http://simonwillison.net/2013-11-23T11:56:00+00:00Simon Willison2013-11-23T11:56:00+00:002013-11-23T11:56:00+00:00https://simonwillison.net/2013/Nov/23/what-are-some-great/#atom-tag

<p><em>My answer to <a href="https://www.quora.com/What-are-some-great-board-games-to-play-for-3-or-more-people/answer/Simon-Willison">What are some great board games to play for 3 or more people?</a> on Quora</em></p> <p>I suggest looking in to <span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German-style_board_game">German-style board games</a></span>. They tend to be quick to learn and extremely well balanced but with a great deal of strategic depth once you get in to them, and they also have running times in the order of 45 minutes to an hour and a half. They're ideal for games nights, especially if you might be playing with people who think they don't like board games.</p> <p>Contrast this with Monopoly, which is horribly unbalanced (people who do well at the start tend to pull ahead and stay ahead) and can end up taking hours to complete.</p> <p>Three of my favourites are:</p> <ul><li><span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Settlers_of_Catan">The Settlers of Catan</a></span> - probably the most famous game in this category. It's a delightful strategic trading game for 3-4 players (up to six players with an expansion pack) which never ceases to delight people I introduce to it.</li><li><span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carcassonne_(board_game)">Carcassonne</a></span> - a tile-based game for 2-5 players (up to six with an expansion). Again, very quick for new players to pick up. It also has a flawless iPhone/iPad port which is a great way to try the game out before getting the physical board game.<br /></li><li><span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ticket_to_Ride_(board_game)">Ticket to Ride</a></span> - a railway themed German-style board game for 2-5 players. I like the European map edition.<br /></li></ul><br />There are plenty of other excellent German-style games, but the above are three of the most popular and instantly accessible. <p>Tags: <a href="https://simonwillison.net/tags/games">games</a>, <a href="https://simonwillison.net/tags/quora">quora</a>, <a href="https://simonwillison.net/tags/boardgames">boardgames</a></p>

2011-01-14T13:08:00+00:002011-01-14T13:08:00+00:00https://simonwillison.net/2011/Jan/14/what-boardgame-is-the/#atom-tag

<p><em>My answer to <a href="https://www.quora.com/What-boardgame-is-the-best-to-play-for-a-scheming-rat-bastard/answer/Simon-Willison">What boardgame is the best to play for a scheming rat bastard?</a> on Quora</em></p> <p>Junta is a lot of fun: <span><a href="http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/242/junta">http://boardgamegeek.com/boardga...</a></span></p> <p>You're a member of the ruling military Junta of a banana republic, and you have to backstab your family members for political power, which you then turn in to cash stashed away in your swiss bank account.</p> <p>The games by Terrorbull are great for backstabbing too: War on Terror the Board Game (a modern classic, although it does take about 6 hours to play - think Risk with added terrorism) and Crunch! the card game, which simulates the credit crunch from the point of view of money-grubbing bankers with apparently remarkable accuracy: <span><a href="http://www.terrorbullgames.co.uk/">http://www.terrorbullgames.co.uk/</a></span></p> <p>Tags: <a href="https://simonwillison.net/tags/quora">quora</a>, <a href="https://simonwillison.net/tags/boardgames">boardgames</a></p>

2010-12-21T17:18:00+00:002010-12-21T17:18:00+00:00https://simonwillison.net/2010/Dec/21/what-are-good-games/#atom-tag

<p><em>My answer to <a href="https://www.quora.com/What-are-good-games-to-get-someone-who-likes-Settlers-of-Catan/answer/Simon-Willison">What are good games to get someone who likes Settlers of Catan?</a> on Quora</em></p> <span><a href="http://www.boardgamegeek.com/">http://www.boardgamegeek.com/</a></span> is THE place to go for information on good board games. I'd suggest taking a look at Ticket to Ride. <p>Tags: <a href="https://simonwillison.net/tags/quora">quora</a>, <a href="https://simonwillison.net/tags/boardgames">boardgames</a></p>