Day 5 and another day of Double Board Game Madness!
Today we're featuring our 8th AND 7th games from our Top 12 Favorite Games Countdown!!
Don't worry, tomorrow we'll slow down and get the Top 6 done one at a time :-)

As always, let us know which ones you love (or hate!) in the comments for your entry to tomorrows giveaway.

Game Grid's Top 12 Favorite Board Games
Number 8 & 7

Jordan Bird

8 - Wavelength

What Jordan enjoys most about this game:

At this point I feel like I have to defend myself and my choice of Top 12 Games - I've realized after putting this list together that most of these are fantastic group and party games - and there are only 2 proper strategy games in my Top 12.
I promise, I play and enjoy heavier games! :-P
It's just that the holidays always put me in a different mindset, thinking about the games that I love playing with the whole family.
Maybe I'll do a Top 10 heavy-ish games for Valentines or Labor Day since I usually play those with my wife or with my co-workers :-)

Anyway, Wavelength is great.
I enjoy any good clue giving/word guessing game - Codenames, Obscurio, Mysterium, Just One, etc... - but Wavelength is particularly clever.
First, you spin a dial and the clue giver gets to see where it ends up, roughly from 0-100.
Then they get a prompt that scales (Hot-Cold, Beautiful-Ugly, High-Low)
The clue giver only gets to give 1 word/concept to their team, who then have to turn the dial to match where the needle ended up. The other team gets to guess High or Low and potentially score a bonus point if the guess was wrong.

Like Codenames, it's a great spin on classic word games where the limitations really do bring out a totally different kind of experience.

Jordan's favorite memory of this game:

We played Wavelength at a staff meeting, and my clues/references were so awful that I have un-officially been banned from ever being the clue giver again. I guess I just wasn't on the same "wavelength" as my team :-P

Recommended for anyone who loves:

Family Games - (Catan, Ticket to Ride, etc...)
Party Games - (Telestrations, Code Names, Apples to Apples, etc...)

This game is great for:

Family Game Night
Board Game Night (Friends/Other Gamers)
Holiday Get Togethers

7 - When I Dream

What Jordan enjoys most about this game:

When I Dream is by far my favorite game in the Word Guess / Clue Giving Part Game Category.
Yeah, it's not a real category (yet) but there are so many games that would fit that it might as well be.

In When I Dream, each player is going to take a turn as the Dreamer and they'll have 2 minutes to guess as many of their "dreams" as possible.
The other players are the clue givers - a twist on the traditional 1 clue giver per team that I love - and they use 1 word clues to help the Dreamer make as many guesses as possible.
But there's another twist. Some of the other players are Fairies, helping the Dreamer guess correctly, while others are Boogeymen, trying to trick the Dreamer!

When I Dream is a great game that keeps everyone involved throughout the entire time you're playing - and even with 10 players you're usually done in about 30 minutes!

Jordan's favorite memory of this game:

This is yet another game where my initially read through of the rules was perhaps a bit rushed... I initially thought that the point of the game was for the Dreamer to figure out who the Boogeymen and Fairies were, while also guessing their Dream cards.
Turns out that is impossible and we had a lot more fun playing after Zach, always ready to re-read the rules and correct me, told us about my mistake and we could all relax and focus on our Dreams :-)

Recommended for anyone who loves:

Family Games - (Catan, Ticket to Ride, etc...)
Party Games - (Telestrations, Code Names, Apples to Apples, etc...)

This game is great for:

Family Game Night
Board Game Night (Friends/Other Gamers)
Holiday Get Togethers
Babysitting or playing with Kids

 

Zach Bird

8. Oceans

What Zach enjoys most about this game:

I love having a bunch of different ways you can evolve your species and the entirely unique ways that the Deep mutations break the game. Stunning art.

Zach's favorite memory of this game:

Skyler had built up his species to be the an apex predator and was wrecking people each time he had a turn to attack. I had been banking my resources so that on the last turn of the game I could play a Deep mutation that let me take control of his species. He still very much won, but it was nice to have a good species instead of mine.

Recommended for anyone who loves:

Deck Building Games - (Dominion, Legendary, Mystic Vale, etc...)
Strategy Games - (Stone Age, Agricola, Terra Mystica, Scythe, etc...)

