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Top Ten Board Games

Listed, in no particular order are our top ten board games for a new board gamer. Each of these board games are easy to learn, fun to play and are some of our most popular purchases. Excluded are classic board games such as Risk and Monopoly to introduce new and exciting games.

Top 10 Board Games

1. Settlers of Catan
Settlers of Catan is the game that started the 'German invasion' with award winning game play and a constantly changing board. Players strive to develop the newly found continent of Catan, building roads, settlements and cities while fighting off the predations of the thief with knights at the same time. A fun combination of strategy in settlement placement and development and luck with resources being created by the roll of a dice, Settlers of Catan has great replayability. And to add further spice to the game, multiple Settlers of Catan expansions have been released.

2. Ticket to Ride
A game that can be learnt in minutes, Ticket to Ride takes much longer to master. The goal of the game is to build and control railway routes across North America. The tension and fun in the game comes from the need to balance greed - drawing more cards to develop railways - with fear as competitors claim routes. As an added twist, Destination Tickets to new cities provide more points to players, adding complexity. Often considered a 'gateway board game', Ticket to Ride is simple to learn but provides a high level of tension and action for new players.

3. Carcassonne
One of the most popular board games, Carcassonne has a wide variety of expansions that add to the basic game, providing even more fun down the road. Carcassonne's main mechanic is the drawing and placement of the tiles that will make up the game board. Each tile represents a unique opportunity to take control of a new land feature which include roads, cities and farms to gain victory points. As points are only counted when a feature is completed (or in the farmer's case, when the game is over) players must balance long-term goals with short-term gains. Like Settlers of Catan, Carcassonne is highly replayable as each tile is drawn randomly, forcing new strategies on players each game. Less competitive than Settlers, Carcassonne is often considered the better gateway game.

4. Lost Cities
Lost CIties is a fast-playing two player card game of archelogical digs. Players take on the role of competing archelogists who are searching for 5 legendary locations including the lost city of Atlantis. Each turn, players have to decide whether to draw a new card to gain additional clues or place a card down to progress on their exploration. However, too many digs started will result in less success (and lower points) at the end of the game. Playing like an advanced version of Gin Rummy, Lost Cities has definite replay value.

5. Coloretto
Coloretto is another fast-playing card game that is easily portable and involved. Coloretto uses the theme of chameleons, where players are striving to collect cards of the same colour. Each turn, the players must either draw and place a card or take from the row of cards placed. Scoring is based on having the most cards of the same colour. In Coloretto, the simple gameplay mechanics will draw in any player while the choices available are intriguing.

6. Blokus
Blokus is an abstract strategy game with multiple, tetris-shaped, colored pieces that are placed on the board. With only two rules that dictate the game, this is a fast and intriguing game that can be learnt quickly and finished in a short space of time and yet has a high level of depth and strategy. It's a great game for quick, fast and fun rounds.

7. RoboRally
In RoboRally, players race their pieces through a factory filled with moving, course-altering conveyor belts, lasers, pits, crushers and other obstacles. Players attempt to survive and race to reach checkpoints through the game, all the while adding to the carnage with weapons and dealing with the randomly dealt movement cards. With each robots movements defined by randomly dealt and sorted movement cards, RoboRally is a fun, entertaining family board game with a ton of bloodless, humorous mayhem.

8. Guillotine
Guillotine is a humour laden game set in Revolutionary France. Players are competing Guillotine operators who are competing to receive the most prestigious and well known nobles to service. Guillotin is a game that can be easily played within 30 minutes and that is sure to have you and your friends laughing out loud all through the game.

9. Battlelore
Battlelore allows players the feel of commanding vast armies of troops in a magical Medieval Europe. With a complex but easy to understand rules system based on the Command Colors system (the same system used in Memoir '44), Battlelore is easily expandable to a more complex game with additional expansions. Using a customizable War Council of Wizards, Clerics, Warriors and Rogues to aid in the battle, Commanders must deeply consider their initial battle strategy and adapt to the fluid pace of combat in this war game. With a ton of replayability in the base game and a number of expansions already released, Battlelore is a must for any fantasy war gamer.

10. Alhambra
Alhambra places you in the Middle Ages, developing Alhambra - a palace, fortress and small city all rolled into one. As a player, you compete to purchase a variety of building types in 4 different currencies, forcing you to balance both cash and building types as well as an overall strategy for wall types. With multiple building types available, the path to victory is constantly evolving, creating an intriguing board game that is infinitely replayable. A family oriented game, Alhambra can fit up to 4 players at a time.