How dare<\/em> you, dear reader? This is my<\/em> turf, where we play by my<\/em> rules. So let me be crystal clear: board games are awesome.<\/p>\n Board games are like a warm embrace of delightful nostalgia, an oasis of calm in our screen inundated lives. They\u2019re an opportunity to crush your loved ones and establish dominance over them in a miniature alternate reality, represented by colorful tokens, cards, and figures.<\/p>\n There\u2019s nothing that says \u2018Christmas\u2018 more than that.<\/p>\n The thing about board games though is they\u2019re a tricky social contract to navigate, even during the holiday season, as they hinge on the collective \u223c v i b e z \u223c<\/em>. If one person isn\u2019t \u2018feeling it\u2019, the whole experience falls apart.<\/p>\n While I thrive when solving trivial challenges \u2014 I\u2019m a big brain boy \u2014 not all my friends and family are as gifted. That\u2019s why researching games before buying and forcing them on your \u2018simpler\u2019 family members is crucial for a successful night of festive board-gaming.<\/p>\n That\u2019s where S\u0336a\u0336n\u0336t\u0336a Tom<\/span> Vasel<\/span> comes in.<\/p>\n If you look up reviews of board games, more likely than not you\u2019ll come across a video from The Dice<\/span> Tower<\/span><\/a> with its main star: Tom<\/span> Vasel<\/span>.<\/p>\n When I first started looking up these types of reviews, I got kinda annoyed the same dude kept popping up no matter what game I searched for.<\/p>\n His way of speaking, fashion sense, and vast knowledge of niche geeky stuff brought back painful memories of my interactions with \u2018alpha nerds\u2019 when I was a kid.<\/p>\n I was always fascinated by all things nerdy, but I remained an observer and never took the plunge into those fascinating worlds.<\/p>\n Part of that was due to the cabal-like aura that hovered over nerd shops before nerd culture was mainstreamified (it\u2019s a word, don\u2019t look it up) by Lord of the Rings<\/em> and Marvel movies.<\/p>\n I remember looping around imposing boys, who spoke only in anime quotes while tipping their fedoras to each other. While they were several social rungs below me out in the real world, I had undeniably stumbled into their<\/em> turf, where they reigned supreme wielding their superior nerd knowledge.<\/p>\n But as I kept searching for good board game reviews, I couldn\u2019t ignore Tom<\/span> Vasel<\/span> any longer.<\/p>\n He\u2019s reviewed pretty much every single board game<\/em> out there \u2014 which maybe isn\u2019t that surprising considering he\u2019s been doing this for over a decade <\/em>now. And while he\u2019s got an alpha nerd vibe to him, he\u2019s a damn good reviewer.<\/p>\n His videos usually follow the same formula:<\/p>\n He does a great job summarizing the key elements of the game and what kind of players it fits. His immense library of reviews also provides a key ingredient: context.<\/p>\n As you get to know him and his preferred games, you can start matching that to your own tastes and experience \u2014 until finally, your brain and Tom<\/span> Vasel<\/span>\u2018s merge into a shimmering ocean of pure ecstasy\u2026<\/p>\n So put your trust in Tom<\/span> Vasel<\/span><\/a> and start forcing your friends and family to play board games this holiday season. While my friends resent me for it, I\u2019m sure yours will love it.<\/p>\n The original version of this article appeared in our newsletter, Big Spam. Sign up here!<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/cdn0.tnwcdn.com\/wp-content\/blogs.dir\/1\/files\/2020\/12\/Screenshot-2020-12-09-at-15.28.27.png\")
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