Always nice to listen to this yearly discussion! I'm surprised that Dragons Down (#159) didn't get a mention: it is, after all, a very well received re-imagination of the famous Magic Realm, which in itself is quite an event. The Kickstarter only delivered quite recently, which might have had an impact on its rank. There is an upcoming crowdfunding campaign and thematic adventure games fare generally well on this list, so it may well move up the ranks, next year. Hopefully there will be someone in the show who's a fan of such varied, thematic adventure games!
As someone who just got into Astro Knights and loves it but doesn’t love the art/theme as much, I’m actually welcoming the change of theme to Invincible. And per the designers, you don’t actually need opaque sleeves to mix and match because it’s expected you know where all your cards are anyway. Sad to hear Paperback Adventures is off the list; I wish there was more discussion of it before the topic was changed. But I suspect that the release of Slay the Spire as a board game might have played a role since Paperback Adventures was the closest you could get to playing StS as a board game before that (that I’m aware of). Thanks for the great video; I really enjoyed hearing all your perspectives!
Hard disagree with Marceline on the fact that it's cheating for a game to have a fan solo mode and be on this list for that solo mode. The simple fact that it's a fan solo mode means that most people won't have heard about it, and won't have even considered it as a valid choice. The fact that Sky Team (or any other 2+ player game that needs a fan made solo mode to be playable solo for that matter) has made the list with the fierce competition is simply a tribute to how good/popular that fan solo mode is. Fan solo modes have been a fantastic addendum to our hobby, and some have even been published (see Jump Drive)! That being said, I'm really happy to see you all commenting, it's always a fantastic time of the year. Glad to see you back, Mike, you've been missed! PS: Dereck, I LOVE your shirt pattern!
I later correct what I said in the video. I too have designed fan solo modes that have turned into actual solo modes! It’s a great way to start a design hobby/career and perfectly valid. While it’s hard to figure what I meant by it at the time, I am surprised to see so many. You’re right that it’s impressive so many fan solo modes have become solo popular!
I never could get even remotely interested in Wingspan, but somehow Wyrmspan became a must-have for how it plays (not due to dragons or the lovely art). I think it's great at two-player, and now with Mike's commentary I will have to try it solo! For me, it's strange I haven't already; I'm one of those oddballs who likes both Tapestry and Expeditions (with expansion) as solo games.
I'm really with Derek on Etherfields. I love most of the Awaken Realms games. Dang it Mike, now I have to look into Leviathan Wilds. I really need to look into Unsettled. I wonder how much play you get out of base game.
Leviathan Wilds is amazing. You won't go wrong with that one. As for Unsettled, the base game comes with 2 planets, each with 3 scenarios. The scenarios are replayable (a lot is randomized), but I would estimate you would get maybe 10 plays out of the base game before you'd want to start grabbing some expansion planets.
It is very surprising to me Paperback Adventures didn't make it in the top 100. It is a very great dedicated solo game and it is also pretty new. Also loving reviews from SU&SD and NPI. Maybe it was not available enough?
I’m glad to see some great newcomers to the list: Leviathan Wilds, Skoventyr, and Fliptown. These were all instant classics for me. Also, isn’t Renegade supposed to be getting a reprint? When will that happen?
Hello! Thanks for the chat. Where du you find the list of "didn't make it to top 200" games? PS: Are you planning a question around games that you are surprised are on the list (not to say they don't deserve it by your book, buuuut... ;) )
I subscribe to your podcast feed, but have not seen this there yet. Will you be adding it there? I used to listen to these list discussions via One Stop Co-op Shop, but not seeing it there either.
As far as Atro Knights, you probably have a lot of people like me who have a lot of Aeon's End stuff so why buy it again basically. Dang, now I need to look into Black Sonata as well.
Always nice to listen to this yearly discussion! I'm surprised that Dragons Down (#159) didn't get a mention: it is, after all, a very well received re-imagination of the famous Magic Realm, which in itself is quite an event. The Kickstarter only delivered quite recently, which might have had an impact on its rank. There is an upcoming crowdfunding campaign and thematic adventure games fare generally well on this list, so it may well move up the ranks, next year. Hopefully there will be someone in the show who's a fan of such varied, thematic adventure games!
Look forward to this list every year. Thanks so much. ❤️❤️❤️
Thanks for watching! :)
I'm a very lightweight solo gamer, so very few of my favorites tend to show up on this list - but this is the half of the list I'm most interested in!
