BGG Top Games – 1701 Through 1800

We’re starting to get down into the dregs of the Boardgame Geek Top 2000 games.

Not dregs in that these are bad games, because considering there are thousands of games in the BGG database, the top 2000 are still fairly highly rated.

But just “dregs” in that I haven’t played many of the games, and the ones that I did play I didn’t really care for!

That, and there aren’t that many games in the list that I really want to play either.

However, these are still in the Top 2000, so we can still take a look at them.

In this batch, I’ve played 8 of them and have owned (or still own) three.

That’s not much!

This might be a short post.

(spoiler alert: I lied)

So let’s get started and see what we have here!

Here is the century Boardgame Geek list this is based on.

Tournay (#1709) is a game that I own and is probably my favourite of the bunch.

It’s kind of a card game based on the Troyes dice game, and it’s actually not too bad, though I haven’t played it in years.

2016 in fact!

Thus I don’t remember a lot about it.

I do know that the artwork on it was very cool.

You are managing a district in the city of Tournay with three types of citizens: red, yellow and white (military, civil, and religious), and you are playing your cards to your district in a 3×3 tableau of cards.

There are also events (usually bad) that you have to combat, or at least do better than the other players at.

I remember very little about how to play this game, and I have had it up for trade in our local math trades for years but nobody is taking it.

It’s not a bad game.

It’s just one that I really don’t have any interest in anymore.

And it’s the best of the lot here!

Another game that I’m more apt to play except for how much space that it takes up is Dice City (#1739).

Each player board is quite big and then you need the card market too, which means it probably won’t really fit on our tables at Tap & Barrel on Sundays.

I think it might be tough to see the market for some players, especially if you’re playing with more than 3.

Also, unlike most games, the size of the player boards makes it so the person seated opposite to you can’t just have their board opposite to you.

They won’t fit!

I should probably try to get it out again, because I have fond memories of it.

You are essentially rolling coloured dice and using those dice on the appropriate colour’s row in your player board (with the column being the number that you rolled on said die).

You can then, use resources to buy cards from the market to improve your city.

You can also use Swords that you rolled and produced to fight off bandits, maybe “destroy” (as in they have to turn it over, but they can repair it) other players’ buildings.

I haven’t played it since 2017, so again I have no recollection really of how to play, but I do remember enjoying playing it with my wife, and I did manage to get two games in with two other players at a couple of conventions.

I haven’t been trying to trade this one away (unlike Tournay), but I haven’t felt the desire to bring it out.

And I should!

We should try to see how the player boards work in our limited space on Sundays.

Another pretty cool game is Bot Factory (#1760), a sort of Kanban-lite game where you are still producing something (robots this time), and you still have Sandra (or her equivalent) moving around and being all Judgy McJudgy Face, but it’s a lot lighter than Kanban and it’s actually kind of enjoyable.

It’s very steamlined, so be aware of that if you are a Vital Lacerda fan (though he co-designed this one).

You’re still in an assembly line type worker area where you are trying to put together robots as per the contracts that you have.

It’s interesting.

Nowhere near as interesting as Kanban, but it’s something I would play again.

Another notable game in this century that I’ve played, but not in as good of a sense, is Bang! (#1771).

This is a card game where there is a Sheriff, a bunch of outlaws, a Deputy, and a Renegade that’s only out for theirself.

The number of outlaws (and deputies!) depends on how many players you have (it plays up to 7).

The weird thing is that the only character who is known is the Sheriff.

The Sheriff doesn’t even know who the deputies are!

So they might start shooting indiscriminately and take out a Deputy.

Why is that?

I don’t know.

You are essentially trying to eliminate your rival.

If you’re an Outlaw, you want to kill the Sheriff.

But if you start shooting at them all the time, everybody’s going to know you’re an Outlaw because why would the Deputy be shooting at the Sheriff?

The Renegade wants to be the last person standing, so they want to act like a Deputy for most of the game, killing outlaws, and then starting to kill Deputies, until only they and the Sheriff are left.

It’s an interesting card game, but it has massive player elimination and the game can really drag on even after players are out.

I hate games where I could be sitting there for 30-40 minutes watching everybody else play.

I own it, but I’m probably going to trade it away at some point (and I’m kind of surprised I haven’t yet).

Finally, let’s talk briefly about a game I played at a convention in a tournament, and then I haven’t touched since (though I did buy it, and then trade it years later).

The Staufer Dynasty (#1703) is another game about medieval Europe.

I don’t remember much about the game, as I played it in 2015!

But I do remember that it was fun, and it intrigued me enough to buy it afterward.

And then, because I didn’t know the game well enough to teach it, I never brought it to a game day and subsequently traded it away.

I kind of regret that? I should have tried to reteach it to myself and see if I could get it played.

