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Oak & Onion: Board Game Podcast

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Welcome to the Oak & Onion Board Game podcast where we discuss the modern board gaming hobby and other things we’re currently nerding out…

by Oak and Onion

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Oak & Onion: Board Game Podcast

About Oak & Onion: Board Game Podcast

Welcome to the Oak & Onion Board Game podcast where we discuss the modern board gaming hobby and other things we’re currently nerding out about.

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Starting from the beginning? The oldest episode in the feed: Introducing Oak and Onion.

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Episodes

New episodes usually drop on Wednesdays.28 episodes
  1. Oct 28, 2026 · 1 hr 59 min

    Episode 26: Party On, Witches!

    It’s almost Halloween, and that means it’s time to party! Before they head out trick-or-treating, Chris and Joel sit down for a Board Games 101 lesson on party games. Then they go back to the spooky-games well for some hot takes on horror themed board games that are overhyped, underhyped, and appropriately hyped. All that plus Halloween memories and a very special Mad Libs–you won’t believe who’s behind all the…

  2. Oct 21, 2026 · 1 hr 49 min

    Episode 25: Spooky Spectacular

    Spooky scary skeletons take over the podcast this episode when Joel and Chris revel in their joint enjoyment of all things horror-themed. We count down five great horror movies and five great horror board games in a conversation short on jump scares but long on fun. Then Joel finally agrees to play another game, when Chris decides to test his horror prowess. On a scale of 1 to 13, just how Friday are we? Tune in to…

  3. Oct 14, 2026 · 1 hr 51 min

    Episode 24: All You Can Eat Game Buffet

    After two special guest episodes in a row, we’re back to basics as Joel and Chris can’t shut up about movies, games, and everything else. On today’s episode we countdown another 3-2-1, this time pairing up games and food for a high-end dinner party for the ages (or at least Chris does, but Joel is there too, offering what we can only charitably describe as everyday food). And then Joel puts Chris to the test to see…

  4. Oct 7, 2026 · 1 hr 32 min

    Episode 23: Excursions in Game Design with Ben Rosset and Dennis Northcott

    Joel and Chris strap on their space helmets this week and take a cruise to the far reaches of game design when they sit down with designer Ben Rosset and Dennis Northcott, one of the minds behind Kinson Key Games. With the recent launch of Excursions on Kickstarter, Ben and Dennis share the games that define them as well as their thoughts on game design, simultaneous action, running a successful game company, and…

  5. Sep 30, 2026 · 1 hr 29 min

    Episode 22: Grant Lyon: Beyond the Mustache

    Joel and Chris might be small potatoes, but sometimes we bring in the big potatoes to show us how it's done. In episode 22 we sit down with actor, standup, board game designer, and all-around cool guy Grant Lyon. We’ll hear about the games that define him, his approach to comedy, how he stumbled into board game stardom, and his brand new comedy tour blending games with standup. Then Chris puts Grant through the…

