So, have you all made a list of designers and stalls you wanna check out ? Any games that stood out to you ? Anyone volunteering or considering it ? Tips and tricks to share ?
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Here! 👋
At present I have two must-buys:
- Challengers (just waited with this to see whether there’s maybe a promo or two at the Spiel)
- Sky Team
And the list of games I want to take a look at, SideQuest, Lacuna, Splash Party, Earthborne Rangers, Stationfall, Ohanami, Whale to Look, Magical Friends And Where To Find Them, Redwood, Tiwanaku.
As for how to generally handle the Spiel, it depends on what you want to do. Are you more hunting for games you cannot readily get during the year, or old used games that are no longer available? Then ideally have a rough idea what you’re looking for and which companies will sell it, then once the hall plans are your note down who in which hall and where, and then simply do one first lap of just those places before you stop to window shop or play games.
OTOH, if you’re mostly there to try things out, I would exaclty not have too many plans. Just wander about. Do window shopping. Maybe try to do hall-by-hall so you know when you’re “done” with a hall. It’s also a bit much for a single day in this case.Imma check out the games you listed, they sound interesting!
Yeah, I have some games I’m picking up using the auction. Potentially math trade too ?
This year, my plan is to play more and shop less. I really regret purchases like precognition and don’t want to make such a mistake again. Also keen on working for some of the publishers as a volunteer “rules explainer”. Let’s see how that goes 😅
I am going for all 4 days. So, don’t have to worry about going through all the halls in a day.
Not yet. I usually don’t make a list until a few days before it starts. But maybe I won’t prepare anything at all this time.
I’m more focused on playing games for fun now, rather than getting the best deals like I did 5 years ago. The SPIEL is good for trying out games, sometimes even before release, or getting some exclusive bonus expansions, but not so much for getting cheap prices anymore.
Besides, I don’t want to add to my huge collection until I have more time to play games. So this time I may just go unprepared and see what looks interesting.
Hmm, sounds good to me. I’m gonna focus on playing too. I am glad I was able to get Turing machine then but kind of have a fomo on such games this year. Hopefully I can see past that 🙈
I wanna try working at the stalls for some producers during Spielmesse (you explain games to visitors and it’s on fhift basis) but don’t know how that affects taxes etc because I’m already full time employed. Oh well, to be determined
Turing Machine is actually the only game on my wish list this year. It’s the perfect match for me as I love solving logical puzzles, work in IT and like to play board games instead of sitting in front of a display all the time. The Steam game Turing Complete was already a dream come true for me.
There is no impact on taxes as long as your Nebenverdienst is not higher than 520€ a month. You also don’t have to pay social security contributions in that case.
Thanks for the tax advice ! ❤️
This year I’ll probably there again for 2 days with a group that has more planning than me so I’m just along for the ride for specific things they are looking for. Other than that strolling along and sitting down whenever something seems interesting is my approach. If there is enough play-tables for Spiel des Jahres /Kennerspiel des Jahres surely they’ll be checked out although Dorfromantik I already played there last year.
It’s a couple hours by car from where I live, so I’m probably too lazy to go…
I live less than an hour away, so I’d be really lazy not to go there.
I think meeting there with friends is the best incentive for those who live far away.
Ohhh I’m so jealous. Travelling all the way from Berlin here. At least, by now, I have a constant Airbnb place I book for Spielmesse
Have never been but looking to be convinced to go hehe, is it nice for people who are into boardgames but not necessarily pros? Like, is it approachable and not intimidating?
Edit: thanks for the responses, me and my partner are definitely going! Gonna be a blast I’m sure!!
In my experience it’s pretty much for everyone with any interest in board games. For most games there will be an erklärbär (someone to explain the game) and several tryout tables. I’ve only gone with a small group so far but there is certainly always room for 1 or 2 players somewhere as well, you’ll need to be open playing with strangers in that case but generally it’s nice people.
The games featured are everything you can think of and more. Last year I spent at least 20min building marble slides at one of the stands but also played 1/3 of a rather complex game, where 1/3 took 45min. We also played 2 rounds of the magnificent party game SoKleever. +at least 10 other games
I would consider it if you can imagine yourself spending a day(or a few) just playing boardgames and strolling along.
The intimidating thing for me is more the setting of a large trade fair, especially if you’ve never been to one, certainly it’s not as bad as gamsecom in Köln, but it can definitely be pretty crowded.
The size can make it a bit intimidating but there’s literally something for everyone. There are kids games, family games, party games, advanced games, super heavy games, roleplaying games, wargames and probably some I’m forgetting now. There are toys, accessories, fan stuff, everything.
I went alone for many years, I’ve gone with my GF, I’ve gone with friends. Every experience is a bit different but I’ve never not had fun. The only negative thing I’ve ever experienced was some people hogging a table for a game I really wanted to try but most booths now are pretty good about queueing up.
One thing you have to understand though is that Essen is a fair not a convention. While you can play games, you won’t necessarily get to finish them. Some booths have time slots and will tell you to wrap it up when yours is over. And if you play with strangers some might only be looking to “get a taste” for it and then move on. But if you’re “stationed” in Essen for the night there are several hotspots where you can go to play properly.
