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[InfiniteCombo]

A family member of mine is a huge board game guy. He tends to like board games that are beyond the very casual/social ("party") level games, but not games that are so intense that they span days. Something in which a playthrough of the game can be completed in around 1 or (at most) 2 hours or so. I'm looking to gift him a board game, so I'm hoping GAF can help me out, because honestly I don't know shit about board games . Anyway, some of the parameters:

1. Game style: Either a bidding type game (something like "For Sale") or a resource management game (something like "Race for the Galaxy"). He's got a lot of the resource management ones, so those recommendations need to be either fairly new, or fairly unique/obscure/etc.
2. Game theme: Any theme is fine, really, although he tends to gravitate towards the historical, or the sci-fi. But he's also big into politics so a "unicorn" recommendation would be a politically or historically themed game of one of the styles above. Humor would be a bonus.
3. Reputation/rating: This goes without saying, but hopefully this should be a good game. Well regarded among "average" board game fans (not casuals, but not hardcore either; I'm not acquainted with board game communities so I'm not sure if hardcore people scoff at what the "average" people play). Good game mechanics, well-made dice/cards/trinkets/maps, clear and unambiguous rules, etc.
4. Price: Not that important, but let's put a cap on, say, $150 US dollars
5. Availability: Ideally, I'd be able to get this on Amazon or something. Time is a little bit of the essence, so I'm hoping I can just get Prime shipping and not have to sign up for some ultra-obscure board game shop that will take 3 weeks to ship.
6. [Bonus] Not that important, but if the game has expansion potential (or existing expansions), that would be cool. I really don't think he cares that much about this, but if any time in the future I run out of ideas of what to gift him, I can just get a "DLC"/expansion for the game.

I'm hoping GAF can help me out. This is not a serious enough thing that I need to create, say, an account at Board Game Geek or something. Besides, seems to me that for almost any interest out there, someone at GAF may be an expert.

 

[Hari Seldon]

The obvious game that ticks all of your boxes is 7 Wonders. He might have that as it is a fairly popular and well regarded game. For other recommendations, a fairly simple game that my friends and I always enjoy playing is Tournament of Camelot, which is a deckbuilder that plays like Spades but uses King Arthur lore. Not terribly deep but fun for 4-5 players.

 

[InfiniteCombo]

The obvious game that ticks all of your boxes is 7 Wonders. He might have that as it is a fairly popular and well regarded game. For other recommendations, a fairly simple game that my friends and I always enjoy playing is Tournament of Camelot, which is a deckbuilder that plays like Spades but uses King Arthur lore. Not terribly deep but fun for 4-5 players.

Yup, he's definitely got Seven Wonders.

But I'll look into this Tournament of Camelot, sounds like a solid option.

Thanks for the rec, dude

 

[Werewolf Jones]

Get the RE game board games maybe?

King of Tokyo was pretty fun.

 

[InfiniteCombo]

Get the RE game board games maybe?

King of Tokyo was pretty fun.

He's definitely got King of Tokyo, we've even played it in a group a few times.

RE as in... Resident Evil?

 

[NecrosaroIII]

I've heard good things about the recent Dune game.

 

[RavenSan]

Dune Imperium has been a favorite of mine lately. It's only 4 players, which is a downside (imo)

Lords of Waterdeep is also pretty solid.

Both of these are Worker Placement games, though, not exactly bidding.

Dune (just Dune, not Imperium) - is a really good game, buuuut that's an easy 3-4 hour game. But a lot of political alliances / breaks / deals / hidden agendas, etc

Outside of those, I also freaking love Scythe, it's a Euro game. Seems way more complicated than it actually is.

 

[Hari Seldon]

Dune Imperium has been a favorite of mine lately. It's only 4 players, which is a downside (imo)

Lords of Waterdeep is also pretty solid.

Both of these are Worker Placement games, though, not exactly bidding.

