2023 Board Gaming

Let’s break down the numbers. Firstly, let’s talk about the big general numbers. I got in 1,062 game plays in 2023. That is a ton, and I suspect that it’ll be my high, though that depends on what new solo board games come in. We’ll get down to individual game numbers here, eventually, but a lot of that is my solo game plays early on in 2023. I was on pace for 2,500 game plays at one point. But 1,062 plays is still a crazy number.

In those plays, I played 134 different games. So that means that some games were played a ton. Others not so much, but a few games see a lot of play and they’ll make up a lot of my board gaming. Some of this comes from solo games that I play between meetings at work and a smaller percentage of the games that I stream on Wednesday nights over on Malts and Meeples YouTube.

Top Played Games

So let’s look at the top played games, we’re just going to do the Top 5. All of the five are solo games that I play between meetings at work or other times like that. The one with the most plays is Grove followed by Orchard. Two games in the same family that I played 385 and 140 times respectively. I love them because they are very fast games to play.

Next up we have Relics of Rajavihara with 73 plays. This one is a campaign puzzle style game. So that one I won’t be adding more plays to in future years. The next two are Criss Cross, a roll and write game that you can play solo with 58 plays. And then For Northwood! A solo trick taking game.  This is the one that I want to play a bunch more of this next year.

Top Campaign Games

I think it’s also fair to talk about some campaign games, bigger games that I’ve gotten a number of plays of. Then I want to wrap up with my one off board gaming that aren’t solo plays. But what are the top campaign based board gaming experiences for me. Or at least the ones that I play solo fairly often. Though, not all of these are solo.

Tainted Grail and My City Roll and Build top the list. Tainted Grail I wrapped up the final campaign this year with 17 plays. My City Roll and Build I’ve almost played twice through, so that is 21 plays thus far. I need to wrap it up soon. Then a few others made the list, Frosthaven is the new one that I’m playing with a group and that is at 11 plays this year. And it’s going to start strong in January with a weekend day devoted to it coming up quickly. Followed by two that I streamed, Lands of Galzyr and ISS Vanguard. Both of those are at 10 games played.

Top Multiplayer Games

So, Tainted Grail and Frosthaven would both be on the list. But I want to touch on some games that I haven’t talked about. What are some one off games that I played mainly multiplayer that I got to the table a bunch? I say that because I did play Criss Cross a few times multiplayer, but it is mainly solo plays.

Birds of a Feather tops the list. This one I did play solo a few times, I think twice, but then six plays where it was with other people. I like it as a fun, light, and filler with push yoiur luck.  Then we have Gasha and Strike both 7 times. Again filler games, but Strike is just so much fun. I really enjoy being able to sit down and play this one with a group of four or five and just play it a few times in a row. The last two rounding it out are Crokinole and Via Magica. Two fun games, and Crokinole isn’t a filler but is more of an evening of light gaming.

Final Thoughts

2023 obviously was a great year for me board gaming. I got to try a ton of new games, and I got a ton of plays in. I didn’t go into all the numbers, but I had 28 games that were played over 5 times and 73 total that were played over two. So it’s a lot of gaming and a lot of repeating of games throughout the year. I  hope to do a lot of that again this year. I know that I will be going through Frosthaven a lot here in 2024. And I expect that I’ll be at 30 plays of that, might make into my Top 5.

And I mentioned this in a previous article. You can check that out here for more details. But I want to play through more games on my shelf of opportunity. I love having a ton of games and games to learn and play. But my game room is at critical mass, so I need to sort and get more games ready to be played and learned in 2024. That is going to make for a lot of reviews and a lot of fun board gaming. What is a game that you want to play in 2024?

Stocking Stuffer Board Games

For Northwood

We’re starting off with the first and only solo only board game on the list. I’m going to do a list of solo board games, but that’ll be coming out in the next week or so. But For Northwood is a great stocking stuffer sized game and an interesting one in that it’s trick taking. Trick Taking isn’t something you often consider for solo because, well, you need someone to play against. In For Northwood, that someone is the deck of cards.

In For Northwood, you need to win a specific number of tricks, 0 through 7, for different parts of the woods. Now, just playing against the deck of cards, that seems too random. So they gave you some lords and ladies of the woodlands, the royalty, that offer you powers to use. You get three to use in the game, but you unlock new ones as you complete the objectives of the different parts of the woods.

