I think any gaming blogger worth his salt has a best of list, so this will be mine.  Included in this list are going to be board, card and miniatures games.  This list is what I consider the best of the best, though the term best may be defined as deepest, most strategic or perhaps most fun.  Simply put, these are the games I enjoy most, I highly recommend them all.

 

1. Star Wars X-Wing

In my humble experience, regardless of what sort of gamer you are, whether casual, serious, one looking for depth or just pure fun Star Wars X-Wing is the single best game on the market today that can easily meet the requirements of any gamer.  Easy to teach, impossible to master with infinite replay-ability and bursting with theme, there is no game that I would rather play always than Star Wars X-Wing.  I love it’s flexible point system that allows for simple one on one quick dog fights, to its epic level hundreds of points super games that can involve multiple players.  I love that it can be approached thematically, or competitively, I love that it can be used to create scenario’s or just basic death matches.

For me personally the collectable element of the game is not a drawback, In particular given the fact that you buy a complete “thing”, unlike most miniatures games that ask you to construct and paint miniatures before you can play.  I do realize however that this adds to the expense, and depending on what you buy, can change the experience for you.  In a sense, Star Wars X-Wing is a self-contained hobby game, more than a pull it off the shelf all in one complete game.  Once you get sufficient amounts of miniatures however, you really don’t have that sense of “keeping up” as you do with most miniatures games.  You need a good selection of ships, but once you have it, its simplicity and approachability is there like a typical board game.  It’s far more approachable in fact than many board games on this list which is why to me it deserves that number one spot.

Finally, on a personal note which I think is something of a theme for me, I love games where the planning stage of the game and the execution stages are separated.  A game where you formulate a plan, make decisions and then a stage in which those plans are executed.  A kind of, “now that we planned our strategies, let’s see what happens” thing.   Star Wars X-Wing does this beautifully which for me is just icing on the cake.

2. Twilight Imperium 3^rd Edition

There are many very approachable games on this list, Twilight Imperium 3^rd edition is not one of those games.  In fact, it may be the most difficult to get into games on this list.  The complexity of the rules, the depth of the strategies and the sheer volume of moving parts all define this game as a very heavy strategic board game.  Difficult to teach, impossible to master, It’s on my list in the number two spot for one very important reason.  It is, hands down, one of the most biggest, one of the most elaborate and one of the most extraordinary gaming experiences I have ever had.  Exploding with theme, amazing reply-ability and unmatched strategic depth, Twilight Imperium is the very definition of epic board gaming.  As a gamer, you simply can’t go bigger because bigger doesn’t exist.

I love it, it’s a gaming event in a box and there is no game on this list I jump at every opportunity the way I do with TI3.  There is never a game I rather play instead.  It’s THE game on for me and it’s been my number one for the better part of a decade, Star Wars X-Wing is the first time it’s ever been any lower which says as much about TI3 as it does about Star Wars X-Wing.

3. War of the Rings 2^nd Edition

While War of The Rings is definitely a very heavy game, I find its much more approachable than it appears.  The rules are very streamlined and straight forward and although there is a lot to this game, you rarely ever need to teach it to more than one person.  Once you find a partner for War of The Ring, in particular a fellow Lords of the Ring fan, magic happens.  War of the Rings IS Lord of the Rings (all of it) in a single box.  Every theme, every plot and sub-plot, every character, every nuance, everything you expect out of the epic tale that is Lord of the Rings is in this game and it demands to be played.

I think of all the things I love about War of The Rings the most, the story it tells, or perhaps better to say re-tells is unforgettable.  I love other games on this list, but there are few games I play in which I can recall the details as vividly of specific games as War of the Rings.  It’s as much an experience as it is a game, win or lose, playing it is always a pure joy.

4. Fury of Dracula

You may have noticed that every game on this list so far is bursting with theme, something you can expect to continue.  Fury of Dracula is no exception; it is a thematic wonderland from the visuals, to the mechanics and everything in between.  Whether you are playing as Dracula or as one of Dracula’s pursuers this is a game that infuses the story into the mechanics with so much insistence that you can’t help but feel as if you’re playing a role-playing game rather than a board game.  The investigation elements, the chase, the powers of Dracula and the investigators, the equipment and nuances of the day night cycle, they all help to bring the story to life.

The most wonderful element of this game is that it’s very easy to teach and grasp, in fact, there is almost an instinctive expectation based on the visuals on how the game works and sure enough it works how you would logically expect it to.  There is this almost natural flow to the game, everything makes sense, is organized and streamlined.  Now the game is not “quick”, but you really don’t feel the passage of time as there is this constant sense of involvement as regardless of who’s turn it is, there discoveries and actions beg for your attention.  Wonderful game and while mechanically it plays well with any number of players it supports, it’s one of those games where the more, the merrier.

5. Game of Thrones 2^nd edition

I will be the first to admit that I have a love hate relationship with this game because I love it, for what it is, an amazing board game, but man will it frustrate the living hell out of you.  It’s not so much the games fault however as the cut throat brutality of the competitiveness it creates.  It’s a political thriller war game, really a strategic multiplayer chess with betrayals and a never ending stream of shocking “I can’t believe that just happened” moments.   It’s as dark and deep as the human soul, friends turn to enemies without notice and in the game of thrones, like the books and tv show, you can’t trust anyone, ever.

