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It’s award season again, and just this weekend past, we now know what the German judges of the Spiel Des Jahres panel think of the board games released in the last year or so. We’ll be looking at the Kinderspiel (or Children’s Game of the Year), Game of the Year and Kennerspiel (Connoisseurs’ Game of the Year). Let’s have a little look at the games that won!
Spiel des Jahres – Dorfromantik: The Board Game
This year, the cardboard adaptation of the popular video game, Dorfromantik, took the headline prize of Game of the Year, beating out Fun Facts and Next Station: London. Designers Michael Palm and Lukas Zach, alongside publishers Pegasus Spiel produced a co-operative tile placement game where players are attempting to complete tasks and play through the campaign. Each game is short, and often leaves you wanting just one more game. Our spoiler free review is here.
Kennerspiel des Jahres – Challengers!
The Connoisseurs’ Game of the year fell to the capture the flag deck builder, Challengers! On their way to capture the flag of the accolade, they took down Iki and Planet Unknown. Designed by Johannes Krenner and Markus Slawitscheck, and published by 1 More Time and Z-Man Games, Challengers! has players managing their deck by adding new characters during the Deck Phase, and then entering their deck into a match to gain control of the flag. Whomever wins the most trophies and fans over seven rounds qualifies for the finals, as this game can be played tournament style, to keep a solid 45 minute playtime regardless of player count. We’ve got a pair of reviews on it here and here, if you want to hear our thoughts on the game.
Kinderspiel des Jahres – Mysterium Kids – Captain Echo’s Treasure
Finally, the Children’s game of the year was awarded to a “Kids” version of a classic game. Mysterium Kids – Captain Echo’s Treasure climbed past Carla Caramel and Gigamon on their way to victory. Designed by Antonin Boccara and Yves Hirschfeld and published by Libellud and Space Cow, Mysterium Kids takes the original feature of a silent ghost from Mysterium and reimagines it for a younger audience, by giving the ghost player a small drum for them to communicate and give the other players clues by way of sound effects. Instead of a ghost helping a group of mediums solve a murder, a pirate captain is helping treasure hunters find his gold, which is a nice touch up for kids.
Our full review on Mysterium Kids is here.