These powers let you manipulate your hand. Draw more cards when you are on the seven to increase your chances. Or discard cards when you need to get zero because there’s a big risk that with any flip, any high number might win for you. Because, the trick is you need to win the exact number of tricks. So how do you make that work?

Ecosystem

Ecosystem comes in the biggest or tied for the biggest box of the group. This is a drafting tableau building board game. By that I mean that you are building out an ecosystem in front of you. And how you build it, where you place animals and terrain types, is going to give you points. To add to that, you are then restricted to a five wide and four high grid. So as you play you get more limited spots to play.

And then there is the drafting. You pick a card from your hand and you add that to your tableau. But what I love about drafting games is that everyone is picking at the same time. So I am always playing and so are you. It helps keep people engaged in the game.

The final thing that I think makes this game intriguing for a stocking stuffer is the diversity that you need from your ecosystem. If you only focus on two or three creatures, do you really have a ecosystem? Not really, it’s a small slice of what one looks like in real life. So they give you points for building that diverse ecosystem, like you’d see in the real world.

Birds of a Feather

Next stocking stuffer board game is Birds of a Feather. This one is maybe the meanest game on the list. It can be mean how you draft in Ecosystem, but the rest of the board games, not that mean. Birds of a Feather is all about bird watching and seeing how many you see. Because the person who saw the most and the rarest at the end of the time wins.

Each round you play out a bird card. And you see the birds from that terrain type that everyone has played. In fact, you see the ones from the previous day as well. So it’s a good thing to be just one day behind. Except for the raptors. If someone plays the raptor from that terrain type, well, that scares away all the birds that were there yesterday.

Birds of a Feather is a fast little game and one that is easy to teach. I think that it works well with almost all groups and you can decide how cutthroat you want to be when you play out those raptor cards.

Patchwork Doodle

Patchwork Doodle is the next game on the list. I needed to put in a roll and write game because, well, it’s a roll and write game and I like them a lot. Patchwork Doodle is one of the smaller ones which is why it can fit into a stocking. There are several others I could pick as well, but I like Patchwork Doodle for a bit more of a game than others that fit into this size.

In Patchwork Doodle you are making the biggest quilt that you can. A patchwork quilt is where it is getting it’s name from. To do that, you, and everyone else, fill in Tetris like shapes on your board. And at the end of each round, which consists of a number of cards, you find your biggest completed square and rectangle. The square part matters because it gives you the most points. A 5 by 5 square is twenty-five points. But a 7 by 5 rectangle is only 27 points, twenty-five for the 5 by 5 and then two more for the extra rows or columns.

I also like this one because it has powers. Powers aren’t needed for a roll and write game, but I like the addition of them. Powers are going to give you little ways to tweak what shape you get or to fill in a single spot that is open. So a fun one with some good thinking to it.

SCOUT

SCOUT is a new game for me this year. But it’s one that after a single play, I found that I really like the game. Some games are about building the best hand of cards, SCOUT is about getting rid of all your cards. So it’s like a Phase 10 or Uno that way, but more game to it.

In SCOUT you get your hand of cards. And you need to play down runs or sets that are higher than what was previously played out. If you do, those previous cards go away to get added to your scoring. That doesn’t sound too hard. You start with a big hand of cards, just move things around until you get a great run. Just one issue with that.

The big hook of SCOUT is that you can’t rearrange the cards in your hand. So when you start playing, you decide which way your cards go, because they have different numbers top and bottom. And you decide that for the whole hand of cards. So, unless there is an amazing shuffle, it’ll never be in order. You need to play the little runs you have or a set of one card, to open up your hand and create those runs. And if you can’t play, you get a card from the previously played ones, making it easier to beat, and you put it anywhere in your hand.

SCOUT is a very good and clever game that way. One that I was hesitant to play, didn’t look all that fun, but it is great fun when you play it. And it is in a very stocking stuffer friendly size box.

Dandelions

Finally we have Dandelions. Dandelions is a game of area control. And in all fairness if you know what dandelions are, that is what it feels like with your yard. But this is with the dandelions here you are trying to compete with your opponents for majority.

