Mountain Surfing

Designer board games are something that is generally considered to have been started in Germany, and while sometimes referred to as German style board games, this title can be misleading. Designer board games have come from nearly every country and all have great success stories in the popularity they enjoy with fans. Many different Americans, for example, have produced vastly popular designer board games. A number of designer board games do come from Germany, however, but despite the intimidating nature of the titles, players should feel comfortable with any of these games. They often are similar to many games that players already know and love, but often present some form of twist or enhancement that can make them even more enjoyable!

Good designer board games all feature some sort of theme which unites the strategy and methods used within the game. Sometimes these themes can seem somewhat bizarre and unsuitable for a game, but that is also part of the charm of the designer game. Once such game, Bohnanza, is technically about bean farming, which causes many a player to raise an eyebrow. However, the real game deals with heavy negotiation and trading between players. By using different cards dealt from the deck, players must plant different bean crops, trade for certain bean crops, and eventually harvest the crops to gain money in return. The player who, at the end of the game, has the largest amount of money wins. While initially sounding a bit ridiculous, Bohnanza provides players with much enjoyment as the strategy needed in the game always changes based on the other players.

Tigris and Euphrates is another designer board game which enjoys much popularity with fans. Based on ancient civilizations, this game gives players the chance to act as neighboring dynasties which are clashing over this region. Players randomly select tiles from a bag and during the game, place these tiles in strategic positions around the board, gaining control of areas to expand their kingdoms. Different tiles stand for different aspects of the game and through careful placement, players can build and strengthen their domains in ways that will reap vast benefits. At the end of the game, players collect points based on the numbers and types of tiles that they have placed, and the player with the largest number of tiles is declared the winner of the game.

Scotland Yard is a designer game that pits one player against the others in a team. One player is designated as "Mr. X," a fugitive from the law who is running around London, trying to avoid capture. The other players all form the law enforcement team trying to arrest him before a certain time limit has passed and Mr. X can roam free. The board is a map of London, marked with certain transportation routes and all of the stops along those routes. All players are forced to travel along these routes, with Mr. X trying to evade capture while the other players pursue. The twist is that only 3 forms of transportation are available and each one can only be used a certain number of times by the police team.

Much strategy and careful teamwork is required with these games, as with most designer board games. However, with the many different varieties and themes available, it is no wonder that they have become as popular as they are. Everyone should be able to find a game that suits their interests!

Victor Epand is an expert consultant for board games, chess boards, and dungeons and dragons miniatures. You will find all these things and more if you visit designer board games, chess boards

AP - Before resting from the grueling presidential race, John McCain began discussing with senior aides what role he will play in the Senate now that he has promised to work with the man who defeated him for president.

In the 60's and 70's it was The Beatles vs Rolling Stones. In the 80's it was Lakers vs Celtics. In the 90's the topic that saw so many schoolyard arguments was indeed Mario vs Sonic. Who would win in a fight? Who would win in a race? Who cooks a better omelet? You name it, it was argued. There were no characters as recognised to children of the 90's as Sonic and Mario, with Sonic's "Q Score" (a rating that rates something based on it's popularity) even surpassing that of Mickey Mouse. With such results, it seemed obvious this rivalry wouldn't die out quickly.

Contrary to popular belief, Mario made his debut in the 1981 Donkey Kong game for the arcade. Although he was called "Jumpman" he looked exactly the same as the Mario that appeared in the first game with his name in the title "Mario Bros." This was a basic game that didn't scroll, and it required killing all the enemies in a "Phase" and then progressing to the next phase. In this age, it is hard to see the appeal of this game, but in it's time it was rather entertaining.

Mario's game that propelled him to the status of a household name was the first "Super Mario Bros" for the NES which is now the best selling video game of all time. This was the first side scrolling Mario game and it set a standard for all the 16 bit Mario games to come. While it was not the first side scrolling platformer, it was the first done well, and allowed other developers to copy the formula. For this reason, this game is hailed by many as the saviour of the video game industry as the industry was in a great deal of trouble before it's release.

Possibly more noteworthy, was Mario's transition into the 3d world. Super Mario 64 for the Nintendo 64 received perfect scores from countless professional review companies. It is still seen today as the best ever 3d platformer, and many have tried but failed to replicate the success of Super Mario 64.

Sonic's creators knew from the beginning that Sega needed a mascot for it's Genesis/Mega Drive system that could help market it's console to compete with Mario and the Super Nintendo. They looked at Mario and perceived him as stuffy and uninteresting and decided to tap into the younger generation who was after something "cooler" with more attitude. After many considerations including "Mighty the Armadillo" Sonic the Hedgehog was decided on and a team of 15 began work on what would be the first Sonic game, "Sonic the Hedgehog" for the Genesis/Mega Drive.

Popular opinion said Sonic didn't really hit his straps until the second game for the 16 bit console. In this his little sidekick Tails was introduced and collecting all the chaos emeralds saw Sonic transform into "Super Sonic" which was a yellow, super fast super strong version of the character.

Sonic's 3d games however have not seen the success of it's rival Mario. Sonic 3d Blast for the Genesis/Mega Drive was an average attempt, and it wasn't until the Dreamcast where we saw a 3d Sonic game that was really worth playing called "Sonic Adventure." However, since creating that formula that worked perfectly, Sega have made odd choices with games forcing you to play as Sonic's less entertaining sidekicks to access the fun Sonic levels. Sonic the Hedgehog on the 360/PS3 received awful reviews. Sonic and the Secret Rings for the Wii seems to be the only game since Sonic Adventure that has really got it right with Sega finally realising that what made the originals so fun, was Sonic's blistering speed.

Sega's decision to no longer create consoles has no seen the creation of the first game where Mario and Sonic can go head to head called "Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games." After selling about 1 million copies of this game, it is clear this rivalry is still alive and kicking. Many have no doubt thought back to those schoolyard arguments and thought "Finally! I can prove x is better than y!"

Whatever your opinion is, it's no doubt you haven't seen your last debate on the topic. Just remember when you're ready to rip someone's throat out, it's only a game.

Mario and Sonic's battles will never end, and as long as they continue my blog will continue writing opinion pieces on the topic. Check out Wii want to Blog for all my adventures in Wii (and general gaming) including reviews, opinion pieces and news!

Politico - In his first major move as president-elect, Barack Obama has asked Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.), a tough-minded tactician with West Wing experience, to serve as his White House chief of staff, Democratic sources tell Politico.