Let's talk really cool BOARD games... request recommendations

TwistedSister77

So Christmas time is here, I'm with family so I bought a bunch on non-mainstream board games... haven't played them yet:

- Fallout Base game + Atomic card set expansion (it let's you play cooperatively)

-Pandemic and Pandemic North America

- A Game of Thrones (second edition)

- A bunch of the "Exit" games

- Funkoverse (Harry Potter Version)

I'm looking for a variety of competitive but also Co-op games(cuts down on just being competitive with family/friends)

How did you like these games?  Any suggestions for others? 

PS - played Axis and Allies years ago, but the opening moves were scripted... and a person/team spends most of the game knowing they already lost.  I know there are new versions (like zombies)... but didn't want the same experience.

cameltosis

The only one I've played out of your list if Pandemic, got it as a present a few years back. I've played maybe 5 or 6 games with a variety of players.

Its a fairly reasonable game, fairly quick as there are a whole bunch of "fail" conditions that seem to crop up quickly. Depending on how you interpret the rules, I've either lost all but one game, or won all but one game! Winning also seems to require some decent cooperative tactics based on the characters you are using, so if you are playing with first timers then it is highly likely you will lose.

For a co-op game, I would highly recommend Zombicide. 1-6 players, working your way around a level, killing zombies. It is the closest board game to a video game I have played. You earn XP for killing zombies, your characters level up and gain new abilities, and you have to loot all ur weapons from the map. The zombie spawn mechanics also mean the game can be unpredictable, you can go from an empty map to 30+ zombies in a single spawn. Despite all this, it is a relatively simple game so shouldn't overwhelm children.

For a competitive game, I would recommend "The Really Nasty Horse Racing Game". As you might imagine, it is about horse racing and gambling. 6 races, 6 riders per race. You win money if your horse gets a podium, but you can also bet on any horse you want. Each player then has a bunch of special cards, like "Falls at the first hedge", which allows you to knock out horses, turn them around, bribe the judges etc.

The game then boils down to outsmarting and dicking over your competitors. Who have they bet on, and how can I screw them over? Can I bluff and make them think I've bet on this horse, but actually I bet on something else?

Every time I have played this game, I've had an excellent time. Super competitive, lots of mind games and fun!

[I would recommend only playing this game if you have 6 players, any less and the races stop being as fun]

Finally, I actually played my first game of Aliens (based on the movie) last night. It's coop, 1-6 players. Includes pretty good figurines of the main squad (ripley, hicks etc) and 16 aliens. Took me and my mate about 2 hours to go through the rules and setup the game, but after that it was pretty quick and looks like it will be a good game. Lots of complex rules that seemed unnecessary, but im hoping will offer up lots of tactical options in the future, but we didn't have time to finish level 1 last night so i need to wait and see.

WhiteLantern

So, boardgames have been my passion for the last several years, I have some ideas for you.

Zombicide. Pick up the scifi version, Invader or Darkside (I prefer Darkside). Add in the expansion, Black Ops. Alternatively, the fantasy version, Black Plague or Green Horde if you prefer fantasy to scifi, is also good. 
Good time, co-op survival-adventure gaming.

Ticket to Ride is a great gateway game for families. Good clean competitive fun. Very mainstream if you're not a hipster (but so is Pandemic, so...).

Elder Sign is a fantastic dice-rolling co-op adventure game with a Cuthulu wrapper. Many good expansions for it. 

If you can locate a copy of Three Dragon Ante, you'll find a pretty fun poker-esque card game.

You can never go wrong with Yahtzee. 

When you're truly ready to embrace the rabbit hole: Shadows of Brimstone. It's a lifestyle.

Theocritus

Once in awhile we play one called "The Order of the Stick".....It sounds like the South Park game but it is not......Multiplayer dungeon crawler where players decide if they want to cooperate or betray other players.....Has a good sense of humor to it and can take hours to play with great replay value.....

WalkinGlenn

So if you're looking for a turn based rpg style of board game thats really good then check out Gloomhaven Jaws of the Lion. Its also available at Walmart and Target and always on the shelf. 

Some more simple, but amazing games are the following.
Scythe (also has a campaign expansion)
Everdell
Wingspan
Splendor (great for kids and adults) 
Azul (greatbfor kids and adults) 
Roll Player (fantastic dice puzzly game)
Mechs Vs Minions (just look it up!)
Terraforming Mars (wow amazing game)

Here are some less main stream games that are a little more involved, but are really great games. Some 4x titles and some rpg style games.
Heroes of Land Air and Sea
City of Kings (love it!)
Gloom of Kilforth (beautiful artwork!)
Shadows of Kolforth (still beautiful!)

