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Best of List

5 Overly Complex Games That Might Be Awesome If you actually had the will to play them

Whooa, that is a mouthful! As gamers I imagine most of us day dream about some way for us to put our life on the sidelines and get involved in some of those full bodied hobby games that take up extraordinary amounts of time, money and effort to play. Those ultra-complex games that are out there that look amazing, but are largely inaccessible thanks to the hustle of our everyday lives. I suspect most people have a game or two that definitely falls into this magnetic allure so Today I’m going to identify 5 games that qualify in my opinion with some tips and ways you might actually be able to get involved with minimal or at least less effort than what it appears to be.

Advanced Squad Leader

For many gamers war is a very common and favored theme in board games. In fact, I would estimate that at least 80% of all my gaming is dedicated to some form of war game. While I’m personally not that a huge of a realist, historical buff or simulationist gamer, some of my favorite games actually kind of qualify. Tide of Irons for example is a tactical world war II game which has graced my shelf for several years and is one I would not object to being buried with it. I love it and it definitely scratches that itch, but Advanced Commander by all accounts is really the meca of world war II tactical war games.

Advanced Squad Leader is really kind of the ultimate in complex war games in general thanks to countless modules and expansions, but like all of the games on this list it’s really almost overwhelmingly complex and demands a pretty serious commitment to learn to play let alone actually play. Even the smallest most basic scenario will have you reading over a hundred pages of rules and will take 4+ hours to resolve. So why would anyone be attracted to it?

Not really designed with table presence in mind, but it does have that general standing over a map feel to it.
Not really designed with table presence in mind, but it does have that general standing over a map feel to it.

The truth is that most war games heavily abstract combat for streamlining sake immediately drawing it out of the realm of realism, but for me personally sometimes I really want that full experience out of a game. That gritty reality only a complex war game can offer. This is probably why for more complex games I look to my PC as much of what is complex about games like ASL (remembering rules, the math) is done for you. I have never played Advanced Squad Leader but I do feel the allure of it and it’s something that has been on my must try list for years.

Fortunately the Advanced Squad Leader fan base has put forth some effort to creating some initial baby steps and shallow waters for new players. Several levels of Advanced Squad Leader basic kits have been released since 2004 as well as the creation of some pretty comprehensive youtube tutorials that really walk you through the absolute basic need to know information. Enough so that the game almost reaches that approachable spectrum. More importantly unlike many games on this list, its actually very cheap to try so all you really need to do is convince a friend to join you and you really have a shot at getting a game off the ground.

I don’t know if my schedule and patience will ever allow me to try this game, but I can definitely understand its popularity. There is a tremendous amount of depth and realism in this game allowing history buffs to really play out those scary moments in time from the comforts of their favorite chair. I totally get it.

Warhammer

Large table top games like Warhammer Fantasy and Warhammer 40k is not that far from reality for me. I actually dove into it several years ago and its every bit as epic as it looks. The trouble with Warhammer like many miniature hobbies is that aside from simply playing the game it requires that you spend hundreds of hours carefully gluing and painting your army and terrain. It’s really a two part hobby that is not only incredibly time consuming and expensive but fairly complex and difficult to be successful at.

This actually brings me to one conclusion about these sort of epic style hobby games which is that sometimes the allure of them is far stronger than the actual impact. In the end, after playing Warhammer for a couple of years I saw the countless flaws in the game system, tired of the endless stream of “pre-game work” and the insane amounts of money that you have to invest in the game. After a thousand hours of invested time and as many dollars I doubt I played more than a grand total of 15-20 games over the course of two years. Was it worth it?

if the mechanics of the game had the same quality as the view from the table, this would easily be the best game ever made.
if the mechanics of the game had the same quality as the view from the table, this would easily be the best game ever made.

Hunched over a massive table of miniatures painted in painstaking detail after having spent months reading, planning and thinking about a single event was really kind of as epic and monster sized of an event as it sounds. I don’t regret the money or time invested in the short lived hobby, it was really fun while it lasted but it was just impossible to maintain. No regrets, I wouldn’t object to repeating it but in a way it’s probably part of the reason why alternatives pre-painted miniature games like X-Wing and Armada sort of appeal to me more. You still have to spend the money, but after that it’s just to play the game which in a sense is actually the best part of the hobby for me.

If you have never tried it however, I urge you to because it really is, despite all the work and money a lot of fun, even if it does not last forever. Unfortunatly there really are very few shortcuts to take here, ultimately the best way to approach the game is to find people who are already playing it. Thanks to a pretty healthy 3rd party market the cost of getting involved has dropped considerably and in the end selling off your collection is not going to be that difficult either when you’re done with it.

Twilight Imperium

Another Big Bad Ass game that I have actually played a ton in the past that certainly deserves to be on this list. I have met and talked to many gamers who look at this intimidating beast and imagine themselves hunched over the table as a master of a galactic race, drawn to it like a moth to a flame but off put by its sheer size and scope. All I can say is that its every bit as epic and awesome as you probably imagine it to be but the good news is that while it’s an incredibly long game considering the rest of this list, this game actually has some pretty streamlined and comprehensive rules, it really isn’t that hard to grasp. It’s a complex board game, but within the realm of normal gaming, it’s a lot less of a stretch I think. It’s probably the most approachable game on the list and quite possibly the best.

Small tables need not apply, I shit you not this is a small game of Twilight Imperium.
Small tables need not apply, I shit you not this is a small game of Twilight Imperium.

Twilight Imperium definitely is an investment though and the hard part is that it requires an investment of time not just from you or one other opponent but actually a whole group of at least 4 players but preferably 6. That can be the most difficult part for a lot of people myself included, its actually one of the reasons on the I wish I had more time for it list. I would imagine this alone excludes a lot of gamers from ever getting the opportunity to try it.

We probably will never see another game like Twilight Imperium designed either, it’s really a product of an era of gaming that has come and gone. In fact it might actually be considered the spiritual last member of the Big Box Epic board games that evolved from classics like Axis & Allies, Shogun and Fortress America. Games like Twilight Imperium are really not made anymore, these days mechanics are focused on being streamlined, simpler and faster.

