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5: The Thing: Infection at Outpost 31
5: The Thing: Infection at Outpost 31In brief: If you love social interaction games that play fairly quickly, but also carry some of the weight of a “proper” board game, then chances are you want to get stuck in to The Thing: Infection at Outpost 31. In this thematic re-enactment of the iconic movie, players will draw cards secretly to inform them of their infection status – with human players wanting to escape alive, and infected players hoping to thwart them (and potentially also escape to spread the infection further.) Fantastic, raucous fun!
Buy The Thing: Infection at Outpost 31 on Amazon.
4: Rurik: Dawn of Kiev
In brief: If you enjoy the visual appeal and mild contention of a dudes on a map game, but enjoy the idea of clever worker placement games, you’ll love Rurik: Dawn of Kiev. This 2019 Kickstarter had a very brief retail run and there aren’t many around, but despite its rarity, this modern classic is well worth tracking down – definitely a favourite, as you’ll discover in my review.
Rurik: Dawn of Kiev is sadly no longer available, but perhaps you’ll find it in your friendly local game store.
3: Zombicide: 2nd Edition
In brief: As I’ll explain in my detailed review, Zombicide: 2nd Edition is probably the ultimate dice-rolling, zombie-blasting cooperative experience. With many expansions (including several that can be printed for free) and support for one to six players, this is a fun, versatile game that can match your requirements for either easier or harder games, and offers loads of fun in whatever guise you play it.
Buy Zombicide: 2nd Edition on Amazon.
2: Ankh: Gods of Egypt
In brief: Ankh, we think, is without doubt Eric M. Lang’s masterpiece. The final game in a trilogy which also includes Rising Sun and Blood Rage, this game features amazing artwork and components, huge, well detailed miniatures and a ton of optional expansions – but more importantly – it’s an incredibly solid gaming experience.
Featuring a unique “merge” mechanic that takes place towards the mid-late game, Ankh sees up to five players competing to be the most powerful (and ultimately, only) God in Egyptian history. With a pantheon of Gods to choose from and a whole host of optional monsters, this is a highly variable, extremely thematic game that deserves its spot in this list. Check out our full review here.
1: Age of Innovation
In brief: Age of Innovation represents the true ascension of a modern classic. Where Terra Mystica remains a much-loved and iconic euro game that was responsible for bringing heavier games to the masses and Gaia Project refined the formula and took the theme into space, Age of Innovation blows the what makes these games exceptional apart and gives players the pieces to play them with in a giant sandbox of possibilities. You can read more about it here, but if you’re wondering why I’ve ranked it as our number 1 board game of all time – well that’s simple.
No other game creates such decision-making tension right from the outset, whilst also giving players of all abilities a fair chance. You can play Age of Innovation with pre-configured options to ensure fairness or even to stack the deck towards new players, or you can take the handbrake off and let players work out their own strategies from the hundreds of setup combinations on offer. When the game gets going, the economy is mega tight, the decisions impactful and the mechanical storytelling second to none. If you only own one mid-heavy eurogame, it might as well be Age of Innovation.
Buy Age of Innovation from Amazon here.
