Board & Card Games

There's a really old board games thread (like, 2004), but it deserves a full revamp.

I've recently rediscovered board and card gaming, through a group of friends that enjoy playing all kinds of things. I grew up on classic strategy games (Stratego, Risk, Axis & Allies, etc.) but my experience in the last decade has consisted mostly of Apples to Apples and Cards Against Humanity. Those are fun party games, but there's a TON of variety out there in gaming. My knowledge of games mostly consisted of the games aisle in Toys R Us, but there's so much more out there, including awesome stuff for adults, families, parties, or hardcore gamers.

Topics:
- What are your favorite games?

- Why are they your favorite games? What play styles or aspects draw you to them?

- What games would you like to play that you've heard about?

Resources:
It's really just one resource, but it's an amazing one: Board Game Geek (BGG for short) is a ridiculously comprehensive website for this stuff. Rules, synopses, suggestions, reviews, discussion, an Ebay-like marketplace for exchanging games, etc.
http://boardgamegeek.com/

Games I Own:
- X-Men Alert
Not too complex, and occasionally imbalanced (Prof. X is terrible unless you're lucky as sh*t), but still a really fun time.

- Super Munchkin
Chaotic, backstabbing, hilarious fun. This is one of several Munchkin variations.

- Key to the Kingdom
Kind of a kid's game. But it's easy to learn, has an interesting board, and is great when there's a mix of kids and adults.

- Stratego
Classic strategy game. Good times.

- Risk & Castle Risk
Everyone knows Risk, but Castle Risk is its bastard cousin. It's on a European map and introduces a few new game mechanics. Never caught on, but I enjoy it.

- 221B Baker Street: Master Detective Game
I just bought this and haven't played it. I'm excited though.

- Apples to Apples
A fun, simple game, but I've grown tired of it.

- Chess
- Othello

Games I Love:
- One Night Ultimate Werewolf
Half deduction game, half people-reading and bluffing. Short, exciting, stimulating, and fun.

- Lords of Waterdeep
Besides being into Forgotten Realms, this is a fun strategy game that has a great balance between luck/strategy and in its learning curve.

- Cards Against Humanity
I put this one here with some reservations, because I've kinda grown tired of playing it. That said, it's a wonderful party game, provided no one in attendance is either too young or easily offended.

Games I Want:
- Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective
I've heard nothing but excellent things off of BGG. I also need good 2-player games for my gf and I.

- Mr. Jack
Similar to Sherlock, this should be a good 2-player game.

- Love Letter
Simple, cheap, and it seems interesting.

- Others I'm Looking Into: Oddville, Mice & Mystics, War of the Ring, Caylus, 7 Wonders

Others I've Played:
- Betrayal at House on the Hill
Decent horror premise, but lacking direction in the 1st phase of the game, and can be imbalanced depending on which "betrayal" you get in Phase 2.

- Dominion: Dark Ages
Like Munchkin, this is one of several versions. I enjoyed this one, and it's a moderately complex deck-building game, but it didn't capture me in the same way as some of the others. It also tends to heavily favor experienced players due to the complexity.

Notes:
I tend to enjoy games that give me more control over them. Luck is always present, but I need to feel as though my strategy has a tangible impact on the outcome.

Second, having a story or persona to inhabit helps. Munchkin vs. Dominion is a great example. Dominion is a more complex and more balanced strategy game. But I'm a faceless deck of cards, accumulating other cards, to try and get more of a certain type of card. In Super Munchkin, I'm a wacky super hero fighting weird villains and backstabbing or allying with my friends. It's easier to become invested, despite the game itself being more arbitrary.

...

Feel free to add your own favorites, wish lists, stories, etc.

I love board and card games but have no one to play them with as an adult, and there aren't many places nearby to play with strangers. So currently play none except occasional digital versions.

I do have King of Tokyo to play with the kids in my house though

I should mention that I also did some 3rd Edition D&D back in the day, but it was VERY short-lived. Most of my RPing has been in video games.