Anyway, it’s a rondel game where King Henry VI (of Bavaria? Holy Roman Emperor? I’m not sure) moves around the board in 12th Century Europe, visiting the various German territories that are in his domain.

Each round (there are 5 in total), you’re taking three actions and you’re doing these actions to score points, either by placing envoys, claiming chests, etc.

One of the cool things that the description on BGG reminds me of is that you can occupy an Office Seat on the board, but for each space away from Henry you do this, you have to spend an envoy (worker, basically).

All of these placings of envoys for different reasons will gain you chests which will have various scoring possibilities, either endgame or immediate, and some of it is kind of random.

For example, at the end of each round, three regions will score, but which ones score is kind of variable.

Let’s blurb this so I don’t get it wrong.

“After everyone has finished their actions, you score for the round — but you score only in the region indicated in the current row of scoring tiles (Aachen, Nijmegen, Palermo, etc.) and the region that best meets the condition laid out in a separate part of the current row of scoring tiles (fewest chests, most occupants, where the king is located, etc.) If these two regions turn out to be the same one, you score that region only once. Players score points for having the most office seats in a region (or the second- or thirdmost most office seats) based on the point tile placed in the region at the start of the game. Each region also has a printed bonus that players receive, such as bonus chests or additional envoys.”

It’s just such an intriguing premise and rondel movement type of game.

I really wish I had brought it out before trading it.

I’d like to play it again and see if my fond memories are just that. Memories.

Or if it’s actually that good of a game.

There’s nothing in this century that I’ve actually reviewed, so let’s move on to games that I wouldn’t mind trying out.

Robo Rally (#1706), the 2016 edition, seems to be a very popular game that I’ve always been a little intrigued by.

(This is not the more recent Renegade Games version)

It’s a programming game where you have a hand of cards, and you play five of them to program what your robot is going to do on the turn.

But much like Colt Express, what other players program may end up affecting yours!

What you planned to do with a card may not actually happen, or may happen in a way you didn’t expect.

The 2016 edition has a few changes from earlier ones, with one sounding a lot like Colt Express.

Let’s blurb:

“When players are damaged, they no longer receive one less card for each damage (or have one of their program registers locked) at the start of a round; instead they receive damage cards that will be shuffled into their decks. “Normal” damage from the board or a robot laser gives you “spam” damage. When you program one of these cards, you remove it from play at the appropriate time and replace it in the register with the top card from your deck. Surprise! Other types of damage exist, with a Trojan horse granting you two spam, a virus infecting nearby players, and a worm forcing you to reboot, which gives you even more damage. By playing the damage, though, you remove it from your deck.”

Though that mechanic goes a lot further than Colt Express and its “this wound card will be just a useless card in your hand”.

This actually sounds a lot more fun, because it’s total chaos baby!

Who knows what’s going to replace the damage card?

I don’t know if I would like this, but I would definitely like to try it at least once.

Games published by Devir Games are usually pretty interesting, and all the ones I’ve played have been cool (though granted, there aren’t a lot of them and some of them don’t sound interesting at all).

Salton Sea (#1726) is one that has kind of intrigued me, and I’ve thought about getting it before but haven’t pulled the trigger, mainly because I have so many games and this doesn’t sound like it stands out enough for me to buy.

And nobody I know has it for me to try.

It sounds like another worker placement/action selection game, so maybe it might be too similar to other games I like?

Let’s blurb.

“Designed by David Bernal and illustrated by Amelia Sales, Salton Sea can be enjoyed alone or in groups of up to four players in sessions lasting about 120 minutes. During the game, players must manage their geothermal lithium extraction companies to obtain the greatest number of points. The extraction of this material and its subsequent processing will be the driving force of your companies.

On your turn, place one of your four engineers on one of the available spaces to take an action. There are three different groups of actions: industrial actions (which allow you to obtain an exploration license, drill, extract, process or repair machinery), commercial actions (sell, acquire contract and execute contract), and management actions (research, buy shares, develop the business project or finance itself). It is up to you to manage the engineers at each point of the game to get the most out of your company.”

I’m not sure about the “shares” part of it, as it maybe is more “economic” than I feel comfortable with, but I’d love to try it out just to see.

I may hate it!

But I may love it.

Of course, there’s the Advanced Squad Leader Starter Kit #2 (#1737), which of course I think I would really like.

But until I find an opponent for my first Starter Kit, I’m not investing in another one.

Still, it would be cool!

This one adds artillery pieces and guns and mortars to the mix.

It’s a standalone game, but since I already have the first one and haven’t played it with anybody, it’s not urgent for me to get it.

But my Squad Leader past is beckoning me!

So far I’m holding out.

I do like how it stacks with the first one, where if you have the first one, there aren’t a bunch of new rules to learn because they’re the same!

The only reason the rulebook is that big is because it’s standalone, meaning you might not have the first one and you need the rules to the first one.

