Knavecon 27 – September 26
Huge news in the gaming Calender. Knavecon Ireland’s OG board gaming event is once again happening on the 26th September in Limerick. There’s talk about the biggest boardgaming raffle yet. Idle talk perhaps but probably true
Knavecon Board Game Briefing — Tuesday, 25 August 2026
A relatively quiet Tuesday after the Gen Con dust has settled and while the industry catches its breath before Essen season kicks off properly. There’s still a few bits worth paying attention to though, especially if you’re already starting to think about October.
SU&SD wraps Board Games Direct with a pair of new episodes
Shut Up & Sit Down have been pumping out their Board Games Direct series all month — basically their annual showcase of new and upcoming games. The final episode, New Games for Two, dropped recently and covers two-player games including Tag Team: Arthur’s Legacy (September), Night Witches (Fall 2026), Red Notice (October), and Dice Throne Vanguard. Alongside that, their latest podcast — episode 299.15, “A Sliver of Small Boxes” — has Tom and Matt reviewing small-box games including Otter (a shedding game). They also did a meaty episode 299 on The Queen’s Dilemma, the follow-up to The King’s Dilemma, plus Railway Porters. If you liked The King’s Dilemma, that one’s worth a listen.
The Essen 2026 preview list is filling up on BGG
If you haven’t already poked around the SPIEL Essen 2026 preview on BGG, now’s a good time to start. It went live in late July and publishers are adding games daily. Essen runs October 22–25 this year. Multiple publishers — Devir, Kolossal, and plenty of smaller outfits — are already staking their claims. For anyone planning the trip, BGG’s monthly Best of BGG August video flagged that the preview list is live and growing. Two months out, the serious planning starts now.
Atalia’s liquidation is a warning sign
I mentioned this a while back but it’s still worth flagging for context: French distributor and publisher Atalia entered liquidation in July after losing distribution rights to key bestsellers. Board Game Wire covered it well. They blamed market saturation and the stranglehold Asmodee and Hachette have on French distribution. It’s a stark reminder that the mid-tier publisher/distributor space is getting tighter. Anyone who thinks the board game market is pure sunshine hasn’t been paying attention. Steelwing Games — the new label from industry vet Scott Morris (ex-Arcane Wonders, ex-Lucky Duck) — launching with Rainbow Blvd. is the other side of the coin: experienced people starting lean and focused. His interview on Board Game Wire is worth reading if you’re interested in where the business side of things is going.
BGG Hotness: the usual suspects and one newcomer
The current BGG Hotness is sitting with Dune: Imperium – Conspiracy at the top, which has been parked there since its Gen Con debut. Night at the Zoo is the interesting one — it’s been climbing and holding position alongside heavyweights like Wingspan Pocket and Rebirth (the Knizia/Mighty Boards game). Night at the Zoo is a 2026 release that seems to have properly caught on. Worth keeping an eye on if you haven’t looked into it yet.
Crowdfunding — one launch today
According to the BGG prelaunched projects list, a game from Sword and Stone Studios was slated for Gamefound launch today (August 25). It’s a 1–10 player game designed by Luke Skelton with a 240-minute play time. Not a lot of buzz around it yet but if that player count and length appeal to you, it could be worth a look. August overall has been quieter on the crowdfunding front — most publishers seem to be holding their big launches for September/October to ride the Essen wave.
In Ireland
A few things happening. Tonight (Tuesday 25th August), Board & Brewed in Dún Laoghaire has their regular Tuesday board game meetup — 5pm to 10pm, free entry, over 700 games on the shelf, and they’ll sort you onto a table if you come on your own. They also do pizza and pints. It’s one of the best regular game nights in Dublin.
Looking ahead: the Irish Catan Jamboree is on Saturday September 5th at Board & Brewed — the first event from the Irish Catan Association outside of their competitive cups. Tickets are €14 and it runs 10am to 6pm. If you’re a Catan person (or know one), that’s a nice casual day out.
For anyone who hasn’t been yet, Rogue Gaming opened on Francis Street in Dublin back in June — a dedicated tabletop gaming space doing trading cards, board games, and RPGs. Dublin’s scene keeps growing.
And the big one on the calendar: Gaelcon 38 runs October 23–26 at the Crowne Plaza Dublin Airport. Early bird tickets and RPG/LARP event tickets are available now on their website. It’s Ireland’s longest-running gaming convention and always worth the trip.
I haven’t found anything new in Munster or the rest of the country in the last couple of days. If anyone knows of game nights or events outside Dublin, shout in the comments — I’d love to cover them.
For the Knavecon community: with Essen two months away and Gaelcon in October, now’s the time to start thinking about autumn gaming plans. If anyone’s heading to either, flag it in the Knavecon group — could be worth coordinating.
Worth sharing: “The Queen’s Dilemma is apparently out and SU&SD are already playing it. If The King’s Dilemma was one of your group’s favourites, this follow-up might be the autumn campaign game sorted.”
Victor Gannon Games 
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