Ludology
- Episodes
- 706
- Released
- every two weeks
- Latest episode
- Nov 12, 2026
About the podcast
Welcome to Ludology, an analytical discussion of the how's and why's of the world of board games. Rather than news and reviews, Ludology explores a variety of topics about games from a wider lens, and discusses game history, game design and game players. Ludology is part of The Dice Tower Network, the premier board game media network.
Episodes 706
Ludology 366 Off To The Races
Erica and Sen speak with CMYK's Alex Hague about having two of the most popular racing games on the market right now in Hot Streak and Magical Athlete. Are they racing against each other to the top of the sales …
Show notes
Erica and Sen speak with CMYK's Alex Hague about having two of the most popular racing games on the market right now in Hot Streak and Magical Athlete. Are they racing against each other to the top of the sales charts or is there something else behind the surface level thematic similarities that accounts for their success?
Ludology 365 Boardgames and Biographies
Designer and historian Amabel Holland ([email protected]) joins Erica and Sen on a trip down memory lane as she tells them about the highlights of her deep dives into discovering the often unknown …
Show notes
Designer and historian Amabel Holland ([email protected]) joins Erica and Sen on a trip down memory lane as she tells them about the highlights of her deep dives into discovering the often unknown designers of the mass market games of the 60s and 70s in North America.
You can watch Amabel's historical journeys at https://www.youtube.com/@Hollandspiele If you're interested in learning even more about older games and their creators, we host over 40 episodes of Biography of a Boardgame compiled by Scott Rogers right here on the Ludology Network! Just use the search bar at the top of the page at www.ludology.net.
Ludology 365 Boardgames and Biographies
Designer and historian Amabel Holland ([email protected]) joins Erica and Sen on a trip down memory lane as she tells them about the highlights of her deep dives into discovering the often unknown …
Show notes
Designer and historian Amabel Holland ([email protected]) joins Erica and Sen on a trip down memory lane as she tells them about the highlights of her deep dives into discovering the often unknown designers of the mass market games of the 60s and 70s in North America.
You can watch Amabel's historical journeys at https://www.youtube.com/@Hollandspiele
Pros and Cons Ep 21
Recorded in Summer of 2026, Sen talks to Ethan Yen at a cafe in lovely Wortley Village in South London. They discuss design philosophies and Ethan's solo RPG "Fetch My Blade" (which happens to be on Kickstarter …
Show notes
Recorded in Summer of 2026, Sen talks to Ethan Yen at a cafe in lovely Wortley Village in South London. They discuss design philosophies and Ethan's solo RPG "Fetch My Blade" (which happens to be on Kickstarter for a few more days - check it out!) https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hitpointpress/fetch-my-blade-a-journaling-roleplaying-game
Ludology 364 The Cost of Complexity
Erica and Sen talk amongst themselves and discuss the topic of complexity in games from multiple angles. Whether you're choosing what to play at game night or designing the next big hit, complexity is something …
Show notes
Erica and Sen talk amongst themselves and discuss the topic of complexity in games from multiple angles. Whether you're choosing what to play at game night or designing the next big hit, complexity is something that impacts tabletop gaming maybe more than you think!
Pros and Cons Ep 20
Once again, Sen was in la belle province, recording at FLIM when he heard about *another* convention in Montreal! Ludicon offers open gaming, competitions, and merchandise in the heart of the city every …
Show notes
Once again, Sen was in la belle province, recording at FLIM when he heard about *another* convention in Montreal! Ludicon offers open gaming, competitions, and merchandise in the heart of the city every November. Alain Fragman and Mario Haché brought Ludicon to life in 2024 and the 2026 edition will be on November 6-7-8 at Montreal's Palais des Congrès. They tell Sen all about the event and how it came into being in this installment of Pros and Cons.
Check out www.ludicon.ca for more info. Sen hopes to be there this November, so come join him! (Side note: If you're interested in learning more about the Society of Curiosity's 5-bedroom B&B that is an overnight escape room experience in a Victorian manor, sign up for more info here: https://www.societyofcuriosities.com/immersive-overnight/manor-of-curiosities/ and check out Episode 29 1 Curiouser and Curiouser at https://ludology.libsyn.com/webpage/ludology-291-curiouser-and-curiouser to hear the purveyors of fine escape experiences describe their venue.)
