Board Game Plays

119 Different Games

You will look at that number and see that it is about 10 plays of each game, on average. Of course that is only an average. So some games are going to get played a whole lot more. Those are the games that I sit down and I play between meetings at work, or sometimes, if I just need to observe, during a meeting at work to help keep me focused. So we’ll see a very high number for one of those coming up.

But I really like the combination of games that I’ve played. It’s some small games, but I also have a number of campaign style games that make the list. Obviously those are going to take longer to play. Which means that I’ve put a lot of time into playing board games this year. We’ll get to that number later.

385 Plays of Grove

So obviously a lot of plays came from Grove, but Grove is one four games that I’ve played over 50 times this year. Grove, Orchard, Relics of Rajavihara, and Criss Cross are all over 50 plays. They count for more than half of my total game plays for the year. And how fast they play, with the exception of Relics of Rajavihara which can take a bit of time to puzzle out a play, is quite fast.

87 New Games

This is a number I am quite happy with. It means, while I buy games faster than I play, still, I have gotten through a lot of games that I haven’t played before. I will say, I think if I dug into the whole list, there would be two or three that might be ones I’ve already played.

Looking at that number, I might try and get it to 100 new to me games, but I’m running out of time. I do have a friend who I teach a lot of new games to. And some of the games, probably enough, I could play solo if I learn them to get to 100. That is now an unofficial goal for the year.

Approximately 348 Hours

That is what the app, Board Game Stats estimates anyways. I’ll tell you, it says 11 hours for My City Roll and Build, that is probably 4 hours total maybe 5. It estimates what it says on the box. Sometimes, as I’ve written about, that is low. Other times, especially if I play it solo, that is very high.

Recently Trailblazers is another example of that. I did play it two player now, and half an hour is right. But solo, I got 3 games done in about 35 minutes. So take that number with a grain of salt, it’s probably under 300 hours with how fast I play some games, especially solo.

Gap

Gap was game number 1000. And turns out how I was taught at Gen Con was actually a bit off. That might have been my comprehending it, versus the teach, but an abstract game is sometimes hard to teach. Still really like the game and I think it’s better with much better strategy now that I’m playing it the right way. But Gap from Arcane Wonders was game play #998 through #1000 for me last n ight.

Final Thoughts

It’s really been an effort or focus to play more games this year. I get in campaign games, like Tainted Grail, every other week with one group. I play another campaign, it was Roll Player Adventures, now it’s Vampire The Masquerade: Chapters with another group. And I’ve played at least three campaign games over the course of the year, at least 7 games of them on Malts and Meeples.

Next year will I push for more? I might. Though, I think that 1100, which I’ll be close to this year, is an amazing number. Let me say this, though, if you play fewer games, it isn’t a big deal. I actually think that I’ll play fewer games next year. At the start of this year I was in a new job in a new role learning a lot in meetings. So I would play Grove between meetings or during meetings to help me focus and maintain focus. So don’t assume that you are slacking behind, that is not the case.

When I put out these goals, I never try and push them out too far. That is why I didn’t make it a goal from day one. I want a bit of a stretch, but I also don’t want to make board games into something that is work. Now it is “work” in that I make a little money from this website. But it isn’t because I’m not beholden to any company, I do it because I like to do it. So if you see this goal and feel like you’re slacking, you aren’t if you are having fun playing board games.

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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.

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May Board Gaming

Paper Dungeons – 10 Plays

This one you can watch over on Malts and Meeples and I’ll put the last video down below. But a dungeon crawl roll and write game. I really like it, and I want more. I want a bigger story, I want different sheets to play off of, more monsters to play around with. And just a few more things to change it up.

Biblios – 4 Plays

Biblios is one that I want to play more of. Four plays were fun and I’ve played it at 2 and 3 players. I want to try it at four sometime. It’s basically a set collection game where you try and get majority in different colors. I like it for that, it has some good choices but is mainly a filler game.

Village Green – 4 Plays

Another one that I believe I played on Malts and Meeples solo in an attempt to “fix” the solo mode. I think I came up with a good way to do that. Mainly, having cards fall off the rows so that the rows change up more as you play the game. Otherwise the solo experience is a bit boring.

Icecool – 3 Plays

Icecool, a game that I am always down to play. I brought it in to work one day and we had fun messing around with it. And all the players had a fun time with it. It’s a nice one as always to just sit around and play and have a laugh with.

Matcha – 3 Plays

Matcha is a fun trick taking game and set collection game. What is really interesting about this game is that some tricks it based off of number and some off of the suit that is played. And the fact that you can win by not winning tricks enough times is interesting. The game plays fast and it’s a solid two player trick taking experience.

Tainted Grail – 2 Plays

Oddly enough, I don’t think that there is any Tainted Grail for June, or there might be a play. One of the players bought a house and has been busy with that. But as always Tainted Grail has been a fun experience of exploration, fighting monsters, and finding out the story. Really it is for the story.

The Quacks of Quedlinberg – 2 Plays

Got to play Quacks of Quedlinberg again, and it was fun. We swapped up the ingredients powers which made it a different game in a good way. Obviously it’s set-up for that, and I’m glad that it does make that difference. I like the push your luck element to it and the catch-up element. I really want to try with more than two player, though it won’t make a massive difference to how I play the game, but it’s just a fun one I want to share.

Quadropolis – 2 Plays

New game off the shelf with Quadropolis. Though, it is one that was published a while ago by Days of Wonder. I really like how it works to put out places onto you board and the placement rules for it. And I think that while the game is pretty straightforward, there are a lot of good decisions that can be made in it. And how you take the tiles and place them just works well. Accessible but thinky is a good way to describe the game.

Incan Gold – 2 Plays

I want to find a push your luck game that I really like. I’m not sure that Incan Gold is going to be that, though I did have fun with it. I think that push your luck is a bit group dependent. Some people are too risk adverse so will drop out early. Others it’s less fun for because they push in too far. But I had a good time with it.

PitchCar – 2 Plays

More dexterity gaming with PitchCar. This one was fun because a couple of kids were playing as well. And they had a solid time with it. Also it was at the GameZenter so we had people coming over to see what we were doing.