Dune (just Dune, not Imperium) - is a really good game, buuuut that's an easy 3-4 hour game. But a lot of political alliances / breaks / deals / hidden agendas, etc

Outside of those, I also freaking love Scythe, it's a Euro game. Seems way more complicated than it actually is.

Yes Scythe is a good one. Great art as well.

 

[f~N_CH_1:3:3:3_SushiBoat]

Cosmic Encounters
Catan
Photosynthesis
Takenoko - highly underrated

 

[InfiniteCombo]

I appreciate the great recommendations so far.

 

[AlteredForms]

One thing I’ve always hated about board games are the huge amount of space they occupy. I believe it’s fine to have a small collection of classic titles, but buying too many is ridiculous. As for recommendations I would suggest Klaus Teuber’s Settlers of Catan, a game that revolves on agriculture and bartering to develop your own land. I’ve never played it so I can’t comment on that, but it has some very beautiful artwork.

 

[InfiniteCombo]

One thing I’ve always hated about board games are the huge amount of space they occupy. I believe it’s fine to have a small collection of classic titles, but buying too many is ridiculous. As for recommendations I would suggest Klaus Teuber’s Settlers of Catan, a game that revolves on agriculture and bartering to develop your own land. I’ve never played it so I can’t comment on that, but it has some very beautiful artwork.

Yup, he's got Catan already. I've played it with groups multiple times. I should probably put in the OP that he already owns a lot of games.

By the way, for me it's not just the space, but I just... didn't grow up with a board game mentality. Also it's hilarious when my friends or family play, for some games it takes like 1/2 hour just to explain the rules. Ain't nobody got time for that

 

[SirTerry-T]

The Brass games? Brass Birmingham in particular.

Brass: Birmingham

Build networks, grow industries, and navigate the world of the Industrial Revolution.

boardgamegeek.com

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Three solid board games I play here and there. Should be doable in an hour.

Best with 4 or 5 people. Isle of Skye says min 2 people and Chinatown min 3. Qwirkle is 4 players max. There is no way I can see these games being fun with only 2-3 people.

Involves lots of tile picking or buy/selling or trading, so you need a decent number of people to play. Got them for about $40 CDN each. I used to play board games a lot as a kid, and kind of got back into it with fam last 3-4 years. Unless it's a game specifically designed for only 2 or 3 players, I have always found playing games 4-5 people is the best turnout for fun and challenge.

I'd choose Isle of Skye as the best game. It's similar to Carcasonne. But Qwirkle as the best family fun game which even kids can learn to play. It's like Scrabble, but uses shapes and colours. It's a good game despite looking juvenile as even my bro's teenage daughter could beat us at around age 13-14. As long as anyone has some analytical mindset to maximize points like Scrabble but with no need for vocabulary, they can be a tough opponent. For sake of variety, I got my bro's fam a deluxe version that has more modes to play. Worth doing if you can find it as it was only $10 more than the base game. Chinatown is a big wheeling and dealing game, so if he likes that kind of thing, it's the only one among my three that has that gameplay.

Isle of Skye has an expansion. Never played it.

When I buy them games or buy a few for myself, I always try to focus on replayability. So shit like picking random tiles, buy/sell/trading, etc... are always important features to me.

Isle of Skye: From Chieftain to King

Build your kingdom as Chieftain one tile at a time and rule all of Scotland!

boardgamegeek.com

Chinatown

Negotiate and build the most successful business in all of Chinatown!

boardgamegeek.com

Qwirkle Trio

Qwirkle Big Box includes both the Qwirkle base game and two expansions: Qwirkle Select and Qwirkle Connect. These expansions can be used individually or together. Qwirkle Select adds an extra element of strategy to Qwirkle with powerful star tokens that allow you to take a tile off the...

boardgamegeek.com

 

[Trogdor1123]

“The Farming Game” is super fun

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Also check this one out. I bought a GOG or Steam version for cheap but never played it yet. 2 Player game. But the estimated time is 2-3 hours which seems beyond your parameters.

But worth checking out.

