The Best Games of 2016 I Still Haven’t Played!

Despite our best efforts, so many games don’t make it to our tables for want of money, time, storage space or friends not buying them like good friends should! With the shear quantity of games released each year, this is inevitable. But time lets us see which games rise to the top, to see which are the ones we should most regret missing out on. With our rapid approach to Gen Con and the start of the big releases for 2017, I thought now was the time to look back at what games I missed from last year, which ones I still long to play, and which I, at least superficially, feel like I can live without.

The basis of this list was the list of games released in 2016 from BGG, filtered by ranking (>6.5), number of votes (>250) and ordered by rank. Anything else there I have had chance to at least play once (which is still not enough in many cases but such is life), until I got bored because God knows there’s still a lot of chaff on that list! See it here.

Be sure to let me know if any of your favourites are on this list and if I have unfairly maligned or even neglected to mention one of your favourite titles from last year! I want to know what I should be prioritising and what I needn’t waste my time with! What games do you wish you’d had chance to play?

Note: since I’ve not played these games all pictures were taken from board game geek. I have attempted to provide proper credit for these in their captions.

Star Wars: Rebellion

Duh duh duh DUUUUUH DUUUUUUUUURH duh d-oh! Are you here already!? That’s… Good? Heh. So, yes. Star Wars Rebellion, the epic big box game that is more Star Wars than C-3P0’s gold-plated underwear. I feel like fraud for calling myself a Star Wars fan and not having played this by now but “4 hours” and “2 player” do not fit easily into my lifestyle, especially when coupled with “£90”. Happily, Chris from ctplaysgames has a copy he’s offered to play with me so I may be able to correct this terrible oversight just as soon as I can find a spare weekend… Oh bother.

While I regularly hold feasts in Odin’s honour, I am yet to play a game about doing so and that is very upsetting to me. Although not nearly as upsetting as not picking this up at Essen for a fraction of the staggering price it costs in the UK. A Feast for Odin takes worker placement and and Patchwork-style Tetris-piece tessellation into a realm beyond those of mere mortals and it is reputed to be excellent.

There is something fascinating to me about Alban Viard games that sees me face pressed up against the screen of my computer like a kid at the zoo staring at a tiger. I want to climb in to Tramway’s cage and pull on its mechanical whiskers, even while deep down I know it will most likely savage me horribly. Viard does not make light, easy fair, but I’m drawn to trying these heavy titles more and more, while sadly having less and less time to do so. One day.

Millenium Blades

A card game about a card game tournament. Build decks! Open booster packs! Play a card game inside the card game! Oh boy. It’s so meta it hurts my brain and the chaotic spread it creates on the tabletop hurts my eyes and yet it is so incredibly well regarded that I could happily get past those issues should I get chance to play it…

The Valeria series has a good reputation for gameplay and a phenomenal reputation for art and I would love to try this or one of its sister titles. I came so close to buying a copy of it at the UK Games Expo but the just price wasn’t quite right. One day.

Key to the City of London

Shall we call Key to the City of London a re-imagining of Keyflower? But hopefully in a good way, and not in a Tim Burton, Planet of the Apes kind of way. Keyflower is a very well rated game (that I’ve also sadly only played once) that combined auctions and tile laying into a hot meeple-y mess that Key to the City is said to have streamlined. Add to that the fact it is set where I live and I almost feel like a traitor for not having played it yet!

Santorini

Is Santorini the sexiest abstract or most abstractly sexy game going? Plausibly both and this Kickstarter title has certainly won the hearts of its legion of backers! I love the simplicity of the system, I love the variety of its player powers that make every game a new challenge, and I love it’s beautiful, if overproduced, aesthetics. And yet it being a two player game has made it hard for me to get a chance to play.

First Class

All aboard a second game on this list about public transport! But this is of the more luxurious kind, darling, the kind served on polished silver plates as its gilt inlaid carriages rattle along through European vistas. Rather than the 8 pm tram through Nottingham city centre. This is a mid weight Euro compared favourably to Russian Railroads, though hopefully with a bit more theme and a little less maths. You don’t travel First Class for efficiency after all.

Islebound

Feeling trapped on this small island, perhaps I want little more than to set sail on a fantastical ocean voyage! Ok, I’ll be honest, mostly this game is on the list because it’s beautiful looking and comes from Ryan Laukat at Red Raven Games and I desperately want to play more games of his. (He’s also done Above and Below, City of Iron and 8 Minute Empires, amongst several others). His games are generally well regarded, but it’s the world and artwork that really sets his games apart, and brings them to life.

Automobiles

Probably one of the more boring names for a game, Automobiles is a bag building racing game in the same series as similarly named Trains and Planes. By all regards, it might be the best of the series too and it’s not very often that I get to race little cars around a little track within such a pleasantly accessible system.

Honorable mentions

Naturally there are a bunch of other games that I should also like to try but they can’t all fit in a top 10, so I’ve compiled them here for good measure.

New Bedford – unique whaling theme with a message, I like it!

Avenue – darling of the roll & write crowd, a genre I would like to explore a bit more.

Capital Lux – ok this is mostly about the gorgeous art, Sue me!

There are far too many good games from last year that I’ve only played once too! I should quit my job and just play games…

Games I can probably skip… probably

The other best games of 2016, that I’m not sure I’m that fussed about anymore, but should I be? These are just listed in BGG ranking order, which is as good a way as any for judging what games I might regret missing out on. It’s not that I wouldn’t play these given the chance. I’m just not going to prioritise them.

Mechs Vs Minions

Having no emotional investment in League of Legends and no especial desire to deal with an over sized box, no matter how generous it is, Mechs vs Minions just doesn’t get my heart racing the way others on the list have done.

Star Wars Destiny

Of all the Star Wars games I haven’t played (although this site does have a review of it!), I suspect this sits barely above the card game on my list of priorities, and that’s a long way down. I think the whole collectible card game format just rubbed me up the wrong way and I’m still not that into competitive 2 player life style games. I’m glad others love them! But for me it’s a pass.

The Colonists

The worlds most ridiculous Euro game (maybe). It feels like completing a full 4 era game of this might become some kind of board gamer right of passage, like your first game of Twilight Imperium. But I’m not going to go out of my way to seek that out now…

Conan

I’ve heard all the good things about Conan and I’m sure I’d enjoy it but I don’t have much history with the IP and there are just so many other titles that appeal more.

Tyrants of the Underdark

Again, heard lots of good things, still not managed to catch my imagination. *shrug*

Aeon’s End

When you’re dealing with some of the best games in board gaming as your competition, a generally ok deck building and not that great artwork kind of don’t count for that much.

Harry Potter Hogwarts Battle

I know so little about this really. It would need to do something pretty special to get me past my suspicion of any Harry Potter IPs.

Lorenzo il Magnifico

An apparently strong Euro game that I’m only just hearing odd rumours about now. Sell me on it!

Roll Player

Popular with a lot of people but from my far off seat of ignorance seems pretty soulless, this character construction without purpose game. Maybe I’ll be more interested when the expansion with the monsters to fight comes out.

Junk Art

I just can’t get that excited about a dexterity game, I don’t think. Especially not an expensive one.

So let me know what I’m missing out on most! Are there any hidden gems that wallow at lower BGG rankings, am I a fool for giving up on some of the well respected games above? What game do you wish you’d played from last year? Drop me a comment below!