Qwixx – 2 Plays

Qwixx is a nice filler roll and write game. I like how simple it is and that element of pushing your luck in hopes to be able to fill in more works well. I think I prefer it at two player just because closing off a row is so powerful, with three or four, whomever doesn’t close something off can’t win, it seems.

Deception: Murder in Hong Kong – 2 Plays

My favorite social deduction game. Won’t say much more on it, but it’s the only one that gives you something real to start talking about from the get go. I’m always down to play it, will hesitate to play any others.

The Table Is Lava – 2 Plays

Another game off my shelf of to be played. This is a silly game of sliding or throwing cards to score meeples. I really enjoyed the play of it, though. Another one of those games that is just a good time and some good laughs as you try and knock over meeples.

Similo – 2 Plays

Similo is a fun party style game of deduction. I like that it is cooperative, so while one person is playing the clue giver, everyone is on the same team. It almost has a little bit of a Codenames feel to it, but because it’s pictures, I think it’s more fun. Plus how do you give a clue if the Little Mermaid is like or not like a Ghost?

Destinies – 1 Play

I want to play more Destinies. I just did a two player game of the introductory scenario. And I loved what I played. The story element is fun, the app integration is slick and adds in good story and adventure to it. And I want to get into the bigger thing where it is all one giant story, with different characters, throughout 3 different parts.

Atlantis Rising – 1 Play

Atlantis Rising yet another one off my shelves for the first time. This one we got a rule or two wrong with it, but got the basic concept of the game right. I really liked it. Firstly, it looks amazing. But also the push your luck element of the worker placement, how far you place out, works really well. And I can see this being a cooperative game that I’d pull out before Pandemic a lot of the time.

Drawn to Adventure – 1 Play

I barely made it through a game of this. Drawn to Adventure, unfortunately, did not impress me. I think it’s cool to do an dungeon crawl or exploration sort of game. But it’s just too limited in what you can do. I wanted more decisions to make and it felt like the game almost played itself. Plus it isn’t a fast game either.

Terraforming Mars – Ares Expedition – 1 Play

I still really enjoy Ares Expedition and want to get it played every now and again. I do want to try, sometime, more than two player. But two player moves so fast, not that more would slow it down much. The card play in this game just works well for me. And once those expansions hit retail, I’ll probably pick up one or two.

XenoShyft Onslaught – 1 Play

XenoShyft is a deck building game that I really love. Again, did not beat the game, but got close. I am not sure if I’ve ever beat the game, maybe once. But I keep on coming back to it because we always get close. And getting close is enough for me to want to try it again and again.

Canvas – 1 Play

Canvas, another one that I’ve played a few times now and at a few different player counts. It’s such a pretty game and while it is very simple, I find it a lot of fun. I can see why some people want to just make the prettiest painting, and that is an option but won’t help you win. But even when going for the best score, it is fun and you get good artwork to look at as well.

The Fox in the Forest – 1 Play

Another trick taking game, this was playing with a different player than the first few times. I need to start adjusting my strategy because I keep on making moves too soon. But I really like this as a fast little filler two player game.

So Clover! – 1 Play

So Clover, amazing party game. Highly recommend finding this one if you like cooperative party games. It’s higher than either Similo or Just One for me. Mainly because while it’s not too hard, there is just a bit more going on with it.

Just One – 1 Play

Speaking of Just One, also got that one played. Back to back with So Clover actually. I still really enjoy Just One. The game play makes it very easy to play with basically anyone. And cooperative, for me, puts less pressure on. Though I know for some people with guessing the word the fact it’s cooperative adds pressure.

No Thanks! – 1 Play

Finally, No Thanks! got played again, and one of the people who played it I believe picked it up to play with her family. It’s a fun game and definitely a different bidding feel than sometimes I’ve played it. The players set the market for taking a higher value card lower than sometimes. And it paid off big time for one player.

Year to Date

So, I’m going to keep this a little bit shorter this time. Mainly because, well, I’m going to be doing this again next week. So all of June’s stats are mixed in now. But 8 new for me games were played in May. And 52 plays overall which is more than I thought there would be. May started out slower with plays, I believe, but then ended strong. So I am well on my way to 365 plays for the year.

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March Board Gaming

1. My City (6 Plays)

So started playing this legacy game last December, I think, maybe it was November. And then we took a long break. But the great thing about My City, besides 6 plays in one evening, is that it is very simple to pick back up again. The game is mainly flip a card, everyone places that tile. You try and cover a few different types of spots to not lose points. Then it’s positive points surrounding others, and other adjacency. Simple but fun, and a game that you need to pace out.

2. Paper Dungeons (6 Plays)

You can watch this one played here. Were mistakes made, yes, but I am really loving this dungeon crawling roll and write game. The game play is just fun and there’s just enough going on in it. I have good decisions to make when it comes how I build up my characters and plan of attack. I feel like I have a decent strategy now.

3. Arboretum (4 Plays)

This is a game that got played at work, and normally I bring in a game, we place it once at work, and then I take it home. But we really liked Arboretum, even one of my less gaming co-workers. This is a good puzzle of a game, and a mean game. You’d think a game about trees not that mean, but most that are about trees are mean that I’ve played. This one I really like that you need to keep cards of the type you are building your row of in order to score. But you can block someone if you have more points worth.

4. Mesozooic (4 Plays)

Another new one on the list, played at work and a game night. Mesozooic is a silly game. It plays in two parts, first you draft 11 cards, then you put them out in a four by three grid and it becomes a timed sliding puzzle. Normally, I don’t love timed elements, but the sliding puzzle piece is fun. The game is light and silly, and it just works well with any player count. Plus you make real choices when you draft cards, so it isn’t just real time.

5. Canvas (3 Plays)

This is a Kickstarter that came in at the end of the month. I need to play with the reflections expansion still, but the base game is fun. It’s a very light game, basically filler level, where you are making three paintings. You do that by layering cards to make those paintings. What really matters are the colors and shapes at the bottom, but what picture you come up with too is great. And then it is just a puzzle with those colors and shapes to get as many ribbons and points as you can.

6. Under Falling Skies (3 Plays)

A solo game that is a new play for me but has been on my shelf for a while. Under Falling Skies is a cross between Space Invaders and Independence Day, and I like the game a lot. No real complaints about it and you can see my review here. The game has smart dice placement and strategy to it, and eventually I will win.

