There are a lot of games out there. If you are just starting to explore the hobby or are looking for something specific, navigating the multitude of gaming titles can be overwhelming. Use the following to help you narrow down what you are looking for or explore new games.
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- Abstract Strategy Games (88)Abstract Strategy games are often (but not always) theme-less (without storyline), built on simple and/or straightforward design and mechanics, perfect information games, promote one player overtaking their opponent(s), little to no elements of luck, chance, or random occurrence, and can be minimal in design. (source: BGG)
- Action / Dexterity Games (39)Action/Dexterity games often compete players' physical reflexes and coordination as a determinant of overall success. (source: BGG)
- Adventure Games (33)Adventure games often have themes of heroism, exploration, and puzzle-solving. The storyline behind such games often have fantastical elements, and involve the characters in some sort of quest. (source: BGG)
- Age of Reason Games (1)Age of Reason games are set in the late 17th century to late 18th century. For gaming purposes, the Age of Reason started around 1690, coming to an end with the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Era. (source BGG)
- American Revolutionary War Games (1)
- American West Games (13)American West games often have themes or storylines set in the Western United States during the latter half of the 19th century. Some of the themes and imagery found in the most popular American West games concerns cowboys, sheriffs, outlaws, prospecting, colonization, and railways, among others. (source: BGG)
- Ancient Games (17)Ancient games often have themes or storylines set in the Old World, between 3000 BC (the beginning of the Egyptian dynasties) and AD 476 (the fall of the Western Roman Empire). Some of the themes and imagery found in the most popular Ancient games concerns ancient Egyptian, Greek, and Roman civilizations. (source: BGG)
- Animal Games (87)Animal games involve animals as a major component of the theme or gameplay. Animals games often require players to attend to the management or control of animals. Players may even take on the role of an animal (or animals) in the game. (source: BGG)
- Aviation / Flight Games (5)Aviation / Flight games are primarily concerned with mechanical flight, including planes, helicopters, and gliders. (source: BGG)
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- Bluffing Games (74)Bluffing games encourage players to use deception to achieve their aims. All Bluffing games have an element of hidden information in them. (source: BGG)
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- Card Games (514)Card games often use cards as its sole or central component. There are stand-alone card games, in which all the cards necessary for gameplay are purchased at once. There are also Collectible Card Games (CCGs), where players purchase starter and "booster" packs in an effort to compile a more and more powerful deck of cards to compete with. (source: BGG)
- Children's Games (41)Children's games are often driven by a set of simple rules and elementary themes geared towards younger players. However, the most popular Children's games are just that because they can be (and are) enjoyed by gamers of all ages. (source: BGG)
- City Building Games (23)City Building games compel players to construct and manage a city in a way that is more efficient, powerful, and/or lucrative than their opponent's cities. (source: BGG)
- Civilization Games (16)Civilization games often have players developing and managing a society of people. The aim of each player is usually to employ citizens in ways that are beneficial to society, and have them progress throughout the game so that their civilization gains superiority over others. Civilization games may have each player build their society independently, or through warfare and diplomacy, each player may find themselves benefiting or suffering from the actions of others. (source: BGG)
- Civil War Games (1)
- Comic Book/Strip Games (4)
- Cooperative Games (102)Cooperative games encourage or require players to work together to beat the game. There is little or no competition between players. Either the players win the game by reaching a pre-determined objective, or all players lose the game, often by not reaching the objective before a certain event happens. Semi-cooperative games are very similar, but players only need to work together to a certain point and victory goes to one player at the end. (source: BGG)
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- Deduction Games (81)Deduction games are those that require players to form conclusions based on available premises. These games are quite varied, including several different types of logical reasoning. Types include "Cat and Mouse" Deduction games where players use a set of observations and truthful feedback to narrow down possibilities, "Elimination" Deduction games where players arrive at the right conclusion after narrowing down possibilities from a large list, "Signalling" Deduction games where players make choices off of player-driven feedback (which may not be truthful), and "Induction" Deduction games where players must derive a general rule out of near infinite possibilities. (source: BGG)
