"New" is the new "Nieuw"

Nieuw Amsterdam, my game released through Dutch publisher White Goblin Games last year, has now been picked up by a North American publisher.  Pandasaurus Games in the U.S. has put the game on crowdsourcing site Kickstarter which is the first time any of my games have been funded in this way. It is now over 400% funded with 12 days still to go, and that's without any huge benefits or stretch goals.  It's encouraging to see that the game's reputation speaks for itself, without any major gimmicks and extras. 

The biggest change is in the spelling of the game, with the Dutch "Nieuw" being replaced by the English "New."  Despite having a Dutch publisher for the original game, I was actually the one who insisted on using the original spelling of the colony, mainly because I liked the historical significance and thought that it would help the game stand out in Essen among hobbyists, where Latin names like Agricola and Alea Iacta Est are commonplace. I'm not at all bothered by the name change for the North American market, however, and am excited that the game will now have a wider distribution. If you are interested in the game, there are still 12 days left to pledge!  You can see my explanation of the game at Essen on BoardGameGeek.

104 Games to Play...from my Collection

On the Opinionated Gamers website, we came up with the idea of creating "bucket list" for gaming hobbyists, recommending games to try at least once in their lives.
As I wrote earlier, however, I also have a list of games I'm trying to get though, namely those that I have collected during my euphoric "first years in the hobby" when everything was new and--thanks to Berlin flea markets and department store clearance sales--relatively inexpensive.

Since that time, however, I've come to the realization that too big of a game collection is a bit overwhelming for me (not to mention my wife and children), and I have been intentionally and methodically trying out unplayed games, trading or giving away many of them afterwards.  I've also gotten rid of a few after reading the rules, deciding ahead of time that I'd rather try something else.
I wrote about my first attempts a year ago, and following is an update on which games I've enjoyed and kept, which ones I was ready to part with, and a list of the final 104 games that remain unplayed.

POSTCARD FROM BERLIN #60: Game Design for Grade School

It's been awhile...work and family have taken priority, and game design has taken up any free moments I've had apart from those.  But after teaching a classroom of 4th-6th graders about game design for a whole week, I found myself writing notes about my experience, and it soon turned into an article.  You can read my latest Postcard From Berlin on the Opinionated Gamers website.  Perhaps you'll have the opportunity to teach game design to children too!