Build your band of Vikings and set sail to explore and expand your influence. You’ll sail your “knarr”, a type of merchant Viking ship, and recruit a crew of Vikings, earning goods and building a fortune. Let’s check out why Knarr from Pandasaurus Games has been such a big hit at our game table. Your Band of Vikings Building your band of Vikings is the cornerstone of this engine-building, card drafting game. Each Viking card in Knarr represents a different class. You’ll start the game with two random Vikings in your tableau and three Vikings in your hand. On your turn you can “Recruit” OR “Exp ..read more

Your family is working to make a name for themselves as Emperor Constantine builds a new capital for the Roman Empire. Each player represents a family that is working to impress the Emperor. Choose your path to victory and gain valuable followers in Nova Roma from Half-a-Kingdom Games and 25th Century Games. Building an Empire We first checked out Nova Roma when it came to Kickstarter back in 2022. This medium weight Euro from Stan Kordonskiy with artwork from The Mico is now gracing tables around the world. At the heart of this game is an action selection grid in the central board. Each play ..read more

The first Unmatched release of 2024 has proven to be another great non-IP based set of fighters. Unmatched: Suns Origin contains two fighters pulled straight from Japanese history. Let’s get into what makes these fighters a unique addition to the Unmatched Universe. The Samauri First up is the ranged fighter Tomoe Gozen, a member of the Minamoto Clan. Armed with a bow, Tomoe will track down her enemy and distance is actually her friend. Her ability called “Attack of Opportunity” will deal 1 damage to an opposing hero when they leave Tomoe’s zone. This special ability only affects heros, not si ..read more

The trees are in bloom and it’s only a matter of time before seasonal allergies make my face explode. Spring is here and it’s beautiful! I’m sharing 5 great games that are in bloom on our game table this season. Gartenbau Publisher: 25th Century Games Number of Players: 2 to 4 Time Commitment: 60-90 minutes Purchase on Amazon Gartenbau is a beautiful tile placement game with an 19th century seed catalog aesthetic. Not only was the game in my Top 10 Games of 2022, but it was also a Mensa Select Winner for 2023. Moving around the central board, players are collecting sun and water tokens, spend ..read more

Astronauts have traveled to Mars on an important fact finding mission. With the superhero Invincible on their side, how could they fail? Invincible Escape from Mars is a social deduction game based on the hit Amazon Original animated series from Skybound Animation. In this game, up to 10 players are working to complete challenges and make it home safely. But, not everyone is who they appear to be. Fighting for Good? Invincible is a comic series from Robert Kirkman that follows teenager Mark Grayson as he discovers his superhuman powers. The comic and animated series is filled with superheroes ..read more

Our family tends to bring “word games” to the table when we have big family events. There’s always a word game on the table around Thanksgiving and Christmas. When the parents drop by around birthdays, chances are that we’re going to play Just One or Werewords. During the holidays, we checked out Words of a Feather from Turn Sideways Games and Grand Gamers Guild. The Peacock of Word Games Words of a Feather immediately draws people in with the incredible table presence. Word cards are setup facedown in a circular display in the center of the table. These feather cards will center around a cer ..read more

Print-and-play games have become quite popular on Kickstarter, and the one sheet variety (think Welcome To, Aquamarine, or Three Sisters… okay, that has 2 sheets) have become my favorite type of game to back. They’re cheap, they get delivered to you much more quickly than a standard game, and they don’t take up any room on my shelves. I’ve played several of these types of games in the past few months, hoping to do some mini-reviews or game testing along the way. Throughout this time, though, one game has stood out to me, and I always find myself drawn back to it.  Maybe it’s the artwork ..read more

Explore a diverse ecosystem under the sea as you build out the corral reef and discover marine life in AQUA from The OP Games. With careful planning and focus, you can create corral formations worth lots of points and attract high scoring sea creatures. This tile placement game has a lot to offer in a beautiful puzzle under the sea. Diving Deep Players are building their own ecosystem during the course of the game, adding a new piece of colorful corral each turn. AQUA rewards players that choose biodiversity as they create space for different types of marine life. The base level of your expan ..read more

In 2023, our friend Joe taught us a game that quickly became our “go-to” card game for any occasion. Nana was a small box card game published in Korea with simple mechanics that was accessible to both kids and adults. Trio from Happy Camper Games, is the US release of this game that has occupied our table for months. Since it’s now widely available, it’s time to convince you that you need this card game in your collection. Hide and Seek The goal of Trio is straight-forward. Players are trying to collect all three copies of a given card. Cards in the deck are numbered 1 through 12, with three c ..read more

The battlefield is filled with danger, but if you play your cards right, you’ll win more than just the battle. Slava is a military trick-taking game with visuals packed with 1980’s G.I. Joe nostalgia. Use your forces at just the right time to win points, but pay attention to the weather condition which will dictate the hierarchy of battle. Prepare for Battle In Slava, players start the game with a hand of 8 cards. Each turn around the table is called a battle, and 8 battles are called a campaign. Players are trying to collect the most points by winning tricks during the campaign. The starting ..read more