Earlier episodes (23)
  1. Sep 23, 2026 Episode 21: Fall Flings
    Get out your pumpkin spice sweaters and curl up with a cozy hand knit latte as you tune in for another episode of the Oak and Onion Podcast. Enjoy Chris’s envy as Joel has the big gaming weekend for once, then pull out your notecards for another installment of Board Games 101, where we snuggle up to find out what people mean by Cozy Games. Then we wrap things up with our top five games with an autumnal theme…
  2. Sep 16, 2026 Episode 20: 20th Anniversary Spectacular
    If you’ve been with us since the beginning, then this is now 20 times you’ve tuned in to hear a little Oak and Onion action, and as excited as we are to hit that milestone, we’re especially excited for how many people have joined us on that journey. Thank you, listeners! On this celebratory episode, Joel and Chris talk spooky movies, superhero tv, and games we’ve played this week. Listen in as we give each other…
  3. Sep 9, 2026 Episode 19: Paper Plates of Spaghetti
    Joel and Chris decide to opt out of torturing each other with games this week and instead simply offer up a few choice rounds of This or That. Then it’s a long overdue look at the highlight reel where we see fresh life in the crowdfunding scene now that GenCon is a month behind us. All that and more in an episode so jam packed Joel forgets to even finish writing the show notes! It’s another can’t miss episode of…
  4. Sep 2, 2026 Episode 18: Living in the Past: 2016
    In this episode, Chris and Joel live in the past, celebrating games and movies from the past week, recounting games from one of our favorite years passed, and mourning people who passed this week as well. Then Joel tests Chris’s board game component knowledge in the cleverly titled “What’s in a Game,” which doesn’t have a clever “past” phrase to go with it, but hey, you can’t have everything.
  5. Aug 26, 2026 Episode 17: Oak & Onion, The Podcast, the Movie: The Game
    In a world where games are outlawed, only outlaws play games. Two men stand against the forces of board game snobbery. From the studio that brought you “The Bald Cohost” and “Mr. Roll and Write” comes an episode where everything gets turned upside down. A friendship. A switcheroo. A game. Nothing will ever be the same. Tune in to episode 17 and find out what happens when games become movies and movies become games.…
  6. Aug 19, 2026 Episode 16: Two is the Magic Number
    The dynamic duo is back again to talk all things two player. Or at least SOME things two player. Despite the challenge of getting back into work mode, Joel pulls it together long enough to teach Chris about Canadian tv, and in return Chris brings Joel up to date on the next Texas Chainsaw in his rewatch. But the heart of the episode is a dive into two player games, first by discussing multiplayer games that shine…
  7. Aug 12, 2026 Episode 15: Rolling Right
    Join us as we take a trip to Hadestown as we lament the things we missed at GenCon and celebrate the things we enjoyed at GenCan’t. Then grab your dice and uncap your dry erase markers for our first true Top Five list as Joel and Chris discuss our top five roll and write games. We wrap up the episode with a brief discussion of when to believe a game box’s listed player count. Gather all your friends and listen in,…
  8. Aug 5, 2026 Episode 14: Riding the Hype Train Off a Cliff
    Choo-choo! The Hype Train is leaving GenCon station! Joel and Chris hype up the Vans Warped Tour, the Tabletop Inn, and the Garphill trilogies–and that’s all before we even get to our topic of conversation: is hype an external problem or an internal one, and what games would we describe as overhyped, underhyped, or appropriately hyped? We wrap up our hype episode with a game of Slice and Dice, where we read…
  9. Jul 29, 2026 Episode 13: Lucky Number 13
    Chris and Joel are back from their hiatus with tales of food, books/movies, and a whole lot of games. In this episode we try to figure out what everyone means by a “heavy” game (hint: it depends), and check in with the highlight reel again as we try to contain our jealousy that we’re not going to GenCon. Will this be our unluckiest episode or our most popular episode yet? Tune in now to find out!
  10. Jul 15, 2026 Episode 12: The Andrew Stiles Design Experience
    In this episode Joel and Chris are joined by Andrew Stiles, designer of Wine Cellar, Digging for Dinos, and a host of upcoming games. Andrew shares three games that define him, then Joel asks all about Andrew’s design process, from idea to pitch to execution. Finally in honor of Digging for Dinos and the upcoming Avatar: Fight for Pandora, Chris quizzes Andrew on whether he can differentiate Jurassic Park quotes…
  11. Jul 8, 2026 Episode 11: Mid-Year Check-In
    In this episode Joel and Chris check in on the gaming year so far, exploring trends, highs, lows, and what’s coming in the second half of the year that we have our eyes on. Then we follow up last week’s chat about DVC’s games with a discussion of unique games that have stuck with us. Plus we’ll find out what Chris thinks about the sister franchises of Toy Story movies and Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Episode 11 starts…
  12. Jul 1, 2026 Episode 10: Origins Highlights
    Joel answers Chris’s Origins questions and Chris responds to Joel’s game cafe queries in this, the tenth episode of the Oak and Onion podcast. Ten episodes makes this our tin anniversary, and that doesn’t mean anything, but that’s weird, right? Listen in for convention highlights, Disclosure Day chatter, and bad movie celebrations as we try and fail to keep the episode under two hours. What can we say, we like to…
