My Favorite Games of All Time (20-11)

Welcome to this week’s gaming post! This is the third post in my new four-part series as we count down my top 40 games as of this moment. If you missed the previous list, then I recommend you check that out here. We’re getting into the best of the best, and I’m really enjoying this series so far. So without further ado, let’s jump into the games.

First up is the excellent, tableau builder – Earth. It’s still a relatively new game, and I’m drawn to the engine-building in this game because it always feels like you’re getting cool stuff and combining actions together. The simultaneous nature of the game also ensures that you’re always engaged and keeps the pace of play going so that the game never overstays its welcome. I also did a brief write-up on the game here if you’re interested in learning more.  

I love the player interaction in Isle of Skye. Setting the price of your tiles is always a difficult decision to make and having only certain conditions score each round allows for some interesting decision-making. It’s also fun to look back at the wacky kingdom you’ve built at the end of the game.

My favorite card-drafting game, 7 Wonders, has been in the collection since the early days, and it’s still among my all-time favorites. 7 Wonders is another game that maintains a short runtime even at higher player counts due to its simultaneous turns, which makes it easy to bring out and play a few games back-to-back. I still have yet to try the Leaders and Cities expansions, but even just the base game is great.

Running a Tuscan vineyard has never felt more enjoyable than it does in Viticulture (unless you’re actually in Tuscany running your own vineyard…but I wouldn’t know). At the game’s core, Viticulture is a worker-placement game about making wine and completing contracts; however, especially when you include the excellent Tuscany expansion, there is so much more to this game. I also discussed my more detailed thoughts on the game here.

Clans of Caledonia has a few elements that keep me wanting to return to the game. First up, it’s incredibly satisfying to build your production chain to then complete contracts, and there’s an incentive to get the contracts completed as early as possible since taking contracts later in the game becomes more expensive. Also, the dynamic market of goods leads to some interesting player interaction as players influence the cost of buying/selling goods. If I’m looking for a mid-to-heavy economic euro with some fun player-interaction, this is easily one of my go-tos.

The hand-management system in Concordia is easily my favorite part of this game. The fact that cards you acquire throughout the game also correspond to your endgame scoring is brilliant. While trading in the Mediterranean is a theme that has been exhausted, the smooth card mechanics keep me wanting to bring this game out.

Another relatively new game to the collection, Wayfarers of the South Tigris, the first in the South Tigris series, is another excellent tableau-building, dice/worker-placement game. Due to the large number of worker placement spots, each game feels unique with plenty of different paths to victory available. Arguably one of Garphill Games’ heaviest games, if you’re a fan of their other titles, I definitely recommend you check this one out. I also did a short write-up on my thoughts on the game here.

I still have yet to finish a full campaign of the original Sleeping Gods; however, the sequel, Sleeping Gods: Distant Skies, is one of my all-time favorites. I’m a huge fan of story-driven, open-world video games and Distant Skies feels like all of that implemented in a board game. I’m still in awe at how much effort goes into makes these types of games, all by a small team. If I’m looking for a fun solo campaign with loads of content, this is my game of choice. I also discussed my thoughts on my first play through here.

Castles of Mad King Ludwig is my favorite tile-laying game as the game combines all of the best elements from other games of its type. The master builder pricing element is brilliant as it opens up some interesting decision making. It also helps that the rooms themselves are fun to place with some highlights being the secret lair and bottomless pit. Building a silly castle has never felt more on brand.

If you can’t already tell, I’m a big fan of deck-building in games. Orléans takes that same idea, but instead of having a deck of cards, it uses tokens and a bag. Every round you draw workers from your bag and assign them to certain actions on your player board, and there are plenty of avenues to pursue and engines to develop. Another game that has been in the collection for a while now, I’m still excited whenever I get the chance to bring this one out again.

With that, I’ll wrap up my favorite 20-11 games of all time, and stay tuned for next week’s final 10! I’d love to hear your thoughts on any of the games I’ve mentioned, future content, or format in the comments section below, and let me know what your favorite games are. Happy gaming!

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