You do this by playing out dice. That moves your dandelion pawn around and sees where you drop fluff. You want to have the most dice in areas because that is going to let you get their pip value. But you also get points for the dice you just have in areas, so the total number versus the pips. And some of the areas are worth more. That’s because they don’t have as many spots for the dandelion pawn to land.

Dandelions is a fun game and one where you get to start by rolling a handful of dice. I think the simplicity of how it works, you play a die, you move the pawn, and you place the die, is great with the strategy level of the game. In that it is more than you’d think to line-up your ideal turn and force your opponents dice out of controlling some of the areas.

Final Thoughts

These are only some of the stocking stuffer board games that I thought of, I actually have a whole shelf for small little games like this. Why, because they are great, not only for stuffing some stockings, but also for taking on trips, family vacations or up to the holidays. I’ll talk about some of those, though, later as we get closer to travel around Christmas time.

But just a quick hit one some other board games out there. Fox in the Forest Duet, for the person who like trick taking board games. Hanamikoji, for that one person who is always down to play board games so you play two player games. Or Medium for the person who really likes party games.

But which of these board games do you want to give or get this holiday season?

Send an Email
Message me on Twitter at @TheScando
Visit us on Facebook here
Support us on Patreon here

New Board Game Quick Hits

18 Holes: Course Architect

A fun roll and write game where you are building out a golf course to get as many points as possible. It’s not too complex though there is a bunch going on with it. I wish there was a bit more way to mitigate luck, but I don’t always expect that from a roll and write.

Score: 7.5/10

Arkham Horror: The Card Game (Revised Edition)

One that’s kind of a cheat to be on the list, but the game has change slightly. Not in game play but in some of the cards and what comes in the core set. Arkham Horror: The Card Game is one that’s a lot of fun as you explore different scenarios and story just through cards, really. And I like the investigative nature, granted, we weren’t good at fighting, so we needed to do that.

Score: 8.5/10

Bargain Basement Bathysphere

The weirdest named game on the list, this is a solo campaign roll and write game. Really, it is a roll and write that has different objectives and instructions to win the scenarios. Calling it a campaign is a bit much. But I like the dice picking puzzle as you delve deep under the ocean. A simple roll and write game but one that changes it up enough as you play.

Score: 8/10

Birds of a Feather: Western North America

Another small game, Birds of a Feather, which I played recently on Malts and Meeples, is a bird watching game. You see all the birds from the habitats you go to, but be wary of predators who might swoop in and scare off some of those birds you can see. A really simple game, but fast play and fun, okay solo, but better with more.

Score: 8/10

Crokinole

Crokinole was a new one to the collection this year and I’m glad it has been. I’ve gotten in a number of fun games over an evening with it. It’s a disc flicking game with just enough rules to make it challenging, but not soo many that you can’t play quickly and have a lot of fun with it.

Score: 9/10

Dice Kingdoms of Valeria

Another roll and write on the list, I forget how many there are. And another one that I played on Malts and Meeples. Dice Kingdoms of Valeria is all about getting citizens to get bonuses and really filling in everywhere and anywhere to get bonuses. A lot to look at, but not that much to keep track of.

Score: 7.5/10

Dice Monsters Missing Mythics

I wrote up a review on this one earlier this week, it’s a dice collecting, dice chucking, monster fighting game with a little bit of take that in it. There are some flaws with the game, mainly around player count. That said, it’s a fun light family style game that reminds me of Munchkin with way less take that and at a 3-4 player count way faster time. One I’d gladly play but probably never own.

Score: 6/10

Featherlight

Featherlight is an interesting game. I think it plays around with a concept that some other games do, but basically creating your best scoring hand of cards and whomever does that can win the game. However, part of what you are doing is drawing a card and then playing a card to a discard nest. And those cards in the next can determine how you score as well. So it’s a good puzzle to get the right cards on top in the next.

Score: 8/10

Gasha

Gasha is up there as one of my most played new games of the year. And it’s impressively high since there isn’t a solo mode, but that’s because it’s so fast to play. Gasha is a set collection game where you are collecting vending machine toys and then trading in sets for tickets and points all in an attempt to get the most points. It’s light and fast but still good fun.

