Vendor: Calliope Games
Type: Board Games
Price:
33.15
Designer | Tom McMurchie |
Players | 2-8 |
Playtime | 15 mins |
Suggested Age | 8 and up |
Honors | 2006 Golden Geek Best Light / Party Game Nominee |
Reimplemented By | Tsuro of the Seas |
A beautiful and beautifully simple game of laying a tile before your own token to continue its path on each turn. The goal is to keep your token on the board longer than anyone else's, but as the board fills up this becomes harder because there are fewer empty spaces left... and another player's tile may also extend your own path in a direction you'd rather not go. Easy to introduce to new players, Tsuro lasts a mere 15 minutes and actually does work for any number from 2 to 8.
Theme:
Tsuro has an Asian spiritual theme - the lines representing the "many roads that lead to divine wisdom", and the game as a whole representing "the classic quest for enlightenment".
This theme is very light and the game essentially plays as an abstract.
Gameplay:
The game consists of tiles with twisting lines on them, a 6x6 grid on which to lay these tiles and a token for each player. Each player has a hand of tiles. On your turn you do two things: place a tile from your hand onto the board next to your token and move your token as far as it can go along the line it is currently on, until it is stopped by an empty space with no tile in (yet), the edge of the board or colliding with another player's token. If your token reaches the edge of the board or collides with another player's token, you are out of the game. The aim of the game is to be the last player left with a token on the board. Strategy therefore consists of trying to drive your opponents either into each other or off the board whilst extending your own route in directions that will make it difficult for your opponents to do the same.
Other notes:
Tsuro was originally patented by McMurchie in 1979 under the name Squiggle Game, but was apparently not published at that time. Somewhat similar to Metro and Spaghetti Junction.
Vendor: AEG
Type: Board Games
Price:
53.95
Designers |
Trevor Benjamin David Thompson (I) |
Publisher | Alderac Entertainment Group |
Players | 2-4 |
Playtime | 30 mins |
Suggested Age | 14 and up |
Expansions |
War Chest: Nobility War Chest: Siege |
Accessories |
Meeple Realty - War Crate Laserox - War Chest Organizer Laserox - War Chest Organizer Dividers |
Honors |
2018 Golden Geek Best 2-Player Board Game Nominee 2018 Cardboard Republic Striker Laurel Nominee |
Vendor: Chess Geeks
Type: Board Games
Price:
36.95
The Best Chess Set Ever 1x Travel takes the best of the chess world and compiles it all in a compact box perfect for travel. The Staunton-style chess pieces are easy to handle and have a weighted, felted base that makes them perfect for indoor or outdoor play.
The Silicone board lays flat, and wipes clean so you don't have to worry about spills or creases. We also include our 32-page guide, “The Best Chess Strategy Guide Ever”. This guide features illustrated instructions that can help players of all skill levels whether you are just learning, or you are looking to take your skill to the next level.
WHAT IS IN THE PACKAGE?
SINGLE WEIGHTED CHESS PIECES
Play chess outside with this set of 32 single-weighted chess pieces. This set features felt bottoms on all of the pieces so they slide smoothly.
SPILL-RESISTANT SILICONE CHESSBOARD
This 15” x 15” silicone chess board is ideal for players of all ages. We chose silicone since it's spill-resistant and always wipes clean, you also don’t have to worry about creases in the board when you fold it up in the box! Use the algebraic notation to follow along with puzzles or learn strategies more quickly!
CHESS STRATEGY GUIDE
Our set includes an exclusive 32-page chess strategy guide offering everything you need to know to learn the basics and coordinate advanced attacks. The illustrated guide is organized by beginner, intermediate, and advanced play levels, helping players to develop strategic skills in increments. The Best Strategy Guide Ever is the critical, must-have handbook for players of every level.
Vendor: Meromorph Games
Type: Board Games
Price:
25.95
Designer | Kevin Bishop |
Publisher | Meromorph Games |
Players | 2-5 |
Playtime | 10-30 mins |
Suggested Age | 12 and up |
Trapped in a drowned world, you and your allies are doomed -- or are you? Using the mystical deck of The Shipwreck Arcana and a healthy dose of logic, you can predict each others' fates and escape unscathed. Make haste, though -- there aren't many hours left...
The Shipwreck Arcana is a compact, co-operative game of deduction, evaluation, and logic, combining simple and speedy play with deep strategy. Players take turns playing tokens according to rules found on an ever-changing tableau of arcana cards in order to convey information to the rest of the group before their doom arrives. The players must collectively guess 7 fates before time runs out! A wrong guess or a fading Arcana card will advance the Hours towards dawn.
WHAT MAKES IT UNIQUE
Create and solve complex deduction puzzles. Players take turns having and deducing information. Communication mechanics encourage participation. The active player can't speak, so no single player can carry the group to victory by themselves. Plays well with any mix of veterans and newcomers. New players have the opportunity to learn and discuss strategy openly with more experienced players. Accommodates drop-in/drop-out play. Gameplay easily supports adding or removing players on the fly, without interrupting the pace of the game. Complex strategy, simple gameplay. During your turn, you draw two tokens and play one. Easy!
