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Overland Gamer The Podcast - Board Game Spotlight Episode 38 - No Honor Among Thieves from Carpe Omnis Games

8/27/2020

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Board Game Spotlight where we take a look at games that we have come across and share them with our readers and listeners. Today's game is No Honor Among Thieves and comes from Carpe Omnis Games. Players compete to become the thief with the most gold at the end of the game. Players can recruit other players to help out but must beware that the other players may be planning to betray the heist as there is No Honor Among Thieves. 

No Honor Among Thieves

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Players: 3-6 players | Playing Time: 90-120 min | Age: 13+
Designer: Adam A Watts |  Artist: Luka Arh
Publisher: Carpe Omnis Games

 Listen to the Podcast Episode Here

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Players compete to assemble their crew of thieves and seek out the riches in the kingdom. Play cards and Heist your way to fill your pockets with gold to be the richest thief in the kingdom. But beware your opponents may be willing to help you out but they might also try to stab you in the back as there is No Honor Among Thieves. 
The goal is to win the game with the most coins. When stage 3 objectives have been completed the game ends. 
No Honor Among Thieves is a difficult game with the right players. It’s fun and mischievous when players try to work against the other players. You never know if folks going on the heist will be your allies or stab you in the back. 

The quality of the game components are very nice. The box is sturdy and well put together. 
The artwork for the cards is well designed. Each card says what it does on it so there's little iconography with this game. 
Gameplay is a bit complex trying to figure out the different actions and stages. 
This is definitely a fun game for those who like to mess with your fellow players.


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More information about Carpe Omnis Games can be found at 
https://www.carpeomnis.com/
https://www.facebook.com/carpeomnisgames/
https://twitter.com/carpeomnisgames/
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From The Dice Wall
Game On Games - Kearney Nebraska
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Overland Gamer The Podcast - Board Game Spotlight Episode 37 - Roll for your life Candyman from Smirk and Dagger Games

8/25/2020

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Board Game Spotlight is where we take a look at games that we have come across. We share a little bit about the game and what our thoughts were about it. Today's game is a super fun, super fast Gingerbread Cookie slaying good time. 

Roll For Your Life Candyman

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Players: 2-4 players | Playing Time: 10-30 Min | Age: 8+
Designer: Andy Geremia
Artist: Curt Covert
​ Publisher: Smirk and Dagger Games

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Roll dice looking for 4 of a kind. Remove opponents pieces from their gingerbread cookies before they remove yours. Last one standing wins the round. Score points at the end of each round based on the cookie bits you have left, cookie trophies you have taken, and sweet treats you have collected. The person with the most points at the end of the specified number of rounds wins. Roll for Your Life Candyman!

This game is fast and fun. It is quick to pick up and lively at the table. The dice are easy to read but sometimes when going super quick the boots and gloves look very similar. The pieces of the gingerbread cookies are very well designed. Following the button color to match the dice was kind of odd at the beginning. It would be nice if the buttons were easier identified. But this issue is minor.
​

The game is simple enough for my 9 year old to pick up the basics. It took him us a bit to get used to returning the candy cane to the middle of the table. Oftentimes it was “Stop… oh give me that!”

3 rounds seems to be a good metric to go on. If you have games that go on longer it can be easier for someone to run away with the score. The Sweet Treats provide a good balance to the game. Triggering those after you take them from an opponent can be quite fun.

The game comes with candy cane daggers and little speech bubbles. They don’t mean anything but they make for an interesting bit about the table as you play. Along with the fun visuals each gingerbread cookie has an arm with a weapon.
This game is really fun and quick for a wide range of ages. 

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More information about Smirk and Dagger games can be found here
website https://www.smirkanddagger.com/roll-candyman
Board Game Geek - https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/254613/roll-your-life-candyman
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From The Dice Wall
Hobbytown USA (main Lincoln store) - https://www.facebook.com/HobbyTownLincolnSouth

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Overland Gamer The Podcast - Board Game Spotlight Episode 36 - Tiny Epic Zombies from Gamelyn Games

8/20/2020

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Board Game Spotlight is where we take a brief look at games that we have come across. We talk a little bit about the game and share our thoughts about the game. 

