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Christmas is just around the corner and with it, the stress of buying presents for the pickiest of present recipients—children and teenagers (and some adults!). Maybe they’re nieces, nephews, cousins, family friends, friends of family, many of whom you probably haven’t seen for the majority of this year. Or perhaps this picky child is your own child! Maybe you’re sick of playing the same old Monopoly or Jenga and you’re looking for a game to play together as a family, but you’re afraid of getting something too mature or too kiddish. Never fear, Gameology is here!!! Today, we will be doing a quick run-down of ten games that make great presents for kids and for those who love a great quick game. Keep in mind that while we have included the recommended ages for these board games as printed on the box, you know your child best! 1) Klask Recommended age: 8+ For those kids who love fast-paced competitive games, 2 player dexterity game, Klask, is a great choice. Similar to air hockey or soccer, you try to hit the ball into your opponent’s goal which is the hole in the table, but the cool trick is, you control your striker with a magnet held under the table! This dexterity game rewards quick reaction times as you try not to let your striker fall into your own goal or get stuck to the little magnetic ‘biscuits’ rolling around the field. A 4 player version of this game (Klask 4) is also available if you want to play as a bigger group! 2) Takenoko Recommended age: 8+ In this adorably colourful game, 2-4 players grow and harvest bamboo while feeding the Emperor’s panda. Though a little more strategic, kids will have no trouble picking up the mechanics of tile laying and action points, many of which lay the foundation for other board games you can play with them in the future! With its gorgeous stackable bamboo pieces and pre-painted panda and farmer pieces, Takenoko is both a treat to look at and a treat to play. 3) Kingdomino Recommended age: 8+ This bright little game is a perfect kids-friendly introduction to tile-placement mechanics. Starting from your castle, you will expand your kingdom by placing domino-esque lands, trying to match up terrain for the most points. After each player has completed a 5x5 grid, the game ends. Playing up to 4 players in only 15 minutes, Kingdomino is a fun, breezy tile-laying game that the whole family can enjoy. 4) Dominion Recommended age: 13+ If you've ever heard of "Deck Builders", it's normally followed up by "Dominion". Now this classic strategy deck-builder might seem like an odd choice for this list. When I was about 10, my 15-year-old cousin brought this game over to play on Christmas. However after Christmas, he accidentally left the game at our house and just forgot about it. Years later, as a teenager, I returned to this game and, to this day, it is probably my favourite board game ever. Without Dominion, I probably would not be into the board gaming hobby (and I also would not be here, working at Gameology, writing this post you’re reading right now). Though I would recommend this for teenagers as opposed to children, I have played it recently with my 10-year-old cousin and she found it easy to pick up. Dominion is a solid introduction to the deck-building genre and a game that could stay with your kids well into adulthood. 5) Princess Jing Recommended age: 8+ Described as ‘hide-and-seek as a board game’, Princess Jing is a 2 player hidden movement game where you must help a princess escape from the city! Players will sit opposite each other, and the gorgeous 3D pillars will totally conceal the positions of your pieces from your opponent. Kids will appreciate the fun novelty of using characters holding actual mirrors (!) to reveal their opponent’s pieces, and adults will appreciate the unique concept for a board game. 6) Minecraft: Builders & Biomes Recommended age: 10+ If your kid is uninterested in anything except video games, try this 2-4 player game based on Minecraft. Kids that are a fan of the original game will adore the familiar actions of mining resources and exploring the Overworld, and delight in the recognisable mobs like Endermen and Creepers. To be honest, as a Minecraft fan myself, I kind of want this game. For those stubborn kids who shun your attempts at introducing them to board games, bring their favourite video game to the table with Minecraft: Builders & Biomes. 7) My Little Scythe Recommended age: 8+ Everyone who knows board games knows the dieselpunk/steampunk legend, Scythe. With its giant mechs and strategic gameplay, it’s an iconic board game. Perhaps you dream of one day playing Scythe with your kids when they’re a bit older. In the meantime however, try the cute kid-friendly My Little Scythe. This sweet game maintains the essence of some of Scythe mechanics, like ‘powering up’ your player board, using dials and cards to determine combat, and moving across the hexes to gain resources, but keeps them light and easy to understand. With the theme of friendship ingrained into the mechanics and 3D animal mascots, My Little Scythe brings the classic revered board game to the kids. 8) Loopin' Louie Recommended age: 4+ I’ve covered a lot of strategy games so far on this list, but what about something simpler? Loopin' Louie has the lowest recommended age so far on this list, perfect for kids who aren’t ready to learn or play other games. In this 2-4 player game, players will try to defend their barn from Louie who is in a plane, looping and diving, trying to hit their barn! Each barn is equipped with a lever that pushes Louie back into the sky. Each player has 3 tokens of each colour (with chickens on them). The player who has any chickens tokens remaining at the end of the game is the winner! Loopin' Louie is a really silly and highly addictive game, it's definitely a favourite of mine! 9) Sushi Go Recommended age: 8+ In this adorable little tin, kids can pretend they are at a sushi train restaurant while also learning the basics of pick-and-pass card drafting. In the spirit of the primary school strategy for passing out worksheets, players will, each turn, keep one card from their hand and pass the rest along. Each different type of sushi has its own scoring criteria. For tofu, you want some tofu, but more than three? That’s just too much! Dip your nigiri into wasabi? That’s triple points! Though a bit of math is needed to calculate scoring, the little sushi are so cute, your kids won’t even realise they’re doing math. If you want even more sushi options to play with, a bigger version of this game (Sushi Go Party) is also available! 10) Exploding Kittens Recommended age: 7+ For a card game that’s got more of the toothy meanness of a typical Mario Party or Mario Kart session, try the 2-5 player card game Exploding Kittens. Loved by the whole family whenever someone brings it to our family lunches (pre-COVID), this is a game where you are, quite simply, just trying not to explode. Every turn, you must draw the top card of the deck. If it’s an exploding kitten, you explode and you are out of the game. However, certain card abilities will let you peek at the top few cards of the deck, shuffle the deck, skip your turn, even specifically place where you want the exploding kitten to go. Though it’s a bit of a mean game, it’s no meaner than shooting a green shell backwards in Mario Kart, so if your kids love that, they’ll love Exploding Kittens. If you really liked Exploding Kittens and you have more people that want to play, the Exploding Kittens Party Pack which can add up to 10 players (and it plays music when you open the box!). The creators have also made the same game but with a different theme to "Exploding Kittens", they also have Exploding Minions (Made famous from the movie Despicable Me). Buying Guide In summary, here’s a quick list of the games we covered, sorted by recommended ages: 4+: Loopin' Louie 7+: Exploding Kittens 8+: Klask, Takenoko, Kingdomino, Princess Jing, My Little Scythe, Sushi Go 10+: Minecraft: Builders & Biomes 13+: Dominion Please remember though that these ages are just recommendations! If you think your 5-year-old would love Sushi Go, by all means, go right ahead! (I myself first played Dominion at the age of 10.) And there we have it! Our top picks for the best board games to gift to your kids/nieces/nephews/cousins! What do you think? Did we miss any of your childhood favourites? Let us know in the comments below!
