Board Games of the Year - 2017 Community Edition (Results Posted)

Here are the results!

1. Gloomhaven 54 points
2. Terraforming Mars 49 points
3. Spirit Island 45 points
4. Azul 37 points
5. Century: Spice Road 29 points
6. Pandemic Legacy: Season 2 27 points
7. Splendor 26 points
7. Jaipur 26 points
9. Eldritch Horror 24 points
10. King of Tokyo 21 points

Thanks to everyone who participated.

Here were the rules and stuff we used:

Spoiler:

As this year comes to close, it's once again time for a reflection and ask the important questions. What is good in life? How have I changed? Why did I eat that? What timeline is this?

Or you can chunk all that and remember the good times you had with board games.

Welcome to the GWJ Community Board Games of the Year for 2017. I invite you to share what games raised your spirits, stoked your imagination, crushed your sense of self worth, or just tickled your brain in ways that are unique to our hobby. Whatever did it for you, share it here. If you put them in a list, it'll be considered part of your vote for community board game of the year.

Too touchy feely? Don't worry, it wouldn't be a boardgames list without some rules:

  • Who goes first? Voting starts now, and ends 1/15/2018. All turns are asynchronous. Hopefully that'll allow some time for games that were gifted during the holidays to hit the table.
  • What can I vote for? Any game that you played for the first time in 2017, or before voting ends in 2018.
  • What about expansions? They count, as long as you first played with the expansion in 2017, or before voting ends in 2018.
  • How many games can I vote for? As many as you like. I'd prefer that you list them in a traditional number format, but you don't need to stop at 10, nor do you need to list as many as 10. "Honorable mentions" are also welcomed. This is a hobby that is usually constrained by coordinating with other people and their schedules. Don't feel like you don't have a say because you didn't play a lot (or vice versa).
  • How does endgame scoring work? The game at the top of your list will receive 10 points, the next game will receive 9, etc. All games past the first 10 (including honorable mentions) get 1 point.
  • Wait, can I take that move back? Edit as often as you want before 1/15/2018. Past that, you can still edit, I'll just ignore it.

Reserved

This is basically THE year I got properly into board games, so my selection is currently very small and inevitably focused on solo or cooperative games.

1. Pandemic (vanilla)

Probably goes without saying that this is the game that triggered my return to physical games. I don't think I need to describe just how genius the game design is do I? Even better, I just got Pandemic Legacy over xmas and can't wait to get a chance to dig into that in the near future.

2. Eldritch Horror

I LOOOVE me some Cthulhu Mythos themed stuff, and my preference in board games is for something cooperative/solo story-based so this seemed like a no-brainer. It's a pain in the arse to set up and clear away, and mostly I'm stuck playing it solo because they other people I tried it with bounced off it hard but I generally have a blast trying to thwart the machinations of the Great Old One of the week (or more likely, FAILING to do so). I liked it so much I basically purchased ALL of the current expansions over a couple of months this year. I've played a LOT of it this year and I've still barely even touched a lot of the content yet (I've been mostly working my way through the Old One's in order of release and not moving on until I beat the at least once. Right now I'm up to Cthulhu himself so I've still got ALL of the old ones from the expansion packs still to come!)

3. Arkham Horror LCG - The Dunwich Legacy

See above! Except this is quicker to play and really cleverly designed. Bonus points for not having to purchase endless random card packs, MtG Style. The way they have integrated an almost RPG, exploration element into a card based game is really quite clever. The reason I specifically mention the Dunwich Legacy is that the scenarios in the base campaign are a bit bland and not particularly interesting, wheras the two scenarions in the first major expansion pack (which is as far as I've played to date, but I do have a handful of the further episodes to play) are MUCH more interesting with a lot of branching choices and plot developments.

aaaaand that's basically it for me so far. Like I said - pretty new to the hobby this year. That said, I still need to get around to playing the base set of Descent which I'll probably get to soon, and I have Legacy of Dragonholt arriving on Friday so there might be a couple more things to add to the list before the 15th, but we'll see

Just following the thread. Played more boardgames this year than I have in a long time, but still not much.

