Solid mid-September Tuesday. Not an avalanche of news but a few things actually worth paying attention to, and a busy week ahead on the crowdfunding side.

Perennial just went live on Kickstarter. Flatout Games — the team behind Cascadia — launched their new one today. It’s a puzzly tile-laying game about building a prairie garden with wildflowers and wildlife, designed for 1–4 players, 30–45 minutes. Beth Sobel did the art, which is gorgeous as you’d expect. The team have said it’s crunchier than Cascadia, which is interesting — that game worked precisely because it was breezy. Worth watching how this funds. If you liked Cascadia but wished it had a bit more bite, this might be your thing. Kickstarter page here. What’s Eric Playing also posted a preview yesterday if you want more detail before backing.

The Dice Tower’s Week in Review dropped for September 14th and there’s a standout. Tom gave Realm of Reckoning an 8.5 and a Seal of Excellence. It’s from IV Studio, and the pitch is player-controlled scoring with area control elements — the kind of thing that sounds like it could be a Knavecon favourite if it holds up. They also covered Citadels Duel, 17 Dice Bets, and the Scythe-meets-Expeditions mashup Duel of Meloch. Full rundown on the Dice Tower site.

Everdell Journeys is running hot on Kickstarter. The campaign launched September 8th with a $35,000 goal and has already blown past $500K — over 912% funded according to GodisaGeek. This isn’t another expansion for the base game. It’s a standalone card-drafting game set in the Everdell world, where you’re laying paths of cards rather than doing worker placement. Tycoon Games are behind it. The campaign runs until September 25th. I’m curious but slightly cautious — Everdell has had so many expansions and editions that there’s a bit of franchise fatigue floating around. But the numbers don’t lie.

Clank! is celebrating 10 years. Dire Wolf launched the Cube of Holding — a deluxe big box set — plus a new expansion called The Forgotten Vault on Kickstarter on September 9th. There are also “Master Thief Editions” of the original Clank! line with upgraded components. If you’re a Clank! household, this is the anniversary package. Dire Wolf’s announcement is here.

Tomorrow: Gift of Tulips: Ribbons hits BackerKit (September 16th). It’s an expansion from Weird Giraffe Games to the light tulip-trading game. Small campaign, probably a quick back-or-skip decision. And looking further ahead, City of the Great Machine launches on Kickstarter on September 22nd and Gallery Gambit on September 28th.

Worth watching: the r/boardgames weekly “What Did You Play?” thread for September 14th has Nemesis, Regicide Legacy, and 7 Wonders Duel getting mentions. Duel of Meloch from Stonemaier continues to generate chatter on BGG — it made BoardGameQuest’s best of 2026 so far list.

Ireland corner. The big one for us: Knavecon 27 is eleven days away. September 26th, Castletroy Park Hotel, Limerick. €20 adults, €10 students/unwaged, kids free with an adult. Full games library, free coffee all day. If you haven’t got your tickets yet, sort that out at victorgannongames.com. And if there are games you want in the library, tell me now — not on the morning of.

Before that, the Glendalough Gaming Retreat is this Friday through Sunday (September 18–20) in Co. Wicklow. Board & Brewed are running a full weekend of board games, wargames, and RPGs at the Glendalough International Hostel. €150 with accommodation or €40 for a day pass. They’ve said more than half the spots are gone. Gorgeous location. If you can swing it, book through Board & Brewed.

Locally, there’s a Templemore Tabletop game night tonight (September 15th) at Templemore Library in Tipperary, 7:00–10:00 PM — free, no experience needed, just turn up. Spotted it on the Board Games Ireland Facebook group. And Gaelcon 38 is shaping up for October 23–26 at the Crowne Plaza Dublin Airport if you’re planning ahead for the autumn convention season. Details at iga.ie.

For the Knavecon community: we’re less than two weeks out. This is your last proper window to request games for the library, volunteer to teach something, or just tell me you’re coming so I can plan tables. Drop a comment on the Knavecon Facebook page or message me directly.

One for social: “Perennial from the Cascadia team just launched on Kickstarter. Crunchier, prettier, and about planting wildflower gardens. Between this, Everdell Journeys, and the Clank! 10th anniversary — September is emptying wallets faster than Essen.”

Quiet-ish start to the week, which is no surprise — PAX West just wrapped up and everyone’s still digesting whatever happened at Dragon Con over the weekend. But there are a few things worth your attention, and September is shaping up to be a busy month on both sides of the Atlantic.