Having almost 150 board games plus expansions I could keep going. Some games can get pretty heavy and arent really new gamer friendly. Take any Chip Theory game for example. They tried to capture DOTA in their game Cloud Spire (check it out).

Anyway, play on!

lotrlore

Real question, and just jumping in here: would periodical coverage of tabletop/board games be something you all would like to see from us? Not anything that would take over regular game coverage, but we do get pitches and enough of our writing staff are into them that they could make good columns/reviews every now and then.

Brainy

TwistedSister77 said:

So Christmas time is here, I'm with family so I bought a bunch on non-mainstream board games... haven't played them yet:

- Fallout Base game + Atomic card set expansion (it let's you play cooperatively)

-Pandemic and Pandemic North America

- A Game of Thrones (second edition)

- A bunch of the "Exit" games

- Funkoverse (Harry Potter Version)

I'm looking for a variety of competitive but also Co-op games(cuts down on just being competitive with family/friends)

How did you like these games?  Any suggestions for others? 

PS - played Axis and Allies years ago, but the opening moves were scripted... and a person/team spends most of the game knowing they already lost.  I know there are new versions (like zombies)... but didn't want the same experience.

Only played Pandemic out of that list.  It was fun but not something you can play over and over again for lots hours.  Play it once in awhile sort of thing.  But its a nice COOP never seen much arguments from that game.

Exploding Kittens would be my top suggestion, its not a board game but a card game like UNO.  Family friendly and from what I have seen many different families love the game and without a bunch of competitive arguing. Cant go wrong with Exploding Kittens.  Get this expansions for it also, makes it better.  Can play all night long over an over again.

If you want to go novelty Secret Hitler is usually a hit.  But be warned, long term can create family trust issues.  But people do seem to have a blast while playing.

TwistedSister77

Holy Molly, 

You all gave me a ton of games to research and probably buy!  

I will be playing a lot of 2 player games with my 70 year old mom (she's very smart).  Any advice from the lists for coop and competitive.  PS... in general she loves mysteries, nostalgia, history.  Card games are welcome too.

I have a lot of the standard mainstream games: Scrabble, Yatzee,  monolopy, pick up sticks, Jenga,  uno, cards, etc.

TwistedSister77

Reposted below.

AlBQuirky

Awesome! I like me some board games

I've played Pandemic once or twice. It's a fun cooperative game. It can boil down to one player "advising" others of the best play. By that, I mean one player may "suggest first" instead of "listen first."

I also used to play Game of Thrones a lot, when it came out (1st edition and pre-HBO series). It is a fun game with strategy with armies, political intrigue, and many options for the number of players.

Those were the 2 from your list that I've had any experience with

As for other games, I have not kept up with the industry. I do have favorites that may or not help: (Boardgame Geek links)

Power Grid - A game about power grids and updating power plants to deliver power to connected cities.

Ticket to Ride - A train game where the players try to connect routes between cities.

Zombie Survival - Another coop game where the players try to save a town from a zombie apocalypse.

And, if you get bored, Wil Wheaton did a boardgame series waaaay back (2012-ish?) when. Here's a link to the series playlist on YouTube.

I hope that helps a little

WalkinGlenn

TwistedSister77 said:

Holy Molly, 

You all gave me a ton of games to research and probably buy!  

I will be playing a lot of 2 player games with my 70 year old mom (she's very smart).  Any advice from the lists for coop and competitive.  PS... in general she loves mysteries, nostalgia, history.  Card games are welcome too.

I have a lot of the standard mainstream games: Scrabble, Yatzee,  monolopy, pick up sticks, Jenga,  uno, cards, etc.

The best two player game I've ever played it "7 Wonders Duel" and another lesser know game "Trip Lock" is a close second.

Trip Lock is a lock picking game and the pieces are chips. Its a great memory game, but even if you have a poor memory you can still win with a good strategy. It also has solo scenarios! 

Scot

Well there is a Dune board game as we were talking about it elsewhere, not sure you can still get it though.

Scot

lotrlore said:

Real question, and just jumping in here: would periodical coverage of tabletop/board games be something you all would like to see from us? Not anything that would take over regular game coverage, but we do get pitches and enough of our writing staff are into them that they could make good columns/reviews every now and then.