I've never been a board game player really, I enjoy them, but never had a circle to play in.

This year my Girlfriend bought me one, as she wanted to play! So, I can finally contribute to this:

1. Waggle Dance
It's a game all about bees! My girlfriend secretly bought this as a gift for her, really, but we had a lot of fun playing it throughout the year, and, for me, it was just nice to have a game I could play with her!

Need to cogitate on my list.

1) Scythe: Solid strategy/worker placement type game with some really clever design choices and a fantastic aesthetic.

2) Century: Spice Road: Hand management/drafting kind of game; similar vein to Splendor but a bit more tightly designed IMO.

3) Eldritch Horror: Great use of the source material, but very much for fans of the genre. Lots fiddling about in setup and takes a long time to explain.

Honourable mention: Twilight Struggle: Played it for the first time this year, but I think it's at least a decade too old for this list.

1. Splendor
2. Century Spice Road
3. Fluxx
4. LAZER RYDERZ
5. King of Tokyo

I only play games with my wife and these are all the new ones that we played multiple times over throughout the year.

I’ll need to play a few more games before I put my vote in. I got a couple who can crack the top five if I get a couple games in. Really competitive year.

1: Star Wars Imperial Assault: Legend of the Alliance - Some great life breathed into this game. I consider this an expansion that really changes the game. It now allows solo and fully co-op.

2: Century Spice Road - This is a new Gateway game for me. Its pretty, nice components, and a lot more beneath the surface than expected.

3: Jaipur - Great two player game.

4: Through the Ages - I can see why this is a tried and true classic nowadays. The app makes it pretty accessible even with the steep learning curve.

5: Gloomhaven - This needs more plays and with them would be higher on my list i think.

Right now my list would be:

1. Love Letter
2. Sushi GO Party Edition
3. Jaipur
4. Splendor

I have to think longer if I played anything else new in 2017.

What a year for board games and gaming. It really started in late 2016 with the fall releases and continued into some incredible games sprinkled throughout 2017. The list is 13 this year for me and those in the HM categories would be top 10 many other years and arguably should be for this year.

1. Gloomhaven: This is the game I think about playing when I am not playing games. When I play another game I am thinking, “This is time I could be using to play Gloomhaven.” Not sure I can say anything more about it than has already been said. So happy the plan is to keep this on the shelves for others to buy and experience this game in the future (unlike 7th Continent).

2. Terraforming Mars: Excellent theme and just a fun experience (outside of bumping the playing board). You feel like you are doing what the game is built around in a quasi-coop manner, yet you are trying to win. While some may differ, I like the art of varying styles. And, SCIENCE! FTW.

3. Great Western Trail: Best rondel game I have ever played (yet to play Heaven & Ale) with spot on cattle drive theme and a lot to consider, even with very basic actions each turn. A treat to play. Feels like the least discussed Top 20 (#11) BGG game ever.

4. Photosynthesis: It is not right that I adore this game as much as I do. Maybe my favorite game of the year in many ways, most of all how much it makes me smile every time I get it out. Another well executed game with next level theme, which goes a long way in make my list and more importantly, getting on the table. This game is beautiful with many little details and touches. Growing trees from seed, casting shade, harvesting those trees when fully grown. A sun that works its way around the map each turn. Doesn’t sounds like a game that can be cut throat, but it sure is at times. Works with 2 but I would play this all the time with 3-4 players, where It shines. Sun pun intended.

5. 7th Continent: Enjoyed it 2-3 times I have played, despite messing up movement rules than made it brutally harder on us than necessary and impossible to solve a curse. Would be higher but the rules ignorance was basically a reset switch.

6. Kingdomino: It has gotten a lot of play and is deeper than it appears on the surface. Tile drafting mechanic is such a great design feature. Super cute. Interested to see what Queendomino adds, but I love a 2 player, 7X7 game of this, as well as 4s.