I could be wrong, perhaps someday we will see a resurgence of this sort of design but for what it’s worth, in my humble opinion no gamer should ever miss an opportunity to try this game at least once. I would suggest doing it as soon as possible to because I suspect once this game goes out of print, it will be out of print for a very long time, perhaps forever.

18XX Game Series

This is one on this list that really attracts me that I’m yet to try, a complex game of building railroads and manipulating stock markets in the age of steam. The 18XX games is actually a series, though the foundation rules are all the same. It is in effect a Railroad Tycoon style game where you are competing against other players as a Railway Baron in a fairly simulationist economy which is every bit as cut throat and mean spirited as it is complex and I imagine actually was in the 1800’s.

She's an ugly pig, but there is some serious depth here.
She’s an ugly pig, but there is some serious depth here.

I love Railroad Games and Railroad themed games but truth be told everyone that I have ever tried was just too simple for me. Railways of the World (eagle games Railroad Tycoon) was a fun game and it certainly had the theme of railroad building but it lacked that umf as a complex game which I think kind of fits this genre. Games like Russian Railroads are complex, but not in the simultationist way rather more in the Euro puzzle style being barely recognizable as an actual game about railroads. This is one that I’m itching to try, the issue is that the Railroad Baron theme is kind of a love it or hate it one and I fear that my group might not take to it in particular since it’s a very deep, complex, long and unforgiving game.

The good news is that the 18xx’s games received what is referred to as an XL version, you can think of it as 18xx game for newbies which cuts down the rules weight for easier learning. This may just be my ticket to trying it in the near future.

It’s on the list for me though, one day this is going on the table!

Heroscape

Ok so this one might not actually belong on this list in its entirety. It’s actually a very simple game, really the hardest thing about it is

Going bat shit crazy is not a requirement, but I can see myself spending hours building terrain like this if life were a bit more cooperative.
Going bat shit crazy is not a requirement, but I can see myself spending hours building terrain like this if life were a bit more cooperative.

that its insanely difficult to get a hold of, takes up a shit ton of room and has probably one of the longest set up and take down times of any game in the existence of the human race. You are going to spend at least an hour or more setting it up and just as long taking it down unless you just do the rage quit arm sweep into a bin at the end to be dealt with at another time.

 

That said Heroscape is probably one of the most fun looking games I have ever seen and I have always wanted to try it. Its concept is kind of cool as well as there are over a thousand different units in this war game. Players construct a team from soldiers from all genres, histories and imaginations ever created and fight it out in a massive landscape constructed out of hexagon legos that traverses time and space. Its as much a game of war as it is of creativity and silliness from what I have gathered but in the end I just love the way it looks.

Unfortunately Heroscape is both out of print and what is available on the 3rd party markets is really expensive, in particular terrain which you need a lot of. There are a lot of drawbacks to this one, but in a perfect world this game will see a re-print at some point in the future, something I believe is inevitable if you consider how well the 3rd party moves for this game.

Best of List

Top 5 Board Games I wish someone would make

Ok so a while back I asked people to kind of vote or at least submit some ideas on some types of top X list I could make.  It kind of backfired on me, the one that won with overwhelming majority was top 10 cooperative games. The problem is that, of all the genres of gaming I like, Cooperative games might just be the only one that I mostly avoid. I don’t think I could even come up with a top 5 list of cooperative games I like to fill the list. Rather than making a crappy list on a topic I care little for I chose the 2nd highest requested thing instead. The Top 5 Board Games I wish someone made. Rather a strange list, but apparently it’s a common subject for blogs.

In any case, this turned out to be a lot more entertaining than I thought it would be so here goes nothing!

1. Masters Of Orion

Ok so clearly Twilight Imperium is a bow to the classic PC game Masters of Orion designed by one of my all-time favorite game designers Alan Emrich. I have met the man and you will never meet a person that knows more about game design than him, but of all his creations Masters of Orion is the unquestionable king of PC games to me. If there was an alter, I would worship it! The fact that Master of Orion is actually getting a PC reboot is exciting news but as I wrote this on my list I checked to make sure that no one was actually doing a board game version and sure as shit, someone actually is. The information is sketchy at the moment but it is apparently one of the many announcements coming out of the Nurnberg Toy fair this year.

The last time someone tried to make a Masters of Orion (no 3) it failed miserably. Let's hope this time someone has their thinking caps on.
The last time someone tried to make a Masters of Orion (no 3) it failed miserably. Let’s hope this time someone has their thinking cap on.

Suffice to say I love space epics, but that love doesn’t come from movies, TV shows or books, it actually all stems from the original Masters of Orion. While it houses many clichés of the science-fiction genre it’s just one of those games that came at the right time for me, at that perfect, impressionable age. I would love to see a board game version, I just hope whatever is coming, it does it justice!

2. Star Trek Armada

With Star Wars X-Wing we did get a Star Trek version (Attack Wing) but the truth is that in Star Trek almost all of the classic ships from the show are capital ship and it just did not at all work as an X-Wing game. Star Trek is as much about the people as it is about the ships and I think the Armada rule set is really a perfect setup for a Star Trek game. In fact, more so than Star Wars in my humble opinion, .

It didn't take much googling to find that people are already creating Star Trek Armada on their own. Get on it FFG!
It didn’t take much googling to find that people are already creating Star Trek Armada on their own. Get on it FFG!

I would love to see a Star Trek Armada, just tell me where mail my credit card!

3. Civilization

Ok so there have already been several tries and frankly they have all been disappointments to me. The original Advanced Civilization that kick started it all was a good effort, but ultimately it was overly complex and way too bloody long even for a Civilization game. Eagle games did one and again, I thought it was a gallant effort but that game had more rules holes than a fishing net. Finally when Fantasy Flight Games announced Sid Meier’s Civilizations I thought, for certain with Kevin Wilson behind the wheel and Fantasy Flight Games at the helm it can’t fail. In the end however it might have been the worst of the bunch, one of the few major disappointments coming out of FFG.

