Andrew Lee
When most people think of a ladder climbing game they picture one of those carnival games with the rope ladder that is nearly impossible to climb without falling off. That’s not the kind of game I’m talking about. In the board gaming world a ladder climbing game is played with cards where each player is …
Those of you who read my post on Fill or Bust know that playing games was a big part of the time I spent with my grandfather. At my grandparent’s house there was no internet and the TV was rarely on, we spent our visits talking and playing games. The Five Crowns card game reminds …
With summer approaching many families will pack up the car and head out camping, but no matter what fun you find outdoors, you usually at some point find yourself looking for a way to pass the time. In this post. we’ll discuss some of the best games to take camping. Throw a couple of these …
Every so often I run across a game that is intriguing simply because it has a mechanic I haven’t seen before. This is exactly how Scout ended up in our collection. Scout is a really good game with a really bad theme. Luckily the theme has no bearing at all on the gameplay, and can …
Deduction games are incredibly fun. There is something about everyone trying to solve the same logic puzzle that I really enjoy. I’ll admit though, I kind of fell asleep on this genre over the years. We’ve played a lot of social deduction games like One Night Ultimate Werewolf, and Love Letter, because …
A worker placement game is a type of board game in which players take turns placing their game pieces (often called “workers”) on various spaces on the board to take actions or gather resources. The game often involves players competing to complete certain objectives. Worker placement games often require players to strategize and plan ahead …
Looking for a step up from Monopoly? Try your hand at building an entire city! Suburbia was released over ten years ago and has stood the test of time. Players work as city planners placing different types buildings into their borough. The challenge comes from placing tiles in locations where they will give you the …
This is one of my favorites! We have yet to teach it to anyone who hasn’t loved it, and it’s probably the game people request the most at game night. I’ve even taken this game to work to play at lunch and had a co-worker immediately go online and buy the game upon returning to …
Overview Lately I’ve been a bit fascinated by games designed specifically for two players. It is very interesting to see how a game can be fine-tuned when the designer knows exactly how many people will be playing. The downside is, if I really like a two-player only game I can’t pull them out for the …
I was excited when I heard that a new streamlined version of 7 Wonders was hitting the market. The original game was released in 2010 and is considered by many to be a classic in the card drafting genre. 7 Wonders has seen a number of expansions and is well-loved in the board gaming community. …
Even if you are new to the board gaming hobby, you are probably familiar with trick taking games. Being from the midwest I grew up playing Euchre, Hearts and Blackout and so did most of my family and friends. This made it very easy to get a trick taking game to the table. The only …
I’m really excited to tell you about this one! Awkward Guests is a great example of the type of game we want to highlight with this site. It’s superior to a game many people know and love… but you’ve probably never heard of it. Awkward Guests is the game by which all other murder mystery …
Stroop is a unique card game that is both a filler, and a brain burner. Christin and I had the opportunity to play it with the game designer before its official release at Grand Con in 2017. I have a background in Psychology so this game was very interesting to me as the main mechanic …
Christin and I have lots of hobbies. In addition to our love of board games we also love to cook and to make and drink wine. When we heard there was a wine-themed board game we just had to try it out! Spoiler alert: it did not disappoint. There is a lot to this game, …
If you’ve read about us, you know that it was a deck building game that propelled us further into the board gaming hobby. It is one of my favorite types of games and one you should check out as you improve the collection on your shelf. In this post, we’ll explain what a deck building …
Many in the gaming community love roll and write games for their simplicity. The genre is meant to be simple, light-weight and have mass appeal. Twice as Clever (or any of the games in the “Clever” series) shows us that a roll and write doesn’t have to be simple. Twice as Clever adds complex scoring …
If you’re looking for a great deck building game that is easy to learn, look no further than Star Realms. This game has been gaining in popularity in recent years, and for good reason – it’s a lot of fun! Star Realms is a great gateway into the deck building genre, and it’s inexpensive to …
Looking for a fun and addictive game to play with your friends? Look no further than qwixx! The game is simple but gameplay is still strategic, just because you can score a number, doesn’t mean you should. This roll and write game from Gamewright games, has a quick playtime, easy rules, and plays up to …
If you’re looking for a challenging and rewarding board game to play with your friends, look no further than citadels. This game is all about strategy and planning, as you attempt to build the most impressive city possible. With so måany different options available, it can be tough to know where to start. That’s why …
