Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up this week: We are dumping our cards while getting in the groove in MojoNext up: We revisit the 20th century one playing card at a time in Exhibition: 20th CenturyAnd lastly: Avast! May the cards turn up The Jolly Roger in Skull King



Mojo



Designed by: Antoni GuillenPublished by: The Flying Games & 25th Century Games (2023)Players: 3 – 8Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 30 minutes



To win, you will need to have as few points as possible at the end of the game. To do this, discard your big cards OR prefer to play the small ones. Part with your cards OR keep those of the same suit.



Do you have the Mojo card? Be good or you may regret it!



Mojo is a real party game. The more people there are, the stronger the interaction. It is also fun to try different strategies over the games. Depending on our opponents and our cards, the options are numerous, which makes the game dynamic and different in each game.



Mojo means extreme luck in everything you do. Nature is the source of its energy, and animals are its vectors. May the Mojo be with you!



Exhibition: 20th Century



Designed by: Peter Joustra, Ron van Dalen, Corné van MoorselPublished by: Cwali (2021)Players: 1 – 5Ages: 9 & upPlaying time: 20 – 50 minutes



In Exhibition: 20th Century, players aim to build the best museum exhibition of 20th-century objects. On your turn, you take a card from your vehicle’s current continent, move your vehicle to the card’s continent, refill the empty spot, and then place the card into one of your personal showcases. Cards must be placed according to general rules (ascending years, different continents in most showcases) and showcase-specific requirements to earn Fame Points, with the game ending when no player can place more cards.



Skull King



Designed by: Brent Beck, Jeffrey BeckPublished by: Grandpa Beck’s Games (2013)Players: 2 – 8Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 30 minutes



Skull King is a trick-taking card game where the main objective is to correctly bid the exact number of tricks you will win in each round. Each of the ten rounds begins by dealing one more card than the previous round, after which all players simultaneously bid by revealing the number of tricks they expect to take. Players then compete in tricks using colored suit cards, trump cards (black Jolly Roger), and powerful special cards like Pirates and the Skull King. You score points only if you match your bid exactly, gaining bonus points for capturing high-value or special cards, while over- or underbidding loses you points.

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First: We race our wizards and make our potions in Wandering TowersNext: We try to keep our herds fed, and our enemies at bay in NatureLastly: We call this meeting to order because even criminals must have rules in Organized Crime



Wandering Towers



Designed by: Michael Kiesling, Wolfgang KramerPublished by: ABACUSSPIELE, Capstone Games (2023)Players: 1 – 6Ages: 10 & upPlaying time: 30 minutes



Each year, the graduating classes of the Ravenrealm Magic School compete to demonstrate their mastery of magic. For the final exam, all the wizards of each class must assemble at the legendary Ravenskeep… but every last one of them has procrastinated, distracted by learning new spells. They’ve also used all their potions—they can’t show up unprepared, with empty potion bottles!



Help your wizards get to Ravenskeep as quickly as possible. Using their magic they could even move the very towers atop which they stand to get there more easily! But how can they refill their potion bottles along the way? Well, here’s a little secret: Trapping wizards allows you to capture some of their magical essence in a bottle…



In the board game Wandering Towers, players are wizards racing to get all their wizards into the central “Black Castle” before anyone else. They do this by moving their wizards and the towers on the board. A key mechanic is that wizards can hide inside towers, and when a tower moves, all wizards inside it move with it, leading to a dynamic and ever-changing board state.



Nature



Designed by: Dominic CrapuchettesPublished by: North Star Games (2025)Players: 1 – 4 (up to 6 in deluxe)Ages: 10 & upPlaying time: 30 – 45 minutes



Nature is a redesign of the blockbuster Evolution to be more streamlined, more forgiving, and seamlessly expandable. The secret sauce is a modular system that allows players to create and explore a unique ecosystem each time they play.



Nature is a card-driven tableau-builder played over four rounds. In Nature, players act as naturalists, creating and evolving their own species in a shared ecosystem. The goal is to grow your species’ population, give them beneficial traits, and ensure they get enough food to survive each round. Players can choose to forage for plant-based food from the central “watering hole,” or evolve their species to become predators and hunt other players’ species to gain food. The game features a modular system, allowing players to add various expansion modules like “Flight” or “Jurassic” to create unique ecosystems and experiences.



Organized Crime



Designed by: James KoplowPublished by: Koplow Games (1974)Players: 4 to 2Ages: 14 & upPlaying time: (not listed)



Organized Crime is a negotiation and strategy game where players assume the roles of mob bosses vying for control of a city. The objective is to be the last player standing by eliminating the other bosses. Players move “Hit-Men” around a circular board to build influence through illegal activities, corrupt politicians, and business investments. The game involves a significant amount of negotiation, as players can use cards, money, and promises to strike deals with one another, all while trying to “rub out” the competing mob bosses. 

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up: We travel the world to create beautiful landscapes in Paper WorldNext: We make the perfect garden of insects, flowers, and frogs in PergolaAnd lastly: We unlock the solution using columns and rows in Digit Code



Paper World



Designed by: Alexandre Aguilar, Benoit TurpinPublished by: Lumberjacks Studio (2025)Players: 2 – 4Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 15 minutes



Paper World is a tableau-building card game where players create a 3×3 grid of cards to form a landscape. On your turn, you can either take cards from a central area, taking all cards of the same color or value, or you can place cards from your hand into your landscape. When placing cards, they must be the same color as the card below them and in ascending numerical order. The goal is to collect stars from the cards in your landscape and by completing public objectives to have the most points at the end of the game.



Pergola



Designed by: Michał Gołąb Gołębiowski, Przemek Wojtkowiak Published by: Rebel Studio (2025)Players: 1 – 4Ages: 10 & upPlaying time: 45 – 60 minutes



In Pergola, you get to be a cheerful gardener, ready to bring your dream garden to life! Your mission is to plant a wonderful mix of flowers that will invite all sorts of charming insects to visit. Every decision you make will shape the beauty of your little garden oasis. So, roll up your sleeves and let your creativity bloom as you create a delightful haven in nature!



Pergola is a board game for 1-4 players that is centered around action drafting, tile placement, and set collection. Over the course of 15 turns, players choose a gardening tool from a central board, which grants them resources like plants and insects to place in their own garden. The chosen tool also determines a specific action the player must take, such as moving a frog, a water droplet, or an insect. The goal is to strategically arrange these elements in your garden to create various sets that will earn you points at the end of the game, with the player who has the most points being the winner.