Tiny Epic Zombies
​Gamelyn Games

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Players 1-5 | Playing Time: 30-45 | Age 14+
Designer: Scott Almes
Artist: Miguel Coimbra, Benjamin Shulman

Listen to the episode here

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Tiny Epic Zombies is a fun zombie survival game. The game comes with multiple game modes that allow players to either go against each other or cooperate against the zombies. Typically survivor players are trying to complete objectives to win the game. The zombie players are trying to eat their way to victory by eliminating their opponents (in the game). 

Tiny Epic Zombies has a decent footprint at the table and has been a joy for us to bring to our table. 
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More information about Gamelyn Games can be found at their website and social media pages. 
website https://www.gamelyngames.com/
Like us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/GamelynGames
Follow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/Gamelyn_Games
Board Game Geek - https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/244536/tiny-epic-zombies
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Overland Gamer The Podcast - Board Game Spotlight Episode 35 - Facility 07 from Never Engine Games

8/18/2020

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Board Game Spotlight where we take a brief look at games that we have come across. This one is an IGA special pre-kickstarter treat. Today we're taking a look at Facility 07 from Never Engine Games

Facility 07
​Never Engine Games
Kickstarter Launches September 15th, 2020

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Players: 2-6 players |  Playing Time: 45-180 min | Age: 14+
Designer and Artist: Trevor Scott
​ Publisher: Never Engine Games

Listen to the Podcast Episode Here

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This is a pre-kickstarter look at a board game. I have been able to take a look at the game on videos and play it a bit on tabletopia. 

Facility 07 is a semi cooperative facility exploration game that turns spy vs spy once the mainframe is discovered and hacked. Players are competing to gather the most data, hack the mainframe, and get out before the facility self destructs and goes boom. Game Over!

​Facility 07 has a card driven facility layout that makes the game very unique every time it’s played. The ops cards that players use throughout the game to further their agenda or thwart the other players' agendas offer a fun little twist to the game. This one will be fun for gamers who enjoy a light go after your opponent game. ​

Kickstarter for Facility 07 Launches
​September 15, 2020

More Information can be found 
​website - https://www.neverenginegames.com/facility07
Board Game Geek - https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/295128/facility-07

Play it now on Tabletopia!

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Overland Gamer The Podcast Episode Release - Board Game Spotlight - Tiny Epic Western

7/28/2020

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Overland Gamer The Podcast released a new episode. 

- Board Game Spotlight -
​Tiny Epic Western from Gamelyn Games

Lisen to it here

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Board Game Spotlight - Brass Empire from Rock Manor Games

7/25/2020

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Board Game Spotlight where we take a brief look at games that have come across our table. Today we're taking a look at Brass Empire by Rock Manor Games

Brass Empire

1-5 Players | 30 - 60 Min Playtime | Ages 10+
Designer: Mike Gnade

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Brass Empire (http://rockmanorgames.com/) is a 1-5 player deck-building game from Rock Manor Game. In Brass Empire players start by taking the roles of different corporations in the fictional world of Cobalt. Through the course of the game players will use resources to add to their corporations, that is their starting decks in order to be the player with the most brass at the end of the game. 

Brass is the heart of the world of cobalt. The kickstarter describes Brass as not only fueling the economy, but literally fuels the technology and transportation of the world.” The world of Cobalt is very interesting. Bits and pieces of the world can be seen through the cards played. 

Brass Empire is fairly simple to pick up and play. It plays like most deck builders where every player starts with a deck of cards that are identical. The major resources of the game is construction, labor and of course Brass. You have a starting faction reserve deck that only you can buy from, or you can purchase from the labor market (top row) and the design department (bottom row). The labor market is where employees can be found. All factions make an appearance here, with the addition of a grey neutral faction. The design department is where you will gain units or buildings. 

The game is competitive with all players competing for brass. The game can be quick, or if you have players who like messing with the others, it can take quite a bit. The corporations synergize well with each other, while it can be fun to mix things up a little bit with hiring or building other corporation cards into your deck. 

The artwork on this game is really good. It brings about the love of the ingenuity and unique designs that the steampunk genre is noted for. I really dig the different corporation cards and how the artwork seems to fit their style.