Originally posted by Lek Kuen
I love board and card games but have no one to play them with as an adult, and there aren't many places nearby to play with strangers. So currently play none except occasional digital versions.

I do have King of Tokyo to play with the kids in my house though

👆 Finding a group is hard. It's probably the main thing that keeps people from finding this stuff and playing more.

No Catan?

Originally posted by Lord Lucien
No Catan?

Not currently, no. I played it a couple times years ago when I was a teenager, but not to the extent that I feel like I could comment on it. One of my friends that's in the gaming group I've been hanging out with has Star Trek Catan. I'll probably press us into playing it at some point. We have a small queue of games to get to at some point, and that's definitely one of them.

What a bunch of nerds.

Originally posted by NemeBro
What a bunch of nerds.

I'm going to ignore your comment, but quote it for the sake of discussing something worthwhile that it touches on.

I've seen comic store game nights where some of the stereotypes likely apply. All-male, unhygienic, socially reclusive, etc. Some of that is unfair, but occasionally it applies. But by the same token, games can be socially galvanizing. Mondays used to be one of my dance nights, but our venue(s) have fallen through. As a result, our game night has formed, and it's become an unofficial date night for a lot of us as well.

Video games couldn't do that. Comics certainly couldn't. If you're not athletically inclined (dancing, intramural sports teams, etc.), there are worse routes, especially if you're looking for a fun way to spend a night in with family, a date, friends, etc. It's too new to call it a hobby of mine, but I'm also thrilled to be discovering it.

We always have a chess board set up in the house, so at least one game a day gets played by any two of us.
Not sure that counts as a board game.
We like playing Bass Ackwards lately. Fun game.

My family has NEVER finished a whole game of Monopoly...😛

Fun thread.

Originally posted by Digi
I'm going to ignore your comment, but quote it for the sake of discussing something worthwhile that it touches on.

I've seen comic store game nights where some of the stereotypes likely apply. All-male, unhygienic, socially reclusive, etc. Some of that is unfair, but occasionally it applies. But by the same token, games can be socially galvanizing. Mondays used to be one of my dance nights, but our venue(s) have fallen through. As a result, our game night has formed, and it's become an unofficial date night for a lot of us as well.

Video games couldn't do that. Comics certainly couldn't. If you're not athletically inclined (dancing, intramural sports teams, etc.), there are worse routes, especially if you're looking for a fun way to spend a night in with family, a date, friends, etc. It's too new to call it a hobby of mine, but I'm also thrilled to be discovering it.

I was really into Magic the Gathering a couple years ago. That's a great and strategic card game.

Similar is Hearthstone, which I currently play quite a bit. A "free to play" digital card game similar to Magic but based in Warcraft lore. Lot of fun.

If you like card games and but have no one to play with then I highly recommend Duels of the Planeswalkers: Magic 2013. You can get it on PS3, XBOX 360, and PC. It's an extremely fun strategy game in which you are a powerful being (a planeswalker) who can travel between many different planes of existence. You can also cast powerful magical spells. You build your deck how you want it according to what kind of strategy you want to employ.

After you've built your deck how you like can go online and duel other planeswalkers (human players from around the world) in a fight to the death. Besides casting powerful spells you can also summon many different kinds of creatures to fight for you. You can enable combat animations to get the feel of the creatures fighting each other.

There are many different decks to choose from when building a deck. There's also no restriction on the number of decks you can build but you can only use one at a time. The decks are based on the 5 colors of mana in Magic. Red, blue, green, white, and black. Each color has different kinds of spells and creatures. Red, for example, is what I call "fire magic" (probably my favorite) and it uses cards like lighting bolts, earthquakes, blazes, and many others and creatures which have "haste" like goblins, phoenix's, inferno titans, etc... Blue specializes in counter magic, milling, and blue flying creatures. White uses noble creatures like Angels, soldiers, and creatures that gain you life. Green specializes in either elves and/or in huge creatures and a lot of them have "trample" (meaning even if they're blocked they will still damage your opponent). Finally, black (usually most popular) uses creatures like vampires, demons, ghouls, etc and typically uses spells that bring creatures back from the dead, causes opponent to discard cards (mind rot spell, for ex.), or murders your opponents creatures. There is tons of strategy in how you build your deck and there is lots of both tactical and strategical elements in the duels themselves. You can also play the single player campaign.