Digit Code



Designed by: Shota HasuikePublished by: Playte (2025)Players: 2 – 5Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 20 minutes



So just for reference, this is how to play the in-person version. On BGA where we played it, the code is set by the computer and we all have the chance to guess



Digit Code is a deduction board game for 2 to 5 players where the goal is to be the first to crack a hidden six-digit code. Each number in the code is represented by a digital clock-style display with seven segments. Players take turns asking a specific set of questions to the person who set the code, which can be about a number’s odd or even status, its value relative to an adjacent number, or whether a specific segment in the display is filled. By using logic to piece together the answers, players narrow down the possibilities until they are confident enough to make a guess, with the first correct guess winning the game.

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up: We think outside the box while putting numbers inside the box in Super Mega Lucky BoxNext up: We explore the ruins of the pyramid and hope we don’t get cursed in LuxorAnd lastly: We play rock-paper-scissors using a colorful deck of cards in NinJan



Super Mega Lucky Box



Designed by: Phil Walker-HardingPublished by: Gamewright (2021)Players: 1 – 6Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 20 minutes



Your goal in Super Mega Lucky Box is to score as many points as possible, and you’ll do that mostly by crossing off the nine numbers printed in a 3×3 grid on the cards in front of you.



Super Mega Lucky Box is a “flip-and-write” game where players compete to score the most points over four rounds. Each turn, a number card is revealed, and all players cross off that number on one of their personal Lucky Box cards. The goal is to complete rows and columns to earn powerful bonuses, trigger combos, and score points by completing cards and collecting stars and moons. The player with the highest total score at the end of four rounds wins.



Luxor



Designed by: Rüdiger DornPublished by: Queen Games (2018)Players: 2 – 4Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 45 minutes



On the hunt for priceless treasures, groups of adventurers explore the legendary temple at Luxor. Their ultimate goal is the tomb of the pharaoh, but many treasures can be collected as they search. As they explore, the challenge unfolds: The player who manages to quickly get their team of adventurers to the tomb, while salvaging as many treasures as possible, will be the winner.



In Luxor, players are adventurers racing to the central tomb chamber of a pyramid. On your turn, you must play either the leftmost or rightmost card from your hand of five to move one of your adventurers. As your adventurers move along the winding path, you collect treasure tiles by landing on them with a certain number of your meeples. The game ends when two adventurers reach the central chamber, at which point players score points based on the treasures they’ve collected and how far their adventurers have progressed.



NinJan



Designed by: 6jizoPublished by: Helvetiq (2024)Players: 2 – 5Ages: 7 & upPlaying time: 15 – 30 minutes



Ninjas bring rocks, scissors, and paper to a fight in Ninjan to help you recruit the strongest ninjas possible.



Ninjan is a quick, rock-paper-scissors card game where players compete to recruit the best ninjas for their team over nine rounds. Each turn, players simultaneously play one card from their hand, with the highest-valued card getting to take a pile of cards from the center of the table if it beats the pile’s top card in a rock-paper-scissors duel. If you can’t win a pile, your card is added to a central pile, adding tension and opportunities for future turns. The goal is to strategically manage your hand of cards to win the most valuable cards by the end of the game.

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up: We flock together like birds of a feather in Oh My Pigeons!Next: We make really big bids and hope it does the trick in Colossal Cat In The BoxAnd lastly: We hop around the board releasing rabbits in our wake in Bunny Boom



Oh My Pigeons!



Designed by: (not listed)Published by: Ravensburger (2024Players: 2 – 5Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 15 minutes



Oh My Pigeons! is a fast-paced, “take-that” party game where players compete to be the first to fill their “bench” with silly little pigeons. On your turn, you play a card and set off one of the following:




* Gaining Pigeons: Take pigeons from the central flock and add them to your bench.



* Stealing Pigeons: Take pigeons directly from other players’ benches.



* Removing Pigeons: Force other players to return pigeons from their benches back to the central flock.



* Swapping Benches: Exchange your entire bench (and its pigeons) with another player.



* Rolling the Die: If you play the “Oh My Pigeons!” card, you roll a special die with various outcomes:



* Gain Pigeons: Take 3 or 5 pigeons from the flock.



* Steal Pigeons: Take 2 or 4 pigeons from other players (you can split them among multiple opponents).



* “Poo” Flick: This is a dexterity element! Place the die near your bench and flick it at an opponent’s bench. Any pigeons knocked off their bench return to the central flock.



* “NON” Card: This is a special card that can be played anytime, even on another player’s turn, to cancel their card action or prevent them from taking pigeons or flicking the die after a roll.



* Draw Cards: At the end of your turn, draw cards until you have 3 cards in your hand again. 




The game immediately ends as soon as any player fills all the spaces on their bench with pigeons. That player is declared the winner.



Colossal Cat In The Box



Designed by: Muneyuki YokouchiPublished by: Bézier Games (2024)Players: 2 – 5Ages: 14 & upPlaying time: 20 – 40 minutes



Cat in the Box is a unique trick-taking card game with a “quantum” twist: your cards don’t have a fixed suit until you play them! Unlike traditional trick-taking games where cards have a set suit (hearts, diamonds, clubs, spades), in Cat in the Box, your cards are “colorless.” Each round is played in two parts: preparation, where you are dealt a hand, discard one card, then place a guess how many tricks you’ll win, and trick taking. When you play a card, you declare its color (red, blue, yellow, or green) and place a token on a central “research board” to mark that specific number/color combination as “observed.” Here’s the catch: You cannot declare a color for a card if that specific number/color combination has already been observed on the research board by any player. This is where the “paradox” comes in. If you’re forced to play a card but cannot legally declare a color for it (because all options for that number are taken), you’ve caused a paradox, and the round ends immediately. You can score points in multiple ways, as you score points for the number of tricks won, if your guess during preparation was correct, and if you’ve created a “run” of tokens on the research b...

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up this week: We slice and dice so the recipes come out nice in Diced VeggiesNext up:  We create rings of humongous fungus among us in Gnome HollowAnd lastly: We share our deepest thoughts one card at a time in The Ungame



Diced Veggies



Designed by: Josh Cappel, Jory Cappel, Rowan CappelPublished by: KTBG (2023)Players: 2 – 4Ages: 6 & upPlaying time: 30 minutes



In Diced Veggies, players take on the role of chefs, using a unique cleaver tool to “cut” groups of vegetable dice from a central block, adhering to specific cutting rules (like a maximum total pip value of 10). With their collected dice, players then attempt to “cook” recipes by matching the required ingredients and can further enhance their score by playing “Hype” cards or using a Chef token to modify a die. The game continues with players cutting, cooking, and drawing new cards until one player has completed a set number of recipes, after which final scores are tallied to determine the winner.