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Out of the box you have the base game mode. It does come with several variant modes to be able to play. The Reserve Deck Customization Rules allows you to customize your starting deck with faction cards with rules describing how to keep that balanced. There is Team Play, Battle Mode, and solitaire mode. 

I have played this game a few times, and it’s definitely a fun game It could use a bit of tweaking though. We have ran into an issue several times when the Labor Market becomes flooded with Managers. The only way to resolve this is to buy more managers. Which does help your deck, but it slows the game a little bit. Beyond that the game is really fun to play. If you like steampunk and deck-builders this is definitely one you should try. 

The game has 1 expansion out there with Brass Empire New Canton. This provides a sort of story driven mode as players unveil stories of the different factions. It was kind of a sucker punch with some of the story elements but I won't spoil that here. 

Game or Developer Games - (http://rockmanorgames.com/)
Board Game Geek - https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/181393/brass-empire

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Joseph DeMarco

Author:
Joe DeMarco a single father, freelance writer, game designer, quality assurance software tester, and business analyst. I am a big-time gamer, and really enjoy checking out all kinds of games available. Putting my curiosity to the app store I find random games to check out.
​
If you have a game you'd like me to review, contact me and let us see how we can work together.
Follow Joe on Twitter @shad0fx
More about Joe
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Board Game Spotlight - Fallout from Fantasy Flight Games

7/14/2020

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Board Game Spotlight is where we share some of the games we have come across. We talk a bit about the game itself, what our thoughts are on it. This week war never changes as we take a look at Fallout The Board Game from Fantasy Flight Games.

Fallout The Board Game

1-4 Players | 120 - 180 Minute Playtime | Ages 14+ recommended
Designer: Andrew Fischer and Nathan I. Hajek
​Artists: Andrew Fischer, Nathan I Hajek, Brian Schomburg, Evan Simonet, Ben Zweifel.

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Set in the universe of the Fallout video game series Fallout the Board Game from Fantasy Flight is a scenario driven game. In the base game players are competing to push their factions to the most power. In the new california expansion it introduces one scenario that makes the game cooperative. Each player starts as a survivor on the edge of unexplored territory. Each turn players will explore the board, interact with creatures, and go on quests to unlock the stories of the wasteland. 
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This game is a doozy for time. With solo play i can get it done in under 2 hours. With 2 players, It averages around 3 hours. With 4 players it can take better part of an afternoon. The game also takes up a lot of space at the table. Our little table barely holds the map and two player boards. I have an organizer being 3D printed but i’m not sure how that will help with the table organization. It’s mostly for the box organization. 
I really enjoy the stories in the game. Being able to play through the same scenario multiple times and get multiple elements of new stories coming through depending on what the cards give you. I played the game through 3 or 4 times before I finally hit a quest line that gave us a vault quest line where we could explore the vaults. 
Another issue with the game is the rule book is complicated when you get going. It took me a lot of plays before I got the hang of the different nuances of the rules. When certain things trigger was another big thing. The game didn’t get a lot of play when it was just the base game. Folks I played with just weren’t interested in the competitive modes available.
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The New California expansion gave us a single cooperative mode which helped to bring the game to the table more often.
From the Fantasy Flight website it shows that a new expansion is coming later in 2020 that gives us more cooperative game modes.
This game has it’s quirks. For myself it makes up for those with the story elements. Presenting the story to you in such a way that keeps you going forward. As I mentioned before I enjoyed getting different story elements even with the same scenario. To be honest I could see this mechanic of presenting a story being used without the game board and figures. Just telling a story. I enjoy the figures that are well crafted. The S.P.E.C.I.A.L. tokens and the leveling system are fun.
For me this game is always a fun one to bring to the table. For others, it has it’s glitches that folks playing didn’t enjoy it as much. ​

Fantasy Flight Games - https://www.fantasyflightgames.com/en/products/fallout/
​Board Game Geek - https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/232918/fallout


We did a 4 part play through with 2 players on Overland Gamer The Podcast. 