Score: 8/10

The Great Split

Now a heavier game, though still one that does a big thing I like. The game has quick snappy turns or if they aren’t quick, it’s because everyone is agonizing over what to do at the same time. The game is really about going up on tracks to get points, but the decision making space, splitting cards and giving your opponent the choice makes the game a great brain burner.

Score: 9.5/10

Grove: A 9 Card Solitaire Game

My most played game and that’s because it’s a light fast solo game. But I really am enjoying Grove and the puzzle that it gives me each time I play. How do I maximize layering cards to grow trees so that I can complete objectives and score points. I really like the objectives int he game.

Score: 9/10

Lands of Galzyr

Another one you watched on Malts and Meeples. This is a story driven adventure game as you take a character around and see what you can find, complete quests, and run into random animals, you all are animals, looking for adventure. A really light system but one that is a lot of fun to play. It’ll be up there for favorite new games of the year, I’m guessing.

Score: 9.5/10

One Card Dungeon

An interesting game, One Card Dungeon is a leveled dungeon crawler just using a single card. You use dice for stats, you roll to see what you activate, and you go around and fight monsters. They do a smart thing by making the card from four different orientations be different levels of the dungeon. And a smart thing of giving you player powers. The game does hit some action loops though.

Score: 7.5/10

Planet Unknown

Newest one to the list I played Planet Unknown twice last night. This is a terraforming game as you try and get your best terraformed planet and go up on tracks, place down tiles, and collect meteors and pods across the planet. The turns are simple but filled with a lot of strategy. And it offers a basic mode and a more complex mode, plus modules out of the box for a lot of fun.

Score: 8.5/10

Quest Calendar: The Voidspark Chronicles

I need to get back to this one. I have done a week or two of this daily calendar or so I’m a long ways behind. My goal needs to be sit down, catch up, and then play once a week to stay on top of it. But it’s a directed solo RPG in a daily calendar form where you make a decision or two that leads you on the story. A fun idea, one that I knew I might have trouble getting through.

Score: 8/10

Relics of Rajavihara

My second most played new game, Relics of Rajavihara is a block pushing sliding puzzle game as you setup scenarios, get everything in place and see if you can figure out the puzzle. The downside is that when you know a solution you’re done with that scenario. Upside is, there are a lot of scenarios and a lot of fun in the game. And the components are amazing.

Score: 8.5/10

Sprawlopolis

One of the most popular Button Shy Games, Sprawlopolis reminds me of games like Grove and Orchard which puts it up against stiff competition. Smaller and more portable but the game play is the same so I think it’s whichever you came across first.

Score: 8/10

Via Magica

Another new game that I’ve played a lot, Via Magica is a gamers bingo. You complete cards to get powers which you then activate to let you complete more cards faster. The game play again is simultaneous so the game moves well and the mechanics are simple. But I really like looking at how you pick which cards you go for, and how you can combo bonuses together.

Score: 8.5/10

Witchbound

Finally one that I only played via Discord and having pictures of locations sent to me. Witchbound is a choose your own adventure point and click style of game in a board game. The mechanics are simple, the story is good, and there is enough adventure in the game that you feel like there is a lot to checkout. I really enjoyed the artwork and what this one does.

Score: 9.5/10

Final Thoughts

I think I said twenty at the top, if you counted, it is 19. The reason for that being that one is the first time that I played since I started keeping stats. So Century Golem Edition, it’s the first time in a few years I’ve played you, but I have before.

Overall I’m please, my goal is to hit 50, and so far I’ve done a good job of finding fun games. Even my lowest rated, I enjoyed it, I just won’t seek it out. There are a ton of good games out there, and it’s fun to find new ones. That said, I do keep on playing games again and again or games I’ve experienced before. There are a lot of great games out there to play, they don’t need to all be new.

Send an Email
Message me on Twitter at @TheScando
Visit us on Facebook here
Support us on Patreon here

The Game – Birds of a Feather: Western North America

That name of the game is a mouthful, so I’ll just call it Birds of a Feather. But like I said, this is a bird watching game and one that I learned about in GenCon 2022. The game play is pretty straight forward. See how many birds you can see. And in the solo game, a good chunk of it comes down to luck. Which isn’t a bad thing, but does make the experience more random.