A clever cleaver is all you need to whip up delicious recipes in this dice-slicing game for up to four chefs!



Gnome Hollow



Designed by: Ammon AndersonPublished by: The Op GamesPlayers: 2 – 4Ages: 12 & upPlaying time: 45+ minutes



In Gnome Hollow, players take turns placing hexagonal tiles to expand a shared garden, aiming to complete “mushroom rings” of various sizes. Completing a ring grants mushrooms and allows players to unlock bonuses on their personal player boards. After placing tiles, players move one of their gnomes to perform an action, such as collecting flowers, activating signposts for special effects, or selling collected mushrooms for valuable treasures. The game ends when a certain number of flowers are collected, ring markers are used, or the tile bag runs out, with the player having the most points from treasures, unique flowers, and moved ring markers winning. 



Gnome Hollow is a spatial, tile-placement, worker-placement game in which you grow a tabletop garden of mushrooms and flowers. Every piece is a hand-painted watercolor that captures the whimsical feel of gnomes and nature. Turns are deceptively simple: Players place tiles into the garden, and move a gnome to take a single action on their turn. Come to Gnome Hollow and experience a peaceful garden, the thrill of competing to harvest buckets of mushrooms, and the reward of gathering in all your shiny treasures!



The Ungame: Christian Version



Designed by: Rhea ZakichPublished by: The Ungame Co. (1975)Players: 2 – 6Ages: (not listed)Playing time: Suggested 60+ minutes



This is a Christian version of the original Ungame. This set has cards that are specifically oriented to the self-expression of faith and beliefs centered around Christianity. There are two decks in the game and in this set there are over 140 topics that are covered.



The first deck contains lighthearted topics that are great for casual get-togethers. The second deck contains more serious topics and should be used after a group has become familiar with sharing through the first deck.



The Ungame is a non-competitive board game designed to foster communication and understanding. Players move around a loop-shaped board by rolling a die, landing on spaces that instruct them to draw a card. These cards prompt players to answer personal questions, share thoughts, or make comments,

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up: We press our luck with every new card dealt in Flip 7Next: We spell out names five letters at a time in HookyAnd lastly: We get nice and limber as we yell out “timber” in Logger



Flip 7



Designed by: Eric OlsenPublished by: The Op Games (2024)Players: 3 & upAges: 8 & upPlaying time: 20 minutes



Flip over cards one by one without flipping the same number twice.



Sounds easy? Think again! This isn’t just any deck of cards… In Flip 7 there’s only one 1 card, two 2’s, three 3’s, all the way up to twelve 12’s and even a zero! plus a bunch of special cards that can score you extra points, cards that give you a second chance if you flip a card that would bust you, a card to stop everything and flip three on yourself or an opponent, or freeze you or your opponents in your tracks.



Are you the type of player to play it safe and bank points before you bust, or are you going to risk it all and go for the bonus points by flipping over seven numeric cards without busting? Press your luck meets strategy in this addictive card game that’s sure to be the greatest card game you’ve ever played!



Hooky



Designed by: James Miller and Friends of AseemaPublished by: Rio Grande Games (2023)Players: 3 – 5Ages: 14 & upPlaying time: 45 – 60 minutes



Did you hear that bell? School is in! Take a look around though, and you’ll see some empty seats. Uh oh! Of the 26 children who should be in class today, three students are off playing hooky. It’s your job as the homeroom teacher to figure out who’s missing as students straggle in from the playground. 



In Hooky, each letter of the alphabet is represented by one student. Every player receives an opening hand of letters, with three returned to the box- the students playing hooky- and three set aside to be revealed after rounds one, two, and three- the students coming in late. Players start the game by creating a five-letter word using at least one of the letters in their hand and telling the other players how many of their secret letters are in that word, but not which letters. Over the course of five rounds, players similarly quiz each other asking about five letter words and keeping track of the amount of secret letters contained in those words.



Players not only gain points by guessing which letters are playing hooky, but you can gain points if you correctly guess the letters in other players’ hands as well! Will you play it safe and try to deduce letters one by one, or will you shoot for the moon and hope your guesses are lucky? Let the search begin!



Logger



Designed by: Erik DresnerPublished by: Unpublished / Loony Labs (2008)Players: 2 – 4Ages: (not listed)Playing time: 20 – 30 minutes



Four rival lumberjacks are competing to chop down the most trees for their business. However, standing in their way are tree-hugging hippies protesting the deforestation.



Logger is a game played with Looney Labs pyramids, some meeples, and a 6×6 grid. While that sounds simple enough, there’s more to this game than looks! Players move orthogonally around the board, planting seedlings and growing trees as they move adjacent to those spaces. Once a space has a fully grown tree, a player can chop down that tree as well as any other fully grown trees in that line. Watch out though, as players can place protesters into trees to keep ...

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up: We take on the house in a cooperative game of poker in The GangNext:  We explore the depths of the ocean in search of aquatic glory in Endeavor: Deep SeaAnd lastly: We drive our way through an automobile-unfriendly world in Beat Detroit



The Gang



Designed by: John Cooper, Kory HeathPublished by: KOSMOS (2024)Players: 3 – 6Ages: 10 & upPlaying time: 20 minutes



In The Gang, a co-operative version of Texas Hold’em, players bet on how good they think their hand of cards will be relative to the other players, then try to make their predictions a reality.



Early in a round, without talking to each other, each player chooses one of four chips indicating how strong they think their hand is. Then they begin dealing cards into the middle of the table and have a chance to reassess their hands as more cards are revealed. At the end of the round, players see whether they correctly evaluated their hand. If all players did, you get to open one of the bank vaults! If not, you trip the alarm! If you manage to open three vaults before you trip the alarm three times, your gang wins!



Shuffle up and deal! And keep yer yaps shut!



Endeavor: Deep Sea



Designed by: Carl de Visser, Jarratt GrayPublished by: Burnt Island Games, Grand Gamers Guild (2024)Players: 1 – 4Ages: 10 & upPlaying time: 60 – 120 minutes



Endeavor: Deep Sea, is a worker placement and area discovery game where you head an independent research institute with the goal of developing sustainable projects and preserving the fragile balance of marine life. Throughout the game, you’ll recruit field experts and use their abilities to explore new locations, research dive sites, publish critical ecological papers, and launch conservation efforts.



Played over six rounds, each explorer will improve four tracks—Reputation, Inspiration, Coordination, and Ingenuity—to recruit specialists and gain actions and resources.



In each round, hire a new specialist, generate effort discs (based on Inspiration), and reclaim discs from specialists per your Coordination level.



