PLAAY Connect 07.24.23
Keeping it cool, keeping it QUICK (you can always e-mail us if you want to know more)—here’s the latest scoop from PLAAY HQ!…
PLAAY Dot Con 2023 is THIS WEEK!
The big week is here, folks have already started arriving in Denver to join us for the biggest and best PLAAY Games convention ever! Even if you're not making the trip, you can still be part of the fun. We're setting up a live Party Cam at our "Super Early Bird Open House" Wednesday afternoon 07.26.23, streaming live on the community Facebook page 2-5p Wednesday afternoon. Then, keep an eye out for photos, video shorts and social media posts to update you on the action, especially on the PLAAY Games Community Facebook page..
Please NOTE that there could be some delay in order processing on Friday 07.28.23 and Saturday 07.29.23, due to the full schedule of convention activities. Thanks for your patience!
Let's PLAAY Tennis Again!
Our Holiday print-and-play tennis game returns in August in full-boxed glory, with fresh graphics and brand new card sets! We'll have a "big reveal" during our 08.03.23 YouTube stream, and the web assets will go live shortly after. Sign up on the wait list and you'll be notified the instant the game is made available, right now that's looking like it will be 08.31.23.
Coming Soon: HMB 2023 Pro In-Season Cards
After a couple of years on COVID-prompted hiatus, the HMB Pro In-Season card set returned last year to much excitement and in-season thrills! We'll make it available again in a couple of weeks so you can PLAAY along with the big league action as it unfolds in real life--"play tomorrow's games, today!" The top 24 players carded for all 30 pro teams, ratings generated from their real-life 2023 statistics through July. Target release date: 08.18.23. As we’ve done in the past, we’ll take these cards to “pre-PLAAY” the big league playoffs and then take them on the road for our annual “Fall Classic Pre-PLAAY,” this year in Cooperstown, NY—home of the Baseball Hall of Fame!…
PLAAY Games at the Baseball Hall of Fame!
Plans are in place for the first-ever History Maker Baseball game action at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY, Saturday 10.14.23. We'll hold a special "Field of Dreams" tournament with our newly-reintroduced Cooperstown Cards, featuring HOF enshrinees and hopefuls battling it out inside the hall itself! Pretty neat. The night before at our “official” event hotel, we’ll have our annual Fall Classic “pre-PLAAY,” on-location!
We still have room for a couple more PLAAY gamers, reach out to us if you're interested in being part of this very special live event. (If you’re already on the list, watch your e-mail in box sometime in late August for an update on this event…)
ViDEO ACTiViTY!
We had some amazing streams on our YouTube channel this month, check the list to see if you missed anything...
• Second Season Football College All-Star Game: Our eleventh installment of this annual game, featuring last year's pro champs against this year's college rookie class. The College Stars entered the game on an eight-game losing streak. It was an epic finish--we won't spoil it, but WOW!
• The Big Baseball Show: We unveiled our new vintage baseball seasons and demonstrated how to play our baseball game with ordinary baseball trading cards! Our "trading card All-Star Game" featured the AL vs. NL, from freshly-opened packs of 2023 Topps baseball cards.
• “V8 Vengeance” Community Demo Derby Event: A super fun stream, where PLAAY gamers created their own demolition derby driver cards and we lined 'em up for a V-8 Smash-Down, with the last car standing earning the coveted Silver Trash Can award and a PLAAY Games gift card. Congrats to "Commander" Lenny laFrance in his '74 Henry II retired police cruiser sedan, who outlasted the field for the win!
• "NOW-to" Guides for PLAAY NOW Games: A featured stream for our "Summer of NOW," we provided ratings guidelines, tips and shortcuts for creating teams for Fury Football, Fury Hardball and Demo Derby Smash-Down (see above).
