Cheapass Games

03/19/2026

We’re thrilled to announce that Lord of the Fries is now available at DriveThruCards. We have six restaurant decks, as well as a menu pack that includes nine different menus and the full game rules.

03/17/2026

Read our newest newsletter! And please, please, check your spam filter, and rescue us if we're in there! 🛑 👀

We understand sometimes folks are in a hurry, and rather than hitting "delete" or "unsubscribe", they punch the "spam" button. But that means that *other* people won't get to see the news they signed up for - as Google starts lumping us in with phishers and scammers. 😭

Every "Not Spam" helps us stop shouting into the void! You can also add "carol -at- crabfragmentlabs.com" to your contacts!

We’re thrilled to announce that Lord of the Fries is now available at DriveThruCards. We have six restaurant decks, as well as a menu pack that includes nine different menus and the full game rules.

03/17/2026

Hi, everyone! Our new game, Meat on Swords is in stock now! Please share this post - otherwise, it will remain our little secret! 😁

03/16/2026

Bringing this over onto the Cheapass page: James Ernest's latest game design lecture video!

He recently gave an updated version of this talk at the GAMA Trade Show:

James Ernest (Cheapass Games / Crab Fragment Labs) explains the ways and reasons that randomness adds value to games in this talk from Gen Con 2025. James Er...

03/13/2026

We just got back from our industry trade show, and we're looking forward to working with some new partners on a few of our key titles! In celebration, we've made a new batch of poker decks over on DriveThruCards, including two featuring Kill Doctor Lucky. See below for more information! 🦀 🃏 🦀

Also: Early notice that we'll have a newsletter next week. We've been getting caught in people's spam filters.😳 If you see us land there, please click the "Not Spam" button! 🙏😊

02/12/2026

Read our newest newsletter!

Our friends at Four Suit Studio are just about to finish up the Kickstarter for Stamp Showdown - a game by James, using a poker deck with special art.

Hey, folks. This is a reminder that James Ernest’s Stamp Showdown (from Four Suit Studios) is live on Kickstarter for just two more days.

02/03/2026

Read a thorough - and glowing! - review of Stamp Showdown. The project is live on Kickstarter, right now, from Four Suit Studio (see comments).

Introducing Stamp Showdown A polished version of Lamarckian Poker by James Ernest, with a stamp-themed custom deck of cards [url=https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/456576/stamp-showdown]Stamp Showdown[/url] is an improved reimplementation of [url=https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/3270/lamarckian-...

01/23/2026

Explanation Of Board Game Rules Peppered With Reassurances That It Will Be Fun https://theonion.com/explanation-of-board-game-rules-peppered-with-reassuran-1819579569/

01/22/2026

Yes! Yes it is! Meat on Swords is here, in all its Brian Snoddy zombie glory!

We're currently waiting for a restock of decks for our webstore, but you can order yours directly from DriveThruCards in the meantime. We also have the lovely accessory of an 8-pack of Carnespadas coasters. These are in low-supply at the webstore, but with a restock already en route!

Meat on Swords, a Lord of the Fries game, is a new press-your luck card game with the characters from Friedey’s restaurant.

10/08/2025

James Ernest contrinbuted the ancillary card game for Japanime Games' new monster-catching RPG. Check it out!

A monster-taming RPG in a vibrant world

09/14/2025

A quick recap of the games we tested at Pacificon

James Ernest of Crab Fragment Labs travels to Santa Clara for PacifiCon, a weekend of gaming with friends.Pacificon is a very small show, and James spent the...