Gen Con 2026 Exclusives: Brumble Quest and Aw, Ducks!

Brumble Quest

In addition to its other Gen Con 2026 releases, such as new Summoner Wars factions and multiple sets of Super Auto Pets Card Battle, U.S. publisher Plaid Hat Games will release the debut title in a new game line titled Brumble Games.

Brumble titles will have a high player count, be available solely at conventions (and on the publisher's website during conventions), and be "affordable, silly, and simple". The line will launch with Brumble Quest, a game for 3-50(!) players by J. Arthur Ellis, who's been working with Plaid Hat since 2012, which includes designing 2017's Raxxon and co-designing 2018's Crystal Clans and 2020's Forgotten Waters.

This US$10 game includes quest locations, a rules card, and player sheets to track your hearts and gems. Each round, lay out three locations, then count 1-2-3 and everyone points to a location. What are these locations?

• The Mirror Dimension nets you three gems if you point at it, but unless the same number of people point at both the Mirror Dimension and a different location, those in the mirror take one damage.
• The Ghost Ship is worth only two gems, but you're damaged only if an odd number of people point at it...which seems less risky than the Mirror Dimension, so maybe that makes it more attractive?
• The Cave of Wonders is worth five gems(!), but you'll be damaged unless you're the only one who visits, which seems unlikely, right? Still, five gems!

The rounds continue until someone has collected 24 gems or suffered four points of damage, at which point whoever has the most gems wins.

What can you expect to see from Brumble Games in the future? Ellis explains his vision in this manifesto:

Aw, Ducks!

Chris Cieslik of Asmadi Games frequently releases test-run items at Gen Con that may or may not be released later in a more professional form. Carl Chudyk's Aegean Sea, for example, debuted in 2019 in a 100-copy edition that featured artless cards, rules, and a token that could be redeemed for a copy of the published game...which didn't appear until 2023, giving early adopters four years of extra playing time.

For Gen Con 2026, Cieslik will release Aw, Ducks!, a 2-4 player press-your-luck card game for US$15.

Here's an overview of gameplay: The deck contains cards numbered 1-6 in six colors, as well as ducks in five colors, along with rainbow ducks. On a turn either DRAW, SCORE, or DISCARD. When you draw, a number goes into your tableau, while a duck forces you to discard all cards of matching color from your tableau. Boo, ducks suck!

Maybe you instead want to score to avoid duck damage? Bank all cards in your tableau in your score — but you can score ducks at the same time if you meet their special conditions, with a blue duck requiring you to score cards in five colors and a yellow duck requiring four consecutive numbers. Ducks are worth 5 points each, so perhaps you do want to hold off on scoring right now in order to add a duck to the delivery.

To discard, throw away one card in your tableau, taking a special action depending on the value of that card. If you discard a 5 or 6, for example, you score the top two cards of the deck — with no one looking at those cards — then take a SCORE action. Did you give up 5-6 points to get more than that in return?

When the deck runs out, sum the value of your scored cards, playing one round or until a point threshold as you desire.

Aw, Ducks! is available for pre-order for Gen Con 2026 pick-up, along with Cieslik's Mystic Curling Club and Chudyk's Chess Joker, both of which I previewed after seeing them at Gen Con 2025.