The classic Advanced Civilization actually got a new update called Mega Civilization which promises, I shit you not, a 12 hour game on the box! It looks great and all, but, please fuck off immediately!
The classic Advanced Civilization actually got a new update called Mega Civilization which promises, I shit you not, a 12 hour game on the box! It looks great and all, but, please fuck off immediately!

We also got some quasi Civilization games like Imperial Settlers, Through the Ages and Nations. I actually liked those fine but they really weren’t comparable to the PC version, they don’t have that epic feel. Everything is very abstracted and while I like Nations the best of the bunch it still does not completely fill that gap for me.

A proper Civilization should really have that epic Twilight Imperium feel. It needs to be huge, dynamic, and have a true asymmetrical feel. I really hope that at some point in the future we will get someone to pick this up and try again, there is an empty space on my shelf for one big box game and its reserved for Civilization whenever and if ever it comes.

4. Legends of the Five Rings War Game

Legends of the Five Rings has probably one of the most quintessential game worlds upon which an amazing war game could practically design itself. You have the many asymmetrical factions, countless unique units to draw on, an epic map and quite possibly one of the most awesome themes in existence, Samu-Fucking-ri’s. The fact that this game doesn’t already exist is shocking, it’s so full of potential I can think of at least a half a dozen different genres which could make use of the theme. One of the most underutilized franchises that exists today. There should be movies, tv shows, board games, PC games… so much wasted potential! Instead it swims in obscurity as a CCG and a role-playing game which could be awesome but is based on a shitty system. Bah, it makes me sooooo angry I want to dragon punch a motherfucker!

Outside of the CCG and roleplaying the only other application of the franchise was... of course Love Letter. These people seriously need to stop!
Outside of the CCG and roleplaying game the only other application of the franchise was… of course Love Letter. These people seriously need to be stopped!

5. Battletech

Ok so back in 2002 they brought battletech back and when I say they brought it back, I mean they basically took the old version of battletech and re-released it. Some minor rules adjustments aside this 1980’s classic really didn’t age that well, it really needed a lot more than a minor revamp. Not surprisingly it kind of landed on def ears and while I’m sure there is a cult following out there that appreciates the efforts made what this game really needs is a proper, new edition of the game and it should be drawing on modern design.

Battletech was always more board game than miniature game, but it sort of landed in this odd midway area. It was too complex as a board game and far too light as a miniature game leaving it to live forever in limbo. Still it’s a fantastic franchise and there is real potential here.

The models aren't terrible, but this game could do with a visual upgrade as well.
The models aren’t terrible, but this game could do with a visual upgrade as well.

I personally would love to see it join the ranks of Attack Wing. We have already seen what ground battles can look like in a D&D version, I really think there is some real potential here. Ideally though it would draw inspiration from modern preprinted miniatures, rather just a conversion. Let’s be serious though, we are talking about giant robot battles, I will straight revoke your nerd license if that does not excite you!

Best of List

Top 5 Table Top Games of All Time By The Crew

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The Top 5 Table Top Games of All Time By The Crew
In my last article I posted for the first time some opinions of my personal gaming group, a rowdy and varied bunch and despite them doing little but pointing out some favorites to my surprise there was a considerable amount of interest in the article. This article actually broke some blog hit records. I also received several e-mail questions about my groups interest and some questions regarding how we deal with differences of opinion in terms of what board games we play and other curiosity questions. Among them where several requests asking to know what my gaming groups favorite games are. This of course prompted this article. I have for a while thought it would be fun to actually dedicate an article to my gaming group anyway so this is a perfect opportunity. I asked each member of my group to give me their top 5 table top games of all time.

Strange as it may seem when I put the request to them I realized that I have very little clue as to what I would actually see on these lists. I can probably guess a couple of the number ones, players tend to be fairly vocal about their all-time favorite, but I’m uncertain what I’m going to find on these lists for the most part. I have known these guys for several years and we certainly discuss games to a great extent, but I don’t recall this topic ever truly being breeched. I’m often made fun of by my gaming group for making bold claims after playing as they would say “any game” and claiming it to be “the best game of the year” or “best game ever” and that sort of thing. In fact, in a funny way, this is my opportunity to put them to task on their picks and so with my usual arrogant and hopefully at least slightly amusing commentary I’m going to look over their list and “comment”. I suspect however that I’m probably going to like most of their picks, the truth is that they are right, I’m a gamer and I love to love games. When you’re a fan, it’s hard to hate!

Player 1

1. RISK
2. Lords of Waterdeep
3. Talisman
4. Munchkin
5. Runebound

I have played Runebound and Talisman a plenty, in fact there was a time when Talisman was less a game and more a full time hobby for me. I was 11 and Talisman back then qualified as a “serious business” effectively leading me down the path to Dungeons and Dragons for which I’m eternally grateful. I readily understand the appeal of adventure games and Runebound definitely is the modernized version of Talisman. Certainly not my bag today but I can understand how casual gamers would be attracted to it. It’s easy, not terribly confrontational and especially in the case of Runebound can actually be quite challenging. Talisman for me personally makes for a great family game, I play it with my 6 year old daughter and she loves it.

Adventure games like Talisman have come a long way but this classic still has a strong following today. Its been reprinted by FFG and on Steam you can play it online in a digital version.
Adventure games like Talisman have come a long way but this classic still has a strong following today. Its been reprinted by FFG and on Steam you can play it online in a digital version.

As for Munchkin, I will never fault anyone for loving munchkin though it’s more akin to a social activity then an actual game. It’s beer and pretzel fun and I will happily spend an evening with friends playing Munchkin anytime.

Lords of Waterdeep is perhaps the only game on this list I would consider a proper gamers pick (=elitist comment). With the expansion scoundrels of Skullport, Lords of Waterdeep really is a gem in the rough, it made my own top 10 worker placement games list and was among my favorite games of 2012. Pick definitely approved.

