Derek Bruff
@firstplayertoken.bsky.social
Host of First Player Token, a short podcast for folks who enjoy playing board games with family and friends, https://linktr.ee/firstplayertoken
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Derek Bruff
@firstplayertoken.bsky.social
· Sep 29
First Player Token
A board game review podcast for people who enjoy playing games with family and friends
firstplayertoken.buzzsprout.com
Hello new followers! I make a short monthly podcast with each episode fearing a different game that’s been a hit with my family and friends. It’s perfect for sharing with people new to the world of board games. Listen here: firstplayertoken.buzzsprout.com
And tonight we finished our 2025 Unmatched tournament, only a few weeks into 2026! 😜
Stay tuned to the podcast to find out who our all-time favorite Unmatched fighter is!
Stay tuned to the podcast to find out who our all-time favorite Unmatched fighter is!
New episode! The teenager and I start our 2025 Unmatched tournament to see which of our 16 most-played characters is our favorite Unmatched hero! It's Beowulf vs. the Winter Soldier! The Genie vs. Little Red! T-Rex vs. Dracula! And more! firstplayertoken.buzzsprout.com/2292265/epis...
January 18, 2026 at 4:13 AM
And tonight we finished our 2025 Unmatched tournament, only a few weeks into 2026! 😜
Stay tuned to the podcast to find out who our all-time favorite Unmatched fighter is!
Stay tuned to the podcast to find out who our all-time favorite Unmatched fighter is!
Just two games at game night last night, but two very good ones! I might have shouted “I’m a brave prairie witch!” once twice.
Broom Service, which I hadn’t played in _ages_, plus Space Explorers with a few expansion modules and my fun playmat.
Broom Service, which I hadn’t played in _ages_, plus Space Explorers with a few expansion modules and my fun playmat.
January 17, 2026 at 3:52 PM
Just two games at game night last night, but two very good ones! I might have shouted “I’m a brave prairie witch!” once twice.
Broom Service, which I hadn’t played in _ages_, plus Space Explorers with a few expansion modules and my fun playmat.
Broom Service, which I hadn’t played in _ages_, plus Space Explorers with a few expansion modules and my fun playmat.
SETI! I’m playing through the solo game so I can make sure I know the rules. Later this month, I’m spending a weekend in a cabin with ten friends playing board games. I’ll definitely want to get this game to the table!
January 11, 2026 at 12:09 AM
SETI! I’m playing through the solo game so I can make sure I know the rules. Later this month, I’m spending a weekend in a cabin with ten friends playing board games. I’ll definitely want to get this game to the table!
Drop some WHEELS
January 10, 2026 at 6:20 PM
Drop some WHEELS
We got the 3yo Cascadia Jr. for Christmas, and he loves it! So do we. We can play it in 20 minutes, which is exactly as long as his attention span.
January 10, 2026 at 3:23 PM
We got the 3yo Cascadia Jr. for Christmas, and he loves it! So do we. We can play it in 20 minutes, which is exactly as long as his attention span.
From Board Game Arena: "In 2025, you played an impressive 325 tables! This places you in the top 10% of all BGA players!"
I'm not sure if I'm proud of that or not. 😜
I'm not sure if I'm proud of that or not. 😜
January 8, 2026 at 6:03 PM
From Board Game Arena: "In 2025, you played an impressive 325 tables! This places you in the top 10% of all BGA players!"
I'm not sure if I'm proud of that or not. 😜
I'm not sure if I'm proud of that or not. 😜
The very first game I gave my nephew, I think back in 2016, was Ticket to Ride. We broke it out yesterday for my first play in a very long time. Naturally, he crushed us. I forgot you could get 67 points on the LA-Miami connection!
January 2, 2026 at 10:08 PM
The very first game I gave my nephew, I think back in 2016, was Ticket to Ride. We broke it out yesterday for my first play in a very long time. Naturally, he crushed us. I forgot you could get 67 points on the LA-Miami connection!
And here’s my 2025 year in review. That’s 275 plays, up from 229 the year before, mainly because the 3yo is a regular at the table now! Also, I played with 73 people this year! Board games are about community for me.
January 1, 2026 at 10:15 PM
And here’s my 2025 year in review. That’s 275 plays, up from 229 the year before, mainly because the 3yo is a regular at the table now! Also, I played with 73 people this year! Board games are about community for me.
Let’s start with December! Twenty different games isn’t half bad!
January 1, 2026 at 5:22 AM
Let’s start with December! Twenty different games isn’t half bad!
The nephew loves Kingdomino, so I thought it was time to teach him Middle Ages, which has similar vibes. He loved it. And won his first game against me, naturally.
(We played Unmatched right after, where I made sure to keep him humble.)
(We played Unmatched right after, where I made sure to keep him humble.)
December 31, 2025 at 10:57 PM
The nephew loves Kingdomino, so I thought it was time to teach him Middle Ages, which has similar vibes. He loved it. And won his first game against me, naturally.
(We played Unmatched right after, where I made sure to keep him humble.)
(We played Unmatched right after, where I made sure to keep him humble.)
Just finished a very fun game of Fit to Print with the niblings. I didn’t get a photo, but I did get some audio of our reporting and layout phases. I’m excited to cover this game on the podcast in the new year.
December 31, 2025 at 7:08 PM
Just finished a very fun game of Fit to Print with the niblings. I didn’t get a photo, but I did get some audio of our reporting and layout phases. I’m excited to cover this game on the podcast in the new year.
Reposted by Derek Bruff
I’ve been having fun looking through my board game photos from the year. Here are nine games that were new to me in 2025. See the alt text for the list.
