70 — Nippon (2015)
:strip_icc()/pic2683981.jpg)
2022 #40
Now here’s a crunchier Euro. And this one will punish you pretty harshly for miscalculations. If this game really suffers from anything it’s the pretty uninteresting theme. It might be set in Japan, but it’s really just another industrial revolution Euro about grinding resources into points, but it’s a lot more interesting than most of them.
69 — Pocket Master Builder (2022)
:strip_icc()/pic6881773.jpg)
New in 2023
This little card game really hit the spot for me. I was looking for a city-building game that played solo and wasn’t too expensive, bonus points for a card game! The only downside is that the rules were very poorly translated into English and take some extra effort to get through. But I think it’s worth the effort.
68 — Yamataï (2017)
:strip_icc()/pic3357724.jpg)
2022 #57
This didn’t drop quite as much as I expected. My friend gifted me a copy and I played it 2-player, but it wasn’t quite the experience I was hoping for. The 2-player rules create a nightmare of analysis paralysis. Still, it’s a really good 3-player game.
67 — Elder Sign (2011)
:strip_icc()/pic1236119.jpg)
New in 2023
What is this doing here? It was #128 last year! Well, it is a solid game, and this year, I was really close to spending $50-60 buying a bunch of it. The expansions are supposed to be really good. I still may end up buying a bunch, and that certainly counts for something.
66 — 7 Wonders Duel (2015)
:strip_icc()/pic2576399.jpg)
2022 #59
This is a pretty solid hold. Honestly, I’m just a huge sucker for drafting and civ games (though it’s barely a civ game, really). The expansions for this add some really interesting twists and some incredible levels of take-that. This is a savage experience!
65 — Agricola (2007)
:strip_icc()/pic831744.jpg)
2022 #48
Agricola certainly has a lot of competition from other heavy Euro games these days, but not many really try their hand at this kind of theme. It might continue to fall, but I’d still happily play it.
64 — Caverna: The Cave Farmers
:strip_icc()/pic1790789.jpg)
2022 #78
After we played with the expansion for Caverna, it got a good bump for me. Ultimately, I’d play either this or Agricola, but my first pick these days would be Caverna. It just offers a greater variety of things to do.
63 — Now or Never (2022)
:strip_icc()/pic6209785.jpg)
2022 #36
The current champion of the Red Raven adventure games (for now) for me. It’s certainly not without its own faults, but the overall system of it was much more engaging. Greater character customization, way better combat, and better exploration. I wish the town building part with all the tiles was either smaller or optional, but it is what it is.
62 — Kanban (2014)
:strip_icc()/pic4924232.jpg)
2022 #63
Somehow, Kanban came out on top as my favorite Lecerda. It definitely benefited from being played more recently than Vinhos. But I also just really enjoy the flow of this one. It’s really tight, really tough, but really satisfying.
61 — The Lord of the Rings Trading Card Game (2001)
:strip_icc()/pic1414719.jpg)
2022 #5
This “dropped” but really, it’s settling in. It jumped way up last year because I was playing a lot of a solo mode I found (which works well). We’ll see if this gets played 2-player at some point. I still have to resist buying more.
Thomas P. King, author and game designer 
One thought on “End of Year & Top 100 (2023)”