It’s nearing the middle of November (how, we don’t know either) so it’s about that time to start thinking about the Christmas craziness! While Christmas this year might look a little different, the silly season certainly will not! In fact, thinking about your Christmas gifts earlier this year will absolutely help ensure that your giftees (yes, that is word, we will fight you on this) will get exactly what they want under the tree, despite longer shipping times and lower stock levels everywhere. Here at Gameology we’ve thought of everything, so in addition to ordering a BUTT-LOAD more games for you guys to enjoy between now and Christmas, we’ve also compiled a list of the 10 best games that make great Christmas gifts for any age and ability! Check them out below: 1) Azul A fantastic 2-4 player abstract game, Azul is one of the best ways to introduce new players to the weird and wonderful world of board games! Tasked with searching Portuguese factories and their leftovers for beautiful tiles, players compete to build the most beautiful wall possible and gain the most victory points at the end of the game. End game is triggered when a player constructs a full horizontal row of tiles, but fear not, as this rarely means said player will win! Points are gathered during and after play based on a number of different rules, easily turning this seemingly innocuous beginner game into a tense war of strategy with each play. 2) Betrayal at the House on the Hill An excellent immersive experience for 3-6 players, Betrayal is an acclaimed thematic game for good reason. Horror surely awaits as suspense looms over the creepy House on the Hill where the layout and scenarios change every play! In this constantly evolving game, players will work together to build a haunted mansion - or will they? Suddenly, you feel a waft of a misty air breeze against your skin and hear the faint desperate scream of a long-gone fair maiden carried on it… The Haunt has begun and someone isn’t at all who they seem. Survivors must now work together to uncover the Betrayer and escape the confines of the House before they become the next ghost of the manor! Arguably one of the best value-for-money board games currently on offer as no two plays are ever the same, Betrayal and its expansion - Widow’s Walk - that introduces an entirely new House level to build and explore, are the perfect addition to any board gamer's collection. 3) Sushi Go! Party A great game of family fun, Sushi Go! Party is the ultimate game for foodies of all ages! The fast-paced 2-8 player game builds on the wild success of its predecessor, Sushi Go!, where players dine at a sushi train, trying to grab the best combo of dishes as they whirl past. Players score points for collecting the most sushi rolls or for crafting a full set of sashimi. Players score extra points by dipping their favourite nigiri into wasabi as well. Sushi Go! Party builds on this, allowing players to customise each game by choosing “a la carte” from a menu of more than 20 dishes. But, beware the sushi you allow others to take - it might be exactly what they need to win! 4) Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion One of our pre-order must-haves out now and a perfect gift for board game fanatics, Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion is a 1-4 player strategy game drawing on all the epic best-bits of the Gloomhaven realm and condensing them down to an easy-to-digest version for casual gameplay. Playing directly on a scenario book featuring new artwork and 25 new and unique adventures, Jaws of the Lion builds on the combat-centric mechanics of its predecessor, while also inviting heroes to explore more of their worlds and investigate a series of mysterious disappearances across their cities. One of the best ways to slowly and almost inconceivably transition friends and loved one’s alike to the universally praised Gloomhaven big box, you’ll need to get in quick, as release day will surely see a sell-out! 5) Pandemic A classic 2-4 player cooperative saga perfect for the current circumstances, Pandemic sees players work together to fight off four deadly diseases that are rapidly spreading across the world. As players move across the globe setting up research stations, using their unique character advantages and gathering city cards to eradicate the virus at those locations, the game has other ideas. Each turn, the game and its viruses try to thwart these noble efforts, raising the infection level and causing outbreaks in neighbouring cities and countries. Can you and your team of doctors and scientists rise to the occasion and help find the cures? 6) 7 Wonders: Duel A compact 2-player version of its parent game of the same name, 7 Wonders: Duel is the perfect gift for twosomes stuck in #iso who want all the fun of playing a big group game, but lack the big group to play it with! Like the original 7 Wonders game, players draft cards over three Ages to acquire resources or develop their military/scientific knowledge to advance their civilization and build their respective Wonders. Duel sees players draft cards from a tabled display instead of simultaneously, meaning that timing and gaining bonus moves will be the overarching mechanics that govern play. The player with the most points at the end of the game, wins, unless of course you’re cunning enough to develop your military or scientific knowledge beyond your civilisations capability... 