All Sorted Ep 19: LEGO Boardgames

On a die defying episode of All Sorted, Jeff and James discuss LEGO Boardgames.

Thanks to Jacoby Young for setting us down the LEGO board game rabbit hole:

@StillSorting and @epicgumdrop – I think this custom LEGO board game may be up your alley. https://t.co/rH3b528i4Q

— Jacoby Young (@jacobyjyoung) September 7, 2015

Roll the dice on LEGO’s early board games:

• LEGO Time Cruisers (1997)
• LEGO Treasure Quest (1998)
• LEGO Constructionary (1999)
• LEGO Soccer (2000)

Watch LEGO attempt to be a major game publisher (Part One):

• LEGO publishes 12 games in five years!
  • LEGO Racers Super Speedway Game (2001)
  • Bionicle: Quest For The Masks CCG (2001)
  • Orient Expedition (2002)
  • LEGO EXPLORE: My First Builder (2002)
  • Orient Expedition: India (Scorpion Palace) (2002)
  • LEGO Hockey (2003)
• Came in two versions, terrible table hockey, or, anger-management roboty things…
  • LEGO Basketball (2003)
  • LEGO Builder Xtreme (2003)
  • Knights Kingdom Save the Kingdom Game (2004)
  • LEGO X-Pod PlayOff (2004)
  • LEGO Pirates Treasure Game (2005)
• Featuring fun cardboard versions of minifigs! Now you can play with minifigs without all that annoying articulation an “3Dness” getting in the way!
  • Knights’ Kingdom Challenge Card Game (2005)

Catch our breath:

• Nothing happens for four years…
  • Except behind the scenes:
  • In 2006 LEGO hires board game designer Cephas Howard to develop a line of board games.
  • Reiner Knizia and Bernie DeKoven are brought in to consult.

Watch LEGO attempt to be a major game publisher (Part Two)

LEGO comes out of hibernation and goes on to release 43 games over the next five years! Here is a sampling:

• Robo Champ (2009)
• Magikus (2009)
• Monster 4 (2009)
• Lava Dragon (2009)
• Race 3000 (2009)
• Pirate Code (2009)
• Minotaurus (2009)
• Lunar Command (2009)
• Creationary (2009)
• Ramses Pyramid (2009)
• Happy Holidays The Christmas Game (2010)
  • (This game was a gift to LEGO employees in 2010)
• Meteor Strike (2010)
• Atlantis Treasure (2010)
• Orient Bazaar (2010)
• Harry Potter Hogwarts (2010)
• Pirate Plank (2010)
• Magma Monster (2010)
• UFO Attack (2010)
• Shave a Sheep (2010)
• LEGO: Life of George (2011)
• LEGO Champion (2011)
• Ninjago: The Board Game (2011)
• Frog Rush (2011)
• Banana Balance (2011)
• Ramses Return (2011)
• Sunblock (2011)
• The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
• Star Wars: Battle of Hoth (2012)
  • (Was not available for sale in the USA as Hasbro has exclusive rights to Star Wars based board games in America)
• CITY Alarm (2012)
• Mini-Taurus (2012)
  • (Smaller version of Minotaurus.)
• Kokoriko (2012)
  • A game of chickens laying eggs
• The Lord of the Rings: The Battle of Helm’s Deep (2013)
• LEGO Batman (2013)
• LEGO Legends of Chima (2013)
• Heroica – LEGO’s light adventure/RPG system. Each module could be played by itself, or combined for a more epic adventure.
  • Heroica: Nathuz (2011)
  • Heroica: Waldurk (2011)
  • Heroica: Draida (2011)
  • Heroica: Fortaan (2011)
  • Heroica: Ilrion (2012)

Take LEGO gaming into our own hands:

• The link that sent us down the LEGO game path:
  • Land Of Warriors!, by CroffStudios
  • OGRE by Steve Jackson Games
  • Improved (as all things are) by LEGO
• BrikWars – probably the most complete LEGO based skimish game on the internet
  • BrikWars (old)site list of other Brick Based War games:
  • Most of these links are dead – but you do get an interesting collection of 404 Errors!
• Mobile Frame Zero
• Ian Spacek’s Clue MOC (flickr)
• Chess, Battleships and Monopoly MOCs (YouTube)
• LEGO Ideas projects:

• Catan
• Monopoly

Finally, Do you have a favorite LEGO board game, either official or MOC? If so let us know in the comments, or hit me up on twitter, @StillSorting.