Why do I love it?  Because it captures the spirit of the story on which it’s based flawlessly.  The events that transpire in a typical game, are as shocking as they are reading the books or watching the tv show for the first time.  It’s got this edge to it, a tension that builds before the pieces are ever placed on the board.  The untrusting looks, the combination of subtle, suspicious moves, the constant sense of looking over your shoulder wondering what people are up to, to the moments when plans are revealed and the creation of frantic chaos.  It’s not a game for the faint of heart and it’s definitely not a game you want to play with people who can’t get into the spirit of its theme, but when you get together with friends and fans of the Game of Thrones franchise it’s truly a wonderful albeit (like the books and show) a teeth grinding experience.

6. Shogun (Queens Game version)

Most of the games on this list are clearly lovingly identifiable as Ameri-Trash games and it may be a bit unfair to see so few Euro style games on a best of list.  It’s not that I don’t like Euro games, but they simply don’t have the same presence nor offer the same memorable experiences as the thematically heavy American designed games.  Shogun however is an exception, a game very close to my heart and without question a moderately heavy Euro.  I mentioned my love for planning and execution based mechanics in games and Shogun is perhaps one of the greatest exaggerations of that concept as the planning and execution phases are so vividly divided.  Shogun is one of those games where players contemplate, strategize, analyze and over think during the planning phase, carefully mapping out their coming actions trying to predict how events will unfold in a respectful silence.  Than during the action phase there is a frenzy of explosive activity, climaxing with people rising from their seats cheering at the wildly unpredictable dice tower as their little cubes coming out of the tower give its results.  There are heartbreaks, clench victories and shocking revelations, but most importantly uncontrollable smiles from ear to ear around the table amidst the chaos.

I love Shogun for that reason, it’s a fairly deep game, but it hinges on this very unpredictable element and you just can’t help but grin as you play it. There is this anticipation and build-up of the execution phase, this element of prediction of events with the climatic conclusion.  I have played this game more times than I can count and its effect never dulls.  For me it lands in this odd space in limbo between deep strategy and just silly chaotic fun.

7. Tide of Irons

I found it odd that I have two, two player games on my list given that it’s really not that common for me to actually have the opportunity to play with just two players, seems I almost always end up with a group.  Tide of Iron makes it’s appearance for a number of reasons, but one is probably quite obvious.  Who doesn’t want to play with toy soldiers?  I’m not a world war II or a historic gamer, I don’t really care to replicate reality in my games nor do I have any particular need to play war games (though combat tends to be a common theme in my preference).  Tide of Irons however brings out that war gamer in hidden inside me, I can’t help but take it kind of seriously and I prefer to play it with kind of serious gamers.

Tide of Irons is fiddly, but it has that spirit of classic miniatures gaming combined with the tactical complexity of war games yet is actually simple enough to teach to casual fans of board gaming.  In fact, I have played this game almost exclusively with casual gamers and have found that the effect it has on me, being a game that lends itself to being a bit more serious, is the same one my opponents experience.  Perhaps it’s the subject matter, but Tide of Irons while doesn’t claim or really even try to be a serious tactical war game, actually plays like one with the caveat that its simple.

I have never bought any expansions, nor care to, for me the core game is already so robust and offers so many options and scenarios that even after years of playing it, I never find its effect wares off on me or becomes repetitive.  Even playing the same scenario’s multiple times, it just seems to me with each play through I find new ways to approach old scenario’s.  I find the strategies and depth of the game easy to grasp, easy to teach, but very engaging.   I have played a lot of tactical world war II games and perhaps it’s because I’m not a huge fan of the genre, but I just find them quite boring, yet this one I not only like but it is among my favorite games to play (world war II games or otherwise).

8. Formula D

You know I would be lying to you if I said I love Formula D for any other reason than I love games in which you chuck dice, push your luck and create frantic chaos when you fail or succeed.  Formula D is basically a party game as far as I’m concerned and I have never introduced the game to anyone who didn’t absolutely love it gamer or not.  I know that there are expansions and rules for Formula D that try to convert this dice chucker into a more serious game, but for me it’s just wacky fun and it’s one of the few games on this list that truly comes through as a game in which who the participants are be they family, friends, gamers or of any age group, it’s always fun to play.

I love that it can be played in teams and I love that it can handle a lot of players.  It’s visually appealing and despite its randomness there is actually a fair amount of strategy to it, though, largely I find people ignore this and just try to win in the spirit of the game, by pushing the pedal to the metal.

I really hate stupid party games and there are so many awful ones and while this game might not be categorized as a party game, it certainly feels like one because I have never played it without everyone at the table laughing hysterically at the chaos it creates.  I love it, always have, it’s been on my top 10 list for years and while I don’t consider it a serious board game, to me, a board games primary purpose is to have fun playing it.  Of course there are many deep strategy, thinker games I could have put in its place on this list, but when it comes to creating great gaming experiences you can’t go wrong with a game like Formula D, it never lets me down.

