2020
It’s a new decade and Baby New Year has a lot to live up to. The 2010’s found tabletop gaming continue its upward momentum with the rise of the Kickstarter and other crowdfunding, self-publishers and new independent companies sprang onto the scene providing both to the niche and general gamer alike. New classics, remakes of old classics, and expansions galore. Watch out — here comes the ’20s… and you thought the teens were hard on your pocketbook!
Super Fantasy Brawl - Grimspire
By Steve Mayne
I’m very excited my hands on this game. It reminds me of World of Warcraft Miniatures game and that’s been in my top 3 games for awhile. I’ve tried it on Tabletopia and can’t wait to get the real figures into my hands so I can paint them.
Sleeping Gods - Red Raven Games
By Ben Parker
I backed this game on Kickstarter and can’t wait to see it! Sleeping Gods is an open world that players can spend as much time as they want exploring. It looks massive and should provide hours and hours of fun.
Tekhenu - Board & Dice
By Matthew Kearns
From the creators of Tzolk’in and Anachrony comes Tekhenu, a game literally centered around the great obelisk of the Sun. You draft dice to perform actions based upon die result and the location on the board the die was drafted from. Earn victory points based on items constructed, your people’s morale, and production output. The preliminary artwork shown is outstanding, artist uncredited yet.
Oathsworn: Into the Deep Wood - Shadowborne Games
By Steve Mayne
I like dungeon crawlers. Oathsworn is not only a decent looking one, but the amount of work they put into this game before taking it to Kickstarter shows a real love for the project.
They hired James Cosmo to act as the narrator, cartographer, city planner, and labyrinth expert for the various pieces of the game. The combat system has two modes: one for those who want to be more risky and another for those that want to take a more measured approach. What’s great about it is that you can switch between each during game play as well.
I’m just really enamored with this project and can’t wait to see it realized.
Terra Mystica: Merchants of the Sea - Z-Man Games
By Mary Crabtree
These days I enjoy medium weight games that don’t last longer than 3 hours. However, I always enjoy Terra Mystica. For us, this game can last about 4-5 hours. I am delighted to see that they are continuing the original game even though they released Gaia Project which was a re-skin of the original Terra Mystica.
District 9 - Weta Workshop
By Matthew Kearns
District 9 tops the list of my game previews and I have high hopes for it next year. The most recent foray into board games by the illustrious Weta Workshop had a successful Kickstarter with plenty of hype going into the new year. The minis are especially detailed and the game presents the movie in a unique way.
T.I.M.E Stories: Blue Cycle - Space Cowboys
By Steve Mayne
I have really enjoyed the T.I.M.E. Stories series. While not all of the stories hit perfectly, its been a great ride, especially the puzzles. That said, I am looking forward to the updates to combat, the puzzles, and introduction of app with the new series.
Conspiracy: Abyss Universe - Bombyx
By Mary Crabtree
I don’t know much about this one but the art of the original game is fantastic. The game is awesome as well but I bought it because of the artwork. I’ll definitely be picking up this new card game simply for enjoying the artwork.
The Rival Networks - Formal Ferret Games
By Matthew Kearns
The game has been available for demo at recent cons and there has been some buzz over this duel version of the game. The gameplay has been most kept from the original version, but streamlined to allow for quick, easy play between two. The game will be up on Kickstarter in January 2020.
Ticket to Ride: Map Collection 7 - Days of Wonder
By Mary Crabtree
My all-time favorite game is Ticket to Ride. It was a gateway game into the hobby and will always hold a special place for me. I own all of the maps and my group enjoys most of them. We even had a TTR tournament once.
This new map collection introduces Japan and Italy. I have read up on Japan and it has a map within a map! I think this will add an interesting twist to the game.