7. Qxixx (3 Plays)

Another new one and a light little roll and write game. Qwixx is just about filling in rows over numbers with different colored dice. The game plays extremely fast, and the strategy is light for it. But, that said, I was worried before I’d play it that it’d be too boring. I don’t think it is, the game has the right time to weight ratio for me. Just enough interesting decisions, and I like the excitement for hoping to get that one roll you really need to score a lot of points.

8. Sleeping Gods (2 Plays)

Another one that I streamed on Malts and Meeples. Sleeping Gods was a campaign game that I just wrapped up. It is a great game, good story in it, amazing artwork. I’ve talked about it a lot, though, I still need to do a full review.

9. Tainted Grail (2 Plays)

And Tainted Grail is another one I talk about a lot. It’s a great campaign game. Only two plays this month because we missed a week with one of the players being sick. Granted, that week we then played My City instead, which was fun. If you want a big campaign game with great story and a lot of survival, Tainted Grail really works.

10. Nidavellir (2 Plays)

I think this game might be a disappointment to me, which is odd because it does a lot of things I like. Nidavellir is a bidding and set collection game. But, at least at two players, the set collection feels less interesting than it might. The bidding is cool with how you do it, and I like being able to level up my cards. Overall, though, just felt underwhelming. I wonder if it might be better at a higher player count.

11. Res Arcana (2 Plays)

Res Arcana is a really cool engine building game. One that I played for the first time this month as well. What is so cool about it is that the cards in your deck that make up your engine, those are determined at the start of the game. Either through predetermined sets or a draft. And drafting is the way to go, but you start with eight cards and you really don’t get more. So how do you build and leverage an engine with just those cards?

12. Dice Throne (2 Plays)

It’d been too long since playing Dice Throne. I really like that game, though, I’ve come to realize I don’t win too often. I thought I was going to with the Barbarian almost taking down the Paladin, but a bad roll at the end. And then the Moon Knight took out the Monk fairly easily when all was said and done, mainly by stopping a few too many attacks.

13. So Clover! (2 Plays)

So Clover, new game, and maybe favorite party game. It’s up there with Just One and Cross Clues. And honestly, it feels a bit like both. You get a clover leaf that you put four cards onto and you come up with one word clues to match up. This one takes a bit more explaining if you can’t read it, so check that out here.

14. Air, Land, & Sea (2 Plays)

Another new game for me to play, you can see I got a lot in this month. Air, Land, & Sea is a two player game where you battle over various theaters of war, air, land, and sea. I am getting rid of it after two plays, not because it isn’t a fun game, I think it’s solid, probably a B for me, the issue is, I have an A+ two player game that feels close enough and actually more challenging in Hanamikoji.

15. Quarto (2 Plays)

Two player abstract game, this one I think is solid. I don’t love it, I don’t hate it. But it might just move to work with me, as it’d be a good one for there. In this game you are trying to get four in a row of shape, color, height, or hollow. But I pick what piece you put down and you pick the one I put down. It’s a good challenging game as you try and puzzle out where you can put a piece to not set-up your opponent or give you options for pieces to give to them.

16. Roll Player Adventures (1 Play)

Second adventure in Roll Player Adventures. This is the one that I played at GenCon, so I sat back some to not spoil anything. But it is still a lot of fun, we made different decisions than at GenCon, not always for the better, or so it seems. But lots of fun to be had, and I really like the story and decisions. A lot of story and just enough decisions to keep the game interesting.

17. Spire’s End (1 Play)

Another one that I played on Malts and Meeples. Spire’s End is a two or one player game where you explore a spire that came up from out the ground and captured a lot of people. It was not a favorable ending for me, but I really like the game, overall a lot of fun. Really, I think that it might be too dice dependent for some people, but I think the dice mechanics are really nice.

18. Fox in the Forest Duet (1 Play)

Trick taking is a mechanic that I like, and cooperative trick taking is fun, yes, I need to play The Crew still. But Fox in the Forest Duet is cool because it is a push and pull of needing to move the fox on the board both directions to collect leaves. And you do that through trick taking, so how you manipulate the tricks is interesting. You most certainly don’t want to always win a trick or you will lose the game.

19. Monza (1 Play)

A kids game, I mainly played it right with my toddler. We moved a bit faster than we were supposed to, but he’s 3, so it is mainly just fun to play games with him. He knows that daddy has his game room and he wants to see the games but he can’t play with him, so now he has a few games to play with. Monza is a simple racing game, you roll dice and move your car according to the color on the die. Simple but fun enough for a kids game.

Year Totals

So if you do the math, that was 49 plays for the month. I should have played a solo game to get to 50. If I could average 50 that’d be amazing, but hard to do some months. So I’m at 133 plays through the end of March, that’s 36-37%, so well on my way. Now, we are getting two kittens tonight, so that might cut into some game playing, but we’ll see, and I need to get through my game collection with my other video series. But I am confident I’ll make 365, my real goal is kind of 100. Plus 12 out of the 19 games were new, and I’m not sure, besides Canvas coming in I added any games.

Which game would you want to play most?

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February Board Gaming

Sleeping Gods: 3 Plays

Lots of Sleeping Gods plays, and one of five with three plays. If you want to know what the game is about, I play it weekly on Malts and Meeples YouTube channel. Still enjoying the story, and I wonder how it’s going to end for me, I’m guessing I’ll wrap it up this month.

Tainted Grail: 3 Plays

Tainted Grail is another consistent one on the list. The game is a ton of fun, and the Last Knight campaign feels different than the Fall of Avalon. It’ll be on the list for a while, we still have another one after that to play through.

Squire’s End: 3 Plays

So, I just wrote about Spire’s End. You can read that here. But this is a good solo game, one that I’m going to stream once I’m done with Sleeping Gods. The game play is simple, and the story is good, but combined together, it makes an experience that feels very unique. And I like the mechanics with resting, and how you use health to determine what attack you do.

Project L: 3 Plays

Another one that I wrote about, Project L is a Tetris like game. But it’s also an engine building game. You pick cards and then use little pieces to fill in shapes on them. When you fill in a shape then you get those pieces used back and a new shape that gives you. You eventually want to start getting points, but how can you optimize your turns and actions.

