The Hotness
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Eclipse
Gunship: First Strike!
Mage Knight: Board Game
Midnight Men
Agricola: Die Bauern und das liebe Vieh
Hawaii
Star Wars: Battle of Hoth
Wiz-War
Ora et Labora
Rex: Final Days of an Empire
Snowdonia
Barbarian Prince
The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game
Twilight Struggle
War of the Ring
Agricola
7 Wonders
A Game of Thrones: The Board Game (second edition)
Dominion
7 Wonders: Cities
Kingdoms
A Few Acres of Snow
Risk Legacy
Arkham Horror
Through the Ages: A Story of Civilization
Thunderstone Advance: Towers of Ruin
1812: The Invasion of Canada
Dixit: Journey
Elder Sign
D-Day Dice
The Castles of Burgundy
Le Havre
Kingdom Builder
Sid Meier's Civilization: The Board Game
Race for the Galaxy
Cosmic Encounter
Dominant Species
Dungeon Petz
Battlestar Galactica
Power Grid
Mansions of Madness
Last Will
Twilight Imperium (third edition)
Nexus Ops
Agents of SMERSH
Puerto Rico
Star Trek: Fleet Captains
Kairo
Core Worlds
Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective
The most ...... game. (According to ratings comments.) >> 25 lists in one!
Joe Grundy
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Over time I've cached all the ratings comments for about 400 games. This includes almost everything in the top 200, and the 200 most rated games. Hopefully this captures 400 games of "most interest".


(I've been gathering and using this data to do Word Frequency analysis for the "10 Word Review" series.)

This list shows games which, for a given word, have the most frequent uses of that word in user ratings comments.

Notes:
There are various filters and substitutions applied.
eg "strategy" includes "strategies", "strategic", "strategize" etc.
eg words which are preceded by negatives in the same sentence are not counted
(ie "not", "no", "isn't" etc.)

For the 10 Word Reviews I check all the contexts, but for this list that would have been an obscene amount of work to add to the hours already spent, so apologies in advance for anything that slipped through.

Enjoy!

(And maybe some of these might even be vaguely useful. Who knows.)


Edit and APOLOGY: I've rechecked my cache. It seems my cache contains the ratings comments from the top 200 games, and 200 other commonly rated games most of which support 2 players.
blush

This doesn't kill the general concept or utility of this list, but obviously there are some large gaps. Due to this oversight on my part, I will reproduce this list again with a fuller set of games. This, alas, won't be ready within the next few days but rest assured it will happen.
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1. Board Game: Loopin' Louie [Average Rating:7.04 Overall Rank:295]
Joe Grundy
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NSW
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FUN

The most common word in all ratings comments, and when it comes down to it the heart of gaming for most of us, is "fun".

Here's some games which most commonly inspire us to say, "that was fun"...

Loopin' Louie
PitchCar
Fearsome Floors
Pit
Dancing Eggs
Igloo Pop
Wiz-War
The Really Nasty Horse Racing Game
Apples to Apples
Clue: The Great Museum Caper
Category 5
Jungle Speed
Pictionary
Wacky Wacky West
Liar's Dice
Survive: Escape from Atlantis!
Pick Picknic
Ubongo
Bohnanza
Kill Doctor Lucky
The Downfall of Pompeii
Crokinole
Can't Stop
Winner's Circle
Killer Bunnies and the Quest for the Magic Carrot
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Chris Bailey
United States
Broomfield
Colorado
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I played Kill Dr Lucky once and the word that I kept thinking of was "Painful."
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  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 5:43 pm
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Joe Grundy
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MattDP wrote:
No Ra? Seems a bit unlikely.
Ra comes up about halfway down the "fun" list, and a little less than average on the rate of "fun" comments.
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 9:37 am
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Chaddyboy
United States
Olathe
Kansas
admin
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Bluuuuuurp.
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Great minds think alike!

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/13673
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 9:07 pm
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Senor EvilMonkey
United Kingdom
Canterbury
Kent
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The most (and indeed only fun) I've had with PitchCar was watching the missus nearly tip over when she underestimated the weight before trying to pick it up. Other than that a few of us spent a minute or two idly flicking wooden pucks before realising we just didn't care about playing the game... Mind you, it was only £40 shake
 
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  • Posted Thu Sep 13, 2007 9:11 pm
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Tim Mierz
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Cheshire
Connecticut
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unixrevolution wrote:
ixnay66 wrote:
I played Kill Dr Lucky once and the word that I kept thinking of was "Painful."


You're not supposed to actually eat the rat poison card.


Rat poison? I love rat poison!
 
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  • Posted Fri Jun 5, 2009 8:36 pm
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2. Board Game: Dancing Eggs [Average Rating:6.61 Overall Rank:959]
Joe Grundy
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Sydney
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SILLY

Whether you reckon "silly" is good or bad, here's games most spoken of with this term...

Dancing Eggs
Loopin' Louie
Igloo Pop
Killer Bunnies and the Quest for the Magic Carrot
Wiz-War
Techno Witches
Wacky Wacky West
Beyond Balderdash
Apples to Apples
Cranium Hoopla
Nuclear Escalation
Fearsome Floors
Pickomino
Gulo Gulo
Funny Friends
Pit
Bohnanza
Kill Doctor Lucky
Evo
Time's Up!
Pick Picknic
Talisman
Shear Panic
RoboRally

(I'm glad to see there's a huge overlap with "fun"... we're not all stiff shirts )
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Dan Shirley
United Kingdom
hemel hempstead
Herts
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Wot, no Fluxx?

I understand it wouldn't appear under fun, but it's definitely silly...

 
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 1:48 pm
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Kristof Tersago
Belgium
Sint Truiden
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Seems like a lot of games are just fun in a silly way.
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 7:11 am
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Thomas Tholén
Sweden
Norsborg
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Whaaa? Where's Cash 'n Guns?
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 8:11 am
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3. Board Game: For Sale [Average Rating:7.20 Overall Rank:177]
Joe Grundy
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LIGHT / FILLER

No surprises that For Sale is the game most commonly spoken of as a light filler.