In Birds of a Feather you spot birds that are at your habitat. So if I’m in the woods, I see all the birds in the woods. And not only do I see all of them in the woods on one round, if I play woods the following round, I see all that were played the turn before as well. For solo that just means you are strategically trying to see all of the birds.

And this is where I think I’ll appreciate it at 4-5 player range, it can go up to 7, where it will be less random. You can coordinate as players, not too intentionally, to see birds at the same location. And you can strategize what you think will get you the most birds.

But beware the pesky raptors. They show up and now all of the birds at that location fly away before you can score them. It’s a bit of a take that element. I got the birds now you can’t get them from the previous turn. But in a minor way that hits everyone at that habitat. So there is an interesting choice or decision space with them, and there aren’t too many in the game. That is lost in the solo play. So it’s one I want to play in a larger group soon.

Upcoming Streams

Next stream coming up is the finale of Lands of Galzyr. Game number 10 on the adventures of Bumir. See what he gets up to and send him off into the sunset on Wednesday. I’ll start streaming at 8 PM Central Time and you can find the link to that upcoming video here.

And next Monday my plan isn’t to play a game. It is to stream the selection process for my next campaign game. So join in and be a part of that. I am planning on five finalists and you can help decide what I play. What are those five finalists, you’ll have to see Monday at 8:30 PM Central time if you want to join in live.

As always, the easiest way to know when I go live is to subscribe to Malts and Meeples. When you do that, you can then click the notification bell to know whenever I go live.

Send an Email
Message me on Twitter at @TheScando
Visit us on Facebook here
Support us on Patreon here

Top 20 Board Games on my Wish List

20. Sagrada Artisans

Yup, things can be on this and other lists. So I’ll go over them quickly. This is a legacy roll and write game based off of Sagrada. I played Sagrada again recently and I really do enjoy it, to me it’s a pretty relaxing game to play. And I want to know what the legacy version does. And how many years it should take to play is also a big question. The Sagrada Familia is still being built which is why I make that joke. But I like the stained glass theme so I’m excited for it and I like the dice drafting.

19. Planet Unknown

One that I wish I’d backed on Kickstarter, Planet Unknown is a game of picking tiles and placing them onto your planet to terraform it the best. Terraforming a planet is a common theme, but one that I like. The thing that caught my eye is the mechanism of the rotating center board. So when I pick a tile, that means that you are picking the tile that is facing you, or where your marker is. So we are all getting a tile every turn. I think that’s a really clever mechanism because not only do I need to think about what I need, but I need to think about what I am giving you.

18. Aeon’s End Trespass: Odyssey

Do I need another big game? The answer is no, I do not. But this one which is just delivering from Kickstarter looks great. This is one of those pipe dream games where if I can stumble across it local and used and not too expensive I’d buy it. But Aeon’s End Trespass is a massive dungeon crawl adventure game with a lot of minis, you know the drill. The cooperative, soloable and campaign style game that I enjoy.

17. Dice Manor

Also on a list recently, and that is when I added it to my wish list. The game play just looks simple and clever. You either allocate dice to unlocking some more dice, I think, so you have a bigger pool, or to getting tiles, or to putting into your house to score you points. I guess I should explain more. In Dice Manor you are building up a house, and you need to allocate dice of certain numbers to get rooms. If you get that room you add it to your house. So it’s dice allocation mixed with figuring out how you want to put together your house. And then, like I said, using dice in the house to score points. Three pretty simple things that seem to offer really good decisions.

16. Agemonia

You’ll see a lot of these campaign soloable games on the list. Agemonia is another one of them. Though, I don’t think it’s as massive as some of them. Agemonia is one that I almost backed, and I was in for a dollar on it, but I didn’t upgrade it in the pledge manager. It looks like a fun one because the world looks more vibrant and dynamic than a lot of them, in terms of the boards you are playing on.

You might start out in a tavern and then go out into the town to interact with things. And as you do that, you might change what’s at a location so you find a card and put that down. And then you end up with new actions that you can do, all while trying to complete some goals that you need to in a set amount of time. Plus, it’s fantasy but not your standard fantasy, so I really want to get my hands onto this one.