Super Mega Lucky Box: 3 Plays

Another one that I’ve played before, 12 plays in January. I can see Super Mega Lucky Box being like Ganz Schon Clever last year where I’ll play it most months. Super straight forward roll and write game but in a good way.

The Quacks of Quedlinburg: 2 Plays

I held off on playing The Quacks of Quedlinburg for a long time and even getting it. But I wish I had done so sooner because The Quacks of Quedlinburg is a fun game. It’s a good push your luck game and bag building game. Which I can see playing this one with a lot of different people.

I think with the set-up of everything and the variability in that, the game, just the base game, is going to have a lot of replayability. And the ease of play, it definitely makes it more accessible to a lot of different gaming groups.

Fleet: The Dice Game: 2 Plays

Another one that I talked about recently, honestly, shouldn’t be a surprise, there were a number of games games. Fleet: The Dice Game is a big roll and write game. I think that it is solid, I’m not sure if it’s amazing. Not because I wouldn’t play it again or it won’t make the Top 100 for me when I do that later this year. But Fleet: The Dice Game is a lot to learn, so I can mainly see it being a solo game for me.

The Fox in the Forest Duet: 2 Plays

The Fox in the Forest Duet is a two player cooperative trick taking game. And I figured I’d like it, but I wasn’t sure how much I’d like it. Trick taking is generally something that works well for me. The cooperative nature is something else that is interesting. I think the push and pull of trying to get the fox to land where you need it to is a lot of fun.

Imperial Settlers: Roll and Write: 2 Plays

Most disappointing game of the month, Imperial Settlers: Roll and Write is an okay roll and write. Mainly, it doesn’t feel like it gives you interesting choices. Even something like Yahtzee offers more choices because you can push your luck. Imperial Settlers: Roll and Write doesn’t give you that, so most, if not all the options are obvious.

Skull: 2 Plays

Skull is another push your luck game, between this and Quacks it’s something I played a fair amount. Skull basically has you bluffing to try and get people to flip over roses and not hit a skull. But then you also read what other people are doing and try and guess what you can flip without getting a skull. That’s very basic for what it is, but a good simple push your luck game.

Floriferous: 2 Plays

Floriferous is what I’d call a relaxing game. The decision space is limited but not too limited. It feels like you do the right amount each turn. And I really like how turn order is determined. If you take something lower in a column, that means you’ll be going later. So there’s a decision that’s good, do you pick something high because you need a certain card in the next column and take a less ideal flower this turn. It falls into a nice and pretty style of game that is becoming more common.

Quoridor: 2 Plays

Good abstract game with nice pieces. I think that Quoridor works well with a lot of people, though, if everyone rushes across the board, it makes the game really odd. But, I think it works better when people meet in the middle and start blocking routes early. The game also falls apart a bit when someone is close to winning and you skip blocking them so the person before they needs to. Everyone can dictate who needs to block.

Aldarra: 1 Play

I got to play this one for the Kickstarter, you can see the play down below. And the play of another game as well. Aldarra launched and will be coming back, but I have to say, it is a fun game. It’ll feel different when it comes back at a smaller size, but that will make it cheaper which is good. It’s a nice area control game with a tight board, so you fight a lot. And you get knocked off the board, kind of, and then rebuild again. I like that Small World like feel to it.

Roll Player Adventures: 1 Play

I got to start Roll Player Adventures this month and I’m so excited. I had a chance to play this as a prototype at GenCon, as I always mention. And the game is a ton of fun, and that was my best gaming experience there. To now have it in my hands and for the expansion stuff as well, I’m so excited to play this. It takes choose your own adventure and then adds in some cool dice combat. The game isn’t that difficult, but the choices are really good.

Rogue Angels: Legacy of the Burning Sun: 1 Play

Another one that was on Kickstarter, and I was supposed to do a live stream while it was on Kickstarter. Rogue Angels launched the same time as Marvel Zombies and Final Girl Season 2 were finishing up. So it got lost in the shuffle. It is coming back. And I still played, and streamed it with the creator. Great game, I love the story and the differences in the scenarios. It does with the scenarios, something I think Frotsthaven is going to fix from Gloomhaven, where it isn’t so much just kill everyone.

Final Girl: 1 Play

When my local game store, All Systems Go, took in a trade of Final Girl, I was so excited. This is a game that I looked at on Kickstarter, but ultimately passed on. The backers started to receive their copies and people loved it. When it made it to my FLGS, I called immediately and had them set it aside for me, and I’m glad I did. I played once thus far, as you can see, but it is amazing. I love the theme so much.

No Thanks!: 1 Play

I enjoy No Thanks! a lot. Mainly because it is another one of those simple games where you don’t have a lot of decisions to make. But the decisions you do make, mainly take a card or pass on it, it matters a lot. I won’t say much more, it is one I’ve played and talked about before, but if you want a simple but difficult game, No Thanks is really interesting.

Year Totals

So, 34 plays in February, taking that with January’s 50 plays, I’m now at 84 (well, 86 counting two thus far in March). So it’s very strong in terms of a start and I hope I can end around 500 plays for the year, or maybe even higher.

And for the secondary goal of getting through a lot of my unplayed games, 9 of my plays were games on that list. Well, kind of, I don’t know that Project L was on the list, because I didn’t have it in yet. And Final Girl got picked up in February, so it wasn’t on the list. Still, the list is getting shorter, I do believe. And I actually knocked out another one last night.

Which is the most exciting game for you, or one that you’d want to play from my February list?

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124-101

Unplayed Board Games – 100 through 76

100: KeyForge: Call of the Archons

KeyForge has been on my radar for a little bit, mainly because the concept sounded interesting. It’s almost a TCG (trading card game) but you can’t build decks. All of them are prebuilt but also are different. And it’s a two player head to head game, take out monsters, get keys, and first to a number wins. They were on sale around Christmas, so I figured it was time to pick up a few decks to give it a try.

99. Vault Wars

This is one that I backed on Kickstarter because I find the concept funny. And I suspect that the game play is going to be easy enough to get it to the table with my gaming group. Vault Wars is basically fantasy Storage Wars. You bid to get the best vaults to get you the most points or money by the end of the game. I hope it’s a goofy good time.

98. Mage Knight

Probably should be higher on the list, but I’m intimidated by the rules for this game. It is notoriously hard to get to the table and learn. But it’s also supposed to be one of the best solo games out there. And while big solo games can be tricky to get tabled for me. I feel like I need to give it a try.

97: Shadows of Kilforth

This one I bought because Rolling Solo did a play-through of the predecessor to this game, Gloom of Kilforth. It’s a fantasy game and one that kind of has a story emerge as you go. But you play as a hero going out into this dark fantasy world, fighting monsters, getting cards of companions and equipment to see if you can defeat the boss in the end. I like the ideas of the game, I just need to play it.

96. Sentinels of the Multiverse

Sentinels of the Multiverse is on the list for an odd reason, or this low on the list for an odd reason. In 2020 at the Holidays Greater Than Games had a crazy good sale for Sentinels stuff. So I got all of it, or most of it. And I think I paid $75 for all of it. So very cheap. But now I have all the stuff, and it’s a bit intimidating to pull off the shelf. I just need to do it and play it. Because super heroes and super villains are my jam for board games.

95. Narabi

This is a little card game that is hard to explain. You are trying to get all the cards into ascending numerical order. But with that, each card is only allowed to move in a certain way, or has a movement rule on it. So it becomes a puzzle where you can share limited information to swap cards around to see what they can do, until you get it into order. A cool puzzle of a game idea where you see how fast you can do it.

94: Quadropolis

This is an older game that I just got. But Quadropolis is one I’ve had my eye on. It’s a city building game that looks simple but intriguing. I really like the mechanics of how you determine what tiles you can get to add to your city. And Days of Wonder, while not everything is a smash hit for them, has made some of my favorite accessible games like Ticket to Ride, Small World, and Five Tribes.

93: Jamaica

Jamaica, when I heard about it, I knew I wanted to try. But it is not a game that has always been easy to get. When Fantasy Flight Game Center, now GameZenter, was clearing off their demo wall to rebuild it better, it isn’t better, they sold the games. So, I need to do a piece count and then play this, but it’s a pirate racing game, that sounds like a fun time, assuming the pieces are there.

92: Heaven & Ale

Normally I don’t get Euro Games, but again, a sale. Also, one of the reviewers I follow, Ryan from Man vs Meeple, is a big fan of this game. So that recommendation and a euro game about brewing beer, I was interested. And I say that I normally don’t get euro games, I don’t, but I don’t dislike them. So I need to do my best monk brewing beer impression sometime soon.

91. Silver & Gold

Silver & Gold is a roll and write game, another one that I need to try. And one that I think will be a lot of fun, because you get to fill out cards throughout the game. So like Super Mega Lucky Box, you get to use dry erase markers on the cards. And it has this treasure hunting theme, but is more of a shape filling in game. I think it looks like one that is easy enough to learn but still interesting to play.

90: This War Of Mine

I’m intimidated by this game, much like Mage Knight. I’ve heard it it hard to learn. But more than that, this is a game about a fictional war and trying to survive in it. The concept is cool, but also a dark concept. And it’s tough to want to sit down and play a game with story that you know you probably won’t survive. Especially if it’s a harder game to learn and get to the table. But the concept sounds very intriguing and different to try.

89: Boomerang

Not the last time you’ll see a Boomerang on the list. A roll and write game. Won’t say too much about it, looks like a good puzzle of a game, like the one you’ll see coming up. This version just doesn’t look at nice as the other.

88: Descent: Journeys in the Dark

Descent is an interesting one, and this isn’t the big box version of the game that just came out. This one has been out for a little while. But it’s interesting as I do want to play the game, but I mainly got the game so I could practice painting minis. That is something I that I need to get back to doing, and we’re getting close to the point where I might be able to prime them outside. But I do want to try the game, because fantasy dungeon crawl, I like those.

87: MonsDRAWsity

We go from a big fantasy game to a small fantasy game, a party fantasy game. MonsDRAWsity, has one person a monster that they look at and then describe. Everyone else draws the monster. And I believe, the person with the closest drawing wins. It’s a drawing party game, but one that looks silly and fun.

86: WWE Legends Royal Rumble Card Game

Speaking of silly and fun, I’m a professional wrestling fan. It’s true, I mainly just watch the pay-per-views with a group of friends. And the Royal Rumble is the best one. This one is a take that style game where you try and be the winner of the Royal Rumble. Your guy gets tossed out, you get a new one, and the last one standing wins. Clearly I already know the group I want to play this with.

85: Shadowrun: Sprawl Ops

I really like the world of Shadworun. This cyber-punk future where corporations run everything. And you go on runs, hacking into systems, and exposing dirty secrets, great idea. And I’d love to play in a Shadowrun RPG campaign. This is a board game version, and it’s about setting up for a run. I have a massive box of stuff, but how the runners of the Kickstarter handled distribution, there were lots of problems, I’m less excited to play it.

That’s probably not a great reason not to play it. I think that it looks like a fun game. I still love the theme. It’s just harder to get into wanting to play it. Though, I did get the cooperative expansion, so maybe that’d be an easier way to get it to the table.

84: Boomerang: USA

I told you Boomerang would be back. The first, more logically, it set in Australia, but using the system, the designer made more versions. This version just looks nicer than the version I own of Boomerang. Either way, I need to play one or both. And then decide which one I want to keep, if I keep one, because I doubt I’ll want both of them.

83: Palm Island

I don’t know why this one is still on the list. Mainly I think because I play Orchard most of the time when I want a small solo game. Palm Island is a solo game that fits in the palm of your hand. It’s a resource management style game, if I remember correctly. You are trying to build up your engine to get more cards flipped around to flip more cards. I need to give it a whirl.

82: Blueprints

Blueprints is one that my FLGS recommended to me. It’s an abstract game about getting dice to build buildings. This falls into that category of a game that looks like it’ll be an interesting puzzle every time you play it. And I like those games where there is a good puzzle to it. Will the puzzle last a long time for me, we’ll have to see.

81: Specter Ops

Specter Ops is a hidden movement board game. One player is infiltrating a base to get to different objectives and then get out. The other player(s) are trying to figure out where they are and take them down. I like the concept and the theme of the game. This one is just the matter of learning both sides so I can teach it.