7) Wingspan A wonderful strategy game for 1-5 players, this fast-paced engine builder will not only see players fawn over the excellent game mechanics, but the beautiful artwork and componentry as well! Players are bird-enthusiasts seeking to attract only the best birds to their wildlife reserves. Taking turns to draft bird cards on their player boards that will extend a chain of powerful combinations within each habitat, players will focus on gaining the most points to win by game end by meeting bonus round criteria, laying eggs on nests, cacheing food on birds and tucking birds underneath other birds. But beware, the amount of turns available after each round is drastically reduced as players move through the game. An addictive, visually appealing game, Wingspan and its Euro Expansion are guaranteed to delight whomever is lucky to receive them! 8) Obscurio From the publishers of Dixit, Dice Forge, Mysterium and the soon-to-be-released Athenuem: Mystic Library, Obscurio is the must-have 2-8 player semi-cooperative game that delights and astounds with its visual mastery! Combining image-based communication and secret role playing, players are encouraged to work together to collectively guide the team towards the exit of the immense library. But players be warned, the Sorcerer is out to mislead and keep you from ever escaping, unless you can uncover their identity before it’s too late! Supported by rich contents and a fantastic gaming pedigree, Obscurio is a fantastic family and party game alike, designed to be enjoyed by the masses but varied enough to play over and over again! 9) Nemesis Nemesis is the ideal space-themed survival adventure gift for the hard-core board gamer in your life. A 1-5 player semi-cooperative sci-fi horror game, Nemesis is certainly not for the faint of heart. Navigating their way across a decimated spaceship filled with hostile organisms, players must complete a set of objectives and board an escape pod back to Earth in one piece. But all is not as it seems. Player objectives are both cooperative and individual in nature; so who do you follow? Who can you trust? Players won’t know, right until the very end! A fantastic game that builds and settles climactic moments across play, Nemesis is an immersive experience that is both enjoyable and enjoyably frustrating at times. 10) Oceans: Deluxe Edition A visually stunning stand-alone game in the award-winning Evolution series, Oceans is a 2-4 player interactive engine-builder, based upon, you guessed it - the ocean! Players aim to cultivate the most productive ecosystem by building and evolving the various species they draw, keep or discard from their hand each round. By using Surface and Deep card abilities to their advantage, aiming to feed their organisms or risk them going extinct, players must also navigate between two unique scenarios that activate and deactivate at certain points. Experiencing a varied, challenging and constantly-changing game play that sees them adjusting their strategy to win, this game is the ideal gift for experienced board gamer's seeing their newest challenge. Why the Deluxe Edition you ask? The upgrade is well worth it as in addition to receiving all base game components, owners also receive the 5-6 player expansion, upgraded acrylic components (*drools*), printed card sleeves (*double drools*) and silky drawstring bags adorned with beautiful and vibrant artwork in which to hide your fishy-loot. The Deluxe Edition just adds that little something special to the gaming experience - and extra expense that will seldom go underappreciated by the recipient. Aaaaaand there you have it, our definitive list of the best Christmas gifts to satisfy every level of board gamer this silly season! Think we missed a game? Let us know! Comment below what board games you’re planning to nestle under someone’s tree this year or tell us what you’re adding to your Xmas wish list!
What time does the Gameology Super Frenzy start and finish? The Gameology Super Frenzy Starts at 12pm 10th November and will run for exactly 24 hours finishing at 12pm on the 11th November. When does the discount get applied to my purchase? The Discount will be automatically applied at checkout for all the items in your cart. Does the super Frenzy discount apply to already discounted items? Yes it does! You get to take an additional percentage off whatever the price is listed on the website at the time. What is a TCG item that will receive the 5% discount? Any product that falls under the TCG collection or Trading Card Game collection of our website is eligible for the 5% discount. This includes products like Pokemon TCG Magic The Gathering YuGioH Dragon Ball Super TCG And More! When will I receive the items I purchased as part of the Gameology Super Frenzy In order to get your games on the table as soon as we can, we strive to process all our orders as quickly as possible. Orders made before 8am will be shipped from our warehouse the same business day. Orders made after 8AM will be shipped from our warehouse the next business day. All of our orders are shipped by our team directly from the Gameology Warehouse located at 12 Eileen Road Clayton South, VIC 3169. Please note that due to the expected volume of orders we do anticipate a delay of up to 3 business days on items leaving the Gameology warehouse. Standard shipping can vary from 2 to 7 business days, but in most cases you should allow approximately 5 business days from the purchase date. Express shipping should usually be 1-2 business days but on occasion can be delayed. What if the item I want is out of stock? The discount is only valid on in stock items or available to pre order items Any items that are listed as out of stock are not eligible to be purchased with the Super Frenzy at a later time. If you have any other general questions about Gameology they may be answered under our FAQ section here If there are any questions about the Gameology Super Frenzy that we haven’t answered above please feel free to contact us at contactus@gameology.com.au or directly via our social media pages and we will be more than happy to help.