Includes 15 expansion cards for extra challenge, right in the box!
Vendor: Steve Jackson Games
Type: Board Games
Price:
36.95
Designer | |
Publisher | Steve Jackson Games |
Players | 2 |
Playtime | 90 mins |
Suggested Age | 10 and up |
Honors | 1995 Fairplay À la carte Winner |
ETA Q1 2024
Knightmare Chess adds a whole new element of unpredictability to the static game of standard Chess by giving players cards that they can play before, after, or sometimes instead of their turns. Some cards affect only a single move, while others change the entire game. Multiple variants are included in the rules.
The 2014 edition of Knightmare Chess includes the cards from both Knightmare Chess and Knightmare Chess 2 — 158 cards in all.
Vendor: Allplay
Type: Board Games
Price:
49.95
Designer |
Reiner Knizia |
Publisher | Allplay |
Players | 2-5 |
Playtime | 45 mins |
Suggested Age | 10 and up |
Honor | 1998 Meeples' Choice Award 1998 Spiel des Jahres Recommended 2006 Nederlandse Spellenprijs Nominee 2007 As d'Or - Jeu de l'Année Nominee |
Each player attempts to score the most points by snaking caravan routes through the desert, trying to reach oases and blocking off sections of the desert. Many people feel that it is reminiscent of Go.
Publisher's Description
From the award-winning game designer Reiner Knizia comes a game of strategy, patience, and cool plastic camels! The desert is still treacherous, mysterious, and without mercy. But for those willing to risk the dangers of the shifting, sun-baked sands, the desert holds riches beyond compare.
In Through the Desert, two to five players each control a tribe of nomads vying for control of the desert. By establishing caravans and taking over oases, the players gain points as their tribes increase in power.
Strategy is essential in deciding how and where to build your tribe's caravans. There are multiple ways to gain points and several ways to win. Should you try to build the longest caravan? Or should you dominate the desert's oases? Don't forget to keep an eye on your opponents' caravans, or you may find your own tribe cut off from valuable water holes.
Through the Desert is part of the so called Knizia tile-laying trilogy.
Vendor: Mattel
Type: Board Games
Price:
29.95
Designer | Bernard Tavitian |
Publisher | Mattel |
Players | 2-4 |
Playtime | 20 mins |
Suggested Age | 5 and up |
Honors |
Blokus (officially pronounced "Block us") is an abstract strategy game with transparent, Tetris-shaped, colored pieces that players are trying to play onto the board. The only caveat to placing a piece is that it may not lie adjacent to your other pieces, but instead must be placed touching at least one corner of your pieces already on the board.
There is a solitaire variation where one player tries to get rid of all the pieces in a single sitting.
Components:
Blokus Game Board (400 squares)
84 game pieces (four 21-piece sets of red, green, blue, and yellow)
Each color inlcudes:
Goal of the Game:
Each player has to fit as many of his/her 21 pieces on the board as possible.
How to Play:
1. Each player chooses a color and places that set of 21 pieces in front of his/her side of the board. The order of play is as follows: blue, yellow, red, and then green.
2. The first player (blue) places any of his/her pieces in a corner square. Play proceeds clockwise around the board (yellow, red, and green), each player putting their first piece down in one of the corner squares.
3. Play continues as each player lays down one piece during a turn.
Each new piece must touch at least one other piece of the same color, but only at the corners.
No flat edges of same color pieces can touch.
There are no restrictions on how pieces of different colors can touch one another.
4. Whenever a player is unable to place one of his/her remaining pieces on the board, that player must pass his/her turn.
End of Game:
The game ends when all players are blocked from laying down any more of their pieces. This also includes any players who may have placed all of their pieces on the board. Scores are tallied, and the player with the highest score is the winner.
Scoring:
Each player counts the number of unit squares in his/her remaining pieces (1 unit square = -1 point).
A player earns +15 points if all his/her pieces have been placed on the board plus 5 additional bonus points if the last piece placed on the board was the smallest piece (one square).
There are unauthorized versions of the game published under various names, including The Strategy Game, Tetris, Blokád (unofficial Hungarian version with cardboard pieces) and The Family Chess Game.
Vendor: TIKI Editions Inc.
Type: Board Games
Price:
47.95
Designer |
Michael Schacht |
Publisher | TIKI Editions Inc. |
Players | 2-4 |
Playing Time | 20 mins |
Suggested Age | 8 and up |
Vendor: AEG
Type: Board Games
Price:
13.95
These are the additional Verdant cards offered as a pack-in benefit for Kickstarter Backers and are identical in all respects to that addition to the Kickstarter campaign.
