Ten games from 2018 I still need to play
Not that I’m desperate or anything, but some of these games look super fun.
Detective, Chronicles of Crime
Alright, so I didn’t play either of these (a shame, really,) and I think I’d like to at least give one of them a try. I know they’re very different games, so combining them here is only really theme-deep. Still, Detective has had plenty of positive buzz, and Chronicles of Crime’s virtual reality focus is super interesting, if a little weird.
So, yeah. I’d like to try both of these, but I don’t know if I’m likely to buy either. We already own Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective, and we haven’t played that enough as is — and the writing’s pretty good in that. So maybe the real thing here is that I’d like to play SHCD more. Hmm.
Gen7
So I’m very unsure about how this game will play, but it has three things going for it, in my mind. First, the Crossroads idea coming back is something that I’ve been excited for since they tagged Dead of Winter with “A Crossroads Game.” Second, I’m a sucker for cooperative games, and maybe they have a lower minimum quality threshold to entertain me than other games. Third, I love the thematic premise — I just love some good science fiction.
Still, it hasn’t had much hype to this point — and that’s totally fine, of course, but it makes me wonder why. So I guess I’ll have to give it a try and find out.
Cryptid
Yeah! Deduction! Cryptozoology! Count me in. I don’t know how to talk about this game without having played it, so yeah. This is high on my list. I wish I could say more about it, though. I guess I could just type the name of the game over and over, right?
The Quacks of Quedlinburg
If you ever needed a reminder that the U.S. doesn’t actually rule the world of board games, The Quacks of Quedlinburg is it. It won the 2018 Kennerspiel des Jahres, and it still took until November to actually make its way stateside. That’s super cool, if a little inconvenient.
Plus, the designer, Wolfgang Warsch, seems super interesting. I’ve played Ganz Scön Clever, Illusion and The Mind and enjoyed all three, I desperately want to play Brikks, and Quacks has received plenty of accolades on its own. That’s all from 2018. He’s only been playing modern board games since 2015. For me, that’s an awesome story — you should read the linked interview. I mean, seriously. He wanted to design games, so he did. That’s an inspirational story if there’s one out there.
I’ve got this one sitting on my shelf now, so it won’t be long.
Decrypto
I really love the idea here — cracking codes and all that? I’m so in. But I’ll be honest, most of my thinking there is because the game is called Decrypto. I guess I should play it and find out. I’ll get on that just as soon as I find a copy.
Gizmos
I don’t remember why I wanted to play this. Marbles? Probably the marbles. I really enjoyed Potion Explosion, and yeah, I know this is a different thing entirely from a different designer. Still! Maybe that’s the CMON effect.
But yeah, I’d love to play this.
Space Base
Everyone’s talking about this game as a Machi Koro killer, and I like the idea of that. I’ll be honest, though. Machi Koro didn’t strike a good chord with me. It was too aggressive for a game with a shell that seemed so completely non-aggressive.
Is that the same with Space Base? I have no idea, but I actually really enjoy the Catan-ish collect-resources play in a short game. I’m totally willing to give Space Base a chance.
Architects of the West Kingdom
Here’s what I know about Architects of the West Kingdom: Jamey Stegmaier really liked it. It is a worker placement game. The art seems a bit different but nice. Aaaand that’s about it right now. That said, everything I’ve heard about this game has prepared me to play it. So, you know. Bring it on, universe.
Let’s Make a Bus Route
I’ve seen photos of this game and I just can’t get enough. Also, I think I might really love route management games. We’ll see in 2019 if that holds up.
Did you notice that these got pretty short near the end? Whoops. My bad.
Finally, how about this one: Railroad Ink: Deep Blue edition. I’ve played the red one, and I’m just itching to catch a … Magmar? Yeah, let’s go with that.
A bunch of other games, too … obviously
- Blackout: Hong Kong
- Carpe Diem
- Crown of Emara
- Fireball Island (even though I don’t get the retro hype)
- Forum Trajanum
- Gugong
- Key Flow (this is on my shelf; I really should play it)
- Menara
- My Little Scythe
- Newton
- Shadows in the Forest
- Teotihuacan
- Tokyo Metro (again, on my shelf)
- Trapwords (I just picked this up!)
- Underwater Cities
- Western Legends
- Wildlands