December 30, 2025 at 5:56 AM
I’ve been having fun looking through my board game photos from the year. Here are nine games that were new to me in 2025. See the alt text for the list.
The new Wingspan expansion coming January 21st features South America, Central America, and the Caribbean!
Watch the @stonemaiergames.com live stream now!
www.youtube.com/live/7rREr_m...
Watch the @stonemaiergames.com live stream now!
www.youtube.com/live/7rREr_m...
December 31, 2025 at 4:13 PM
The new Wingspan expansion coming January 21st features South America, Central America, and the Caribbean!
Watch the @stonemaiergames.com live stream now!
www.youtube.com/live/7rREr_m...
Watch the @stonemaiergames.com live stream now!
www.youtube.com/live/7rREr_m...
It was two or three years ago that I got my nephew Flipships for his birthday. He had never played it until tonight when we finally tried it out. So much fun! Definitely worth the wait. #BoardGames #UncleLife
December 31, 2025 at 5:34 AM
It was two or three years ago that I got my nephew Flipships for his birthday. He had never played it until tonight when we finally tried it out. So much fun! Definitely worth the wait. #BoardGames #UncleLife
The 3yo’s second attempt at Santorini went much better than his house-toppling first attempt. This time he teamed up with his brother, and he only knocked things down once or twice! #BoardGames #DadLife
December 30, 2025 at 11:31 PM
The 3yo’s second attempt at Santorini went much better than his house-toppling first attempt. This time he teamed up with his brother, and he only knocked things down once or twice! #BoardGames #DadLife
Reposted by Derek Bruff
At long last, we have arrived at the final day of Best Week 2025. To the surprise of myself-minus-a-few-years, today I'm celebrating the best games that let me spend a few quality minutes with my daughters. Read the list here: spacebiff.com/2025/12/30/b...
Best Week 2025! All My Children!
In those now-unreachable years before my daughters came along, I remember balking at certain statements. “Some things you simply can’t understand until you have children,” someone…
spacebiff.com
December 30, 2025 at 4:07 PM
At long last, we have arrived at the final day of Best Week 2025. To the surprise of myself-minus-a-few-years, today I'm celebrating the best games that let me spend a few quality minutes with my daughters. Read the list here: spacebiff.com/2025/12/30/b...
I’ve been having fun looking through my board game photos from the year. Here are nine games that were new to me in 2025. See the alt text for the list.
December 30, 2025 at 5:56 AM
I’ve been having fun looking through my board game photos from the year. Here are nine games that were new to me in 2025. See the alt text for the list.
This isn’t all the games we reviewed on the podcast this year, but it’s a lot of them! How many can you name?
December 28, 2025 at 10:37 PM
This isn’t all the games we reviewed on the podcast this year, but it’s a lot of them! How many can you name?
Visiting family and came across this 1964 edition of Sorry. It’s very stylish.
December 28, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Visiting family and came across this 1964 edition of Sorry. It’s very stylish.
Why they keep letting us land planes is beyond me, but we did it again! Our first “exceptional conditions” landing (one of the yellow ones) and we successfully parked the plane at London Heathrow. #SkyTeam
December 23, 2025 at 4:13 PM
Why they keep letting us land planes is beyond me, but we did it again! Our first “exceptional conditions” landing (one of the yellow ones) and we successfully parked the plane at London Heathrow. #SkyTeam
Still mad at the finale of Veronica Mars.
December 21, 2025 at 4:00 PM
Still mad at the finale of Veronica Mars.
We’ve played twice more since then. The 3yo now requests the “cat game”! But Calico is a little long for his attention span, even playing it using the family variant. Can y’all recommend similar games that have shorter play times?
Since there’s only so much Hoot Owl Hoot a dad can take, we introduced the 3yo to Calico tonight. He played along with the family variant pretty well! Naturally, the 12yo won. #BoardGames #DadLife
December 19, 2025 at 4:09 PM
We’ve played twice more since then. The 3yo now requests the “cat game”! But Calico is a little long for his attention span, even playing it using the family variant. Can y’all recommend similar games that have shorter play times?
Since there’s only so much Hoot Owl Hoot a dad can take, we introduced the 3yo to Calico tonight. He played along with the family variant pretty well! Naturally, the 12yo won. #BoardGames #DadLife
December 17, 2025 at 2:32 AM
Since there’s only so much Hoot Owl Hoot a dad can take, we introduced the 3yo to Calico tonight. He played along with the family variant pretty well! Naturally, the 12yo won. #BoardGames #DadLife
Reposted by Derek Bruff
Today on the podcast, I review Imhotep, my favorite @philwh.bsky.social game! Players step into the sandals of the original Imhotep to build pyramids and obelisks and other great monuments. It’s a tight, interactive game, and I can’t get enough of it. Listen here: www.buzzsprout.com/2292265/epis...
December 15, 2025 at 10:50 PM
Today on the podcast, I review Imhotep, my favorite @philwh.bsky.social game! Players step into the sandals of the original Imhotep to build pyramids and obelisks and other great monuments. It’s a tight, interactive game, and I can’t get enough of it. Listen here: www.buzzsprout.com/2292265/epis...
Today on the podcast, I review Imhotep, my favorite @philwh.bsky.social game! Players step into the sandals of the original Imhotep to build pyramids and obelisks and other great monuments. It’s a tight, interactive game, and I can’t get enough of it. Listen here: www.buzzsprout.com/2292265/epis...
December 15, 2025 at 10:50 PM
Today on the podcast, I review Imhotep, my favorite @philwh.bsky.social game! Players step into the sandals of the original Imhotep to build pyramids and obelisks and other great monuments. It’s a tight, interactive game, and I can’t get enough of it. Listen here: www.buzzsprout.com/2292265/epis...