Workers are placed both on specialists to activate them and on ocean-zone action spaces (like Dive, Journal, Explore, or Conserve), where discs often remain to mark progress 



Your sub’s movement and number of subs depend on your Ingenuity track, while deeper or longer expeditions yield greater rewards 



Discovering zones involves sonar-based exploration where you reveal and choose which ocean tiles to place—each new area unlocking opportunities and bonuses 



At game end, players score points based on their specialist abilities, filled ocean spaces, and advancement on the four tracks, adjusted by scenario-specific goals on the impact board.



To sum it up … to reach the heights of your career is a race to the bottom



Beat Detroit



Designed by: Jay Moriarty, Leo PosillicoPublished by: Antler Productions / Dynamic Design Industries (1972)Players: 2 – 6Ages: (not listed)Playing time: (not listed)



In Beat Detroit, players roll the dice and move around the board hoping to drive their car 50,000 miles (five times around the track) while paying for service, insurance, theft and other problems that plague car owners. The first player to make it to the end without running out of money is the winner.

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up: We mind our P’s and Q’s … well mostly our Peas in Easy PeasyNext: We cut the blue wire … no wait, the green wire, or was it the red wire in Bomb BustersAnd lastly: We go off the rails on a crazy train, and we go loco on our locomotive in Rollecate



Easy Peasy



Designed by: Thomas Favrelière, Alex Fortineau, Simon MoulardPublished by: BLAM ! (2025)Players: 2 – 6Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 15 minutes



Easy Peasy is a card game where the objective is to get rid of your cards and end the round when you think you have the lowest score



Each player starts with a hand of numbered cards along with a row of cards in front of them. In all, there cards are numbered 1-10 and there are 6 colored suits. In the center lies 2 discard piles, along with a third pile of cards denting the direction, either up or down.



On your turn, play your cards on one of the 2 discard piles, respecting the direction set by the Up&Down card: either go up in value, or go down. If the card you play matches the color on the discard pile, take a bonus action and discard another card if you can. Don’t hesitate to change this direction to gain an advantage and slow down your opponents!



Try to get rid of all the cards in your hand to end the round and score as few points as possible! At the end of a round, all players will count their total sum value of cards in their hand, and they will also separately count the sum value of the cards in their row. Take the lower value of the two, and compare scores. After 3 rounds, the player with the lowest total score wins the game. Easy Peasy lemon squeezy.



Bomb Busters



Designed by: Hisashi HayashiPublished by: Pegasus Spiele & Cocktail Games (2024)Players: 2 – 5Ages: 14 & upPlaying time: 30 minutes



There is a bomb full of wires and the countdown has started, who are you gonna call? YOU! To clear the bomb, you need to collaborate with your team of bomb disposal experts! Using the wires on the tile holder in front of you, try and figure out your teammates’ wires. Find and cut identical wires, but watch out, if you cut a red wire: BOOM! Use your equipment wisely to meet the varied challenges which get harder and harder. Tick tock tick tock… Will you figure it out before it’s too late?



In Bomb Busters, there is a set of 48 normal wire cards numbered 1-12 (4 of each value) with some yellow and red wire cards. These are dealt out. Each mission is different, but your goal is always the same: go through all 12 numbers without blowing up!



Players place the tiles on their stands and then take turns pointing at each others’ wires and guessing their values. If the guess is correct, the wires are cut. If not — the detonator advances! If you manage to cut all wires without blowing up — good job, the mission is completed! But if the bomb goes off – Try again!



Rollecate



Designed by: Michiel de WitPublished by: Gam’inBIZ & H.O.T. Games (2019)Players: 1 – 4Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 10 – 15 minutes



Rollecate is a tile laying game, based on a historic steam locomotive, built in 1967 by a famous Dutch engineer. It’s been sitting in storage for the past five years and is eager to get rolling again — and the players of this game will make that happen!



The players are going to build new tracks for Rollecate to ride on.

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up: We make a bee-line, with felines, up the treelines in Cat CaféNext:  We look for the humongous fungus among us in UndergroveAnd lastly: We get silly on the lily as we hop around willy-nilly in Splash Down



Cat Café



Designed by: Lee Ju-Hwa, Giung KimPublished by: Alley Cat Games (2019)Players: 2 – 4Ages: 10 & upPlaying time: 30 minutes



Cat Café is a roll and write game. Players each occupy a corner of a cat café, and they are vying to make their corner the best. Players are going to fill their cat towers with toys, food, little houses and comfy places to rest.



Roll the dice. There will be one more dice than there are players. Players each draft one die, then everyone makes use of the final unused die as well.



Entice cats by literally drawing toys for the cats to play with. Place the toys in the most favorable way possible, and you win by attracting the most cats!



Each player’s two dice are used to 1) Draw a particular type of cat toy and 2) Place it on that level of a particular tower.



Placing each toy in a particular position is important as it gives a player points in specific ways. Place a bowl next to different and unique other toys, or place a cushion high up so that cats can sleep and watch from high up, or even give the cats yarn to play with, giving you potential majority scoring.



Undergrove



Designed by: Elizabeth Hargrave, Mark WoottonPublished by: Alderac Entertainment Group (2024)Players: 1 – 4Ages: 10 & upPlaying time: 60 – 90 minutes



In Undergrove, you are a towering evergreen with an ancient symbiotic connection to the fungi in your forest. As new mushrooms appear, your options expand for converting nutrients and helping your seedlings. Using cube conversion, tile placement, area control, and a tiny bit of engine building, you’ll need to claim the most advantageous locations and optimize your actions to leave the best legacy in the forest. The player with the greatest number of successful seedlings, wins!



● Build a shared forest containing mushrooms with diverse abilities.● Trade with the mushrooms to get resources based on the partnerships you’ve made.● Place your seedings in the most advantageous positions to score the most points.



Inspired by real mycorrhizal trading networks. Shape the destiny of your forest with every decision!



Splash Down



Designed by: Joseph WebPublished by: J&J Games (2022)Players: 2 – 6Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 5 – 30 minutes



Splash Down is a push your luck head to head game. Players control frogs that have to race across lily pads to get flies. This isn’t as safe as it sounds, as sometimes the pads break! Even worse, your fellow players can push you in on purpose to make you lose lives! In this push your luck game you have to put everything on the line. It’s not just about surviving, you also have to get the most flies safely back home. Are you up to the challenge?

