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Confessions of a Board Game B***h — The Treehouse

Hello and welcome to another instalment of the Treehouse’s agony aunt column! This one is slightly unusual because instead of a ‘Dear Auntie Chella’ letter, today I have a conversation for you which I had with a friend who approached me about her issue in person.

I will now relay this conversation to you, dear readers, in case it helps someone else.

BGB: You’re writing an advice column for the Treehouse now?! Can you help me out with something?

Chella: Sure – go for it.

BGB: Help! I’m a board game bitch!

Readers, I blinked a few times. We took the rest of the conversation to text messages later that day, in a conversation that the aforementioned ‘BGB’ has happily agreed that I can share.

Chella: So you say you’re a what now?

BGB: A board game bitch.

Chella: And you are happy for me to call you this in print?

BGB: Yes, I own it.

Chella: And let me just check, can anyone of any gender be one of these?

BGB: Oh definitely, but I claim the crown.

Chella: What are your worst symptoms of board game bitchiness? Bitchery? Bitchdom? Bitchhood? I am not used to saying this word. Please stop me.

BGB: My worst symptoms? Irrational squeakiness, incandescent fury, and lengthy sulking. I get far too mean and loud and competitive and make my husband hate me. We are only able to play Monopoly once a year. I just lose my temper and can’t control myself.

Chella: Okay… which games are your worst culprits?

BGB: Monopoly, of course, and Dobble and Snap I get far too into.

Chella: Well are there any games that I don’t know… soothe you?

BGB: Any that soothe me? Not sure I’ve really found any yet 😂 I do like Fungi though. Who can get angry about pans of butter?

Chella: That is an excellent point. OK, I think I can help you. Usually the letter is anonymised by me naming the person after an alliterative part of Sheffield, in traditional agony aunt style. Are you happy to be The Board Game Bitch of Broomhill?

BGB: Sure… close enough.

Chella: Very well, check the Treehouse blog for my reply.

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04/05/2025

New automation sandbox game Icaria fuses Minecraft and Factorio together

Back in the early heyday of Minecraft, what really kept me coming back were the mods that dramatically opened up the sandbox game’s building potential. Tekkit, and later Feed the Beast, introduced me to a world of pipe networks and automation long before I ever got into the likes of Satisfactory and Factorio. Now, new indie game Icaria combines the iconic blocky look of Minecraft with the ability to lay out intricate factory networks and program helpers to handle all your tasks, and it’s out now on Steam with a playable demo.

Much like Minecraft, starting a new game of Icaria drops you into a small section of a procedurally generated alien world, although developer Blindsight Games’ creations are more alien in nature than those of Mojang. From your initial spawn, you’ll gradually explore outwards, building out a radio network to give you a better perspective of the world around you.

Like all the best sandbox games, you must gather materials to start constructing, upgrading, and expanding your base, but your labor is just the beginning. Described by Blindsight as a “single-player colony builder,” Icaria really comes into its own as you learn to automate your factories and program robotic helpers. Anything you can do yourself can also be accomplished by your workers, and the bigger your base grows, the more important that becomes.

Using a clean set of visual tools to make programming approachable to anyone, and ways to quickly share your scripts with other players, you’ll be able to set up your workers and facilities to act exactly how you wish. Terraform the landscape, lay down power networks, assign trucks to transport materials across your ever-expanding colony, and unlock more ways to engage with the world.

Icaria is out now on Steam in early access, with a 15% launch discount meaning you’ll pay $21.24 / £17.84 if you buy it by Monday May 12. There’s also a free demo you can download and try before you commit. Blindsight Games is aiming for the early access period to last for “around a year,” but says it will extend that “if that seems like the best way to deliver a satisfying and complete game.”

Can’t get enough construction in your day? Here are the best building games on PC. If it’s the organization aspects that appeal most, we’ve picked out the best management games to play in 2025 as well.

You can follow us on Google News for daily PC games news, reviews, and guides. We’ve also got a vibrant community Discord server, where you can chat about this story with members of the team and fellow readers.

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04/05/2025

HoYoverse finally announces Honkai Star Rail x Fate release date with 5-star Archer and 5-star Saber – plus Archer is free

HoYoverse finally announced the Honkai Star Rail x Fate collaboration release date during the second HSR concert, including details about which characters will join the space game’s roster. HSR x Fate kicks off on July 11, 2025, in an event called Sweet Dreams and the Holy Grail, and it adds two new 5-star characters from the Fate series to HSR’s list of playable characters.