Ludology 363 Transformative
This week, Erica and Sen speak with Dr. Marc Engfield and Shawn Roske about the game they co-designed to explore and address issues surrounding managing Chronic Pain. Using Sarah Lynne Bowman's theories of …
Show notes
This week, Erica and Sen speak with Dr. Marc Engfield and Shawn Roske about the game they co-designed to explore and address issues surrounding managing Chronic Pain. Using Sarah Lynne Bowman's theories of Transformational Play as the backbone, "The Pain Clinic" has pairs of players take on the roles of a patient who is experiencing chronic pain and the doctor who is treating them. For more information about this game, please contact the creators at: [email protected] or [email protected]
Ludology 362 Getting Graphic with Games
Sen and Erica talk with Steenz (www.oheysteenz.com), a St. Louis cartoonist and professor, about the graphic novel she illustrated, "Side Quest: A Visual History of Roleplaying Games". In the book, Steenz and …
Show notes
Sen and Erica talk with Steenz (www.oheysteenz.com), a St. Louis cartoonist and professor, about the graphic novel she illustrated, "Side Quest: A Visual History of Roleplaying Games". In the book, Steenz and co-creator Samuel Sattin take readers on a journey through time and space as they look at the historical roots of Roleplaying Games around the globe. Steenz talks about her own relationship with RPGs as well as what she found most fascinating while doing the research for the book.
Pros and Cons Ep 19
Erica is just getting back from Japan and Sen is in Montreal for FLIM, so we're going to drop an interview from last year's inaugural Festival Ludique International de Montreal in which Sen speaks with …
Show notes
Erica is just getting back from Japan and Sen is in Montreal for FLIM, so we're going to drop an interview from last year's inaugural Festival Ludique International de Montreal in which Sen speaks with designer, Herb Stanway, about the multi award-winning game, Crash Factor. To help you see exactly what Sen and Herb are talking about, check out the images of Herb's prototype on BGG:
Ludology 361 Joie De Vivre!
Sen and Erica are joined by Marc-Antoine Doyon, organizer behind the Festival Ludique International De Montreal (www.leflim.com), a free outdoor gaming festival that takes place from July 24-26 in Montreal's …
Show notes
Sen and Erica are joined by Marc-Antoine Doyon, organizer behind the Festival Ludique International De Montreal (www.leflim.com), a free outdoor gaming festival that takes place from July 24-26 in Montreal's Latin Quarter. Marc-Antoine talks about what it take to bring something of this magnitude to life and what attendees can look forward to in the festival's second year.
Ludology 360 That Old Black Magic
Sen and guest host George Drayer (formerly from Meeple Syrup) speak with Jesper Myfors, the original art director of the game that changed the face of modern nerdom, Magic: The Gathering. They talk to Jesper …
Show notes
Sen and guest host George Drayer (formerly from Meeple Syrup) speak with Jesper Myfors, the original art director of the game that changed the face of modern nerdom, Magic: The Gathering. They talk to Jesper about his involvement with the game, his role as art director, and his insight on evolution of the M:tG.
Ludology 359 I'd Like To Thank The Academy
Erica and Sen speak with game designer and educator, Kathleen Mercury, about the second annual Game Design Academy that runs concurrently with Gen Con. The Game Design Academy is an official professional …
Show notes
Erica and Sen speak with game designer and educator, Kathleen Mercury, about the second annual Game Design Academy that runs concurrently with Gen Con. The Game Design Academy is an official professional development and formal education track that takes full advantage of the convention space as the lab for learning more about game design and the hobby gaming industry. For more info, check out: https://www.gencon.com/gen-con-indy/game-design-academy
Ludology 358 What's Your Story?
Sen flies solo and interviews Yeonsoo Julian Kim, narrative designer behind "The Fog Knows Your Name" and "Undying Fortress" on Choice Of Games, about interactive fiction games, TTRPGs, horror, and more!