Twilight Struggle

Relive the Cold War and rewrite history in an epic clash between the USA and USSR.

boardgamegeek.com

 

[BJK]

7 Wonders was already mentioned, but that was my first choice.
I’ll also say Ticket to Ride…but it wouldn’t shock me if he has that one too.

….As a Marvel Zombie, I can also put a good word in for Legendary (the Upper Deck -manufactured deck-building game). Replayable with a TON of expansions, but simplistic enough that my retired parents have picked it up and enjoy it.

Honorable mention to Munchkin (which will lead to arguments) & Disney Villanous (which I’ve only played a handful of times).

 

[InfiniteCombo]

Three solid board games I play here and there. Should be doable in an hour.

Best with 4 or 5 people. Isle of Skye says min 2 people and Chinatown min 3. Qwirkle is 4 players max. There is no way I can see these games being fun with only 2-3 people.

Involves lots of tile picking or buy/selling or trading, so you need a decent number of people to play. Got them for about $40 CDN each. I used to play board games a lot as a kid, and kind of got back into it with fam last 3-4 years. Unless it's a game specifically designed for only 2 or 3 players, I have always found playing games 4-5 people is the best turnout for fun and challenge.

I'd choose Isle of Skye as the best game. It's similar to Carcasonne. But Qwirkle as the best family fun game which even kids can learn to play. It's like Scrabble, but uses shapes and colours. It's a good game despite looking juvenile as even my bro's teenage daughter could beat us at around age 13-14. As long as anyone has some analytical mindset to maximize points like Scrabble but with no need for vocabulary, they can be a tough opponent. For sake of variety, I got my bro's fam a deluxe version that has more modes to play. Worth doing if you can find it as it was only $10 more than the base game. Chinatown is a big wheeling and dealing game, so if he likes that kind of thing, it's the only one among my three that has that gameplay.

Isle of Skye has an expansion. Never played it.

When I buy them games or buy a few for myself, I always try to focus on replayability. So shit like picking random tiles, buy/sell/trading, etc... are always important features to me.

Isle of Skye: From Chieftain to King

Build your kingdom as Chieftain one tile at a time and rule all of Scotland!

boardgamegeek.com

Chinatown

Negotiate and build the most successful business in all of Chinatown!

boardgamegeek.com

Qwirkle Trio

Qwirkle Big Box includes both the Qwirkle base game and two expansions: Qwirkle Select and Qwirkle Connect. These expansions can be used individually or together. Qwirkle Select adds an extra element of strategy to Qwirkle with powerful star tokens that allow you to take a tile off the...

boardgamegeek.com

Amazing post. Thanks bro, I'll check some of these out!

 

[kurisu_1974]

Some of my all time favorites:

Five Tribes has an amazing bidding mechanism and pretty unique mancala-style gameplay. The first expansion really gave this game a lot of legs. Plays great with two players too.

Cosmic Encounter is the ultimate negotiation and backstabbing game. You will never loo at your frinds the same again after a game of this.

Scythe was already mentioned, looks like a Amerithrash wargame but it's a action selection resource management engine builder euro in disguise.

From the same designer there's also Viticulture which is one of my favorite worker placement games. Make sure to get the essential edition tho, and imo the expansion (Tuscany) is a must too.

Also already mentioned, but Dune Imperium is a newer game that does great things with deckbuilding, worker placement and area control.

 

[Alandring]

I wouldn't describe it as "obscure", but Terraforming Mars really seems to be the perfect game. It's my favorite board game ever (and I have a lot of board games).

Every player (from 1 to 5) play a corporation, with the goal to terraforming mars (hey, it's the name of the game). For that, you need to use your cards (it's kind of a deck-builder game) in order to directly impact Mars (create an ocean, elevate the temperature, etc.) or to developp your own economy, to produce more resources, to play more cards in the next turn.

The game stops when Mars if liveable, so all players cooperate, in some way, but there is only one player.

