Recap

November Board Game Recap

In November, we played 45 unique board games, including new releases and old classics. Here are our picks for the best games we played last month.

Monthly recaps are to help you know about all the games we played in the past month, share our favorite games, and give out some end-of-month awards. Not all games we play make it onto social media or the blog, so this is a fun way to show you what we have played behind the scenes and which games left an impression.

Check out our previous month’s recaps:
2022: Jan. | Feb. | Mar. | Apr. | May | June | July | Aug | Sept | Oct

November Games Played

Make sure to let us know on Instagram which of these games you want to hear more about!

Kelsey’s Favorite Game: SCOUT

This is the perfect travel game. It comes in a tiny box so easy to throw in a bag or keep in the glove box. It feels similar to classic playing card games while also being a new and unique challenge. It is quick to learn and provides some thinking decisions, but not so overwhelming you can’t still carry a conversion while playing. This one will be going with us to every holiday gathering this season!

Adam’s Favorite Game: First Rat

This may be my favorite game of the year. First Rat is a low-complexity strategy game that plays great at any player count from one to five. What makes First Rat stand out to me is the path movement system and how it makes turns simple but the overall play highly strategic. I loved playing this one with my older kids (7+).

Kid’s Favorite Game: The Isle of Cats

The family version of Isle of Cats was a tremendous hit with our kids. The kids love the theme of selecting funny shape cats to fill out their ship. This a great introductory game to teach players about drafting and tile placement. As a family, we are excited to try the standard version of Isle of Cats but would recommend it already only having played with the family rules.

End-of-Month Awards

Best Game Re-theme : Azul: Master Chocolatier

We have loved Azul, from the first time we played our first homemade version using Ticket to Ride trains to try out the game. The newest version is Azul: Master Chocolatier, and it is beautiful. This rethemed version of Azul also comes with a new play variant which adds some fun randomness to the drafting of the piece. This will be the edition of Azul we keep in our family.

Best Games for Young Gamers (3+): My First Amigo Card Game Series

Amigo has three great small card games that are designed to be played with the youngest games. All the game cards are made of sturdy material with simple rules and quick play times.

Look – a memory game where you have to be the first to spot the difference from one of the cards that has been flipped over.
Where is Mauise – A memory game with dice rolling, which introduces kids to games with dice.
Froggies – A card game that is great counting practice for young games and helps them learn sequential order.
(watch Froggies played in this reel.)

Best Party Game: Ready Set Bet

There are a lot of fun horse-racing related games (Camel Up and Unicorn Fever), but this is my current favorite. Ready Set Bet is a real-time betting game that feels like you are out at the race tracks. The betting can be modified to make easier for younger players, or more advance with prop bets and player powers. An app or a player rolling dice can simulate and announce the races. Any way you play is a blast and will have everyone around the table cheering for their favorite horse.

Honorable Party Game Mention: Disc Cover

If you are looking for a more chill party game Disc Cover has been a favorite of our oldest daughter. You will play a song, then as a group select the album cover art from one of the four options. The art piece with the most votes is selected and earns points for the team/players who selected it. I like that it is a party game that can be played cooperatively. A fun way to incorporate your favorite music playlist into game night.

Most Beautiful Game: Flamecraft

Another family game we enjoyed this month was the beautiful worker placement game Flamecraft. Flamecraft was a Kickstarter game that now has a retail release which is the edition our family owns. Our kids adored the cutesy dragon assistants that worked at the shop. The theme and production are top notice across the board. This is another recently released family game that will be on my best-of-the-year list.

Most Played: Onirim (Second Edition) – 19 times

I recently taught this classic solo game to the kids and we played it a bunch both with the physical version and on the app. This deck management game is a fun puzzle to solve as you try to complete your goals before the deck runs out. The retail version adds a lot mini-expansion to increase the challenge. If you are interested in trying Onirim, the base game is free on the app to play.