79: Crash Octopus

From the company that made Tokyo Highway, a dexterity game that I love, Crash Octopus is another one. This one is about flicking treasure to your ships and balancing the treasure on them. It seems like a silly game and one that will, like Tokyo Highway, look cool on the table. I want to see if it works as well as Tokyo Highway does for my gaming group.

78: 6 nimmt!

I don’t think the first time I heard about 6 nimmt! was from an anime, Afterschool Dice Club, but that is where I learned the most about it. This is a card game about trying to avoid taking points. I picked it up on sale when I got No Thanks! and both of the games kind of fit into that same mindset of figuring out clever play. I hope that this one works as well for my group as No Thanks! did.

77: InBetween

Two of the last three I got because of Sam Healey liking them on the Dice Tower. His and my tastes in game often overlap because we both go towards bigger, Amerithrash style games. The two on this part of the list are not that. InBetween is a two player game that feels, from what I can tell, like Stranger Things. One player is trying to get everyone to one side, while the other player is trying to flip them into the “upsidedown”.

It’s not actually a Stranger Things game. But the theme definitely has that vibe to it, and I think it came out about the same time. So theme wise, I like it. And as a two player game, I should be able to get it to the table.

76: Heroes of Terrinoth

This is another game that I saw on Rolling Solo’s YouTube channel. And it also looks good, card play game from Fantasy Flight, I liked how you level up in the game. And I like that you can pick from a variety of heroes. It isn’t a dungeon crawl game, but it almost has that feel. You pick a scenario, you can move between places, and you fight monsters. Plus you level up to improve how you can do things, which was cool.

75: Codinca

The final Sam Healey recommended game on this part of the list is also small, and it’s abstract. So that’s probably why it hasn’t gotten played. I’m bad about playing my abstract games, even though I normally like them. Codinca is a game where you want to create a pattern.

Final Thoughts

We’re still not into a ton of the big board games. But I do think this will be a section where I can get a lot of games off of the list. Stuff like Boomerang USA and Boomerang, Silver & Gold, Codinca, and Blueprints, all of those shouldn’t be hard to table.

On the flip side, I’m also going to be a bit surprised if I do get This War of Mine or Mage Knight to the table as part of clearing off games. I am very intimidated by both of those rule books. And I’m generally the one learning how to play the games so I know I can. But those two look like beasts to learn and with not great rule books, probably tough to get rules right.

Which one should I play first?

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So, with that said, let’s look at the list of games. Just one extra note. I’m going to start to talk less about games that show up every month, and really focus on the new to me games, or games that are getting back to the table.

January Board Gaming

Orchard: 18 Plays

Not much to say on this one right now. It’s my favorite solo game. Super fast, but great puzzle to it. Plays super fast and I think for a solo game, it’s one that a lot of people could get into.

Super Mega Lucky Box: 12 Plays

Bingo, kind of. You fill in cards and as you complete rows and columns you unlock bonuses. I thought that the game might be too simple, but it’s a ton of fun. And it’s a super accessible game.

Village Green: 6 Plays

Another one where I didn’t think that it was going to be a great game. And honestly, the solo mode is just okay. I think that it needs a bit of tweak, more green and scoring cards available to pick from, but it’s still fun solo. Two player the game is a great puzzle of when you push for more points or when you push for the end game so that your opponent can score fewer.

Sleeping Gods: 4 Plays

Sleeping Gods is a great adventure game. You can see my play it every Wednesday over on Malts and Meeples. Last week’s audio got messed up, but if you just want a taster of the game, you can watch it below. I really like the story and open world nature of the game.

Tainted Grail: 4 Plays

Tainted Grail, still going through the Last Knight story and having a very good time with it. We’re cruising through it. Now, the advantage to that is we get through more story and campaign. Disadvantage, I don’t think we’re quite as leveled up as ideal right now.

On Tour: 2 Plays

On Tour, I’ve played this as an app before, but I like the physical version. The game play is a nice amount of choice, but not too much. And as the choices become more limited later in the game, they become tougher to make, but it doesn’t slow the game down.

Spire’s End: 1 Play

Just played around with this one a little bit. Great little story adventure game for one or two players. I think it’s mainly one player, but you can split up the characters. Easy to play, nice system for learning the game.

Catapult Feud: 1 Play

A fun game, was going to say little, but it’s simple and fairly big. You build a castle, the opponent does as well. And then you take turns trying to shoot rocks from catapults and other siege weaponry to knock down your opponents troops in the castle. There are cards too and they add to the game, but not needed.

No Thanks!: 1 Play

Great push you luck game. You don’t want points, so you can pass on a card, but you give up a chip. Those are worth negative points at the end of the game. And if you run out of chips, you are forced to take the card. There’s a puzzle to the game and a great group dynamic with it as well.

Let’s Go Fishing: 1 Play

This is a kids game. Toddler got it for Christmas, so it’s in the collection and I got a play of it. For a kids game it has a cool concept. You try and catch fish as they open their mouths. The downside is that the mechanics on this version of the game to rotate the fish are horrible. So you kind of have to help it along, but the toddler likes it.

Year Totals

So we’re up to 50 games played, over that now actually, but 50 in January. It’s a strong start. And seven of the games were ones that came off my shelf of unplayed games. That’s a fairly strong start. If I keep that up I should be good.

Though, here’s the trick with unplayed games. Right now I have Aeon’s End: Legacy of Gravehold and Project L arriving probably on Monday. Plus some that came in via orders or picking up at my FLGS. I’m still at 135, not counter the two coming. So I need to play 35 more games plus whatever else new I get to be at 100 or less.

Which of the games that I’ve played thus far would you want to play? What is your favorite?

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Different Board Game Challenges

Let’s go over some of the challenges that are pretty common for people.

1×100 – Pick one game in your collection and play it 100 times

10×10 – 10 games played 10 times each

365 – What I did this year, 365 game plays in 365 days

Whole Collection – Play through my whole collection, that doesn’t mean beat all legacy or campaign games, but give them a whirl.

Shelf of Shame/Opportunity – This is playing all the games in your collection that you haven’t played before.

# of Total Plays or # of Different Games – Two similar but different ones. It’s basically picking an arbitrary

The Tough Things With Challenges

So, you can see there are a lot of different challenges that can be done. And I also get why some people don’t like doing a board game challenge. 1×100 is extremely restrictive. If you find after 50 plays of a game you’re done with it, now what do you do? Do you power through the last 50 plays or risk the same scenario happening again by trying to get to 100 with a new game?

