by B Kunes
Happy New Year!It is fitting that my first blog post of 2014 be a recap of My Top 10 Most Played Games of 2013!
In summary I recorded 393 plays across 58 unique games last year, including nearly half of them (26) being new titles. October was my highest month (61) and April saw the least (15).
As for the most played details...
10.Dungeon Roll, Innovation, King of Tokyo, Kingsburg, and Troyes
2013 Plays: 9 each
This is kind of cheating, but these five games each saw 9 plays in 2013, one short of becoming dimes. Two were new to us this year and the other trio are favorites of ours that still have something enough to repeat trips to our tabletop for another year. I won't spend much time talking about them settling for a few brief gut thoughts.
Dungeon Roll was a cheap 2013 Kickstarter with potential that is okay as a solo game but doesn't have enough to hold my interest. Innovation, King of Tokyo, and Kingsburg are carry over games from 2012 that still play well as a base game or with expansions we've acquired. They still offer something that I suspect will bring them back to the table in 2014.
Troyes will show up in at least one more blog post this month. One of my favorite acquisitions in 2013 and one I hope will see many more plays to come. It plays fine with 2p but it may just shine at 3p based on the one non-2p game I managed to organize this year.
9.Macao
2013 Plays: 10
Total Plays: 10
My Rating: 8.3
Macao was an Origins purchase this summer, our third Feld game, and the first of four Felds to make this year's most played list! It is also the only Feld where my wife has the advantage in our 2p plays.
An interesting thing to note is that we just now discovered during our 10th play that we have been playing a couple of rules incorrectly. More specifically, you can only possess one building and use each active card once per turn. Previously we had permitted a player to possess multiple buildings per turn and allow one to exchange multiple AC for GC for a single card if desired. It definitely changes the game and I'll need a couple more plays to determine how these revelations change my opinion of the game.
8.Alhambra
2013 Plays: 10
Total Plays: 28
My Rating: 7.0
I borrowed this from a friend in 2012 and after my wife liked it and claimed it as her new favorite, I traded for it. (My friend's wife played it recently and told her husband she really likes it, he should buy it.)
It saw ten plays this year whenever my wife had the itch for buying and placing tiles (this has apparently replaced Carcassonne in our collection). We started utilizing Dirk as a dummy third player in 2013 after discovering their were recommended 2p rules at the end of the rule book. I think my wife actually likes the longer game and rolls her eyes every time I mention we have to draw Dirk's tiles.
7.Bruges
2013 Plays: 12
Total Plays: 12
My Rating: 8.4
My 2nd Most Played Game of 2012 (31x) and probably the Feld game I'd give the nod for the best of the 2013 Feld class. I did play Amerigo on New Years Eve and it impressively exceeded my much deflated expectations but that was only one play.
Bruges continues to grow on me and I enjoy playing it at any player count. The deck of unique character cards that serve multiple purposes in the game continues to reveal new depths and combinations for me to explore. Yes, there is some
6.Roll Through the Ages: The Bronze Age
2013 Plays: 14
Total Plays: 14
My Rating: 7.3
This game came out of nowhere. My wife and I were celebrating our anniversary at Ravenwood Castle recently and while looking through their game library for something new to us to try, this small box game caught our eye. After 8 plays over the two days of our stay my wife bought this (her very first game for herself rather than for me) so she could play it more.
We'll continue to play the standard game until it starts to feel stale and then we'll try the PnP expansion with some different choices to breath some new life into it. It is always a bonus when my wife and primary gaming partner is excited about a game. Cheers to one of her new favorites!
5.Hive
2013 Plays: 14
Total Plays: 49
My Rating: 8.0
This abstract with a constantly evolving board is a favorite of mine. After my wife gave my original copy away I acquired Hive Pocket this year which includes the Ladybug and Mosquito expansion. Both of these bugs are great enhancements and elevates the game play.
Like a few other of my favorite 2p games which my wife does not like, I am at the mercy of an interested and available opponent when it comes to getting Hive to the table, thus it sees rare appearances but multiple plays when it does.
4.Trajan
2013 Plays: 24
Total Plays: 26
My Rating: 8.5
The third Feld on my list is Trajan, a 2012 Christmas gift from my wife. The approach we took to learning this one was visualizing the game as a set of "mini games" each of which I spent a play or two overemphasizing in my approach in order to grasp each part's dynamic in the game. Along the way I learned how to manipulate the mancala-like mechanism more effectively while trying to get the action I was focusing on.
Now I allow the game to unfold and feel confident I can formulate a balanced and competitive strategy with the presented choices. Prior to taking this approach the game felt a little dull after the first few plays. After going through this little exercise I've gained a deeper appreciation for the depth of this design and become a more flexible player.
3.Castles of Burgundy
2013 Plays: 27
Total Plays: 68
My Rating: 8.5
Our first Feld game drops one place this year to third after taking the prize for my 2nd Most Played Game of 2012 (41x). It probably would have seen more than roughly 2 plays per month if it were not for the influx of other Feld games which collectively account for 49 additional plays.
Castles makes for four Feld games in my Top 10 most played of the year which underscores why he is our favorite designer. Prior to the next game on the list appearing on the scene my wife and I thought this would be our first game to reach 100 plays. Although the plays have slowed down I expect to see more plays in 2014. Perhaps we can introduce our girls to Feld with a few of those future plays.
2.Pandemic
2013 Plays: 30
Total Plays: 30
My Rating: 8.0
After discovering Forbidden Island and experiencing the enjoyment of cooperative games I received Pandemic for Christmas last year. It took us a few games before we actually won our first game. Since then we have worked our way up to Heroic level and are succeeding about half the attempts. It has also been a hit with a few people in our game group resulting in them picking up their own copy.
This for me is an experience game that allows for engaging player interaction and collaborative communication and problem-solving which is what I enjoy in a co-op game. I think we'll introduce the fifth virus and experiment with some of the other goodies in the On the Brink expansion in 2014.
1.Guildhall
2013 Plays: 76
Total Plays: 76
My Rating: 8.1
Guildhall wins the crown for our most played game of 2013. We only acquired it in October and it has consistently and frequently hit the table. I didn't expect my wife to like it due to the potential for "take that", but from her very first win it became her favorite game.
I don't know how long we will average 25 plays per month, but given I gifted her Job Faire for Christmas which introduces six more interesting characters to learn and mix in for a variety of combinations it certainly has the momentum to keep the trend going for awhile.
Our enthusiasm for this set collection card game has been infectious as others on BGG have gone on to buy it and discovered this underrated game that oddly isn't on many gamers' radar. I suspect this game has legs to become our first game to reach 100 plays. Stay tuned...
:meeple: Keep playing...