EL-CO

Coming soon: Rosalie -Build a beautiful rose garden with robots! Combine roses to create entirely new varieties. Are new roses difficult to maintain? No problem. Robots will assist you!

Hey, gamers, especially those who love heavy economic Euro games. Check out the KS pre-launch page for Rosalie, the latest game from uchibacoya.
Let me know what you think of the game and the campaign.
www.kickstarter.com/projects/uch...

YouTube video by ACTMusicOfficial Peter Somuah - Roudabout | Live from The Womb Studio

Very cool.
youtu.be/SYI4oPmtxco?...

Thank you for sharing, and congratulations on your accomplishment!

I know this! I read a similar story in a fairy tale. A king asked his three daughters how much they loved him, and the third daughter answered that she loved him as much as her books.
Yes, as far as I can remember.

YouTube video by BBC Earth 30 Minutes of Perfect Penguin Moments | BBC Earth

We need some penguins in this depressing time. At least, I do.
youtu.be/nRVHmLq8_ZY?...

ゲームバランス試論｜EL-CO 「このゲームはバランスが悪い」 ボードゲームを遊んでいれば、こうした発言を何度か耳にしたことがあるのではないだろうか。あるいは自分で言ったことがあるかもしれない。もしかしら頻繁に使っているかも。かくいう私もしばしば言ってしまう。「このゲーム、バランス悪いよね」 ゲームバランスというのは便利な言葉だ。理想的な展開（がどのようなものかはさておき）に辿り着けなかった場合は、とりあえず「バランスが悪い」...

Here is an article I wrote a few years ago about balance in board games (in Japanese).

Matthew Dunstan氏がゲームバランスについてデザイナーの視点から語る動画が非常に面白くて勉強になった。私が数年前に書いたゲームバランスの文章もそんなに悪くない気もするな。
note.com/el_co/n/n2df...

For example, the first player advantage/disadvantage is often related to the number of options/degree of freedom in the decision space, rather than to VPs.

Very interesting. The word "balance" is often used quite arbitrarily in games, which makes it difficult to evaluate. In most cases, a balanced game means the game is equally enjoyable, rather than equally winnable. Win rate or average points are not the appropriate indices of game balance.

A few comments on the Japan election yesterday:
- It was more decisive than I expected—and wanted.
- There is a significant trend toward nationalism, which is consistent with most of the world.
- The depreciation of JPY will continue, which will be hard on basic, esp. experimental science.

I'm one of the antisocial scientists: an introspective neuroscientist, trying to tap into social behaviors. Clearly, I'm not a very good subject for my own study.

YouTube video by Disney Plus Music by John Williams | Official Trailer | Disney+

I watched "Music by John Williams" and was really impressed. It's a love letter to live music and live musicians, which I really appreciate. The film is full of great songs, and it's hard to believe that a single person could create them all.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrTT...

Games, Puzzles, and Everything in Between (+Boardcast) Can you tell the difference between games and puzzles? And does it matter?

Interesting. I think the difference between games and puzzles emerges from the interaction between players and the activity. By definition, math exams can be regarded as a game (a multi-player puzzle with scores and a time limit), but they aren't for most people.
www.wericmartin.com/games-puzzle...

YouTube video by British Library Frankenstein: Guillermo del Toro, Jacob Elordi and Matthew Sweet

Looks interesting. I will come back to this once I've watched the film.
Frankenstein: Guillermo del Toro, Jacob Elordi and Matthew Sweet by British Library
youtu.be/Lf32IXbxa1U?...

#NowListening Eye of the Hurricane by Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra (Arr. by Bob Mintzer)
I'm surprised this album was reissued in Japan last year. I should buy it.

Wow, I don't think I've ever seen a board game box with a side drawer before. That's very cool!

側面に引き出しのついたゲームボックスって初めて見る気がします。かっこいいな！

I feel the gap between my expectations and the reality of society and politics these days. This is likely not due to SNS, AI, or other technological or ideological changes in the current era. Rather, it is probably because my internal model of society and politics is fundamentally flawed.

Thank you very much! I will double-check whether Scythe was the first to use double layered boards with revealed benefits. I was really impressed with the UI at the time. I might ask you again in the comments of the video.

ありがとうございます。試してみます。

ArXiv says submissions must be in English: are AI translators up for the job? Nature - The preprint repository’s requirement could boost the use of large language models to translate scientific texts.

From 11 February, all submissions posted on arXiv must be either written in English or accompanied by a full English translation

go.nature.com/3LLbsRb

YouTube video by The British Museum 1000 Years of Japanese swords, explained | Curator's Corner S10 Ep11

I watched a video about Japanese swords by the British Museum. Sometimes, it's helpful to learn about your own country through the eyes from outside. Very interesting.
(And I trust the British Museum on historical accuracy.)
youtu.be/yZ19tAjFhYs?...

YouTube video by GroundUP Music NYC Snarky Puppy & Metropole Orkest - Only Here and Nowhere Else (cond. Jules Buckley) [Official Video]

I'm very impressed with Somni by @realsnarkypuppy.bsky.social & Metropole Orkest. It's not just 'Snarky Puppy with Strings'. They know how to collaborate. Great work!
youtu.be/pX8VqoQX8hk?...

Thanks! Terra Mystica is earlier, and I totally forgot about Hansa Teutonica. I should revisit the game soon. So, is Scythe the first game to combine the UI with double-layered boards?
I'm currently interested in the development of UI in modern board games and would like to hear your thoughts.

blueskyに重点を移すのは良いが、クライアントを変えても良いかなとは思っている。Androidアプリで「リストの読んだところから再開する」機能があるクライアントがあるなら試してみたいものだが（調べてもよくわからなくて面倒になっている

I had a one-day business trip on Friday (by shinkansen), and I was completely exhausted yesterday. This time of year, towards the end of the Japanese fiscal year, is always busier than expected.

なんか急にblueskyが住みやすくなってきた（日本語ポストが増えてきた）ような気がするんですが本当なんでしょうか。ここ数ヶ月でXが思ったように機能しなくなってきた印象はあるんですが。
本格的こちらに重心を置くようにしてもいいなあ、と思いつつ、それなら英語と日本語のアカウント分けた方が良いのでは？などと余計なことを考えてしまう。とりあえず日本語ポストを少し混ぜていくことにしましょうかね。

I'm getting sick of the word "deal" recently, even though I live in Japan and speak Japanese most of the time.

What is the earliest game with in which moving your own token from your player board to the main board uncovers a permanent bonus? Scythe (2016) is the earliest example I can think of, but are there any precursors? Maybe I should ask Jamey @stonemaiergames.com about its origin.
Great UI, indeed.

YouTube video by Science Magazine The biggest science breakthroughs of 2025

The biggest science breakthroughs of 2025, by @science.org
youtu.be/AoyIj79D9o0?...

Wow, this sounds interesting!
A game about monsters around the world, from Scorpion Masqué, by Antoine Bauza, Corentin Lebrat, and Théo Rivière.
I talked with a Scorpion Masqué person about Japanese monsters some time ago, which might be related to this game. I hope it helped!

IMHO, it is sometimes difficult to accept new technologies, and Sci-Fi can help by providing some narratives, even though the tech/gadgets themselves are very different. The problem is that such narratives may constrain how society embraces (and expects) the technology.