7. Ethnos: For all my talk of theme, this game has none other than boring fantasy tropes. Yet here it is at #7. I have sung its praises all year and bought it as a gift for others. Game play trumps bland, mismatched look. Scales beautifully from 2-5, no down time, different most every game given the differing races (yes, in this game, Wizards are a race. Just go with it). Super easy to teach. If this game is remade with a different, more interesting skin, I will likely buy it again in a second. Until then, at $30, it is one of the best for the buck gaming experiences around, along with Kingdomino and Splendor, IMO.

8. Codex: OK, now I get the love from those who preach about this. A focused lovechild of Magic and Mage Wars in a non-collectible, deep, deck builder battle with a splash of RTS game thrown in.

9. Century Spice Road: Need. To. Play. It. More. It is not a “Splendor Killer” to me, but a wonderful alternative that sits in the same physical and emotional space.

10. Cottage Garden: Lovely, lovely, lovely. Except for the kittens. Sleeping puppies would have made it 100x better, in my book.

11. Clank: Lost in Space: Tough for me. Clank was on my list last year at #11 so it is only fitting the move from the dungeons to outer space would hit the same spot. Clank LIS takes Clank + Expansion and creates a better, more refined and versatile game.

12. Mechs & Minions: Just haven’t played enough since early in 2017 as one of the 4 players does not care for it. May have to start it back up with three.

13. Santorini: Still love it, but Kingdomino, Gloomhaven, Codex, and others have pushed it aside for 2 player games. Need to rectify this, as it is too good to sit on the shelf.

Honorable Mention: Downforce (Restoration Games), Near and Far, Arkham Horror TCG, Bloodborne Card Game, Mansions of Madness 2d Ed, Roll Player

App Board Games Honorable Mention: Through the Ages and Terra Mystica both got first time/many time plays from me this year.

Social Games Honorable Mention: Captain Sonar, Secret Hitler, and Deception-Murder in Hong Kong all deserve a place somewhere on a list.

Accessory Honorable Mention: The Broken Token Insert for Gloomhaven. Maybe my second best gaming purchase after Gloomhaven itself.

Wow, I played a lot more games than I thought the past year and so many exceptional games. On deck for 2018 (If Gloomhaven does not suck all of the time): Charterstone, Star Wars Rebellion Expansion, Stuffed Fables, Queendomino, Heaven & Ale, and more in-person gaming with GWJers.

Going to modify my list a bit. Had a big board game night with my Brother and his partner last night and we played a bunch of Pandemic Legacy and King of Tokyo, both which are super fun!

So, new list is...

1. Pandemic (Legacy)
2. King of Tokyo
3. Pandemic (Regular)
4. Eldritch Horror
5. Arkham Horror LCG

Reserving space for a list.

I'm pretty sure it will include:

7th Continent
Arcadia Quest
Kingdom Death
Feast for Odin
Twilight Imperium 4th
Others

I'm going to have to remember which new games I've played this year...

1. Inis: Think Blood Rage but better.
2. Scythe: I need to finish more games of Scythe
3. Hive
4. Captain Sonar: I only got to play it once. That once was pretty good, but I think you need a big group who throw themselves into it to be maximum fun.
5. Raiders of the North Sea: a worker placement game with interesting tradeoffs in where you can place your workers. Much better player/player at interaction than most while still not being direct-conflict. End game isn't quite as exciting as the early game.
6. King of New York: Like King of Tokyo, but better.
7. I finally opened my copy of 7th Continent this month. I haven't entirely decided how I feel about it yet. There aren't many other adventure board games quite like this, though it may have a few too many moving parts. And the rules aren't as well-explained as I'd like.
8. Indulgence (Restoration Games): This might be higher if I was still around my Euchre-playing friends who are well-versed in trick-taking games. Not so great if I need to explain traditional card game things like trump suits or shooting the moon. The clever twists are lost on people new to the Hearts/Euchre/Spades/Bridge trick-taking family.

