In 2008 I played over 300 games. You might wonder, “Where does someone find the time for that?” Well, most holidays are dominated by hours of gaming—this past Christmas and New Year’s found me in 30+ gaming sessions. Add in a few pick-up games on the weekend, the occasional weeknight, and the Gathering of Strangers game convention and you’ll have the rest of my plays for the year.

Here are the twenty boardgames I played the most this year. Some are my personal favorite games, some are my family’s favs—regardless, they are the ones that got the most play.

1. Dominion (62 plays)
   Dominion is one of the most hyped games of 2008. I’m usually on the skeptical side of hyped stuff (whether music, movie, or games), but this game lives up to it. I learned this game in person from the publisher/owner of Rio Grande Games, Jay Tummelson, at this year’s “Gathering of Strangers” in SLC. Since playing that black and white, photo-copied prototype, I was anxiously waiting for its release. When it finally came in November, I snatched it up, then held onto it (unopened) until Christmas. In the meantime, I played BrettSpielWelt‘s excellent online version. I logged probably 40-50 of my plays online until Christmas, at which time the real game was in steady rotation with my son, nephews, and mom. I’ll leave a more in-depth review to some future post, but suffice it to say that this is a great game. Go get it.
2. R-Eco (19 plays)
   This one caught my son Nate’s attention one day we were at Game Night Games in SLC. The illustrations on the box and the name weren’t great, and I hadn’t heard of it, but it was cheap and Nate was interested, so we picked it up. Score one for serendipity—this game is a hit with me and my family. I can actually get my wife to play this one. My parents liked it so much I bought a copy for them. The price is right and the game play is simple, fast, and fun—definitely recommended. I’m not surprised to see it in the top twenty of my plays for this year.
3. Agricola (12 plays)
   This is my favorite game. It’s another game that received a ton of hype during the 2007 Spiel gaming convention in Essen, Germany. Nate and I play this once a month. It has a ton of components, so setup time can be a bit lengthy, especially compared to Dominion or other card games. More details on this game will have to wait for another day.
4. Hive (11 plays)
   Another one of my favorites. This game is simple enough to learn that my five-year-old Abbey joined has played. Imagine chess without a board, and you’d be getting pretty close to what Hive is like.
5. Bacchus’ Banquet (10 plays)
   Light, fast bluffing game. Depending upon the character you are, your objective is either: A. Kill Caligula (by dagger or making him overeat); B. Collect the cards your character needs; or, C. Kill three other players (if you’re Caligula).
6. Cloud 9 (9 plays)
   This family “press your luck” game is all about trying to decide when you exit the balloon—stay too long and roll the wrong dice/have the wrong cards, you’ll crash with the balloon and get nothing. Leave at the right time, and you can slowly build up an insurmountable lead towards victory. This game was inexpensive, the components are simple and effective, and the kids like it. Definitely a great family game.
7. Hoity Toity (9 plays)
   Germans are world-renowned game designers and players. This game won the “German Game of the Year” (Spiel des Jahres) a decade or so ago—from the games I’ve played, you can’t go wrong buying any game that has won the coveted game design award. This game definitely proves that true. I’m actually surprised this only got nine plays this year—I expect to play this short, tense bluffing/bidding game more next year.
8. Niagara (9 plays)
   Another Spiel des Jahres winner and family favorite. The components are so fun that my seven-year-old daughter Jasmine often has this out, playing it by herself. At my home, if you can find a game that both the adults and kids enjoy playing, then it will get played a lot. Niagara is such a game.
9. Boomtown (8 plays)
   This bidding/bluffing game is about having the most mines and money at the end of the game. It’s quick, has great bidding tension, and good quality cards. Other than having some illustrations that needed some well-placed stickers, this game is quite good.
10. Felix: The Cat in the Sack (7 plays)
    I’m sensing a trend here—seems most of the games that get played a lot using bidding/bluffing and are fast. Felix is another such game. I’d take Boomtown or For Sale (not on this list) over Felix, but it is a good game nevertheless.
11. Jambo (7 plays)
    Jambo is one of several two-player games orginally published by Kosmos. Two-player games get a lot of play in my home because it’s rare that I can get the three or more players needed for other games. Of the two-player games, I like this game best—it’s wide variety of cards make the game different every time. It’s a great value and fun to play.
12. Kill Doctor Lucky (7 plays)
    Consider this a prequel to Clue—instead of trying to solve the murder, you’re trying to commit it. With everyone else trying to do the same thing, it can get tricky to accomplish your goal. This game is available in a free, black-and-white, printable format on the web, but I’d just pay the $20 to get this version. It’s worth it.
13. Odin’s Ravens (7 plays)
    Another Kosmos two-player game. Nate and I have had a good time playing this quick-paced game. The objective of the game is really simple, but the opportunities to thwart your opponent make it quite challenging.
14. RattleSnake (7 plays)
    Another favorite of my kids. The objective of this game is to place rattlesnake eggs on an adult snake without touching or knocking off previously-laid eggs. Sounds simple, right? Wrong—these “eggs” are the most powerful magnets I’ve ever seen. Placing the eggs is a fun challenge. This game gets used like Niagara—Abbey and Jasmine like to pull it out and just play with the magnets when they can’t get enough people to play it for real.
15. Bohnanza (6 plays)
    If boardgames were taught in school, this would be in the 101 class. I’m sure it wasn’t the first, but Bohnanza is certainly the most popular of the trading/set-collection games, and has been very influential for other game designers. This is a must-have for any collection.
16. Jamaica (6 plays)
    Fundamentally, this is simply a more advanced version of Candyland. There is nothing new about the game play and mechanics—it’s a standard race game. That said, the production-values—from the illustrations to the components to, even, the box itself—are the pinnacle of the games I own. It’s those virtues that make this game a fun family game.
17. To Court the King (6 plays)
    This is Yahtzee, just with the ability to change/influence your dice rolls with cards you acquire through the course of the game. Diana is the reigning queen of To Court the King.
18. Treasures and Traps (6 plays)
    This is Nate’s game, bought and paid for by him. The illustrations and box don’t look like something I would buy, but, fortunately, my son has a knack for gravitating towards really good games. This game plays somewhat like Jambo, but accommodates more players. I think the fantasy theme is what my son found interesting. Like Jambo, the wide variety of cards maximizes replay-ability.
19. The aMAZEing Labyrinth (5 plays)
    Another classic. This game is very simple, but engaging enough for adults. My daughter Abbey loves to play it, and pulls it out often.
20. Last Night on Earth: The Zombie Game (5 plays)
    I won my copy of this game at A Gathering of Strangers this year. It’s a good two-player/two-team game. The game play is dominated by lucky card draws, but it’s fun nevertheless. Nate likes this one quite a bit.