- Dice Games (91)Dice games often use dice as its sole or principal component. Dice games traditionally focus almost exclusively on dice rolling as a mechanic (e.g., Yahtzee, Liar's Dice, Can't Stop). Generally, Dice games also refer to a number of Wargames that frequently use a large number of dice to decide a majority of game outcomes and variables. Usually, dice will account for the "luck" or "random chance" factor often needed in military simulations. These types of Wargames are colloquially known as "dice-fests". (source: BGG)
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- Economic Games (37)Economic games encourage players to develop and manage a system of production, distribution, trade, and/or consumption of goods. The games usually simulate a market in some way. The term is often used interchangably with resource management games. (source: BGG)
- Educational Games (23)Educational games have been specifically designed to teach people about a certain subject, expand concepts, reinforce development, understand a historical event or culture, or assist them in learning a skill as they play. (source: BGG)
- Environmental Games (16)Environmental games often have themes and storylines regarding environmental conservation and management. (source: BGG)
- Exploration Games (28)Exploration games often encourage players to discover and search new areas or territories for particular objects or goods, and/or to search for people to become trading partners with. (source: BGG)
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- Fantasy Games (163)Fantasy games are those that have themes and scenarios that exist in a fictional world. It is a genre that uses magic and other supernatural forms as a primary element of plot, theme, and/or setting. Fantasy is generally distinguished from science fiction and horror by the expectation that it steers clear of scientific and macabre themes, respectively, though there can be a great deal of overlap between the three. Fantasy game elements usually include: a- Creatures that are common in fantasy books and comics, such as orcs, trolls, goblins, dragons, etc. b- Magic that can be used with units or abilities c- Can involve a struggle between good and evil forces. (source: BGG)
- Farming Games (27)Farming games encourage players to build and manage farmland for the purposes of growing crops and/or tending to livestock, often to be sold or traded later on. (source: BGG)
- Fighting Games (60)Fighting games are those that encourage players to engage game characters in close quarter battles and hand-to-hand combat. Fighting games differ from Wargames in that the combat in Wargames exists as one part of a large-scale military simulation, while in Fighting games the focus is on the particular combat scenarios, like a skirmish. (source: BGG)
- Firefighting Games (4)Firefighting games focus mostly on controlling risk by "putting out fires". Thematically, the players most often take on the roles of firefighters.
- Food / Cooking Games (22)Food and cooking games simulate the process of preparing, cooking, and serving food.
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- Game Expansions (55)Game expansions add to a base game and almost always require the player have access to the base game, but not always. Some game expansions can be added or played on their own. Game expansions tend to add either a new level of difficulty, a different style of play, or more options to the players.
- Game News (1)
- Game Systems (8)A Game System is an item whose components are not a game, per se, but are used to play games. The best example of a Game System is a deck of standard playing cards. (source: BGG)
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- Horror Games (48)Horror games often contain themes and imagery depicting morbid and supernatural elements. (source: BGG)
- Humor Games (74)Humor Games often have themes and gameplay that provoke laughter and amusement. More specifically, humor games may require players to engage in clowning, comedy, jokes, and/or satire as an objective of the game. (source: BGG)
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- Industry / Manufacturing Games (7)Industry / Manufacturing games encourage players to build, manage and/or operate tools and machinery in order to manufacture raw materials into goods and products. Many of the most popular Industry / Manufacturing games are Economic games as well. (source: BGG)
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- Literature (16)Written and illustrated works. Everything from books to comics. Some are considered superior with long-lasting artistic merit. Others...not so much.
