90 — Septima (2023)
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New in 2023
Speaking of Mind Clash. While I have a list of problems with Septima, the core gameplay is really fun and much easier to get into. This would be a lot higher if it weren’t for the issues. If I had to pick just one as my biggest problem, I think it would be the Book of Divination cards. I don’t like how they work and would want them completely replaced with more interesting and dynamic goals; preferably goals you accomplish during the game and replace with new goals. As they are, several of the goals don’t matter until the last season, and it’s really boring when everyone scores the exact same for their hard-earned objectives.
89 — Vinhos (2010)
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2022 #25
This was another casualty of not getting played—made worse by it having been so long since our last play of it. I almost played it solo but the solo mode is only the 2016 version; I prefer the 2010 rules. It was definitely sad to see it drop so far, but so it goes. Not enough time for everything, and some games will slip as a result. This will definitely need to get played again in 2024. It was finally defeated by another wine-making Euro game.
88 — Lewis & Clark: The Expedition (2013)
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2022 #73
While Lewis & Clark also hasn’t gotten a play this year, I’m surprised it didn’t drop further. But between the tight resource management, card play, and that little bit of engine building, I still remember a lot of the game that I enjoyed. This is definitely getting played next year.
87 — Near and Far (2017)
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2022 #58
Near and Far is a solid hybrid game that mixes some Euro elements with a bit of dice-chucking and story. However, it continues its decline for me for a few reasons. One being the length, it’s just not a quick game unless players avoid going on adventures. The writing is also just so-so. But it’s also been overshadowed by its bigger, younger brother. That said, next year, we’ll finally be plunging into Sleeping Gods, so who knows which of Red Raven’s adventure games will end up on top. If anything, maybe 87 is still too high?
86 — Marvel Champions: The Card Game (2019)
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2022 #55
Another one that didn’t manage to hit the table this year. I like the system, but I have been feeling a lack of heroes (in our collection) that I’m interested in. I still want to get it back to the table, though. Haven’t had any motivation to try solo, however.
85 — Suburbia (2012)
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2022 #95
I’m a little surprised it moved up, especially since I did find that some things about the game bother me. As much as I really enjoy the gameplay, the random ending and randomized tiles have proven to be a bit of a problem. But some house rules can fix that, and I have enjoyed the gameplay. It also helps that I really enjoy city building and there just aren’t many games to choose from for the genre. Suburbia very much benefited from getting replayed this year.
84 — Age of Steam (2002)
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New in 2023
This was on our radar for a very long time, and we finally got the new edition to the table. It really wasn’t a surprise by then that we all enjoyed it. It’s a Martin Wallace classic; easy to grasp rules, extremely tight and unforgiving economy, and crunchy decisions. It’ll be interesting to explore more of the maps and how they change things up.
83 — Scarlet Heroes (2014)
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New in 2023
We have the first non-board game of the list. This is an RPG that can be played with a GM but has a variety of tools included to play solo. The core of the system is a stripped-down OSR (basically, really old D&D) with some new systems added on to help build adventures when playing solo. My only real complaint (other than the built-in setting) is that it’s a bit too stripped-down with almost no significant character customization unless you play a spell caster. They released at least one fully-developed class later on in a magazine, but it would have been nice to see real support for the game that offered more robust character options.
82 — Tekhenu: Obelisk of the Sun
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2022 #62
I enjoy some of the “T” games, but they are exceptionally dry Euros. Tekhenu offers some nice twists on things and some powers you can buy that feel incredibly powerful. However, I suspect the Board & Dice series to continue slowly dropping for me.
81 — Star Wars: Outer Rim (2019)
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2022 #27
This was quite a drop. And I actually enjoyed it more with Unfinished Business. There are some problems I have with the game that I think caused it to drop sharply, but some house-ruling might improve things (limited markets have been a little annoying, for example).
Thomas P. King, author and game designer 
3 thoughts on “End of Year & Top 100 (2023)”