After what feels like years holed up in a cave, finally, we emerge to sunshine, socialising and, at long last, social board games. If that copy of Cards Against Humanity is getting a little tattered, here’s some new party games to ease the initial awkwardness of learning how to be around people again. 1) One Night Ultimate Werewolf If you’ve ever played Mafia in high school drama classes, you probably know the feeling of getting killed by the mafia in the first round and having to sit there, bored, watching everyone else have fun for the next twenty minutes. With its accompanying app and fast playtime, One Night Ultimate Werewolf is a modern version of the old classic that spans—as the name suggests—only one night. Everyone gets one of a dozen different secret roles—from the Seer, to the Troublemaker, to the Werewolf—each with its own unique ability. Maybe you get to peek at another player’s card. Maybe you get to switch your card with another player’s. In the morning, all players wake up and try to deduce who can be trusted. Since you cannot recheck your cards, there’s no guaranteeing you’re the same innocent villager you started as. Watch in horror as you figure out you’re actually now a Werewolf and must shift the blame away from yourself if you want to win the game. Playing anywhere from 3 to 10 people, One Night Ultimate Werewolf is a fast and fresh hidden role game for parties of all sizes. If you’ve been playing lots of the videogame Among Us in lockdown, One Night Ultimate Werewolf is the party game for you. Check out One Night Ultimate Werewolf Here 2) Anomia Maybe you like party games where you get to flex your brain. You’re quick-witted, intelligent, sharp as a dagger—and you need to prove it. Like a trivia night but better, Anomia is a party game that asks to recall random mundane knowledge you have accumulated over your lifetime. A one-hit wonder. A frozen food. A brand of toothpaste. And sure, I bet you named some in your head right now. But can you do it under pressure? The game is a breeze to set up and even breezier to play. Going around the table, each person draws a card off the top of the deck and immediately places it face up in front of them. There’ll be one of those random categories—dessert, for instance—plus a weird symbol. But no time to investigate your own card—watch the cards other players flip. If any of their symbols match yours, you must shout out the answer to their card before they shout out yours! You’ll surprise yourself when even your quick wits fail to think of a dog breed (despite the fact you have three dogs) when someone else is yelling “APPLE PIE!” in your face. Check out Anomia Here! 3) Wavelength So everyone knows you love blueberries. You order a blueberry muffin on your way to work every day, you put it in pancakes, in smoothies, on ice cream. But if you had to put it on a scale, where would your love fall? With its stunning box and gameshow-esque glittering pop-up dial, Wavelength is definitely the flashiest of all the party games on this list. To play, players split into two teams. One person from one team spins a panel behind the dial and peeks at where the bullseye falls, whether it’s all the way left or two-thirds right or slightly left of centre. They need to get their team to spin their needle onto the bullseye. But the clue they give must fall within a binary. Perhaps they draw the card ‘believable vs unbelievable’ and they say the clue, ‘astrology’. Some people might fall way over to the ‘unbelievable’ side. But what about the clue-giver? What does she think about astrology? And here lies the magic of Wavelength. This rainbow box and glittery dial is a board game, yes, but it’s also a device to help you get to know people—perfect for post-lockdown catch-ups. Check out Wavelength Here! 4) A Fake Artist Goes to New York Bundled in this adorable pocket-sized pink box, A Fake Artist Goes to New York is a game where players are artists working on a collaborative picture. However, like in many of the horror games discussed in a previous post, one of you is an imposter! A fake! A fraud! The Question Master will set a category for the image—job, food, country, etc—and then write a word from that category on dry-erase cards passed out to each player. However, one player will just get a big fat ‘X’. The fake artist. Each turn, you can only draw one line on the page. The beauty of this game is figuring out how much to draw on your turn to prove to everyone else that you’re not the fake, while also not giving enough away that the actual fake artist will be able to catch onto the word. So cute and small you can literally fit it in your pocket, A Fake Artist Goes to New York is a party game you can take anywhere. Check out A Fake Artist Goes To New York Here! 5) Don’t Get Got Unlike all the other games on this list—and many games not on this list—Don’t Get Got is a game played in the background of life. Imagine this: you’re talking to your friend—let’s call him Gene. He’s got a pretty cool hat. It looks like an octopus sitting on his head. A friend from the other side of the room calls him over so he takes off the hat, leaves it unattended on the table, and walks away. You stare at the hat like a ticking bomb. It’s a cool hat. It’s crocheted and looks like a freaking octopus. You have to put it on. As soon as the crocheted tentacles settle against the sides of your face, you feel something itching at the top of your head. You remove the hat and reach inside. A card—one that feels scarily similar to the six cards you currently have in your secret wallet. You turn to see Gene maniacally grinning. And you hear the dreaded words: You. Got. Got. If that little scene (inspired by the scene in Shut Up and Sit Down’s video review) made your fingers itch to play, here’s a rundown. Give each player a wallet filled with six secret missions. Be the first to complete three and you win. But beware. If, in the process of trying to complete a mission, someone asks the dreaded question, “Is this from the game?”, you immediately fail that mission. It’s soul-crushing, believe me. If you’re looking to gamify your next party and feel like an undercover spy, Don’t Get Got is your perfect post-lockdown party game. Check out Don't Get Got Here! Buying Guide In summary, if you want to... Lie to your friends? One Night Ultimate Werewolf. Yell mundane trivia? Anomia. Learn new things about your friends and family? Wavelength. Make terrible drawings together? A Fake Artist Goes to New York. Gamify your party and feel like a spy? Don’t Get Got. And there we have it! Our 5 best party games now that we’re out of lockdown! What do you think? Did we miss anything? Let us know in the comments below!
