Tabletop Bellhop Gaming Podcast

We answer a question from one of our awesome Patreon patrons who asked what we think publishers can do to better set expectations for their board games. We also share the games we’ve been playing lately, including Grandpa Beck’s latest game, Whoa There Cowboy! Plus we dive into detailed reviews of two games where we got exactly what we expected, Alhambra Family & Friends Edition from Queen Games, and Beer & Bread from Capstone Games. Tabletop Bellhop Gaming Podcast Episode 291 was recorded on December 17th, 2025. We usually record Wednesdays at 8 PM Eastern at https://www.twitch.tv/tabletopbellhop Find full detailed show notes at https://tabletopbellhop.com/podcast/ep291/ Disclosure: Links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Games mentioned may be review copies provided by publishers. (00:00:00) CHECK-IN (00:02:23) Announcements Upcoming Events: Dec 28th - Pop up Board Game Cafe at Hidden Trail https://tabletopbellhop.com/hidden Jan 6th - ProtoWIN Game Designer Night at Hidden Trail https://tabletopbellhop.com/protowin/ Jan 22nd - Brews & Board Games at the Walkerville Brewery https://tabletopbellhop.com/local/ (00:03:39) Ask the Bellhop (00:59:01) The Bellhop’s Tabletop (01:11:08) The Game Room - Beer & Bread Beer & Bread: https://amzn.to/4qfdsQ2 Check out the Capstone Games Amazon Storefront: https://amzn.to/4qlf7n5 27 Quick & Fun Easy to Learn Two Player Board Games https://tabletopbellhop.com/gaming-advice/quick-and-easy-two-player-board-games/ 24 More of the Best Two Player Board Games for Date Night https://tabletopbellhop.com/gaming-advice/date-night-board-games/ (01:28:34) The Game Room - Alhambra Family & Friends Edition Pick up Alhambra Compact Edition: https://amzn.to/4sg7j8f Check out the Queen Games Amazon Storefront: https://amzn.to/4pcGE9v Our other Queen Games coverage: https://tabletopbellhop.com/tag/queen-games/ (01:45:26) Closing the Doors TIP THE BELLHOP: Get bonus content by becoming a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/tabletopbellhop Shop Tabletop Bellhop merch https://tabletopbellhop.com/merch Buy us a coffee https://ko-fi.com/tabletopbellhop FIND US: Webpage: https://tabletopbellhop.com Discord: https://discord.tabletopbellhop.com Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/tabletopbellhop.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tabletopbellhop/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tabletopbellhop/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/tabletopbellhop Twitch: https://twitch.tv/tabletopbellhop

This episode we share our favourite modern trick taking games, specifically games we discovered in the last few years. In addition we’ll talk about the games we’ve played since we last recorded, including some detailed first thoughts on SETI from CGE. We wrap up with two trick-taking game reviews: Lunar Skyline from Dead Alive Games and Origin Story from Stonemaier Games Tabletop Bellhop Gaming Podcast Episode 290, was recorded on December 10th, 2025. We usually try to record Wednesdays at 8 PM Eastern at https://www.twitch.tv/tabletopbellhop Find full detailed show notes at https://tabletopbellhop.com/podcast/ep290/ Disclosure: Links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Games mentioned may be review copies provided by publishers. (00:00:00) CHECK-IN (00:02:19) Announcements Upcoming Events: Dec 18th - Brews & Board Games at the Walkerville Brewery https://www.walkervillebrewery.com/events/bandbg-dec18 Dec 28th - Pop up Board Game Cafe at Hidden Trail https://tabletopbellhop.com/hidden Jan 6th - ProtoWIN Game Designer Night at Hidden Trail https://tabletopbellhop.com/protowin/ (00:03:28) Ask the Bellhop (00:21:08) The Bellhop’s Tabletop (00:42:04) The Game Room - Review of Lunar Skyline Pick up Lunar Skyline, https://amzn.to/3KL4uLp Check out the Dead Alive Games Amazon Storefront, https://amzn.to/4rSWAAm Learn more about Lunar Rush, https://www.deadalivegames.com/lunarrush (00:59:56) The Game Room - Origin Story Pick up Origin Story, https://amzn.to/4iUQdbC Check out the Stonemaier Amazon Storefront, https://amzn.to/4pIZXIo Check out our other Stonemaier Game content, https://tabletopbellhop.com/search/?q=stonemaier%20games (01:20:50) Closing the Doors TIP THE BELLHOP: Get bonus content by becoming a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/tabletopbellhop Shop Tabletop Bellhop merch https://tabletopbellhop.com/merch Buy us a coffee https://ko-fi.com/tabletopbellhop FIND US: Webpage: https://tabletopbellhop.com Discord: https://discord.tabletopbellhop.com Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/tabletopbellhop.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tabletopbellhop/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tabletopbellhop/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/tabletopbellhop Twitch: https://twitch.tv/tabletopbellhop

