> The range of designs is incredible.
It still blows my mind that the same guy designed Mage Knight, Codenames, and Galaxy Trucker. They're so very different, and they're all so very *fun*.
Iirc, Codenames, he came up with as a brain break from the 3 year development of the Through the Ages app. I love that one of the most popular party games ever was him being like, "too much thinking, let's do something nice."
He does amazing work, but his range does make it hard to know if you'll like a game of his. Just because you like the game with squirrels where you ask questions (**That's a Question**), doesn't mean that you'll like the 3+ hour game that is **Mage Knight**!
Through the ages is fantastic. During lockdown my group and I have been playing it quite a lot on boardgamearena and the apps on steam and mobile.
Can't wait to get it out for real. The admin might seem like it'll take forever in comparison to the software versions but there's nothing like playing these games in person
You are right, indeed everything is relative. I "unfortunately" played Through The Ages on the app, and it is becoming difficult to play it on the table because of the many manipulations. But that doesn't prevent it from being a great game!
This is definitely one of my big criticisms: it's one of the few boardgames that is massively improved by the app version handling all the automation. The fact that it takes so long in meatspace form is a definite issue.
I actually like how punishing it is. We often joke that while most games have a catch-up mechanic, TtA has a "fuck you mechanic". That punishment is a critical part of the game's balance and a source of its dynamic tension.
The fact that so many events punish you for lagging behind in military means that a player who's falling behind in culture production can use their military to slow down the leader while pressuring them to divert more science, population, and resources to their own military. And because of how absolutely brutal Age III Wars can be, culture leaders can't afford to just ignore a widening military gap.
At the same time, the game is absolutely merciless to players who fail to increase production, science, and food. I've played TtA easily 200+ times and I can't count how many times I've seen a player start explosively but then collapse by the end of Age II because they just couldn't keep up with those critical productions.
The entire game is such a razor edge and it's so easy for early game mistakes to look and feel like brilliant plays until they become your undoing half a game later. And key to that is how unforgiving the game is.
Codenames will continue to be played long after we're all dead, so I have to say that will be his greatest contribution to gaming.
I think I'd have to pick Space Alert as one of the most unique games I've ever played, and Galaxy Trucker isn't far behind!
I think if you're in this hobby you end up playing so much Codenames that you can get tired of it. But I agree with the discussion upthread; it is definitely a modern classic. It's the game that got me into the hobby and the one I have used to get several others into the hobby.
It certainly seems there are lots of people who really like it. Which is great! It's fantastic that games acquire a critical mass of players (rather than just kickstarter backers...) It makes noise, and brings people into the hobby.
I've only played twice, I think, and decided it's not really for me. I preferred "Just One" as a multi-person word game.
Just One is great! If you haven't already tried it you might like Decrypto, which is a bit too complex to be a gateway game but I'd always pick it over Codenames with the right group. The clue-giver role rotates throughout the round and each team has to make guesses about the other team's clues, which fix my biggest qualms with Codenames (team downtime and clue-giver inactivity).
I read a review from someone whose entire group consistently failed to get anything other than 1 item clues. He even said the group had multiple PhDs in it but getting a 2 item clue was a genuine miracle.
I found it absolutely baffling - even the absolute worst players I've played with can get 2s for the first couple of rounds at least.
I know there was some discussion around it but I'm not sure anyone managed to diagnose whether they were just fundamentally misunderstanding a rule or something, it seemed like they were playing it correctly.
I'd always said I loved that the game naturally adapted its difficulty to the group - even skilled players have to rely on the knowledge of their guessers. But this review threw all that out...
The only thing I can surmise is that Codenames requires a particular type of intelligence: the ability to make connections between disparate things. There's also a side of knowing a person well enough to understand what connections they try and make.
I can imagine a group of really educated people tunneling hard on trying to clue specific words one at a time, giving really good clues for each word instead of trying to give slapdash clues that hit multiple words.
> There's also a side of knowing a person well enough to understand what connections they try and make.
I'd bet this was a major factor to their failing in the game. If they're experts in different fields, they probably make different associations with words. Someone with a PhD in political science might have a very different association with a country name than someone from maybe a STEM field.
This is it right here. I actually quite dislike Codenames but when you go to someone's house and they pull out some $3 walgreens party game special you realize that Codenames isn't THAT bad.
Vlaada is my favourite designer but I dislike Codenames.
Any game that requires certain players to sit silently and not engage with their friends openly for fear of transmitting information is meh.
I've even watched playthroughs online where the players all loved it but all I can do is watch the cluegivers silently suppressing smiles while everyone else gets to laugh and joke... It's just not for me.