For Sale
No Thanks!
Coloretto
Category 5
Botswana
Tsuro
Pick Picknic
High Society
Pickomino
10 Days in Africa
Loot
Raj
Hey, That's My Fish!
Liar's Dice
Wacky Wacky West
Saboteur
Fairy Tale
Can't Stop
Feurio!
Kupferkessel Co.
Winner's Circle
Ghosts!
Cartagena
The Downfall of Pompeii
Fjords
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Just call me Erik
United States
Waldorf
Maryland
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For Sale is, in fact, the perfect filler game.
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  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 8:01 pm
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John Brier
United States
Aventura
Florida
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For Sale is the Roger Federer of filler games, deal with it
 
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 10:55 pm
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Chris Shaffer
United States
Portland
Oregon
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verandi wrote:
For Sale is the Roger Federer of filler games, deal with it


Who?
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 3:06 am
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Martin Sarnecki
Australia
Melbourne (north)
Victoria
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verandi wrote:
For Sale is the Roger Federer of filler games, deal with it


As in, ignore it? Right-o.

 
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  • Posted Fri Sep 14, 2007 7:50 am
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Cody Walker
United States
Harker Heights
Texas
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I bought into all the hype about For Sale being the best filler game on the market. After multiple plays with different groups of gamers, I can honestly say that it has lived up to the pressure and then some.
 
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  • Posted Sun Jun 14, 2009 8:35 pm
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4. Board Game: Clans [Average Rating:6.57 Overall Rank:683]
Joe Grundy
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ABSTRACT

This list is filtered. Only games not actually tagged as Abstracts are shown...

Clans
Shear Panic
Morisi
Carolus Magnus
Richelieu
Taluva
Medina
Attila
Tigris & Euphrates
Samurai
Ghosts!
Trias
Magna Grecia
Ideology: The War of Ideas
Venture
Kingdoms
Mexica
Vinci
El Caballero
Reef Encounter
Attika
Hansa
Dungeon Twister
Web of Power
Cartagena

Cartagena has one fifth as frequent "abstract" comments as Shear Panic (#2 on the list). Clans has twice as frequent "abstract" references as Shear Panic!

Note there are 22 games that are actually tagged "Abstract" in the games database which have more comments about "abstract" than Shear Panic. The top 5 of those are GIPF, DVONN, Ingenious, Othello, ZÈRTZ
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Russ Williams
Poland
Wrocław
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Heh, that one's interesting indeed.

I played Clans once long ago and barely remember it; I really ought to check it out again.
 
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  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 2:45 pm
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Gary Webster
United States
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CO
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I'm surprised that one of my favorites, "Through the Desert," isn't on this list; it gets a lot of those kinds of comments. I do think that Russ ought to play Clans again. I find it to be a very good game with a lot of very tasty tension throughout.
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  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 5:16 pm
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David Bohnenberger
United States
Swarthmore
Pennsylvania
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Not surprised to see a bunch of Colovini games here.
 
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  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 11:58 pm
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Phil Harding
Australia
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Clans often gets called 'abstract' it seems. I haven't played it, but from some reading, is it really any more abstract than say the Carcassonne series? Or maybe meeples just bring the theme more to life than huts.
 
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 1:16 am
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David Harmon
United States
Novato
California
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Phil81 wrote:
is it really any more abstract than say the Carcassonne series?


I'd say yes, it is. The key here is if you completely removed the theme of the game, would it still remain pretty much the same? Clans, pretty much yeah. Carcassonne, not so much.
 
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 4:27 am
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I suck at Bingo .... but I don't mind
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gary_webster wrote:
I'm surprised that one of my favorites, "Through the Desert," isn't on this list; it gets a lot of those kinds of comments. I do think that Russ ought to play Clans again. I find it to be a very good game with a lot of very tasty tension throughout.


It falls in the catagory : Abstract strategy. So I believe this is the reason why it is not on the list.
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 9:28 am
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5. Board Game: Gulo Gulo [Average Rating:6.92 Overall Rank:418]
Joe Grundy
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FAMILY

Gulo Gulo
Chicken Cha Cha Cha
Pick Picknic
UNO
Dragonland
10 Days in the USA
Igloo Pop
Loopin' Louie
Niagara
Dancing Eggs
Survive: Escape from Atlantis!
Hey, That's My Fish!
10 Days in Europe
Ticket to Ride
Yahtzee
Heimlich & Co.
Blokus
Cartagena
PitchCar
Pit
Apples to Apples
Rum & Pirates
Pickomino
Elfenland
Stratego
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Thomas Tholén
Sweden
Norsborg
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Heimlich? Whoa, psychotic family...
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 8:19 am
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Joe Grundy
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Bad News [bnw] wrote:
Heimlich? Whoa, psychotic family...
Heimlich is a pretty light and simple game. I've played it with non-gamers more than gamers. Why "psyhcotic"?
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  • Posted Thu Sep 13, 2007 9:40 am
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Aaron Sapp
United States
Stillwater
Oklahoma
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My 4 y.o. has the top two and loves them.
 
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  • Posted Fri Sep 14, 2007 4:10 pm
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6. Board Game: The Settlers of Catan [Average Rating:7.51 Overall Rank:79]
Joe Grundy
Australia
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GATEWAY

The "gateway" category is dominated by the first three games...

The Settlers of Catan
Ticket to Ride
Carcassonne
Blokus
Bohnanza
Ticket to Ride: Europe
Ingenious
Carcassonne: Hunters and Gatherers
Warhammer Quest
10 Days in the USA
The Downfall of Pompeii
Ticket to Ride: Märklin Edition
Hoity Toity
Hey, That's My Fish!
Cartagena
San Juan
Heroscape Master Set: Rise of the Valkyrie
Dream Factory
Big City
Carcassonne: The City
Web of Power
O Zoo le Mio
Memoir '44
Citadels
Stratego
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David Harmon
United States
Novato
California
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You know, I don't find Carcassonne to be a very good gateway, it (or I) just can't generate interest, maybe I'm just not explaining it very well, but no one I've taught carcassonne ever got excited about playing it again. Am I the only one with this problem?