It's a game with an amazing replayability, because every game is really different. You play a different corporation each time, which change how you play: you can be specialized in forest, in animals, in space projects, in events... I have 78 hours of playtime on Steam, I also own the game on smartphone and I played a lot of games IRL with my friends (the last one was yesterday). And I still just want to play it more and more. This games really has everything you want:

1. It's a resource management game.
2. It's a sci-fi game.
3. It's my favorite board game ever, with an amazing replayability.
4. The core game cost about 60$ and is self-sufficient.
5. Okay, everything except this, as the game is currently unavaible on Amazon. But you can easily find it. If you want the game as soon as possible, I recommend you to go on a local board games shop.
6. There is... six expansions, the last one was just released. But as I said, you completely can play without them. But they are great .

 

[chixdiggit]

Splendor is a really great resource management type game. Easy to learn and fun to play with lots of different strategies.

 

[Kenpachii]

Catan for adults, i play it twice a week with friends.

 

[ResilientBanana]

Massive Darkness

Join the adventures of the Lightbringers in a dungeon inhabited by monsters and foes.

boardgamegeek.com

Gloomhaven

Vanquish monsters with strategic cardplay. Fulfill your quest to leave your legacy!

boardgamegeek.com

 

[InfiniteCombo]

Super awesome, I appreciate all the responses. My plan is to come to this thread after work today and read everyone's posts, do a little reading of my own about the games you all recommended, and then choose one or two.

 

[RavenSan]

I wouldn't describe it as "obscure", but Terraforming Mars really seems to be the perfect game. It's my favorite board game ever (and I have a lot of board games).

Every player (from 1 to 5) play a corporation, with the goal to terraforming mars (hey, it's the name of the game). For that, you need to use your cards (it's kind of a deck-builder game) in order to directly impact Mars (create an ocean, elevate the temperature, etc.) or to developp your own economy, to produce more resources, to play more cards in the next turn.

The game stops when Mars if liveable, so all players cooperate, in some way, but there is only one player.

It's a game with an amazing replayability, because every game is really different. You play a different corporation each time, which change how you play: you can be specialized in forest, in animals, in space projects, in events... I have 78 hours of playtime on Steam, I also own the game on smartphone and I played a lot of games IRL with my friends (the last one was yesterday). And I still just want to play it more and more. This games really has everything you want:

1. It's a resource management game.
2. It's a sci-fi game.
3. It's my favorite board game ever, with an amazing replayability.
4. The core game cost about 60$ and is self-sufficient.
5. Okay, everything except this, as the game is currently unavaible on Amazon. But you can easily find it. If you want the game as soon as possible, I recommend you to go on a local board games shop.
6. There is... six expansions, the last one was just released. But as I said, you completely can play without them. But they are great .

How did you learn to play Terraforming Mars? I have it on Steam, it's wasn't clicking. I ended up buying it (physical, on sale) because everyone seems to love this game, and some games just don't translate well digitally -- but I just don't seem to get it. Did you just read the rules and pick it up immediately, or are there any youtube tutorials/vids you'd suggest to red-pill me on this game?

 

[bloodydrake]

Highly recommend Cyclades
its probably the best hybrid game I've played, little resource, little auctioning, little wargaming.. good timer built into game and it scales between 3 and 5 really well.

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/07/68/d0/0768d0cbe5f3c1783e05701204b0a9e3.jpg

 

[DKehoe]

A few others have already mentioned it so I'll just join them in saying Scythe is a lot of fun. Me and some friends have been playing that for a while now.

 

[StabbyStabStabStabStab]

Yes Scythe is a good one. Great art as well.

A few others have already mentioned it so I'll just join them in saying Scythe is a lot of fun. Me and some friends have been playing that for a while now.

I bought Scythe around 3 years ago along with seven wondersuel. I've never even opened the boxes

 

[DKehoe]

I bought Scythe around 3 years ago along with seven wondersuel. I've never even opened the boxes

Hey, at least the art on the box looks nice!

Give it a try if you get a chance. It might seem intimidating at first but it’s fairly straight forward once you’re playing. Each player gets a board that has the actions you can take each round so that helps keep you straight.