One of them is Saber, a 5-star Destruction character with wind as her element. Saber, aka Artoria Pendragon, is one of Fate’s main characters and first debuted in 2004’s Fate/Stay Night. Saber will run for the usual length of time in a limited event banner. The second Fate character in HSR is Archer, another long-time favorite. Archer is a 5-star Hunt character with quantum as his element, and anyone who logs into Honkai Star Rail during Sweet Dreams and the Holy Grail will get him for free.

Archer from Honkai Star Rail x Fate — Get your very own free man for a limited time | Image credit: HoYoverse

HoYoverse said the free Archer giveaway will last through the end of Honkai Star Rail 3.6. Based on the game’s current update calendar, that’d be sometime in November 2025. Assuming the free Archer event is like the time HoYoverse gave Dr Ratio away, you’ll probably only need to be at the story’s beginning, at the point where you unlock the warp function.

Saber will have “exciting” interactions with the Trailblaze crew during the event’s associated story missions. Fate writer Kinoko Nasu penned the crossover event’s story, and artist Takashi Takeuchi created the Honkai Star Rail versions of Archer and Saber.

HoYoverse also teased a new Honkai game during the concert, though had no further information to share at the time.

If you’re just tuning in for Honkai Star Rail’s second anniversary, make sure to grab your free Ruan Mei or Luocha while the event lasts. Check out our HSR codes page for some freebies, too.

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04/05/2025

why card games rock — The Treehouse

Pick a Dog

Pick-a-Dog (1-5 players) (and its virtually identical sibling games, Pick-a-Pig, Pick-a-Seal and Pick-a-Polar-Bear) rely on high-speed matching, but with storytelling added in. You start by laying out a grid of cards that may match, but mostly don’t quite match exactly. Each player turns over their own starting card, which sets off a round of looking for matches in the grid. Though there are some exact matches, all the pictures are similar – they feature a dog who can be depicted with a number of binary qualities: looking pale or having a tan, holding popcorn or not, wearing sunglasses or not, standing near to you or far away, and using one hand or two hands.

The twist in the matching portion of the game is that you can only match cards that are either exact, or follow a sequence where there is only ONE change per card (you can go from sunglasses to no sunglasses, for example, but not from far to near at the same time). The free-for-all ends when there are no more matches to make (but watch out – if you call it and there are still more matches available, you forfeit your hand and can’t score any points that round, while the other players can resume).

Scoring is fun and unusual (or at least it is the way we teach it at The Treehouse!): to prove you’ve made a true sequence with only one difference on each card, you have to tell a story about your buddy the dog that reflects the pictures as you reveal them. It’s very cute indeed. If you discover mistakes in anyone’s sequence, those cards go straight into the discard pile. The players earn the cards they’ve proven are in a sequence each round, and at the end of the game, the winner is the one who has the most cards.

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04/05/2025

Is it ever possible to live within an eye?

Suppose my opponent has a group with an eye of an arbitrarily large size. Is it ever possible to play within that eye and live? For instance, suppose a 19×19 board, with black stones occupying every corner and edge position. Can white live inside?

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04/05/2025

AwSHUX Spring is HERE! – Shut Up & Sit Down

April 23, 2021SU&SD Special Features

Quinns: Hello! Is everybody ready for a five day board game extravaganzboard?

The second ever AwSHUX, our free online edition of the SU&SD convention, starts today. There’s no time to waste – hurry over to the official site and start poking around!

It is TEEMING with games, THROBBING with features, and GLISTENS with giveaways. But here are some toplines of what you won’t want to miss:

Over on our YouTube channel we’ve just this moment released a whole heap of previews of upcoming games, presented by Tom, Matt and myself. These videos represent a whole month of work and we’re releasing them all in one go, because you’re worth it.
More than 30 hours’ worth of programming will soon start on our Twitch channel- we’ve got panels, gameshows, special guests, presentations galore! You can see the schedule in the above header image.
But SHUX isn’t just about looking at games, pawing at your monitor like a kitten at a window. This weekend you can play games free on Tabletopia – use the code SHUX2021 to get 7 days of free Gold Access! Here’s how to apply your coupon code.
Can’t find the game you want on Tabletopia? Try these other options: BGA (free), Sovranti (Gold access free during AwSHUX with code SHUX21), Yucata (free), Boîte à Jeux (free), TTS (buy on steam).
Can’t find people to play with? We won’t hear of it. You can find friendly folks on the official AwSHUX Discord server!
Finally (and you can expect to hear a lot more about this on the site in the coming days), we’ve only gone and published a game in collaboration with two friends of the show. RATS: High Tea at Sea is a roll’n’write that you can pay whatever you want for, and is 100% playable over a webcam.