(funny, it was my gateway game)
 
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 4:29 am
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Bruce Glassco
United States
Charlottesville
Virginia
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I used to introduce games with Settlers, but it's too long and drags in the middle -- turns can go by when you don't feel you're making any progress. And Carcassone has those fiddly farmer rules, plus some people just don't like it. Ticket to Ride is THE gateway game now. I've never played it with anybody who doesn't want to play it again soon after.
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 11:50 pm
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Brian Newman
United States
Portland
Oregon
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Buh? No Transamerica? That's the perfect gateway board game.
 
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  • Posted Fri Sep 14, 2007 5:30 am
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Steve Mohr
United States
Columbus
Ohio
True, Transamerica is the perfect gateway. Especially as a multigenerational game. Easy game mechanics, quick game play, shorter length.
 
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  • Posted Sat Sep 15, 2007 2:34 pm
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7. Board Game: Stratego [Average Rating:5.98 Overall Rank:1986]
Joe Grundy
Australia
Sydney
NSW
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STRATEGY

So which games have us commenting on the range or depth of strategy?

Stratego
Kahuna
Hex
Backgammon
Othello
ZÈRTZ
Clans
Puerto Rico
The Princes of Florence
Tigris & Euphrates
Princes of the Renaissance
Cartagena
Hive
StreetSoccer
Web of Power
Hey, That's My Fish!
San Juan
Yspahan
Lord of the Rings: The Confrontation
Lord of the Rings: The Confrontation (Deluxe Edition)
Saint Petersburg
Cathedral
Taj Mahal
Europe Engulfed
Dungeon Twister
Go

This list is slightly tricky. If you include all the comparisons to the game Stratego, a certain pair of LotR games move to the top of the list. (I didn't.)

btw I'm not at all surprised to see Backgammon so high on this list.
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Dane Peacock
United States
Stansbury Park
Utah
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Hmmm, after looking at the top seven or so on the list, maybe I'm not such a strategy gamer after all...
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  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 5:19 pm
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Karis Shem
France
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It's funny to find Yspahan under 'STRATEGY' and 'LUCK'...
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 9:03 am
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Ray
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Illinois
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Keep in mind that the word strategy is used both in the generic sense and in the contrast to tactics sense.
 
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  • Edited Thu Sep 13, 2007 1:28 pm
  • Posted Thu Sep 13, 2007 1:25 pm
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Craig Viau
United States
Aurora
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Princes of the Renaissance

My all time favorite game. Demod this at the last convention and got huge interest. The depth is incredible, amazing negotiations, tactics, strategies, bidding etc. This game has almost everything I love.

The rules are also suprisingly short 4 pages of large type. My opponents kept commenting on how much you had to think about. The alliances are constantly shifting depending on which cities are at war.

Craig

 
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  • Posted Thu Sep 13, 2007 8:14 pm
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hmmm... maybe the info hear is put correctly according to the stats, but it sure doesn't seem like it. Come on... perfect (or nearly perfect) information games should be at the top of this list.

And yes, Go should be tops. Better than Hex.
 
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  • Posted Sat Apr 19, 2008 4:28 am
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8. Board Game: Battle Line [Average Rating:7.48 Overall Rank:85]
Joe Grundy
Australia
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NSW
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TACTICS

It's quite a different list from the "strategy" list...

Battle Line
Squad Leader
Hansa
Advanced Squad Leader
Schotten-Totten
Dos Rios
Combat Commander: Europe
Richelieu
Tide of Iron
Babel
Titan
StreetSoccer
Ghosts!
Hey, That's My Fish!
Kahuna
Shear Panic
Trias
Australia
El Grande
Kupferkessel Co.
Space Hulk
Mr. Jack
Morisi
Arkadia
Clans
Tigris & Euphrates
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Mark Haberman
United States
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Ohio
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Battle line has "Tactics" cards, no? I would guess that accounts for it being at the top of the list, as well as Schotten Totten for not having them.

Not that they aren't great games!
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  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 3:17 pm
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Joe Grundy
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habermanm wrote:
Battle line has "Tactics" cards, no? I would guess that accounts for it being at the top of the list, as well as Schotten Totten for not having them.
That seems to be correct, yes.
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  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 3:24 pm
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Matt Thrower
United Kingdom
Bath
Somerset
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I'm surprised to see that Titan makes this list and not the strategy one. One of the often-remarked pleasures of the game is the way in which it requires an input of both skills from the players.
 
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 9:55 pm
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drew woodworth
United States
wichita
Kansas
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No Descent: Journeys in the Dark? How about Chess? That game is the definition of tactics.
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 1:36 am
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I suck at Bingo .... but I don't mind
Belgium
Mol
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jgrundy wrote:
habermanm wrote:
Battle line has "Tactics" cards, no? I would guess that accounts for it being at the top of the list, as well as Schotten Totten for not having them.
That seems to be correct, yes.


the newer edition of Schotten Totten has tactics cards; Luckily i named it special cards in my comment
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 9:33 am
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9. Board Game: StreetSoccer [Average Rating:6.69 Overall Rank:717]
Joe Grundy
Australia
Sydney
NSW
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LUCK

We talk about it a lot. We love it, we hate it, "too much", "not enough"... here's games with a lot of mentions of "luck"...

StreetSoccer
Jenseits von Theben
Backgammon
Yahtzee
Manila
Rum & Pirates
Killer Bunnies and the Quest for the Magic Carrot
Formula-1
Kill Doctor Lucky
Pickomino
DungeonQuest
The Settlers of Catan
Can't Stop
Alhambra
Airlines
Rosenkönig
Carolus Magnus
Crude: The Oil Game
Nautilus
Himalaya
Yspahan
The Pillars of the Earth
Memoir '44
10 Days in Africa
Formula Dé
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David Bohnenberger
United States
Swarthmore
Pennsylvania
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I can understand StreetSoccer being on the "Tactics" list, but "luck"?

My favorite tactic in StreetSoccer is to roll a six.
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 12:01 am
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Darrell Hanning
United States
Jacksonville
Florida
Love women in action movies and shows. It all started with Diana Rigg, in the Avengers.
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Quote:
If Formula De is such a lucky game, how come the same people always win?