 

[StabbyStabStabStabStab]

Hey, at least the art on the box looks nice!

Give it a try if you get a chance. It might seem intimidating at first but it’s fairly straight forward once you’re playing. Each player gets a board that has the actions you can take each round so that helps keep you straight.

I been meaning to sit down and get going with it for 3 years :/ its good to hear its fairly straightforward as my patienice is relatively thin and I struggle with the complexity of dominos.

....but it does look purdy on my shelf for sure tho!

 

[PaddyOCanager]

 

[StreetsofBeige]

I might get 7 Wonders for my fam. Thanks for mentioning it guys. Just checked some videos and BGG says it's only a half hour game of deckbuilding.

I remember seeing this board game over the years as I'd flip through trying to pick a good game for family playing, but always skipped over it. I think it was because I got the hint from the name and box it' would be one of those epic 3 hour kinds of games with a shit load of pieces. Never knew it was a card game.

 

[InfiniteCombo]

For other recommendations, a fairly simple game that my friends and I always enjoy playing is Tournament of Camelot, which is a deckbuilder that plays like Spades but uses King Arthur lore. Not terribly deep but fun for 4-5 players.

Looked into it, it's actually called "Tournament at Avalon" -- or at least that's what Amazon came up with. Seems like a solid choice.

The Brass games? Brass Birmingham in particular.

Brass: Birmingham

Build networks, grow industries, and navigate the world of the Industrial Revolution.

boardgamegeek.com

Unfortunately Amazon didn't have it in stock (or at least a Prime-compatible one)

Dune (just Dune, not Imperium) - is a really good game, buuuut that's an easy 3-4 hour game. But a lot of political alliances / breaks / deals / hidden agendas, etc

Outside of those, I also freaking love Scythe, it's a Euro game. Seems way more complicated than it actually is.

A buddy of mine already owns Dune, but he recommended this game called "Lost Ruins of Arnak" which is supposed to have similar mechanics.

Highly recommend Cyclades
its probably the best hybrid game I've played, little resource, little auctioning, little wargaming.. good timer built into game and it scales between 3 and 5 really well.

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/07/68/d0/0768d0cbe5f3c1783e05701204b0a9e3.jpg

Looks spectacular... but alas, not in stock (Although a couple of expansions were in stock). So I just added it to my Shopping Wish List for a future buy.

I wouldn't describe it as "obscure", but Terraforming Mars really seems to be the perfect game. It's my favorite board game ever (and I have a lot of board games).

Every player (from 1 to 5) play a corporation, with the goal to terraforming mars (hey, it's the name of the game). For that, you need to use your cards (it's kind of a deck-builder game) in order to directly impact Mars (create an ocean, elevate the temperature, etc.) or to developp your own economy, to produce more resources, to play more cards in the next turn.

The game stops when Mars if liveable, so all players cooperate, in some way, but there is only one player.

It's a game with an amazing replayability, because every game is really different. You play a different corporation each time, which change how you play: you can be specialized in forest, in animals, in space projects, in events... I have 78 hours of playtime on Steam, I also own the game on smartphone and I played a lot of games IRL with my friends (the last one was yesterday). And I still just want to play it more and more. This games really has everything you want:

1. It's a resource management game.
2. It's a sci-fi game.
3. It's my favorite board game ever, with an amazing replayability.
4. The core game cost about 60$ and is self-sufficient.
5. Okay, everything except this, as the game is currently unavaible on Amazon. But you can easily find it. If you want the game as soon as possible, I recommend you to go on a local board games shop.
6. There is... six expansions, the last one was just released. But as I said, you completely can play without them. But they are great .

Lucky for me, it was in stock when I checked tonight. And I actually ended up ordering it. Thanks for the recommendation!!!!

The other game I ended up getting was "Lost Ruins of Arnak" which was recommended to me by a buddy.

Again, thanks everyone for the recommendations! I actually ended up putting quite a few of the suggestion sin my Shopping "Wish List" on Amazon.

GAF rocks!

 

[Torrent of Pork]

Play Monopoly, but do it like a man with real money.

No seriously, get a full 8 people, each person chipping in $40 in change, 1, and 5 dollar bills. 1 penny equals $1 Monopoly money. Get a 9th person to be an independent banker.

Winner keeps their winnings, the rest of the money is divided 8 ways with a share going to the banker for their effort.

Oh shit, there's a guide dedicated to this.

After looking into this a bit more you only need $205.80 to do this with the official full amount of monopoly money in the box, not that much of an ask to spice up an old board game.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

I used to play Scrabble with family for money when I was young. Winner makes 10 cents per pt difference per person.

So if the winner beats 3 players with differentials of 20 pts, 40 pts, 60 pts, he wins by 120 pts = $12.

Make it 50 cents per pt and the guy won $60. That will ensure everyone tries and no players tank it midway through the game.

You can do a ballpark estimate how much the worst player will end up paying. In every 4 player game, there's bound to be one person dead last losing by a good 50-70 pts. Losing by 100 pts is a stretch unless the person is bad at Scrabble or got unlucky with bad letters. Multiply that by a $$$ amount and that'll be the benchmark amount he last place guy loses per game.

 

[InfiniteCombo]

Play Monopoly, but do it like a man with real money.

No seriously, get a full 8 people, each person chipping in $40 in change, 1, and 5 dollar bills. 1 penny equals $1 Monopoly money. Get a 9th person to be an independent banker.

Winner keeps their winnings, the rest of the money is divided 8 ways with a share going to the banker for their effort.

Oh shit, there's a guide dedicated to this.

After looking into this a bit more you only need $205.80 to do this with the official full amount of monopoly money in the box, not that much of an ask to spice up an old board game.

I used to play Scrabble with family for money when I was young. Winner makes 10 cents per pt difference per person.

So if the winner beats 3 players with differentials of 20 pts, 40 pts, 60 pts, he wins by 120 pts = $12.

Make it 50 cents per pt and the guy won $60. That will ensure everyone tries and no players tank it midway through the game.

You can do a ballpark estimate how much the worst player will end up paying. In every 4 player game, there's bound to be one person dead last losing by a good 50-70 pts. Losing by 100 pts is a stretch unless the person is bad at Scrabble or got unlucky with bad letters. Multiply that by a $$$ amount and that'll be the benchmark amount he last place guy loses per game.

I would love to, but I guess I've never played anything for money in life. Especially things with a "random" component. I guess I'm not a big fan of gambling.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

I would love to, but I guess I've never played anything for money in life. Especially things with a "random" component. I guess I'm not a big fan of gambling.

Only worth doing if:

1. Everyone is good with it, and people pay up
2. If the group is roughly equally skilled

As a kid losing all the time it wasnt a big deal as my older sibs didnt take my money most of the time unless it was like $2. I was basically a filler piece (that's why I mentioned playing with 4 or more players is best IMO for most games), but when I got older and could win we stopped playing as they were moving out. But when I was young, my older sibs battled it out and made each other pay $5 or $10. LOL

Your bro seems geared to more complex games with meat and production values. But as an aside another good family game is Scotland Yard. But best with 4-5 people with one player being the bad guy. It's an old game remade many times and is probably $30.

Then again, if you bro doesn't care about Walmart-ish family games, skip my recos of Scotland Yard and Qwirkle Deluxe.

 

[InfiniteCombo]

Only worth doing if:

1. Everyone is good with it, and people pay up
2. If the group is roughly equally skilled

As a kid losing all the time it wasnt a big deal as my older sibs didnt take my money most of the time unless it was like $2. I was basically a filler piece (that's why I mentioned playing with 4 or more players is best IMO for most games), but when I got older and could win we stopped playing as they were moving out. But when I was young, my older sibs battled it out and made each other pay $5 or $10. LOL

Your bro seems geared to more complex games with meat and production values. But as an aside another good family game is Scotland Yard. But best with 4-5 people with one player being the bad guy. It's an old game remade many times and is probably $30.

