I used to do this. Depending on the game and size of the table it can be a good idea to have some additional side-table space available to offload some components to. Ideally it should be a similar height.
We wanted to try Hats but don't have a copy yet so we used the Arboretum deck. Which turned out to be appropriate since the two games have similar tensions. It took a while to get past the usual intuition of expecting the cards in your hand to eventually end up in your tableau which is not how it goes in Hats. I like discovering games with interesting card flows.
We continued our Dorfromantik campaign. In the most recent game we took a lot of risks that didn't end up paying off but it's nice that you make some amount of progress even when things don't work out well.
Also had the chance to introduce a non-gamer to Cabo, she enjoyed it a lot and it was a nice change from our usual 2p sessions.
Expecting our copy of Meadow to arrive soon, looking forward to trying that.
One Deck Dungeon is another one where I had this experience. The ability to easily experiment with undo and retry has helped me get better at the game on the table too. And I am not sure that I'd have tried two-handed solo otherwise which is a fun way to play the game.
Wingspan is still worth checking out especially since it's so easy to try on BGA. There is a reason it's so popular, it works well for many people. Everdell is another very popular one with great production. Kinda falls into the same camp in that it often shows up on these "popular games that didn't work for me" lists but it's quite good for what it is.
On the smaller side Wild Space can be a good entry point. Small box, inexpensive, very easy to play, fun combos.
Or if you want to jump straight into the deep water and go for the best that's Lorenzo Il Magnifico for me. Deus is another one I like a lot but that has a map component too.
If the game has a good score track we prefer that but for some like Star Realms we use SPT on Android. This is a pure score tracker which is all we want. Simple but sufficiently customizable UI with nice big buttons, options for 5 and 10 point increments and decrements.
I keep a big list of games of potential interest and continuously research them. Over time a few bubble to the top (in terms of my interest).
For research BGG is invaluable of course, especially the game-specific forums and comments. I take ratings into account but with a big grain of salt. I read the rulebooks, watch videos too (playthroughs are the best but reviews too). If there is a good online implementation (especially BGA or Yucata) I definitely give that a try. If there is a TTS module I load that up too even if I don't have anybody to play with, it can be a good way to examine the components.
Research can be almost as much fun as actually playing :)
In short I have to be excited about the game, I have to have some level of understanding of how it plays and the price has to be right.
I don't think that anything currently in alpha will show up since those are often not quite ready yet. But the beta list has a bunch of really nice games that I imagine might pop up: Evergreen, Canvas, Micro Dojo, Hanamikoji and Schnapsen are some of my favorites. Ginkgopolis is supposed to be very good too but I haven't played it yet.
Only played it at 2 so far. It's a shared solo really, the player count only matters for how long before it's your turn again. There is no player-specific state and you often end up discussing moves with the current player making the final call. One nice benefit of this is that it's not a problem to have players join, leave or just skip a session mid-campaign.
Harry Potter: Hogwarts Battle might be a good intro. I haven't played it yet but it's supposed to be a decent deckbuilder that's easy to get started with.
Yes, I have played the Steam version. IMO the boardgame captures the essence of the videogame quite well. There are changes but they totally make sense, for example counting individual buildings or trees by hand would get annoying real quick so in the boardgame you count entire tiles. The way they handled the quest rewards extending the game is quite neat and smooth too. My partner liked the boardgame so much that she has started playing the Steam version too.
(note that this is based on a few early plays, not the entire campaign)
We started on our Dorfromantik campaign. Only 3 games in so still a lot to explore. It was fun even in its simplest first-game setup and its cool to see the decision-space expand as new ways to score are added. Feels a bit like My City in this sense.
We've also played some Sagrada which is a turning into a real comfort pick that I am happy to play even when I am too tired for other stuff. Easy to get on the table, no problem remembering the rules, focused decisions. And I love drawing dice from a bag, Pandemic The Cure, FUSE and Roll Player are some others that do this that I like a lot.
Online I've been enjoying the BGG version of Wizards of the Grimoire. Still in alpha but already works very well. Planning to get in a few plays of it in person too.
The Taverns of Tiefenthal modules make the game a much more rounded-out experience. If you are comfortable with the base game I think it's pretty safe to just throw in the rest all at once, the individual modules are all fairly simple and make sense together. I kinda wish the rulebook was structured as base for first play and then everything else together instead of piecemeal.
It's fun to think about which modern games could have existed in the
middle ages or antiquity.
Component complexity is probably the biggest limiting factor. Some
components would have been very difficult or impossible to
produce. The available printing technologies is a major one. Depending
on how far we go back easily shuffleable cards are probably out and
cards with lots of text or complex symbology are almost certainly
out. So are fancy boards. Simpler boards (chess or go grids, hex) are
fine. Meeples, dice, coins, tokens, bags, cups are easy.
Rules complexity might be another factor since it would be more
difficult to record and reproduce very complex rules. Some kind of
thematic connection woudn't hurt either. I guess you could try to
explain Star Realms as heavenly chariots :)
Abstracts are a category that works well since we have a bunch of
examples of those actually existing. Simple dice games, bidding games,
certain drafting games should work as well.
Some specific examples of games I like to imagine existing in the past
are War Chest, Onitama and Azul. Thematically they would fit well,
simple rules, manageable components.
I wonder which of the more complex euros could have worked. Perhaps a
simpler version of Castles of Burgundy? Fewer building types to keep
component and rules complexity under control. Or maybe something like
Ra.
Even though I sometimes disagree with Nick's likes and dislikes I always enjoy the podcast. The format is great and very informative once I calibrate for our differences of taste. And having it both as a pod and text is very handy!
I hope Rumble Nation comes back into print someday, would love to try.
Avant Carde has caught my eye. BGG, KS. Looks like a small-box deckbuilder with configurable powers, kinda like the Cubitos dice powers. Nice art too. Wish I could see a gameplay video though, so far I am only finding rule explanations.
Oh nice, thanks! Here it is for anyone else interested. Unfortunately it's not part of the current sale so will have to think about how badly I want it.
I used to do this. Depending on the game and size of the table it can be a good idea to have some additional side-table space available to offload some components to. Ideally it should be a similar height.