Awards

Awards and Nominations for Cheapass Games:

2003

2002

  • Diceland: Deep White Sea Origins Vanguard Award winner
  • Button Men Online (With Dana Huyler and Loren Peace): Origins Award Winner: Best Play-by-Mail Game of 2002
  • TOM (The Origins Metagame): Published by Flying Buffalo. Origins Award Nominee: Best Trading Card Game.
  • Agora, 2002 Games 100
  • Cube Farm, 2002 Games 100
  • Nexus, 2002 Games 100

2001

  • BRAWL: Catfight Origins Award Nominee: Best Card Game Expansion
  • Devil Bunny Hates the Earth Origins Award Nominee: Best Abstract Board Game of 2001
  • Girl Genius: The Works Origins Award Nominee: Best Abstract Card Game; Origins Award Nominee: Best Graphic Presentation of a Card Game; 2001 GAMES 100
  • Unexploded Cow (with Paul Peterson) 2001 GAMES 100
  • US Patent Number 1 (Out of Print) Origins Award Nominee: Best Science Fiction / Fantasy board game
  • Witch Trial (Out of Print) Origins Award Nominee: Best Abstract Board Game; 2001 GAMES 100

2000

  • BRAWL: Club Foglio Origins Award Winner: Best Card Game Expansion or Supplement; Origins Award Winner: Best Graphic Design of a Card Game
  • The Great Brain Robbery (Out of Print) Origins Award Winner: Best Science Fiction or Fantasy Board Game; Origins Award Nominee: Best Graphic Presentation of a Board Game
  • Chief Herman's Holiday Fun Pack (Out of Print) Origins Award Nominee: Best Abstract Board Game
  • The Big Idea (Out of Print) Origins Award Nominee: Best Traditional Card Game

1999

  • Deadwood (Out of Print) Origins Award Nominee: Best Abstract Board Game; 1999 GAMES 100
  • The Big Cheese (Out of Print) (with Jon Wilkie) 1999 GAMES 100
  • Button Men Origins Award Winner: Best Abstract Board Game; Origins Award Winner: Best Graphic Presentation of a Board Game
  • Fight City Origins Award Nominee: Best Traditional Card Game
  • BRAWL (Out of Print) Origins Award Nominee: Best Traditional Card Game; Origins Award Nominee: Best Graphic Presentation of a Card Game

1998

  • Lord of the Fries (Out of Print)) Origins Award Nominee: Best Traditional Card Game
  • FALLING (Out of Print) Origins Award Nominee: Best Traditional Card Game; 1998 GAMES 100
  • Parts Unknown (Out of Print) Origins Award Nominee: Best Sci Fi/Fantasy Board Game

1997

  • Kill Doctor Lucky (Out of Print) Origins Award Winner: Best Abstract Board Game; 1997 GAMES 100
  • Give Me The Brain (Now available in Color) Origins Award Winner: Best Traditional Card Game

The Games of James Ernest

James Ernest, the head honcho of Cheapass Games, has written or contributed to dozens of games. Those which have been published, or which are slated for publication in the next few months, are listed below. Unpublished games are of course too numerous to list.

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

  • U.S. Patent Number 1 (Out of Print) (with Falko Goettsch)
    • Origins Award Nominee: Best Science Fiction / Fantasy board game of 2001
  • Button Men: Samurai
  • Nexus
    • 2002 Games 100
  • BRAWL: Catfight
    • Origins Award Nominee: Best Card Game Expansion of 2001
  • Devil Bunny Hates the Earth
    • Origins Award Nominee: Best Abstract Board Game of 2001
  • Girl Genius: The Works
    • Origins Award Nominee: Best Abstract Card Game of 2001
    • Origins Award Nominee: Best Graphic Presentation of a Card Game of 2001
    • 2001 GAMES 100
  • Unexploded Cow (with Paul Peterson)
    • 2001 GAMES 100
  • Witch Trial (Out of Print)
    • Origins Award Nominee: Best Abstract Board Game of 2001
    • 2001 GAMES 100

2000

  • Chief Herman's Holiday Fun Pack (24 assorted small games) (Out of Print)
    • Origins Award nominee: Best Abstract Board Game of 2000
  • Button Men: Dork Victory
  • James Ernest Writes Off Another Trip to VEGAS (Out of Print)
  • The Great Brain Robbery (Out of Print)
    • Origins Award Winner: Best Science Fiction or Fantasy Board Game of 2000
    • Origins Award Nominee: Best Graphic Presentation of a Board Game of 2000
  • Button Men: Fantasy (with Nick Sauer)
  • BRAWL: Club Foglio
    • Origins Award Winner: Best Card Game Expansion or Supplement of 2000
    • Origins Award Winner: Best Graphic Design of a Card Game 2000
  • Another Day, Another Dollar (four Deadwood expansions)
  • Button Men: Freaks (with Joe Kisenwether)
  • Save Doctor Lucky
    • 2000 GAMES 100
    • 2001 GAMY award from Games Unplugged for Coolest Game Mechanic
  • The Big Idea (Out of Print, reprinted as a Deluxe Version)
    • 2000 GAMES 100
    • Origins Award Nominee: Best Traditional Card Game of 2000
  • Button Men: Brawl (with Nick Sauer)