Dice Tower dropped their Week in Review yesterday and it’s a meaty one. They covered reviews of Arkham Horror LCG: Children of Blood, Codenames: Critical Role Adventures, Dice Throne: Vanguard, Sunderfolk, and a bunch more. Tom’s “6 Games I Played So You Don’t Have To” segment is always worth a watch if you want to save yourself some money. Full list at dicetower.com. Meanwhile, Shut Up & Sit Down have been rolling through their Board Games Direct 2026 series — the latest instalment (#4) focuses on co-op and solo games, with a preview of the next game from the BEAST team and something called Animal Rescue Team that SU&SD are apparently co-publishing. That’s a new one. Worth checking out at shutupandsitdown.com.

Spiel Essen launched their new B2B matchmaking tool last week, and it’s now baked into the official SPIEL app as of September 3rd. More than 920 exhibitors from 53 countries are confirmed for the October 22–25 show, with demand apparently up from both returning and first-time exhibitors. About half of Thursday, Friday and Saturday tickets are already sold. If you’re thinking about making the trip this year — and I know some of the Knavecon crowd are — don’t leave tickets too late. The matchmaking system is aimed at trade visitors (€46 business ticket), but it signals that Essen is taking the industry-networking side of things more seriously. Reported by Board Game Wire and Meeplay.

The TTGDA publisher contract benchmark is still making waves since its August release. If you missed it: the Tabletop Game Designers Association scored and compared the standard contracts that publishers offer to designers, looking at fairness around IP, royalties, and designer involvement. It’s a genuinely important piece of work — the kind of transparency that didn’t exist even two years ago. Elizabeth Hargrave, Geoff Engelstein and Sen-Foong Lim are behind it. Full report is a PDF via Board Game Wire. Even if you’re not a designer, it’s interesting reading for anyone who cares about how this industry treats its creators.

On the crowdfunding side, September is picking up. The Food Chain Magnate Special Edition Redux is still available on Gamefound via Lucky Duck Games — the deluxe version with miniatures and double-layer components, estimated delivery December 2026. FCM is one of those games that polarises people on production quality versus gameplay purity, but there’s no denying the original is a masterpiece. Also launching today (September 8th) on Gamefound is a game from Department of Lore — details are thin but it’s a 1–4 player game designed by Anand Gandhi with art from 9B Collective, listed on the BGG prelaunched crowdfunding geeklist. One to watch if you like supporting newer studios.

Worth watching: the broader industry health story continues to be interesting. French distributor Atalia went into liquidation back in July, blaming market saturation and the arms race for bestseller distribution rights. Their statement — “shops no longer have the space, the time or the cash flow to stock all the games arriving each week” — is something every FLGS owner in the world would nod at. The full story is on Board Game Wire. That’s not new news, but it’s still the backdrop to everything else happening right now.

Ireland corner. Three weeks out from Knavecon 27 on September 26th at the Castletroy Park Hotel in Limerick — €20 adults, €10 students/unwaged, kids free with an adult. Full games library, free coffee. Get tickets at victorgannongames.com. Before that though, the Glendalough Gaming Retreat is September 18–20 in Co. Wicklow, run by the Board & Brewed crew out of Dún Laoghaire. A full weekend of board games, wargames and RPGs in one of the most scenic spots in Ireland. Tickets from €40 non-residential or €150pp with accommodation, and they’re saying more than half the spots are gone. Details and booking via Board & Brewed. Looking further ahead, Gaelcon 38 runs October 23–26 at the Crowne Plaza in Santry, Dublin — four days of RPGs, board games, LARPs and wargames. Tickets and info at iga.ie/gaelcon. And if you’re in Dublin this week, the Board Games Ireland Meetup group has their Wednesday session tomorrow (September 9th) at the NYX Hotel in Portobello — details on Meetup.

For the Knavecon community specifically: We’re less than three weeks out. If there are games you want in the library, shout now — don’t wait until the week before. And if anyone’s planning an Essen trip in October, let’s talk group coordination on the Facebook page. There’s always a better deal when a few of us go in together on shipping.

One for social: “920 exhibitors from 53 countries confirmed for Essen this October. Meanwhile a French distributor just went under saying shops can’t stock all the games coming out every week. The hobby is booming and buckling at the same time. Interesting times.”

Knavecon Boardgame Briefing — Weekly Edition, Friday 04 September 2026

It’s been one of those weeks where the news is more about what’s about to happen than what’s already landed. September is stacking up to be a monster month for crowdfunding, Dragon Con and PAX West are both running this weekend with tabletop components, and there’s a growing pile of interesting games hitting shelves. Meanwhile, Essen is now less than seven weeks away. Deep breath.