In my almost 10 years of experience wtih the game, I've seen two kinds of players of Formula De:

1) those who learn to downshift early and upshift coming out of the turn, and have their engines blown up by other players rolling a 20,

2) those who don't learn shifting, and have their engines blown up by other players rolling a 20.
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 4:46 pm
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Bernd Caspers
Germany
Mönchengladbach
Unspecified
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Sackmandan wrote:
If Formula De is such a lucky game, how come the same people always win?

I forget who it was, but I think it was a golfer once said, "It's funny, the more I practise, the luckier I get."


The same could be said about Streetsoccer.
Cwali, the designer of Streetsoccer, was able to dominate the championships of Streetsoccer over at www.littlegolem.net for a long time until finally some of the best other players got up to his level of skill.

Yes, it is possible for an unexperienced/unskilled player to beat a high skilled one in a single match or 2 at any time if they get lucky, but in the long run the skilled player will win far more matches.
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  • Edited Wed Sep 12, 2007 1:10 am
  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 11:59 pm
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I suck at Bingo .... but I don't mind
Belgium
Mol
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surprised to see
settlers of catan and can't stop next to each other.

The luck factor in catan kills it for me. But this soon will be solved as my deck of dice is arriving soon.

And while luck is a factor in can't stop it is not so high a factor as you might think. There is an article on the geek that gives you a good idea when you have to stop or throw once more.

Depending on the circumstances you could stop earlier (when you have an healthy lead) or have to take more risks (when you are a good way behind)
You also have to take in account what opponents you are facing. If you are playing against real risk takers I would take an extra throw when I'm near to the top.
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 9:45 am
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Eirik Sandaas
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Trondheim
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To be fair, any game simulating soccer needs some element of luck. All soccer fans have seen their team loose a match against a weak opponent, even when their team have most of the play and a lot of good goalscoring opportunities, but ends up loosing their keeper to a crazy injury with all subs used, or have their best midfielder sent of for a late tackle which goes horribly wrong, or go 0-1 down with 3 minutes to go when a tuft of grass makes the ball change path on a low shot. Not to mention harsh referees that suddenly see an infringement in the penalty zone, and give a penalty where other refs just had ignored the situation.

Soccer is part luck, so a soccer game must be part luck.
 
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  • Posted Tue Jun 17, 2008 1:27 pm
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10. Board Game: San Marco [Average Rating:7.26 Overall Rank:205]
Joe Grundy
Australia
Sydney
NSW
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MECHANICS

Apparantly I should take my car to San Marco, where they have the best mechanics. (Or actually, maybe that's where the most commentable mechanics are.)

San Marco
Dos Rios
Niagara
Jenseits von Theben
Queen's Necklace
Neuland
Trias
Hunting Party
Call of Cthulhu: Collectible Card Game
Die Händler
In the Shadow of the Emperor
Yspahan
Santiago
Fairy Tale
Ys
Industrial Waste
Amun-Re
Evo
Wallenstein
Feurio!
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11. Board Game: Streetcar [Average Rating:6.53 Overall Rank:993]
Joe Grundy
Australia
Sydney
NSW
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ROUTE

Which way from A to B?

Streetcar
Thurn and Taxis
Kogge
Elfenland
Ticket to Ride: Europe
Ticket to Ride: Märklin Edition
Ticket to Ride
La Strada
Metro
Empire Builder
1870
Atlantic Star
Silverton
Merchant of Venus
Tsuro
Maharaja: The Game of Palace Building in India
Himalaya
Age of Steam
10 Days in Africa
Indonesia
Volldampf
Railroad Tycoon
1830: Railways & Robber Barons
Santa Fe Rails
Hansa
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Uisge Beatha
Scotland

http://www.thekanofoundation.com/
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Atlantic Star is a real odd one for this list. shake
 
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  • Posted Thu Sep 13, 2007 2:54 am
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12. Board Game: Blokus Duo [Average Rating:7.07 Overall Rank:297]
Joe Grundy
Australia
Sydney
NSW
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TWO PLAYER

You get a fair way down this list before you aren't looking at either games being compared to their multi-player cousins or else games in the Kosmos Two Player series. But there you have it...

Blokus Duo
Starship Catan
Carcassonne: The Castle
Catan Card Game
Flowerpower
Jambo
Babel
Odin's Ravens
Mystery Rummy: Jekyll & Hyde
Lost Cities
Under the Shadow of the Dragon
Kahuna
Battle Line
Fjords
Schotten-Totten
Richelieu
Balloon Cup
Lord of the Rings: The Confrontation
Ta Yü
Kupferkessel Co.
Mr. Jack
Rosenkönig
Cathedral
Hellas
Attika
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Uisge Beatha
Scotland

http://www.thekanofoundation.com/
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Would have been interesting for you to do the same as you did with abstracts and omit the two player only games.
 
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  • Posted Thu Sep 13, 2007 2:57 am
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Joe Grundy
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celtic wrote:
Would have been interesting for you to do the same as you did with abstracts and omit the two player only games.
Absolutely a good idea. When I do the full top 1000 list I'll exclude the 2P only games from the 2P list, and also exclude the 3P only games from the 3P list.
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  • Posted Thu Sep 13, 2007 11:02 am
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13. Board Game: The End of the Triumvirate [Average Rating:6.94 Overall Rank:501]
 
Joe Grundy
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THREE PLAYER

The first entry here is extremely apt, though it also works with two I hear.