It’s a neat concept and sounds like a great way to learn the game.

yes, that’s me.

Ierusalem: Anno Domini (#1757) is another Devir game, and this one has gotten some great nods from Chris Yi of the Dice Tower, who I find I have a lot in common with as far as game tastes (though not totally, obviously).

It’s a game that sounds really intriguing, but again I don’t know anybody who has it and it hasn’t grabbed me enough to want to spend the money for it.

The theme in this one sounds like it’s realized very well, though it is quite religious so may not appeal to everybody.

You’re essentially followers of Jesus, trying to get as close to him as possible to Him and his disciples when the Last Supper happens.

Let’s blurb this one too, since I haven’t played it and can’t describe it.

“Different locations are shown on the board: the market, the desert, the mountain, the lake, and the temple. After sending our followers to one of these locations, we obtain stones, bread, and fish, as well as denarii or cards that allow us to do more than one action. Among these actions, players can choose between listening to a parable, going to the table, changing seats, or doing a favor, among other things. All this happens while the patience of the Sanhedrin runs out. When this happens, as symbolized by a tile moving in a marker, the endgame is triggered.

However, the main element of the game is the cards. Each card has a symbol corresponding to one of five key locations in the game. As we play them, we form combinations that allow us to bring the apostles to the table of the Last Supper. The optimal placement of our followers around Jesus and the apostles will also be done through the management of letters, as well as various resources at our disposal.”

The mechanics may be old hat, I don’t know.

But I definitely am intrigued enough to play it if I ever get the opportunity.

Finally, there’s Forest Shuffle: Dartmoor (#1768)

This a new standalone Forest Shuffle game with the same mechanics (three winter cards to determine the length of the game, placing trees, shrubs, or (new in this one) moors and then adding animals to them.

I have been playing it on Boardgame Arena, and I love it!

It’s so good, and it doesn’t have any set strategies like the base Forest Shuffle game (no “Deer are overpowered), and I really do want this.

But I’ve invested so much money in the original game and its two expansions, that right now I can’t justify another purchase of essentially the same game (even if it’s better, kind of).

I wish one of my friends would buy it!

Or maybe I’ll pick it up in a math trade or something.

The addition of moors, where you don’t play animals/plants to the left and right, but you can play two of them to the top and bottom, really helps.

The moors have some cool and unique abilities as well, and the game also has a lot of the standard (though different) animals.

Instead of butterflies, there are dragonflies, but they have the same set collection mechanic.

There are definitely bats, but most of the bats have an ability when you play them which greatly helps.

And there are plenty of cards that give you points for bats, meaning they’re not a dead-end strategy like they are in the base game.

I definitely recommend trying this on BGA if you’re a fan of the original, or even buying it!

Space Station Phoenix (#1787) is another game that I’ve tried on BGA and would love to play on the table.

Mainly because, at least this time, I enjoyed it but I had no idea how to do well.

I get like that sometimes with online games that I’ve never played.

I just can’t really see the strategies playing it asynchronously.

Players are members of the Galactic Council, building a space station above Earth.

Instead of building a production engine, however, in this game you start with a pretty good one but you’ll be deconstructing it.

That’s because you need to use parts of that engine to actually build the station!

Your actions may become more efficient as you go, but the number of ways you can take those actions diminish as you destroy parts of what you have.

The station’s not going to be built without sacrifice!

It’s essentially a worker placement and resource management game, as you will be destroying parts of that engine for the resources you need.

It looks really cool and the plays I did on Boardgame Arena really make me want to play it live.

Finally, let’s go for a Martin Wallace romp (where you don’t actually have to take a debt).

Hit Z Road (#1797) is a zombie adventure game.

Players are going on a road trip down the famous Route 66 through the southern United States, but it’s infested with zombies!

You’re going to be travelling through a deck of Adventure cards, using resources to stay alive.

Let’s blurb this one, because it sounds fun:

“Three different stages of adventure cards create an experience of increasing difficulty and ensure that each playthrough is unique. Each round begins with an auction that determines both player order and which cards you will encounter. Since the resources used for bidding are the same as those used to battle the oncoming zombie hordes, your survival depends as much on your resource management as it does upon winning those bidding wars. The player who either accumulates the most points or survives the longest wins.”

This has hit a couple of the Dice Tower Top 100 lists (I think? At least one) and the description of it sounds so cool.

I’ve almost bought this a couple of times, and it’s been fairly cheap, but I just haven’t pulled the trigger.

I think because I wasn’t sure if I had the players to try it out.

However, it is a 30-60 minute game, so maybe at work lunches?

If I see it again, I may have to jump on it.

Because I really want to play it at least once.

That’s it, because this one is getting long!

What games have you played in this century, or want to play?

And which ones do you hate or have no desire to?

Let me know in the comments.