Talking Board Games on WGRT

On 9 February 2021 By Erik ArnesonIn How to Host a Game Night, Interviewed, WGRTLeave a comment

I recently spent some time talking to Jessie Wiegand, host of LIMElight on WGRT-FM in Port Huron, Michigan, about the wonders of cooperative board games, spending winter nights playing board games, playing Pandemic during a pandemic, and much more!

You can listen to our discussion — including how to cope when things that go wrong at game nights — here:

https://wgrt.com/limelight-wsg-erik-arneson-how-to-host-a-game-night/

My book HOW TO HOST A GAME NIGHT is my love letter to game nights. It’s packed with practical advice and humorous stories from gamers. Jenn Bartlett, the Board Game Librarian, calls it “a delight to read” and says it “would make a great Valentine’s Day gift for that board game fan in your life!”

You can order your copy of HOW TO HOST A GAME NIGHT (paperback or ebook) now!

Talking Board Games on The Ray Carr Show

On 4 February 2021 By Erik ArnesonIn How to Host a Game Night, Interviewed, Ray CarrLeave a comment

I was back on The Ray Carr Show this week, talking about Codenames, Password, Milton Bradley (the man and the game company), Monopoly, and much more (including a little about the Green Bay Packers).

Ray’s a fantastic host and I always enjoy talking to him. You can listen to the interview right here:

You can order your copy of HOW TO HOST A GAME NIGHT (paperback or ebook) now!

Talking Board Games with The Love Doctor

On 7 December 20206 December 2020 By Erik ArnesonIn How to Host a Game Night, Interviewed, Ray CarrLeave a comment

I recently spoke to Dr. Terri Orbuch – also known as The Love Doctor – about my book HOW TO HOST A GAME NIGHT, what playing board games can reveal about the people you’re playing with, game recommendations, and more!

I loved (no pun intended) talking to Dr. Terri. It was a great interview. I think playing games is one of the best ways to see people’s true personalities, and we dug into that topic quite a bit.

When I was writing HOW TO HOST A GAME NIGHT, Dr. Terri was kind enough to share some of her thoughts with me. You can read what she had to say in Chapter 2, which is all about two-player game nights.

You can listen to our conversation right here, or head over to the Empower Radio website.

HOW TO HOST A GAME NIGHT is available now! Alan R. Moon, designer of Ticket to Ride, calls it “the ultimate guide to gaming” and says it “perfectly describes what makes the world of gaming the special place it is for so many people.” Order your copy (paperback or ebook) now!

Interview with Dan Manley on WMST in Mt. Sterling, KY

On 20 November 202020 November 2020 By Erik ArnesonIn Dan Manley, How to Host a Game Night, InterviewedLeave a comment

I recently spoke to Dan Manley on WMST’s Mornings on Main about my book HOW TO HOST A GAME NIGHT, the Green Bay Packers, The Rifleman board game, and much more!

Our discussion, which lasted nearly a full hour, was great fun. WMST (1150 AM and 106.9 FM) is located in Mt. Sterling, Kentucky, about 40 minutes east of Lexington.

You can listen to the entire discussion right here:

Talking About Game Nights on WGVU in Grand Rapids

On 14 November 202013 November 2020 By Erik ArnesonIn How to Host a Game Night, Interviewed, WGVULeave a comment

I recently spoke to WGVU-FM, the NPR affiliate in Grand Rapids, Michigan, about game nights, virtual game nights, and all sorts of board games.

You can listen to the interview (about 7 minutes long) right here.

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My book HOW TO HOST A GAME NIGHT is available now! Alan R. Moon, designer of Ticket to Ride, calls it “the ultimate guide to gaming” and says it “perfectly describes what makes the world of gaming the special place it is for so many people.” Order your copy (paperback or ebook) now!

NY Times: Host a Multigenerational Game Night

On 11 November 202010 November 2020 By Erik ArnesonIn Alexis Soloski, How to Host a Game Night, Interviewed, New York TimesLeave a comment

A recent article in The New York Times by Alexis Soloski (“Host a Multigenerational Game Night This Thanksgiving”) includes a lot of great tips for any family game night.