The End of the Triumvirate
San Marco
Carolus Magnus
The Bottle Imp
Ta Yü
La Strada
Wyatt Earp
British Rails
Through the Ages: A Story of Civilization
Web of Power
Raj
Alhambra
El Caballero
Here I Stand
Big City
Citadels
San Marco
Taluva
High Society
Clans
Queen's Necklace
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Game (US)
Friedrich
Kingdoms
In the Shadow of the Emperor

I had a hard time resisting running this list just a little longer. Then a little longer again. Peppered in the next dozen entries are Hansa, Blue Moon City, Ra, Antike, Carcassonne, Samurai ... ... so I sort of resisted since otherwise I just would've run the list out to 50+
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14. Board Game: Magic Realm [Average Rating:7.05 Overall Rank:453]
Joe Grundy
Australia
Sydney
NSW
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COMPLICATED

Magic Realm
The Republic of Rome
Advanced Squad Leader
Dungeoneer: Den of the Wererats
Up Front
Squad Leader
Die Macher
Ark
RoboRally: Radioactive
Circus Maximus
Go
Rommel in the Desert
Empires in Arms
Kogge
Mü & More
Java
Breakout: Normandy
Stephensons Rocket
Reef Encounter
Europe Engulfed
In the Shadow of the Emperor
Caylus
El Caballero
Paths of Glory
War of the Ring
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Stephen Brackman
United States
S. Grafton
Massachusetts
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Always find it funny how subjective complexity is. Caylus vs. Magic Realm is akin to kindergarten vs. grad school.
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  • Edited Mon Sep 10, 2007 3:25 pm
  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 3:24 pm
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Stephen Brackman
United States
S. Grafton
Massachusetts
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Agreed, SFB and ASL have a special place in the masochistic complexity universe.
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 4:30 pm
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Matt Thrower
United Kingdom
Bath
Somerset
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Magic Realm absolutely deserves to head up this list. Never before have I come across a game that offered so little for so many rules.

Republic of Rome in second position means it might well have to come off my wishlist - I think I better check out a copy of the rules before putting down the money.
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 9:57 pm
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Peter Walsh
United States
Bethlehem
Pennsylvania
100 eyes and he still can't see.
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In Magic Realm my Magician spends most of his time as a squirrel.
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Speaking as one of the newly enlightened - Magic Realm is not as complicated as folks make it out to be. It is well worth figuring out and can be played using Realmspeak (a Java adaptation) which makes it easy to work through things that don't seem clear in the rules.

Republic of Rome really isn't all that complicated either. It's more like Diplomacy to the extent that you can know the rules but be left asking...OK but now how do I play to win?

ASL, Empires in Arms, A World at War (not on the list) or Rise of the Roman Republic (also not on the list) are far more complicated than either MR or RoR. That being said, you're not going to get your average gamer to play any of these.
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 6:32 pm
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Robert Wilson
Canada
Riverview
New Brunswick
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Brakman wrote:
Agreed, SFB and ASL have a special place in the masochistic complexity universe.



hahhah they are my 2 most played games recently!
 
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  • Posted Sat Sep 15, 2007 3:30 am
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15. Board Game: Ticket to Ride [Average Rating:7.48 Overall Rank:74]
Joe Grundy
Australia
Sydney
NSW
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EASY TO LEARN

Ticket to Ride
Coloretto
Blokus
M
Category 5
Carcassonne
Kingdoms
Metro
No Thanks!
Cartagena
For Sale
DVONN
Botswana
Lost Cities
Daytona 500
Balloon Cup
Alhambra
Othello
Loot
Through the Desert
Memoir '44
Battle Cry
Samurai
Ingenious
Clans
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Jesus A. Perez
Spain
Madrid
Móstoles
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¿Samurai easy to learn? I think is not the first option to show a new gamer
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 3:24 am
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Matthew M Monin
United States
Branford
Connecticut
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Samurai is exceptionally easy to learn. It's just not easy to score.

-MMM
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 4:41 am
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Matt Thrower
United Kingdom
Bath
Somerset
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Octavian wrote:
Samurai is exceptionally easy to learn. It's just not easy to score.


I think you may be confusing the phrase "easy to learn" with the word "dull".
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 9:49 pm
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Blokus should be on top of this list. Or actually, War.
 
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  • Posted Sat Apr 19, 2008 4:31 am
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16. Board Game: WildLife [Average Rating:6.74 Overall Rank:708]
Joe Grundy
Australia
Sydney
NSW
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DOWN TIME

Of course, people who play Go or Chess already know what they're getting into. But for those for who taking time to ponder is a crime, here's the list...


WildLife
Runebound (First Edition)
Through the Ages: A Story of Civilization
Dos Rios
Runebound (second edition)
Titan
History of the World
Blood Feud In New York
Tikal
Empire Builder
Java
Pickomino
Citadels
The Settlers of Catan: 5-6 Player Extension
Reef Encounter
San Marco
Friedrich
Neuland
Here I Stand
Scrabble
Roads & Boats
Can't Stop
Die Magier von Pangea
Imperial
Axis & Allies
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Louise Holden
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Solihull
West Midlands
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. Roads and Boats will be comments on how little downtime there is- looks like all the others are there for having lots.
 
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  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 5:55 pm
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Subhan Michael Tindall
United States
Portland
Oregon
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thesedarkdice wrote:
Citadels? Methinks someones playing with the wrong people. Now, is it me or everyone else?

I had the same reaction. I actually find very little downtime in Citadels.
 
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 4:24 pm
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Chris Shaffer
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Portland
Oregon
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I thought there wasn't any down time in Citadels.

Then I played with a new group, in a seven player game. It took hours. It was agonizing.

Now, I only play Citadels 2 or 3 player. I enjoy it, but I pretty much refuse to play it with 4 or more.
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 3:15 am
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Peter Drake
United States
Portland
Oregon
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When I was in grad school, we talked a non-gamer friend of ours into playing a game with our group.

Then we decided to play Axis & Allies.

And we had her play Japan.

Some two hours later, she finally got a turn...
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 4:06 am
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I suck at Bingo .... but I don't mind
Belgium
Mol
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TheCat wrote:
I thought there wasn't any down time in Citadels.

Then I played with a new group, in a seven player game. It took hours. It was agonizing.

Now, I only play Citadels 2 or 3 player. I enjoy it, but I pretty much refuse to play it with 4 or more.


I had a 6 player game with four people playing quick and 2 people playing agonizing slow.

You could have a decent meal if one of the slow players was king and you were first or last to act. The problem with citadels is that you don't have a lot to do until it is your turn.

BTW the slow playing got trashed.