Hope you find great stuff!
Yay Liz! I look forward to your commentary videos almost as much as the list itself 🙌 thanks for doing this again
Thank you! Hope you find some hidden gems.
Always enjoy these. Thanks!
Thanks, me too. :) It’s great to touch base every year.
As someone who just got into Astro Knights and loves it but doesn’t love the art/theme as much, I’m actually welcoming the change of theme to Invincible. And per the designers, you don’t actually need opaque sleeves to mix and match because it’s expected you know where all your cards are anyway.
Sad to hear Paperback Adventures is off the list; I wish there was more discussion of it before the topic was changed. But I suspect that the release of Slay the Spire as a board game might have played a role since Paperback Adventures was the closest you could get to playing StS as a board game before that (that I’m aware of).
Thanks for the great video; I really enjoyed hearing all your perspectives!
Hard disagree with Marceline on the fact that it's cheating for a game to have a fan solo mode and be on this list for that solo mode. The simple fact that it's a fan solo mode means that most people won't have heard about it, and won't have even considered it as a valid choice. The fact that Sky Team (or any other 2+ player game that needs a fan made solo mode to be playable solo for that matter) has made the list with the fierce competition is simply a tribute to how good/popular that fan solo mode is. Fan solo modes have been a fantastic addendum to our hobby, and some have even been published (see Jump Drive)!
That being said, I'm really happy to see you all commenting, it's always a fantastic time of the year. Glad to see you back, Mike, you've been missed!
PS: Dereck, I LOVE your shirt pattern!
I later correct what I said in the video. I too have designed fan solo modes that have turned into actual solo modes! It’s a great way to start a design hobby/career and perfectly valid.
While it’s hard to figure what I meant by it at the time, I am surprised to see so many. You’re right that it’s impressive so many fan solo modes have become solo popular!
I never could get even remotely interested in Wingspan, but somehow Wyrmspan became a must-have for how it plays (not due to dragons or the lovely art). I think it's great at two-player, and now with Mike's commentary I will have to try it solo! For me, it's strange I haven't already; I'm one of those oddballs who likes both Tapestry and Expeditions (with expansion) as solo games.
I'm really with Derek on Etherfields. I love most of the Awaken Realms games. Dang it Mike, now I have to look into Leviathan Wilds. I really need to look into Unsettled. I wonder how much play you get out of base game.
I looked up Leviathan Wilds after this, too.
Leviathan Wilds is amazing. You won't go wrong with that one.
As for Unsettled, the base game comes with 2 planets, each with 3 scenarios. The scenarios are replayable (a lot is randomized), but I would estimate you would get maybe 10 plays out of the base game before you'd want to start grabbing some expansion planets.
It is very surprising to me Paperback Adventures didn't make it in the top 100. It is a very great dedicated solo game and it is also pretty new. Also loving reviews from SU&SD and NPI. Maybe it was not available enough?
I have no idea, but Paperback Adventures is definitely a charmer.
I’m glad to see some great newcomers to the list: Leviathan Wilds, Skoventyr, and Fliptown. These were all instant classics for me. Also, isn’t Renegade supposed to be getting a reprint? When will that happen?
Renegade is eventually going to come back as Deckers but I don’t know when. I really want to try Leviathan Wilds!
Looking forward to it
I am a little behind in my viewing ... thank you for doing these lists!
how are they seeing boardgames over 200? can someone reply with a link for that pls
That's the database of all the rankings that Kevin will send anyone who wants it, after the list is finished
Kevin makes a spreadsheet that we get early, I feel pretty sure he will release it after the full list.
Mautoma is an excellent solo mode for Brass. In fact, there isn't an official solo mode because of it.
Hello! Thanks for the chat. Where du you find the list of "didn't make it to top 200" games?
PS: Are you planning a question around games that you are surprised are on the list (not to say they don't deserve it by your book, buuuut... ;) )
I think the full list will go out from Kevin when all has been published. He sends a spreadsheet ahead of time so we can record the videos.
I subscribe to your podcast feed, but have not seen this there yet. Will you be adding it there? I used to listen to these list discussions via One Stop Co-op Shop, but not seeing it there either.
As far as Atro Knights, you probably have a lot of people like me who have a lot of Aeon's End stuff so why buy it again basically. Dang, now I need to look into Black Sonata as well.
>:)