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December Year End Contest:

Patrick Ross entry for 5 favorite games from 2010:

Innovation
Although this game looks deceptively boring when you flip through its components, I keep returning to it again and again.

Lords of Vegas
Just the right combination of luck and strategy for all members of my family, from the youngest to the oldest.

Fresco
Any game that gets my 70-year-old mother to the table makes my top 5 for the year.

Wok Star
A cooperative food themed game with a sense of humor scratches multiple itches in my gaming brain.

Castle Ravenloft.
When you just don't have the time or patience for Descent, this game is perfect for the quick dungeoncrawler fix.

November Back to the Future Giveaway winners Top 5 Games:

Heather Sproul

Dice Town, Agricola, Pandemic, Blue Moon City and Acquire.  Pretty much I love any game that I can beat my husband at. hehe :) Thanks so much

Shane Larsen

1. Puerto Rico - I'm one of the many who put this at #1 for its incredible balance, thrilling interaction, and heart-racing tension. I love it.
2. Battle Line - My wife will play this game any time. It's tense. It's got gut-wrenching decisions, and when I win, I really feel like I worked out a great puzzle. Battle Line is as good as it gets for a 2-player-only game.
3. Chaos in the Old World - I like strategy games and usually choose a good euro over a theme-oriented game. Chaos does them both well. I like the game, and the theme is oozing from the box.
4. For Sale - My family loves this game! I love it too. It gets big points for being one of the easiest games to teach and get people to love in a very short time.
5. Agricola - I don't get to play it much because it's a bit longer than what my family prefers, but a night of Agricola is always a good night for me.

October Age of Industry Winners Top 5 Games:

Chris Okelberry:

Top 5 games...that's a tough one, but here's my top 5 right now:

1- Tikal - I enjoy the action point mechanic and the theme of exploring the ancient jungle. I enjoy how there are multiple different paths to victory and that the tile randomization helps keep things interesting.
2- Mr. Jack - A fun, quick 2 player game. I'm intrigued by Jack the Ripper and turn of the century London. But the theme isn't so heavy as to turn off those who would play with me but don't want a "serial killer" game.
3- Carcassone - I really enjoy this as a quick, easily accessible game that can be played by a wide variety of players.
4- Scrabble - My wife and I are both big fans of word games and while we enjoy quick rounds of Boggle, Quiddler and others, we really have a lot of fun playing Scrabble and usually play a few times a month (in addition to constantly having games going online)
5- Betrayal at House on the Hill - I really enjoy the modular board, the light/mini-rpg aspect, the horror theme and the co-op element of traitor/hero groups later in the game. This one's harder to get to the table due to the theme and some of the mechanics, but I have a lot of fun when we do get it played.

 

Richard Shay:

My favorite games (for now) are:
Agricola: I like the theme and the decisions. Definitely best with "drafting" for the cards, but fine without it.
Puerto Rico: its a little dry, but I just like to play.
Endeavor: very dry, but a tight game with lots of action available and an early leader can become a victim.
Macao: I have fun trying to make it "work", but the point is to win. I haven't got to the point where I can look at the other players to see if I can interfere with their shipping and taking districts yet.

 

Jeremy Van Maanen:

1. Settlers of Catan - I've probably played it well over 100 times and I still love playing it and its expansions. I think that's the sign of a great game.
2. British Rails - I love train games and this game is great because it requires a great balance in finding the most efficient network.
3. Agricola - I like the options available in this game and I also like how it scales and changes with different numbers of players.
4. Bohnanza - Another one that has stood the test of time. There is a lot of interaction and tough decision-making.
5. Railroad Tycoon - Another great train game and the board is huge. I also like the competition for goods and routes.

October Ticket to Ride Nordic Countries Winners:

Your favorite game in the Ticket to Ride series and why?

Aaron Jones:

I am still a big fan of the traditional version of Ticket to Ride, mainly because it is plenty simple enough to just pull out of the closet and play with anyone, but also can definitely be complex enough to play with the most strategic of gamers!

Erin Reilly-Sanders:

We really enjoy the Marklin Edition because I've traveled in Germany and been to many of the cities listed. We also have fun trying to pronounce the odd names.

 

July Settlers of America Contest Winners:

Timothy Hunt's Top 5 games:

5) No Thanks! - Such a simple game, and yet with some subtleties that
make it interesting.  Great for the start of an evening as a filler
while waiting for people to turn up.

 

4) Brass - A nice deep game with multiple paths to victory - has both
a strong strategic element, and a good tactical element as well.

3) Zendo - Hypothesize, test, and figure out the rule.  This just
seems to stretch my brain in great ways, and lessons I've learned in
playing I've been able to apply to my job to figure out real world
problems.