 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 10:03 am
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17. Board Game: TAMSK [Average Rating:6.82 Overall Rank:673]
Joe Grundy
Australia
Sydney
NSW
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UNIQUE / UNUSUAL

TAMSK
The HellGame
Agora
Tom Tube
The Bottle Imp
Fresh Fish
Dos Rios
Trias
ZÈRTZ
Lord of the Rings
Primordial Soup
San Marco
Zendo
Igloo Pop
Pueblo
Hunting Party
Jenseits von Theben
Die Händler
Niagara
Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective
Fairy Tale
Kremlin
Neuland
Netrunner
Carolus Magnus
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Tobias Gas
Germany
Leipzig
souldnt robo ralley be on that list?
 
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  • Posted Sun Jun 15, 2008 5:19 pm
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18. Board Game: Hex [Average Rating:6.78 Overall Rank:1427]
Joe Grundy
Australia
Sydney
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ELEGANT

A much chastised word, and a supposed mainstay of the BGG majority-eurosnoot vocabulary. Yet we talk about "fun" twenty times as often as we talk about "elegance". We talk about theme five times as often. Perhaps collectively we really aren't so interested in the mathematical elegance in our games. But here they are...

Hex
Go
Samurai
Trax
Bonaparte at Marengo
GIPF
Botswana
Tantrix
Ta Yü
Medici
Hansa
DVONN
Web of Power
YINSH
El Grande
The End of the Triumvirate
Friedrich
Zendo
Acquire
Antike
Ideology: The War of Ideas
Through the Desert
Ra
The Princes of Florence
EastFront
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Just call me Erik
United States
Waldorf
Maryland
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Samurai is only elegant until it's time to score the game.
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  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 8:07 pm
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Heckle Jekyll
United States
Knox
Pennsylvania
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What does ELEGANT mean in the context of games? I've often seen it desribing El Grande, but am not sure what it means.
 
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 10:17 pm
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Joe Grundy
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idiot crow wrote:
What does ELEGANT mean in the context of games? I've often seen it desribing El Grande, but am not sure what it means.
Coming from a mathematical background, "elegant" is often used to describe mathematical proofs which unfold easily to the reader, are relatively "conceptually efficient"... ie something which is complex being expressed economically.

So it's "conceptual elegance"... using the fewest lines to express the maximum effect without becoming opaque to understanding.

The same is true of algorithms in computer science. An "elegant" algorithm is one which is efficient and easily understood.

These clearly relate to the social use of "elegance" which is characterised (and defined) by an economy and/or simplicity of form and/or movement in a way which leads to an impression of grace or refinment.

Elegance is not confined to visual presentation. There is no reason why a game design cannot be "elegant".
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 4:05 am
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Why is ZÈRTZ not here!!!
 
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  • Posted Sat Apr 19, 2008 4:33 am
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Tobias Gas
Germany
Leipzig
it is difficult to explain what elegance means, but it is certainly easy to see what it not means in the context of board games:
games with ad hoc rules (rules for very special situations necessary to keep the game balanced, but not motivated by anything else than that). games like that are usually not easy to teach, but can be fun nevertheless.
 
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  • Posted Sun Jun 15, 2008 5:27 pm
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19. Board Game: Antiquity [Average Rating:7.89 Overall Rank:98]
Joe Grundy
Australia
Sydney
NSW
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UPKEEP / FIDDLINESS

Antiquity
Roads & Boats
Dungeoneer: Den of the Wererats
Indonesia
Ark
Through the Ages: A Story of Civilization
Louis XIV
Arkham Horror
Silverton
The Scepter of Zavandor
Ticket to Ride: Märklin Edition
Primordial Soup
Circus Maximus
Kremlin
Dungeoneer: Vault of the Fiends
Tide of Iron
Merchant of Venus
In the Shadow of the Emperor
La Città
Queen's Necklace
Dungeoneer: Tomb of the Lich Lord
Power Grid
Revolution: The Dutch Revolt 1568-1648
The Republic of Rome
Nautilus
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Louise Holden
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Solihull
West Midlands
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And there Ark is again...

Some very good games there, I'm obviously not much put off by fiddliness.
 
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  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 5:57 pm
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Bruce Glassco
United States
Charlottesville
Virginia
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The fiddliness did indeed ruin Dungeoneer for me. There's way too much to keep track of on each person's turn -- and for a game of delving and bashing, most of what you're tracking is remarkably abstract.
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 12:00 am
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Stephen Schaefer
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Columbus
Ohio
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Shryke wrote:
Eh, there's surprisingly little fiddliness or upkeep in many of their games. And most of the ones that are (say, Descent or TI3) it's expected.


So other than Arkham Horror, Tide of Iron, Descent, Twilight Imperium, Marvel Heroes, World of Warcraft, Starcraft and War of the Ring, they don't have a lot of fiddly games? goldencamel
 
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  • Edited Wed Sep 12, 2007 4:04 am
  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 4:01 am
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Josh Adelson
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habermanm wrote:
MisterCranky wrote:
Yes, this list is certainly representative...Antiquity..check...Roads and Boats...check...Queen's Necklace????


Yeah, you have to move the price markers on all the cards down every time you take a card.


Sorry Mark, it's just not in the same league. But perhaps that was your point as well, and you just veiled it in wit too dry for me to discern. Is your wit fiddly? Hmm. That's a topic for another list, I suppose.
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 6:44 am
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thesedarkdice wrote:
MisterCranky wrote:
Yes, this list is certainly representative...Antiquity..check...Roads and Boats...check...Queen's Necklace????


Queens Necklace stands as the only game I avoid because I hate the scoring rounds.

"Okay, everyone flip over there cards"
"Now theres X of diamonds which means that goes there..."
5 minutes pass as I count, recount and switch tiles around
"There we go. Now, who had the most diamonds again?"
By this time, the score sheet is so full of random numbers there are, in fact, no room for actual scores to be recorded.


I find it sufficient to avoid merely because the game is dull and there are so many better games--the little intricacies in the accounting have never presented me with any obstacle greater than the generic tedium of the overall game.
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 6:47 am
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20. Board Game: Kingdoms [Average Rating:6.66 Overall Rank:634]
Joe Grundy
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MATHEMATICAL / COMPUTATIONAL

(I included "compute" but had to exclude all the "computer" terms.)