Any total number of game one is easier for me to do. If I play any game I want in my collection, I want to play games all the time. But now I’ve done 365 plays in 365 days plus some. I’ll end around 420 I think. So just doing that again wouldn’t be too challenging. I could push to a higher number 500 plays for the year. But that feels the same as last years in some ways. Covid kept my plays down to start the year, and I can’t see it doing the same again.

What Board Game Challenge Do I Pick?

Well, it’s going to be a two part challenge. I’m shooting for 365 again. But to go with that, I have a number of my games that I need to play. I might be off slightly on some of this. I have 137 games that I own and haven’t played. Why I say this might be off is because these games aren’t rated, but I might have just missed rating a game.

So, I am not guaranteeing that I’ll play all of them. but I want to get that list lower. So my goal, by the end of 2022, is to have that unplayed games list down below 100. Now, that doesn’t sound too hard. But keep in mind that I buy new games, that doesn’t include crowdfunding games that will come in. And I did a whole article on board games that are going to be released, theoretically in 2022 that I’m interested in. You can find that here.

By putting the target at below 100 is going to be a challenge since I need to find people to play them with. I can’t do every game night that I run as a new board game night. Thankfully I do have one friend who is always up for trying a new board game, we played Kohaku last week. So he’ll play some of them with me, some I’ll play solo, and who knows when I’ll bust out others.

Plus, this is the end of year target. If I get in 30 new games that makes it way harder. Now, there is a chance a game might be sold without a play, making it easier, but this is going to be the tougher part of the challenge than the 365 plays in a year.

Final Thoughts

It was fun to do a challenge last year. And I am excited to do it again this year. And I’m excited to use this as an excuse to push for getting more of those games that I own but haven’t played played to know if they are going to be a game for me. Like I said, crowdfunded games are going to start showing up and I’ll need the shelf space.

Now, a challenge like this isn’t for everyone. I get it that it can make playing games seem like work. And that is never the goal. We want to play games because they are fun. For me, this is a way to help keep me in the fun. I love to play board games and doing so makes me happy. So this is a nudge to keep playing games and keep being happy, I’ll give myself that nudge.

Have you done a board game challenge? How did it work for you?

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Let’s talk about the games:

Orchard: A 9 card solitaire game – 38 Plays

This is the game that pushed me over, when I was under the weather I knocked out a lot of it. It gave me something to do while I was bored at home. Orchard is also now at 100 plays for the year, which is impressive because I started playing it in August. But Orchard is a great little solo game and it allows me to do something while watching a sporting event or something like that. If you are looking for a little solo game, I love Orchard.

Tainted Grail: The Last Knight – 4 Plays

From a small game to a big game, Tainted Grail, the second campaign has been started. This is just two evenings and it’s been a lot of fun. I will say, The Last Knight legitimately feels different than first campaign, The Fall of Avalon. And there are a few different things, such as exposure that make the game trickier. I still like it for story mode so that there is less maintenance for the characters, and it’s still tough. The story and aesthetic of the game are so very good.

Ohanami – 4 Plays

And back to another small game, this one I like because it’s pretty simple but has some good decision making in it. You are just putting cards down in numerical order as you draft them, but scoring matters in what you draft. You score blue in the first round, for only three points. But then it scores the next two rounds. Green scores four points but only scores the last two rounds, and seven for grey but only the last round. So you can strategize some. And I played this two and four player and it’s fun but different at both player counts.

Patchwork Doodle – 4 Plays

A roll and write game, I won’t say too much about it, because I did a TableTopTakes review on it recently. You can read that here. It’s a good roll and write game, it is a bit like Second Chance. So that makes it easy to get to the table but it also adds in a bit more than Second Chance does and gives good game play.

Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition – 1 Play

I keep on coming back to this game and really enjoying it. I have only played it with one friend, but we know how to play it and can play it very fast. And we’re tied at two wins a piece. Our scores, my friend is average 47 points per game, I am averaging 46.75, so it’s always been amazingly close. And I have gone with different strategies in different games, depending on the corporation that I have, and it’s a lot of fun every time.

Dice Throne – 1 Play

Finally we have Dice Throne. It was Pyromancer versus Shadow Thief. I played the Pyromancer and won handily. I’ve had some rough games recently with the Pyromancer because I wasn’t able to get the fire mastery going, but I did this time and the Shadow Thief didn’t keep their CP high enough early on to deal that much damage. Dice Throne is a game I love, and you can see where it ended up on my Top 100 Board Games (of all time) 2021 Edition if you want here.

365 Days of Gaming Stats

The challenge got completed on November 25th. Looking at the numbers, it is 71 different games. Orchard: A 9 card solitaire game was the most played with 95 plays followed by Tainted Grail (34), Dice Throne (16), Deadly Doodles (12) and Ohanami (12). So that rounds out the Top 5 games that I’ve played in the challenge. And I finished with 36 days to spare.

Yearly Gaming Stats

So for the year, 378 plays recorded. Stats for games are pretty similar. Orchard is at 100 total plays and Tainted Grail is up to 36. 8 games have more than 10 plays and 17 with more than five. Plus a total of 72 different games over all. I am up to 23% of the games that I own that have a play this year. That number keeps on being pretty steady because I buy more games. I’d love to get that up to 25% by the end of the year, and I have a month left to get there.

I suspect that I won’t get to 25% played but we’ll see. I think that next years challenge might be based more off of playing new games, and by new games, I mean games in my collection that I haven’t recorded any plays of. My shelves are full, or nearly full, so I need to play more to make decisions on what games are kept.

What game would you want to play from my list last month?

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Let’s get to the games:

Marvel United – 5 Plays

Marvel United only got played one evening. But we played it a lot because the game is so fast to play. It’s great to pull out whatever hero you want, whatever villain you want and just get going on the game. And it was fun to play around with other villains and heroes. The different villains in particular really change up the game.

But one really nice thing that I’ve found about this game is that I can get it to the table in a minute. Finding a villain figure and their cards, and then heroes and their cards is so fast, and there’s so little set-up for the game. It is extremely accessible and I’m excited to get it back to the table, though, thus far in November, I haven’t.

