

Any regular viewer of any of my shows (or reader of this blog) will know that my current geek obsession is designer board games. Only in the last 2 years have I discovered how vibrant and full of awesome the hobby is, but I wish I had known earlier! So I'm trying to spread the word. I truly believe there is a board game perfect for everyone, and I've made it my mission to get more people playing great board games!

If you've only ever played Trivial Pursuit, Clue, Scrabble, or Monopoly, this post is for you. Here are five games that will open your mind to what designer board games have become. There are a lot more out there, and I'll be highlighting a lot of my favorites over the coming weeks and months, but if these whet your appetite you can always check out boardgamegeek.com, the ultimate source of everything board game.

1. Settlers of Catan

This is the one that did it for me. In the board gaming community a lot of people talk about "gateway games", which are used to get non-gamers to see what designer board games are all about and hook them on the hobby. This might be the king of them all. A classic "Euro" game, in that the theme is mostly about commerce and set in a historical period, it can admittedly look a little dry at first. But when you start to play and realize that every single turn involves every single player, and notice how the multiple paths to victory allow for numerous different strategies, you start to understand how modern board games have evolved. This is no longer top among my favorite games, but it is the one that turned me on to the hobby, and it can for you, too. Grab 3 friends and give it a try. Easy to find and not too expensive, this is a great first game.

2. Dominion

This is a relatively new kind of game, known as "deck building", but it is simple, elegant, and extremely fun. It works a little like a collectible card game (think Magic: The Gathering), except every player starts with exactly the same cards as every other, so you don't have to spend a lot of money collecting cards and everyone is on an equal footing at the start. You build your deck as you play, by using cards in your hand to get new cards into your deck, which, in turn, allows you to acquire even more, and progress to victory. There is so much variety in the box, almost every play will involve different cards and strategies, and it plays quick and is easy to teach. Once you grasp the key concepts I promise you'll have a blast and want to play again, immediately.

3. Pandemic

Competition is great in board games, but working together can be even more fun. One of the most popular genres of board games lately is the co-op game, and Pandemic is one of the best. In this game, every player is working together to try to stop diseases from spreading all over the world. You are all actually playing against the game itself. It is a brilliant mechanic that works with people who might not like to lose to their friends. Here, everyone wins or everyone loses, and it is exhilarating trying to manage everyone's strengths to curb the outbreak all over the globe.

I could also recommend Forbidden Island in this category, especially if you have younger players to play with. Same designer, similar concept, less medicine.

4. Agricola

Okay, so now you've played a few of these excellent gateway games and you're ready to sink your teeth into something a bit heavier. May I present to you... Agricola. Yes, it has a funny name. Yes, it is about farming. It also happens to be my very favorite game at the moment. Just superbly designed, with tons of options and different strategies, Agricola is as close to pure board game perfection as I have experienced. It is much more on the heavy side in terms of learning curve - you will need patience to wrap your head around all of the rules (I recommend starting with the "family" rules and watching this informative, if cheesy, overview by Scott Nicholson) - but well worth the investment. It is a worker placement game (of which there are many excellent varieties), which means that each player claims places on the board with their "workers", so if one person gets to do something, the others don't. You are constantly changing your strategy to compensate for other players' actions, which makes things unpredictable and extremely fun. I believe it isn't too tough to learn, even for newbies, and it will open you up to an entire world of heavier strategy games - the games I love most.

5. Wits & Wagers

Then again, if all else fails... try Wits & Wagers. Maybe strategy and Euro games aren't your thing. You gave Settlers of Catan a go and you couldn't get into it. You lost a couple of times at Pandemic and didn't have any fun. "Jeff," you're saying, "you're crazy. These games aren't any better than the ones I grew up with." Okay, if that's the case this would be my last hail mary try. A sure-fire, no-way-it-can-lose, 100% fun guarantee. Get as many people together as you possibly can and play Wits & Wagers. It is a trivia game - "Ugh, like Trivial Pursuit? That sounds boring!" Ah, then you haven't tried Wits & Wagers! The brilliant design of this game manages to sidestep mere factoid knowledge to create a fun, communal experience that makes not knowing something just as fun as knowing it. Best with teams, and wildly fun, I'll bet you can't just play it once.

So there you have it. A starter kit. Let me know what you think - especially if you're new to designer board games - down in the comments section. I'll be back periodically with the newest games I'm playing, and hopefully, together, we can get people sitting down to board games just as often as they reach for a controller.