First Player Token
Derek Bruff
A board game review podcast for people who enjoy playing games with family and friends
- 21 minutes 24 seconds68. Hollywood 1947
In this episode, we make some movies while accusing our friends and coworkers of being communists in Hollywood 1947.
Hollywood 1947 is the latest entry in the Dark Cities line from Façade Games publisher and designer Travis Hancock and artist Sarah Keele. It takes the Red Scare’s Hollywood blacklist and turns it into a lively and thematic game that’s hit our gaming table many times.
The game is a particular favorite of our twelve-year-old, which might surprise you unless you know she’s planning to be a lawyer when she grows up! We will hear from her in the episode for her thoughts on the game.
Episode Links:
Listen to my interview with Travis Hancock about Bristol 1350.
Music:
"Open Road," "Summer in Paradise" by Purple Planet.
Podcast Links:
Order a First Player Token coffee mug.
Visit the First Player Token website.
Join the FPT Facebook group.
Follow @firstplayertoken on Bluesky.
Join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord.
10 November 2025, 5:00 am - 37 minutes 10 seconds67. Unmatched 2025 Tournament (Part 1)
It just was over two years ago when we covered the game system called Unmatched here on the podcast. In Unmatched by Restoration Games, two players battle, each with a different hero that has their own unique deck of 30 cards for attack and defense.
When we covered Unmatched here on the podcast in 2023, we only had six heroes in our collection for our battles. But now, two years later, we have a lot more than six Unmatched heroes! I think we’re up to 25 characters, drawn from eight different sets.
I thought it was time for us to cover the game on the podcast again, and I wanted to have some fun doing so. Today’s episode is the first of two detailing our 2025 Unmatched tournament! The teenager and I set out to determine which of our 25 Unmatched heroes was our absolute favorite. That meant, naturally, making some brackets and playing a lot of games of Unmatched!
In this episode, we’ll go through all eight first-round matches, and in a future episode, we’ll whittle those eight winners down to our overall Unmatched champ.
Episode Resources:
Listen to our 2023 review of Unmatched.
Music:
"Open Road," Purple Planet Music
"Field of Heroes," Tabletop Audio
Podcast Links:
Order a First Player Token coffee mug.
Visit the First Player Token website.
Join the FPT Facebook group.
Follow @firstplayertoken on Bluesky.
Join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord.
4 October 2025, 1:00 pm - 20 minutes 35 seconds66. Sky Team
In this episode, we work together to find out just how hard it is land an airplane in Sky Team.
Sky Team is a 2023 game designed by Luc Rémond with art by Eric Hibbeler and Adrien Rives published by Montreal-based Scorpion Masqué. Sky Team is a two-player game in which players work together to land a passenger airplane.
Emily and I had the chance to try it at Tennessee Game Days last year, and one play was enough to ensure Sky Team would be found under our Christmas tree! It’s been in regular rotation for me and Emily this year, second only to our all-time favorite Wingspan.
In this episode, Emily and I chat about Sky Team. We start off with a little color commentary, then talk about why we keep coming back to this game—and why Emily will never get her pilot’s license!
Episode Links:
Buy Sky Team on Amazon.
Music:
"Open Road" by Purple Planet.
Podcast Links:
Order a First Player Token coffee mug.
Visit the First Player Token website.
Join the FPT Facebook group.
Follow @firstplayertoken on Bluesky.
Join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord.
7 September 2025, 5:00 am - 27 minutes 18 seconds65. Wingspan (2025)
In this episode, we grab our binoculars and our field guides to go birdwatching in Wingspan.
Wingspan is a 2019 game designed by Elizabeth Hargrave and published by Stonemaier Games. Most days, if you ask me what my favorite board game is, I'll tell you it's Wingspan. It's my most played game, and it's the one that Emily and I are most likely to pull out and enjoy after the kids go to bed.
We first covered the game on the podcast back in 2020. That was five years ago! In this episode, Emily and I chat about what's changed in the world of Wingspan in the last five years (expansions! fan art! bird meeples!) and how our interest in birdwatching has grown in that time.
Episode Links:
Wingspan Fan Art Pack from Stonemaier Games
Wingspan component upgrades from Meeple Source
My photos from the High Island, TX, trip
Wingspan expansions from Stonemaier Games
Music:
"Open Road," "Sunbeam" by Purple Planet.
Podcast Links:
Order a First Player Token coffee mug.
Visit the First Player Token website.
Join the FPT Facebook group.
Follow @firstplayertoken on Bluesky.
Join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord.
1 August 2025, 7:00 am - 11 minutes 37 seconds64. Mr. Cabbagehead's Garden
In this episode, we plant a prize-winning vegetable garden while dodging tedious neighbors in Mr. Cabbagehead’s Garden.
Mr. Cabbagehead's Garden is a solo game designed by Todd Sanders first released in 2016 as a print-and-play and later published by LudiCreations. The game is inspired by the whimsical illustrations of anthropomorphic vegetables found in Victoria-era seed catalogs. Your job as Mr. Cabbagehead is to plant an award-winning vegetable garden while avoiding your tedious and tiresome neighbors who want to sabotage your garden.
If you're looking for a quirky and puzzly solo game that plays in about 15 minutes, Mr. Cabbagehead's Garden is for you.
Episode Links:
· Mr. Cabbagehead’s Garden print and play
· GeekMarket for secondhand copies of Mr. Cabbagehead’s Garden
· The Maiden in the Forest print and play
· The Draugr at the BoardGameGeek store
· The Draugr on the Apple App Store
Music:
"Open Road" by Purple Planet.
Podcast Links:
Order a First Player Token coffee mug.
Visit the First Player Token website.
Join the FPT Facebook group.
Follow @firstplayertoken on Bluesky.
Join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord.
1 July 2025, 7:00 am - 13 minutes 5 seconds63. Challengers
In this episode, I play capture the flag with seven of my friends in Challengers!
Challengers! is 2022 game for 2 to 8 players designed by Johannes Krenner and Markus Slawitscheck and published by Z-Man Games with art by Jeff Harvey. It’s a little hard to describe. If I said it’s a deck-building, auto-battler built around a capture-the-flag tournament structure, would that make sense? Maybe not. You'll have to listen to this episode to get the full description.
If you're looking for a high energy game that blends strategy and luck and plays equally well at 4 players or at 8 players, Challengers! is the game for you.
Episode Links:
Buy Challengers! on Amazon.Buy Challengers! Beach Cup on Amazon.
Music:
"Open Road" and "Rise of the Superhero" by Purple Planet.
Podcast Links:
Order a First Player Token coffee mug.
Visit the First Player Token website.
Join the FPT Facebook group.
Follow @firstplayertoken on Bluesky.
Join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord.
1 June 2025, 7:00 am - 20 minutes 57 secondsParks (Encore)
Our last episode on second editions of the games Santorini and Tortuga 1667 reminded me about another second edition of a family favorite game that’s out now: Parks designed by Henry Audubon and published by Keymaster Games. We covered the first edition of Parks way back on episode 7 of the podcast, and I thought I would reshare that episode here on the podcast feed in honor of the new edition of Parks.
In this episode, I’m changing things up a bit and recommending a great board game for couples: Parks by Keymaster Games.
I’m a big fan of the US National Parks, ever since I took my kids out west on what we called the Animal-Vegetable-Mineral Tour. We saw the largest of each: we went whale-watching off the coast of San Francisco, we saw redwoods and sequoias in California, and we visited the Grand Canyon in Arizona. We visited three National Parks during that trip—Grand Canyon, Kings Canyon, and Sequoia—and each of them provided amazing sights and experiences.
The board game Parks, designed by Henry Audubon, does a great job of capturing the beauty and wonder of the US National Parks. It is the prettiest game I own, with stunning artwork from the Fifty-Nine Parks Print Series. In the game, you take on the role of hikers, exploring the great outdoors and visiting as many National Parks as you can.
We have two special guests in this episode. My wife Emily stops by for some color commentary and thoughts on why she enjoys playing Parks. Also, Matt Aiken from Keymaster Games joins us to talk about the origin of the game and why he thinks it’s a great game for couples and to tell some stories of people playing PARKS in the great outdoors.
See my photos of Parks, First Edition.Learn more about Parks, Second Edition.
Order a First Player Token coffee mug.
Visit the First Player Token website.
Join the FPT Facebook group.
Follow @firstplayertoken on Bluesky.
Join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord.
Music:
“Open Road,” “Sunbeam,” and “Summer in Paradise,” https://www.purple-planet.com/.
Podcast Links:
Order a First Player Token coffee mug.
Visit the First Player Token website.
Join the FPT Facebook group.
Follow @firstplayertoken on Bluesky.
Join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord.
15 May 2025, 7:00 am - 16 minutes 33 seconds62. Back to the Island(s)
In this episode, we go back to the island in second editions of podcast favorites Santorini and Tortuga 1667!
Santorini: Pantheon Edition takes the original Santorini and its “Golden Fleece” expansion and presents them in a new package with revised rules and upgraded components. The teenager and I have been playing it regularly since we got it, and we are loving it.
When I heard about Tortuga 1667: Deluxe Edition, I was excited at the prospect of upgraded components for the game, but I was a little worried when I heard that there would be revised rules. The original game is so, so good, it was hard to imagine how they would improve it, but they did!
In this episode, I discuss what's new in each of these games and what I appreciate about the changes. Kudos to Roxley Games and Facade Games for these quality second editions of some of our favorite games!
Links:
Pre-order Santorini: Pantheon Edition from Roxley Games.
Buy Tortuga 1667: Deluxe Edition from Facade Games.
Order a First Player Token coffee mug.
Visit the First Player Token website.
Join the FPT Facebook group.
Follow @firstplayertoken on Bluesky.
Join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord.
Music:
"Open Road," "The Concept" by Purple Planet. "Pirates!" by Tabletop Audio.
Podcast Links:
Order a First Player Token coffee mug.
Visit the First Player Token website.
Join the FPT Facebook group.
Follow @firstplayertoken on Bluesky.
Join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord.
1 May 2025, 5:00 am - 13 minutes 44 seconds61. Black Orchestra (First Play)
In this episode, we conspire together to take out one of the worst evils of the 20th century in Black Orchestra!
Black Orchestra is a 2016 cooperative game for 1 to 5 players designed by Phillip duBarry with art by Lucas Soriano published by Tabletop Tycoon. In Black Orchestra, players take on the role of conspirators in Nazi Germany working together to assassinate Adolf Hitler. The game is based on actual attempts by members of Hitler’s military and civilians to take out the man they saw as an incredible threat to their country.
The game is a rollercoaster full of close calls and near misses. Our military history correspondent (age 13) approves! Hear his thoughts on the game in this episode.
Links:
Buy Black Orchestra on Amazon.
Listen to the Immersed episode about Black Orchestra.
Read about The Faithful Spy by John Hendrix.
Learn about the Black Orchestra expansion, Resistance.
Order a First Player Token coffee mug.
Visit the First Player Token website.
Join the FPT Facebook group.
Follow @firstplayertoken on Bluesky.
Join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord.
Music:
"Open Road," "The Concept" by Purple Planet.
Podcast Links:
Order a First Player Token coffee mug.
Visit the First Player Token website.
Join the FPT Facebook group.
Follow @firstplayertoken on Bluesky.
Join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord.
1 April 2025, 4:00 pm - 8 minutes 55 seconds60. Knarr
In this episode, we sail the high seas on our Viking ships to establish trading routes and not pillage in Knarr!
Knarr is a 2023 game designed by Thomas Dupont with art by Antoine Carrion published in the US by Pandasaurus Games. Knarr celebrates the trading life of a Viking. In the game, players take on the role of Viking traders, recruiting crew to your ship, then sailing to distant lands to establish trade routes. Your trade routes will earn you victory points, as will the songs that skalds sing about you.
If you’re looking for a medium-light game that offers a fun twist on engine building and celebrates the softer side of Vikings, Knarr is the game for you.
Links:
Buy Knarr on Amazon.Get ready for your first play of Knarr.
3D print your own Knarr insert.
Order a First Player Token coffee mug.
Visit the First Player Token website.
Join the FPT Facebook group.
Follow @firstplayertoken on Bluesky.
Join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord.
Music:
"Open Road" by Purple Planet. "Vikings" by Tabletop Audio.
Podcast Links:
Order a First Player Token coffee mug.
Visit the First Player Token website.
Join the FPT Facebook group.
Follow @firstplayertoken on Bluesky.
Join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord.
1 March 2025, 9:00 am - 20 minutes 24 seconds59. Keep the Faith
In this episode, we work together to tell the story of how a religion changes over the centuries in… Keep the Faith!
Keep the Faith is a storytelling game for 2 to 5 players about religions in transition. Each player represents a sect within a fictional religion. Players collaboratively make up the story about the religion and how it changes over five hundred years, with a focus on how the material and observable aspects of the religion reflect or contradict the religion’s core values.
Keep the Faith is currently on BackerKit seeking crowdfunding. If you’re listening to this before March 6, 2025, follow the link below to the BackerKit page to see if you’d like to help get this game published. Keep the Faith will be published by Central Michigan University Games, an academic press that specializes in peer-reviewed board and role-playing games with educational utility.
The designer of Keep the Faith is Greg Loring-Albright, and I'm excited to share highlights from an interview with Greg that I did for my other podcast, Intentional Teaching. Greg shares about his design goals for the game, the role of agency in Keep the Faith, and the challenges of designing a game about a sensitive topic like religion.
Links:
Support Keep the Faith’s crowdfunding effort before March 6, 2025.
Listen to a longer cut of my conversation with Greg Loring-Albright on the Intentional Teaching podcast.
Throw a few bucks at the Intentional Teaching Patreon to hear a few more clips of my talk with Greg.
Listen to Liz Davidson’s conversation with Greg on her Beyond Solitaire podcast.
Learn more about Greg Loring-Albright on his professional website.
Order a First Player Token coffee mug.
Visit the First Player Token website.
Join the FPT Facebook group.
Follow @firstplayertoken on Bluesky.
Join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord.
Music:
"Open Road," "Summer in Paradise" by Purple Planet.
Podcast Links:
Order a First Player Token coffee mug.
Visit the First Player Token website.
Join the FPT Facebook group.
Follow @firstplayertoken on Bluesky.
Join the Family Tabletop Community on Discord.
18 February 2025, 10:00 am - More Episodes? Get the App