Werewords – 4 Plays

Werewords is a word based social deduction game. It’s basically playing twenty questions, but you can ask more, with someone being a traitor, or werewolf. I wrote up my thoughts on the game here. For me it was an okay game. I actually want to sell it, either to a friend or my FLGS (friendly local game store) because I don’t see pulling it off the shelf more.

Yes, it has more interesting going on than a game like Secret Hitler, The Resistance, and One Night Ultimate Werewolf. But it is still kind of a guessing game based off of no real information, in the end. And for me, that doesn’t work all that well. I want something with more meat to it, like Deception: Murder in Hong Kong, if I’m going to play a social deduction game.

Hanamikoji – 3 Plays

There is a new version of Hanamikoji on Kickstarter right now that I’m backing. It seems to add in some level of area control, more so than the base game has. And there are mini expansion for base Hanamikoji, which I’m tempted to get as well.

This is an abstract game about winning the favor of Geisha. The game plays so fast and only at two players that it’s one I need to break out more often. It’s a good filler to either end an evening or start and evening. And I have even brought it into work because it’s a nice lunch break game.

Tainted Grail – 2 Plays

Less plays of Tainted Grail than normal. We finished up Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon campaign, so we took a week off to just play other gamers. That is where five plays of Marvel United came from and some plays of other games as well. But we’re back to playing Tainted Grail, this time playing the Last Knight campaign.

This one we’re doing in story mode again, and honestly, I think this one needs to be played in story mode. I’ll write about it as a whole later after we get a few more plays of the game with what the new stuff is. And, the new stuff in the game is interesting. It is extremely challenging but again the writing is good and the story is good.

The Night Cage – 2 Plays

Of course had to play The Night Cage around Halloween. This is a cooperative game where you are going through a labyrinth but you can’t see much. Only the spots around you and as you lose site of spots they drop off the map and it twists and changes.

This game is fairly abstract, but it does create a good sense of tension. You carry candles which illuminate the board around you. That can go out and then you are moving around blind. But also all the tiles sit in a candle holder so as you remove tiles it looks as though the candle is burning down. The tension of it burning down works really well.

Dice Throne – 2 Plays

Dice Throne got a couple plays in. One king of the hill and one two player. The more I play King of the Hill style the more I enjoy it that way. I know I talk about Dice Throne quite often but mainly in the two player context. In King of the Hill, you get a benefit, an extra card, for attacking the player with the most health. It’s a nice twist and a good way to keep players from ganging up on a single player and knocking them out.

Hats – 2 Plays

Another game that hadn’t hit the table in a long time. Hats is an abstract game that I prefer at two players. It can play more, but with more players it becomes way more chaotic. With two players you can plan and push for things to go your way. The game play is a lot of fun for it, and it’s one that is tricky to wrap your head around. Especially the idea of the cards you play down influence what scores but aren’t the cards that you score.

Cross Clues – 2 Plays

This party game only had been played on Zoom before. Playing Cross Clues in person is a lot of fun. You are trying to come up with a one word clue to get people to guess the intersection of two words. It could be something like cat and taco, what word would link those two.

When playing with a big group, you only get one coordinate card. That means that sometimes you are stuck without giving a clue for a while. But the game moves quickly enough that you never feel like you are holding up the game. And sometimes you need something else, another clue to be given, before you can give one as well. It’s a newer party game, but one I highly recommend.

Clank! In! Space! – 1 Play

I busted out Clank! In! Space! again, this time with an expansion. And I have to say, the expansion we played with is fun. The black cubes that you pull now matter in the expansion. Basically it is a mission that can happen which makes your life harder as the game goes on. So, a game where you can already die and have zero points at the end of it becomes even tougher. But it is still a good game with that expansion and it’s a nice twist.

Tiny Towns – 1 Play

First game, not of Tiny Towns, but of Tiny Towns with more than two players. Two player Tiny Towns sometimes ends up with one player controlling everything. With three players, it makes the game more random but in a good way. Players diversify what they do more in a three player game which is good. It means that there are more things you can get stuck on, but also more interesting decisions to make. I still need to play with expansions.

Letter Jam – 1 Play

Another game that sat on the shelf for a long time. I love Letter Jam. It’s a cooperative word game that uses some of the mechanics of Hanabi. You can’t see your cards. But everyone else can. And you give clues that are words putting a marker in front of each letter that makes up the word. So if you did FROM, and my letter was the M, I’d see the word FRO* and need to figure out my letter.

The number of clues is limited. So you need to be smart about how you give them. And everyone needs to figure out their letters and words, so one person can’t give all the clues. The game works really well and doesn’t require a massive vocabulary or knowledge of how to game the game like a lot of word games do.

Calico – 1 Play

I played Calico with my wife and parents, and we played it in the simple version. That means that instead of having quilt blocks that determine any scoring, you only score buttons and cats. To me, it made the game too simple. But it is a solid way to learn the game. The basic concept of matching colors and patterns isn’t that hard to get. But adding in the scoring from quilt tiles adds a lot to think about.

Zombie Dice – 1 Play

Zombie Dice makes a great filler for a Halloween game night. Well, it was the October game night, but I did horror themed. That is why it came off the shelf. Zombie Dice is a basic push your luck dice game. And if things go poorly. people push too far, it can take way too long. But it is fun to pull of the shelf. And it is an easy game to teach and play. It is even easy to have people join part way through the game. I don’t own expansions for it, and I’m not sure I’d want to.

Yearly Gaming Stats

So, in October I added in 27 more plays. Slightly less than a play a day, but I was over that threshold already, so I am still on target. Currently, I am 98% of the way to completing the challenge, so a chance that even this month I finish it and then everything else is a bonus.

Now, because we are mid month, I do have plays on the list from November. But Orchard is still my most played game, up to 90 plays. And for all 356 plays that I have, there are 71 different games that I’ve played. Hitting 100 different games played would be great, but I doubt it will happen.

I have enjoyed this challenge a lot. I think that next year I will try it again, but also might put a focus on playing games in my collection that I haven’t played before. There are lots of games that need to get played on my shelf. Some are getting played, but I have 31 Kickstarters coming in and I’m sure more games than that, so a lot to get to the table.

Which of these games would you like to get played from my October plays?

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