But are these board games really MMORPG's?

Sure why not, nothing wrong with the site adding another game related string to its bow.

WalkinGlenn

Scot said:

lotrlore said:

Real question, and just jumping in here: would periodical coverage of tabletop/board games be something you all would like to see from us? Not anything that would take over regular game coverage, but we do get pitches and enough of our writing staff are into them that they could make good columns/reviews every now and then.

But are these board games really MMORPG's?

Sure why not, nothing wrong with the site adding another game related string to its bow.

The City of Kings tried to emulate MMORPG's. You do quests, fight enemies and level up. Maybe a board game section that revolves around these types of games? It would still be in the spirit of this site too.

Scot

WalkinGlenn said:

Scot said:

lotrlore said:

Real question, and just jumping in here: would periodical coverage of tabletop/board games be something you all would like to see from us? Not anything that would take over regular game coverage, but we do get pitches and enough of our writing staff are into them that they could make good columns/reviews every now and then.

But are these board games really MMORPG's?

Sure why not, nothing wrong with the site adding another game related string to its bow.

The City of Kings tried to emulate MMORPG's. You do quests, fight enemies and level up. Maybe a board game section that revolves around these types of games? It would still be in the spirit of this site too.

They could also choose RPG themes or more broadly fantasy and SF, but as many of us play them I see no reason to rule out any board game.

TwistedSister77

OK, here are great essentials for game night for cards and dice product categories, (you can pick other specific products).

Great affordable gifts for families... especially during Christmas.  They'll have great enjoyment for years (not too many gifts under $25 you can say that about).


First, hand crank card shuffler.  They are fun (my nieces and nephews fight over who gets to do it), fast, it keeps your cards from being damaged vs doing it by hand (no more broken backs/folds on cards), and prevents cheating.

Everyone gets to shuffle fast, now even my 4 year old niece can be a dealer (she likes it more than actually playing the card game).  Adults don't need to be dedicated shufflers.

 The battery powered ones are super noisy and less interactive.

This one below... 2 decks can be shuffled at once (or one full Uno deck).  4-5 shuffles through = statistically random 

More than 2 decks?  Create more piles and just shuffle the piles against each other (instead of 2 piles, create 3 piles or more).



Next up, multipack of dice rollers with dice.  Felt on the inside = way less noise vs plastic shakers.  Kids love it because they get their own color coordinated rollers and dice.  Also, prevents children from just throwing dice super hard around  (vs rolling by hand)

Really speeds up play because people aren't passing a set of dice around after each turn.  This is the ultimate for Yatzee.



To go with your dice,  dice boards.  They keep the dice from going all over the place (reduces bounce and walled in) + cut down dramatically on noise. 

So many options, I have this multipack set because:  

1) one single dice area is not practical for a bunch of people around a board game... several people are going to need to reach across the board everytime

2) these fold up flat, less storage and easy to travel (like camping)

3) see above with dice rollers, people have their own colored dice area... again really fun for kids.

(Price got cut off... $15.99 on Amazon)




Finally, 1 set of DnD dice is not a good idea if you have visitors and have games requiring those types of dice.

This multipack has unique colors and bags, with a bonus of a foldable dice area.   

TwistedSister77

WalkinGlenn said:

Scot said:

lotrlore said:

Real question, and just jumping in here: would periodical coverage of tabletop/board games be something you all would like to see from us? Not anything that would take over regular game coverage, but we do get pitches and enough of our writing staff are into them that they could make good columns/reviews every now and then.

But are these board games really MMORPG's?

Sure why not, nothing wrong with the site adding another game related string to its bow.

The City of Kings tried to emulate MMORPG's. You do quests, fight enemies and level up. Maybe a board game section that revolves around these types of games? It would still be in the spirit of this site too.

Yes, occasional board game reviews I think are in good spirit of the site... especially since bunch are rpgs.

 I haven't played it yet, but the Fallout board game emulates a lot of the aspects from the Fallout rpg video games (according to reviews).  (E.g. get weapon / item upgrades, deal with factions, rng events)

TwistedSister77

Arterius said:

TwistedSister77 said:

OK, here are great essentials for game night for cards and dice product categories, (you can pick other specific products).

Great affordable gifts for families... especially during Christmas.  They'll have great enjoyment for years (not too many gifts under $25 you can say that about).


First, hand crank card shuffler.  They are fun (my nieces and nephews fight over who gets to do it), fast, it keeps your cards from being damaged vs doing it by hand (no more broken backs/folds on cards), and prevents cheating.