I don’t know about you, but I always found history classes so boring. But perhaps that was just the way they were taught. You know what makes everything more fun to learn? Board games. Take a look back at pivotal moments in human history with our top 5 historical games to bring the past into the present. 1) Pandemic Legacy: Season 0 Building off the backs of both a wildly successful legacy game and an all-round great strategy board game, Pandemic Legacy: Season 0 places players as medical graduates recruited by the CIA. Taking place in 1962—the midst of the Cold War—this legacy game tasks them with battling both the Soviets’ new bioweapon and the agents themselves. In legacy games, each play session acts as a chapter in a larger narrative. However, as you play the game, you will leave lasting changes to both the physical components of the game and the rules themselves as you play through the campaign. You’ll place stickers, open sealed-up packages, even tear up cards (?!). Pandemic Legacy: Season 0 combines the global political games of the Cold War with the legacy mechanic to give you a sense of progression and permanence fitting to the historical setting. Your choices feel like they matter. Though this title is still on preorder, it’s expected to arrive in December. If you’re looking for a rich legacy Cold War experience, Pandemic Legacy: Season 0 is one to watch. 2) Watergate Perhaps you’re interested in the Cold War, but the grand scope of Pandemic Legacy: Season 0 intimidates you. Or perhaps you only have one friend willing to play board games with you but you still want a rich historical experience. Look no further than Watergate—a tense 2-player board game based off the Nixon scandal of the same name. Highly competitive and head-to-head, one player acts as the Nixon administration, trying desperately not to resign, and the other plays as The Washington Post trying to expose the links between Nixon and his informers. Playing in just 30-60 minutes, Watergate offers historical gravity and a tense tug-of-war, without the lengthy playtime. 3) Memoir ‘44 Let’s go a little further back in time. World War II. If you want to feel like a war general, hunching over a map and plotting battle strategies, you’ve got to try Memoir ‘44—a wargame where you can reenact some of the most famous battles from WWII, from Omaha Beach to the Ardennes. Contained in the box are over 15 different scenarios, each striving for accuracy in terrain, placement of soldiers and objectives of each side, but still allowing for players to strategise. Don’t be put off by the gritty illustrations on the box—this 2-player game is relatively easy to teach and play and plays in anywhere from 30-60 minutes. 4) Paths of Glory To cap off the wars of the 20th century, here’s a board game about the First World War, or as they viewed it then—the Great War. With a board spanning all of Europe and the Middle East, Paths of Glory places you as either the Allies or the Central Powers fighting the bloody battles that shaped the modern world. Will you triumph or will you fall? The power is in your hand. Quite literally actually since this game is mostly centred around card-play and making tough decisions. Like Memoir ‘44, Paths of Glory will make you feel like a war general hunched over a sprawling map. Except, in this case, perhaps more realistically, as this game can take up to 8 hours to play. Don’t expect to whip this game out for a random weekday board game night. You’ll have to set aside the majority, if not all of your day, but for the depth of strategy that feels so right for a Great War game, it’s worth it. 5) Through the Ages: A New Story of Civilization Maybe you don’t want to just relive history. Maybe you’re not particularly attached to any one point of history, let alone the 20th century. Maybe you want to rewrite history from the ground up. Ranked among the top ten board games on BoardGameGeek, Through the Ages: A New Story of Civilization will be familiar to anyone who has played any of Sid Meier’s Civilization videogames. Like in said games, players will each have a civilization and have to build up their resources, military, and technology from the humble beginnings of agriculture to the internet, all while balancing citizen happiness and food requirements. Though it is lighter on the historical depth than all the other games on this list, Through the Ages still manages to capture the immense scale and strategy involved in building a civilization. Sure, your civilization might have leaders that wildly conflict with your government and natural wonders, but hey--this is rewriting not reenacting. Why buy a game about one specific period of history when you can get one that spans all of it? Buying Guide In summary, if you’re looking for... A Cold War legacy game where choices feel important? Pandemic Legacy: Season 0. A 2-player tug-of-war based on the Nixon scandal? Watergate. Quick-to-play reenactments of famous WWII battles? Memoir ‘44. An 8 hour WWI experience with unparalleled depth? Paths of Glory. Scale and strategy across all of history? Through the Ages: A New Story of Civilization. Now check your player count... Only got 2 players? Watergate or Memoir ‘44 for a short game. Paths of Glory for an all-day experience. Have a bigger gaming group? Through the Ages: A New Story of Civilization for a regular board game experience. Pandemic Legacy: Season 0 for a multi-session legacy game. And there we have it! Our top 5 historical board games! What do you think? Did we miss anything? Let us know in the comments below! If you are interested in more great games check out our our blog on 𝑶𝒖𝒓 𝑻𝒐𝒑 5 𝑩𝒐𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝑮𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝑶𝒖𝒕𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑨𝒓𝒕𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌 here
