The BrainCast

Join Chris and Johnny as they wrap up the first season of the BrainCast. They take a look back at their first year of podcasting as well as how things have gone for Brainwave Games. They are excited to share what didn't go so well but also the highlights of 2021-22 as they developed several games and created season 1 of the podcast.  

Chris and Johnny will be back early 2023 with a new season of the BrainCast! Until then, have a great holiday season and happy gaming! 

Chris and Johnny from Brainwave Games tackle the holiday themed game! As they head into October, Chris and Johnny felt it was a good time to discuss the ever perplexing but sometimes interesting holiday themed game, analyzing the purpose of these types of games, if its more difficult to design a game for a holiday season, and what might their favorite holiday and holiday inspired game might be! 

Be forewarned, this is not a top 10 list episode (both Johnny and Chris don't care for those so they didn't make one!) 

Welcome back listeners! On today's episode, Johnny takes a deep dive into IP games. He looks at what makes them so interesting and unappealing at the same time, if knock-offs are as good as the real thing, and if its worth the hassle to work within the confines of a IP license for your game or just stick to your original design. 

(Sorry for the delay between this episode and the last one, personal responsibilities came up and we both have had to adjust our schedule accordingly. But that is behind us now and we should be able to drop episodes more frequently!) 

Join Chris and John from BrainWave Games as they discuss IP (Intellectual Property) games vs Non-IP games, what are IP games in general, if Non-IP games are at a disadvantage, and whether you should invest your money and time in some of the more interesting IP games out there or stick with the traditional but exciting Non-IP games. Stay tuned and hope you enjoy! 

Welcome back all! Join Chris and Johnny as they dive into another 3BG (Build a Better Board Game) episode and talk about the mechanic of "Legacy". This3BG episode is a little different as it takes on more of an opinion feel to it but that is due to the strange nature of the "Legacy" mechanic. Chris and Johnny try to determine how it differs from the "Campaign" mechanic, what are the benefits or downsides of implementing this mechanic and if its even worth adding to your boardgames. So without further ado, lets get this episode started! 

Sorry for the delay in getting this brand new episode in your hands (or ears really!) but without further delay here is this week's new episode. Join Johnny in what he now calls "The Review Round-Up" where he tackles a game review of "Lost Ruins of Arnak". Now while we have talked about this game before (mainly how it confuses us with its mechanics), Johnny does a deeper dive into why they might have chosen the mechanics they did, what he thinks might have been better alternatives, and lists the pros and cons of the game overall. Yes, Johnny does list pros for Lost Ruins! So, join him for this adventure and if you like what you hear, don't forget to hit the subscribe button or leave a positive review at the end of the episode. 

Thanks and Happy Gaming! 

Join Chris and John on this episode of Build a Better Board Game (or 3BG) as they review the game mechanic of pass and play. They look at what games the pass and play mechanic works especially well for, some of the games that employs the mechanic well, the plusses and minuses of the mechanic, and determine its overall effectiveness.

Remember to check us out on Instagram or Facebook @ Brainwave Games or leave us a comment wherever you are listening to our podcasts, whether that's on the web or through an app like Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google podcasts, etc. We would love to hear from you! 

Chris and Johnny from BrainWave Games discuss what is the best number of players for board games (2-4 or other), what goes into deciding what is the optimal number, industry trends, and why Johnny can't stick to a budget for his boardgames designs. Enjoy the episode! 

On this episode, join Johnny from Brainwave Games as he does an in-depth game review of Lords of Waterdeep, one of the first games that him and I started playing years ago. He goes into the mechanics of the game, what works and doesn't in his opinion, and why it's a great alternative for those players that enjoy fantasy based games but don't play D&D. And don't worry John will work on his jokes for the next episode. 

Hope you guys enjoy and if you like the episode, go ahead and leave us a review or click subscribe to the podcast. Appreciate it and see you all next week! 

Chris 

Welcome back fellow gamers! On this latest episode, Chris and Johnny sit back and discuss the finer points of game owning. Each person's game shelf is a sacred thing so they talk about what it takes for a game to land on theirs, the marketing that works on them, and what types of games they would like see more of from publishers. Hope you enjoy! 

Join Chris and John on this episode of 3BG or Build a Better Board Game as they take a deeper look at the game mechanics of deck building and card drafting. They analyze the usefulness of both, look at how they are used in some of their favorite (and no-so favorite games) and determine their effectiveness overall. 

Remember to check us out on Instagram or Facebook @ Brainwave Games or leave us a comment here on Apple Podcasts. 

Welcome to the Braincast! In this episode, Johnny tries something a little different, going solo mode while reviewing the game King of Tokyo. He takes a look at the mechanics, the game play, and the other intangibles that make King of Tokyo such an interesting gateway game for folks. He's got plenty of other games on his shelf so get ready to hear more game reviews! 

Welcome back listeners! Chris and Johnny start off 2022 by examining the boardgame market and opinion back and forth on a) if it is oversaturated, b) what may have caused the over saturation, and c) if we are that far off of a crash. Hope you guys enjoy and look forward to engaging with you all in this new year! 

Join Chris and Johnny as they tackle another 3BG episode and discuss the ultimate game mechanic, Worker Placement. They discuss the pros and cons of the mechanic as well as some of their favorite games that successfully employ worker placement. Hope you enjoy! 

First off let me say sorry for the long delay in releasing a new episode! Things have been crazy here at Brainwave Games as well as in other work we are involved in. We have had this episode in the can for a few weeks but I had not had a chance to upload it till now. So here you are, an opinion episode as John and I discuss CCG's as a genre games and if either of us thinks they are in the same league as board games. 

On top of the this podcast episode, I will be releasing another one here soon that will provide an update on our KickStarter campaign for EDP. We had to make some changes but I will get to that in the next episode. 

So in the meantime, enjoy! 

This episode kicks off the first in our miniseries of BBBG series, or Build a Better Board Game. In these episodes of the BBBG miniseries we will take a more in-depth look at the mechanics that drive some of our favorite games, why they might have been chosen, and how anyone can apply them to their own game! We also provide sneak previews of which mechanics we have applied to our own games and why we chose them. 

Hope you enjoy! 

We are Brainwave Games and we are glad you have joined us for our new podcast, The BrainCast! On this episode, we introduce ourselves and give you an overview of what we plan to bring to the table this season. Boardgame table that is.....