Other highlights: playing a game with the inventor of Mafia/Werewolf.

Thanks for running this!

1. Ethnos

I agree with bhchrist on this one. The theme is bland, the art is pretty bland, but the game is fun and it has wide appeal. It's the parts of Ticket to Ride I like (quick turns, set collection), none of the parts I don't like (accidental blocking), and other mechanics I like added (unique powers for each type of set, area control).

My game group has largely grown tired of Ticket to Ride, but everyone enjoys playing this.

2. Kana Gawa

Along with Tokaido, and Takenoko, this is an East Asia themed game with great art, mid complexity mechanics, and wide appeal. I enjoy the set collection, drafting (like Coloretto), and engine building in it.

3. Pack and Stack

A great mindless fun game. You get a random allotment of wooden boxes and have to scramble to pick a truck you think will fit your boxes. The last person to pick a truck gets a random truck off the top of the stack. The winner is the player with the most points after one of the players has lost their business because of their poor ability to pack trucks. The whole game celebrates failure and is fun for it. You are going to constantly lose points, you just want to lose them the slowest.

4. Heldentaufe

A kickstarter game that feels like a video game in board game form. Similar to Zelda in theme, you gather some equipment in the overworld, then try to slay a few monsters in the underworld for points. There are a few other ways to earn points as well and the first to a certain number is the winner. The art is fantastic and the systems provide enough flexibility to be interesting. The game has a good amount of luck during the equipment gathering phase, but is short enough that it's not a huge issue.

5. DOOM

This is similar to Descent, but uses the run, punch, and gun themes and mechanics of the new video game. I've only played a few times, but both the marines and the demons seem balanced and require fun decisions from the players about positioning and tactics.

6. Cyclades Monuments

I love Cyclades. Monuments is an easy addition to the base game that guides people towards building buildings without introducing a ton of new rules. I would never play Cyclades without expansions, and while I'd prefer to play with Hades components, this is perfect for a simpler game.

7. Kingdomino

Queendomino is kind of here as well. bhchrist, you will like that too!

Simple, but interesting.

8. Santorini

I barely play 2 player games, but this is a fun one. I do like the different abilities which add a lot of variety to what is a simple concept. I'm certain the base game would have strong legs without the abilities, but the abilities are a fun thing to mix and match.

Great pieces as well!

----

I played more than 8 new games, but I wouldn't recommend any beyond these.

Gremlin, Inis is so good! I like both Blood Rage and Inis and can see the comparison, but they do a different enough thing for me and I like them both enough that I have both.

If you like the drafting and the clever play of Inis, I think Shadow Throne is an excellent short drafting card game. I would compare it to Inis because both use drafting and both require a general strategy, being sneaky, and then using clever tactics based on how the hand draws out to get the advantage.

Igneus, glad to see the coop app for Imperial Assault is good. I didn't get much chance to play that, but I did play a few times on the Decent app and enjoyed it. The systems are so much fun and it's great to have a way to substitute an overlord player with the app.

1. Gloomhaven
After 4 plays this has definitely cemented the number one spot. It just provides so much choice and every action is an interesting decision, it's awesome.

2. Star Wars Rebellion
Star Wars in a box. Love it.

3. Twilight Imperium
I played 3rd edition but that has prompted an order for 4th ed. from my FLGS.

4. Mice and Mystics
Playing through with my wife and anthropomorphic Mice are enough of a hook for her.

5. Nothing Personal
My game group thrives on this type of conflict and we know who not to play this with as it could be a friendship destroyer.

6. Flash Point: Fire Rescue
A good little family weight game I've enjoyed with my game group, with my wife, solo and with my five year old with the family version of the rules.

7. Champions of Midgard
A viking theme always elevates things for me and I didn't have a good worker placement game in the collection.