15. The Everrain

This one I maybe shouldn’t have on my list. It’s kind of getting fulfilled now, but the company is in financial trouble, it seems, which doesn’t bode well for my Village Attacks pledge. But Everrain is a sea exploration adventure game. And that just sounds fun to me. As they put up, you have your crew and are building up your crew and ship before you’ll have to face off against a Lovecraftian great old one, which I’m sure is not too difficult at all. And you are exploring in a cooperative gaming experience.

14. Monumental

Like Aeon’s End Trespass this one is a pipes dream to find. Monumental is a deck building, area control, moving people on a map, and did I say deck building game? And it’s been out for a little bit and isn’t in retail. The company is having some issues fulfilling their next one, so I’m not hopeful that there’ll end up with too many in the market. And Monumental is well liked.

The interesting thing with the deck building is that you don’t have a hand of cards. You have a grid of cards and you activate a row or column. Then those cards get wiped and new ones get added in. I want to try the game just for those interesting mechanics. Deck building is a mechanic that I really enjoy, and to see something so different, it makes me want to track it down. But it’s expensive when you can find it.

13. Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – The Adventure Game

One that I passed at on Gamefound. The game looked decent, it’s supposed to be like Skyrim as a board game. So that means you have a main quest that you are trying to complete but also that you can just go and do a bunch of side quests. It’s not really a dudes on the map game but more of that adventure experience which I enjoy. It’s one that eventually it’ll be back in retail and I’ll get a copy just to experience it. And I’m pretty sure it can be played solo so there is that element that I like as well.

12. Birds of a Feather: Western North America

That’s a long title for a little play out a card and check off stuff on a sheet. You are basically trying to get as many birds that you’ve seen as possible, so bird watching. And there are some interesting rules around it as you see things at the terrain you are at. So if I play down a desert and you play down a desert bird we see both of them. But if everyone else plays down a forest bird, I don’t see them. It’s a clever system. But not all is lost because you can go next round to the forest, if you have a forest bird, and see the ones played previously. Unless someone plays down a predator bird which scares them away. So, like I said, a clever system.

11. Arkeis

Another one previously on a list, but a legacy adventure game. I like that a lot and it’s set in Egypt and almost seems like it’ll have an Indiana Jones vibe to it. If it has that, and they can promise what looked like a not too complex but still very interesting game, I’ll pick this one up on the theme alone.

10. S.H.E.O.L.

I blame Meet Me At The Table for making me want this one. S.H.E.O.L. is a game about a weird future where there are robot monsters and you’re exploring, fighting them, interacting with people and places and it’s again that big campaign, adventure, combat, and solo game that I enjoy. Plus the setting is just different. The aesthetic of the game is basically black and white and it isn’t a bunch of dungeons but ways that you create the paths. The whole thing is just intriguing and hard to find.

9. Heat: Pedal to the Metal

A racing game from Days of Wonder, this one is already out and it’s really interesting to me. It looks like a lighter game than some racing, like Formula D, but also not a betting racing game that a lot of lighter ones are, like Downforce. So I’m really intrigued by this one and people are really liking the game. So I want to give it a try as you balance pushing to go faster without building up too much heat that can clog up your hand and slow you down. A balancing act which I always enjoy that question of when do you push or when do you hold back.

8. Tidal Blades 2: Rise of the Unfolders

Also on another list. Tidal Blades 2 is a dungeon crawler set in the interesting world of Tidal Blades: Heroes of the Reef which gives you the story that you are missing in the first game. And from what I can tell, the mechanics are interesting as well. You play out actions and slowly as you get more and more actions out you become more powerful. But then they’ll all get pulled back sometime so you’ll do it again. I like that ebb and flow and that it’s a dungeon crawler without just being a dice chucker.

7. Rove

One coming to Kickstarter this year, Rove is from a designer who did a fan expansion for Gloomhaven. Rove promises a dungeon crawl set in it’s own unique world. I don’t know too much about it beyond that, but I’m very intrigued by it because it’s someone who made a Gloomhaven expansion. Gloomhaven is my favorite game, so I’m hoping that it takes some of things that were learned from making and expansion and adds it to Rove.

6. The Great Split

The Great Split is already out as well, but hard to come by. It’s a game where you are giving your opponent the option between two things and they are doing the same for you. So how do you make it, as you push up tracks based off of what you get, that you get what you want and they don’t get exactly what they want. The game system seems like it is pretty simple but also offers really good decision making. And it’s from Horrible Guild a company who I’ll generally always checkout what they are making.