RISK. Ok I’m sorry but for fucks sake! Don’t get me wrong I do understand the appeal of simple dice chucker war games, but with nearly 60 years of game development history we have done better a thousand times over. It’s clear that I need to introduce Player 1 to some modern war games that easily replace RISK. Even among the RISK franchise, vanilla RISK doesn’t stack up at all. Lord of the Rings RISK, RISK Legacy and RISK 2210 A.D. all outshine the original by miles. Even among other Milton Bradly classics you can get more mileage out of the likes of Fortress America, Shogun (Ikusa) and Axis and Allies. There are so many far better games then RISK I nearly had a nerd attack when I saw this on the list. Pick most certainly and absolutely not approved!

Lord of the Rings RISK is widely regarded as the best version of RISK ever made.
Lord of the Rings RISK is widely regarded as the best version of RISK ever made.

Player 2

1. Game of Thrones the Board Game
2. Cutthroat Caverns
3. Sheriff of Nottingham
4. Summoner Wars
5. King of Tokyo

Everything about Game of Thrones, whether it’s the books, the show, the card game and most certainly the Board Game is objectively fucking awesome, if you don’t believe so, know that I hate you. This game grows on you too, I recall five years ago it sat somewhere towards the bottom of my top 10 best table top game of all-time list and today it sits in the number 2 spot firmly. It’s a magnificent design that embodies not only clever mechanics but most importantly one of the strongest thematic connections of any game I have ever played. It’s a game that tells a story and not just any story but a Game of Thrones story. It creates memorable experiences every time and is without question one of the most cut-throat and challenging games I have ever played. If you can win at Game of Thrones, you’re a better man than I! Respect.

While GoT was easily predicted Cutthroat Caverns is a real surprise. I’m quite fond of it myself but I rarely think of filler games as Best of material. It kind of falls into the same category as Munchkin for me, where with a beer in my hand I will happily play it anytime.

Sheriff of Nottingham is one game I can definitely get behind as a top game pick. My exposure to Sheriff of Nottingham is minimal but It falls into the same category as Galaxy Trucker where it’s a game you play that is just plain and simple fun. There is no explaining why you like it, it’s not like you can objectively say this or that mechanic is innovative or somehow overwhelmingly genius. You simply play for the joy of it.

To date I have not been able to find a negative review for this game, it seems unanimously liked.
To date I have not been able to find a negative review for this game, it seems unanimously liked.

Summoner Wars has been catapulting in popularity since release to the point of saturation and it’s no surprise as it is without question a very challenging and deep game, understanding why someone likes it is easy. It’s one of the most played Iphone and Android app games in both shops and was the top seller in 2015. It was nominated for the golden geek awards for Best 2 player game, best card game and most innovative game of the year in 2010. Golden Geek awards are effectively one of the largest player choice awards for board games today, to be nominated really is a great honor for a game. Its status as a smash hit is unmistakable and objectively this is a fantastically designed game. That said I have no real love for it and I submit that in the case of Summoner Wars as is sometimes the case with my personal favorites, I’m the odd man out. I don’t dislike it but it just doesn’t scratch an itch I have, but a respectful pick none the less.

King of Tokyo. What can be said, gamers love rolling dice, gamers love big monsters and gamers love games about fighting each other. King of Tokyo is a fuck you simulator but does it with a comedic almost family friendly way. It scratches an itch every gamer assumedly has, its simplicity and quick pace can potentially cater to pretty much everyone. It’s universally liked, I don’t think I have ever read or heard a negative thing said about it ever and it does not surprise me to see it pop up on someone’s list. A little simplistic for me personally but I’m a self-admitted arrogant elitist so there you go!

It looks like a kids game and I think that's its appeal.
It looks like a kids game but has some umpf to catch gamers interest.  I really think that’s its appeal.  Besides it has big monsters, its pretty much an auto-win!

Player 3

1. Star Wars Armada
2. Game of Thrones: The Card Game 2nd Edition
3. Lords of Waterdeep: Scoundrels of Skullport
4. Warhammer 40k: Forbidden Stars
5. Galaxy Trucker

Star Wars Armada should be on every serious gamers list in my opinion. It’s a true challenge even for the most experienced gamers, driven by an awesome theme and in my not so humble opinion quite possibly one of the most brilliant designs to come out of Fantasy Flight Games yet. It easily makes my own top 5 list and I’m not at all surprised to see it pop up as a number one pick for a member of my gaming group.

Game of Thrones the card game is a new beast in our group and there is a lot of buzz around it right now, deservingly so. I have played a lot of FFG card games and quite frankly I haven’t been terribly impressed. Game of Thrones the card game is quite possibly the first FFG card game that instantly caught my interest creating the imminent urge to add it to my collection. It’s tough to know how I will feel about it six months from now, but right now, I can’t stop thinking about it.

Lords of Waterdeep, our first cross-over and I’m really not surprised to see it pop up again. This is a game with real legs, it’s had ample opportunity to fall out of favor but it really just sticks with you. As I write this, I realize we haven’t played it in a while and I really, really want to play it right now!

Its got a great theme and the appearances of a Ameri-Trash game but make no mistake this is a light weight Euro game notably the only one on anyones list.
Its got a great theme and the appearances of a Ameri-Trash game but make no mistake this is a light weight Euro game .

Warhammer 40k: Forbidden Stars is another one that makes my own top 10 list and I’m not surprised to see it here. I think in 2015 it stands out along with Star Wars Armada as one of the most memorable games of the year. I even considered it for Gamersdungeon game of the year, it would have easily had it if it were not for that awsomesauce of a game, Star Wars Armada. It has that Twilight Imperium spirit where each time you play you discover more depth, new strategies and ultimately new potential. I foresee us having a long and lasting love affair with this one.