Board Game Spotlight Review Episode
Episode 1
Episode 2
Episode 3
Episode 4
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Joseph DeMarco

​Author:
Joe DeMarco a single father, freelance writer, game designer, quality assurance software tester, and business analyst. I am a big-time gamer, and really enjoy checking out all kinds of games available. Putting my curiosity to the app store I find random games to check out.
If you have a game you'd like me to review, contact me and let us see how we can work together.
Follow Joe on Twitter @shad0fx that’s S H A D ZERO F X
More Information
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Pokemon Workout

7/6/2020

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Get your workout on while playing Pokemon

Note - I am not a personal trainer. I am not an exercise expert. Consult your physician before starting any workout routine. I am not held responsible for injuries that may occur while doing these exercises. Change up the exercises as needed.

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So you’re playing pokemon and needing to get some exercise on. Here’s a workout that might help you accomplish both goals. 
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​When you start the game you have to get to the Professors lab. Count how many steps it takes you to get there. 
Exercise options - 
  1. Steps in game x10 = This is how many steps you have to take in real world. 
  2. Steps in game = jumping jacks.
  3. Steps in game = Lunges
  4. Steps in game = Mountain climbers
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Once you get through the dialogue to pick your pokemon you have 3 choices. 
The choices you have determine the type of exercises you will progress through. 
  • Fire - Strength
  • Water - Cardio
  • Grass - Endurance

The type of exercises (Strength, Cardio, Endurance) are just examples of the kinds of exercises you can do with the the chosen pokemon. 
Strength - 
  • Squats, 
  • Lunges,
  •  Push ups 

Cardio - 
  • Punches
  • Mountain Climbers
  • Jumping Jacks
  • Burpees

Endurance 
  • Pushups
  • Squats
  • Planks
  • Mountain Climbers

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Now it’s time to get into your first battle. With your rival. 
The attacks you select determine the exercises you do. The amount you do is based on your pokemon’s level. 
Pick exercises that fit your chosen pokemon. Or choose 4 exercises that you want to improve upon. 
For this example we will use 
  • A - Jumping Jacks
  • B - Lunges
  • C - Squats
  • D - toe touches

Example - I want to use scratch against my opponent. It is the top attack available. My bulbasaur is a level 5. So I do 5 jumping jacks then select the attack. The opponent does their movement. I select Scratch again and do 5 more jumping jacks.

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You can add weights as necessary. You can change up the exercises as necessary. After the battle, the player ventures out into the world. In pokemon blue/red you travel north towards the next town. Count how many steps it takes you to get from a location to a random encounter or another building. That’s how many steps you have to do. When you leave town and get into grass where random encounters occur you simply walk the number of steps it takes between random encounters. You can multiply this by your main pokemon’s level, or by the number of badges you have, etc. ​
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Progress through the game, change exercises up as desired. Battle, exercise, and change your life. ​

Note - I am not a personal trainer. I am not an exercise expert. Consult your physician before starting any workout routine. I am not held responsible for injuries that may occur while doing these exercises. Change up the exercises as needed.

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Joe DeMarco

Joe is a father, writer, game developer, quality assurance analyst. Joe is trying to get healthy and better his life. Finding fun and creative ways to get healthy Joe shares his experiences with you. 
Shad0fx
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Board Game Spotlight - Tides of Madness from Portal Games

6/29/2020

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Board Game Spotlight is where we take a look at games that we have come across. We share a bit about the game and our thoughts are on it. This week we are looking at

Tides of Madness from Portal Games

Players: 2 players | Playing Time: 20 min | Age: 10+
Designer: Kristian Curla  |  Publisher:Portal Games

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Players will be playing cards in order to score points against their opponents. The player at the end of the game with the highest score wins. Players will have to watch that they don’t gain too much madness and go insane causing them to lose the game. 
The game has a draft mechanic where players play a card, pass the cards to the next player. Once each player has 5 cards revealed the end of the round begins. Players gain madness tokens for each card with tentacles on them. The player with majority of madness tokens from the round may gain 4 points or discard 1 madness token back to the supply. Each card has a scoring ability across the top. For each card that has it’s scoring satisfied players gain points listed on the card. Typically these cards deal with the suits that the cards have. After scoring if anyone has 9 or more madness tokens they lose the game. It is possible for both players to lose the game. Play continues through two more rounds as long as a player doesn’t go insane with madness tokens. 
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​This is a quick fun little game. If you have about 30 minutes this is a fun one to pick up. The artwork is very much lovecraft. It is well designed and easy to read. The symbols for scoring could have been made just a bit bigger for ease of seeing. The cards are tarot sized so there is a lot of room for play. Gameplay wise the game is very simple. It can be difficult to know what scoring method to go after as your cards will change through each draft phase. If an opponent gets wind of what you are looking for and are ignoring their own scoring they might try to thwart your gameplay.