This game is great for:

Board Game Night (Friends/Other Gamers)
Couples / Game Night with your BFF

7. Kemet

It has so many routes you can take to upgrade your army with each having its own strengths and weaknesses. It feels like an engine builder while ultimately rewarding you for attacking and being in fights. A very good blend while still maintaining balance.

Zach's favorite memory of this game:

Will hyper-leveled his pyramid which allowed him to buy a monster that he went around nuking people with, leading to his victory.

Recommended for anyone who loves:

Territory Control Games - (Risk, Axis & Allies, etc...)
Strategy Games - (Stone Age, Agricola, Terra Mystica, Scythe, etc...)

This game is great for:

Board Game Night (Friends/Other Gamers)

 

Skyler Hanks - Still not done with Top 10 :-(

 

Will Sawyer

8: Lord of the Rings: The Card Game

The most fascinating part of this game is the unique artwork. As a diehard Tolkien fan, I absolutely love seeing new artwork based on the characters and regions of Middle-earth, and this game is no exception. It has absolutely stunning art that is better than an LCG has any right having.

Will's favorite memory of this game:

One thing to note is how particularly difficult this game can be at times. If unprepared, a player can get eliminated from the game at almost any given time during the last few turns of the game. In my favorite game yet, all but one player had been eliminated and was just barely able to beat the enemy on their final turn before they too would have died. Teeth clenching moments are easy to come by with this game!

Recommended for anyone who loves:

Co-Op Games - (Pandemic, Unlock, etc...)

This game is great for:

Board Game Night (Friends/Other Gamers)
Couples / Game Night with your BFF

7: Vast: The Mysterious Manor

I enjoy just how vastly different the playstyle of each character is. It's like learning an entirely new game depending on who you choose, and each option is equally viable as the next. The characters all run on their own system of checks and balances that makes gameplay both difficult and extremely rewarding when played properly.

Will's favorite memory of this game:

I was playing the roll of the Manor, a specter that wields the power to move tiles around and wins by making different formations of the tiles. This allowed me to interact with the other players in a way that let me block them from going to certain tiles, moving them further away from their goal, or even moving them closer to their enemy to help set up their downfall. I also had to keep in mind my goal of making formations, and thus had to use this power very strategically. Vast is full of weird interactions like this that can reward you heavily if using forethought, or punish you for not interacting with the other players and interfering in their affairs.

Recommended for anyone who loves:

Strategy Games - (Stone Age, Agricola, Terra Mystica, Scythe, etc...)

This game is great for:

Board Game Night (Friends/Other Gamers)

 

Joey (Jordan) Wheeler

8 - Unmatched

The number of different characters that you can pit against each other is so cool! I love the fact that you can have King Arthur face off against Bigfoot or Sherlock Holmes fight the Raptors from Jurassic Park. It is also fun how each character's deck feels so unique.

Joey's favorite memory of this game:

I was playing as Dracula with Sherlock Holmes as my partner. We were facing off against Dr. Jekyll and the Invisible Man. I went to make an attack on Dr. Jekyll and played a card that let me discard card from my hand to do extra damage. When Dr. Jekyll didn't have a defense card to play I discarded my whole hand to take him out in one hit! The Invisible Man did not stand much of a chance in a 2 vs. 1 game after that and Sherlock and I cleaned up nicely but it was so much fun to take someone out with one giant hit!

Recommended for anyone who loves:

Strategy Games - (Stone Age, Agricola, Terra Mystica, Scythe, etc...)

This game is great for:

Board Game Night (Friends/Other Gamers)
Couples / Game Night with your BFF

 

7 - Century series (Spice Road specifically)

Engine building! I love building combos of cards and actions that are unique to me each game. I also love having to pivot and change my strategy and combos up based on what action cards and what victory point cards come up. This is what makes me love Spice Road the best because when I choose a card it is part of my personal action choices now that other players can't use, but each of the three games has their own unique charm and it's awesome that you can pair all of them together for more games!

Joey's favorite memory of this game:

I set my combos up so well that I got my fifth victory point card (which triggers the end of the game) before the other players had gotten above three. It was probably a feel bad for those players, but I felt awesome! I love building up a near perfect engine that I can run to get the cubes I need to get that perfect, juicy victory point card I need.

Recommended for anyone who loves:

Family Games - (Catan, Ticket to Ride, etc...)

