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Best Week 2013: The (Other) Games of the Year
Ahhh. The fifth and final day of Best Week 2013. Breathe it in. Breathe it. You smell that? That’s the scent of the ten best games of the year, not counting the genres we’ve covered thus far; so no fillers, expansions, solo, cooperative, or head-to-head games. Everyone on today’s list is playable with three or more players, occupies at least a couple hours, and — here’s the important part — is one of the best games of the year.
Also, we’ve got some investigative journalism for you. That’s right. You can find it all below.
Best Week 2013: Head-to-Heads
Here we are on day four of Best Week 2013, and we’ve finally arrived at my favorite topic: head-to-head games. Dueling games. Nobody-else-to-save-you games. Can’t-blame-your- teammate-when-you-lose games. Two minds locked in ultimate combat, the only other people at the table mere spectators, holding their breath and occasionally mumbling unwanted advice before your backhand slap shuts them up again.
Because this is my favorite genre by far, in place of the usual top five list, today we’re looking at the top ten. Buckle up.
Best Week 2013: Expanded
Was this a good year for board game expansions? I have no idea. There sure were plenty of them, including a bunch of interesting additions for Netrunner and the Pathfinder Adventure Card Game. Even so, when it comes to figuring out which expansions were my favorites this year, there’s hardly any contest.
Best Week 2013: The Appetizers
“Filler games,” as defined by Webster’s Dictionary, are those delicious appetizers that are played nearly every game night while you wait for the one or two friends who always show up late. As such, they’re designed for a small group and take an hour or less to play, and they’re as simple as possible to avoid the awkwardness of finishing the rules explanation the moment your tardy friends arrive.
My gaming group has about five of those consistently belated buddies, so while this best-of list is limited to a handful of 2013 releases, it was tempting to include all of our favorite fillers we played this year: Stone & Relic, Master Plan, Infinity Dungeon, 7-Card Slugfest, Titanium Wars, String Doomworms, and The Agents. For all intents and purposes, we’ll pretend these fall under a runners-up category — though they really don’t, since a little bit like the Highlander, there can only be five.
Best Week 2013: Alone / Co-Op Time
“What’s this Best Week all about, sir?” I was asked last week by the orphan pulling my rickshaw through the fictional streets of Malgudi. I considered not answering, as talk shortened his breath and subsequently lengthened the journey, but some Christian nook of my heart compelled me to tell him anyway. Perhaps it is because I believe all peoples everywhere should know about Best Week. It is, after all, the most joyous five days of the year, in which all the best board games are compiled, considered, and listed. And everyone loves lists.
Today, on the very first day of Best Week 2013, we’re going to examine the five best solo and cooperative games of the year. There are some natural limitations — I cannot, for instance, award the title of “Best Solo / Co-Op Game of 2013” to a game I haven’t played, and there are one or two games that didn’t come out in 2013 at all. So okay, it’s subjective. But I’d love to hear your input, dear readers, for Best Week is not only about my favorite games — it’s also about yours.
SPACE-BIFF! 