Ludology 357 Unsettling Catan
Erica and Sen speak with author and academic, J. Rey Lee, about his book entitled, "Unsettling Catan: Detached Design in Eurogames". They discuss Catan's impact on the hobby, what detached design actually is …
Show notes
Erica and Sen speak with author and academic, J. Rey Lee, about his book entitled, "Unsettling Catan: Detached Design in Eurogames". They discuss Catan's impact on the hobby, what detached design actually is, and what game designers can do to avoid detached design in practice. Check out https://lookingglance.com/ for more information and musings about boardgaming!
Ludology 356 Put A Little English On It
Sen and Erica interview George and Jack Furnival, the couple behind Carrooka - the tabletop snooker game. To see exactly what we're talking about on the podcast, check out pictures on their website …
Show notes
Sen and Erica interview George and Jack Furnival, the couple behind Carrooka - the tabletop snooker game. To see exactly what we're talking about on the podcast, check out pictures on their website: www.carrooka.com
Be sure to listen to the companion episode about Crokinole featuring Jeremy Tracey on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/ludology
Pros and Cons Ep 18
Sen talks to Chris Chung at BreakoutCon 2025 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Chris talks about the origins of Lanterns, his work on the My Little Pony deckbuilder, and online playtesting.
Ludology 354 Like A Dagger In My Heart
Erica and Sen speak with Spenser Starke about bringing Daggerheart, one of the new generation of tabletop role-playing games, to life.
Ludology 353 The Power of Play
Sen and Erica speak with Peter Williamson, co-founder and partner at barometerxp.com and the executive director at gamegenius.org about creating tabletop experiences for non-profit organizations or doing …
Show notes
Sen and Erica speak with Peter Williamson, co-founder and partner at barometerxp.com and the executive director at gamegenius.org about creating tabletop experiences for non-profit organizations or doing professional development and team training to facilitate practical learning outcomes.
Ludology 352 Making the Game
Sen and Erica speak with Liqin Gu and Mitch Zhang from Longpack Manufacturing to delve into the ins and outs of how boardgames are made and why they're predominantly made in China.
Ludology 355 Rub a Dub Dub Let's Go To Unpub!
*Special Note* This episode is being released out of order. We will resume our previously scheduled numbering system in two week! Sen and Erica talk to Heather O'Neill and Hunter Johnson, members of the Unpub …
Show notes
*Special Note* This episode is being released out of order. We will resume our previously scheduled numbering system in two week! Sen and Erica talk to Heather O'Neill and Hunter Johnson, members of the Unpub Board of Directors, about the upcoming Unpub Festival 2026. Hunter and Heather discuss what people can expect, why they should attend, and a few of the special events that will be featured at the Festival which takes place in Maryland from March 12-15, 2026.
Pros and Cons Ep 17
Sen speaks with Kristen Mott at Gen Con 2024 about her designs and publications leading into 2025. We talk homeschooling, scouting, co-design, and horses, of courses. Then we take a look into the crystal ball …
Show notes
Sen speaks with Kristen Mott at Gen Con 2024 about her designs and publications leading into 2025. We talk homeschooling, scouting, co-design, and horses, of courses. Then we take a look into the crystal ball and make a predication that came true... sorta! Sen and Erica will be back with their regulars shows in February, so stay tuned!
Pros and Cons Ep 16
Recorded live at Gen Con 2024, Sen interviews Sarah Dahlinger, a comparative anatomy fueled creature creator who's made some of your favourite monster art and sculpted the minis as well for companies such as …
Show notes
Recorded live at Gen Con 2024, Sen interviews Sarah Dahlinger, a comparative anatomy fueled creature creator who's made some of your favourite monster art and sculpted the minis as well for companies such as Cephalophair Games, Monte Cook Games, and more. Sarah is also the author/artist behind Astra Fauna: Expeditions and hopes to bring her world of science and adventure to life on the tabletop.