This game is great for:

Family Game Night
Board Game Night (Friends/Other Gamers)
*Jordan's Note - Brielle and I love Century as a 2 Player Game, so I'll add that as a recommendation here too :-)
Couples / Game Night with your BFF

 

Spencer Martin

#8: We Didn't Playtest This: Legacies

We Didn't Playtest This is one of the most unique games I have ever played. The rules are to win. And to make sure you don't lose (That's seriously in the rules). The legacies version of this game make every subsequent game played an absolute blast! Even though each game only lasts 2-5 minutes, there are loads of random interactions you can have between cards!

Spencer's favorite memory of this game:

I played We Didn't Playtest This: Legacies with a group of friends who had played it before. One aspect of this game is that you occasionally write on the cards, changing what they do. Because they had played with another group before, I got to see how their changes made the version of We Didn't Playtest This: Legacies unique to all others. This is my definition of a party game :-)

Recommended for anyone who loves:

Family Games - (Catan, Ticket to Ride, etc...)
Card Games - (Scum, Dalmuti, Uno, etc...)
Party Games - (Telestrations, Code Names, Apples to Apples, etc...)

This game is great for:

Family Game Night
Board Game Night (Friends/Other Gamers)
Holiday Get Togethers
 

#7 Dune

If you are on of those people who have watched/read/played after the creation of Frank Herbert’s Dune 40 years ago, then this new printing of Dune will take you back! As the leader of one of six factions, you are able to change the script of this timeless universe to suit your needs in your quest for melange. As a fan of the Dune series, this version of the strategy game was especially reminiscent for me. I was able to see how the manipulation of the universe's most valuable resource would change the balance of power!

Spencer's favorite memory of this game:

The universe of Dune is an unforgiving one, and the 2019 version of the board game is no different. Games can last any where from 2-4 hours, so mistakes made early on can haunt you for long after they're made. Fortunately, alliances can be made throughout the game to try and recover lost ground. Once you get the many rules out of the way (befitting for such as expansive universe), you can really start to see the picture the designers are trying to show us. When I first played, I was tempted to blast the soundtrack in the background!

Recommended for anyone who loves:

Strategy Games - (Stone Age, Agricola, Terra Mystica, Scythe, etc...)

This game is great for:

Board Game Night (Friends/Other Gamers)
 

Chris Fajardo

8 - Dice Forge

Ever play a deck builder before? Well, how about a dice builder? This game revolves around these lego-like dice where each face can be popped off and replaced with a new one. Upgrading your dice to roll higher values to afford even more upgrades. It is a fun mechanic in a very solid game.

Chris' favorite memory of this game:

Have you ever enjoyed putting away a game? How often is it that everything doesn't fit back in the box or things are sloppily thrown in to let future you sort it out? Not with Dice Forge. Quite honestly I can say this is my favorite game to pack away. The box has a clever insert that has a spot for literally every piece (and there are a lot of them with this game). Everything magically stacks together in a wonderous tetris that makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.

Recommended for anyone who loves:

Deck Building Games - (Dominion, Legendary, Mystic Vale, etc...)

This game is great for:

Family Game Night
Board Game Night (Friends/Other Gamers)
Holiday Get Togethers

#8: We Didn't Playtest This: Legacies

A quick card game for those who only have a few minutes. The premise is simple, win. You win by not losing. If you have ever played any of the "We Didn't Playtest This" games before then you know how ridiculous this game is. Legacies takes it a step further by adding ownership of cards for even more random effects. If you like a game with a lot of references to bananas, then this one might just be for you.

Chris' favorite memory of this game:

I once won because I was a landed nobel.
However, I have also lost because I was haunted.

Recommended for anyone who loves:

Family Games - (Catan, Ticket to Ride, etc...)
Party Games - (Telestrations, Code Names, Apples to Apples, etc...)

This game is great for:

Family Game Night
Board Game Night
 

 

NOW!
The moment we've been waiting for!!

5 Winners for Day 5 -

Katie Hocklander
Dr1ft3r (Discord)
Jon C
Julie Walton McLaughlin
JClark (Discord)

Congrats!! 
We'll have a $20 Gift Cert with your name on it waiting for you or, if you're staying in for COVID, you can call in and we'll add the credit to your account.

Make sure to visit or call soon - If your gift is unclaimed by Christmas, it'll be "re-gifted" to another winner!

 

Don't forget, you can get extra entries to the giveaway for subscribing to us on Twitch and YouTube! 

 

 

Happy Holidays & Merry Christmas to you all again, we'll see you tomorrow :-)