A Modern Board Game Community

Oh yeah for sure.  I haven't really looked into much recently which has helped.  I really want to be intentional with what I have (which you already know).  But that has helped.  I'm trying to not look at the new shiny toy but play with what I've got already.  I have a lot of games I really really like.  And some I've only played once this year (of course that's due in part to Covid).  But I'm starting to get more plays in.

I don't think I've played enough different mixes to see that happen.  I think once online we played (by accident) Duchy, Woodland Alliance, and Vagabond.  I didn't love it.

Honestly, I'm not the biggest fan of playing with a Vagabond.  However, I've not played them so perhaps they are fun.

Deck Building, and a SciFi Themed game.

I'd also like another Story Driven game.

What about you?

I would likewise recommend giving it a shot. As @philryuh said, it is a game that you can play 'badly' and still have a good time as it is a game that rewards you for everything and just rewards you more if you play 'better'. So hopefully your family will still enjoy getting to create their own little goods empire even if they don't immediately excel at it. I do agree though that even though you couldn't go crazy intense on the artwork as the board is pretty busy and contains a lot of information, they could have made it a bit prettier 

I also just started using Board game Arena... look for me as Marinated meeple if you want to play anything... I'm just learning some new games on there too. 

We only played Wingspan, twice.... too much other stuff going on, and trying to enjoy the outdoors more... summer generally bring less games to the table. 

I recommend #Pret-a-Porter 3rd Edition as an excellent economic game.  #Gunkimono and #Takenoko are light games with some strategic depth.

Yes, there is def a puzzly piece to it that is fun to work out.  I am not a solo player in general so I'm not sure I'm the best one to judge how good a solo experience it was but I enjoyed it.  I also played 2 2 player games and 3 3 player games and it's a much better game, for me, that way...and quite different with 2 and 3 and I would imagine with 4 as well.  It's just the nature of the way the pieces move and with more players a bit harder to plan ahead.  It still has the tile placement puzzle but with a bit more uncertainty that you are going to get the tiles you want.

Correct. 

Absolutely agree that wooden tokens are more enjoyable to play with (for me at least). I have played with realistic resources before and they are nice but I'd never pay extra for them in a game

Ah ok, so the "tiny" aspect holds no special appeal to you?

Games that find more engaging than the tiny epic games but that still fall into the 30-45 min range...

#Jaipur

#Star Realms

#QE

#Camel Up

#World's Fair 1893

#King of Tokyo

#The Estates

I do enjoy that game, love the multi-use cards

Well that is definitely a healthy attitude to have! Good job. I am not at all a fan of Kickstarter. 

Exactly. I worry about wasting those dollars when I could have invested in something with more depth. 

I guess not just in portability but shorter games with probably quite simple mechanics but that feel deeper to you than the tiny epic ones do?

Love letter is a fun game, definitely a good one for portability

Thanks for the insight! The game is inching further back up the shortlist. 

Oh cool, that is a handy looking table!

Is there a mix that doesn't intuitively seem like it would work but you had a surprisingly good time with?

Haha, I did tend to do the min/maxing. It's not so much that I feel any need to win, more just that I get lost in the puzzle of it. But I am working on cutting down my thinking time to be more considerate 😄

I am glad it was a hard decision, hopefully means you had a good time all round.

By the sound of it you and your spouse tend to prefer heavier games so I will err on that end of the scale. 

I have had a lot of fun with #Mistfall, it has a lot going on rules wise but once you learn it it plays pretty smoothly. It is a coop deckbuilder combat type game, a lot of fun and some very clever mechanics for both how each character plays and how the enemies target you.

Similarly the #Arkham Horror: The Card Game is dripping with theme but is also a really enjoyable legacy style deck builder that I can absolutely recommend.

Most of the dedicated 2P games I have explored tend to be on the lighter end as that is what my spouse enjoys but if you wanted a shorter game we love #13 Days: The Cuban Missile Crisis as a lighter game (about 45mins) that feels very similar to twilight struggle

As someone who has been going to the Essen Spiel since ~forever, I used to have really bad FOMO in regards to games that I could only realistically get there. I'd get super worried I might not be able to snag up a copy, and would go to great lengths to import them if I missed them.

Curiously, modern Kickstarter board games have utterly destroyed this part for me, and in the process have killed any FOMO I sometimes I had entirely. Since I no longer look forward to "picking up" games at Essen (since half the booths just tell you "Oh we're not selling you anything, but you can back our Kickstarter in 2 months by which you'll have long forgotten about us though"), I also no longer "look forward to" board games in general. I enjoy what I get, I enjoy what I have, I enjoy playing, but I no longer feel any anticipation. At all. For any board game.

Yes, I am from the UK, how about yourself? I am assuming the US/Canada?

Archipelago is one of my favourite games, once it clicks for players the negotiation and scheming is just wonderful. And the fact that each player has a secret objective but anyone can score points off of it is such a wonderful system as it means you never know exactly who is going to win as it's as much about working out how to actually score points as it is controling the islands/getting resources.

Yes, the rules are relatively simple but you have so many options for how to try and score points that it can be intimidating for new players. I have had it where I explain the rules and someone will say words to the effect of 'I understand but what exactly do I do?' 

Are there any games you have had surprise successes with?

Even considering the fact that it's a $20-$25 game in a tiny box? Games like that generally don't have a ton of depth.

Lol, it does seem fairly frequent

Haha, not for my wife

I like the art of Concordia, it is discretely colorful and simple :) I usually prefer wood tokens over the realistic ones, to me only the cloth token is odd from the set:)
Which metal coin set did you get for the game?

After playing for the first time, my friend said "I had almost suggested that we play something else instead because it looked so bland", but he absolutely loved the experience of playing and wanted to play again at the following session.

Truly, give it a shot.  Though it may take some convincing to get people past how dull it looks, the actual gameplay experience is top notch; and I say that as someone who generally favors thematic games.

Interesting. I’ve considered a couple of Tiny Epic Games a number of times but never pulled the trigger. The lack of potential depth was always a concern for me.