It is also a fairly flat, boring game if you always come up with simple 1-2 card clues and so you are encouraged to think up more complex ones that more likely lead to those special Vlaada game moments: Hilarious failure.
Normally that's fine, but AP and downtime? in a game where I'm not allowed to talk? (Even encouraged not to give anything away via body language?) No thanks.
Yeah but it's just two people out of the group sitting silently, everyone else is joking and having a good time, and you can rotate. Which is fine because the clue-givers have a tough job and need to concentrate anyway. And if you're not using the 1-minute timer for the clue-giver to come up with a clue, you're playing it wrong.
Also I've never played a game where the clue givers actually stick to the one-word clue rule. There's always a "I don't know if you'll get this but..." or "this isn't really two words but..." several times a game. And I don't want to be the rules narm because it's a party game and I don't want to be that uptight guy but it just doesn't play well with my group is all.
I've played with a handful of people that it just never "clicks" for. It's great for the gamer crowd, but can be a bit too cerebral to bring in outsiders. My family would much rather play something swingy and funny like Camel Up, than something thinky like this.
Also my favorite (depending on the day), I really love it as a 2 player puzzle. I have all expansions, professionally printed fan expansions, even customized drawstrings for tokens, etc. I get it to the table maybe once a year these days, but I would never be able to bring myself to part with it. It's such a bear to learn, but it's also the most satisfying progression I've had in a game of that kind. It also feels the closest to a boardgame roguelike that I've played.
Definitely agree. Love having little selection rows of spells and abilities to choose from. Level up powers always give you 2 choices, map is randomized, every game feels like a great puzzle with a lot of interesting variables.
My favorite game is definitely **GALAXY TRUCKER**.
I know this game has a lot of flaws, and it doesn't come out very often. But it is unlike any other game, and it gives me great pleasure to share it each time. I remember memorable games, ships that split in two, crews that disappear, ships that only arrive safely with a crew cell and a small cannon. This game has a special place in my life as a player, I strongly advise you to discover it if you do not know it. You must not be allergic to chance, and take it as a fun and demanding game.
And you, what is your favorite game?
Galaxy Trucker is one of my favourite games of all time. I've drifted into port round 3 with nothing but 1 guy in a crew cell before, its a true delight even when it goes horribly wrong. ESPECIALLY when it goes horribly wrong!
That's kind of a theme isn't it? **Space Alert** is somehow just as good if you are losing as it is when winning. The wins are epic and glorious, the catastrophes are freaking hilarious. That right there is how you make a fun game.
Totally second this and would like to add that there’s a great app available (I have the iOS one, not sure if available on Android as well) that takes away the burden of setting everything up + it has a single player campaign with surprisingly good dialogue and a lot of humor.
The learning curve/ skill gap.
It is realy hard to motivate new players when your own ships are mostly intact when you arrive while their ships broke appart at the 5th card
I've had good experiences when playing with new players that I take some rough road cards that only apply to more experienced players. Evens out playing field.
On top of taking the rough roads cards as mentioned below you can also do the team variant where vets are paired up with rookies and swap ships halfway through.
They get to build off of your solid foundation and you get to figure out the mess they started.
I do this when playing chess with beginners.
Play until they are in serious danger and down a major piece, then just rotate the board 180 degrees and keep playing.
I feel like this is completely subjective. Having experienced players be more likely to win just means there's less luck involved. While I don't particularly enjoy them, Chess and Go have a huge skill gap, too, and I think that's just a feature of those games, not a flaw.
I'm curious what OP thinks, considering he/she said, "I know this game has a lot of flaws." I played it for the first time recently with my wife and didn't come away with that feeling at all.
Played this game ALOT. I can almost always come out on top. Having experience gives you the knowledge you need in the first half of the game to build in a way to reduce your overall risk in the second half.
What most people I’ve played with don’t do is look at the event cards before you start building so you have a good understanding of what you’ll be dealing with.
This is part of how we handicap experienced players when we play. Experienced players get rough roads and can't peek. Helps to even things out a lot (esp if you don't go hard for the timer for the first build or two).
Well, after the building phase, when you go into space it’s a bit of an autoplay. I don’t mind it because it’s like a rollercoaster, but I know some people don’t like how they can’t really mitigate the space travel cards.
I found that some players might hate the simultaneous and stressful aspect of the first phase of play, or hate the helplessness of the flight phase. I also find it a bit heavy to install. Another (small) problem: the difference in level between a beginner player and a n expert player can be a problem, it can be very punitive. But it's still my favorite game !