8. Patchwork
Because I love gaming with my wife and it's rare to find one she gets into. Plus when my 5 year old legitimately beat me at this it was a proud dad moment.

9. Legacy: The Testament of Duke de Crecy
What can I say, I love the family building in Crusader Kings and this scratches a similar itch.

10. Terror in Meeple City
The new hotness my son got from Santa. 6 plays in 6 days so far.

Thanks for running this and not setting the deadline to today, Stilgar!

Still working on my list, but I've enjoyed reading everyone else's so far. Happy to see some love for Ethnos, which I think is really something special. Quest for El Dorado has similar levels of accessibility and depth and is from the master himself, Reiner Knizia, so it's well worth checking out as well if you're looking for a light-ish euro that's fun for all experience levels.

Prozac wrote:

7. Champions of Midgard
A viking theme always elevates things for me and I didn't have a good worker placement game in the collection.

Arrrrrgh! I did play this and totally forgot, not because it was not excellent, but because I only played it once at my friends with all the expansions on that nice, lovely (except for some of the print being trickier to read) playmat. Really feel like this was a top 10 game this year but not sure where I would list it.

Prozac wrote:

10. Terror in Meeple City
The new hotness my son got from Santa. 6 plays in 6 days so far. :)

Ah, good old Rampage, the version that we own and played when my son was probably around 8-10. I wonder if it is worth any more since the name change was forced. Fun game.

My list is coming out later but I can easily say Gloomhaven will be my #1. I need to get at least one more game of Charterstone before I make my list.

Updated...

1. Jaipur
2. Splendor
3. Barenpark.
4. Sushi Go!
5. King of Tokyo
6. Kingdomino
7. Rhino Hero
8. Ghost Fightin' Treasure Hunters
9. Game of Thrones: The Iron Throne
10. Welcome to the Dungeon

One for next year - Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective.

Purchases soon / asap in 2018. Century Spice Road, Codenames Duet / Azul.

Sonicator wrote:

2) Century: Spice Road: Hand management/drafting kind of game; similar vein to Splendor but a bit more tightly designed IMO.

I just got it for Christmas. Solid game. Way better than Splendor because it’s way easier to see what other players are doing. Also card drafting and hand building is fun. I can’t wait to see how this game evolves with the future games in the series. Their future plans seems really cool.

Crockpot wrote:
Sonicator wrote:

2) Century: Spice Road: Hand management/drafting kind of game; similar vein to Splendor but a bit more tightly designed IMO.

I just got it for Christmas. Solid game. Way better than Splendor because it’s way easier to see what other players are doing. Also card drafting and hand building is fun. I can’t wait to see how this game evolves with the future games in the series. Their future plans seems really cool.

This intrigues. Have really enjoyed the Splendor app this year, so much so was going to get the hard copy soon. However Century Spice Road might be a better pick by the sounds of it?

Jaipur was my other favourite app and will be picking that one up also.

Bubblefuzz wrote:
Crockpot wrote:
Sonicator wrote:

2) Century: Spice Road: Hand management/drafting kind of game; similar vein to Splendor but a bit more tightly designed IMO.

I just got it for Christmas. Solid game. Way better than Splendor because it’s way easier to see what other players are doing. Also card drafting and hand building is fun. I can’t wait to see how this game evolves with the future games in the series. Their future plans seems really cool.

This intrigues. Have really enjoyed the Splendor app this year, so much so was going to get the hard copy soon. However Century Spice Road might be a better pick by the sounds of it?

Jaipur was my other favourite app and will be picking that one up also.

Despite what I said earlier, I’m conflicted in giving one recommendation over the other because they have the same feel but they are very different too. I’m also bias because I’ve gone sour on splendor because it’s just been overplayed in my game groups. I’m still in my early stages with Century.

Alright let's give this a try. I am glad I've keeping all of my board game plays since Gen Con in a stat tracking app on my phone.

