As 2018 draws to a close, everyone is posting their top games of the year. But personally, I’ve always had trouble finding a good way of quantifying what makes one game better than another, when they have different themes, mechanics, play times & player counts. How should I compare Ticket to Ride to Exit: The Abaondoned Cabin to decide which game I think is better?
So I’m going to list my Top 10 most played games, as that seems a fair indication of what my favourites are. Actually, a fairer way is probably some formula that takes into account the time spent playing each game, and maybe the amount of money spent on it, but I don’t have any of that data available for this year. Maybe I’ll start keeping track for 2019, but for now we’ll just have to make do with the number of times I have played games in 2018.
Happy New Year everyone. And I wish you all the best for 2019.
The first release from Ryan Leininger of 2niverse Games, it is small and compact, and holds everything you need to play in a sturdy little box, including a dice tray, so it can be played literally anywhere. It’s a solid 2 player game, that plays in about 10 minutes.
I have played quite a few games of this during the year, including some play tests of the new expansion which will be out on Kickstarter in 2019. Lots of fun to be had. Everyone enjoys a Rocket Cat.
My starting decks are getting pretty worn by now, and I have thought about getting my open copy of the Heroes game, especially now with the rerelease with screen grabs from the MCU, but for the moment I use the DC version I created that has Gotham Police and SWAT as the starter cards.
Not having to worry about deck building means the game has no barrier to entry, save the enormous amount of keywords you need to get your head around. I currently have 4 decks, but I am still on the hunt for my first Logos deck. Maybe at the next “Sealed” event that will kick off 2019.
Designed by James A Wilson, and published by Starling Games, it has already had an Expansion on Kickstarter, which I didn’t feel the need to grab just yet. There is just so much play and variability in the base game.
Designed by Rob Daviau, the creator of the Legacy format, and someone who worked on the original Betrayal at House on the Hill, it is the perfect fit for a Legacy game. Fans of the original will enjoy seeing the origins of some of the haunts, and building their own personal version of the game to play in the future.
Rob Daviau’s nod to an age of exploration is an amazing experience, and totally worth the price of admission. We played it a lot more coop than competitive, which probably made for a better experience.
A great take on resource management by Jacob Fryxelius, there were 2 more expansions released this year I will be procuring soon, meaning this game will probably be in my Top 10 again next year. Rumours of a Legacy version have me salivating.
This instant classic, by Rob Daviau and Matt Leacock, is locked pretty firmly in the number 2 spot on Board Game Geek, and for good reason. A solid story, told over the course of a year, the game is a compelling narrative that takes the players on a great ride. Season 2 is on the cards for my game group during 2019.
Likewise, I cannot say enough good things about designer Jamey Stegmaier of Stonemaier games. He stands out as one of the nicest people, in a community jam packed full of nice people. As such he has created and fostered a community of fans, who are all keen to support other fans. If you haven’t played this game you should, and make full use of the 2 Facebook groups and the Rules forum at BGG, to help you with any questions you might have.