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up: We light up the city sky with colorful fireworks in FestivalNext: We’re planners of the future competing to build the most impressive city in NEOMAnd lastly: We go for maximum bling in our collection of finery in The Great Split



Festival



Designed by: Grégory GrardPublished by: Scorpion Masqué (2024)Players: 2 – 4Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 20 minutes



In Festival, you select tiles to place on your tableau to create the most impressive and beautiful fireworks display possible…and of course, score the most points! You have two stacks of tiles in front of you, with each neighboring player having access to the stack closest to them; tiles come in four colors and four firework designs. Four stacks of objective cards are in the middle of the table, along with four crowd-pleaser tiles.



On a turn, take a tile from the top of either stack and place it in the 3×3 grid on your board, whether on the ground level or on an existing stack. Alternatively, you can take an objective card from the top of its stack and place it to the left of your board. To end your turn, see whether you’ve satisfied any of your objectives or the crowd-pleasers that are available to everyone. Move each completed objective to the right of your board.



Whenever a player has completed six objectives or a stack of firework tiles has run out, the game concludes at the end of the round. In addition to scoring completed objectives and claimed crowd-pleasers, you have a target color and firework type depicted on your board. Each tile of this color or type at the top of a stack on your board is worth as many points as the number of tiles in that stack. If a tile matches both color and type, you score it twice. Time to light up the sky with our review!



NEOM



Designed by: Paul SottosantiPublished by: Lookout Games (2018)Players: 1 – 5Ages: 10 & upPlaying time: 45 minutes



NEOM is a drafting and tile placement city-building game. Players compete to build the most impressive city utilizing a tree of 17 different goods (from three different tiers) that can each be unlocked, allowing the placement of increasingly powerful tiles as the game progresses. Tiles also feature roads which must be connected without being rotated.



At the start of each game, players draft cornerstones — powerful, unique tiles that heavily change what is most valuable from game to game. Then there will be three generations of tiles, each generation yields more productive tiles. Types of tiles are color coded, and type of tile has its own set of scoring rules. There are residential, industrial, commercial, public, and resource tiles to choose from. There are also disaster tiles that you can unleash on your opponents.



You’ll need goods to help build your future city, run your roads to the edges of your tableau to have access to your opponent’s resources. 



The game ends after 3rd Generation, with lots of ways to score points, most points of course wins and becomes the future ruler of this city of the future.



The Great Split



Designed by: Hjalmar Hach, Lorenzo SilvaPublished by: Horrible Guild (2022)Players: 2 – 7Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 45 minutes



In The Great Split, you draft cards to collect riches such as gems, gold, artwork, and tomes, adding them to your collection to make it the most prestigious of all!

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up: We travel forward in time so we can shop in a mall from the 1990’s in Superstore 3000Next: We build pyramids to honor the gods, one block at a time in ImhotepAnd lastly: We find out just how high numbers can be stacked in NMBR 9



Superstore 3000



Designed by: Rodrigo RegoPublished by: Space Cowboys (2024)Players: 2 – 4Ages: 10 & upPlaying time: 30 – 45 minutes



Superstore 3000 is a tile placement game in which players are designing a retro-futuristic mall in the year 2964. The object of the game is to build the tallest and most incredible mall to satisfy as many customers as possible.



Each player builds their own mall by placing shop tiles and being the first to meet the criteria to collect the unique attraction tiles that will make your building even more exceptional.



In turn, players are going to purchase stores, entrances, and other components that comprise a shopping mall. They are going to build it piece by piece, in order to satisfy customer wants and desires and they come through the entrance of the mall. For example, your main entrance has three customers to start. One might be looking to shop, the other wants a haircut, and the third customer wants some books. Well, you will want to try and satisfy these customers by building a shopping store, a barber shop, and a bookstore.



Make sure you build these shops within three spaces of that entrance, because that is as far as a customer is willing to walk. The more satisfied customers, the more victory points. There are also VP’s for certain set collections, and bonuses for unleashing specialty stores and attractions. All players will buy their main stores from the market for 0, 1, 2 or 3 dollars.



Try to have the most of the same type of store in order to earn the most VP’s. Earn bonus VP’s along the way. and as always, the most VP’s wins the game, and receives an oversized set of novelty scissors to cut the ribbon at the opening of their award-winning Superstore.



Imhotep



Designed by: Phil Walker-HardingPublished by: KOSMOS (2016)Players: 2 – 4Ages: 10 & upPlaying time: 40 minutes



Imhotep is a worker placement game where the players become builders in Egypt who want to emulate the first and best-known architect there, namely Imhotep.



Over six rounds, they move stones (represented by wooden cubes) by boat to create five seminal monuments. On a turn, a player chooses one of four actions: Procure new stones, load stones on a boat, bring a boat to a monument, or play an action card. 



There are several boats on which to load your stones, and the order in which stones are loaded are important. When a boat is either mostly filled (meaning all spots taken except for one) or if all the spaces are filled, a player can then choose to sail the boat to a port of their choosing.  There are 5 ports to choose from – Market, Pyramid, Temple, Burial Chamber, and the Obelisk – each port scores points differently.  



While this sounds easy, naturally the other players constantly thwart your building plans by carrying out plans of their own. Only those with the best timing — and the stones to back up their plans — will prove to be Egypt’s best builder.



NMBR 9



Designed by: Peter WichmannPublished by: Abacus Spiele (2017)Players: 1 – 4Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 20 minutes

Welcome our Annual Firsties Award Show. It is a look back at board gaming in 2024, where we review our reviews, thereby awarding some very special board games with the accolades they most certainly earned.



Best Strategy Game – This Award goes to the game that keeps you up late at night, wondering what strategy you’ll try next!Nominations: Amun-Re (20th Anniversary), Blueprints of Mad King Ludwig, Foundations of Rome, High Season: Grand Hotel Roll and Write, The Shipwreck ArcanaWINNER: Amun-Re (20th Anniversary)



Best Themed game – This award goes to the game whos theme was best executed throughout it’s art, narrative flavor, components and mechanics.Nominations: Bristol 1350, Crossbows and Catapults, Flutter, Inori, MLEM: Space Agency, The Fox ExperimentWINNER: The Fox Experiment



Best Archeological Find – This prestigious award goes to an oldie but goodie, a throwback to the 20th century, played by our parents, and still enjoyable today.Nominations: Billabong, Junior Executive, Metro, RageWINNER: Metro



Best Online Game – This award goes to the game that translated best, and was even improved from its physical counterpart.Nominations: Challengers!, Hydroracers, The Mother Road: Route 66, Time MastersWINNER: Challengers!