Here are the first two paragraphs:

Monopoly takes forever. Candy Land is dull, Chutes and Ladders preachy, the Game of Life troubling in its implications. So even as parents scramble for offscreen entertainment over the holidays, the prospect of a family game night may drive them to despair.

Some good news: We are living through a 24-karat golden age of tabletop games, an amusement Renaissance that sees thousands of board games published every year, in a dizzying array of story, strategy and design. How to pick a game that will delight the youngest players without boring older ones silly?

Alexis goes on to discuss specific game recommendations, tips for making game night a wonderful experience instead of one that people dread, and more!

Among the people she interviewed for the story (in addition to me) are Nick Fortugno, chief creative officer at Playmatics, and Jon Freeman, the owner of The Brooklyn Strategist.

It’s always fantastic to see the board game hobby get coverage in outlets like The New York Times, and even better when it’s a well-written article by someone who obviously enjoys playing games!

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Interview with Ray Carr on WCSB-FM

On 10 November 202010 November 2020 By Erik ArnesonIn How to Host a Game Night, Interviewed, Ray CarrLeave a comment

I recently spoke to Ray Carr on The Ray Carr Show, which airs on WCSB-FM in Cleveland, about my book HOW TO HOST A GAME NIGHT, classic board games, and much more!

The interview was tremendously fun. Ray’s a terrific host (he’s been described as “the Larry King of Cleveland media” by the Cleveland Plain Dealer) and we covered a lot of topics in a short time.

You can listen to the interview right here. It starts at 1:25:33 into this MP3 (although the entire two-hour show is well worth listening to):

Talking About Board Games with Julie Rose on Top of Mind

On 21 August 202021 August 2020 By Erik ArnesonIn How to Host a Game Night, Interviewed, Julie RoseLeave a comment

Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of talking to Julie Rose on the podcast / radio show Top of Mind about board games, the pandemic, the board game Pandemic, and many other game-related topics.

Listen to our conversation here.

We spoke about why tabletop games are so popular today, why Cheetos are a terrible game-night snack, and so much more! It was a really fun discussion.

Related: Julie is a terrific interviewer and I’ve added Top of Mind — which covers a wide range of topics — to my podcast subscriptions. (Search for “Top of Mind with Julie Rose” to find it in your podcast app!)

Discussing Catan on NPR

On 5 August 20205 August 2020 By Erik ArnesonIn Board Games, Catan, InterviewedLeave a comment

There’s a lot of anecdotal evidence that the pandemic — which is causing many more people to stay at home much more often — has led to increased sales of board games and jigsaw puzzles. In this report from NPR, reporter Rob Schmitz looks specifically at the modern classic Catan (aka Settlers of Catan).

Rob talked to me for the story and some of my comments are included. When he asked about the impact Catan has had on boardgaming, I gushed (if my recollection is correct) even a little more than is included in the final report.

It’s difficult to overestimate, in my view, the influence Catan has had on the design of modern board games. You can’t draw a straight line from every game back to Catan, of course, but that’s also part of its influence. It broke the mold, and was wildly successful doing so. That helped inspire other designers and publishers to take more risks, to be more creative.

We’re all treated to a much richer selection of tabletop games today because of Catan.

You can listen to Rob’s story below, or on NPR’s website (where a transcript is also available).

Interviewed by the Lebanon Daily News

On 24 January 201724 January 2017 By Erik ArnesonIn Interviewed, Lebanon Daily News, My FictionLeave a comment

Years ago… well, decades ago, I was a reporter for the Lebanon (PA) Daily News. I covered the courthouse and politics and whatever else I was assigned. (My boss, editor Paul Baker, once had to remind me — strongly remind me — that my job included covering stories that were somewhat less interesting than a murder trial. He was, needless to say, correct.)

So I’m particularly excited to be interviewed in the LDN about my crime writing.

I talked to Les Stewart — a reporter straight out of Central Casting, and a reporter who taught me a lot during my time there — about my short story collection THE THROES OF CRIME, the Lebanon County roots of the story “The Murder of Ernest Trapnell,” playing board games, and much more.