5. The Elder Scrolls: Betrayal of the Second Era

Yes, it’s a second Elder Scrolls game, this one from Chip Theory Games. And yes, this one is coming to Gamefound this year. So I’ll probably end up backing it. It’s an adventure mini-campaign game that is based off of the Too Many Bones system, a system that I enjoy. And Chip Theory Games tends to make games that interest me. And I mentioned campaign, but did I mention you can play it solo? So even more reason why I’m interested in the game.

4. Hoplomachus: Victorum

Speaking of Chip Theory Games and solo games and campaign games, we have Hoplomachus: Victorum. This builds upon their Hoplomachus system, makes it purely solo and adds in a campaign and leveling as you go. You are a gladiator or fighter going through lands, fighting in arenas, recruiting troops all as you work your way up to face off against your final adversary. Will you be strong enough to defeat them? It’s one that I’m so close to pre-ordering from Chip Theories website, I might have just talked myself into it.

3. Clank!: Catacombs

This is the newest version of Clank! A game that I like all the versions of. Clank!: Catacombs is going to offer one really unique and new feature to go along with the deck building, and that is that the map is modular. So as you delve into the catacombs you are building it out. That sounds like a lot of fun, and I doubt it’ll even mean that I get rid of any of the others. Clank is one of those games that I just want to have a lot of it because whether it is Clank!: Catacombs, Clank!, or Clank! In! Space! I think that it’s going to be a fun time.

2. Stonesaga

Also on a previous list, Stonesaga is a legacy game set in the stone age where you are all working together to build out your civilization. Of course there are some monsters, there are other trials and tribulations that you can go through, and well, I’ve had a chance to playtest it and I had a lot of fun with it. The game really gives you some story of building up your civilization as you play. Without it being too heavy handed in the story elements of the game. I think it has more story than something like Charterstone or My City, but less than a Pandemic Legacy, for example.

1. Rogue Angels

Another one that I’ve already played, though like Stonesaga, which I hadn’t mentioned, just on TTS (Tabletop Simulator). And it’s great on there, but I really want to get my hands onto a prototype and show that off at some point in time. And I’m hoping it can get to Kickstarter or Gamefound this year.

The trick right now for the creator is getting enough eyes on it and getting enough people showing it off. But it’s kind of Mass Effect the board game or that is the designers intent. And I think that comes across. There are missions where you are doing combat, there are missions that just have a specific challenge(s) that you need to complete and everyone feels different.

Then there are mechanics which are so simple, do two actions which are generally playing cards. But when you play down a card it goes in a slot and then cools down over time. So a really good card might take longer to get back into your hand. And there are ways to speed that up, but that probably means that you’re not doing something else useful. Just a fun system with interesting characters and interesting story.

Final Thoughts: What is on Your Wish List?

Let me know what is on your wish list. You can do that down below or over on Twitter. And my wish list isn’t just 20 items. In fact, there is one, Paper Dungeons Expansion that isn’t on the list because expansions were filtered out. And even then my list is 55 items long. Some are in the maybe I’d want to get it category. Others, especially in this Top 20, I’d love to get my hands on them. Of course, time to play them, and money to get them is always a question. But I hope I can end up getting or playing a lot of these.

Send an Email
Message me on Twitter at @TheScando
Visit us on Facebook here
Support us on Patreon here

Games I Saw at Gen Con

Burncycle

One I knew I wanted to see and one that I came home with. This is a big game where humans built robots, robots took over, humans came back with a vengeance and now you’re robots trying to survive and go on missions.

It is a Chip Theory Game, so big and has a lot going on with it. But one that when you get down to it, with the chip system and everything, it doesn’t look too bad to play. It’ll be a table hog, but one with a lot of good and interesting choices. And it looks different than a lot of games. This game has two boards one where you are sneaking into a facility and another where you are hacking the system and trying to balance both of those seems interesting.

Hoplomachus: Victorum

Another Chip Theory Game, this is one that I suspect I’ll buy and I wish I’d backed on Kickstarter. Hoplomachus takes one of their original games and brings it to the table as a solo only game. And with a campaign in it. Which makes it even more interesting.