Then again, if you bro doesn't care about Walmart-ish family games, skip my recos of Scotland Yard and Qwirkle Deluxe.

LMAO yup, he's got Scotland Yard, and I've already played it with a group.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

If you're bro is a WWII fan, there's this. It can be played 1 player too.

D-Day Dice (Second Edition)

Storm the beaches of Normandy to secure the German bunkers.

boardgamegeek.com

Surprisingly low ratings on BGG. We liked Wordthief. One part scrabble, one part trump suiting, one part messing with other people's hands. Good only with a group who have decently similar word skills. No point playing with a 10 year old kind of thing. Big crazy words arent common, but you need some half decent word skills to cleverly make words with what you got and whats shown on the table.

Wordthief

Players are dealt cards (with a letter & suit on them). They form words like in scrabble but words can be "stolen." If someone can take an entire opponents word and make a new one/s out of it, they get additional points and the previous owner loses points. Words can also be "locked"...

boardgamegeek.com

 

[InfiniteCombo]

If you're bro is a WWII fan, there's this. It can be played 1 player too.

D-Day Dice (Second Edition)

Storm the beaches of Normandy to secure the German bunkers.

boardgamegeek.com

Surprisingly low ratings on BGG. We liked Wordthief. One part scrabble, one part trump suiting, one part messing with other people's hands. Good only with a group who have decently similar word skills. No point playing with a 10 year old kind of thing. Big crazy words arent common, but you need some half decent word skills to cleverly make words with what you got and whats shown on the table.

Wordthief

Players are dealt cards (with a letter & suit on them). They form words like in scrabble but words can be "stolen." If someone can take an entire opponents word and make a new one/s out of it, they get additional points and the previous owner loses points. Words can also be "locked"...

boardgamegeek.com

Now that you mention it, last week a friend mentioned to me that people can apparently play some board games in "single player mode." I don't even understand how that works

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Now that you mention it, last week a friend mentioned to me that people can apparently play some board games in "single player mode." I don't even understand how that works

Totally. It's you vs. the game. The game itself will have some kind of limiting factor like # of turns, resources, money etc....

But it depends on the game. Some games are designed for a 1 player mode, but some technically arent. But gamers may make up 1 player solo rules they post online. It can also go for games meant for 3+ players, but there may be optional 2 player rules made. Sometimes the game maker itself will issue rulesets for reduced players.

I dont think I have ever played a board game with # of players lower than the official rules. So I have no idea how good these adjusted rules are. I dont see how they can be that great unless the creators did wonders. Most games have a bias, so a gamer controlling different factions or playing both good guy and bad guy seems begging for cheating or purposely playing the wrong move to favour your outcome you want.

My bro's bought this old game in the 80s called Statis Pro Basketball (with a fake Larry Bird and Patrick Ewing on the cover). Way too stat filled so we never played it, but it's technically a game based purely on pulling cards I think. I messed around with it barely understanding the rules by myself, but I cheated all the time so my Celtics would win.

 

[Nobody_Important]

Gloomhaven

 

[InfiniteCombo]

Totally. It's you vs. the game. The game itself will have some kind of limiting factor like # of turns, resources, money etc....

But it depends on the game. Some games are designed for a 1 player mode, but some technically arent. But gamers may make up 1 player solo rules they post online. It can also go for games meant for 3+ players, but there may be optional 2 player rules made. Sometimes the game maker itself will issue rulesets for reduced players.

I dont think I have ever played a board game with # of players lower than the official rules. So I have no idea how good these adjusted rules are. I dont see how they can be that great unless the creators did wonders. Most games have a bias, so a gamer controlling different factions or playing both good guy and bad guy seems begging for cheating or purposely playing the wrong move to favour your outcome you want.

My bro's bought this old game in the 80s called Statis Pro Basketball (with a fake Larry Bird and Patrick Ewing on the cover). Way too stat filled so we never played it, but it's technically a game based purely on pulling cards I think. I messed around with it barely understanding the rules by myself, but I cheated all the time so my Celtics would win.