Firstie Worstie – This “award” goes to the game simply has no good reason to keep playing with the best move being to bury deep in the ground.Nominations: 24 Game, Con Sonar!, Goats Day Out, Junior Executive, The Lunar Dial, VaultWINNER: Junior Executive



Game of the Year – This is the award for a game that was made widely available in 2024. It is a game that we found the most memorable, engaging, and well reviewed by all of us.Nominations: Amun-Re (20th Anniverary), Blueprints of Mad King Ludwig, Crossbows and Catapults, Foundations of Rome, The Fox ExperimentWINNER: Foundations of Rome



And that brings us to the end of the Sixth Annual Firsties Awards Podcast. Thank you to all our listeners for another great year of dice rolling and card dealing, board gazing and meeple moving. Onward to 2025, and Happy Gaming Explorers!

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up: We use a cast of strange creatures to capture trophies in Challengers! Next: We roll the dice and hit the gas in Rallyman: DIRTAnd lastly: We travel to Mallorca for a succulent harvest in Finca



Challengers!



Designed by: Johannes Krenner, Markus SlawitscheckPublished by: 1 More Time Games (2022)Players: 1 – 8Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 45 minutes



Challengers! is a deck-management game where characters and creatures yield abilities and powers to help you grab trophies in hope of getting to the grand finale.



The game is played over 7 challenge rounds, and then the final two players with the most trophy points square off head to head in the final victory round. All players’ starting cards are the same, but that changes quickly, because each round, you will pick new cards to add to your deck, while strategically removing cards and thinning your deck along the way.



All players play simultaneously in a series of head to head competitions. Play your deck, one card at a time. Each card has a number. Back and forth, players will play enough cards until they have an equal sum or higher than their opponent. Bested cards are retired to a “bench”, where there are 6 bench spots. Each bench spot can hold one type of card. If your bench fills up and can not handle any more bested cards, you lose the round. You also lose the round if you run out of cards to play without beating your opponent.



Try to get the most trophies over the course of seven rounds to be able to qualify for the final. If you can best your opponent in the final, you win Challengers!



Rallyman: DIRT



Designed by: Jean-Christophe BouvierPublished by: Synapses Games (2022Players: 1 – 6Ages: 14 & upPlaying time: 45 – 60 minutes



Rallyman: DIRT is a roll and move racing game, so to move around the track, you’ll be rolling dice! Each player will have a mixture of Gear, Brake and Coast dice at their disposal to get their car speeding along the track. Each die can only be rolled once per turn. Each die has a certain number of Warning symbols. If you get 3 in one roll, you’ll lose control of your car, increasing your time and potentially damaging your vehicle!



Rallyman: DIRT is all about you and the track – planning the perfect trajectory is the key to success! You’ll have to adjust your driving technique to tackle the challenges of each stage, from sharp corners to open water, obstacles and bumps.



The player who crosses the finish line with the lowest time is the winner, rally you are!



Finca



Designed by: Wolfgang Sentker, Ralf zur LindePublished by: Pandasaurus Games (2024), Originally published in 2009Players: 2 – 5Ages: 10 & upPlaying time: 45 minutes



Finca is a worker placement and resource management game, which takes place on Mallorca, Island of the Wind. A place of golden beaches and a light-blue sea. The almond harvest is at hand, in addition, juicy oranges, lemons, and figs are ready to be picked and taken to the market. Gather as many of Mallorca’s resources as possible and deliver them to the island’s communities. 



Each player controls a set number of farmers on the resource wheel. Take one of two actions: move a farmer, or, make a delivery of goods. Move a farmer by moving them the number of spaces equal to the...

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up: We find out just how many Vikings can duke it out at once in OdinNext: We go for a stroll, then duck for cover in RefugeAnd lastly: We dart through the rain of the busy city streets in Umbrella



Odin



Designed by: Yohan Goh, Hope S. Hwang, Gary KimPublished by: Helvetiq (2024)Players: 2 – 6Ages: 7 & upPlaying time: 15 minutes



In Odin, you want to empty your hand as quickly as possible, sending all your Vikings out into the world. The game lasts several hands, with each hand consisting of one or more rounds. The deck contains cards in six suits, each numbered 1-9, and each player starts with a hand of nine cards.



The lead player for the hand lays a single card on the table. The next player either passes (but can play on a future turn) or plays the same number of cards (or one more than that number) with a higher value. When you play two or more cards, the cards must be the same number or color, and the value of these cards is created by placing their digits in order from high to low. For example, if you play a blue 3 and blue 6, their value is 63, not 36. When you play and are not the lead, you must take one of the cards from the previous play into your hand, then discard the rest.



Play continues around the table until either a player is out of cards, which ends the round immediately, or all players have passed in succession. In the latter case, discard the cards last played; whoever played these cards lays a single card to start a new round. Alternatively, if the lead player has cards in hand of a single suit or number, they play all of these cards at once to end the hand. When a hand ends, each player scores 1 point for each card they still hold.



If no player has at least 15 points, shuffle the deck and start a new hand. If someone does have 15 or more points, whoever has the fewest points wins.



Refuge



Designed by: Gérald CattiauxPublished by: Bombyx (2024)Players: 2 – 4Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 30 – 45 minutes



Refuge is a press your luck tile placement game, where each player is going for a leisurely stroll outdoors in perfect weather. Until the weather turns, and you need to get home before the storm hits.



The goal of Refuge is to create a path by both drawing tiles from your bag and adding useful tiles to your bag to draw later. Your walk is made up of tiles drawn from your bag and placed in front of you. 



Players conduct five (5) walks during the game. Each walk consists of a variable number of turns. On each turn, players draw tiles from their bag to add to their path until they choose to go home, ending their walk, or encounter a storm. At the end of the fifth walk, the player with the most victory points is the winner.



If a player returns to the refuge, any remaining players continue playing until the walk is ended for all players. When returning to the refuge, tiles are scored according to the number of animals on them. If a player returns to the refuge, they may permanently discard one of their played tiles from the game. All other tiles are returned to their bag after returning to the refuge.



If a player is caught by the storm before returning to the refuge, they receive no points for animals on their tiles, and they must pay one step per tile in their path. If they have insufficient steps, they lose 1 victory point for each step they are short, to a minimum of zero. They then return all tiles to their bag.

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up: We let our spirits soar, and gain colorful favors in InoriNext: We help sleepwalkers awaken to a world of dreams in RoamAnd lastly: We roll dice, crack open safes, and make off with the loot in Vault 



Inori



Designed by: Mathieu Aubert, Théo RivièrePublished by: Space Cowboys (2024)Players: 2 – 4Ages: 10 & upPlaying time: 40 minutes



Inori is a worker placement game, where a sacred tree grows in a beautiful valley, yielding favor tokens ready to be collected by elemental spirits.