Galaxy Trucker. I have to admit I was a bit taken back with this choice and it’s not because I disagree, quite to the contrary I truly love this game but objectively it’s essentially a game of silliness and luck. You build your ship and run it through a gauntlet of hazards over which you have zero control to see if the hastily put together scrapheap of a ship you constructed can survive. Why do gamers like this game? I believe it’s for the same reason we like to see youtube videos of monkeys throwing poop. Sometimes silly fun is all the reason you need to play a game and Galaxy Trucker has this sort of quaint appeal that taps into our inner child who really just wants to see a monkey throw poop. Galaxy Trucker just does that with impeccable precision and a science-fiction quirkiness most nerds can get behind. I don’t want to play it all the time, but I consider it a precious part of my gaming collection and I can say with all honestly that I will cull a lot of far more serious games from my collection long before I consider getting rid of this one. Great hipster pick, I love it!

There are a lot of expansions for Galaxy Trucker that attempt to make this more of a gamer, but frankly the original version is so fantastic its just best not to fuck with it. Why fix it if it ain't broke.
There are a lot of expansions for Galaxy Trucker that attempt to make this more of a gamer game, but frankly the original version is so fantastic its just best not to fuck with it. Why fix it if it ain’t broke.

Player 4

1. Star Wars Armada
2. Game of Thrones: The Board Game
3. Munchkin
4. Epic Spell Wars Of The Battle Wizards
5. Cutthroat Caverns

What a smorgasbord of fuck you games that will put a smile on your face.

Star Wars Armada I would have picked for Player 4, there was no question this one was going to get plenty of cross-over but there are members of our gaming group that like me love a great challenge.

Game of Thrones barely needs mentioning at this point, I’m not surprised at all at its reappearance.

Munchkin I would not have expected to find on this particular players list, but  it’s certainly cool to see a gamer put something as deep as Star Wars Armada and something as simplistic as Munchkin on the same list. Then again, I have said it many times, gamers are a weird breed. We like what we like, whether it’s a deep and obscure 9 book fantasy novel series or a Youtube video of a dog pooping on a baby, what entertains us probably seems quite random to the outsider. Munchkin has been around a long time and I don’t think I have ever met a gaming nerd who didn’t get a kick out of it, it’s a parody of our nerdy childhoods.

Epic Spell Wars of the Battle Wizards I totally understand and really I was wondering more where player 4 was going to put this on his list rather than if. Epic Spell Wars is not just about playing the game but how you play the game, how you visualize and experience the silliness. If you get a bunch of funny people together in a room with the giggles to play this, this game is like comedic fuel on a hilarity fire.

The simple act of combing three silly sounding spells together has a surprisingly large amount of laughter built into it. Especially if you have ever played D&D and other fantasy roleplaying games. Don't be fooled though there is actually some game here as well, Epic Spell Wars is far more than just a silly romp.
The simple act of combing three silly cards to form a spell  has a surprisingly large amount of laughter built into it. Especially if you have ever played D&D and other fantasy roleplaying games. Don’t be fooled though there is actually some game here as well, Epic Spell Wars is far more than just a silly romp.

Cutthroat Caverns I’m actually really surprised at, in our group we’ve had some fun with it but I didn’t realize it was liked this much. I suppose I shouldn’t be, my gaming group loves “fuck you” style confrontation in games and looking at these lists most of these games are really quite mean.  I thought we might see one or two mellow Euro games on these lists, we have played plenty but I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised about how much the gamers in my group like to fuck with each other.

Player 5

1. Advanced Squad Leader
2. Star Wars: X-Wing
3. Star Wars: Imperial Assault
4. Terra Mystica
5. Ticket To Ride

Advanced Squad Leader is at quick glance very firmly in the extremely complicated spectrum of games.  Simulation games are an extremely niche type of gaming, historical war gamers in particular are their own breed entirely.  It being on the list has certainly peeked my curiosity.

Its not a pretty game and its definitly as complicated as it looks. Simulation games typically come with hundreds of pages of rules and tables, this one is no different but it is widely regarded as one of the best war game simulations ever made.
Its not a pretty game and its definitly as complicated as it looks. Simulation games typically come with hundreds of pages of rules and tables, this one is no different but it is widely regarded as one of the best war game simulations ever made.

Star Wars: X-Wing is the number one game on my own list and frankly I was surprised it made so few lists in this group given how often we play it but I’m not surprised to see it on this particular players list.  He is certainly the most competitive X-Wing player among us.   I love X-Wing so yeah, rock on!

Star Wars: Imperial Assault is a cooperative game that I have only played a couple of times.  I generally don’t pay much attention to cooperative games but Imperial Assault has a skirmish mode which certainly is worthy of pushing some miniatures around.  There is no doubt about its popularity among gamers in general though, shortly after its launch it slammed into the top games on boardgamegeek and its been sitting pretty at number 11 beating out every game chosen by all other players in this top 5 list except the next one.

Terra Mystica is a heavy Euro and its overwhelming popularity is one of the many mysterious of the universe I simply can’t explain.  Its effectively a victory point simulator lacking any semblance of theme, which is not too unusual for Euros, but still, its beyond me.  This one was on my top 5 most overrated games and while I’m always happy to give games another go despite my clear superiority and elitism, this is one I find a bit agonizing to play.

Yes it does look like Settlers of Catan and yes I hate it because of that too!
Yes it does look like Settlers of Catan but don’t make the mistake of thinking this is an easy game.  This is a very heavy Euro which if you ask me crumbles under that weight.

Last on the list is Ticket To Ride and this is one I can definitely get behind.  Its a very simple game with a pretty basic premise, really a fantastic game to use as a way to lure new potential gamers into the hobby.  Its one of the few games I consider missing from my collection.

Player 6

MC Siege Of The Citadel
Game of Thrones The Board Game
Star Wars Armada/Star Wars X-Wing (Epic)
Star Wars Imperial Assault
Sheriff Of Nottingham

I actually had to look up Siege of the Citadel, at this the moment I saw the list I had never heard of it.  This was a big surprise for me, I wasn’t even aware this player owned the game.  This is an old school game which gets an automatic bow from me, but from the looks of it, it has uncanny similarity to the dungeon crawl board games that have grown into massive popularity these days.  Officially on my must be played list.