  13. Jun 17, 2026 Episode 9: Tricks and Treats
    Join us for our most 9th episode ever as we shed our inhibitions, climb the ladder of podcasting success, and trick our listeners into spending another two hours with us. In this episode we talk superheroes old and new as we explore where He-Man gets resurrected, Marvel gets underappreciated, and The Boys gets overly graphic. Then Joel shares some of the highlights of a small local gaming convention he attended for…
  14. Jun 10, 2026 Episode 8: Obsessed with Summer
    Join Chris and Joel for a short-ish episode where we give you tips and tricks for hosting a game night–spoiler alert, it all comes down to clear communication–throw down another 3-2-1 list for summertime games, and talk about some more games we’ve played in the last couple weeks. We also turn into a film podcast for a few minutes with a deep discussion of Curry Barker’s new film Obsession (don’t worry, we save all…
  15. Jun 3, 2026 Episode 7: Convention-al Wisdom
    After separate gaming weekends, Joel and Chris try to switch things up with a shortened episode as we aim for weekly releases through the month of June. We talk about Chris’s birthday, Joel’s illness, highlights of our gaming weekends, and give our tips for successful board game convention experiences. At right around 97 minutes, it’s our usual board game banter refined into a perfect blend of wit and wisdom, all…
  16. May 20, 2026 Episode 6: One Man's Trash is Another Man's Euro
    It’s another episode where we can’t shut up! Joel and Chris talk theme parks and tv before we jump into a new segment with Board Games 101, where Joel convinces Chris it’s okay to talk about hard things. Then Chris gets his revenge with a game of Pass the Test (spoiler alert: Joel can not) before we hit some exciting and disappointing things on the board game horizon as we take another look at the Highlight Reel.…
  17. May 4, 2026 Episode 5: The Board Games Strike Back
    Tune in for an epic episode where Joel and Chris are joined by Mat Cousineau of the Dice, Camera, Action podcast to talk all things Star Wars. After learning about three games that define Mat as a gamer, Joel will put Mat and Chris head-to-head in a brand new game called Settling Scores. Then we’ll talk about some of our favorite Star Wars media in a segment called 3-2-1 Star Wars. And finally we’ll share listener…
  18. Apr 22, 2026 Bonus Episode: 2025 Golden Geek Predictions
    In this bonus episode Joel and Chris look at the nominees for BGG’s 2025 Golden Geek awards by choosing what they would like to see win and comparing it to what they think will actually win. They ask where Toy Battle fits in the gaming scheme, contemplate how many times Galactic Cruise and Fate of the Fellowship can be nominated for awards, and try to determine what weight of games they play the most of (answer:…
  19. Apr 15, 2026 Episode 4: Turns and Taxes
    Joel and Chris celebrate tax day by talking about exercise and birthdays, woodworking and pirates, and whether or not Joel’s only defining quality is being bald. Chris becomes a bit of an auspicious beast himself when he puts Azure from Bitewing Games on the Chopping Block. Then the guys discuss taxes in games by identifying three games that feature a tax mechanism, two games that feel like paying taxes, and one…
  20. Apr 1, 2026 Episode 3: Termites, Nightmares, and Excess
    It’s an episode of excess for Joel and Chris, where Chris watches the entire Marvel franchise, Joel plays games with his college friends for three days straight, and we tackle one of the questions at the heart of our consumerist hobby: how much is too much when it comes to board games? We’re not done there, either: Joel puts Perch on the Chopping Block to see whether cute stacking birds justify mean gameplay, and…
  21. Mar 26, 2026 Bonus Episode: TokenCon 2026 Recap
    Chris spent the weekend at his local convention, TokenCon, in Oklahoma City. He, and his wife Kaitlin, recap their experience at the convention, including their favorite moments, favorite games, and more. You’ll also hear interviews from Scott Brady, designer of boop., Hues and Cues, and Caution Signs, as well as Paula Deming, a few Oklahoma game publishers and designers, the TokenCon founder, and several con goers…
  22. Mar 18, 2026 Episode 2: Crowdfunding Bonanza
    Joel and Chris can’t stop talking about crowdfunding in part one of a two part episode. In this episode we do a quick check-in on what we’ve been watching, as well as games on BGA and in person, and then Chris cleans off the Chopping Block for the new Stonemaier expansions Wingspan Americas and Viticulture Bordeaux. We wrap up with all the crowdfunding games on our radar, from the recently closed to the still…
  23. Mar 4, 2026 Introducing Oak and Onion
    What’s this? A new board game podcast? Join Joel and Chris for the premier of the all-new Oak and Onion podcast. In this episode we introduce ourselves and talk about what things we’re into outside of board gaming, from prestige tv to Star Wars novels. Then it’s on to the Chopping Block, where we review Periodic and Aspens. We share five games that defined our gaming journey and put Chris in the hot seat to blind…
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Page updated October 30, 2026.