The game is played over 4 seasons (4 rounds). Each round, players on their turn place their workers onto spirit cards – each card having three spaces that yield favor tokens. Workers can also be placed onto various spaces of the sacred tree as well. Place your workers on the tree to activate abilities, earn points, or obtain more favor tokens.



At the end of a season, a spirit card with all spaces occupied gains bonus points and is replaced, creating new opportunities. At the end of the game, offerings for the Great Tree give points according to their color for players having the most favors of each color. The player with the most VP’s becomes the Keeper of the Great Tree at the end of the year, which requires watering every other day.



Roam



Designed by: Ryan LaukatPublished by: Red Raven Games (2019)Players: 2 – 4Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 40 minutes



ROAM is an area control euro game, where a fantasy world is overcome by a great sleeping sickness, sending every type of creature to roam for hundreds of miles in a dazed, incoherent march. It’s your job to seek them out and wake them from their sleepwalk, recruiting them to help you find even more lost souls!



Each player starts with 3 basic adventurer cards. These 3 cards each depict a pattern of cubes. Activate that card, and place that pattern of cubes onto the board.  The board consists of adventurer cards, face down. On the back of adventurer cards are 9 spaces (3×3 grid).  So 6 cards all faced down created a board that forms a 6 by 9 grid. These are where the cubes get placed.



When a card has all 9 spaces filled, the player with the most spaces on that card gets to wake up that adventurer, and collects the card. Now that adventurer is awake, and has their own special cube pattern, which you can now use to further explore the board.  As adventure cards are collected, new ones are placed to fill the spots.  



When searching, you also claim coins, which can be spent to use special actions or purchase artifacts with useful powers. When one player has ten adventurers in their party, the game ends, and the player with the most points wins  – and your prize is a trip to beautiful ROME … New York: 



Vault: A Solitaire Dice Game



Designed by: Wayne D KoenigPublished by: self-published (2021)Players: 1Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 10 – 20 minutes



Vault is a 15 minute solitaire game that you can play with 5 dice, a pencil, and game sheet.



In this game, you play as a bank robber who is trying to crack a specialized vault. Through the rolling of dice, and careful planning, you hope to get out with as many gemstones as you can before all the locks on the vault close. Some locks contain more gemstones than others, so it is up to you to decide where to spend your time. Are you the next Pink Panther?

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up: We sharpen our pencils to fluff pillows, await guests in High Season: Grand Hotel Roll & WriteNext: We gather Materia and feed our familiars to become masters of magic in SpellBookAnd lastly: We’re fancy French rail barons trading our way to the top in Paris Connection



High Season: Grand Hotel Roll & Write



Designed by: Virginio Gigli, Ryan Hendrickson, Simone LucianiPublished by: Lookout Games (2023)Players: 2 – 4Ages: 12 & upPlaying time: ~ 45 minutes



In High Season: Grand Hotel Roll & Write, you prepare rooms, accommodate guests, make personnel decisions, and court the favor of the emperor, all while managing your money and trying to avoid loans.



Each player has a hotel board and staff board. At the start of a round, roll dice based on the number of players, then place them on the six spaces (numbered 1-6) on the action board. On a turn, draft one of the dice, then use the associated according to its strength, which is based on the number of dice on that space when you remove it. The actions allow you to:



Prepare as many rooms for guests as the strength of the action, paying the cost for each. Occupy a prepared room by paying the cost minus the action’s strength; gain the depicted one-time bonus when doing so. Advance on the emperor track equal to the action’s strength; gain the listed bonuses as you reach them, with a point bonus for reaching the end of the track first. Earn Krone, the game’s currency, equal to the action’s strength. Hire a staff member on your board, paying their cost minus the action’s strength. Two staff members give you a permanent bonus, two grant a one-time effect, and two provide bonus points during scoring.



If you are the first player to occupy one of the eight rows or seven columns, you earn bonus points that are unavailable to anyone else who occupies this row or column later. When you occupy all the rooms in a contiguous color group on your board, you gain an immediate bonus of points (for a blue group), krone (red), or steps on the emperor’s track (yellow).



The bonuses and effects of the staff differ on each board, so you need to figure out how to take advantage of the opportunities available through them in combination with your particular arrangement of hotel rooms and the dice available each round.



After seven rounds, players tally their points – don’t forget to subtract points for debt – the winner is the player with the most points, and win the High Season, while all other players must answer the emperor for committing high treason.



SpellBook



Designed by: Phil Walker-HardingPublished by: Space Cowboys (2023)Players: 1 – 4Ages: 12 & upPlaying time: ~ 45 minutes



Spellbook is a set collection and engine-building game, where players are each trying to become the greatest wizard of the Annual Grand Rite. Players are gathering bits of raw magic, called Materia, to feed their pet familiars and to learn spells. 



Each player starts with 7 blank spell books – all players will play with the same 7 books, and will learn the same sets of spells. Each book has its own color: red,  purple, green, black, white, blue, and yellow.  The Materia players are gathering also come in these 7 colors.



From a community set of Materia, players will either collect Materia by drawing from the ...

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up: We we plant flowers for the king, or become mulch ourselves in GardenersNext: We hurl devastating weapons and deadly insults as the walls come tumbling down in Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress WarAnd lastly: We turn to the stars to find the right cards in The Lunar Dial



Gardeners



Designed by: Kasper LappPublished by: Sit Down! (2023)Players: 1 – 4Ages: 10 & upPlaying time: 15 minutes



Gardeners is a simultaneous cooperative game played silently and in real time.



In less than 15 minutes, players must succeed in arranging as many gardens as possible, always composed of the same 36 tiles, but responding to different rules from one round to another.



Everyone must deduce the rules in force by observing where the tiles are placed and from where some are removed.



A game of Gardeners is made up of an indefinite number of rounds. Each is broken down into 5 phases, as follows:




* Draw a Constraint card



* Start the sandtimer



* Arrange the garden



* Check the garden



* Prepare for the next round




During the game, players cannot communicate in any way about what to do or not to do to make the garden. Sounds easy right? We shall see!



Will you satisfy the King’s whimsical desires?  Or will your head end up on display somewhere to motivate the new gardeners?



Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress War



Designed by: Stephen Baker, Noah Cohen, Rob Daviau, Justin D. Jacobson, Brian NeffPublished by: Restoration Games (2024)Players: 2Ages: 10 & upPlaying time: 20 – 30 minutes



Crossbows & Catapults: Fortress War is a restoration of Crossbows and Catapults, the 1983 classic game of kinetic warfare. Each player builds their castle, then players take turns using their weapons to fire discs at their opponent’s castle, trying to knock over their warrior figures.