Like many old school games this one too is getting a new edition.
Like many old school games this one too is getting a new edition.  Despite having never laid eyes on it, it has an uncanny familiarity.  Hard to believe I missed something that looks this cool.

The rest are all cross-overs already mentioned and while I was very curious about this particular players list, none of those choices really surprise me.  All solid choices for any top game list, I would gladly play any of those anytime, anywhere!

Player ME

Ok it’s my turn, though I think for readers of my blog this probably come to much of a surprise.

1. Star Wars X-Wing
2. Game of Thrones: The Board Game
3. Star Wars Armada
4. War of the Rings
5. Twilight Imperium

As you can see nothing has changed since October when I last updated my top 10 best table top games.

X-Wing remains my favorite though perhaps through saturation and overplaying it I find myself considerably less excited about it at the moment. X-Wing however has some serious legs, a new expansion rolls out and suddenly I’m making lists in my sleep.

X-Wing just gets better and better which for me is really what puts this over the top into the number one spot. I never thought I would see the day that miniatures games make it back on my best of list.
X-Wing just gets better and better which for me is really what puts this over the top into the number one spot. I never thought I would see the day that miniatures games make it back on my best of list.

Game of Thrones: The Board Game, again, what can I say here it’s the premiere thematic epic that I could never betray. The fact that over a decade after release this game is actually climbing the list speaks to the respect and love I have for this game.

Star Wars Armada. I precursor this by saying that when I find a game that is deep, complex and challenging that I actually can’t figure out and I regularly get my ass handed to me in, it just makes me love it that much more. I love games that I have no answer to, games that have challenged me beyond my ability to rise to it. It just makes me want to play it more. Armada in my mind is no question the best game of 2015 but I think in 2025 I will look back and see it as the game of the decade.

War of the Rings like Game of Thrones has this incredible connection to the theme and because it’s a two player game it has this intimate, mano a’ mano challenge. I have never won a game of War of the Rings and like Armada, it just makes me love it that much more. It’s a work of art to look at, it’s got a definitive storyteller element and everything you love about the books and movies is in here. It’s really the Disneyland of board games, there is magic in this box.

As much a visual story experiance as a game, War of the Rings deserves every word of praise it has ever recieved.
As much a visual story experience as a game, War of the Rings deserves every word of praise it has ever received.

Finally we have my old love Twilight Imperium, toppled in recent years from the number one spot after holding it for well over a decade on my personal best of list. She is still a beauty and I would never kick her out for eating cookies in bed but she doesn’t have that spit shine on her anymore either. I think TI3 remains the ultimate and best X4 boardgame by a margin so wide there are no contender’s insight. Its complex, its deep and if there ever was a game for the elitist gamer, this is most certainly that game.

TI3 will always be a classic for me, its a game I have played more times than most of my collection combined. I know it as intimately as any game I have ever played.
TI3 will always be a classic for me, its a game I have played more times than most of my collection combined. I know it as intimately as any game I have ever played.

And that’s that.  I would like to thank my gaming group for participating and making this article possible.  Its definitely been one of the more fun ones I have done in recent months.  If nothing else its clear to me that while we all have our personal favorites for the most part there are very few games on this list I would not agree to play.   Sure they might not be my favorites but truth is that gaming is all about variety, playing the same game over and over will very quickly cause that game to cease being your favorite.

Game on people!

Best of List

The Year in Gaming 2015 Edition

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2015 was nothing short of an amazing year for board, card and miniature gaming. This might explain why even as I write I’m 700 crowns into World of Board Games (sorry guys, checks in the mail!) . The year-end review is going to become a regular thing for the blog, every year I’m going to pick what I believe is the best designer, best publisher and best game of the year. I don’t really set much in the way of qualifications, it’s simply a self-serving pick based solely on my often not so humble opinion. . Let’s get the deed done!

Gamers Dungeon Designer Of The Year : Eric M. Lang

Eric Lang has already proven himself to be a house hold name in gaming in years past. His reputation for producing inventive and entertaining games with consistency is uncanny. In 2015 however he has definitely outdone himself with three memorable games, all successful each more creative than the next not to mention being involved in countless expansions to existing games. X-COM, Game of Thrones the card game 2nd edition and Blood Rage alone are sufficient to earn him the title of best of the year. Most designers are lucky to produce 3 creative and original games in their whole career let alone in the same year.

X-COM for me personally falls into one of the categories of games I usually stay clear off (pure cooperative) but the implementation of an app that puts time pressure on player decisions definitely solves one of the biggest complaints I have about these type of games, the dreaded Alpha Gamer effect. There is no time to ask experienced players at the table “what should I do” in X-Com, you have just a few seconds, you have to make your own decisions and hope it helps the team. Great way to break up the monotony of cooperative games in my opinion and really what better way to add great AI to a board game based on a computer game then adding some actual AI. It shows that Lang is inventive and perceptive about a game genre and isn’t afraid to experiment in modern ideas like using Apps for a game. What a fantastic choice for a theme as well, you really should have your gamer license revoked if you don’t know what X-COM is.

Cooperative games are a hard sell for gamers like me who drink the tears of their opponent but If your going to play one, it may as well be themed on something as awesome as X-COM.
Cooperative games are a hard sell for gamers like me who drink the tears of their opponent but If your going to play one, it may as well be themed on something as awesome as X-COM.

Next up is Game of Thrones 2nd edition, which I think, it is only fair to point out upfront he didn’t design and certainly shouldn’t get the credit as such. Most of the work was done for him in 1st edition. Still, despite that pre-cursor, as far as I’m concerned if you are able to take a game that was typically associated with a very niche audience no thanks to silly levels of complexity and fussiness and streamline it to make it accessible to everyone while being able to maintain that edgy, competitive (dare I say cut throat) play style that fits so perfectly with the theme deserves mentioning. I played the 1st edition of this game a few years back several times and barely remember it, I played the 2nd edition once and was immediately captivated. Lang is great at understanding the nuances of mechanics, how small tweaks can have huge impact, a sure sign of a great designer.