Frankly I'm entirely not surprised at the ones I recognise...

Kingdoms
Feurio!
The Scepter of Zavandor
Power Grid
Modern Art
Take Stock
Santiago
BuyWord
Torres
Medici
Indonesia
Lost Cities
Gloria Mundi
Saint Petersburg
Venture
Yahtzee
Chinatown
Can't Stop
Australia
Pickomino
Age of Steam
Winner's Circle
Pizarro & Co.
Samarkand
Camelot Legends
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Probably the single most fascinating entry in this entire list. Leave it to a genius like Knizia to nail the number one spot and the 23rd ("Holy Synchronicity, Batman!") with THE SAME EXACT GAME!!

Edit: Oh no! This comment no longer applies! Ike kama!!
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  • Edited Wed Sep 12, 2007 6:50 am
  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 6:21 pm
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Joe Grundy
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MisterCranky wrote:
Probably the single most fascinating entry in this entire list. Leave it to a genius like Knizia to nail the number one spot and the 23rd ("Holy Synchronicity, Batman!") with THE SAME EXACT GAME!!
Oops. Hang on...

rummage rummage rummage. type type type. damn. rummage rummage.

Ok, fixed. Sorry, a "not so..." sneaked into the list.
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 1:10 am
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Shane Beck
Australia
Not Applicable
I'm surprised any 18XX game doesn't sneak on to the list since there is a lot of calculation / computation in these type of games.
 
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 8:23 am
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fightcitymayor
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Kingdoms: such an easy game to love. and pretty easy to introduce to otherwise non-gaming folks.
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 2:47 am
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Dominic Crapuchettes
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Who's doing math while playing Winner's Circle? I must be missing a huge aspect of the game. surprise
 
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  • Posted Thu Sep 13, 2007 3:48 pm
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To play well, Princes of Florence has much calculation.
 
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  • Posted Sat Apr 19, 2008 4:35 am
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21. Board Game: Intrigue [Average Rating:6.39 Overall Rank:1062]
Joe Grundy
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BACKSTABBING

devil

Intrigue
Diplomacy
Kremlin
The Republic of Rome
A Game of Thrones
Citadels
Cosmic Encounter
The Really Nasty Horse Racing Game
Dune
Meuterer
Saboteur
Santiago
Igloo Pop
Colossal Arena
Princes of the Renaissance
Löwenherz
Survive: Escape from Atlantis!
Struggle of Empires
Empires in Arms
Die Händler
Babel
Die Macher
Elasund: The First City of Catan
Metro
Werewolf
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Josh Adelson
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Well, it got bumped by the late entry of Babel, that surprisingly agreeable-until-you-stab-your-only-opponent-in-the-back two-player game.
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  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 6:23 pm
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Rob Burns
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I'm always surprised when I see "backstabbing" applied to Cosmic Encounter. "Alliances" last only as long as a particular challenge, something that should be eminently clear when playing the game, as players throw tokens on one side or the other based only on their own self-interest and not on any previous commitment to "ally" with a player or players. Right? Who plays CE with longstanding alliances, or commitments to back another player for more than one challenge?

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  • Posted Thu Sep 13, 2007 3:02 am
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Joe Grundy
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rjburns3 wrote:
I'm always surprised when I see "backstabbing" applied to Cosmic Encounter. "Alliances" last only as long as a particular challenge, something that should be eminently clear when playing the game, as players throw tokens on one side or the other based only on their own self-interest and not on any previous commitment to "ally" with a player or players. Right? Who plays CE with longstanding alliances, or commitments to back another player for more than one challenge?
I agree with the general theme of your comment enough to thumb it. But there are (uncommon) times when backstabbing happens within the one challenge... eg invite allies deliberately lose the challenge but rescue your own tokens.
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  • Posted Thu Sep 13, 2007 11:10 am
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Tobias Gas
Germany
Leipzig
i certainly like backstabbing games

and i am as surprised as others that junta isnt mentioned here shake
 
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  • Posted Sun Jun 15, 2008 5:34 pm
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stephen stover
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I di not know I like Backstabbing games but I guess I do............
 
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22. Board Game: Through the Ages: A Story of Civilization [Average Rating:8.30 Overall Rank:4]
Joe Grundy
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ENGAGING

Through the Ages: A Story of Civilization
Die Macher
Kupferkessel Co.
Imperial
Samurai
Hansa
Genoa
Hey, That's My Fish!
Löwenherz
Odin's Ravens
Glenn Drover's Empires: The Age of Discovery
Manila
Stephensons Rocket
Othello
Domaine
Fifth Avenue
Hammer of the Scots
Australia
Mr. Jack
Hive
Roads & Boats
La Strada
Power Grid
Wallenstein
Industrial Waste
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Harald Korneliussen
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Ah, yes, a game where a grand civilisation grows up under your feet really has an engaging atmosphere... but not as much as those bizarre non-swimming penguins!
 
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  • Posted Fri Dec 7, 2007 2:50 pm
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23. Board Game: Go [Average Rating:7.77 Overall Rank:41]
Joe Grundy
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DEPTH

(And "Deep".) A couple of surprises on this list. eg Mancala is divided 50/50 between the people who find it has depth, and the people who say it hasn't. Since this list just counts the people who say it has, it still shows up.

Go
GIPF
Hex
Hey, That's My Fish!
ZÈRTZ
DVONN
YINSH
Tigris & Euphrates
Hive
Clans
Samurai
Bridge
Lord of the Rings: The Confrontation
Web of Power
Kahuna
Othello
Mancala
Through the Desert
Magna Grecia
Odin's Ravens
Richelieu
Blue Moon
Blood Bowl: Living RuleBook
Torres
Kogge
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Jeroen van der Valk
Netherlands
Gouda
Zuid Holland
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Odd bunch...
 
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  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 8:46 pm
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David
Canada

Ontario
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Lots of abstracts, which is what I'd expect. It's the main genre of gaming where you gotta say "Yes, simple rules, but lots of depth", cause that's usually what people are looking for in them.
 