In this game you are going around and trying to defeat the minions of Pluto in this arena/gladiator combat game. You travel around build up your troops and fight to gain victories and rewards. For me, I think it could be a great game to stream on Malts and Meeples. With so many massive campaign games, this isn’t small but it won’t be as massive on the table.

Cora Quest

Cora Quest is s game that I knew I wanted to checkout for sure. Cora Quest is a family weight dungeon crawler game. Everything about this game is fun, there is story, but it’s family friendly and fun. There is dice chucking, the artwork is great. I haven’t bought it because I don’t need to yet. When my kid gets older, I could see this being an amazing introduction to dungeon crawlers and story adventure games.

Land vs Sea

I was disappointed that I wasn’t able to demo this one. I got more of a sales pitch than anything. Though, I did get the basics of the rules, which means I probably need a minor rules read and then I can play. At it’s core, Land vs Sea is a two player game about trying to close off areas of land or sea.

One player gets points when land masses are closed off, the other when sea is closed off. But you might want to close off your opponents area because there are other scoring pluses on the board. If you close off that area, your opponent scores the land or sea area, but you get the bonus points. Seems like a light and fun game. You can also play with more players, but I want to try at two first.

Bark Avenue

Bark Avenue at the same booth of Land vs Sea is another game that I got more of a pitch for than a ton of details on it. The basic idea is that you are a dog walker. And you try and get points or money by having the dogs that you walk do things on their walks. It didn’t seem like too heavy a game, and it had a very big footprint for that. Probably not one I’ll checkout later.

Birds of a Feather

Birds of a Feather is a small set collection game. It’s interesting in how it does it though. You are playing out birds that you are seeing. And everyone plays out birds all that once. Anyone who crosses over with a habitat checks off all of the birds. And then the previous rounds birds stick around for the next round. So there is some strategy as to where you go. The game seems light and fast, but pretty and could be a good small box game to add to a collection.

Dawn of Ulos

Ulos is the world of Roll Player Adventures. And Dawn of Ulos is an economic game set in that world. The game looks very cool on the table, but I’m not sure it’s a game for me. I like the more thematic things set in that world. Now, that isn’t to say that the game doesn’t look cool on the table. It definitely does. I just think that manipulating the different species as you manipulate the market is less interesting to me.

Paperback

Paperback, this was a very fast overview, but a game that I kind of want to try. Paperback is a deck building game where you are making words. The words that you make give you purchase power and gets your more letters and double letters and the possibility to make even bigger words. I love deck building and I enjoy word games. My wife loves words, so I think this is a solid option. And unlike Scrabble or Banagrams, it doesn’t just reward you for knowing the few great Scrabble words.

Chai

Chai is another theme that I think my wife would like. It’s a bigger game where you run a tea shop and you are collecting ingredients to complete orders and get tips. The end of the game is to have the most money. So pretty standard for a board game. The production on this one looks great, though. One I’d love to truly sit down and play and see if I like it and what I think of the weight of the game.

Red Dragon Inn 8

Finally Red Dragon Inn, I have played this one before, but I was learning about Red Dragon Inn 8: Pub Crawl. It’s more stuff for Red Dragon Inn, but it adds in a pub crawl mechanic. It just seems like it offers more options for game play without making it much more complex. I’m more interested in their dungeon crawl game that they have coming out set in the world. Because while I generally find Red Dragon Inn too long, I do like the characters and the world. And I think the length is more due to player count than anything.

Final Thoughts

There were a lot of fun games to see, and I likely could have seen a whole lot more. But I was semi-targeted in what I was doing. Though, there are also games that I probably never would have looked at, but I had a moment. Bark Avenue being the big one on the list. I generally wouldn’t have checked out Red Dragon Inn 8 either, but I know they have promo cards often if you listen. So I did that to get the card for a friend.

Out of these games ones that I’ll likely pick up will be Paperback, Hoplomachus: Victorum, and Birds of a Feather. All very similar games, not at all, but all that do stuff I like. Paperback is deck building and word game. Hoplomachus is a big campaign solo game. And Birds of a Feather is a small filler game. Which would interest you most?

Send an Email
Message me on Twitter at @TheScando
Visit us on Facebook here
Support us on Patreon here