Finally is Blood Rage and while it’s definitely a new mistress for me, after only a couple of plays I knew that this is going to be a smash hit and really put Lang over the top for me. Most designer could safely call themselves great designers if they have even one Blood Rage on their resume, but for Lang it’s all in a days work. What a fantastic combination of mechanics, strategic potential with tons of diversity and replay-ability yet done so simply it takes less than 5 minutes to teach the game. Lang has an amazing insight and core understanding of what makes a great game, yet the uncanny ability to avoid over designing. He keeps it simple and sweet and there is no question in my mind that this is his best design yet.

One of the biggest surprises of the year for me. After two plays I knew it belonged in my collection.
One of the biggest surprises of the year for me. After two plays I knew it belonged in my collection.

 

Gamers Dungeons Company of The Year: Fantasy Flight Games

On any other year I think this would have been a very easy choice for me, Fantasy Flight Games is a company that knows how to make my money with easily 70% of the games on my shelf being FFG games. They make success look easy. This year however is very special, there were so many companies that really rose up to challenge the beast that is FFG, in fact it really was the year of amazing releases for almost every major publisher out there. None the less FFG had an explosive year, even for their own extraordinarily high standards.

Star Wars: Armada, Forbidden Stars, Games of Thrones 2nd Edition, Fury of Dracula 3rd Edition, X-Com, Reprint of Red Planet and tons of expansions for pretty much everything in amounts that would dwarf ten times over every other company out there. Always with excellent quality components and attention to detail that has in many ways both set the bar for other companies and driven competition. FFG was a machine of creativity in 2015, they made so many games even with my insane spending limits I found myself buckling under economic pressure, forced to make reluctant choices on how to blow my money on FFG products. There is no question in my mind that I will spend most of 2016 trying to catch up with FFG’s 2015 lineup, but FFG never sleeps. Bursting with exciting announcements for 2016 like Star Wars Rebellion.. oh god how I want thee! It seems no matter what I get from them before the credit card bill even shows up there is already half a dozen things I want on the horizon.

Its the little things that count and its the little things that make all the difference between 1st and 2nd edition of the game.
Its the little things that count and its the little things that make all the difference between 1st and 2nd edition of the game.

A solid runner up for me is Cool Mini or Not, in my opinion they have risen to the challenge of producing quality games in what has become a very competitive market. They really know what gamers love, it’s in their title and they aren’t afraid to make them! Between Blood Rage, Zombiecide, Xenoshyft, Rum & Bones, Arcadia Quest and Kaosball these guys have shown without question that they can produce not only quality products (with insanely awesome mini’s), but fantastic games as well. They are the company to watch in 2016 in my (not so) humble opinion.

Gamers Dungeon Game of The Year: Star Wars Armada

Star Wars Armada didn't really strike me hard, it took time for its depth and complexity to fall into place, but once you see the big picture you realize what a huge hit this really is.
Star Wars Armada didn’t really strike me hard, it took time for its depth and complexity to fall into place, but once you see the big picture you realize what a huge hit this really is.

This was not an easy decision at all, it was very competitive year and there was so much greatness to play but in the end there is a reason Christian Peterson is one of my favorite designers among others at FFG. Star Wars Armada is a complex, incredibly deep and dynamic game that makes for an unmatched, epic gaming experience. Definitely not something I would recommend to anything but the most hardened veteran gamer. Still that is what I am and Armada really caters to my inner nerd despite the fact that I generally get my ass kicked at it. The fact that it’s a Star Wars themed game is really just icing on a nearly perfect cake and while I find it such an exhaustive game that it requires me to take breaks from it periodically just to recover there is no question in my mind that like Twilight Imperium, Game of Thrones and X-Wing this is a game I will still happily play a decade from now. A masterpiece and well deserved win.

Runner ups include Forbidden Stars, quite possibly the most infuriating and wonderful science-fiction competitive board game to come out of FFG since Twilight Imperium. Not too far behind Blood Rage, the new kid on the block I predict is going to crawl its way into a top 10 spot on BoardGameGeek in 2016! It will certainly break into my personal top 10 list.

Gaming Group Feedback
Now I have a gaming group, like all proper nerds we spend as much time talking and thinking about games as we do playing them and I thought it would be fun to let them throw in their picks with my obnoxious layer of commentary (you’re welcome). I’m not going to name names to protect their precious identities!

Player 1

Best Game: Star Wars Armada
Best Designer: Eric Lang
Best Company: Fantasy Flight

I swear I made my list before I asked my group, but clearly Player 1 and I march to the beat of the same drummer. What can I say, I agree with him completely because clearly he is right.

Player 2

Best Game: Star Wars Armada
Best Designer: Jay Little
Best Company: Fantasy Flight

I have to say that if Eric Lang didn’t exist, Jay Little would certainly be a contender pick. Jay plays a heavy role over at FFG in the design of X-Wing products which alone deserves immense praise and is an incredible display of talent. It’s such an easy thing to fuck up a miniature games, if you don’t believe me just take a look at … pretty much every other miniature game ever made and tell me I’m wrong. Still I think to achieve the title of best designer of the year the bar is set quite high. Certainly designing expansions and keeping the growing complexity of a miniatures game balanced is no small feat, but starting from a blank page and inventing something awesome is really where the crown should go.

Player 3

Best Game: Star Wars Armada
Best Designer: Eric Lang
Best Company: Plaid Hat Games

Plaid Hat Games certainly deserves praise, the artistic and cleverly written Dead of Winter earned no less than 11,000+ votes on boardgamegeek in less than a year. Their Summoner Wars series continues to grow expansion after expansion, rising in depth and popularity and let’s not forget Specter Ops, Ashes, Tail Feathers and the clever Mice and Mystics. Suffice to say it would be hard for me to pick them myself since I’m neither drawn to, own or play their games. They tend to make games that are just a bit outside of my personal preference, though I have tried a few and certainly wouldn’t complain about them. I give them props for creative out of the box thinking, even Dead of Winter, a game about Zombies in a market flooded with Zombie games stood out from the crowd. From a stand point of reviews they always get excellent marks so I can understand why Player 3 in particular would pick them given his personal preferences.