I use to play Stratego (chess too) a lot. Very fun game. So is Risk.

I forgot to mention that Magic 2013 is cheap too. You can get it for about $10 on PSN. Of course, I bought all the expansions and the foil cards too which was about $10 or $20 more. It's crazy how much replayability and fun I've gotten out of such a cheap PS3 game.

Originally posted by NemeBro
Calm down man, I play ****ing tabletop games. The only nerds I can look down upon are filthy LARPers.

I wasn't upset; I know how you operate. It's all good. I just wanted to say what I did.

Originally posted by riv6672
My family has NEVER finished a whole game of Monopoly...😛

I don't think anyone ever has. With games like that, you set a time limit or you die of old age.

Originally posted by BackFire
I was really into Magic the Gathering a couple years ago. That's a great and strategic card game.

Similar is Hearthstone, which I currently play quite a bit. A "free to play" digital card game similar to Magic but based in Warcraft lore. Lot of fun.

I still have a lot of friends from my WoW days, so I'm somewhat familiar with Hearthstone. Never got into it, though.

Originally posted by Star428
I forgot to mention that Magic 2013 is cheap too. You can get it for about $10 on PSN. Of course, I bought all the expansions and the foil cards too which was about $10 or $20 more. It's crazy how much replayability and fun I've gotten out of such a cheap PS3 game.

I had a starter deck back in high school, so I at least know how Magic is played. The deck-building stuff never really appealed to me, but it obviously has a lot of mass appeal. I know a guy who makes more buying and reselling Magic cards than he does in his day job. Crazy stuff.

I think Chess will always be the best However along the way I can think of a few other great ones.
As a kid my all time favorite board game was Fire Ball Island. I also remember Splat and this one weird trap game. It took forever to set up and took place in a mansion there were a bunch of traps you had to avoid.

Through out my teens I always liked Hero Quest, Dragon Strike, Axis of Evil

Cranium is cool too but I think the best new board game is Apples to Apples.

So I made a list on BGG, stopped by a local gaming shop to see their selection, and also to see when they have game nights and tournaments. I also scoured BGG for good print-and-play games - those that are free to play and downloadable. I have about four that I'll be trying at some point. And a tiered list of games to purchase. It's exciting.

Originally posted by jinXed by JaNx
I think Chess will always be the best However along the way I can think of a few other great ones.
As a kid my all time favorite board game was Fire Ball Island. I also remember Splat and this one weird trap game. It took forever to set up and took place in a mansion there were a bunch of traps you had to avoid.

Through out my teens I always liked Hero Quest, Dragon Strike, Axis of Evil

Cranium is cool too but I think the best new board game is Apples to Apples.

New? A2A came out in, I think, 1999. 😛

Otherwise, 👆

Originally posted by Digi

New? A2A came out in, I think, 1999. 😛

Its not everyday a monopoly is made

Originally posted by jinXed by JaNx
Its not everyday a monopoly is made

Lol. It certainly became popular in a hurry. I can't say I still enjoy it - too many times playing it - but it was a blast back in college for me.

Board Game? Amoeba Wars!

Originally posted by Shakyamunison
Board Game? Amoeba Wars!

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/982/amoeba-wars

Cool! I read a couple reviews on it. Seems like a decent strategy game, a step up in complexity from, say, Risk, but with some aspects that show its age.

Originally posted by Digi
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/982/amoeba-wars

Cool! I read a couple reviews on it. Seems like a decent strategy game, a step up in complexity from, say, Risk, but with some aspects that show its age.

You can be winning, and then be wiped off that board. However, I don't play it much anymore. Its difficult to get the people together to play.