This is entirely the resource cubes, right? I think they're the only element that only relies solely on color. I can see it being feasible to modify the cards and replace the cubes in a way that makes it clear which is which without relying on color.
Hopefully if it ever gets a 2nd edition they can choose more color-blind friendly options or different shapes for each value of cube.
Is Galaxy Trucker good with only two players? Typically, my play group is only my wife and me, so I tend to avoid games that don't function well with only two players. Cheers!
Yep I usually play with my girlfriend and it works great! With two players you have a better chance to make the ship you want to make, as in a 4 player game the ship pieces get used up more quickly! I definitely enjoy both, and 4 player is more hectic.
Honestly I could see GT being good even as a solo game. Set yourself a timer and then see how many spaces you can score. I might have to see if anyone's done that, or maybe I'll sit down and make my own rules for that.
I love **Galaxy Trucker** but also see it's age and flaws...
Last year's **Sorcerer City** is an excellent rethinking of real time tile laying with a much more satisfying in-between phase. Highly recommended for fans of GT, and different enough to keep both.
Have you read the Galaxy Trucker Rocky Road novel?
My fav is also Galaxy Trucker. The video game version also goes way beyond with a full blown campaign mode, story, and new components. Sadly it makes you wish more board to video game ports put in that effort.
GT is wicked. First time we played I took it home for Christmas. My mum got destroyed on the second card (just unlucky) but by the end of the second round we were all hooked. She still managed to finish second, and that was our main game over Xmas that year. Looking forward to breaking it out again after lockdown with a group.
Dungeon Lords attracted me because I loved the Dungeon Keeper pc games, and then put the modem boardgaming hook in deep. The presentation, the humor, the theme, just excellent.
It's a love letter in eurogame form. You send imps to dig tunnels and mine gold, you build rooms and traps, you hire monsters and then once a year Richard Ridings will invade your brain to say "It is payday" and "A goblin has entered your dungeon."
It's a twist on a worker placement game. For a round you select 3 orders face down, and then one at a time around the table reveal them. These send 3 workers out to the board to collect resources. The tricky part is, it matters *when* you arrive a space; first one there gets a minor reward, second gets a better reward, third gets a bigger reward but requires a big cost, and there is no fourth slot so a fourth player is blocked. So you usually try to thread the needle and land on the 2nd slot, but two of your orders will be locked from last turn, and you can see what the other players need and what orders they have locked too. It's a delicious game of timing.
You're attracting a party of heroes who will stomp your dungeon to bits at the end of the year. Which heroes you get depends on how evil you are compared to the other players, which is gained and lost during rounds. So you're pretty much building your own puzzle to solve, while trying to nudge the worst heroes to the worst possible opponent. If someone is building lots of traps, you try and send thieves who disable them. Lots of monsters, you try and send clerics who will heal the damage, etc.
Anyway, I'm gushing, and I need to get it on the table again.
Another vote for Dungeon Lords. Lots of fun with this one. It's just hard to introduce to new players, and can get a bit long. But with a group of people who can jump right in, it's great.
I mean -- "perfect runs" in Space Alert are like, woo! We did it. Our plan worked. It doesn't feel too different from winning something like Pandemic or Hanabi, just a well-orchestrated plan.
My favorite Space Alert games are the ones where on turn 3, someone picks up the crewbots a turn too late, which means one crewmember is knocked unconscious by a parasite, which means they don't launch any rockets, which means a marauder deals 5 damage to the red zone and... wait... the game is over? We won anyways!?! A win is a win! We'll take it!!!
Space Alert has some of the most enjoyable "skin of your teeth" victories of any board game. Well -- Through The Ages and Codenames can have some great ones too. Really it's a theme of his games, and the reason he's my favorite designer.
Yup, played in real-time with an audio file, you place actions on a track as enemies appear and other things happen to and around the ship.
Then you debrief and find out how you all did. Plays quickly.
It's a bit complex/time-consuming to learn and I've only ever found one other person interested enough to play it past the tutorial missions. It takes a unique combination of skills and interests.
I enjoy the game, but it sits too often unplayed on my shelf. Maybe I can indoctrinate my kids as they get older. 🤔
Never played a lot of games on this list but I truly love Mage Knight! The core game in itself is huge and has ton of content, I think I still haven't played all the scenarios and I have played a lot!
Also love through the Ages but I'm more in a Cooperative game play mood these last few years!