Game or Developer Games - https://portalgamesus.com/
Board Game Geek - https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/195544/tides-madness
Overland Gamer The Podcast: Episode 15
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Shad0fx

Joseph William DeMarco

Author:
Joe DeMarco a single father, freelance writer, game designer, quality assurance software tester, and business analyst. I am a big-time gamer, and really enjoy checking out all kinds of games available. Putting my curiosity to the app store I find random games to check out.
If you have a game you'd like me to review, contact me and let us see how we can work together.
Follow Joe on Twitter @shad0fx that’s S H A D ZERO F X

​
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Board Game Spotlight - Wingspan from Stonemaier Games

6/15/2020

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Board Game Spotlight is where we take a look at games that we have come across. Today we're looking at Wingspan from Stonemaier Games. 

Players: 1-5  |  Playing Time: 40-70 min  |  Age: 10+
Designer: Elizabeth Hargrave
Artist: Ana Maria Martinez Jaramillo, Natalia Rojas, Beth Sobel

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Wingspan is a beautiful game where players will acquire resources and bird cards to play into their habitat preserve. It is an engine building hand management game. The goal of the game is to have the most points at the end. Players gain points through the game by playing birds down, activating different abilities of birds, collecting eggs, and points gained from end of the round effects. 
In wingspan players begin with a number of cards in their hands and some resources used to play the birds through the game. Three of the four player actions are divided into habitats. The Forest habitat is where players can choose the gather food action. This allows players to gain food resources that come into play when playing birds. The prairie habitat is where players can play eggs on their birds. Eggs are worth points at the end of the game, and are also used to play birds. The water habitat is where players draws new bird cards. The fourth action is playing a bird into one of 3 habitats. The cost to play a bird is the food they need and may include an egg cost. When a player plays a bird in one of the 3 habitat areas the next time the player uses the action in that habitat it changes based on what is printed on the game board, and what abilities the birds played down have. 
Besides the point value each bird has it’s own abilities. Some abilities trigger when you choose the action in their habitat. Some abilities may trigger when other players choose an action. Some abilities may trigger at the end of the round. Some abilities may trigger at the end of the game. 
A round of Wingspan ends when all players have used their action cubes. Players see if there are any end of round actions on birds they have played. They will then consult the end of round board to see how many points they gain. Losing one of their cubes to the end of round board. 
Play continues across 4 rounds. 
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This game was a surprise to us. I first saw it pop up on the various board game facebook groups I’m in. I thought it was just a silly simple game. I got to play it and had a really good time with it. It has some educational elements to it as all the bird cards have the scientific name of the bird printed on the cards along with the region the birds are from on the very bottom of each card. The game is simple enough to pick up and has a lot of strategy depending on what direction your bonus cards give you. 
The artwork on this one is fantastic. Each bird has a lifelike appearance. So far the dice tower bird feeder has withstood many games. The wooden dice are a nice change from normal dice. The eggs are a thick plastic which is nice. They have a flat spot on them so they won’t roll all over the table. 
There is one expansion for this one available that brings European birds to the game. 

Board Game Geek - https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/266192/wingspan
Stonemaier Games - https://stonemaiergames.com/games/wingspan/

Overland Gamer: The Podcast Episode 4
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Author: Joe DeMarco a father, freelance writer, game designer, quality assurance software tester, and business analyst. I am a big-time gamer, and really enjoy checking out all kinds of games available. 
If you have a game you'd like me to review, contact me and let us see how we can work together.

​Find out more here. 

Follow Joe on Twitter https://twitter.com/Shad0fx
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    Shad0fx

    Joe DeMarco (Shad0fx) is a father, writer, game designer, and podcaster. 

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