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 1:33 am
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Ray
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Illinois
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How about heavy?
 
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  • Posted Thu Sep 13, 2007 1:23 pm
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Craig Viau
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Clans really is an awesome game. Hive is growing on me but I don't think its that deep.
 
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  • Posted Thu Sep 13, 2007 8:02 pm
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The top 9 are pretty accurate.
 
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  • Posted Sat Apr 19, 2008 4:37 am
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24. Board Game: Fresh Fish [Average Rating:6.68 Overall Rank:928]
Joe Grundy
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BRAIN BURNING

Fresh Fish
El Caballero
Java
Dungeon Twister
Reef Encounter
Venture
Magna Grecia
Die Magier von Pangea
YINSH
Torres
GIPF
Zendo
Pueblo
Maharaja: The Game of Palace Building in India
Carolus Magnus
Age of Steam
Tigris & Euphrates
Roads & Boats
Neuland
Kahuna
In the Shadow of the Emperor
ZÈRTZ
Ark
Samurai
Tikal
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Randy Cox
United States
Clemson
South Carolina
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Interesting that an old 3M card game (Venture) is number 6 in brain burning. I haven't played it in years, but I don't recall it causing particular brainsweat.
 
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  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 5:03 pm
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Dave Heberer
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You have the option as an action to reorganize your companies to maximize your score. You have to pay for it, but it can recombine things in a really nice manner and hide things that others are after. It is a bit of a think to get that right.
 
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 12:32 am
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Rob Burns
Macedonia
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My wife and I played Venture last year and I remember leaving the table with a headache I didn't have starting the game... yup, it's a brain-burner, all right.
 
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  • Posted Thu Sep 13, 2007 2:54 am
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Maharaja: The Game of Palace Building in India brain burning? This is one of the simplest games I have ever come across. Sure there are 81 possible choices of action each turn, but that's just 2 sets of the same 9. This gives it depth and a tactical angle, plus the game has a strategic angle as well. That being said, I cannot see such an otherwise simple game being called brain burning.
 
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  • Posted Sat Sep 15, 2007 7:11 am
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Osiris Ra wrote:
Maharaja: The Game of Palace Building in India brain burning? This is one of the simplest games I have ever come across. Sure there are 81 possible choices of action each turn, but that's just 2 sets of the same 9. This gives it depth and a tactical angle, plus the game has a strategic angle as well. That being said, I cannot see such an otherwise simple game being called brain burning.
I'd hate to try to write the A.I. for it. Just in case you weren't joking...

As a player you have 7 possible activities (some are repeated with minor constraints). You can combine between two and four of these activities. Some are simple but others...
Move a house or Build a house you have 32 locations on 16 routes or seven cities you might consider.
Governer track order you might move any of 6 governers.
Character cards you might choose any of six or seven characters.
Build a palace you might aim for any of seven towns.

There's hundreds of possible "moves" for each player, though most will be subconsciously dismissed as pointless and many will be grouped together for contemplation.

Maharaja: The Game of Palace Building in India is not solitaire. Your opponents have similar options, and an astute player will be considering what other players are likely to try to do. Even after you've selected your actions, the situation can change significantly by the time you actually try to execute them... leaving the player having to re-assess their options and what the players yet to play are likely to try to do.

It's one of the royalty of the house of Analysis Paralysis. (I should know... see my microbadge?)
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  • Edited Sat Sep 15, 2007 7:43 am
  • Posted Sat Sep 15, 2007 7:42 am
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25. Board Game: Dancing Eggs [Average Rating:6.61 Overall Rank:959]
Joe Grundy
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!

Here's some games eliciting the most surprise! Or enthusiasm! We just can't help ourselves!! When we talk about these games, many exclamation marks are ESSENTIAL!!!

Dancing Eggs
Pit
Jungle Speed
Nuclear Escalation
Loopin' Louie
The Really Nasty Horse Racing Game
Circus Maximus
Survive: Escape from Atlantis!
Das Motorsportspiel
Space Crusade
Munchkin Bites!
Crokinole
Heroscape Master Set: Rise of the Valkyrie
Space Hulk

(This list is short because I'm only showing games with at least twice as many as average.)

Oh and Santa Fe deserves a mention for making it to 30 ratings comments without a single exclamation mark. Not even one. Amazing.
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Chris Snyder
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I'm surprised Bang! isn't on this list for obvious reasons.
 
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  • Posted Wed Sep 12, 2007 1:59 am
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Joe Grundy
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ps now wasn't this list-of-lists slightly more interesting for having (mostly) images of games rather than images of boxes?
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  • Posted Mon Sep 10, 2007 2:38 pm
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Heckle Jekyll
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frankinla wrote:
So, chess isn't deep or brain burning to you people?


I would speculate that people haven't described chess in terms of being "deep" because it is assumed that others already now that.

Chess probably could be nicknamed 'Deep', and ought to be the standard by which all other games are compared in terms of depth.
 
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  • Posted Tue Sep 11, 2007 10:35 pm
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Gabe Alvaro
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I can't quite put my finger on it, but I think there's something going on here to the effect of consensus over authority. Anyway, it is what it is, and I think it's a fascinating (and probably very useful) list.
 
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  • Posted Thu Sep 13, 2007 6:39 pm
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Joe Grundy
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blindspot wrote:
I can't quite put my finger on it, but I think there's something going on here to the effect of consensus over authority. Anyway, it is what it is, and I think it's a fascinating (and probably very useful) list.
There are two things to note that might be niggling you here.

Firstly, if people had an expectation about a game, and the expectation was broken, they are more likely to comment about it. eg they thought a game would be extra random but it turned out to be average so they're more likely to comment about a surprising amount of strategy or skill involved.

Secondly, people will comment about whatever the attributes of a game are. If the only positive attribute of a game is that it looks good, most people will say "good looking game". But that doesn't make it the best looking game, it's just a game which is primarily "good looking".
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  • Posted Fri Sep 14, 2007 3:54 am
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There seems to be lots of mentions of Samurai in this geeklist and with good reason.

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  • Posted Tue Jul 29, 2008 1:51 am
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