1999

  • Change! (Out of Print)
  • Escape from Elba (Out of Print)
  • Button Men: BROM (with Nick Sauer)
  • Lord of the Fries De-Lux (Out of Print)
  • BRAWL (Out of Print)
    • Origins Award Nominee: Best Traditional Card Game of 1999
    • Origins Award Nominee: Best Graphic Presentation of a Card Game 1999
    • 2000 GAMES 100
  • Button Men: Vampyres
  • Fight City
    • Origins Award Nominee: Best Traditional Card Game of 1999
  • Button Men: Soldiers
    • Origins Award Winner: Best Abstract Board Game of 1999
    • Origins Award Winner: Best Graphic Presentation of a Board Game of 1999
  • The Big Cheese (with Jon Wilkie) (Out of Print)
    • 1999 GAMES 100
  • Deadwood (Out of Print)
    • 1999 GAMES 100
    • Origins Award Nominee: Best Abstract Board Game of 1999

1998

  • Renfield (Out of Print)
  • Devil Bunny Needs a Ham
  • Starbase Jeff (with Jim Geldmacher) (Out of Print)
  • Parts Unknown (Out of Print)
    • Origins Award Nominee: Best SciFi / Fantasy Board Game of 1998
  • Safari Jack (Out of Print)
  • FALLING (Out of Print)
    • Origins Award Nominee: Best Traditional Card Game of 1998
    • 1998 GAMES 100
  • Lord of the Fries (Out of Print)
    • Origins Award Nominee: Best Traditional Card Game of 1998

1997

  • Tishai (with John Bollinger)
  • Give Me The Brain (Out of Print - Now avaiable in a Special Color Edition)
    • Origins Award Winner: Best Traditional Card Game of 1997
  • Bitin' Off Hedz (Out of Print)
  • The Very Clever Pipe Game (Hip Pocket version available)
  • Huzzah! (Out of Print)
  • Get Out (Out of Print)
  • Spree!
  • Bleeding Sherwood (Out of Print)
  • Ben Hvrt (Out of Print)
  • Before I Kill You, Mister Bond (Out of Print)
  • Kill Doctor Lucky (Out of Print) (with Rick Fish)
    • Origins Award Winner: Best Abstract Board Game of 1997
    • 1997 GAMES 100

Other Publishers:

Alliance Distribution Game Trade Monthly

  • Following Suit (2000)
  • Hey, Bartender! (2000)

Atlas Games

  • Lunch Money Button Men (1999)

Digital Addiction

  • Sanctum Button Men (1999)

Dragon Magazine

  • Colossus (May, 2000)
  • Abandon Ship (July, 2000)
  • Dead and Breakfast (October, 2000)

GAMES Magazine

  • Yours or Mine (1997)
  • Land Rush (1997)
  • Gunfight at the Pretty Good Corral (with Paul Peterson, 1998)
  • Lamarckian Poker* (with Dave Howell, 1999)

Games Unplugged Magazine

  • Graveyard Shift (2000)

Green Knight Publishing

  • ButtonLords: Arthurian Button Men (2000)
    • Origins Award nominee:Best Abstract Board Game of 2000

Guardians of Order

  • Sailor Moon Button Men (2000)

JohnCon

  • The Con Game (2000)

Shetland Productions / Dork Tower

  • Escape from Dork Tower (in Dork Tower Issue #4, 1999)

ShoreCon

  • Road Trip (1999)
  • Candy (2000)

Slag-Blah Entertainment / Studio Foglio

  • The XXXenophile Trading Card Game (1996)
  • Assorted Foglio Button Men (2000)

Wizards of the Coast

  • Pocket Players Guide: Magic Variants (compiled and some designed by James Ernest, 1995)
  • Dalmuti's: Crash & El Paso (1998)
  • Origins: Mana Burn (out of print) (with Paul Peterson, 1998)
  • Gen Con: Landyland (1998)
  • Legend of the Five Rungs Button Men (1999)
  • Origins: Dogfight, Spots, Strange Words, Jump**, Bogart***, Candy, El Paso****, Triangulous (2000)
  • The Looney Tunes Trading Card Game (October 2000)

* Lamarckian Poker was originally published as a free game in the Cheapass catalog.

** Jump is the same as Big Dumb Five, originally published free on the Cheapass website.

*** Bogart was originally published as a free game on the Cheapass website.

**** El Paso was originally published as a free game in Dalmuti's Restaurant.