Player 4

Best Game: Game of Thrones The Board Game
Best Designer: Sergio Halaban & Andre Zatz
Best Company: Fantasy Flight Games

Very interesting designer choices, way to be a hipster! Often designers like Sergio Halaban and Andre Zatz are overlooked in the same way an amazing guitar player might be overlooked in an obscure band. The creators of Sheriff of Nottingham, a sizeable sleeper hit that is often spoken off fondly among reviewers has been steadily rising on the geek as word spreads. This award winning game among others was nominated for the prestigious Origins Best Board Game of the Year award and very deservingly so. These guys have great potential and we will certainly be watching them carefully in the future.

Now for the Game of Thrones pick, this is obviously an older game released back in 1st edition form in 2003 so perhaps it doesn’t really meet the 2015 qualification. It does say something significant about the game when a gamer in my group Is still infatuated enough with a game over 10 years after its release to pick it as his 2015 favorite. Game of Thrones may just be the game of the decade and I’m quite certain if I asked my group to make a top 5 games of all-time list, most if not all would have Game of Thrones on that list. Great pick.

Best of List

Top 5 Most Anticipated Games in 2016

2015 was an exciting year, in fact, I probably made more gaming purchases in the second part of 2015 than I have the two years before combined. We got awesome epics like Star Wars Armada and Forbidden Stars, we saw the release of some cool expansions and many great re-prints. It really was a fantastic year for gaming.

The first part of 2016 is already shaping up and there are a number of great games on the horizons worth bringing to your attention!

1. Star Wars: Rebellion

FFG just can't seem to stop making awsome games!
FFG just can’t seem to stop making awsome games!

Recently announced, once again leveraging their hold over the Star Wars license Fantasy Flight Games is going to add yet another “insta buy” game for me in 2016. Star Wars: Rebellion information is fairly limited at this point but what is known is that players will be in essence playing out the war between the Empire and Rebel alliance with over 150 plastic miniatures, the complete cast of the original trilogy in a seemingly War of the Rings style multifaceted strategic board game.

A combination of area control, specialty dice, card play, countless miniatures all hunched over a galactic star map in the Star Wars universe. What can I say other than “yes please!!”

2. Star Trek Frontiers

Vlaada games are hit and miss, but when they hit, they hit big.
Vlaada games are hit and miss, but when they hit, they hit big.

One of the most successful board games WizKids has is Mage Knight, largely popularized by its complex competitive adventure style mechanics with incredible depth. While I consider Star Trek Fleet Captains another huge hit by WizKids, the announcement of Star Trek Frontiers, a Star Trek adventure game based on the Mage Knight mechanic certainly caught my attention. It’s really a perfect marriage as WizKids has collected considerable experience with Mage Knight as a board game and Star Trek as a franchise. There is going to be a lot of experience applied here and while Fleet Captains has cleaned out the taste of never ending failure in Star Trek based boardgames for me, that haunting feeling of hope and disappointment that has existed for years as far as Star Trek board games are concerned is still there. I am as they say, rooting for them, it’s certainly looking good so far.

3. Through The Ages 3rd Edition

Let's home that 3rd edition of Through The Ages gets a much needed visual upgrade as well!
Let’s hope that 3rd edition of Through The Ages gets a much needed visual upgrade as well!

I’m really excited about this one for one very huge reason. I really love Through the Ages but it is soooo bloooooody looooong that I simply never play. At this point, in modern design, despite sitting pretty in the number 4 spot on boardgamegeek.com, if this game was released today in its 2nd edition form it wouldn’t make the top 1000 let alone the top 10 on boardgamegeek. It has aged terribly. Thankfully Chivatil agrees and he is working on a new edition of the game that promises to be streamlined and faster, which to me simply means that awesome concept and Idea of a Civilization game in a much tighter package. Now to me that game already exists, it’s called Nations and it’s very good, good enough to make my own top 10 list, but I love Chivatil as a designer, I think he is one of the best in the business and when he makes something, I pay attention. I really hope that Through The Ages 3rd edition is everything its promised to be, because I’m a huge fan of all the ideas in it, just not 8-12 hours’ worth of it.

4. Star Wars Armada

It made my top 5 most anticipated games of 2015 and now it has crashed into my 2016 list as well!
It made my top 5 most anticipated games of 2015 and now it has crashed into my 2016 list as well!

You know I love my X-Wing but one of the most exciting releases to hit in 2015 was Star Wars Armada and its future in 2016 is looking very bright. Not only is there a new Star Wars movie being released from which Armada will no doubt feed, it has already proven itself as a popular concept and the game is clearly succeeding financially. This can only mean one thing, lots of new Armada stuff! While we really have no information what 2016 will bring for Armada, if you want to peek into the crystal ball you need to do nothing else but buy movie tickets to Force Awakens in December and keep an eye out for big capital ships! Force Awakens may as well be an advertisement for Armada at this point.

5. Fury of Dracula 3rd Edition

Thank you FFG.. seriously, thank you!
Thank you FFG.. seriously, thank you!

Ok so technically if you live in America this just released and will be available within days for us living in Europe this is basically a super late 2015 very early 2016 release. I can’t say enough about how excited I am about this one, in particular because I won’t have to wait for it too much longer. Fury Of Dracula 3rd edition promises to be a more streamlined and touched up version of 2nd edition which to me was very nearly perfect. In fact, I was almost worried that it wasn’t a straight reprint but my understanding is that most of the changes revolve around non-core mechanics like expediting the combat mechanic, cosmetics like new art and a few other minor streamlining improvements. It all sits fine with me, I was never able to secure my own copy of Fury of Dracula despite it being in my top 10 list for years so I’m super psyched for this one. A wonderful one vs. all deduction game with adventure elements combined with one of my favorite themes.