Ludology 351 Better Health Through Gaming
Erica and Sen talk with Dr. Joe Macisco, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Population and Public Health Sciences at Wright State University's Boonshoft School of Medicine. Joe has been working on …
Show notes
Erica and Sen talk with Dr. Joe Macisco, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Population and Public Health Sciences at Wright State University's Boonshoft School of Medicine. Joe has been working on designing serious games for use in the public health field. Joe discusses how and why games can improve pro-health and pro-social behavioural changes.
Thinking Beyond Mechanisms Ep 24
Sen and Erica welcome Sarah Shipp, guest host of Thinking Beyond Mechanisms, to talk about some of the ways in which theme can be measured and how that affects game design.
Ludology 350 Beneath The Trees
Sen and special guest host Doug Levandowski (Kids on Bikes) talk with Noxweiler Ignatius Berf (or "Nox" for short) about his work on the storytelling game, Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees, based on the …
Show notes
Sen and special guest host Doug Levandowski (Kids on Bikes) talk with Noxweiler Ignatius Berf (or "Nox" for short) about his work on the storytelling game, Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees, based on the comic series of the same name. They discuss the game and it's mechanisms, how it stays true to the comic overall, and how it diverges at times.
Ludology 349 Reindeer Games
Erica and Sen welcome Jordan Goddard of Indy Game Lab to talk about his company's newest product - family games that are packaged inside of Christmas ornaments. Currently on Kickstarter, Jordan discusses why he …
Show notes
Erica and Sen welcome Jordan Goddard of Indy Game Lab to talk about his company's newest product - family games that are packaged inside of Christmas ornaments. Currently on Kickstarter, Jordan discusses why he chose to create games that might only come out once a year.
Ludology 348 Only Murders in the Script
This episode, Sen welcomes Pete, Felix, and Daniel from Zed9 Mystery Club (www.zed9jubensha.com) in Richmond, BC to talk all about Jubensha (a.k.a. Murder Script Games). Originally developed in Chinese-speaking …
Show notes
This episode, Sen welcomes Pete, Felix, and Daniel from Zed9 Mystery Club (www.zed9jubensha.com) in Richmond, BC to talk all about Jubensha (a.k.a. Murder Script Games). Originally developed in Chinese-speaking countries, Jubensha have been making their way to wherever the Chinese diaspora has settled and now English speakers can partake in these immersive murder mystery role playing experiences as well! The Zed9 team explains what these games are, how they're designed, hosted, and played.
Ludology 347 Sail Away
Erica and Sen welcome designers of the award-winning Endeavor: Deep Sea, Carl de Visser and Jarratt Gray, along with their publishers, Helaina and Josh Cappel (Burnt Island) and Marc Specter (Grand Gamers …
Show notes
Erica and Sen welcome designers of the award-winning Endeavor: Deep Sea, Carl de Visser and Jarratt Gray, along with their publishers, Helaina and Josh Cappel (Burnt Island) and Marc Specter (Grand Gamers Guild) to talk about the past, present, and future of the game. What has changed over the years and what does the future hold for this excellent exploration system?
Thinking Beyond Mechanisms Ep 23
Sen and Erica welcome Sarah Shipp as she hosts her Thinking Beyond Mechanism series. In this episode, she discusses the permissions that games and their rules give us to break social conventions within the …
Show notes
Sen and Erica welcome Sarah Shipp as she hosts her Thinking Beyond Mechanism series. In this episode, she discusses the permissions that games and their rules give us to break social conventions within the construct of the so-called "Magic Circle".
Ludology 346 That Seems Familiar
It's the return of Erica! Sen got to goof off most of the summer without her, but now she's back and she has a great topic to start off Q3-Q4 of 2025 - Familiarity. Erica and Sen discuss how designers and …
Show notes
It's the return of Erica! Sen got to goof off most of the summer without her, but now she's back and she has a great topic to start off Q3-Q4 of 2025 - Familiarity. Erica and Sen discuss how designers and publishers may want to think about familiarity when producing games. While the saying usually goes something like "familiarity breeds contempt," Erica and Sen argue that a little familiarity goes a long way to increase a game's approachability. *Audio note* Sen's mic was acting up during recording; please excuse the subtle phasing you may hear.
These are the latest 40 of 706 episodes. You’ll find older episodes in the podcast’s feed.
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