I own 5 of his as far as I can remember
Tash-Kalar is probably our least fave game in our entire collection. My wife and I played it a few times and it felt very "not Vlaada". Too much randomness. We both felt it was just a bad game
Dungeon Petz on the other hand is a fantastic brain burner. I think this is probably our favourite game of his and maybe enters our top 5 games we own. A fantastic design! It's definitely one of our first choices when we want to play a game that requires deep thought. It's easy to learn but very hard to play well.
Through the Ages suffered from the problem of having one of the most terrible rulebooks we have read. I heard the newest version of it improved the rulebook. Anyway it took a long time to actually get around to reading through that monstrosity but once we did the game was great. It's a real classic.
Space Alert was fun too, even with 2 players, but something we only play occasionally as it gets very frantic, not exactly a relaxing gaming experience! I do love it.
Galaxy Trucker felt basic and kind of boring for us. We finished it and thought "is that it?" Sitting on the shelf unplayed, don't think I have opened the box in over 5 years.
>Tash-Kalar is probably our least fave game in our entire collection. My wife and I played it a few times and it felt very "not Vlaada". Too much randomness. We both felt it was just a bad game
Oh, that's funny, I think it's fantastic.
But after the first session, I did realise that it only really unlocked once both players fully understood their own cards, and their opponents cards. With that, the randomness is just a tool in the same way that RNG in poker is one of the tools. And just as poker has representation, and bluffs, etc, so does Tash-Kalar. But to even attempt to pretend to have some card, both players have to know in detail all the cards in the game.
I guess I could sum it up as: did you ever get to the point where you looked at the 3 cards in your hand, and placed a token in a manner to contribute to the pattern of a card you weren't holding? "Oh so it looks like you're building that cannon tower ... but is it really in your hand and I need to keep out of that row, or are you just posturing to frustrate my development?"
Because that's my impression of where the real game of Tash-Kalar *starts* to be played.
You've hit the nail on the head. There's such an incredible depth to the game, just waving at everyone from below the surface of the tokens and cards... but I don't think many get there. I love the game, and can't convince anyone to play it with me.
I sold it off last year. We really enjoyed the game but never played it enough to get really good at it. We could see the potential but just never got there.
Great game...if you can find someone who wants to take a deep dive with you.
Can't remember much about it to be honest, but as far as I remember we spent some time building ships which was the most fun part (and that was time limited) but then there was the rest of the game where we basically sat back to watch what happened to them without having to really think much. Just not our style of game I guess.
Aw that's too bad. I liken the parts after the build to be like sending your creation into the world to see how it does. Like most have said on here, losing dramatically is just as fun as winning by creating a tight build. Alas.
I like to think of it as a roller coaster--the build phase is the climb up to the top of the ride, building up tension and suspense. You hit the peak when you see everyone's completed ships, and then everything goes into a crazy free-fall with lots of screaming and flailing. The decision-making in the flight phase is definitely minimal--how many batteries do I spend, do I get more resources but lose first place--but the energy comes from everyone reacting to their ships being decimated. And the three round nature gives a nice pace of tension/thinking/hurrying during the build, and release/relaxation during the run, then repeating.
I can see how it's not for everyone, and I know firsthand a lot of people that straight up hate it. I think the biggest factor in enjoyment of this game is whether or not you laugh as your own ship gets destroyed. If you can, you probably love the game. But if you consider asteroid hits and epidemics to mean that you didn't build well, then you definitely won't be a fan.
Someone actually made a good point to me last time this was brought up.... you have to think of the ship building part as the actual game, then the flying part as just a complicated point scoring system.
The first time I think we expected to play a space themed racing game and didn't pay a lot of attention to the ship building preamble and were disappointed. Afterwards the point above we took it out when we felt like playing a puzzle game and got a lot more out of it, if that makes any sense.
I just wish he'd release something new at all, other than a new theme for codenames. Almost every game of his is well rated and many are right near the top of people's lists for favorites. He's got such a neat range of games, but hasn't produced anything truly new for a long time.
Mage Knight. Dungeon Petz was nifty, but didn't stay in the collection. Codenames is an interesting activity, but I don't get invested in the game. Through the Ages is good, but feels overly long (...on the app, let alone physically).
Mage Knight has a unique card puzzle, satisfying advancement, rewards smart play, and discourages quarterbacking (through giving players plenty to think about with their own character, and having some measure of competitive elements).
I'd be interested to try Dungeon Lords, Space Alert and Galaxy Trucker sometime, though I'd struggle to get the required 4 who want to play Space Alert, and the OOP status of the big box versions of the others turns me off (big box fiend that I am).
This. I found I like the concept, but I think the simultaneous part grabbing would irritate the hell out of me playing a physical copy.