October is upon us and you know what that means… It’s time for that sinking feeling that the year is almost over and you haven’t accomplished all your arbitrary goals! Oh—and also Halloween. Though this Halloween might not be full of costume parties and trick-or-treating like our (medical) maskless years prior, here are five board games to get you in the spooky spirit from the comfort of your own home. 1) Nemesis Atmospheric and deeply thematic, this semi-cooperative board game places you as a crew member on a spaceship infested with grotesque, hostile aliens. In the vein of survival horror videogames or film classic Alien, playing Nemesis fills you with tension and distrust as you perch on the edge of your seat, fearful an alien might ambush you out of the shadows. But are the aliens really the ones you should be worrying about? Each person will play as a unique character with their own skills, equipment and most crucially, a secret objective. Does your best friend really want you to get out of this ship alive? Or have they been plotting to leave you to die to an alien this whole time? You’ve heard of stage presence—this game has table presence. With its variety of intricately detailed miniatures and its dark, shadowy board, just setting up this game will give you chills. (Even looking at the box makes me uneasy but I’m a baby). Dim the lights and be ready to star in your own Alien movie, because Nemesis is tension in a box. 2) Arkham Horror: The Card Game If you’re that person who wishes Halloween was a year-round event, try your hand (of cards) at Arkham Horror: The Card Game. As a Living Card Game (LCG), it takes the concept of a Collectible Card Game like Gameology favourite, Magic: The Gathering, and removes the blind-buying randomness. You still get the satisfaction of building and expanding your deck with new cards, but you’ll know exactly what’s in every pack you buy. With a blend of role-playing and traditional card games, you will take on the role of a character in the town of Arkham. Encounter terrifying Lovecraftian mysteries while you play to the strengths of your unique character while grappling with their inner flaws. Thanks to its countless expansions and packs, this infinitely replayable game has the potential to be a core piece in your collection, for monsters and madness all year-round. 3) Betrayal at the House on the Hill Are you missing haunted houses? Well, I’ve got a house for you—except it’s a board game...and it also comes with betrayal. Players take on the role of one of six possible characters and explore a haunted mansion, full of ghosts and dark omens, until one of the group secretly betrays everyone. (Aunt Lisa, how could you?) Before Betrayal at the House on the Hill even begins, players will get to design their own haunted mansion using room tiles or build them from scenarios in the book, meaning each game, you and your family will explore a totally new spooky lay-out. If you can get past its mouthful of a title, Betrayal at the House on the Hill is lighter than our previous two entries, while still retaining that spooky atmosphere. Accommodating 3-6 players at a runtime of around one hour, this is the perfect Halloween board game for your more reluctant players—or anyone looking for something simpler, but just as spooky. 4) Mansions of Madness I know what you’re thinking—isn’t this the same as the previous game with the title that’s too long to type? (I know it’s what you’re thinking because it’s what I was thinking when I first saw these two games next to each other.) However, Mansions of Madness takes elements from the last three games we’ve talked about and condenses them into a Lovecraftian narrative-driven experience! In Mansions of Madness, players take on the role of investigators working together to uncover the secrets of Arkham’s cursed mansions. Unlike the other games on this list, this game is lighter on strategy, heavier on story. Included in the game are four different scenarios of different difficulties and lengths so you’re sure to find something suitable for your gaming group. But here’s the shiny weathervane on top of this spooky mansion—it’s driven by an app! Free and downloadable on any device, the app details room set-up and key story points but without all the frantic page-flipping. With the thematics of Nemesis, the Lovecraftian mysteries of Arkham Horror: The Card Game, and the haunted house crawl setting of Betrayal at the House on the Hill, Mansions of Madness fills a nice middle-ground between the last three games. 5) Obscurio Maybe you’re a baby like me and all this talk of aliens and haunted houses creeps you out. Maybe you’re looking for a game more “Halloween-lite”, or perhaps something that wouldn’t terrify your kids if you left the game out in the living room. Enter Obscurio. If you’ve played the gorgeous cooperative Cluedo-like game, Mysterium, you’ll recognise similar elements in Obscurio. All the players are wizards who snuck into The Sorcerer’s library to steal the magical Grimoire. Now, with the help of said Grimoire, they have to make it out of the library alive. However, one of the wizards has fallen prey to the evil Sorcerer’s spell and is working against the team! (A traitor mechanic! How new and innovative!) Like in Mysterium, where one player acts as the silent ghost, in Obscurio, one player acts as the Grimoire who helps guide the players out of the library but (as they are literally a book) cannot speak except in cryptic images on their pages. Much more lighthearted than the other games on this list, Obscurio is mystical and magical with only a hint of horror, perfect for those who get freaked out just from Nemesis’s box (don’t worry, you’re not alone). Oh, and the cards are circles. Yes, it’s beautiful. Buying Guide In summary, if you’re looking for... A thematic experience full of tension? Nemesis. (It’s worth the wait!) A card game? Arkham Horror: The Card Game A thematic experience that doesn’t take 3 hours? Betrayal at the House on the Hill. Something cooperative and story-driven? Mansions of Madness. Halloween-lite? Obscurio. And there we have it! Our top 5 horror board games for your at-home Halloween! What do you think? Did we miss anything? Let us know in the comments below!
A game you set-and-forget like an easy-bake dessert, in the hopes that during play, people relax enough so you can get one over on them. What?! It’s a simple enough concept with dramatic and enjoyable consequences that’ll leave you and your friends paying out that one person in your gaming group FOR. YEARS. Played almost innocuously in the background of your small gathering (of less than 10 people, excuse us), your routine board games night or even during your family dinner, Don’t Get Got is the perfect way to quell the monotony of pandemic life. Players are given their own wallet with six of unique objectives ranging from the mundane to the ridiculous. It is then that players mission – should they choose to accept it – to be the first to complete three of their tasks and be crowned the Don’t Get Got victor, which includes exclusive bragging rights for the rest of eternity. But beware, everyone will be on high alert and suspicious of every seemingly harmless request. Any utterance of the dreaded phrase, “is this from the game?” is the only thing that can foil your plans – you then fail that task and won’t be able to try it again on anyone else. Work together at your own peril, as divulging your plans opens you up to potential treachery at the hands of whom you once called allies, friends even. A simple, yet effective and immensely satisfying game, Don’t Get Got is the perfect party and family game that’ll spice up any situation! Don’t believe us? Check out the brilliant review from the renowned team at Shut Up & Sit Down below. It’ll be in your cart faster than you can say, “Is that from the game?!”
