We’re still not close to done with the games that BGG is showing me that I rated as new to me in January of 2026. So join with me for those and let’s see what the next 10 are. And of course, let me know which of these games you want to see a full review on, because there are a ton of different options here.

January Games (Part 3)

The Shipwreck Arcana

I had so much hope for this game. I like deduction in games and games where they give you rules for a cards number and how it’s limited, it should have been interesting. But I felt like, and this might just be on BGA, that the game is just punishing for what it is doing. And it isn’t as clever as I felt it could be. In fact, I think it’d be more interesting if it was just an app and I was playing it against a computer.

Spirited

Spirited is another game that is just okay for me. And Spirited is about using different factions to get majorities and score points. But each faction is going to have it’s own special power. I felt like the powers were okay but the game play itself was not that interesting and honestly a bit much for how much complexity the game felt like it had. With really simple powers, you felt like it was a lot to do in the game.

Summy

I hate to be mean to a game, but Summy sucks. Summy is a game where it’s Scrabble but it’s math. But it’s just a pain because sometimes you have a great math problem you can create, and other times you have nothing and it’s so much luck that it’s not fun. And do you need to be good at math to play this game, absolutely. So it’s a game where sure, you can get better as you play it, but it’s going to be imbalanced so often just based off of math skill levels of players.

Terraforming Mars

I knew I was going to like this game and it’s true, I like Terraforming Mars a lot. I might even buy it for my collection again. Though the legacy version is tempting. This is actually part of a nice run of games that I very much enjoy. In Terraforming Mars, you build your engine to be the corporation that is best at terraforming Mars. I think that the game plays nicely and while it’s a bigger, longer game, it never felt too bad on BGA.

Through the Ages

Through the Ages is another good game. I rate this one an 8 as well. And it is another really big game. Through the Ages let’s you build up your civilization, fight battles, make alliances, and generally do everything you’d expect. The one downside for me is that the game is long. And there is a lot of upkeep. That is not a problem on BGA, but in person it is bound to be. And it is a game where you, as you learn, can get stuck.

The Voyages of Marco Polo

Next up another game that I rate an 8, we have four in a row here. The Voyages of Marco Polo is a good game of spending dice to get goods and move around the board. You try and create your trade routes and score points for those goods that you have. I’m not good at this game, but I like how it plays and it’s a fun challenge. It’s one where I’m not sure I’ll play it a ton more, but I probably wouldn’t say no to playing it.

Popcorn

Popcorn is one of my favorite games from the year. This is a game about building out your best movie theater and scoring points based off of the movies that you are showing. And the movies you show are fun parodies of actual movies. This is an 8 for me and it might move up to a 9 when I get a copy of it. And I really want to because the theme is one that is inviting for people and the game isn’t hard to play.

Pirates Under Fire

Pirates Under Fire is an abstract game of two pirate factions battling it out on the high sees. You want to have more control in your opponents area and to land on spots that give you points. It’s a fine game, it reminds me of a game like Stratego. So, with the abstract nature and some luck/reactive card play you need to do, it’s just an okay game for me.

Azul

Finally we wrap up with two games that I should have played well before now. Azul is just a game that I never was drawn to because I didn’t fully understand how to play it. Now that I know, I like the game a lot. It is a great game to challenge yourself with either playing mean and giving your opponents negative points, or scoring a lot for yourself. And the game is going to play differently depending on who you play with and player count. But Azul is a really fun game.

Cascadia

Cascadia is the other game that I know I should have played sooner. It is one that I own so I don’t know why I didn’t. But I like tile laying and trying to build out the best scoring paths that you can in the game. Now, I will say, I have this and Calico. I know a lot of people much prefer Cascadia. For me, I like how tight Calico is and the pressure feeling like you may or may not get the tile that you need. Cascadia is much more open and for that reason welcoming when it comes to game play. So I think Cascadia is going to be better for more people, but not for me.

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