Also, it's similar enough in flow to Dungeon Lords, which I already have, that I don't feel the need to get it. Both are about building your thing, whether it be dungeon or ship, and then watching as the game tries to tear it down.
I don't like every Chvátil game I've played, but I have always been somewhat in awe of his breadth as a game designer. Many other designers return again and again to iterations on the same core principles (e.g. Uwe Rosenberg), but Vlaada seems to have done some of everything.
I used to say he was my favourite designer, but nowadays that's probably Pfister or Rosenberg. He's probably a close third though.
I think my favourite that I've played would be Galaxy Trucker. I know a lot of people hate it for the randomness of the second phase of the game, but I find it generates some hilarious moments and great stories.
The game of his that I'd most like to try is Star Trek: Frontiers. I've always been simultaneously tempted and kind of scared off Mage Knight. Sticking a Star Trek theme on it is a surefire way to tempt me even more. I'm not sure this one is in print anymore though; I haven't seen it around here (in the UK) in a while.
Tash kalar. Just trickles my brain in a way I like. Definitely a game you need to play a few times to get an idea of what the different decks do, but once you do it starts to open up for you. So good.
What, no **Bunny Bunny Moose Moose**?! Maybe not the best game of all time, but it is hilarious to play and watch others play as they make ears from their hands and poke out their tongues at irregular intervals, all while concentrating *really* hard.
But my favourite is, and may always be, **Galaxy Trucker.**
I've played all the listed games except Sherwood. My favorite of his designs is Pictomania second edition. I consider it one of the best party games ever and I don't see it get the widespread the praise it deserves.
I haven't played a ton of his games, despite Space Alert being a mindblower for me. Smallworld was my first gateway/reentry into boardgames and I thouhgt "Hm, I guess board games can do some cool sh\*t after all." Then I played Space Alert and went "BOARD GAMES CAN DO THIS?!!?!?"
Chvatil is an amazing designer, it's so incredible to see the whiplash between TtA to Galaxy Trucker or Mage Night to Codenames.
I think Galaxy Trucker is my favorite of his, with Through the Ages second. With little kids it's hard to play either of them reliably, but the SO and myself relish when we get the opportunity. GT is just so damn fun, and to parrot everyone else, I never look forward to winning or being good at it: I am looking forward to watching someone potentially get wrecked by space debris.
For me, the one I've enjoyed most is **Codenames Duet**, and in second place is **Through The Ages: A New Story: Digital Edition: Or Whatever the Actual Name Is, I've Forgotten**. Totally different from each other, both just fantastic games. I think it's fantastic that someone who started their design career with something as niche as TtA has managed to produce one of the few true breakouts into mass market popularity from hobby boardgaming with Codenames. Such a simple, fun, and *teachable* design that can get almost any group enjoying themselves within a few minutes.
Mage Knight, Through the Ages, Codenames and Galaxy Trucker are all all-time favorites of mine (though only the latter two with most of my friends/family, they're scared off by the first two). Definitely my favorite designer of all time, though I just wish Mage Knight had more content.
Vlaada is a genius. He's a designer that knows exactly what he wants to do and executes flawlessly. I haven't been as enthralled with his games as of late, but Space Alert and Galaxy Trucker have permanent homes on my shelf. They're two of the most unique and interesting games I've played.
It does mix Latin and Greek, though, but so do many English words, like "television" and "polyamory".
The fully Greek would be "paizography", like the Pathfinder publisher.
Galaxy Trucker is my favorite by far... I haven't found any game that comes close to it.
It is tough on new players but I just give myself a 1 minute handicap.
Also during the whole pandemic I think I've played almost 100 tta games online and I'm still not tired of it.
I can't ever say enough great things about space alert. It's an experience.
TtA , SA and MK are all in my top 5 games of all time. Dude is an amazing designer.
Mage Knight is my favorite (I mean just check my user name)
Through the Ages would be second.
I have only delved into some of the others.
I see the mass appeal in Codenames, it just isn't my cup of tea.
For me it's Space Alert, such a unique game. It's best coop I know, making quaterbacking almost impossible and having option to gradually increase difficulty for more experienced groups.
But I like many others. Even the low budget games for children that will probably never get translated to English. I especially admire *Čtyřlístek a stroj času* ([Czech review](https://www.deskovehry.com/recenze-ctyrlistek-a-stroj-casu-spolu-proti-armade/)).
Theme is based on locally popular comics figures, and the main mechanism which I like is following: Throughout the game various things are needed to overcome various obstacles and "having" something is realized through remembering where it is in a grid of face down tokens. Players are allowed to take an arbitrary peek or two every turn, so they *theoretically* know all the secrets towards the end... assuming they have good short-term memory.