So you’ve picked up board-gaming as a new hobby. Welcome, and we sincerely apologise to your bank account. There’s a myriad of board games out there to suit every want, need and style, and as you progress in your never-ending search for the best of them all, you’ll start to notice the same descriptors come up; Abstract, Worker-Placement, Deck-Building, etc. It can be a bit of a minefield to navigate what each term means and how to work out which games are classified under each category, so we have compiled a list of the most common categories to help debunk the mystery! 1) Abstract Examples: Azul, Santorini, Hive, Chess Games that lack a thematic element and rely solely on the decisions that players make. Abstract games can incorporate themes; however, they don’t impact game-play itself so it’s as if they may as well not be there. 2) Area Control Examples: Risk, Dominant Species, Twilight Struggle, Small World As the name suggests, these games consist of controlling an area of a collective payer board often through players adding their own pieces or removing the pieces of other’s. 3) Campaign Example: LOTR: Journeys in Middle Earth, Scythe, Near and Far, Arkham Horror Mini-games – scenarios – contained within a larger game or world, where the outcome of each scenario affects elements of the next. These games rely heavily on storytelling and are designed to be played long-term, i.e. over weeks, months or even years depending on the enthusiasm of the players. Campaign games are often tied to and used interchangeably with Legacy Games and largely focus on a storytelling/journey element. 4) Cooperative/Co-Op Examples: Pandemic, Spirit Island, Mysterium, Hanabi Again, as the name suggests, this includes games where players work together against the game to achieve a common goal and win as a team. 5) Deck-Builder Examples: Star Realms, Dominion, Undaunted, Paperback Games that consist of, or incorporate cards in which the objective is to purchase and/or exchange for cards with better abilities so you have a higher chance of drawing those cards during play. You are effectively “building your hand” of cards. 6) Drafting Examples: 7-Wonders, Sushi Go!, Blood Rage, Bunny Kingdom Games that present players with options to pick, with the remaining options being left for other players to then pick, in turn order. Selections are often made from shared pools or by passing options between players. 7) Dungeon-Crawler Examples: Mansions of Madness, Mice and Mystics, Star Wars: Imperial Assault, Descent Games where players assume a character that moves through a location defeating enemies controlled by other players or the game itself. 8) Engine-Builder Examples: Century, Wingspan, Imagnarium, Terraforming Mars Games that require you to build an “engine” over a set number of rounds, often equating to more victory points gathered as play moves along. By engine, we mean setting up your own system whereby you convert your starting actions or resources to more or better actions or resources throughout the game. 9) Eurogame Examples: Ticket to Ride, Carcassonne, Catan, Suburbia Named for the fact that this style of game originated in Europe (Germany to be exact), Euro games are those that are strategy-focussed, competitive and involve player interaction through passive means as opposed to directed and aggressive conflict. Play depends less on luck and more on skill and often features elements of Worker-Placement and Resource Management. 10) Legacy Examples: Gloomhaven, Pandemic Legacy, Charterstone, Betrayal Legacy Akin to Campaign games where players play through a set of stories to complete a journey within the game’s world, Legacy games differ where they require players to inflict irrevocable permanent changes to the game as play progresses, based on the decisions made along the way. These changes are often physical, meaning that these mini-games along the way aren’t able to be played more than once. 11) Push-Your-Luck Examples: The Quacks of Quedlinburg, King of Tokyo, Formula D, Welcome to the Dungeon Games that encourage you to take big risks to reap better rewards but that come with a caveat of losing basic advantages if your attempts are unsuccessful. 12) Roll-And-Move Examples: Monopoly, Snakes and Ladders, Clue, Cranium Games where you roll dice and move as many spaces, triggering actions or decisions that need to be made based on where you land. 13) Roll-And-Write Examples: Welcome To…, Corinth, Harvest Dice, Qwixx Games where your roll dice and choose your outcome based on the roll. This is then written in a personal scoring sheet to keep track of during the game. Decisions made at the beginning of the game affect the options at the end, so roll and choose wisely! 14) Resource Management Examples: Everdell, Imperial Settlers, Concordia, Scythe Games that give players a limited amount of resources and require them to plan out – or strategise – how they will spend those resources through to game end. 15) RPG – Role-Playing Game Examples: Dungeons and Dragons, Pathfinder, Arcadia Quest, Gloomhaven Games that often require one player to take on a storyteller role and dictate the terms of the world set around the other players. Other players must now assume other character roles within this world and make decisions to navigate it based on the terms developed. 16) War Game Examples: Axis and Allies, Twilight Imperium, Warhammer, Inis Games that pit players against each other through armies (often represented by a variety of miniatures) to the death, by encouraging large-scale combat determined via dice rolls or deck building. 17) Worker-Placement Examples: Tokaido, Caverna, Agricola, Stone Age Games that require players to choose actions or gather resources labelled on the game board by placing their workers on those spots. This allows these workers to complete tasks or build items that will help players simultaneously achieve certain goals to win. Of course, there are many other categories out there and oftentimes, games can be classified in more than one category! Did we miss any important categories? What’s your favourite tabletop game style? Let us know in the comments!