Ah, that all makes sense!

Also... As a New Yorker I'm sad to hear that in this game of yours, Patrick Ewing lost all the time

 

[kurisu_1974]

Totally. It's you vs. the game. The game itself will have some kind of limiting factor like # of turns, resources, money etc....

But it depends on the game. Some games are designed for a 1 player mode, but some technically arent. But gamers may make up 1 player solo rules they post online. It can also go for games meant for 3+ players, but there may be optional 2 player rules made. Sometimes the game maker itself will issue rulesets for reduced players.

I dont think I have ever played a board game with # of players lower than the official rules. So I have no idea how good these adjusted rules are. I dont see how they can be that great unless the creators did wonders. Most games have a bias, so a gamer controlling different factions or playing both good guy and bad guy seems begging for cheating or purposely playing the wrong move to favour your outcome you want.

My bro's bought this old game in the 80s called Statis Pro Basketball (with a fake Larry Bird and Patrick Ewing on the cover). Way too stat filled so we never played it, but it's technically a game based purely on pulling cards I think. I messed around with it barely understanding the rules by myself, but I cheated all the time so my Celtics would win.

Games like Scythe and Dune Imperium have a deck of cards that describe the moves of the "AI'" player, and it works quite well.

A buddy of mine already owns Dune, but he recommended this game called "Lost Ruins of Arnak" which is supposed to have similar mechanics.

That's probably Imperium and not the original Dune, there's nothing much like it, but it takes 6 players and probably as many hours... I own the reprint but have never gotten it to the table.

I might get 7 Wonders for my fam. Thanks for mentioning it guys. Just checked some videos and BGG says it's only a half hour game of deckbuilding.

7 Wonders is great, but it's not at all deckbuilding, it's drafting and set collection. If you are looking for a lightweight deckbuilder, I can recommend The Quest for El Dorado, which is kind of a racing game powered by your deck of cards that you can build buying new cards from a market.

 

[Mshoaibi789]

When it comes to board games online. I would go for sim 3

 

[chixdiggit]

Gloomhaven

Gloomhaven is really hard to recommend IMO. It can be fun with the right group of people but.....

• Expensive ($150)
• Hard to learn
• Long set up time (1+ hour)
• Long game (3+ hours)
• Tons of rules
• Co-op only (personal preference but I vastly prefer competitive games).

I know a it's a favorite by many but to me it's the kind of game you want a friend to own, set-up, manage, and teach to you. Or if D&D is your thing it might be right up your alley.

 

[PaddyOCanager]

Gloomhaven is really hard to recommend IMO. It can be fun with the right group of people but.....

• Expensive ($150)
• Hard to learn
• Long set up time (1+ hour)
• Long game (3+ hours)
• Tons of rules
• Co-op only (personal preference but I vastly prefer competitive games).

I know a it's a favorite by many but to me it's the kind of game you want a friend to own, set-up, manage, and teach to you. Or if D&D is your thing it might be right up your alley.

The Jaws of the Lion box is a great entry point.

 

[Alandring]

How did you learn to play Terraforming Mars? I have it on Steam, it's wasn't clicking. I ended up buying it (physical, on sale) because everyone seems to love this game, and some games just don't translate well digitally -- but I just don't seem to get it. Did you just read the rules and pick it up immediately, or are there any youtube tutorials/vids you'd suggest to red-pill me on this game?

Sorry, I played it on physical before to buy it on digital (and I bought it in physical for myself after that ha ha), with somone who knew the rules.

They seems to have a list of tutorials on their website: https://www.fryxgames.se/games/terraforming-mars/

If you still have questions, you can DM me .

Edit: and I really recommend you to play against only one AI, in hard. It's easier with only two players (and I think it's better this way than in single player).

Lucky for me, it was in stock when I checked tonight. And I actually ended up ordering it. Thanks for the recommendation!!!!

Perfect . I'm really happy for you and your friend. Don't hesitate to DM after your first game .