Happy New Year, nerds! 2017 is upon us and that means another year of board gaming goodness has begun. During the holiday season I secured a nice hoard of board game treasure, including some titles I had never heard of that slipped past my nerdar. I figured I’d list them here in case they slipped past yours, too.
1) Raiders Of The North Sea – Garphill Games, 2-4 Players
This is the next game in my queue. I’ve prepared myself (via videos and rules) to square off against other Viking warriors in my village, trying to impress our chieftain with plunder earned from raiding various locations on the map. I love Champions of Midgard and this looks like the euro alternative to that game. This game comes highly recommended by some of my fellow gaming group, so very soon I shall make my way to Valhalla.
2) Triassic Terror – Eagle-Gryohin Games, 2-6 Players
An area control game concerning the survival and growth of dinosaur populations? Yes, please! This game pre-dated my board game renaissance, so I am very happy to have discovered it and obtained a copy. Now, to play it. I understand that this game plays even better with the higher player counts, and still takes 90 minutes or so. The decisions look interesting and the strategy seems robust, and those elements appeal greatly to me.
3) Kingdoms – Fantasy Flight Games, 2-4 Players
I have been on a Reiner Knizia (game designer) kick lately. His designs are always tight, and though he gets some criticism for lack of thematic elements, I feel like a player’s imagination goes a long way in making that an issue. Kingdoms looks like another solid entry in Knizia’s lineup, having players use tactical tile laying strategy to gain the most riches in the land in about 30 minutes. I think I can get this one to the table rather easily. We shall see.
4) Founding Fathers – Jolly Roger Games, 3-5 Players
Use your delegates to sway the vote, debate, and influence the committees to be the greatest founding father at the Constitutional Convention. As a political science-law guy-nerd, could there be a better theme? And while the theme may seem heavy, the game play is supposed to be much lighter and fun than one would think, and is said to appeal to a variety of gaming tastes. I have read the rules, watched the videos, and I’m ready to get some shit passed (or blocked, depending on the best strategy warranted at the time…. Man, I should run for Congress – what? Wait! That’s crazy talk, but I digress…. ).
5) Kemet – Asmodee, 2-4 Players
As a fan of fantasy and myth themes, I don’t get a chance to play war games very often. But this past Fall someone mentioned Kemet as good marriage of Egyption mythology and war games. So I researched and decided to pick it up. From what I gather, players are rewarded for being aggressive and taking the action to their opponents, so that “turtleing” is not a winning strategy. I am looking to forward to mixing it up with my friends very soon.
Games I have played but want to play some more:
1) Sun Tzu – Two player area control game with tough decisions. Sun Tzu challenges you to out guess your opponent with simultaneous card revealing that provides great tension. Played it once and cannot wait to give it another go.
3) Fantastiqa – Combines deck-building with board movement, and it does it really well. Fantastiqa has a unique art style to go along with its unique name, and I am looking forward to playing it again soon.
4) Lost Cities: The Card Game – I’ve been using this two-player gem as my gateway game for the last month. It’s quick, calls for more strategy than meets the eye, and provides excellent tense game play. I can’t wait to convert some non gamers with this one.
Well, I think that’s a good blueprint for the beginning of my game year. How’s your portfolio looking? Whatever it contains, I hope it brings you joy and fun this year. Thanks for reading, and keep nerding on!!
For these and other great games, check out www.dicedropgames.com
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