Anybody into board games?

[OttoinGrotto]

Early in my marriage my wife and I got pretty into board games as some new stuff was becoming popular (Pandemic, Ticket to Ride). Then we had kids and that slowed things down and we didn't do as much socially. Our son is pretty smart and is getting into the games we have so I've started buying new games. There's a lot of fun stuff out there and the board and card game scene has really exploded. Some of the good stuff we've discovered lately are games like Splendor, Burgle Bros., and DaVinci Code. Is anybody else on here into board games? What games are people fans of? I'm excited about a Kickstarter that's going to launch soon for a reboot of Firebal Island, my favorite game as a kid.

 

[JJReddawg]

I always played board games growing up, mainly Monopoly, Clue, etc. About 5 years ago I discovered Settlers of Catan and then the website Boardgamegeek.com and discovered the plethora of great board games out there. Here’s a list of my wife and I’s favorite (some of them our daughters 10 & 7 play as well):

(No Order)
Mice and Mystics
Pandemic
Pandemic Legacy
Betrayal at House on the Hill
Carcassone
Survive - Escape from Atlantis
Ticket to Ride
Lords of Waterdeep
Dominion
Twilight Struggle
Agricola

There’s several other games I’ve purchase, but haven’t gotten around to playing like Star Wars Rebellion, Fury of Dracula and Through the Ages.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

I always played board games growing up, mainly Monopoly, Clue, etc. About 5 years ago I discovered Settlers of Catan and then the website Boardgamegeek.com and discovered the plethora of great board games out there. Here’s a list of my wife and I’s favorite (some of them our daughters 10 & 7 play as well):

(No Order)
Mice and Mystics
Pandemic
Pandemic Legacy
Betrayal at House on the Hill
Carcassone
Survive - Escape from Atlantis
Ticket to Ride
Lords of Waterdeep
Dominion
Twilight Struggle
Agricola

There’s several other games I’ve purchase, but haven’t gotten around to playing like Star Wars Rebellion, Fury of Dracula and Through the Ages.

Awesome, we've also got a few of those and there are some others on your list I haven't heard of.

I have Photosynthesis coming in a few days. I've heard amazing things and it was difficult to get, but it looks like it was released recently back into the market.

 

[upperdeck]

played a ton of them thru college.. easier to win money playing Risk than Poker..

Axis and Allies , but you need time and people.

I saw the board game on Big Bang a couple of weeks ago.. Looked it up and its the real deal.. 8+ players and 1200 hours to play the game.. thats serious effort.

 

[OburgOrange]

Scotland Yard

 

[orange79]

As a kid, we used to play board games constantly. Anything from Monopoly to Stratego to Parcheesi to Clue. Being into everything space-related, this was one of my favorites. I still have it, even when my wife wanted me to get rid of a lot of stuff when we moved. I just couldn't part with it.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

As a kid, we used to play board games constantly. Anything from Monopoly to Stratego to Parcheesi to Clue. Being into everything space-related, this was one of my favorites. I still have it, even when my wife wanted me to get rid of a lot of stuff when we moved. I just couldn't part with it.

View attachment 125254
View attachment 125255

That looks awesome.

It's great you hung on to that. These things become such cool time capsules.

 

[Pearl309]

I tried developing a board game a few years back with some friends until we realized we weren’t smart enough to actually do it

 

[MSOrange]

I enjoy playing the classic board games I grew up with when our family gets together for the holidays. If you are ever in Oklahoma, a friend I used to work with opened a board game cafe.

Loot & XP: The Game Hub of Norman

 

[Chip]

I can tell you that the game of Life is way better on the iPad than the actual board game.

Cleanup alone.

Oh, and Chutes & Ladders blows. You basically have to cheat to win, which it turns out isn’t hard to do to a 4 year old.

 

[orange79]

Oh, and Chutes & Ladders blows. You basically have to cheat to win, which it turns out isn’t hard to do to a 4 year old.

Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing.

 

[HastingsCuse]

I always played board games growing up, mainly Monopoly, Clue, etc. About 5 years ago I discovered Settlers of Catan and then the website Boardgamegeek.com and discovered the plethora of great board games out there. Here’s a list of my wife and I’s favorite (some of them our daughters 10 & 7 play as well):

(No Order)
Mice and Mystics
Pandemic
Pandemic Legacy
Betrayal at House on the Hill
Carcassone
Survive - Escape from Atlantis
Ticket to Ride
Lords of Waterdeep
Dominion
Twilight Struggle
Agricola

There’s several other games I’ve purchase, but haven’t gotten around to playing like Star Wars Rebellion, Fury of Dracula and Through the Ages.

Catan is a great game and we played it as a family over the holidays. My youngest son, age 15, plays with friends at his high school's "Catan Club" It is also popular with my older kids (ages 26 and 21) and their friends.

 

[SgtCuse]

While not a classic old board game I love sports simulation games like Strat-o-Matic and APBA.