Vendor: Game Factory
Type: Board Games
Price:
14.95
Designer |
Bernhard Weber |
Publisher | Game Factory |
Players | 2-4 |
Playtime | 20-20 mins |
Suggested Age | 7 and up |
Honor | 2019/Fall Parents' Choice Gold Award Winner |
Vendor: Steve Jackson Games
Type: Board Games
Price:
25.95
Designer |
Francis K. Lalumiere |
Publisher | Steve Jackson Games |
Players | 2 |
Playtime | 30 mins |
Suggested Age | 8 and up |
Vendor: Giga Mech Games
Type: Board Games
Price:
26.95
Designer |
Giampaolo Razzino |
Publisher | Giga Mech Games |
Players | 1-4 |
Playtime | 15-20 mins |
Suggested Age | 10 and up |
Vendor: Pandasaurus Games
Type: Board Games
Price:
16.95
Designer |
Nobutake Dogen Nao Shimamura |
Publisher | Pandasaurus Games |
Players | 2 |
Playtime | 10-20 mins |
Suggested Age | 10 and up |
Honor |
|
Vendor: BLAM !
Type: Board Games
Price:
34.95
Designer | Luka Krleza |
Publisher | BLAM ! |
Players | 2-4 |
Playtime | 30 mins |
Suggested Age | 8 and up |
Expansion |
Chakra: Yin Yang |
Honors |
2021 Spiel des Jahres Recommended 2020 Palme d'Argent for Best Illustrations |
Vendor: Grey Fox Games
Type: Board Games
Price:
41.95
Designer |
Gord! |
Publisher | Grey Fox Games |
Players | 2 |
Playtime | 15-30 mins |
Suggested Age | 10 and up |
Expansion | Ragnarocks: Promo Pack 1 |
Vendor: AEG
Type: Board Games
Price:
49.95
Designer |
Molly Johnson Robert Melvin Aaron Mesburne Kevin Russ Shawn Stankewich |
Publisher | Alderac Entertainment Group |
Players | 1-5 |
Playtime | 30-45 mins |
Suggested Age | 10 and up |
Vendor: AEG
Type: Board Games
Price:
37.95
Designer |
Molly Johnson Robert Melvin Aaron Mesburne Kevin Russ Shawn Stankewich |
Publisher | Alderac Entertainment Group |
Players | 1-5 |
Playtime | 30-45 mins |
Suggested Age | 10 and up |
Vendor: MindWare
Type: Board Games
Price:
57.95
Designer |
Susan McKinley Ross |
Publisher | MindWare |
Players | 2-4 |
Playtime | 45 mins |
Suggested Age | 6 and up |
Honors |
|
Expansions |
Qwirkle: Erweiterung 1 (German Import) Qwirkle: Erweiterung 2 (German Import) |
Reimplemented By | Qwirkle Cubes |
This collector's edition offers silky smooth acrylic tiles and wood tile racks.
Vendor: CoCoCo
Type: Board Games
Price:
29.95
Designer |
Gary Cowley |
Publisher | CoCoCo |
Players | 2-4 |
Playtime | 30 mins |
Suggested Age | 12 and up |
Vendor: Drawlab Entertainment
Type: Board Games
Price:
39.95
Designer |
Gábor Incze |
Publisher | Drawlab Entertainment |
Players | 2 |
Playtime | 30 mins |
Suggested Age | 12 and up |
Honors | 2022 UK Games Expo Best Abstract Game Nominee |
Vendor: Cosmoludo
Type: Board Games
Price:
35.95
Designer |
Bruno Cathala |
Publisher | Cosmoludo |
Players | 2 |
Playtime | 15 mins |
Suggested Age | 8 and up |
Vendor: ABACUSSPIELE
Type: Board Games
Price:
75.95
Designer | Alex Randolph |
Publisher | ABACUSSPIELE |
Players | 1-99 |
Playtime | 30 mins |
Suggested Age | 10 and up |
Vendor: PYTHAGORAS
Type: Board Games
Price:
31.95
Designers |
Costa Rôla |
Publisher | PYTHAGORAS |
Players | 1-4 |
Playing Time | 20-45 mins |
Suggested Age | 8 and up |
Honors |
|
Expansion | Café: EXPRESSO |
Vendor: Gamewright
Type: Board Games
Price:
11.95
Designer |
Julien Griffon |
Publisher | Gamewright |
Players | 2-4 |
Playing Time | 20 mins |
Suggested Age | 8 and up |
Honors |
2020 Spiel der Spiele Hit Karten Recommended 2020 Fairplay À la carte Runner-up |
Vendor: Lookout Games
Type: Board Games
Price:
14.95
Ghosts, skeletons and pumpkins have entered the world of Patchwork in this spooky retheme, just in time for Halloween. And maybe, if you trick or treat your opponent correctly, you might not only be the winner, but also get some sweets as a reward.
- Abstract, strategy game
- Super quick gameplay
- A fun Halloween theme!
- A great game in the Patchwork universe