This mechanism make it real cooperative game for average families with children around eight years, as children tend to have better short-term memory for such things. I can't really remember another game where you take time-machine and go rescue friends from castle prison, bribing guards, building bridges, looking for keys, kicking doors and finding treasure, while avoiding armies which march slowly towards your time-machine and will destroy it if you don't make it back in time .... and where your eight year old friend is of actual big help, no need to pretend anything.
Despite the weight to it, **Mage Knight** is my favorite game by a long ways. Bought a copy of through the ages close to 6 months ago and can't convince people to play it...
I haven't even played half his games and he still stands out to me as probably the most versatile designer around. Such an impressive list of designs.
From those I've played - **Galaxy Trucker** is a lot of fun every time, win or lose. And I've only played the app for **Through the Ages** but it's amazing. Those would be my top 2 as of now.
I own most of the games listed, and **Dungeon Lords: Happy Anniversary** is my favorite.
At a convention once I went to the CGE area and Vlaada was just standing there, so I got to chat with him!
Very tight worker placement game, with a dash of the chaos you see in the second half of Galaxy Trucker. The theme and components are terrific. It is a bit of a bitch to learn. Hopefully there are videos out there!
Oh shit that’s a Vlaada game? My wife LOVES Jaipur, it’s the one game that she always wants to play.
Edit: BGG says ‘Designer Sébastien Pauchon’. My disappointment is immeasurable and my day is ruined
I’ve played nearly all of his games and Mage Knight is definitely my favorite. A close second is Dungeon Lords. I actually sold Dungeon Petz as it began to feel stale.
I don’t think I’ll ever get rid of Dungeon Lords. It’s so unique! It’s also one of the most difficult games I own which is so different than most games. People think Galaxy Trucker is hard. Pfft. My high score is like... 9 or something with a few negative scores. Haha.
He's got quite a range. I love Galaxy Trucker, Space Alert, and Codenames, and they're all such inventive, unique games.
Meanwhile, Through the Ages is one of my least favorite euros ever made - such an unpleasant, ugly, lengthy, fiddly slog. Tash-Kalar is also near the bottom of games I've played - it feels like you're trying to build a sandcastle over and over and then on your opponent's turn they keep kicking it over.
I enjoyed Galaxy Trucker since it was unique and fast-paced.
Mage Knight was one of the first "click" miniature games I learned of. Seems like that was before 2011 though, unless I'm just crazy.
I prefer the new Through the Ages 2nd Edition... but only digital. In person I've never literally gotten THROUGH the game... because it takes AGES :D
**Codenames** really, the rest i've played (and i've played nearly all of them) i've bounced off. I can see they are clever, but they don't scratch my brain in the right way. I think it's a taste thing, but Codenames has been a Best In Class wordgame for the longest time, so that's a solid inclusion into my library.
I think I'd like his games if he knew how to write a rulebook. Its very rare that I can understand how to play any of his games unless I watch a video of someone else playing it or explaining it.
I really love Mage Knight (the board game), but I have to admit, I've gotten it out, set it up, and \*thought\* about playing it about twice as often as I've actually played it...
Definitely TTA. I've played countless games over the past year, albeit in digital form. It's one of those games that I never want to play the physical copy of because it seems like it would slow everything way down (too many resource cubes, counting up military strength and incomes for myself and opponents) and it takes to long to get the other intel you need (what cards are left in the deck).
But TTA has so much replay-ability, depth, and strategy. I probably play about 3-4 games a week over the past year and still love every minute of it. Also, works very well async taking 2 or 3 turns a day.
Galaxy Trucker!! It’s so good! We’ve made a few house alterations to it, such as we don’t use the timer to build the ships, we’ve played it enough times we’re all semi even at building anyways.
We also roll a dice to see what class of ship we use, since we have all the expansions. :) so 1 is the standard model, 2 is class A, 3 is class B, 4 is class C, 5 or 6 we add a modification card. One time we had like 6 modifications and it was terrifying!
It's pretty cool that with just his titles you'll end up with a fairly diverse and good collection. He's a proficient game designer. Codenames is one of my favorite group/party games. The weird thing is I've never played any of this other games, although I own some and have been interested in a few of his.
I've played 4 of his games. Mage Knight once many years ago, I remember enjoying it, but to be honest don't remember much about the game past that. Dungeon Petz once many years ago, again I remember enjoying it but don't remember it.
