Ayar: Children of the Sun

Ayar: Children of the Sun

Author: Pickaxe September 30, 2025 Duration: 1:05:19
"A quipu usually consists of cotton or camelid fiber cords, and contains categorized information based on dimensions like color, order and number. The Inca, in particular, used knots tied in a decimal positional system to store numbers and other values in quipu cords. Depending on its use and the amount of information it stored, a given quipu may have anywhere from a few to several thousand cords. [...] Inca administration used quipus extensively for a variety of uses: monitoring tax obligations, collecting census records, keeping calendrical information, military organization, and potentially for recording simple and stereotyped historical "annales"." -Wikipedia SVWAG's Pickaxe stream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4t8XLnJha-E Games Played Last Week: 00:55 -Marvel Dice Throne Missions (Gavan Brown & Nate Chatellier, Roxley, 2025) 05:03 -It's a Wonderful World (Frédéric Guérard, La Boîte de Jeu, 2019) 09:03 -The Fellowship of the Ring: Trick-Taking Game (Bryan Bormueller, Office Dog, 2025) 12:03 -Corporate America (Teale Fristoe, Nothing Sacred Games, 2013) 15:23 -Tidal Blades 2: Rise of the Unfolders (Tim Eisner and Ben Eisner, Druid City Games, 2024) 18:03 -Captain's Gambit: Kings of Infinite Space (AC Atienza, Alvin Lee, and Mitchell Loewen, Cloudfall Interactive Studios, 2020) 23:51 -Lacuna (Mark Gerrits, CMYK, 2023) 27:12 -Stellar Conflict (James Ernest & Tom Jolly, Artipia Games, 2015) 29:48 -Figment (Wolfgang Warsch, CMYK, 2025) 31:53 -Leonardo da Vinci's Codex Leicester (Changhyun Baek, Flaminia Brasini, Virginio Gigli, Stefano Luperto, and Antonio Tinto, DiceTree Games, 2023) News (and why it doesn't matter): 35:43 Reprint of At the Gates of Loyang 36:09 Fat Bear week comes to its climax! https://explore.org/fat-bear-week 37:19 The Hobbit: There and Back Again roll-and-write by Reiner Knizia 37:42 Dogs of War reprint: controversy over hats 38:38 Wandering Galaxy: A Crossroads Game 39:50 Cross-Bronx Expressway by Non-Breaking Space and GMT Games 41:26 Cranio expansion pack on crowdfunding Oct. 1st: Barrage, Rats of Wistar, Golem 42:09 Feature Game: Ayar: Children of the Sun (Mandela Fernandez-Grandon & Fabio Lopiano, Osprey Games, 2025) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hosted by Mike Walker and Mark Bigney, So Very Wrong About Games digs into the world of hobby gaming with a blend of sharp critique and genuine enthusiasm. Each episode feels like pulling up a chair at a table where two knowledgeable friends are deep in conversation, dissecting everything from the latest releases to timeless classics. They believe that a bad game deserves a thorough examination just as much as a great one, applying that same level of detailed analysis to reviews, industry news, and broader gaming topics. This isn't about following trends or generating hype; it's about thoughtful discussion that respects both the listener's time and the context in which games are made and played. The dynamic between Walker and Bigney captures a fundamental truth about the hobby-that taking games seriously and having fun with them are not mutually exclusive. You'll find their approach both refreshing and deeply engaging, whether they're championing an overlooked gem or meticulously explaining why a popular title didn't work for them. Tune in to this Pickaxe-produced podcast for honest, substantive talk that treats the medium with the depth it often deserves, but rarely receives in casual conversation.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

So Very Wrong About Games
Podcast Episodes
#336: Opening the Box Downers [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:10:57
Apparently there were scrapped plans for the Gorn (the lumbering rubber lizard suit dude Kirk fights in that famous episode) to show up in other Star Trek properties. One plan had a Gorn show up as Worf's guest to Riker'…
#335: Catching Up [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:20:44
Thrill to the latest superhero epic, "X-Men: Layover in Dulles." When the Blackbird is grounded due to an unexplained indicator light (meddling from the sinister Magneto? Who can say?!?!), the elite group of heroic mutan…
#334: EGO [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:11:07
Walker: But, indeed, sir, we make holiday, to see Freedom Five and to rejoice in its triumph. Mark: Wherefore rejoice? What delight brings it home? What enjoyment follows it to the table, To grace in fun times its board…
#333: Expectations in Crowdfunding [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:23:22
An auspicious palindrome of an episode number! Granted, in triple digits one encounters a palindrome every ten episodes or so, but I'm sure the numerologists amongst us have special enthusiasm for the mighty TRIP THREE.…
#332: Undaunted 2200: Callisto [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:11:39
Once again, a primer on some of the differences between the US and Canada. We Canadians celebrate Thanksgiving in early October, in honour of our second governor general, the Right Honourable October G. Thanksington. Rat…
#331: Our Favourite Factions [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:16:35
It is October, the month of Fat Bear Week, Decorative Gourd Season, Halloween, and Arkhipov Day! Sure, it has less candy than some of those other celebrations, but I'll wager neither a corpulent bear nor a kid dressed as…
#330: Andromeda's Edge [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:07:07
Generally we here at SVWAG prefer sci-fi to fantasy, especially if it is of the general sort. There is something joyous about the weird flights of fancy that sci-fi can enable, such as Andromeda's Edge with its "Jelluloi…
#329: Replayability [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:12:54
If you replayed all the published SVWAG episodes back-back, it would take over 355 hours, or almost 15 days. This is not necessarily how we would recommend you spend your time. Indeed, for our purposes, we are equally wr…
#328: The Vale of Eternity [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:00:01
I find so many mnemonics to be profoundly disappointing. Unless there's a structural element to tie the components together, a mnemonic will not serve to dispositively disambiguate a dyad. I assure you, that lamentable b…
#327: Game Mastery [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:12:03
Solidarity, dear listeners, on this most august September Labour Day. Of course, Labour Day is the labour holiday invented for the US and Canada so as to undermine global solidarity. Nearly everywhere else celebrates Int…