There you have it—my top twenty most-played games for 2008. I’ll dig deeper into a few of the games listed above in future posts, but until then, try a few out. (If you’re in the Utah County or Salt Lake County areas, a great resource for trying-before-buying is Boardgame Revolution. You can rent games there for a week or two, then they’ll credit the cost of the rental towards the purchase of any game.)

Nate: Legos were the theme this year. Nate and I put together his “Harry Potter: Hogwarts Castle” lego set after all the presents were opened. It was quite the intricate, time-consuming, and fun project.

Sami: She got her wish—a Metallic Rose Nintendo DS and a few games. The games were a virtual babysitting and teaching game. Seems like they are both kinda like have a tamagotchi in the form of a DS game. She also enjoyed using the DS “Picto-chat” with Nate (basically IM for DS users—you can also draw pictures).

Jasmine: Dogs, dogs, dogs. She really wants a dog, but, with a baby sister/brother on the way, a wish for a dog is a bit in vain. She did get a few dog-related gifts (a Wii dog game and big dog book), but no real dog. Forecast is months/years of hearing about a Shih Tzu until she finally gets one. Maybe Diana and I will have to reconsider the whole “no dog” thing…

Abbey: Well, hate to say it, but Abbey was introduced to a bit of disappointment with Christmas gifts—she didn’t get want she wanted. She g0t this. Oh, well. She dealt with it okay, all things considered. I told her it was the American Girls’ “Bitty Twins” older sister. She has had fun with her Dora the Explorer TV Adventure Globe.

The Family: We got a bunch of boardgames for Christmas, too—Cash-a-Catch, Dominion, Nefertiti, and Taluva. Of the four, Dominion is destined to be our most-played game of all. It is a fairly quick game and easy-to-learn—a great family game.