DON’T Miss Our Summer News Show, 08.03.23
About once per quarter we like to do a "news show" to get everyone caught up with what's happening at PLAAY HQ, and--it's time! Won't be long until fall begins to set it, so we'll give you a sneak peek at what's in the pipeline for this fall, and beyond. Card sets, game news, and--yes--even some info on this year's Holiday Sale and online Christmas Party! Plan to join us live 08.03.23 online, 6pm MDT, 8pm EDT.
It's Football Season Again!
(But, with the XFL and USFL playing games into the summer, when is it NOT football season, right?)
• The 2022 Pro Season for Second Season Football is now available, print (full color, double-sided team cards) and PDF. Learn more here!
• The 2023 Football America season card set is on the way this fall, the fourteenth consecutive season for our fictional pro football league. Stay tuned for more details, next month!
And, the OTHER Football...
Just released TODAY, the 2022-23 English Pro Season for Soccer Blast Pro Soccer Game! Individual cards for players on all 20 teams, over 400 players, presented in team colors, printed or PDF! Many thanks to Neil Maitland for another excellent card set!
Mats are Back!
In case you missed the news, PLAAY mats are now back in-stock for Demo Derby Smash-Down, Red White & Blue Racin' and Fury Football! Click the SHOP link from any page of the website, then choose the “others and extras” tab that corresponds to the game.
FREE Stuff
As always, some cool e-goodies for you to print and PLAAY...
• 2023 Baseball All-Stars for History Maker Baseball: Hold your own all-star game with these colorful cards, created in our retro-1970s card design. Includes fan-voted players, manager choices and injury substitutes plus cards for the game's real-life umpire crew.
• 2023 Baseball All-Stars for Fury Hardball: Want a fun, fast-playing, high-energy alternative to real-life baseball? Many PLAAY gamers have discovered Fury Hardball, a hybrid mash-up of baseball, wiffle ball and cricket. These cards--same players as our HMB set--will let you play "The Furious Game" with real-life pro stars! Check it out!
• 2023 Second Season Football College All-Star Game: As we mentioned earlier, our 2023 game was one for the ages as this year's rookie draft class is one of the best in recent memory. You can play this classic game from a bygone era with today's players.
• 2022-23 English Pro League Fringe Players: Once again, Neil Maitland has gone the extra kilometer to rate every player who played even a handful of minutes in last year's English pro season. Right, these guys aren't going to contribute much (if anything) on your tabletop (which is why they're not in the main set) but if you're a completist, you will want to have them at the ready!
NEW: PLAAY Games "Hot List!"
Here's a new feature for the monthly e-newsletter, a throwback to my previous career as a top 40 radio DJ, where a regular chart of the week's hottest hits was a radio industry staple. We'll chronicle the top twenty PLAAY Games each month. Where does YOUR favorite game land on the list?...
(rank) Game
( 1 ) History Maker Baseball Express
( 2 ) History Maker Baseball
( 3 ) Face to the Mat
( 4 ) History Maker Golf
( 5 ) Hockey Blast
( 6 ) Red White & Blue Racin'
( 7 ) Roller Rumble*
( 8 ) Second Season
( 9 ) Aviatrix '37*
( 10 ) Highlight Maker Hoops
( 11 ) Score Cards
( 12 )Soccer Blast
( 13 ) "We Have A Problem, Mr. President..."
( 14 ) Dodgeball World Tour*
( 15 ) Cold Snap
( 16 ) Fury Football
( 17 ) Demo Derby Smash-Down*
( 18 ) Fury Hardball*
( 19 ) Bowl-O-Rama
( 20 ) Second Season Express
*includes printed and PDF versions
(For the 30-day period ending 07.24.23)
Photo Finish!
Here's the winner of our "V-8 Extermi-NATION" demolition derby event, "The Commander" Lenny LaFrance—dressed for his daytime job with the Eureka, CA Police Department! Lenny, we appreciate all you do to keep your community safe! Can't wait to see you at the convention...
That's our report for July, it's been another amazing month--thanks for joining us on the board game journey! See you either here in Denver for the convention, or online afterwards for our summer news show!