Well, here we are for the next annual Laurels of the Republic. The Laurels are our way of highlighting and rewarding some of the best games of the last year among their respective gamer archetype categories. Just like our reviews, the Laurel nominees are broken down not among traditional categories or our personal favorite games, but rather along these six archetypes. Each of them caters to a different philosophy of what gamers prefer in their gaming experiences, both accentuating and celebrating the variety of play styles that exist within board gaming overall. (If you’re curious, you can find out yours here.)

After poring over hundreds of titles, months of research, and more playthroughs than we can count, it is finally time that we present our findings. And so, without further ado, here are the 2018 Laurel nominees:

Architects Tacticians Socializers Altiplano Calimala Catch the Moon Architects of the West Kingdom Coimbra Decrypto Dice Hospital Heaven & Ale Just One Dinosaur Island Newton The Mind Everdell Nusfjord Welcome To… Daredevils Immersionists Strikers Empires of the Void II Chronicles of Crime Cerebria: The Inside World Feudum Detective: A Modern Crime Board Game KeyForge The Quacks of Quedlinburg Kitchen Rush The Legend of Korra: Pro-Bending Arena SEAL Team Flix Obsession Root Vindication Western Legends War Chest

Starting on March 1st, stay tuned to the site as we begin a month-long series of articles where we will elaborate on how each game earned their spot, as well as announce the coveted winner of its category.

Until then, let the speculation begin!

As a technical note, you may wonder how we determine cutoff criteria for game eligibility of a given year. Well, it mostly boils down to availability. There are only three primary rules, which are as follows: