Qt3 does a good end of year series of top ten lists. And Board Games are pretty well dug in to the community here. I see lots of threads but I must have failed to find more of these top tens so I wanted to start one here. I’m thinking of voting closing a in a week. That’s Tuesday the 28th. No release year restrictions. I’m just curious what we think are the best out there as of now.
It’s really interesting to see taste change and I hope we do this later. Maybe a yearly board game list.
Mine as an example as it stands this second, highest to lowest:
High Frontier
Here I Stand
War of the Ring (ARES version)
Twilight Struggle
Andean Abyss/COIN series
Endeavor
Terra Mystica
CO2
Carson City
A Study in Emerald
And oh boy there are a lot of really good games not on there. I feel pretty good, my list may be subject to some change but I wanted to put something up to get this rolling.
Hmm, debating whether to just go with the classics or pick quirky games or what. I feel like there are others lists out there, but anyway, here are my current picks (in no particular order):
Ascension
7 Wonders
Star Wars: X-Wing Miniatures
Dead of Winter
Lords of Waterdeep
Love Letter
Hanabi
Star Wars: Imperial Assault
Roll for the Galaxy
Red7
I should probably put Netrunner on this list, but for whatever reason I haven’t actually played it yet.
Oh man, I love this. I don’t buy a lot of board games these days, probably own maybe 20 altogether so my top 10 would have stuff like Blokus and Apples to Apples. But I still love to read about everyone’s favorites, get an idea of what I should be looking at.
-Netrunner
-War of the Ring (Ares edition)
-Paths of Glory
-No Retreat! The Russian Front
-Dune
-Dawn of the Zeds
-Sentinels of the Multiverse
-Battlecon (any edition)
-Chaos in the Old World
-Space Hulk: Death Angel
This game has been sitting unplayed on my shelf for years. I sometimes look at it longingly, but have never had a chance to play. How do you manage to get people together for something like that?
It’s incredibly hard. I haven’t played with the full six. We were doubling up so there’s an arguement to be made that I haven’t played it. But, the faction focus in that game is great. They’re definitely going in their own directions and there’s just so much going on and it’s handled pretty well by the system. Wonderful experince but try describing how exciting the Reformation and all the turmoil around it is fun to play. It really is! It’s unplayed on your shelf so I guess you may have had that experience.
Yeah, people’s eyes glaze over when I describe it, then when I mention that it takes 6-8 hours - probably more for a first game - they refuse. I can’t really blame them (although I do think the Reformation is exciting).
Interesting list! I’m particularly intrigued by Carson City! I’ve liked all the Xavier Georges games I’ve played, and I love Alexander Roche’s artwork. What makes this game so special for you?
I’ll write a list tonight when I’m staring down my board game collection.
It’s certainly not the most graceful. Keeping the math straight on the properties can be awkward and fiddly. But at its heart it’s a nice tight Euro and one of the first I fell into along with Endeavor. Plus it has cowboy meeples.
Airlines Europe
Sentinels of the Multiverse
Lords of Waterdeep
Omen: Reign of War
Ticket to Ride
Diamonds
Mystery Rummy Series/Wyatt Earp
Kemet
King of Tokyo
Tragedy Looper
Game most interested in at the moment is Forbidden Star
Oldest game I like is Acquire but I would play Airlines Europe for the same type of feel even though they are different.
Tragedy Looper is by far the most interesting game I have ever played but it really depends on a good teacher and group.
I’d really like to consider Kanban and Archipelago, but I’ve only played each twice, and while fascinating, I just don’t think that’s enough plays to justify a fully formed opinion.
Very interested in this choice, especially given the rest of your list. I’ve seen it but never played it, and although I love the theme I guess I never bought it because I already had Mystery in the Abbey. Would love to hear a summary of why you love it.
I love Name of the Rose in many ways because it is different from the rest of the list.
A quick rules overview: Name of the Rose has each player secretly assume the role of a monk. The players can each move the various monks around, accumulating suspicion points. There is a deduction element, where you try to identify which player is each monk based on their play. You gain suspicion points for each player that correctly identifies you. The least suspicious monk wins.
I enjoy the game because it is relatively simple to teach to new players, and people seem to quickly get a grasp of the basic strategy. That makes it possible for people who are new to the game to have a reasonable chance of being competitive, which helps everyone enjoy the game. I like the deduction aspect, especially because you need to balance the desire not to be identified with the desire for other players to correctly identify each other. The game is also relatively short. I love long games (I rank Here I Stand on the top of my list), but sometimes you need to play something that you can finish with in an hour.
The game also lends itself to a strong social component, as there is value in discussing which player corresponds to which monk. I tend to enjoy games that have that feature (Here I Stand, BSG, Chicago Express, and the COIN games all fall in to that category as well, for different reasons).
I haven’t played Mystery in the Abbey, so I can’t offer a comparison.