The September crowdfunding calendar is ridiculous. Tantrum House put out their September overview and the volume is hard to ignore. Food Chain Magnate: Special Edition from Lucky Duck Games relaunched on Gamefound on September 1st — same rules, completely overhauled components, miniatures for the restaurants, the Ketchup Mechanism expansion included. It’s a one-off print run with no retail planned, so if you want it, that’s your only window (Gamefound page). Then on September 8th you’ve got Everdell Journeys hitting Kickstarter via Tycoon Games (everdelljourneys.com), and later in the month there’s Ten Years of Clank from Dire Wolf, City of the Great Machine’s expansion, and more. Brass: Pittsburgh from Roxley is still open on Gamefound too — that campaign has now crossed $11.4 million, which is staggering for a Martin Wallace sequel (Gamefound). Estimated shipping March 2027.

Duel of Meloch is getting reviewed everywhere and the reception is genuinely interesting. Jamey Stegmaier’s idea to combine Scythe and Expeditions into a head-to-head duelling game sounded gimmicky when it was announced, but the reviews are largely positive. BoardGameQuest reviewed it, Board Game Views called it “extremely cohesive” (link), and Shelfside raised some balance concerns around the scoring track but still found it engaging. It plays in about 45 minutes and apparently captures the feel of both games without being a diluted mess. That’s the bit I didn’t expect. It was sitting at #7 on BGG’s July Hotness list and seems to be holding strong on shopping threads into September (BGG).

The TTGDA contract benchmark is the most important industry story of the summer. The Tabletop Game Designers Association published their Contract Scoring Rubric and full Market Contract Analysis in August (report PDF, Board Game Wire coverage). They’ve scored and compared the standard contracts that publishers offer designers, looking at payment fairness, IP protection, designer involvement, and use of names and likenesses in marketing. This is significant. It’s the first time anyone’s done this publicly and systematically, and it gives designers real leverage when negotiating. If you know any aspiring game designers, point them at this.

Shut Up & Sit Down wrapped their Board Games Direct 2026 series over the last few weeks — a video a day covering different categories of new and upcoming games. The co-op and solo video (#4) is worth watching if that’s your thing (SUSD site), and the shorts by Dani Standring have been great bite-sized looks at individual titles. Highlights from their library additions include Citadels Duel (coming fall 2026), Brass: Pittsburgh, and Mechs vs. Minions: Bandle City Edition. Their coverage of The Queen’s Dilemma — a standalone King’s Dilemma follow-up for 3-6 players — caught my eye. That’s available now.

On the convention front: Dragon Con is running in Atlanta right now through Sunday (September 3-7), PAX West is live in Seattle this weekend (September 4-7) with an expanded tabletop area in the Summit building including a board game library, TCG zone, and RPG sessions (PAX West tabletop details). And Spiel Essen tickets are on sale — October 22-25, with close to 950 exhibitors expected (spiel-essen.de). If you’re going from Ireland, now’s the time to sort flights and hotels.

Games worth tracking right now: Revenant from Mindclash Games (set in the Voidfall universe, competitive worker placement, getting strong reviews on Meeple Mountain and elsewhere — BGG page), The Great Sea from Garphill Games (Phoenician maritime trading, pre-orders open for November release via Renegade — renegadegamestudios.com), and Buttons & Bugs: Pub Crawlers from Cephalofair (the Gloomhaven solo spinoff gets its first expansion, shipping this month — Cephalofair). Also keep an eye on the BGG July Hotness video which just dropped — Harmonies: Crescendo, Chivalry from Dávid Turczi, and Altera were all featured alongside the Duel of Meloch (BGG video).

Ireland corner. The big one for us: Knavecon 27 is September 26th at the Castletroy Park Hotel in Limerick. Tickets are €20 adults, €10 students/unwaged, kids free with an adult. Full games library, free coffee all day. You know the drill. Get your tickets sorted at victorgannongames.com.

Beyond that, the Irish convention calendar is stacking up nicely for autumn. Collector Con Ireland is next weekend — September 12-13 at the RDS in Dublin (Eventbrite). It’s more of a TCG/collectibles event than pure board gaming, but if you’re into Pokémon, Lorcana, or sports cards it’s worth the trip. DARECon 2026 is confirmed for October 17-18 at the Osprey Hotel in Naas, Co. Kildare — run by Naas Board Game Club, it’s two days of open play, organised games, and family tables. Tickets on darecon.ie. And Gaelcon 38 runs October 23-26 at the Crowne Plaza Dublin Airport — Ireland’s longest-running gaming convention covering RPGs, board games, card games, LARPs, and wargames (iga.ie/gaelcon). Board Games Ireland’s Meetup group continues to run regular events — check them on Meetup for Dublin dates. And if you haven’t been, Board & Brewed in Dún Laoghaire is Dublin’s dedicated board game café with 700+ games, stone-baked pizza, and BYOB nights on Fridays (boardandbrewed.ie). I’ve heard nothing new from the Munster side beyond our own Knavecon, which tells me there’s still a gap to fill down here.

