This is our continuously updated list – containing our current personal favorites among our played board games.
Filip’s list:
- Dune: Imperium – Uprising (2023)
- This is a standalone new version of Dune: Imperium, it introduces new factions, deeper deck-building mechanics, and even greater strategic depth. Using deckbuilding and worker placement as it’s core mechanics with plenty of player interaction through blocking of worker spots and ongoing battles each turn.
Why we love it: For us it’s an improvement in every way, with the introduction of sandworms, players that are left behind in scoring still have a chance to catch up if they plan and play their cards right. The card interactions and combos are much more interesting and the board spaces more balanced, where some spaces are cheaper for the players who get there later which leads to tighter and more exciting gameplay.
- This is a standalone new version of Dune: Imperium, it introduces new factions, deeper deck-building mechanics, and even greater strategic depth. Using deckbuilding and worker placement as it’s core mechanics with plenty of player interaction through blocking of worker spots and ongoing battles each turn.
- Star wars: Rebellion (2016)
- This is Star Wars in a box, it’s an epic sprawling board where the Star destroyers and ground forces of the Galactic Empire face off against the Rebel Alliance in a game of cat-and-mouse. The Empire scours the galaxy to find the hidden rebel base, while the Rebels sabotage Imperial operations and rally support to spark a full-scale uprising.
Why we love it: It just translates the power dynamic so well, where the Empire has massive resources and you feel almost invincible, while as the Rebels you feel cornered but you have the advantage of bluff and subterfuge. Basically this game makes you feel powerful or smart, every time, no matter the outcome.
- This is Star Wars in a box, it’s an epic sprawling board where the Star destroyers and ground forces of the Galactic Empire face off against the Rebel Alliance in a game of cat-and-mouse. The Empire scours the galaxy to find the hidden rebel base, while the Rebels sabotage Imperial operations and rally support to spark a full-scale uprising.
- Spirit Island (2017)
- A wonderfully thematic game where you take on the roles of powerful nature spirits defending their island from invading colonizers. With asymmetric abilities, a robust card-driven system, and deep tactical choices, Spirit Island doesn’t get old. It’s heavy, it’s hard, it’s complex, the decision space is so vast and the consequences so terrible.
Why we love it: The theme is unique in our experience, and simply the detail of making everything related to the invaders in plastic while the spirits and the islands inhabitants have wooden components says plenty about how well thought out this game is. The escalating tension and threat paired with your own expanding powers just gives it such a satisfying game curve.
- A wonderfully thematic game where you take on the roles of powerful nature spirits defending their island from invading colonizers. With asymmetric abilities, a robust card-driven system, and deep tactical choices, Spirit Island doesn’t get old. It’s heavy, it’s hard, it’s complex, the decision space is so vast and the consequences so terrible.
- Viticulture Essential Edition ( 2015)
- A beautiful worker-placement game where you manage vineyards, produce wine, and compete to become the most successful winemaker in Tuscany. It’s got plenty of variation with it’s modules and expansions, the cards have more bite than you think and it can become quite cutthroat.
Why we love it: It’s wonderfully tactile with it’s translucent tokens showing which type and quality your wine is, and the card play combined with worker placement can lead to some great comboing. While it seems kind of bland at first look, but when you’ve managed to lock someone out from harvesting or delivering a wine order and you take a sip from your glass of wine, grinning devilishly over the table, then you’ll know how wonderful this game is.
- A beautiful worker-placement game where you manage vineyards, produce wine, and compete to become the most successful winemaker in Tuscany. It’s got plenty of variation with it’s modules and expansions, the cards have more bite than you think and it can become quite cutthroat.
- The Lord of the Rings: Duel for Middle-earth (2024)
- This is, in my opinion, an evolved version of the game 7 Wonders Duel. It’s oh so fast to teach and play, with three victory conditions that you’re playing tug of war with your opponent over, the longer the game lasts, the more powerful the cards you can draft to your tableau become.
Why we love it: It’s just so easy to get to the table, the theme is spot on for us, and there is just enough strategic depth without overstaying it’s welcome.
- This is, in my opinion, an evolved version of the game 7 Wonders Duel. It’s oh so fast to teach and play, with three victory conditions that you’re playing tug of war with your opponent over, the longer the game lasts, the more powerful the cards you can draft to your tableau become.
Becca’s list:
- Brass: Birmingham (2018)
- Build industries, develop infrastructure, and navigate the industrial revolution. It’s got a dynamic market system that you need to navigate to maximize your potential to develop your own infrastructure, but not provide your competition with the resources they need.
Why we love it: We love the details like beer is needed for production, since at the time, water sources were often polluted. The balancing of player order through the previous round’s spending, and the random element introduced by your hand of cards, where you need to be clever to make it work with your overarching plans.
- Build industries, develop infrastructure, and navigate the industrial revolution. It’s got a dynamic market system that you need to navigate to maximize your potential to develop your own infrastructure, but not provide your competition with the resources they need.
- Camel up 2nd edition (2018)
- This is delightful chaos in a box, players bet on a camel race, where dice rolled from a wonky plastic pyramid dictate how far each camel will go during a round, but to complicate things there are two crazy camels running the opposite direction. To make it even more complicated all the camels can be stacked on top of each other, which means all of a sudden your lead camel might be carried backwards by a crazy camel. Luckily there is also some luck mitigation where you can play the odds, hedge bets and place tiles that affect the race.
Why we love it: It’s betting, on camels, with crazy camels.
- This is delightful chaos in a box, players bet on a camel race, where dice rolled from a wonky plastic pyramid dictate how far each camel will go during a round, but to complicate things there are two crazy camels running the opposite direction. To make it even more complicated all the camels can be stacked on top of each other, which means all of a sudden your lead camel might be carried backwards by a crazy camel. Luckily there is also some luck mitigation where you can play the odds, hedge bets and place tiles that affect the race.
- Root (2018)
- Woodland warfare with anthropomorphic animals, where you control unique woodland factions like the militant Marquise de Cat, the rebellious Woodland Alliance, the vagabonding Vagabond. Since the factions are asymmetric there’s alot of replayability here, even in the base box, but there are plenty of expansions as well with more factions, each having their unique playstyle.
Why we love it: Forest animals utilizing guerilla tactics, with amazing art style and so much discovery and replayability.
- Woodland warfare with anthropomorphic animals, where you control unique woodland factions like the militant Marquise de Cat, the rebellious Woodland Alliance, the vagabonding Vagabond. Since the factions are asymmetric there’s alot of replayability here, even in the base box, but there are plenty of expansions as well with more factions, each having their unique playstyle.
- Cascadia (2021)
- A relaxing tile-laying game where you create biomes filled with diverse wildlife. It’s got simple rules but deep decision-making.
Why we love it: It’s extremely accessible, and has such satisfying puzzle gameplay, it actually somewhat feels like you’re putting together a puzzle.
- A relaxing tile-laying game where you create biomes filled with diverse wildlife. It’s got simple rules but deep decision-making.
- Secret Hitler (2016)
- A game of Liberals vs. Fascists, where the Liberals are in majority, but don’t know who the fascists are around the table. Alliances are made, promises broken, accusations fly.
Why we love it: There’s always a lot of screaming when we play Secret Hitler, there’s also a lot of laughter, there’s also the time our friend threw a plant through a window.
- A game of Liberals vs. Fascists, where the Liberals are in majority, but don’t know who the fascists are around the table. Alliances are made, promises broken, accusations fly.