Setup by building a fortress made of wall components at least 2 rows high, and place your dwarves or orcs warriors to the sides of the fortress or behind its mighty walls. The playing field is divided in half, with flag markers representing boundaries. 



On your turn, play one of your cards from your hand. These cards do things like introduce more troops on your side, or give you extra attacks or special moves. Then take two standard actions, such as moving one of your troops, or firing one of your weapons.



Your choices of weapon are – crossbow or catapult. You physically fire the weapon at your opponents troops or at their fortress. Any pieces of the fortress that get knocked down are removed from the battlefield. Any troops knocked over must also be taken off the field.



The winner is the player (or team) who has the last warrior standing.



The Lunar Dial



Designed by: Keith Baker, Jennifer EllisPublished by: Goliath Games (2023)Players: 2 – 4Ages: 14 & upPlaying time: 20 – 40 minutes



The Lunar Dial is an abstract strategy game. Players are dealt a hand of cards from a 52 card deck. On the main table is the zodiac board, and on that board is a big circle where 12 cards from the deck are placed face up.

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up: We invent definitions one random word at a time in HaiclueNext: We’re ace pilots in gambling our way to the finish line in Hydroracers: The Schneider Trophy EpicAnd lastly: We send our servants in first as we hunt for ancient treasure in Crypt



Haiclue



Designed by: Will LeafPublished by: Tiger Board Games (2019)Players: 2 – 12Ages: 14 & upPlaying time: 30 minutes



In Haiclue, players combine random word tiles to make clues.



Each round, every player uses 15 random word tiles to make a clue for one of the four words in the center of the table. When everyone has finished, the group reads the clues out loud, and everyone guesses which of the four words belongs to each player. If a player guesses correctly, they score a point for themselves and a point for the author of the clue.



Play 6 rounds, add up points, declare the winner, if there is a tie, you play another entire game for the tiebreaker. Just kidding. The winner is the winner and everyone is haiclueless.



Hydroracers: The Schneider Trophy Epic



Designed by: Emmanuel AlbisserPublished by: Platypus Games (2022)Players: 1 – 4Ages: 14 & upPlaying time: 30 – 60 minutes



Hydroracers is a game of fast races interspersed with preparation phases where each nation improves its aircraft. We played the basic version of the game, which is just the race. So we did not delve into the more complex versions of the game having to deal with aircraft improvement and development.



From 1913 to 1931, the Schneider Trophy took place. Four nations (England, Italy, France and the United States) competed with daring and technique in extremely dangerous speed races.



Races: each player takes a turn to play a card from their hand and move forward on the circuit, and every player has the same hand of cards to play. Beware going too fast around corners, because if you are going too fast, your aircraft will suffer damage.  That damage can carry forward from the first race to the last, so be careful about suffering too much damage in the early laps.



Drafting behind other planes will help your speed, while being out in first will cause you to slow a bit from the headwinds. Each pilot has a special ability, which also impacts how efficiently an airplane moves.



And a betting phase: you will place bets on who you think will win a lap. Collect coins and those coins translate to victory points. The pilot with the most VPs at the end of round 3 is the winner, and gets to invest their winnings in the 1929 stock market, a wise play for any shrewd investor.



Crypt



Designed by: Jeff Chin, Andrew NergerPublished by: Allplay, R2i Games (2018)Players: 1 – 4Ages: 14 & upPlaying time: 25 minutes



Crypt is a dice and card game featuring an auction mechanic, a set collection mechanic, and of course the luck of the roll of the dice. Each player has a set of servants, represented by 3 6-sided dice.



On your turn you will place your servant dice on treasure cards, choosing any value on each die. If you place multiple dice on a treasure card, the values of the dice must be the same. Choosing a higher value can ward off your opponents, but it also increases the odds that your servant will become exhausted. After everyone has placed their servant dice, everyone rolls.

Welcome to Which Game First where we boldly explore the hilariously huge world of board games. Did we unearth any hidden treasures you’ve been missing out on? Let’s find out!



First up: We try to dodge drowning by outsmarting fate in The Shipwreck ArcanaNext: We lay down tracks for the longest ride we can in MetroAnd lastly: We hope for 21 as we let them fall where they may in 12 Chip Trick



The Shipwreck Arcana



Designed by: Kevin BishopPublished by: Meromorph Games (2017)Players: 2 – 5Ages: 12 & upPlaying time: 10 – 30 minutes



The Shipwreck Arcana is a co-operative game of deduction, evaluation, and logic. In turn, players draw two fate tiles from the pick bag. They are numbered 1-7, and there are three of each tile in the bag.



A slate of cards are turned face up in the center of the table. Each card has a condition. For example, a card might read: if the sum of your fates is 11 or more, place one of the tiles here. And another card might read: if the difference between your fate tiles is four or more, place one of them here.



So the player is going to place one of the two tiles underneath the card if it qualifies. Then the other players collectively discuss and deduce the other fate tile that the player is holding on to. No talking allowed by the active player (of course).



Guess correctly, and the players will score a point for being right. Guess incorrectly, and the players will earn a doom point for being wrong. As doom builds up, the cards themselves fade, becoming one-time powers to help the players while new cards cycle in from the deck.



Get to 7 fate points before you get 7 doom points. Everyone is going to either sink or swim together as you try desperately to avoid a shipwreck.



Metro



Designed by: Dirk HennPublished by: Queen Games (1997)Players: 2 – 6Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 30 minutes



Metro is a tile placement game where you are trying to get your trains to complete the longest routes in the city, and you will place tiles of winding tracks to do so.



One at a time, players will put square tiles onto the board to form rail lines. Instead, the object of the game is to make the rail lines as long as possible. Players start with a number of trains ringing the board. Whenever a tile placement connects a train to a station (either on the edge or the center of the board), that train is removed and the player scores one point for each tile that the route crosses, which can cause one tile to score multiple times if the track loops around. However, players score double for city connections, which are the stations in the center of the board.



The game ends when all tiles are placed, whomever has the most points is the winner, riding the rail to victory!



12 Chip Trick



Designed by: RootPublished by: Mandoo Games (2023)Players: 2 – 4Ages: 8 & upPlaying time: 20 minutes



12 Chip Trick is a trick-taking game where players are dealt a hand of 4 chips. We played a 3-player game, so these are the rules for that version. The game also has rules for 2 and 4 players.



In a 3 person game, there are a total of 12 chips, numbered 1-12. Each player receives 4 chips in their hand. The chips numbered 1-3 and 10-12 are green, and the ones numbered 4-9 are red.



One at a time, a player will play one chip in the center. Once all 3 players have played, the collection phase begins. The player who threw the highest number will choose a chip,