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2016 has been a pretty awesome year for board gaming, not only have we had some great new releases but the hobby still continues to grow. It wasn't the mind blowing 56% of last year but, considering our hobby was supposedly destined to decline and be replaced by digital games, the fact we still have year on year growth is extremely promising and shows that stabbing your friend in the back while gazing them in the eye is a great deal more satisfying than just hearing their screams of despair across a headset.
To celebrate a great year of gaming I have composed a list games of which I have had the best experience with in 2016. Some of these games were released this year, some are a few years older but all of them have made an impression on me and my group in 2016.
10. Legendary:Marvel
Marvel is a game that I bought upon release in 2013 and since then we have never stopped playing. The Legendary games are a series of deck builders released by Upper Deck. Currently there are versions for Alien and Predator, as well as my choice Marvel. In this game you will attempting to build up your team of superheroes, whilst trying not to lose to the game's schemes or mastermind.
For someone who used to play Magic the Gathering, I find the hero combinations you can create extremely satisfying whilst the game is considerably more accessible to new players. With the game's ever growing range of expansions, Marvel legendary keeps getting better with new schemes, masterminds and villains as well as new heroes - who always come with an array of new mechanics.
Legendary Marvel is available from our online store, we also have available several of the expansions including volume one and volume two of Secret wars.
9. Bang! The Dice Game
Bang is one of my top party games! Each player takes a hidden role, with one player being the sheriff and the rest either needing to kill or protect him. Each turn players will roll all their dice, using the results to inflict damage on other players as well as to heal their wounds.
Bang works best with a a group of 4-6, being chaotic but still retaining its fast paced nature. Bang is most certainly a game you will want to bring out at your gaming group for some light-hearted wild west fun.
8. Dead of Winter
Braainnnnsss! Well no list is complete without at least one zombie title and Dead of Winter is my pick. A great semi-co-operative game where the aim is to survive the zombie apocalypse whilst watching out for other players who may have a secret objective, which could endanger your whole plan.
The game also features a random events system in the form of the crossroads cards, allowing for some interesting changes of circumstance. Dead of Winter is a game I would most certainly recommend to any group that enjoys a tough co-operative game.
You can purchase Dead of Winter from our online store, as well as the new standalone expansion A long night.
7. Kodama
In Kodama your aim is to grow the tree that satisfies the most tree spirits (Kodama). You will each be taking it in turns to place down a branch card from those present and score the corresponding points with each of the game's seasons, changing the rules slightly.
Kodama is a wonderfully simple game and that, coupled with its beautiful artwork, makes this a really great family game. I challenge you to not enjoy this beautiful little gem.
6. Star Wars: Rebellion
Ever wanted to live out the Star Wars movies? This is your opportunity. Star Wars: Rebellion places you in command of the Rebel Alliance or the Empire as you seek to take control of the galaxy. The game plays asymmetrically with the Empire trying to track down the rebel's hidden base by invading planets or launching probe droids, and the rebel alliance launching strikes of opportunity and assigning their heroes to missions in order to improve their galactic reputation. If the Empire can successfully find and destroy the base they immediately win the game, so the Rebels must try to keep them off balance until they can end the game on their terms.
Rebellion is extremely cinematic, especially when you are launching a surprise raid on the death star with a hopelessly outgunned force, and your only hope is to roll the equivalent of six on three dice. Well at least that's how I felt, before having to try and sneak my fleet out. This game is Star Wars in a box, and as such a real must try.
5. Colt Express
Another wild west themed game, Colt Express puts you and your fellow players in the shoes of a group of bandits attempting to rob a train, but don't get the wrong idea, this game is not co-operative. Each round players will play cards into a pool one at a time, before having them revealed and performing the actions they played. The game is a mad frenzy of bandits running up and down the train taking shots at each other whilst trying to secure the most loot.Sounds fun right? Well its a blast! Sometimes things won't go the way you planned, but you are most certainly in for a good game.
Oh and did I mention it comes with a train?
Colt Express is available from our online store.