 

[texascpa]

I always played board games growing up, mainly Monopoly, Clue, etc. About 5 years ago I discovered Settlers of Catan and then the website Boardgamegeek.com and discovered the plethora of great board games out there. Here’s a list of my wife and I’s favorite (some of them our daughters 10 & 7 play as well):

(No Order)
Mice and Mystics
Pandemic
Pandemic Legacy
Betrayal at House on the Hill
Carcassone
Survive - Escape from Atlantis
Ticket to Ride
Lords of Waterdeep
Dominion
Twilight Struggle
Agricola

There’s several other games I’ve purchase, but haven’t gotten around to playing like Star Wars Rebellion, Fury of Dracula and Through the Ages.

I have close to 300 board games. I really got into the hobby a little over 2 years ago when I got sick of video games and started playing 7 Wonders. OMG! What a revelation. 7 Wonders is still my favorite game even though I've moved into heavier games. I play every Saturday from noon to 9pm or so with a gaming group - sometimes at a restaurant, sometimes at someone's house, but lately at a new gaming shop that opened 5 minutes from my house. I also play almost every Friday evening with several in that group. Unfortunately, my family does not share my same interest. My daughter did for a while, but then just dropped the hobby. I try not to push them into it, but I would love if they indulged me every so often.

When I buy a new "video" game, it's usually a digital representation of a board game. Lately it's been Through the Ages, Terra Mystica and 7 Wonders.

Some of my favorites:
7 Wonders
Indonesia
Great Western Trail
Bunny Kingdom
Heaven & Ale
Caverna (better than Agricola in my opinion)
Orleans
Isle of Skye
Civilization

 

[texascpa]

I tried developing a board game a few years back with some friends until we realized we weren’t smart enough to actually do it

It's funny said that, some of the best game designers at the moment are math PHd's, scientists and professors. It boggles my mind some of the mechanics these guys come up with.

 

[texascpa]

I will mention (because i can talk modern board games all day long), that if anyone is interested in modern board games, or any board game, the definitive website is boardgamegeek. I attend one of their two annual conventions each year in Dallas. A friend and I will be attending Essen Spiel in Germany next summer. Largest game convention in the world. Gets over 100,000 visitors.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

I will mention (because i can talk modern board games all day long), that if anyone is interested in modern board games, or any board game, the definitive website is boardgamegeek. I attend one of their two annual conventions each year in Dallas. A friend and I will be attending Essen Spiel in Germany next summer. Largest game convention in the world. Gets over 100,000 visitors.

Sounds like you're hardcore.

 

[tbonezone]

i remember way back when i was quite young my family rented a cottage on the st lawrence and to our delight found a huge cache of bookshelf board games for use when the weather when lousy. i remember one had ww1 aircraft dog fights and another you tried to build a shipping empire. one had you running for president and trading delegates and another swapping stocks on wall street. and of course uncle wiggly. but the one board game that sticks in mind and that my brother and i still laugh about featured marshall tito and his partisan army. we never could figure out the rules or strategy. (and speaking of STRATEGY it was also a very popular football game involving calling plays with offensive and defensive cards and a random spring ball)

my point being it's a great way to occupy young minds stuck inside.
and the wife and i still enjoy a good rummikub now and then

 

[bozophobe]

Was a big Risk player back in the day. But it became too apparent that the eventual winner every time was the one who either conquered Australia first (only one entry point), or grabbed South and/ or North America (2 entry points each) when the less experienced player had Australia first.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

Was a big Risk player back in the day. But it became too apparent that the eventual winner every time was the one who either conquered Australia first (only one entry point), or grabbed South and/ or North America (2 entry points each) when the less experienced player had Australia first.

Nah, thwarting the Australia play is really easy. If someone takes Australia, you wipe them off the rest of the map and make then fight their way out of Asia. They become a non-factor very quickly.

If you want to make Risk really fun play by the principle that it is always better to strike another than it is to protect one's self. Chaos will ensue. It's glorious.

Lastly, people screw Risk up with the house rule that everybody gets the same reinforcement for trading in cards. It makes the game too long. You need the staggered big additions of troops to change the board dynamics and give players enough advantage to cause disruption.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

Fireball Island Kickstarter is live!

 

[FasterCuse]

I'll add in another vote for Settlers of Catan. Two games are never the same, and they have some expansion packs that really change the game up. Only downside is, like most board games, my wife wants to get divorced by the end.

 

[texascpa]

Fireball Island Kickstarter is live!

Funded in less than an hour. lol. Not sure I'm going to get in on it. Already in about a dozen others.

 

[texascpa]

I'll add in another vote for Settlers of Catan. Two games are never the same, and they have some expansion packs that really change the game up. Only downside is, like most board games, my wife wants to get divorced by the end.

Problem with Catan is playing with couples or best friends who have no problem feeding one over others. that said, "Wood for sheep" never gets old.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

Just to revive this a bit, some newer ones I've gotten into are Camel Up (finally, a board game to satisfy your inner degenerate gambler), Colt Express, Biblios, Reef, and Azul. I've bought a bunch I haven't played yet, like Fury of Dracula, The Quest for El Dorado, Blue Lagoon, Potion Explosion and Survive Space Attack. Since starting this thread Photosynthesis and the Fireball Island remake have both been really good. I also really like Tokaido. Anybody else come across anything interesting?