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- Mafia Games (4)Mafia games have themes and scenarios related to classic Sicilian criminal organizations. However, some games in the Mafia category may be related to other organized criminal groups. (source: BGG)
- Mature / Adult (1)
- Maze Games (7)Maze games often require players to navigate a series of pathways that are located on the game board. The maze itself might be prebuilt before game play or built by the players during the game. Mazes can also change, making it difficult to navigate. (source: BGG)
- Medical Games (6)Medical games have themes related to the science of natural healing. Themes may include surgery, cures, recovery/recuperation/physical therapy, psychiatry, pharmaceutical prescription, and other medicine-related items. (source: BGG)
- Medieval Games (40)Medieval games often have themes or storylines set in Europe or Asia, between the 5th century (the fall of the Western Roman Empire) and the 16th century (the beginnings of European overseas colonization). (source: BGG)
- Memory Games (32)Memory games require players to retain and recall previous game events or information as an objective. (source: BGG)
- Miniatures Games (17)Miniatures games use small scale figures to represent specific characters and objects during gameplay. Knights, trees, giant robots, buildings, etc. The most popular Miniatures games are characteristically known for their use of detailed plastic or metal figures. (source: BGG)
- Movies / TV / Radio Themed Games (6)Movies/TV/Radio games are often those that are thematically linked with a popular movie, television show, or radio program. Other Movies/TV/Radio themed games may test players' knowledge about these media, or the game environment may be set in the movie, television, or radio industry. (source: BGG)
- Murder Mystery Games (12)Murder Mystery games often involve an unsolved murder or murders. A requirement of these games is usually for players to investigate these crimes, and determine the criminal details and/or perpetrator(s). (source: BGG)
- Mythology Games (9)Mythology games are those that often incorporate a thematic narrative that defines how the game world or characters came into existence, specially those related or based on narratives of ancient civilizations of the world. The storyline in a number of Mythology games usually includes supernatural elements, such as gods, goddesses and demigods, and are sometimes set in a fabled, primordial time, which usually corresponds to a general corpus of folk stories (myths) that used to have some form of religious or sacred nature for the cultures that engendered these stories. (source: BGG)
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- Nautical Games (10)Nautical games involve sailors, ships, and/or maritime navigation as a major component of the theme or game play. Most Nautical games require players to effectively control ships as an objective. (source: BGG)
- Negotiation Games (18)Negotiation games explicitly involve and encourage making deals and alliances with other players and backstabbing when appropriate. Winning is rare without participating in these deals. Unlike cooperative games, Negotiation games are still largely competitive, while granting players certain times to make mutual agreements through discussion. Negotiation can also include bribery. (source: BGG)
- Ninja Games (5)Ninja games often have themes or storylines that involve ninjas, martial arts, and combat. These games are often set in feudal Japan, but not always, as ninjas are eternal. It is a well-known fact that ninjas and pirates are sworn enemies. If you see a ninja, it is only because the ninja wants you to see them.
- Novel-Based Games (8)Novel-Based games are those that are thematically linked with a popular novel or novel series. (source: BGG)
- Number Games (7)Number games require players to use or manipulate numbers to achieve their aims. (source: BGG)
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- Party Games (91)Party games are games that encourage social interaction. They generally have easy setups and simple rules, and they can accommodate large groups of people and play in a short amount of time. (source: BGG)
- Pirate Games (30)Pirate games often have themes or storylines of piracy. Some of the most popular themes and imagery in Pirate games concerns treasure hunting, sea robbery, swords and cannons, swashbuckling, and ship racing. Many Pirate games occur in timelines prior to the 20th century. Pirates hate Ninjas. (source: BGG)
- Political Games (18)Political games encourage players to use their character's authority to manipulate societal activities and policy. (source: BGG)
- Prehistoric Games (7)Prehistoric games often have themes or storylines set in a time before prerecorded history. These unwritten histories are usually compiled under time periods, including the Stone Age, Bronze Age, and Iron Age. Many of the popular Prehistoric games are set in the Stone Age, hunter/gatherer societies, or time periods when dinosaurs existed. (source: BGG)
- Prepublished Games (279)Prepublished games are those titles that have not yet been published, but might soon be. These games are typically requesting crowdfunding through Kickstarter or Indiegogo. Many try and few succeed. If the prepublished game has been successfully published and we have released a review for the published version, the prepublished version of the review will point you to the updated content.
- Print and Play Games (14)Print and play games are those which are often free to any player who wishes to print them off themselves. Many are available on the Internet. (source: BGG)
- Puzzle Games (53)Puzzle games are those in which the players are trying to solve a puzzle. Many Puzzle games require players to use problem solving, pattern recognition, organization and/or sequencing to reach their objectives. (source: BGG)
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- Racing Games (24)Racing games often involve players in a form of race, where the objective is to be the first to reach a checkpoint, usually by having greater speed and/or control than your opponents. Although many games in which players attempt to reach a particular goal more quickly than other players are described as Racing games (e.g., Dominion), this game type specifically refers to racing that also includes some element of steering, by which players navigate their piece(s) around obstacles which generally stay on the board from the start. (source: BGG)
- Real-Time Games (34)Real-Time games often allow for players to take their turns (or part of their turns) simultaneously. This is in contrast to turn-based games. There are also some Real-time games in which there is a consequence if a player does not play their turn in a set amount of time. (source: BGG)
- Religious Games (7)Religious games feature elements, narratives, settings, or characters that relate to current belief systems (religions) of the world, either in their historical aspect and its development through time or in their actual objects of faith, like sacred scriptures and articles of doctrine. This can be done through direct reference or by exploring different aspects of the faith in a playful fashion. (source: BGG)
- Renaissance Games (8)Renaissance games are those set between the 14th century (when the Renaissance began in Italy) and roughly the early 17th century. (source: BGG)
- Role-Playing Games (10)Role-Playing games (also known as RPGs and sometimes simply "roleplaying") is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting or through a process of structured decision-making or character development. Actions taken within many games succeed or fail according to a formal system of rules and guidelines that most often use dice and probability. Most RPGs have a referee who leads the story and directs the action. (source: Wikipedia)
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- Science Fiction Games (80)Science Fiction games often have themes relating to imagined possibilities in the sciences. Such games need not be futuristic; they can be based on an alternative past. (For example, the writings of Jules Verne and the Star Wars saga are set before present time.) Many of the most popular Science Fiction games are set in outer space, and often involve alien races. (source: BGG)
- Solitaire Games (66)Solitaire games are designed to be playable with only one player attempting to beat the game.
