Another day, another Star Wars game – and this time, it’s a small box card game that promises simultaneous card drafting for between two and six players. This brief overview makes Star Wars: Bounty Hunters quite a versatile prospect, especially when you consider that it’s quite cheap, and designed by the same man who brought […]

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07th Jun2024

A Guide to all things in the ‘Zombicide’ melee universe

by Matthew Smail

Ah, Zombicide. Now an iconic example of how to pack a box full of plastic miniatures and glossy cardboard, then launch a big-budget Kickstarter, this a series that almost needs no introduction. Many fans of miniatures based board games love it, whilst a lot of the people who dislike it don’t seem to have ever […]

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29th May2024

‘Faiyum’ Board Game Review

by Matthew Smail

One of many Friedemann Friese games to begin with the letter “F” is 2020’s lesser-known Faiyum – a game that centres on the titular region of Faiyum. This region lies adjacent to the Bahr Yussef channel and according to Faiyum was an uninhabited swampland 4,000 years ago. Over several decades and under the instruction of […]

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15th May2024

‘Wyrmspan’ Board Game Review

by Matthew Smail

I can already imagine how Apiary designer Connie Vogelmann pitched her idea for Wyrmspan to Jamie Stegmaier of Stonemaier Games – and although I am sure it was a lot more complex than this and probably a lot smarter – in my imagination it goes something like this “do you know how much people love […]

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02nd May2024

‘Shipwrights of the North Sea: Redux’ Board Game Review

by Matthew Smail

When I first played Shipwrights of the North Sea a few years ago, I really didn’t enjoy it. I can’t recall the specific issues, but I do recall there being a huge amount of negative interaction between players, with cards that take resources away from you just as you are about to use them, and […]

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30th Apr2024

‘Word Traveler’ Board Game Review

by Matthew Smail

In Word Traveler, a group of players represents friends who are on a trip together. Each player carries with them a map of places which they’d like to visit (represented by a small card that is kept secret) and must work with the other players to visit as many of their desired locations as possible. […]

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18th Apr2024

‘Dune: War for Arrakis’ Board Game Review

by Matthew Smail

In Dune: War for Arrakis two to four players will control the opposing forces of House Atreides and House Harkonnen as they do battle to control the desert planet. Played over a series of rounds and lasting about 3 or 4 hours, Dune: War for Arrakis is actually best played by just two people. This […]

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26th Mar2024

Top 4: Board Games to Play this Easter!

by Matthew Smail

After Christmas, Easter is the largest public holiday where it is generally considered acceptable to tuck in to a huge family dinner and then eat chocolate on the sofa until you can no longer function. For me, there’s no better time to play games than when family is together, and a distraction from awful Bank […]

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20th Mar2024

‘Tomb of Annihilation’ Board Game Review

by Matthew Smail

Over the past five or ten years, the Dungeons & Dragons brand has reinvented itself not only as the most popular RPG system in the world but also as a diversified range of board, card and video games. Since 2015, the range has included a line of board games that take the core RPG system […]

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04th Mar2024

‘Star Wars Unlimited: Spark of Rebellion Starter Set’ Review

by Matthew Smail

It seems barely days ago when we first received a few images of cards from the upcoming Star Wars: Unlimited Trading Card Game (TCG) set, but here we are with a copy in hand and an official release date of 8th March. We’re lucky enough to have been sent the Spark of Rebellion Starter Set […]

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01st Mar2024

‘Cyberpunk 2077: Gangs of Night City & Families and Outcasts Expansion’ Review

by Matthew Smail

I am a huge fan of Cyberpunk 2077 (the video game) having come to it on console long after any of the controversy around its release had died down. Thanks to my love of the IP, I have been looking forward to getting a copy of Cyberpunk 2077: Gangs of Night City, even though the […]

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21st Feb2024

‘Tamashii’ Board Game Review

by Matthew Smail

Riding the wave of recently renewed interest in cyberpunk-themed games, Tamashii is a brand new IP from Awaken Realms that tells the story of a group of individuals who exist in the net as uploaded consciousnesses. These individuals exist primarily in cyberspace but have the ability to jump into physical bodies in the real world, […]

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