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/ePYYhhw.jpg)

#1 Terraforming Mars

Ever since I first played this at Gen Con I haven't been able to get enough of it. I really enjoy engine building games, but it often feels like they end just as my engine is coming fully online. Terraforming Mars usually gives you a turn or two to revel in what you've built. The theme in this is also super well integrated into the mechanics. You're not just fiddling with cubes, you're crashing asteroids into the planet or setting up infrastructure in space or introducing predators and prey to the planet or pumping oceans to the surface, etc. I also like how there are many, many different viable strategies to win and tactics to counter your opponent's strategies. Since I picked up the game I got the two released expansions for it, and they seems to add a lot of replayability to a game that already has a lot. This is my current favorite game, period.

Also, I am somewhat biased towards this TM because I am a huge fan of the Mars Trilogy by Kim Stanley Robinson that was an major influence in the design of this game. If you like this game you should read these books.

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/2HqTpV4.png)

#2 Spirit Island

I've only played this a few times so far, but I think it is going to be a long term favorite. Every game of this is a super complicated puzzle you have to solve by killing colonizers with tsunamis, scaring them to death with nightmares, rallying the indigenous to people raid their cities, choking their towns with vegetation and, of course, blood rain. There is some randomness in the game, but the core mechanic of the invaders first exploring an area, building in it, and then ravaging it over the course of 3 turns gives you the ability to plan ahead for the next couple turns to stave them off. Plus it is really satisfying to work with your allies to combine your powers to devastating effect. If someone is playing Bringer of Dreams and Nightmares (how cool of a name is that for a god?) they may be able to scare the invaders away from the inland areas to the coast where Ocean's Hungry Grasp (another god) can drown them. This is such a great change of pace from the traditional euro where you are settling and colonizing "new" lands. I'll be playing this a lot next year.

EDIT: After a few more plays of this, I am bumping it up to #2.

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/Ag8IyJP.jpg)

#3 Clank!: A Deck Building Adventure

This game combines two of my favorite board game genres, deck building and dungeon crawling. I love the feeling of pressing your luck, maybe going a bit too deep for a big ticket artifact, and realizing that might not make it out in time. The clank mechanic is really brilliant. Making big moves in this game is might give you a short term boost, but you sure are making a lot of noise for the dragon. The theme is generic fantasy, but is also poking fun at the genre, and honestly, I kind of have a soft spot for generic fantasy.

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/xdGvSzA.jpg)

#4 NMBR 9

I've played this game more than any other this year. 29 plays according to my stats app. This is a super-simple tetris-style tile placement game that you can play in 20 minutes or less. Each tile is shaped link a number from 0 to 9. Each turn everyone gets the same number tile and places it. You will ultimately end up with two of each number. The twist of this game is you can build on top of existing tiles and you only score for tiles which are not on the table. You score by the value of tiles times the level they are on, starting with level 0 (on the table). It is a clever little game and fitting oddly shaped tiles together is very satisfying to me.

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/xs6w56t.jpg)

#5 Xia: Embers of a Forsaken Star

This expansion adds a ton to Xia, a game that I already really like. Tons of new exploration tiles, new fully painted ships, event cards, a solo variant, system mods, comets, ancient relics, new mission types, and so much more. Plus it pretty much fixes the biggest problems the base game had especially overpowered trading and makes many other tactics, more viable. Xia is even better than before.

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/mfMi1bD.jpg)

#6 Mansions of Madness 2nd ed

I wanted to get MoM in an effort to get my D&D group back together after being on a long hiatus since the DM and I both had new babies earlier this year. I was able to get some of us together for a game a few nights back, and we had blast. It is surprisingly rules-light for a Fantasy Flight Game, once I'd explained a few concepts to folks we were good to go. And being a FFG Lovecraft game it is just dripping in theme, as the app describes all of the horrific things you encounter in your adventure. After we'd finished the first game by the skin of our teeth everyone at the table was ready to schedule our next get together. Success!