Deduction games are a type of logic game in which players start with a set of incomplete information and must interact with other players or observe their behavior to decern additional information and win the game. A lot of games contain some element of deduction. Even in a game like poker players are using the …
Roll and write games are a type of board game in which players roll dice and use the results to fill in predefined spaces on their individual game boards. Often these boards are simply a preprinted sheet of paper. The first player to complete their board (or to finish with the highest score) wins the …
Love Letter is a quick and easy deduction card game for two to four players (the second edition increased the player count to six). The goal of the game is to get your love letter delivered to the princess. The person who successfully delivers the most love letters wins the princess’ heart (and the game). …
If you’re looking for a fun and challenging board game to play with your friends Splendor is a perfect choice! In this game, players compete to earn the most prestige by acquiring gems, mines and the favor of nobles. The gameplay is simple but strategic, and it’s sure to keep you entertained for hours on …
A few years ago while walking through the main hall at a board game convention in Grand Rapids, Michigan, we came across a man setting up for a tournament of Dimension, a board game we’d never seen before. The tables were filled with brightly colored balls, which caught our attention and prompted us to stop. …
Christin and I were first introduced to Dominion during a game night with friends. We had no idea what to expect, but we were quickly drawn in by the complexity and variety of the game. What we didn’t realize at the time was that we were experiencing a revolution in board gaming. Dominion showed us …
Dominion is a great game, but it can be a pain to store. The game now has fourteen expansions, if you have them all, you’ll have nearly 5,000 cards. Soon you’ll have boxes and boxes of Dominion cards taking up space on your shelf. To solve this problem many people have come up with different …
I grew up playing games with my Grandparents whenever I would visit. We played many different games, but one of my Grandfather’s favorites was a game he simply called “dice”. There was hardly a visit that went by where he didn’t say “want to play some dice?”. I have many fond memories of pressing my luck and …
Castle Panic is a cooperative board game that is great for kids and perfect for the whole family. Players work together to defend their castle from monsters that are trying to destroy it. This game is great for teaching teamwork and problem-solving skills. In this post, we will discuss the gameplay of Castle Panic and …
Oh, you play board games? Like Monopoly? – Everyone When you tell people you like to play board games, most likely Monopoly is their frame of reference. It’s a game that most kids (at least in the US) grew up playing and everyone knows. There are SO many other options now when it comes to …
If you haven’t played Codenames yet, you should really give it a try. Codenames is one of our goto games when we have a large group. Codenames is essentially a guessing game that is easy to learn and quick to setup. This is good because people tend to want to keep playing again and again. …
Do you enjoy playing games that involve strategy and risk? Do you love the thrill of the stock market? Now you can get that same excitement from a board game with the game Stockpile. This interactive stock market game is a lot of fun and one of the best, yet most accessible, financial themed games …
For Sale is a light, easy to learn card game with a real estate theme. If you like Monopoly but don’t want to commit to a long gaming session, For Sale may be a good fit. This game also hits our table when need a mental break between two heavy strategy games. That’s not to …
If you enjoy trick taking games like Spades or Euchre you’ll love Wizard. This Wizard card game for 3-6 players created by game designer Ken Fisher and originally released in 1986. This game frequently hits our table, especially at family gatherings. The game is well balanced and elegantly designed. By adding just two additional card …
Forbidden Island is a cooperative board game for two to four players. It’s designed by Matt Leacock, the creator of Pandemic, and it’s published by Gamewright. The goal of the game is to collect four treasures from the island and escape before the island sinks. When I want to introduce new people to Co-Op gaming, …
We love introducing people to new games. One of my favorite things to bring to the table for someone who is new to board games, or hasn’t really played them since they were a kid, are co-op games. Unlike traditional board games where players compete against each other, cooperative board games involve players working together …
If you’re a fan of worker placement board games, then you’ll love Kingsburg! This game takes place in the medieval era, and tasks players with acquiring and managing resources while helping the King build up his kingdom and defend against invading enemies. There are many different ways to win the game, making it a challenge …
I think Pandemic was the first Co-Op board game I ever played. These days I recommend people start with Forbidden Island for their first Co-Op game (a game by the same designer), but Pandemic has quickly become the “standard” Co-Op board game, and it’s also a good place to start. It used to be that …
Table top gaming has evolved a lot in the past couple of decades with many new mechanics and game styles emerging. One of the mechanics that has really begun to take off is card drafting. Card drafting games are often very strategic, and can be quite addictive!. In this edition of Games 101, we will …