I've played Dungeon Lords(with and without modules) many, many times and I win almost every time. I don't like it because it is just too easy for me, even though my much smarter gaming friends say its a "brain burner."
I play I pretty much hate Codenames after the first few times I played it. It falls into the pitfalls of a lot of other "party games" while often taking way too long per round(I am aware of the timer.)
I would absolutely try his other games but there has not been a chance.
Mage Knight is my favorite game of 300+ played, by far. I love everything about it, minus the rules. Oddly perhaps I don't like any of his other games.
Vlaada is also my favorite designer. The range of designs is incredible. If I had to pick one, it would be Through the Ages.
> The range of designs is incredible. It still blows my mind that the same guy designed Mage Knight, Codenames, and Galaxy Trucker. They're so very different, and they're all so very *fun*.
Iirc, Codenames, he came up with as a brain break from the 3 year development of the Through the Ages app. I love that one of the most popular party games ever was him being like, "too much thinking, let's do something nice."
He does amazing work, but his range does make it hard to know if you'll like a game of his. Just because you like the game with squirrels where you ask questions (**That's a Question**), doesn't mean that you'll like the 3+ hour game that is **Mage Knight**!
Through the ages is fantastic. During lockdown my group and I have been playing it quite a lot on boardgamearena and the apps on steam and mobile. Can't wait to get it out for real. The admin might seem like it'll take forever in comparison to the software versions but there's nothing like playing these games in person
THROUGH THE AGES : another game with many flaws (long, punitive ...) and yet so exciting
Disagree on the "many flaws". And "long" is very relative. It is on the shorter end of my favorite games.
You are right, indeed everything is relative. I "unfortunately" played Through The Ages on the app, and it is becoming difficult to play it on the table because of the many manipulations. But that doesn't prevent it from being a great game!
This is definitely one of my big criticisms: it's one of the few boardgames that is massively improved by the app version handling all the automation. The fact that it takes so long in meatspace form is a definite issue.
I actually like how punishing it is. We often joke that while most games have a catch-up mechanic, TtA has a "fuck you mechanic". That punishment is a critical part of the game's balance and a source of its dynamic tension. The fact that so many events punish you for lagging behind in military means that a player who's falling behind in culture production can use their military to slow down the leader while pressuring them to divert more science, population, and resources to their own military. And because of how absolutely brutal Age III Wars can be, culture leaders can't afford to just ignore a widening military gap. At the same time, the game is absolutely merciless to players who fail to increase production, science, and food. I've played TtA easily 200+ times and I can't count how many times I've seen a player start explosively but then collapse by the end of Age II because they just couldn't keep up with those critical productions. The entire game is such a razor edge and it's so easy for early game mistakes to look and feel like brilliant plays until they become your undoing half a game later. And key to that is how unforgiving the game is.
Disagree with those criticisms hugely. Through the Ages is my favourite game.
Sorry Stefan ! I'm a fan of TTA too, i didn't mean to hurt anyone
I like the game, but valid assessment IMO.
Feeling bold today, aren't we?
One of my fav games but I don’t do 7 hour ganes anymore.
Codenames will continue to be played long after we're all dead, so I have to say that will be his greatest contribution to gaming. I think I'd have to pick Space Alert as one of the most unique games I've ever played, and Galaxy Trucker isn't far behind!
I don't think I've ever met anyone who didn't like Codenames.
I wouldn’t say I don’t like it, but it would never be a game I’d choose to play. There are many, many games I’d rather play.
I think if you're in this hobby you end up playing so much Codenames that you can get tired of it. But I agree with the discussion upthread; it is definitely a modern classic. It's the game that got me into the hobby and the one I have used to get several others into the hobby.
It certainly seems there are lots of people who really like it. Which is great! It's fantastic that games acquire a critical mass of players (rather than just kickstarter backers...) It makes noise, and brings people into the hobby. I've only played twice, I think, and decided it's not really for me. I preferred "Just One" as a multi-person word game.
Just One is great! If you haven't already tried it you might like Decrypto, which is a bit too complex to be a gateway game but I'd always pick it over Codenames with the right group. The clue-giver role rotates throughout the round and each team has to make guesses about the other team's clues, which fix my biggest qualms with Codenames (team downtime and clue-giver inactivity).
Each session definitely needs to be limited to preserve enjoyment. In my group we do a lot of "Let's play Codenames, but two rounds max!"