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/CtVhhom.jpg)

#7 Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective: Jack the Ripper & West End Adventures

This is the first board game my dad has really gotten into. He always watches us while the rest of my family plays stuff, but he never shows much interest. For this game however, he jumped right in. He was really invested in figuring out the mystery we were trying to solve. When I was putting the game away I found the scratch paper he was using to write notes, and it was completely full of clues, leads, theories, etc. The writing in the game was really good, and fun to read aloud. Everyone was really engaged as we moved around the city of London trying to figure out what was going on. It was a great experience for all of us.

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/yhzymkT.jpg)

#8 World Championship Russian Roulette

If you can get over its dark theme, this is a great little party game. It has a nice bit of bluffing and social deduction and take that elements. Of all the games I've played this year, I feel like this one got the most laughs and cheers around the table as people stuck their finger guns to their heads and cautiously pulled their triggers.

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/OBSblf1.jpg)

#9 Hero Realms

It is basically a retheme of Star Realms, but with a fantasy twist. But I love Star Realms, and I really liked this as well. I look forward to picking up a few of the character packs with new starting cards and special abilities. I feel like that will differentiate it a bit more from its predecessor. You can also apparently play one vs many in this game, take a party of people against a dragon or lich. That seems really neat.

IMAGE(https://i.imgur.com/5dlUG0c.jpg)

#10 Rhino Hero

I picked up this game for my daughter, and it is the most fun I've ever had with a "kid's game". I would take this to a regular board gaming night for a quick filler game. It's Jenga meets Uno with a tiny little rhinoceros super hero. What's not to love?

Bubblefuzz wrote:
Crockpot wrote:
Sonicator wrote:

2) Century: Spice Road: Hand management/drafting kind of game; similar vein to Splendor but a bit more tightly designed IMO.

I just got it for Christmas. Solid game. Way better than Splendor because it’s way easier to see what other players are doing. Also card drafting and hand building is fun. I can’t wait to see how this game evolves with the future games in the series. Their future plans seems really cool.

This intrigues. Have really enjoyed the Splendor app this year, so much so was going to get the hard copy soon. However Century Spice Road might be a better pick by the sounds of it?

Jaipur was my other favourite app and will be picking that one up also.

There's a hefty element of personal preference in the choice, I think. I like Spice Road because it feels like you make more interesting decisions from turn to turn (some cards allow you to collect tokens, some allow you to upgrade tokens, some allow you to downgrade but into a larger number of tokens), and consequently the hand building becomes more meaningful because you're thinking about synergy between the cards etc.

There's also an interesting mechanic where you have to pay more tokens to get the newer cards, and you get those tokens if you pick up the older ones, which helps keep cards ticking over rather than just having duds accumulate on the table.

Thanks both, I'll probably watch a couple vids and decide which would be best for the family. Won't hijack much further, but if you think either Spice Road or Splendor a little simpler and more suitable for a 7 year old (who's now pretty good at picking up these things) let me know. Cheers.

Bubblefuzz wrote:

Thanks both, I'll probably watch a couple vids and decide which would be best for the family. Won't hijack much further, but if you think either Spice Road or Splendor a little simpler and more suitable for a 7 year old (who's now pretty good at picking up these things) let me know. Cheers.

I would say CSR is a bit simpler in mechanics.

Igneus wrote:
Bubblefuzz wrote:

Thanks both, I'll probably watch a couple vids and decide which would be best for the family. Won't hijack much further, but if you think either Spice Road or Splendor a little simpler and more suitable for a 7 year old (who's now pretty good at picking up these things) let me know. Cheers.

I would say CSR is a bit simpler in mechanics.

Interesting. I would say Splendor is simpler and quicker to set up. On the table and playing in two minutes and we have taught it/played it with a seven year old, who had no trouble picking up on the mechanics.

I view them as related games but would never give up Splendor for having Century. I have still played Splendor more times since getting Century than I have Century, though a big part of that is getting it on the table for my wife, who is very reluctant to learn new rules of games and Splendor is her favorite.