4. Secret Hitler
Secret Hitler is not currently available at retail, so perhaps this is cheating a little but I couldn't not include it. Secret Hitler is prominently a hidden role game, with each player at the start being given a card saying either fascist or liberal, one of the fascists will have the additional role of being Hitler though he, unlike all the other fascists, won't know who is who.
The aim of the game is for the liberals to assassinate Hitler or to pass enough liberal policies, and for the fascists it is to get Hitler into power or to pass five fascist laws. The president and chancellor roles move around the table with people voting on if they will get a chance to form a government. If they do they will then enact a policy, with the President drawing three and passing two to the chancellor for him to enact one.
Players will all be attempting to work out who they can trust to enforce the polices they want, with the fascists trying to conceal where their loyalty lies. In our games I was a fascist every time, and it really is quite a balancing act trying to push your agenda whilst hidden your identity.
3. Battlestar Galactica
Another game of hidden roles, Battlestar Galactica is one of my favourites. The aim of the game is to reach Kobol, well at least it is for the human players, the Cylon's role being to stop this from occurring. You may start the game as a cyclon, or find out later, creating instances where you may have laboured hard for a human victory only to discover that you were truly a machine all along.
This could be seen as frustrating for some players, but if you have seen the TV show I think you would agree that this only enhances the immersion into the game's setting. The characters present in the game are also very well portrayed with each having a once per game ability, and a permanent bonus reflective of their character. Like all humans they also have a flaw.These can range from being unable to use a certain location, to have a negative effect occur when they are forced into a particular circumstance.
Battlestar Galactica is a cooperative game with traitor mechanic, and as such is only as good as the players make it. The finger pointing and shouts of 'I'm not a cylon' is what really makes this game come to life.
2. Star Trek- Ascendancy
Ascendancy is quite different to most Star Trek themed games, as instead of commanding a star ship crew or a small fleet, you will be put in change of your chosen factions sector wide strategy. This means as well as fending off enemy star ships you will be colonising planets and building up infrastructure, all in your quest to be the first in claiming five ascendancy points.
The game comes with three factions in the core set, predictably these are the Federation, Klingons and Romulans, with two more factions to come in the near future. One of the great things about this game is how different each faction is, they each have a unique deck of advancements and two traits. These traits will give them a unique way to gain culture and a disadvantage, encouraging you to play the game in a specific way.
This is not the game's best feature however as Ascendancy features a unique board building mechanic with each player starting on their home world and adding new space lanes as they explore the galaxy, this allows the board to unfold in a different way every time you play, though this is open to some abuse, by cunning players.
For any Trekkie this game is a must, but without hesitation I would certainly recommend it to anyone who enjoys asymmetrical area control.
1. Ticket to Ride: Rails and Sails
Rails and Sails was the biggest Ticket to Ride release of 2016, and for good reason. This is no mere map pack, Rails and Sails is a standalone game using many standard Ticket to Ride rules, but also adding many new ones. The game comes with a double sided map, one being Great Lakes, a map not yet seen in standard Ticket, and a Worldwide map. As always the aim of the game is to score the most points by completing tickets and building long train lines, except this time you will also be using ships and that's where the sails come in.
Unlike regular Ticket to Ride, this game has two draw decks - one for trains and one for ships - with players choosing which they draw on their turn. The game's tokens are also split into the two types, with each player deciding how many of each they want at the start of the game. This is an interesting new dynamic requiring you to really plan ahead, as if you change the tokens over it not only uses an action point, but gives you a negative score.
Rails and Sails is a great new take on the classic game, offering veterans of the series a new challenge and something they can really sink their teeth into.
Rails and Sails is available from our online store.
Parting Words
As with all top 10's it was a difficult choice as I played so many great games in 2016. This list is of course entirely subjective, and in the end I choose the games that went down the best with my gaming group or that created the most memorable experiences.
Some games such as Mansions of Madness Second Edition and Adrenaline, while excellent, we just haven't played enough yet, but rest assured that as soon as I have a few more games under my belt I will be doing a full review.