Flip the Table (general)
Most board game shows focus on the latest-and-greatest, or time-tested classics. We have taken it upon ourselves to comb our local charity shops and salvage stores for the other stuff...join us as we review cheesy, weird, and obscure board games for your entertainment.

Say "Hasta la vista" to boredom and get ready to join us for a rousing game of "Terminator 2: Judgement Day"...a board game based on the blockbuster film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. This game sees players racing to collect floppy diskettes and Terminator parts while fleeing the dreaded T-1000 as they prepare for the deadly final battle at the local steel mill. Will this game get a "Thumbs-up," or will it become self-aware and destroy us all? Plus; we dig into Arnold's back catalog in the Battle of Wits. Download now!

Direct download: FlipTheTable043.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:35pm EDT

It's our first ever LIVE podcast, recorded at BGG.con 2013! Our guest Eric Summerer from The Dice Tower joins us as we play Saved By the Bell from 1992, a pick-up-and-deliver game where players earn points by hanging out with the gang from Bayside and going on a date with both Zack AND Slater! Race around the school while avoiding detention and asking your friends uncomfortable questions about their classmates. Enjoy 54 unique(ish) images of the Bayside gang and collect your favorite ones to score valuable points. Over 2 decades later, did this game hold up as well as its namesake television program? Plus, a Battle of Wits you won't want to miss!

Direct download: FlipTheTable042.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:05pm EDT

They had faces of foam rubber and hearts of gold...but do they have what it takes to make a great board game? Flip the Table investigates as we play The Muppet Show! This late 70's title features the wacky Muppetational stylings of Kermit, Fozzy, Miss Piggy, and the whole gang, and thrusts them into a madcap world of clinical, tactical movement. Which Muppets will reach the footlights and take their place on the big stage? How in the world does the mysterious Double Spinner factor in? What do Statler and Waldorf have to say about all this? Download now to find out!

Direct download: FlipTheTable041.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:38pm EDT

In this special episode, we play 3 generations of games about the FABULOUS, SIXTY-MINUTE Price is Right! First, we go all the way back to the sixties and enjoy the trick-taking madness of Bid it Right: The Price is Right...where we fight over bowling balls and jigsaws to see who can earn the most cash. Then, it's a trip to 1986 where we play The Price is Right Board Game...a game which blends basic appraisal skills with a little Dungeons & Dragons. Finally, we play the 2008 Price is Right DVD Game, and see if modern technology can improve upon the formula. Which TPIR game is the superior experience? Come on down and find out!

Direct download: FlipTheTable040.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:05pm EDT

This week, Flip the Table returns to the wacky world of Mad Magazine for a trip back in time to the Cold War...where the White Spy and Black Spy eternally engage in an epic duel on behalf of vague (but menacing) government agencies. Welcome to Spy Vs. Spy: The Board Game, where you and up to 3 others can build tunnels in search of deadly bombs and inexplicably bring them back to your home base, presumably while lit. Use tiles from your hand to build routes, and play your sabotage tiles to block in rival spies and force them to juggle hissing explosives turn after turn in hopes they somehow make it back home before their inevitable destruction. The question: does this game feel like the bleakness of the Cold War, or the fun, youthful spirit of the Cola Wars? Plus: Wrong Scattergories!

Direct download: FlipTheTable039.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:18pm EDT

Way back in 2001, when the dot-com bubble was bursting and the Internet was crumbling to dust in front of our eyes, one company had the foresight to create a time capsule of what would most assuredly be a distant memory 12 years later...a way to teach generation after generation about the thrill and excitement of online auctions. Now, in 2013, contributing Flipsters Ben and Niki Turner stop by to play the eBay Electronic Talking Auction Game! We let the soothing voice of the electronic squawk box guide us through 30 auctions of indeterminate length. Who will bid their way to victory and get the best assortment of random junk? And can we find the off switch? Find out now!

Direct download: FlipTheTable038.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:10pm EDT

What problem has ever been solved by "Less power"? No important one, that's for sure. This week, we play the Home Improvement board game, where players roll, move, and grunt their way through the magical world of drywall, circuit testers, and subjective answers to trivia questions. It's a game that combines a little bit of Talisman, a little bit of Monopoly, and a whole lot of home improvement (the activity, not the sitcom). Who will be the first to capture the crown of command complete their jobs in the project house? Plus: which panelist is dreamier than Jonathan Taylor Thomas? (Spoiler: Nobody. Don't be stupid.)

Direct download: FlipTheTable037.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:55pm EDT

What do you get when you combine rubber bands, six sided dice, and The Prisoner's Dilemma? The Olympics, of course! This week, we're playing the Bruce Jenner Decathlon game from 1979! This vintage Parker Brothers title features Olympic Gold Medalist turned Kardashian stepfather Bruce Jenner guiding you through a magical journey through 10 track and field events which play out suspiciously like the same 3 mini-games repeated over and over again. Flick plastic discs at rubber bands and exercise your basic arithmetic skills on your way to the Gold! The question is, did this game eat its Wheaties for breakfast, or is it really full of Little Chocolate Donuts? Download now to find out!

Direct download: FlipTheTable036.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:01pm EDT

This week, it's the Doctor Who Time Travelling Action Game!!! Oooh-WHEEE-Oooooooooh!!! WHEEEEE-oooh-WHOOOOOOOO!!!! Woooooo-OOOOOOh-oooooooh, Doooooo, d-doooooo... (Dum-da-da-dum, da-dum-da-da-dum, da-dum-da-dum) WHEEEOOOOOOOO, woooooo-OOOOOOOH!!!! Plus: Wrong Scattergories.

Direct download: FlipTheTable035.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:53pm EDT

We hope you've brought your Cliff's Notes, because this week's episode is about Pride and Prejudice: The Board Game! Based on the timeless Jane Austen novel which celebrates its 200th anniversary this year, this roll and mover pits players against each-other in a 19th century smackdown to find out who is the king and queen of regency life. Listen as the Flip the Table panel fails miserably to understand anything about Pride and Prejudice, guessing blindly at trivia questions about the novel as we flail our way to the church by exact count to win the game. Does this title adequately prepare us for life in 19th century British high society? Plus: we play Apples Against Prejudice in the Battle of Wits! Join us, won't you?

Direct download: FlipTheTable034.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:58pm EDT