- Space Exploration Games (10)Space Exploration games often have themes and storylines relating to travel and adventure in outer space. Often, players must seek and gather resources and territories as objectives of the game. Many of the popular Space Exploration games are also categorized under Science Fiction. (source: BGG)
- Spies/Secret Agents (15)Spies/Secret Agents games often have themes or storylines relating to espionage. Often, players must identify another player who has taken the role of spy or secret agent and attempt to reveal secret information that this player holds. Many of the most popular Spies/Secret Agents games are also categorized under Bluffing and/or Deduction, and as such have an element of hidden information to them. (source: BGG)
- Sports Games (25)Sports games often have themes or storylines related to the physical activity of sports. The sports represented in the most popular Sports boardgames are football and racing (whether car, boat, bicycle or horse). (source: BGG)
- Storytelling Games (10)Storytelling games deal with communication and creativity. The rules to such games are often light with emphasis on using the imagination and wit.
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- Territory Building Games (25)Territory Building games have the players establish and/or amass control over a specific area. Often, these games employ Area Control and Area Enclosure mechanics, in which the areas are not necessarily delineated at the beginning of the game but are instead contained from larger territories as the game progresses. (source: BGG)
- Toys (14)We like to play with toys, as well as games. Make no mistake, the imagination is the greatest game you will ever play with.
- Train Games (8)Train games often involve game play and imagery related to railroads and rail vehicles. Many of the most popular Train games are set in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. (source: BGG)
- Transportation Games (13)Transportation games often have game play involving the movement of goods or people from one place to another. Many of the most popular Transportation games are also Train games. (source: BGG)
- Travel Games (6)Travel games often have game play where an objective is to move to and from different geographic locations. As such, Travel games usually employ a map as the main feature of the game board. (source: BGG)
- Trivia Games (8)Trivia games often test players on their knowledge of general interests and popular culture. There are also Trivia games that focus on specific topics and subject matter. (source: BGG)
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- Video Games (6)While we love playing games offline at the kitchen table, one cannot discount the appeal of the fantastic video games available for geeks to waste their time on.
- Video Game Themed Games (9)Video Game Themed games are often those that are thematically linked with a popular video game. (source: BGG)
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- Wargames (26)Wargames are games that depict military actions. Wargames are set in a variety of timelines, from the Ancient period to present conflicts and even in the future. Thematically, Wargames cover everything from actions between small units on a very small board to larger, extremely detailed conflicts and even global-scale wars. Although most Wargames are based on historical situations, there are Wargames based on fantasy or science fiction, as well as Wargames based on hypothetical but historically-based situations (e.g., nuclear war between the Soviet Union and the USA). Probably the most popular period for Wargames is World War II, followed by the Napoleonic Wars and the American Civil War. However, Wargames cover a vast range of conflicts, and if you are interested in a particular war you are quite likely to be able to find a game that covers it in some way. (source: BGG)
- Word Games (25)Word games often require players to competitively use their knowledge of language. Language knowledge in Word games is often focused on spelling and definitions. (source: BGG)
- World War II (3)World War II games have storylines set during various military campaigns in Europe, Asia, and Africa from 1939 until 1945. Most World War II games are also categorized as Wargames. (source: BGG)
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- Zombie Games (24)Zombie games often contain themes and imagery concerning the animated dead. Some of the more popular storylines in Zombie games include apocalyptic themes, horror, and fighting. (source: BGG)