For the Knavecon Facebook community: September is going to be busy. Knavecon 27 is three weeks out. If there are games you want to make sure are in the library, now’s the time to shout. And if you’re heading to Essen in October, let’s coordinate — there’s always a better deal on games when a few of us pool shipping.

One for social: “The TTGDA just published a public scorecard ranking how fairly board game publishers treat their designers. Every game designer should read it. Every publisher should be nervous about it. This is how industries improve.” (boardgamewire.com)

Knavecon Board Game Briefing — Tuesday, 1 September 2026

First day of September and the hobby calendar is about to get very busy. Dragon Con and PAX West both kick off later this week, Essen season is warming up in the background, and — most importantly for us — Knavecon 27 is now less than four weeks away. Plenty to talk about today.

The big retail news this month is that Asmodee’s September release calendar is stacked. Marvel: Crisis Protocol Alliances – Night of the Goblin drops on September 4th, and there’s a new Harmonies Pulse expansion due mid-month. But the one I’d pay attention to is the Rheinlander: Evolved release from 25th Century Games — a Knizia area control classic from 1999 that’s been given a full makeover with Ian O’Toole art and new expansion modules designed by Knizia himself. That’s a serious pedigree and it should be hitting shelves this month. Bitewing Games had it on their most anticipated list earlier in the year and rightly so. Keep an eye on it. (Bitewing Games, Asmodee release calendar)

Games Workshop is bumping prices again on September 21st — about 4% across the board on paints and models. They announced it through the retailer network back in August with minimal fanfare, as usual. If you’re a Warhammer person and you’ve been putting off a purchase, you’ve got about three weeks to buy at current prices. (Spikey Bits breakdown, GW Retailer Network)

On the content side, Shut Up & Sit Down recently reviewed Jisogi: Anime Studio Tycoon and seemed to enjoy it — a thematic euro about running an anime production house where you’re constantly teetering on the edge of burnout and debt. It’s been getting buzz from multiple reviewers and it’s on the Essen 2026 strategic euro watchlists too. If you like your euros with a bit of personality and theme baked in, this is worth a look. (SU&SD review) Meanwhile, BoardGameQuest posted their crowdfunding roundup last week with Echoes of Artemis (asymmetric deck-builder, funded on Kickstarter, ending September 4th) and Steel Wolves Deluxe Edition among the picks. (BGQ roundup)

Convention-wise, Dragon Con (September 3–7, Atlanta) and PAX West (September 4–7, Seattle) both fire up this week. PAX West’s tabletop presence in the Summit building looks substantial again — board game library, Dice Throne demos, a Deception Zone, plus exhibitors including Misty Mountain Gaming and the new Riftbound: League of Legends TCG. Riot Games co-founder Marc Merrill is doing the Friday keynote. If anyone’s reporting from either event, the tabletop previews coming out of those shows will set the tone heading into Essen. (PAX West tabletop, Dragon Con gaming)

Worth watching: Wirecutter named their top 5 Gen Con standouts recently and Wingspan Pocket was at the top of the list — it’s already available at $20 and reviews are strong. Elizabeth Hargrave’s lighter, 30-minute, cards-and-eggs version of Wingspan that plays up to 5. If it’s as good as people say, it’ll be everywhere at game nights by Christmas. (Wirecutter)

Ireland

September is genuinely stacked for gaming in Ireland. Three events in the next four weeks:

Pax Hibernia is on September 12th at the Teacher’s Club, Parnell Square, Dublin — a full day of board gaming in the city centre. Tickets are €15 in advance or €20 on the door. It’s the inaugural edition, so worth supporting. Details at paxhibernia.ie.

The Glendalough Gaming Retreat runs September 18–20 in Co. Wicklow — a full weekend of board games, wargames, and RPGs with accommodation included for €150, or €40 if you’re just coming for the day. Board & Brewed are running it and they’ve said more than half the tickets are already gone. If you fancy gaming in one of the most scenic spots in the country, this is your chance. Book through Board & Brewed.

And then Knavecon 27 on September 26th at the Castletroy Park Hotel, Limerick. Our own one. €20 adults, €10 students, kids free. Massive games library, free coffee all day, and apparently the biggest raffle yet. Tickets are on sale now at victorgannongames.com. Cork people allowed under license, as always.

Beyond that, the regular Board Games Ireland meetup continues every Sunday at Alfie Byrne’s opposite the National Concert Hall in Dublin, and there’s a Celbridge board game meetup on September 2nd listed on Meetup.com. Gaelcon 38 is confirmed for October 23–26 at Crowne Plaza Dublin Airport for anyone already looking ahead. (Board Games Ireland on Facebook, Gaelcon)