This episode we answer questions from our chatroom live, including talk about obscure games, if we’ve ever intentionally destroyed a game, how long we’ve been hosting local events, joining another channel, games we lose often, and more. We also share what we’ve been playing and do full reviews of Codenames Duet Second Edition from CGE and Please Don’t Burn My Village from Fireside Games. Tabletop Bellhop Gaming Podcast Episode 289, was recorded on November 12th, 2025. We usually try to record Wednesdays at 8 PM Eastern at https://www.twitch.tv/tabletopbellhop Find full detailed show notes at https://tabletopbellhop.com/podcast/ep289/ Disclosure: Links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Games mentioned may be review copies provided by publishers. (00:00:00) CHECK-IN (00:02:30) Announcements Upcoming Events: Nov 27 - Brews & Board Games at the Walkerville Brewery Dec 7th - Board Game Bazaar at Hidden Trail Dec 18th - Brews & Board Games at the Walkerville Brewery Taking some time off, we probably won’t be back until December 10th at the earliest. Find holiday deals on tabletop games here: https://tabletopbellhop.com/tabletop-deals/ (00:04:09) Ask the Bellhop (01:00:22) The Bellhop’s Tabletop (01:15:40) The Game Room - Review of Codenames Duet Second Edition Pick up the new edition: https://amzn.to/4o35b09 Check out the CGE Amazon store: https://amzn.to/4ikQrIZ Check out our original Codenames Duet Review On the blog https://tabletopbellhop.com/game-reviews/codenames-duet/ On YouTube: https://youtu.be/qMqoTztp61M?si=ZzX6Y46o0FURf4vC (01:27:28) The Game Room - Review of Please Don’t Burn My Village! Pick up Please Don’t Burn My Village! https://amzn.to/4oGiQv8 Visit the Fireside Games Store on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3XwTl3q Check out our other Fireside Games content: https://tabletopbellhop.com/search/?q=fireside (01:37:27) Closing the Doors TIP THE BELLHOP: Get bonus content by becoming a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/tabletopbellhop Shop Tabletop Bellhop merch https://tabletopbellhop.com/merch Buy us a coffee https://ko-fi.com/tabletopbellhop FIND US: Webpage: https://tabletopbellhop.com Discord: https://discord.tabletopbellhop.com Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/tabletopbellhop.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tabletopbellhop/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tabletopbellhop/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/tabletopbellhop Twitch: https://twitch.tv/tabletopbellhop

This week, we reduce our question pile by answering three of your questions that aren’t quite involved enough to warrant a full podcast episode; one on favourite games and game styles, one on cons, and one on the state of the industry. We also share thoughts on How to Save a World from Burnt Island Games and do full reviews of both Slanguage from Foxmind and The Lord of the Rings the Fellowship of the Ring Trick Taking Game from Office Dog. Tabletop Bellhop Gaming Podcast Episode 288, was recorded on November 5th, 2025. We usually try to record Wednesdays at 8 PM Eastern at https://www.twitch.tv/tabletopbellhop Find full detailed show notes at https://tabletopbellhop.com/podcast/ep288/ Disclosure: Links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Games mentioned may be review copies provided by publishers. (00:00:00) CHECK-IN (00:02:04) Announcements (00:04:02) Ask the Bellhop - We Answer Three Questions The Bellhop’s Tabletop - What we’ve been playing (00:40:17) The Game Room - Slanguage Buy Slanguage https://amzn.to/4p4kYNj Visit the FoxMind Amazon Storefront https://amzn.to/43kRuSO Our other party game reviews: https://tabletopbellhop.com/search/?q=party%20game (00:51:40) The Game Room - The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring – Trick-Taking Game Pick up The Fellowship of the Ring Trick-Taking Game https://amzn.to/4hS7Bxc Check out the Asmodee Amazon Storefront https://amzn.to/47unAxR Other Lord of the Rings games we’ve covered: https://tabletopbellhop.com/search/?q=lord%20of%20the%20rings (01:08:32) Closing the Doors TIP THE BELLHOP: Get bonus content by becoming a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/tabletopbellhop Shop Tabletop Bellhop merch https://tabletopbellhop.com/merch Buy us a coffee https://ko-fi.com/tabletopbellhop FIND US: Webpage: https://tabletopbellhop.com Discord: https://discord.tabletopbellhop.com Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/tabletopbellhop.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tabletopbellhop/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tabletopbellhop/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/tabletopbellhop Twitch: https://twitch.tv/tabletopbellhop

This episode we share our favourite games where you level up or power up during the game, but that aren’t campaign games. To go with that we’ve got a spoiler free review of Vantage from Stonemaier Games. We also review Tea Witches from The Op, share first thoughts on How to Save A World, talk about our first ever Pop Up Board Game Cafe, and more. Tabletop Bellhop Gaming Podcast Episode 287, was recorded on October 29th, 2025. We usually try to record Wednesdays at 8 PM Eastern at https://www.twitch.tv/tabletopbellhop Find full detailed show notes at https://tabletopbellhop.com/podcast/ep287/ Disclosure: Links may be affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Games mentioned may be review copies provided by publishers. (00:00:00) Checking In (00:01:53) Ask the Bellhop (00:35:12) The Bellhop's Tabletop (00:53:02) The Game Room - Review of Vantage Pick up a copy, https://amzn.to/3JFdml7 Pick up the Vantage Playmats, https://amzn.to/4oMTxax Or the upgraded Skill Tokens, https://amzn.to/4oQ5EDU Visit Stonemaier Games on Amazon, https://amzn.to/3LlriBc Our other Stonemaier content: https://tabletopbellhop.com/search/?q=stonemaier (01:29:24) The Game Room - Review of Tea Witches Pick up Tea Witches, https://miniature-market.sjv.io/4G4E6M Pick up the Deluxe Upgrade Kit, https://miniature-market.sjv.io/qzPyrj Check out our GAMA Expo 2025 Coverage: https://tabletopbellhop.com/podcast/ep267/ We’ve covered a lot of games from The Op: https://tabletopbellhop.com/search/?q=The%20Op (01:54:08) Closing the Doors TIP THE BELLHOP: Get bonus content by becoming a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/tabletopbellhop Shop Tabletop Bellhop merch https://tabletopbellhop.com/merch Buy us a coffee https://ko-fi.com/tabletopbellhop FIND US: Webpage: https://tabletopbellhop.com Discord: https://discord.tabletopbellhop.com Blue Sky: https://bsky.app/profile/tabletopbellhop.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tabletopbellhop/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tabletopbellhop/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/tabletopbellhop Twitch: https://twitch.tv/tabletopbellhop