Everyone gets to shuffle fast, now even my 4 year old niece can be a dealer (she likes it more than actually playing the card game).  Adults don't need to be dedicated shufflers.

 The battery powered ones are super noisy and less interactive.

This one below... 2 decks can be shuffled at once (or one full Uno deck).  4-5 shuffles through = statistically random 

More than 2 decks?  Create more piles and just shuffle the piles against each other (instead of 2 piles, create 3 piles or more).



Next up, multipack of dice rollers with dice.  Felt on the inside = way less noise vs plastic shakers.  Kids love it because they get their own color coordinated rollers and dice.  Also, prevents children from just throwing dice super hard around  (vs rolling by hand)

Really speeds up play because people aren't passing a set of dice around after each turn.  This is the ultimate for Yatzee.



To go with your dice,  dice boards.  They keep the dice from going all over the place (reduces bounce and walled in) + cut down dramatically on noise. 

So many options, I have this multipack set because:  

1) one single dice area is not practical for a bunch of people around a board game... several people are going to need to reach across the board everytime

2) these fold up flat, less storage and easy to travel (like camping)

3) see above with dice rollers, people have their own colored dice area... again really fun for kids.

(Price got cut off... $15.99 on Amazon)




Finally, 1 set of DnD dice is not a good idea if you have visitors and have games requiring those types of dice.

This multipack has unique colors and bags, with a bonus of a foldable dice area.   

does that card shuffler work with cards that are sleeved. I sleeve my cards because I have kids and don't want them damaged

When I was originally researching all the different card shufflers to buy, a common question in Amazon's customer Q&A for most shufflers was yours... can it shuffle sleeved cards (for those who don't know, sleeves are individual plastic card protectors... like you would use to protect baseball or Pokémon cards).

No, I did not come across shufflers for sleeved cards (doesn't mean they don't exist).  This card shuffler (and others) can shuffle standard playing card sizes (and smaller).. but not larger sizes.  

I think the sleeves will make the cards too big.  Also, it might have a hard time gripping the cards.

However, I read that plastic cards do work.

For those who do get a shuffler... using your mauled and really beat-up decks could cause hassle.  I bought fresh packs of playing cards & Uno... pretty cheap and should last for years (because you are putting very little wear and tear on them when shuffling)


Edit: 2 pro tips... 

1) you do not need exact half the cards on each side.  Just approximate.  When you go to reshuffle, bury the top few cards in the new piles (otherwise they may stay on top).

2) with all shufflers, rarely does it stop shuffing.  If it does it's usually a 3 second fix (the unit is not broken).  Pop the gears on top back into place with any small object.  Here is a video... go to 57 second mark.  Again it is very rare, so don't expect to have to do this often or even ever.

Nilden

I played Hero Quest way back when and remember it being awesome!

Brainy

WalkinGlenn said:

The best two player game I've ever played it "7 Wonders Duel" and another lesser know game "Trip Lock" is a close second.

My wife loves 7 Wonders regular game, she is an absolute fanatic.  Didn't even know there was a 7 Wonder Duel.  Some people are so hard to buy for. 

THANK YOU for this, I will slip this in as a last minute Xmas purchase.  She will appreciate this $40 item more than any $300 item I could buy her.

WhiteLantern

Scot said:

lotrlore said:

Real question, and just jumping in here: would periodical coverage of tabletop/board games be something you all would like to see from us? Not anything that would take over regular game coverage, but we do get pitches and enough of our writing staff are into them that they could make good columns/reviews every now and then.

But are these board games really MMORPG's?

Sure why not, nothing wrong with the site adding another game related string to its bow.

Well, here goes:
Massive: we've debated that definition here for years,so depending on your take: maybe.

Multiplayer: yes and no, just like your favorite digital games.

Online: nope, but some are app-assisted.

RPG: depends on the game.

eoloe

Age of Gods

https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/13071/age-gods

Theoretically 3-5 players, best player with 3 or 4 to keep the bluffing aspect running. Amazing game, where nobody knows who is victorious until the very end.

Kyleran

lotrlore said:

Real question, and just jumping in here: would periodical coverage of tabletop/board games be something you all would like to see from us? Not anything that would take over regular game coverage, but we do get pitches and enough of our writing staff are into them that they could make good columns/reviews every now and then.

Why not, can only beat the usual dead horses around here so much, might as well read something different from time to time...