The last time this much board game love and tabletop talent was in one place was… probably the last AwSHUX? And this time the show is even bigger and better? Goodness me. I’m going to stop typing right now and get stuck in.

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04/05/2025

Volleyball Ascended Abilities Tier List and Guide [UPD]

Abilities in Volleyball Ascended add a unique layer of strategy and excitement to every match. They allow players to pull off unexpected moves, shift momentum, and outsmart opponents in creative ways. From teleporting sets to directional spikes, each Ability offers a distinct tactical edge. Mastering these powers can be the difference between a good play and a game-changing moment. So follow along with our Volleyball Ascended Abilities tier list and guide to learn how.

Valleyball Ascended Tier List

In the tier list above, we ranked all Abilities in Volleyball Ascended based on how good they are in the current meta. In general, rarer Abilities are stronger. However, as surprising as it may be, a Rare Ability is one of the strongest Abilities in Volleyball Ascended, and a Rival Ability is one of the weaker ones. After extensive testing, I found out that teleporting back with Waypoint is virtually useless compared to the increased team movement speed given by Team Synergy.

Volleyball Ascended Abilities List

Below is a complete and detailed list of all Abilities in Volleyball Ascended, sorted by their position on the tier list:

Direct Set Ability from the Volleyball Ascended Roblox Experience

Team Synergy Ability from the Volleyball Ascended Roblox Experience

Rarity	Description	Tier
Legend	• When activated, your next set within 8 seconds will automatically teleport to the nearest teammate within 35 studs. If no teammate is within range, the set will instead go directly above you. + Amazing for any playstyle. + Easy points when coordinating with your team.	S
Rare	• When activated, your whole team gains a burst of movement speed for 5 seconds. + A Universal Ability that is amazing for any situation. + Best defensive Ability in the game. + It might as well be of Rival rarity or even higher.	S
Rival	• When activated, your next Spike* within 8 seconds has significantly increased power.* + Amazing for an offensive playstyle.	S
Rival	• When activated, your next set within 8 seconds* will be dumped in the direction you are tilting, allowing for quick and unexpected plays.* + Great for surprising the opponents.	A
Epic	• Passively see all landing spots of spikes for both teams. + Great for controlling gameplay and learning.	A
Epic	• When activated, you become invisible* to all enemies for 0.6 Seconds.* + Great for surprise Spikes.	A
Uncommon	• When activated, your next Spike* within 8 seconds will curve to the side.* + Useful in all playstyles.	A
Rare	• When activated, your next Spike* within 8 seconds will become invisible for a split second.* + Great against experienced players.	B
Rival	• When activated, mark* your current location. After 10 seconds, teleport back to it.* − Man, this Ability is just sad. − Very rarely useful and only in niche situations. − It is a Rival rarity Ability, but it might as well be a Rare or Uncommon.	B
Rare	• When activated, your next set within 8 seconds will create a mirage ball. + Good when trying to confuse enemies.	B
Common	• When activated, increase your Block* radius by 30% for 0.75 Seconds.* − A very basic Ability with extremely limited use.	C

A good starting Ability in Volleyball Ascended would be Super Spike, if you can get it, or Spike Seer, as it allows you to see where Spikes will land. Seeing where they land means you can quickly learn how people play and develop a sense of where opponents usually aim.

How to get Abilities in Volleyball Ascended

Step one on how to get an Ability in Volleyball Ascended Roblox Experience — **Click on the Shop icon.**

Step two on how to get an Ability in Volleyball Ascended Roblox Experience — **Click on the Shop icon.**

If you want to get one of the Abilities from our tier list in Volleyball Ascended, you first need to collect enough Yen. You can collect them by playing or using codes from our Volleyball Ascended Codes page. Once you have 3980 Yen, you will be able to buy an Abilities Pack from the store. When you open it, you will get a random Ability from the list above. Some of the better Abilities have a lower chance of dropping, so make sure you have enough Yen to Reroll a few times until you get the one you’re looking for.

And that is all for my Volleyball Ascended Abilities tier list and guide. Check out more Roblox-related stuff on our Roblox Page.

The Escapist is supported by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission. Learn more about our Affiliate Policy

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04/05/2025

Brutal soulslike ARPG No Rest for the Wicked buffs loot drops as reviews plummet

As Grinding Gear Games buffs its unforgiving loot drops in Path of Exile 2, fellow ARPG No Rest for the Wicked is getting similar treatment from developer Moon Studios. Several months in the making, new NRFTW update The Breach introduces more zones, weapon types, boss fights, and endgame systems to the soulslike spin on Diablo. However, it might have been a little too vicious – with the arrival of The Breach, the game’s recent Steam reviews have fallen dramatically to just 43% positive. In an attempt to course correct, Moon Studios delivers a first major hotfix to make overcoming the hordes more manageable.