9. Lords of Waterdeep With Expansion

I don’t really know exactly what it is about Lords of Waterdeep that I like so much, it really is a rather simple worker placement game with a rather thin connection to the theme, thicker than others, but still thin.  There is just something appealing about it, it seems, no matter how many times I play it, I’m always drawn to it.

I like its simplicity and the expansion adds this push your luck element which combined with the tightness of the space in which players must compete, it just has that “let’s play again” addictive nature to it.  It’s a game that rewards you for smart play and its aesthetically pleasing.  I suspect someday this game will fall off my top 10 list, in fact, I struggled between this and Kingsburg already because I really like both of these worker placement games for the same reason.  It’s hanging in there right now though, I think largely because we just play it all the time and every time I play it, I find myself wanting to play it again.

If pressed to answer the question, why do you like this game so much, I would have to say its because I think it’s a simple, yet relatively deep strategy game that has this sense of urgency where you plan your move’s carefully and hope that your able to combine the plan into a long term strategy. Yet you sort of stumble against the actions of other players, constantly having to re-think how you will complete the same goal in a different way.  It has this sense of involvement, the urgency of a race and with the expansion this push your luck element that when combined simply makes for a great game.  I’m always surprised to see how often this game gets chosen over many other games higher on this list, in fact just last week we decided to skip X-Wing to play Lords of Waterdeep and I honestly can’t explain it, but suffice to say given its impact on me and my gaming group it would be dishonest not to include it on this list.  I play it often, it’s as simple as that.

10. Dominion

Number 10 was really hard for me, there was a lot of games I could have put into this spot, but ultimately I went with the game who’s quality I simply can’t deny.  I don’t play it often anymore, but that is not a commentary on what I think about it, quite to the contrary the reason I don’t play it often anymore is because when I first got it and for a very long time, Dominion was a game we played the living shit out of.  If I took all the games on this list, I can easily say that I have played Dominion ten times more often than everything else combined.

Dominion was a phenomenon when I first got it, it didn’t matter what we planned to play at any given event, at every session we ended up playing dozens of rounds of dominion.  It just has this addictive nature, with layers of depth, despite it being one of the simplest games I have ever played with any regularity since I was kid playing checkers.  I still love it and would not hesitate to play it if requested and though it largely collects dust on my shelf, I have never been able to get myself to get rid of it.  I just need it there, because it really is an amazing game and It proves it to me over and over again.  Each time I introduce it to a new person, the end result is the same for them as it was for me, an insatiable appetite to play it over and over and over again.  It happens every time and it’s a tribute to its clever design, its complexity masked by its simplicity and its addictive nature.

Honorable Mentions

There are many games I love excluded from this list, in fact, if you removed these top ten games as selections, I could easily create a new top 10 list from the games not chosen to be on this one.  There are also many new mistresses that have recently arrived I was very tempted to put on this list, but for me, a game on a top 10 list has to be a game with longevity, something I still like after many plays.

Some games not mentioned include Power Grid, a game I consider a staple.  It didn’t make the list because it’s kind of heavy and slow, I find that I really enjoy playing it sporadically, but as soon as two plays of the game have too little space between them, I find I enjoy it less.  Perhaps it’s a bit too heavy and a bit too slow, and let’s face it, the theme is kind of try.

Carcassonne is another one I really like, but in light of the other games on this list I found it to have insufficient “umphf” as a game.  I have played it many times and undoubtedly will play it many more times, but I have never felt a particular need to have it in my collection.  Still I think it’s a very clever game, I like it’s simplicity and certainly with the many expansions there are lots of interesting variants.

I have a few old favorites I really like, but find are not always particularly fun to teach and as such, I have a hard time justifying them for the list.  Race for the Galaxy for example is a game I really enjoy, but typically I find that if I ask “hey want to play Race For The Galaxy” and realize the people I’m asking have never played it, I’m immediately trying to get out of having to teach it to them, because it’s just a pain in the ass to do so.  Ikusa (formally Samurai Swords and Shogun by Milton Bradly) is another such game.  Not that it’s particularly hard to teach, but it has such subtle and fragile strategic elements that playing it against new players unfamiliar with the game is always a drag and more importantly it can drag on for hours and hours, not to mention the potential for player elimination.  It’s an old school game, I love playing it with old school gamers but these days it rarely hits the table.  Steve Jacksons Illuminati is another one that falls into that, fun to play with people who know what they are doing but sucky to have to teach it and play it with newbies.

 

REX (also known as DUNE in the 70’s version) is another game I personally love, but find it’s rarely requested and a bit difficult for new players.  I think it’s one of those games you really need to know to play well, each race has unique abilities that play a vital role in the game and if you don’t have them memorized, you are at a major disadvantage.  It also suffers from this very fragile balance, it’s very possible for the game to end in round one if players aren’t careful and fall into the traps veteran players set for them.

I love games like Descent, Imperial Assault, Battlestar Galactica, Zombiecide and Star Wars the card game, all worthy games to mention, but each with quirks that sometimes annoy me.

 

Hope you enjoyed the list, I will probably periodically do an update when I see sufficient things have changed for me in the future.