When I got into the world of board games, and started working on creating BoardGameGeek in 1999-2000 there was very little information online about them. (I've recently reminisced about this with Rich Sommer on Cardboard if you want to hear more.) Along with The Game Cabinet, Brett & Board and Steffan O'Sullivan's Blog was The Board Room.
The Board Room was posted on a semi-regular basis on the website USALive.com. Starting in December of 1999, the show was groundbreaking in that it was one of the first (if not the first) online video show that exclusively covered board games. It ran 85 episodes up until February 25th, 2001.
I remember excitedly watching every new episode using RealPlayer to stream them (YouTube was but a glimmer in Chad Hurley & Steve Chen's eyes). The show was hosted by Bob Schwartz, and occasionally co-hosted by Drew Kail and sometimes a call in guest - many of whom are still very active in the board gaming world.
I recently spoke with the host Bob about the show and how much it impacted my life, and he provided me with the episodes to share with everyone here. Thank you to Jerry Dzuiba for the conversion of the video source files. N/A
I decided to start with posting a monster 6 part episode that features Bob along with Reiner Knizia(!) via phone going into an incredible amount of depth on my favorite game of all time - Tigris & Euphrates. So I think this is a fitting way to start. They finish with a quick preview of The Lord of the Rings (another of my faves). So here they are!
Part 1 - Bob and Reiner give a high level overview of the game.
Part 2 - Reiner gives his thoughts on the scoring mechanism in the game and compares it to Chess, Through the Desert and Samurai followed by a discussion on leader placement and formation of a monument.
Part 3 - Reiner describes internal leader conflict, and the tactical reasons to do so.
Part 4 - Reiner describes external leader conflict and treasure tiles.
Part 5 - Reiner discusses the origins of the design of the game which started in earnest in 1995. He also talks about some ideas that he eventually rejected. Reiner also comments on the "tile-laying trilogy" label that some people had placed on Tigris & Euphrates, Through the Desert and Samurai.
Part 6 - Reiner discusses his upcoming game designs including The Lord of the Rings.
I look forward to sharing my love of The Board Room with you in the future.
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