So you’ve bought a new game and played it to death already. You’re love it, but you’re looking for that new spark just to re-ignite the same old mechanics. Well, look no further as we’ve compiled a list of the best board game expansions that are definitely worth adding to some already excellent base games. Check them out below! 1) Betrayal at the House on the Hill: Widow’s Walk The first expansion for the acclaimed Betrayal at the House on the Hill base game, Widow’s Walk expands the capabilities of the ominous House by including 20 new rooms to explore – and an entirely new floor. Additionally, the expansion comes with new monsters, omens and events to tackle and critically, 50 new haunts! Absolutely one to add to the shelf as the value is insane! 2) Everdell: Pearlbrook So you’ve done it. You forked out for Everdell and you’ve been furiously playing through it with anyone that blinks in your direction. Don’t worry, we get it. It’s an amazing game and a side-effect of owning such a beautiful work of art. However, with each play the initial sheen of joy is chipped away as you delve deeper into the strategy and decipher the game’s idiosyncrasies. Well that’s where Everdell: Pearlbrook comes in. The first expansion it adds a ridiculous amount of extra play to the base game and is well worth your money. In addition to a new resource (pearls), Pearlbrook adds a new part of the game board, new deck cards for each category, new destinations, new abilities, new overlays for constructions during the game that will earn you extra VPs and some suuuuper useful Open/Close signs for spots in your cities, reminding players of the often forgotten base game rule that you may play into an opponent’s city if there is an open destination. 3) Dominion: Seaside Building on the eternally popular card game where players are required to build their own civilisations from the ground up – no matter the cost, Dominion: Seaside adds in an entire extra fundamental element that changes everything. Water. This expansion requires players to account for rivers, ports and pirates as they expand their territory and attempt to dominate their opponents. By far the most popular of all the Dominion expansions, it’s a great addition to the base game that’ll keep you occupied for hours. 4) Wingspan: The European Expansion Like birds? Well how would you feel about European ones? That’s exactly what the new Wingspan: European Expansion offers. The primary addition is of course more bird cards with differing abilities that keep the game varied and interesting while building your engine. The prime mechanic these cards increase is player interaction, making play a lot more involved and shall we say, higher-stakes among a group? [read: people will scoff at and yell at you over the advantages you pull]. The expansion also includes an extra scorecard, storage (you’ll need it), another egg colour and extra food tokens to keep everyone well-stocked and ready to compete for the title of best wildlife reserve. 5) 7-Wonders: Cities & Leaders Okay so this is technically two expansions but we would argue that once you out-play the base game, you’ll want both. 7-Wonders: Leaders is the first expansion for the 7-Wonders base game, and introduces 42 new cards to the deck, a new wonder and Leader cards. These cards cost money – not resources – and are played at the start of each Age to gain special abilities for that round. 7-Wonders: Cities is the game’s second expansion, and critically adds an 8th player – perfect for this style of game that really shines when you hit those bigger group numbers. In addition, the expansion also includes optional team rules, new Wonder, Guild and Leader cards and a new type of card – City Remains – that give you even more advantages with each passing Age. This expansion adds a more aggressive play-style to the game as it increases player interaction. So here are our Top 5 Board Game Expansions. What do you think? Were we right on the money? Did we miss anything? Let us know in the comments below!
One of the most important aspects of board games is arguably its theming. The artwork plays a huge role in immersing and intriguing players and we think that should be celebrated! So without further ado, here are our Top 5 board games with the best artwork: 1) Everdell This goes without saying, which is why it’s in our top spot. A truly fantastic worker-placement, resource-management, strategy game in and of itself, Everdell is compounded by beautiful artwork and componentry. The Ever Tree sits tall above the game board, nestling the draw deck exactly in it’s trunk. The cards are linen-finish and depict intricate and detailed illustrations of the woodland creatures that occupy the forest. Your resource tokens are a satisfying acrylic and made in the likeness of each resource you are vying for. What’s not to love?! 2) Tokaido You’ve probably seen it on every other list of “the prettiest board games ever” but look, it makes these lists for a reason! A relatively quick-play, Tokaido follows the journey of travellers along the Japanese “East Sea Road” where they use their unique powers and selected placement on the track to work towards achieving various end of game bonuses. The game board is a minimalist’s dream in technicolour and the artwork to accompany – just wow. Generally, board games of Japanese theming have stellar artwork but this is next level gorgeous. 3) Petrichor A lesser-known board game but definitely not one to pass over, Petrichor by definition, is the pleasant Earthly smell produced when rain hits dry soil. In the case of the beautiful board game however, you are a cloud seeking to expand and water as many crops as possible compared to your opponents by manipulating the weather to your advantage. Truly stunning components made from high-quality punch-outs, beautiful watercolour artwork on both crop tiles and clouds and the ever-satisfying coloured glass water droplet tokens make this game an absolute pleasure to learn, play and teach! 4) Scythe A cult-classic, Scythe is not only a fantastic area control game itself, but also incorporates beautiful artwork and componentry. Set in an alternative 1920’s steampunk universe, the game board is a vivid blend of natural colours whose theme flows seamlessly into other illustrated components including individual player boards and coin tokens. In keeping with the context of the war-torn universe in which the game takes place, the detailed artwork also depicts the striking landscapes of pre-industrial Europe overlain with modern (and terrifying) human-controlled robots. A captivating and immersive campaign experience, Scythe is definitely a game worth adding to the shelf! 5) Obscurio For a game based solely on analysing illustrations, you’d better hope they’d be good! Luckily, Obscurio certainly doesn’t disappoint. A detailed and vibrant depiction of a never-ending, Harry Potter-esque library from which you must escape, this game of deception and bluffing is best played in groups of 4-8. The game board itself full of intricate detail and so too are the components –particularly the image cards and the important Grimoire. You’ll see. And that’s our list! Let us know if the comments below if we missed any games!
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