by Adam Daulton
It's time again for my favorite blog of the year to write! The top games of 2017! By "2017", I mean played by me for the first time in 2017 and by "top" I mean according to me and by "games" I mean board or card games since you are reading this on boardgamegeek.com though I hope you already knew that.General Thoughts on 2017
First, a few general comments on 2017. I've played more "new to me" games in 2017 than any year since 2007! 91 of them to be exact. You can read my first impressions of all of them in my New to Me Geeklist. Overall, I think 2017 has been a less stellar year than 2016 for me. I knew for sure the top 5 games I'd have on my list, maybe not the order, but for sure the games. After that though nothing was jumping out to me in the same way that the top 8 jumped out to me last year. The industry overall still seems to be doing very well, whether it is Kickstarter or traditional publication resulting in a LOT of games. So, of course, my 91 games played doesn't even put a dent in what is out there.
Honorable Mentions
I have quite a few honorable mentions this year for a variety of reasons, but I figured I'd mention them here quick: Dinosaur Island, Downforce (Would have made the list 3 months ago), Railroad Revolution, Thunder Alley, La Granja, The Pursuit of Happiness, Insider, Terraforming Mars, and Century: Golem Edition. All the above games were good fun and I could see when I look back in 12 months a couple of them moving up on the list.
The Top Games of 2017
10. Slide Blast
This one is on the list because of how well it does what it sets out to do. It has been a success with gamers, family, and friends. The game plays quick, plays a high count of players, and has nice chunky tiles. If I had a surprise hit of the year, this would be it.
Favorite Part: There is something just fun about counting your score off at the end of the game as you slide down the crazy slide you built!
This is the only game on my list that I've only played once. I hesitated to put it on here and leave other games off like La Granja or Terraforming Mars, but man this game has been on my brain even with just that one play. It left me wanting more plays and kicking myself for not buying it at Gen Con. It seems to be a solid train game at the level I like my train games. Not 18XX, but a bit above Ticket to Ride as well.
Favorite Part: The joy of building your route out and trying accomplish your goal through the chaos of your opponents and the tiles you draw.
8. Kingdomino
I had heard a ton about this game throughout the year, but for some reason didn't think it would be for me. I was wrong. I played this quick tile laying game at Gen Con and it took all of 7 minutes and was great! Good and fun decisions with some groans possible when things don't turn out the way you want. This is a game for everyone in my opinion.
Favorite Part: The two player version where you make a 7x7 grid. I know I said it above, but there is something satisfying about a perfect 7x7 grid with your castle right in the middle.
I bought this for the theme and keep coming back for the game play. I liken this game to something like Thurn and Taxis - a solid Euro that takes right around 60-75 minutes to play and while it probably won't ever be in my Top 50 games of all time, I imagine it'll always have a place in my collection. The place a worker and then take a worker mechanic works so well in this one and really does feel about as much like casting as you can get in a board game.
Favorite Part: The theme. We needed a good fishing game and now we have one!
6. Time's Up!
I've heard about this game for years and years. My buddy Nick had told me it was his favorite game of all time. I was expecting a lot out of it for a party game. It lived up to expectations. A party game that is a smart party game. I've pulled it out at conventions this year and at family cookouts. Doesn't seem to matter where it is people laugh and have a good time.
Favorite Part: How really like how it grows on itself so that what you did in round 1 now comes back to help in round 3.
I wrote a review of this earlier in the year, so I won't go into too much detail on it, but suffice to say this one fits right in to "my" kind of game. It is a cool take on deck building effecting a board. There is a healthy dose of luck in this game, but at the same time experienced players have won every time I've played.
Favorite Part: I really like how you have to destroy the value of a territory in order to take it.
4. The Godfather: Corleone's Empire
This was one of my most anticipated games of 2017. I pre-ordered it from my FLGS, got it, and after one play my dog chewed up one of the pieces. CMON quickly replaced it for me at no cost! That is excellent customer service and this is an excellent mobster game. It doesn't give you specifically the Godfather feel, but it does absolutely give you the mobster feel. There is plenty of player interaction, a cool way to determine area control by being located in multiple areas, and a fun way to store points.
Favorite Part: How you want to have more money, but you can only get so much laundered away each turn.
This game was a complete surprise for me. I had never heard of it, but when I was working with sponsors for IndyCon this one was sent in. The art intrigued me, I learned it was a card driven game in the vein of 1960 or Twilight Struggle, and then I made sure to try it. It has both a co-op and competitive mode, I've only played competitive and only as the Soviets. Playing this game made me research and learn more about the history it tells.
Favorite Part: Two things. I really like the graphic design of strings connecting pictures for locations. From a game play perspective though I like the way events are placed on the board, the Soviets must have them to win, but at the same time it allows the Revolutionaries to trigger them and get bonuses.
2. Inis
Played this for the first time at Geekway. Played it again immediately. Then bought a used copy off a guy there. I knew this game would be for me, but for some reason I never got it played the year before, but am glad I did this year! The game essentially boils down to all other players ganging up on the leader to hold them back. Each round feels like it is played on the edge of a knife, where you know if you make a mistake your chance at victory that round will vanish. I'm really struggling with deciding between this one or Kemet as my favorite of the "trilogy" by Matagot.
Favorite Part: I love that you have to spend a whole turn to take the pretender crown and declare to everyone that you will win the game unless they stop you this round!
I don't know why, but I never really sought this game out. However, in October a friend brought it over and wanted to play. I joined and I was hooked! At the core it is a just a heavier worker placement game with cool plastic pieces (if you have the extras). There is time travel! Unlike a lot of worker placement games, you start with more workers in the beginning than the end which makes you feel like you can do more early on, but still feels very constrained in the end. I do not yet own this one, but it is on the top of my "to buy" list! Also, I just realized this tonight, but David Turczi designed both this and Days of Ire, so I'm going to be on the lookout in the future for his designs as they seem to line up with what I like.
Favorite Part: I really like the mech suits and how they modify where your workers can go. This adds a very high level of tension in the game on getting the right numbers of mechs at the beginning of the round.
Worst Game of the Year
Every year I give out the Dust Award. This award goes to my least favorite game for the year. That game this year is Ubongo 3-D. Wow, this game is just not for me. I really hated it. Now, in its defense, my wife loved it, because she is so good at it. The game however makes me feel like an absolute idiot.
So there you go. My favorite new to me games from 2017. It was a great year playing games with friends and family, experiencing new games, and meeting new people. If I keep my pace up, in 2018 I'll probably play my 1,000 unique game!