The Breach has dramatically expanded No Rest for the Wicked, but its focus on challenging encounters has left players complaining that fights felt too long and laborious, gear upgrades are too rare, and the overall grind is too slow. “We’ve seen your feedback roll in, and we want you to know we hear you,” the RPG‘s developer writes at the top of the patch notes for its new hotfix. “Not everything landed the way we hoped, and that’s on us.”

To start with, the new hotfix increases the experience you earn from defeating enemies, including bosses, and there’s no longer a cap on the amount of XP that overcoming high-level enemies can award. The parry window on enemy attacks has been widened, and there are more invincibility frames for the medium roll. The focus cost of firing arrows is “significantly reduced,” and has also been lowered for the Illuminate and Return runes. The Polished Caretaker boss gets a rebalance, while attacks from the Bonded Witch, Nith Screamer, and Shackled Brute can now be interrupted.

The price of gear upgrades has been reduced to one-third of what it was, and repairs are now a little cheaper. Changes to the gear score system will make it more likely that “a really nice item drops for you every once in a while.” You’ll find less plagued gear, but more herbs, fallen embers, weapon shards, and ore veins. Both Filmore and Whittacker have additional shop inventory (including two extra weapons for the former to increase early-game variety), and you can craft the Cleric armor set directly.

Moon Studios has also made some additional UI improvements, including an overhaul to the bounties and challenges screen that should make it clearer to sort them and judge the expected difficulty of each one. The backstab indicator will now appear (and disappear) more quickly, giving you a clearer indication of when you can take advantage of an opening.

No Rest For The Wicked: The Breach Hotfix 1 is out now. You can look through the patch notes courtesy of Moon Studios for a full list of bug fixes and tweaks. “Thank you for sticking with us,” the developer says. “We hope these fixes make your time with No Rest for the Wicked better. Please continue to share your feedback with our team. We are fully committed to delivering an amazing experience, and, with your help, we will.”

Can’t get enough loot? Dive into more of the best games like Diablo to keep yourself rolling in it. Or seek out more tough encounters with the best soulslikes in 2025.

You can follow us on Google News for daily PC games news, reviews, and guides. We’ve also got a vibrant community Discord server, where you can chat about this story with members of the team and fellow readers.

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03/05/2025

Crowd pleasers — The Treehouse

Finally, Klask is pretty much guaranteed to score big with the sort of crowd who prefer bar room-type games like darts, pool or table football to more serious, thinky board gaming. Basically air hockey but with magnets and a ball, Klask involves enough skill to get the competitive juices flowing, but with rules that will immediately feel intuitive and super-appealing components that everyone will want to get their hands on. A staple of our traditional New Year’s Eve celebrations at The Treehouse, the festive season just wouldn’t be complete without a Klask tournament at some point!

Find all of the above and LOTS more in our shop, or come and test-drive pretty much every game we have for sale in the café if you’d like to try before you buy! We’ll be posting more Top-5s to provide Christmas shopping inspiration throughout December… watch this space. For more ideas, you can also check out last year’s Treehouse Christmas games guide here.

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03/05/2025

Can Tyranno Infinity be revived with Limit Reverse during the battle phase?

I am playing Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s Tag Force in PPSSPP "PSP emulator for Android".

In this game I want to build a deck where I can special summon "Tyranno Infinity" from the graveyard during the battle phase.

For now, I am planning to use "Call of the Haunted" for revive him during the battle phase, but, I wonder if "Limit Reverse" can be used as well – since I want to use low-ATK monsters and "Limit Reverse" is unlimited = 3 copies.

My main question is as follows:

Can Tyranno Infinity be revived with Limit Reverse – during the battle phase?

This is due to – by checking the rulings of "Limit Reverse" in the Yu-Gi-Oh! Spanish Wikia said (translated):

You cannot select a monster with ? ATK in the Graveyard for activate "Limit Reverse".

But, this ruling is not stated nor in the English version, ygoresources.com or any other online resource for that matter.

I’ve even posted on ygoprodeck.com about this subject.

In the hypothetical case where "Limit Reverse" cannot be used for special summon Tyranno Infinity from the graveyard:

Which other spell or trap cards can be used for special summon Tyranno Infinity during the battle phase?

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03/05/2025

بلاگ

Pick a Dog

Valleyball Ascended Tier List

Volleyball Ascended Abilities List

How to get Abilities in Volleyball Ascended