AEG has a promising-looking card game coming out, based on their Spycraft RPG stuff. Last year we demoed their Initial D card game, and it did not stick to the roof of our brain (it's based on the manga about a race car-driving tofu delivery boy, and Rhonda thought the game needed less race cars and more tofu.) They have the Spycraft rulebook online already, and it reminds me - in general design terms - of my faves Doomtown and 7th Sea. To wit, there's multiple factions you can play, each with individualized personality cards, and an overarching continuing storyline. I seem to like that sort of thing, so if the game itself can stand up, I could be in for keeps.

Fantasy Flight Games is continuing to milk their Lord of the Rings license with another board game, The War of the Ring. This one sounds sort of like Risk. Now, I already have LOTR Risk... but I think I would like it better if the game was more LOTR and less Risk, and I suspect War of the Ring might deliver that. This is the same company that handles the amazing Reinier Knizia Lord of the Rings cooperative board game, so I feel I can trust them. Aside: Rhonda, Mike and I have signed up to play that game against the designer, Mr. Knizia himself! I have no idea what to expect, but it could be very, very brief. At the least, I hope we last into Moria.

Third World Games has a second edition of Battle of the Bands, which I will happily snag... and then pawn off my original edition on some lucky friend or family member. Their site also shows two new Portable Adventures sets - one sci-fi, one Austin Powersesque - but it says Winter '04, so they may not be available this Origins.

WizKids is continuing their domination of the collectible figure type games with Pirates of the Spanish Main... which centers around little pirate ships you build yourself out of die cut pieces of cardstock. I'm fascinated by this, and even if the game is a dud, the ships themselves should be dandy for 7th Sea.

Upper Deck recently released a brand new Marvel Comics TCG that I hope doesn't suck (with a DC set coming soon.) I already have a starter + boosters, but I can't bring myself to play it because I fear suckage. Last year, their booth had some Marvel preview artwork and closelipped lackeys handing out samples of that asinine BreaKey game... this year, they better be demoing it. Excelsior.

But the coolest news is Looney Labs' new time travel game, Early American Chrononauts. This is a new game that extends the timeline of "original" Chrononauts to cover the birth of America. I was lucky enough to help playtest this one a couple months ago, and I was helpful enough to earn a credit in the rulebook! Original Chrononauts was probably the first small-press card game I discovered at Origins (and opened my eyes to a lot of booths I ignored before), so I was extremely flattered and happy to be a part of its sequel. Some time soon I'll have to reveal exactly what input I offered... because there are a couple cards in EAC that came straight out of my playtesting conversations with family and pals. And yeah, I think the title makes the game sound boring, but that was one design debate I did not win. Title aside, go find your local game store and pick this one up (in stores by July 4th!) or order one from the LL website... you can't find many better single-deck / multiplayer / easy-to-learn / intelligent card games than Chrononauts and Early American Chrononauts.