2) Dominion - All sorts of great things to say about this - it's accessible to new gamers, there is a ton of replayability, even with
just the base game.

1) Tichu - This is just a wonderful game.  The interplay between the
two teams and the betting to try and go out first make for a very fun
and often tense game.

 

Michelle Aquilino's top 5 games:

Top 5 games:
1. Dominion – My favorite game.  I love playing cards off of cards, creating a long string of plays to get the province cards =)  It never gets old because every game is different, given a different set of kingdom cards.  This game can be overwhelming to new players, but once you get going, it’s much simpler than it appears.

2. Ticket to Ride w/ Dice Expansion – I love building, and the dice expansion makes it so there is less waiting time and more building, ha ha!  Ticket to Ride is a great game to introduce non-gamers to the world of gaming.  I will always play this game, but especially with the Dice Expansion =)

3. Um Reifenbreite – I also love racing games.  This is a fun game, as you have multiple different bikers and can have them work together to help one another get through the course.  In addition, you can work with other teams to help each other.  Different bikers on your team have different special skills which you can plan when to utilize those special skills, and when to save them.  There is a lot of strategy in this game, with some luck of the die added into it.

4. Balloon Cup – This is a fun 2-player game from a local game designer.  People can be nasty to the other player in it, but typically (with the people I play with) they keep their “good” cards for their own use later in the game.  It’s simple to explain, some luck, but strategy at the same time.

5. For Sale – Simple bidding game with fun theming at the same time.  Lots of strategy, but with the theming, people can have fun playing even if they are not playing “to win”.

June Contest Winner:

Zombie Dice - Heather Lichfield's favorite things Zombie: our favorite zombie movie is by far "Shaun
of the Dead", and my favorite zombie book is "Pride and Prejudice and
Zombies"

May Contest Winners:

Cthlhu Dice - Heather Lichfield, Gene O' Neal, Brent Mair and Christophe Mannaert

Hagoth Builder of Ships - Jeremy Coe and Aaron Dias

 

April Contest Winner Samuel Heiner's top 5 games:

Top Choice Games: (and why)
not in any particular order. I love games and it is hard to order them.
 
1. Dominion - We play this several times before we put it away and each time we play it that night, it isn't the same game. you are always having to change strategies and get the cards to work in your favor.

2. Agricola - I don't own this one but play it with some neighbors. I had such a blast that this is going to be one of the next games I purchase.

3. Saint Petersburg - This is a great game but is limited to four players. My brothers and I get together and play this one a lot. Your strategy for this game differs depending on what the turn order is and where you are in that order. It also changes depending on if you have two, three or four players.

4. Incan Gold - This is one of my favorites with my whole family. There is eight of us and we can al play this one. This is a great game too for the fact that you have to be able to read the ones your playing with and try to know whether they will keeping treasure hunting or leave with what treasure they have and win what is left. Fun game for the whole family.

5. Bonanza - This is another great game for the whole family, one that all eight of us can play. For the reason that we can all play together, it is a great game.

 

March Contest Winner Jon Sears.

 

February Contest #1 Winner Quint Wheeler's top 5 games:

My top 5 games:

1. Carcassone - My first euro game and I'm still not tired of it.  I have all the expansions (except the catapult), but my favorite are Inns and Cathedrals, and Abbey and Mayor.

2. Wits and Wagers - My favorite party game.  I love the idea of a trivia game where no one is supposed to know the answers to the questions.

3. Bohnanza - My favorite card game.  Everyone who I've taught this to seems to really get into it.

4. Shadow Hunters - I've only had this one since Christmas, but it's my current favorite when I have 6-8 players.

5. Alhambra - I have the big box, and with all the expansions you really can play the game a completely different way every time.

February Contest #2 Winner David Karasick's top 5 games:

My top 5 games include: 

Settlers of Catan [ this game was the catalyst for all eurogames to come. It is unique and easy to play for all]

Pandemic [ As a doctor, I can really appreciate the epidemic feeling when playing it. Cooperation is key]

Showmanager [ another game that requires good cardplay management ]

Thebes [ a game that makes one feel like they are truly exploring and discovering relics from the past]

Chinatown [ a game of numbers and real estate requiring advanced thinking]

 

January Contest #1 Joe Adams top 5 games:

I have been playing a lot of coop games recently, and I have enjoyed all of them.  Here is my new list based on recent play:
 
1 - The Fury of Dracula
2 - Diamant  (coop because we all go in cave together!)
3 - Pandemic
4 - Scotland Yard
5 - Shadows Over Camelot