My Favorite Games of All Time (31-40) as of 2025

Welcome to this week’s gaming post! About a year ago, I discussed my top 40 games as of that moment. Given there’s a bit of a calm in the industry before the majority of new games are released later this year, I thought now would be a perfect time to revisit that list to see what has changed. Once again, I used Pub Meeple’s ranking engine that pits games head-to-head to generate the rankings. Within my Top 40 games, there are 10 games that have made it on for the first time, including four in this first batch. Over the next few weeks, I’ll be counting down to my top 10! So without further ado, let’s jump into the games.

Honorable Mentions:

Kanban, Dominion, The Fellowship of the Ring: Trick-Taking Game, La Granja: Deluxe Master Set, Endless Winter: Paleoamericans

I recently completed a full game of Twilight Imperium: Fourth Edition for the first time earlier this year, and overall, it was much smoother than anticipated (given that the first time we attempted it, it took the entire weekend…and we still didn’t finish). Sure, it helped that our group learned the rules prior to game day, but we still comfortably finished in one session. This epic three to six player space opera isn’t for the faint of heart, but I’ll admit, the game was quite memorable, which is the reason for it just sneaking onto this list. If you want to read my full thoughts on my experience returning to the game after almost six years, you can do so here, and I even put together a quick short on my Instagram page here.

One of the fun things about putting a list like this together is that it serves as a nice reminder of games I need to make time for. The nice part about The White Castle is that with two players, we can comfortably finish the game in about an hour. I still have yet to try the Matcha expansion, but my worry is that it will lengthen the game, which could push it outside of that sweet-spot of remaining a nice medium-weight euro with a fairly modest runtime. I’m also aware of the upcoming two-player only version, which I’ll admit, I didn’t particularly feel like the game needed.     

I’ll admit, I’m a bit surprised that Scythe managed to stay in my top 40 given all of the new games I’ve played in the last year. Even having played through the Fenris campaign, I still feel like there’s a lot to be explored in this game. It helps that the artwork and components are excellent. I might have to give the solo mode a go to see if I can get this back to the table.

Unfortunately, Near and Far has dropped on the list; not because I like the game any less, it just hasn’t seen any plays in the last year. I particularly enjoy how the euro mechanics are incorporated into the storytelling elements, which reminds me that I still need to see the end to my current character’s story. Luckily, my wife enjoys this game, so I shouldn’t have too much difficulty getting it played before next year’s top 40.

Vinhos is still my second favorite game from designer Vital Lacerda. The theme of Portuguese winemaking shines through, and the 2016 deluxe edition has excellent art and components. The bank mechanism in the original version remains unique and is one of the key reasons I still prefer playing the game using the slightly updated original rules. 

One of the hottest games released within the last year, Andromeda’s Edge, is the follow-up to Dwellings of Eldervale. I published a full review of the game earlier this year, and while I had some issues with the design (mainly that I felt the gameplay could have been streamlined a bit more), I still enjoy the combination of worker-placement and engine-building at play. Will the game still hold up for me after a few years? We’ll have to see, but there’s enough exciting elements in Andromeda’s Edge for it to remain a keeper.

Quacks of Quedlinburg, or now just Quacks, is still my favorite push-your-luck game. Yes, there is a large element of luck in the game, but it’s still one of my favorite games to teach to newer gamers. I recently reviewed the latest edition, including my thoughts on both expansions. While it may seem like Quacks has fallen a bit in my eyes, this is more a result of so many other great games than a reflection on Quacks itself. If you’re looking for something a bit lighter, I would absolutely recommend this game!

Scholars of the South Tigris is the second entry in the South Tigris series from Garphill Games. Of the three, Scholars has the most interesting theme, where players are attempting to translate scrolls in ancient languages. In addition, I really enjoy the use of the color wheel through different colored dice and workers. I wrote a full review on the game earlier this year that you can check out here.

Another “new to me” game this year, Underwater Cities, has players building out a network of underwater structures. My favorite part of the game is the implementation of the card/worker-placement mechanism that rewards players with matching the same colored card with the action color. I still wish the components were a bit nicer, but that doesn’t hold the game back from being my favorite Vladimir Suchý design. If you’re interested, I wrote full reviews of both the base game as well as the first expansion that you can check out here and here.

One of the cutest games in my top 40, Everdell has managed to remain steady in my rankings. Even with all of the expansions and spin-offs, my preferred way to play is still with just the base game at two players. Using that setup, the game is a nice medium-weight, worker-placement, tableau-building game that doesn’t overstay its welcome – just save everyone the headache and leave the tree in the box. 

With that, those are my top 31-40 games as of 2025, and stay tuned for the next batch! Let me know what some of your favorite games are, and I’d love to hear your thoughts on any of the games I’ve mentioned or future content suggestions in the comments below. Happy gaming!

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