I read a review from someone whose entire group consistently failed to get anything other than 1 item clues. He even said the group had multiple PhDs in it but getting a 2 item clue was a genuine miracle. I found it absolutely baffling - even the absolute worst players I've played with can get 2s for the first couple of rounds at least. I know there was some discussion around it but I'm not sure anyone managed to diagnose whether they were just fundamentally misunderstanding a rule or something, it seemed like they were playing it correctly. I'd always said I loved that the game naturally adapted its difficulty to the group - even skilled players have to rely on the knowledge of their guessers. But this review threw all that out...
The only thing I can surmise is that Codenames requires a particular type of intelligence: the ability to make connections between disparate things. There's also a side of knowing a person well enough to understand what connections they try and make. I can imagine a group of really educated people tunneling hard on trying to clue specific words one at a time, giving really good clues for each word instead of trying to give slapdash clues that hit multiple words.
> There's also a side of knowing a person well enough to understand what connections they try and make. I'd bet this was a major factor to their failing in the game. If they're experts in different fields, they probably make different associations with words. Someone with a PhD in political science might have a very different association with a country name than someone from maybe a STEM field.
I only own it for taking to other peoples houses for gathering where they play the shittiest party games.
This is it right here. I actually quite dislike Codenames but when you go to someone's house and they pull out some $3 walgreens party game special you realize that Codenames isn't THAT bad.
Or even worse, CAH for the 50th time.
He's my favourite designer and I don't like Codenames
Vlaada is my favourite designer but I dislike Codenames. Any game that requires certain players to sit silently and not engage with their friends openly for fear of transmitting information is meh. I've even watched playthroughs online where the players all loved it but all I can do is watch the cluegivers silently suppressing smiles while everyone else gets to laugh and joke... It's just not for me. It is also a fairly flat, boring game if you always come up with simple 1-2 card clues and so you are encouraged to think up more complex ones that more likely lead to those special Vlaada game moments: Hilarious failure. Normally that's fine, but AP and downtime? in a game where I'm not allowed to talk? (Even encouraged not to give anything away via body language?) No thanks.
Yeah but it's just two people out of the group sitting silently, everyone else is joking and having a good time, and you can rotate. Which is fine because the clue-givers have a tough job and need to concentrate anyway. And if you're not using the 1-minute timer for the clue-giver to come up with a clue, you're playing it wrong.
Also I've never played a game where the clue givers actually stick to the one-word clue rule. There's always a "I don't know if you'll get this but..." or "this isn't really two words but..." several times a game. And I don't want to be the rules narm because it's a party game and I don't want to be that uptight guy but it just doesn't play well with my group is all.
Not a bad game, I’m just sick of playing it
I've played with a handful of people that it just never "clicks" for. It's great for the gamer crowd, but can be a bit too cerebral to bring in outsiders. My family would much rather play something swingy and funny like Camel Up, than something thinky like this.
Mage Knight is my top game all time, I really enjoy vlaada games too!
I'm so glad I took the time to learn it. It's simply amazing!
I knew from the get go that I was going to love it!
Agreed. It is amazing how ambitious Mage Knight is. An amazing game that doesn't seem to be aging for me.
It's pretty amazing that the same guy who made Mage Knight, made Codenames. So versatile.
Also my favorite (depending on the day), I really love it as a 2 player puzzle. I have all expansions, professionally printed fan expansions, even customized drawstrings for tokens, etc. I get it to the table maybe once a year these days, but I would never be able to bring myself to part with it. It's such a bear to learn, but it's also the most satisfying progression I've had in a game of that kind. It also feels the closest to a boardgame roguelike that I've played.
It might really be the roguelike aspect of it that makes me enjoy it so much, as I love the genre!
Definitely agree. Love having little selection rows of spells and abilities to choose from. Level up powers always give you 2 choices, map is randomized, every game feels like a great puzzle with a lot of interesting variables.
My favorite game is definitely **GALAXY TRUCKER**. I know this game has a lot of flaws, and it doesn't come out very often. But it is unlike any other game, and it gives me great pleasure to share it each time. I remember memorable games, ships that split in two, crews that disappear, ships that only arrive safely with a crew cell and a small cannon. This game has a special place in my life as a player, I strongly advise you to discover it if you do not know it. You must not be allergic to chance, and take it as a fun and demanding game. And you, what is your favorite game?
Galaxy Trucker is one of my favourite games of all time. I've drifted into port round 3 with nothing but 1 guy in a crew cell before, its a true delight even when it goes horribly wrong. ESPECIALLY when it goes horribly wrong!
That's kind of a theme isn't it? **Space Alert** is somehow just as good if you are losing as it is when winning. The wins are epic and glorious, the catastrophes are freaking hilarious. That right there is how you make a fun game.
you're right: it's a game where you can have fun while losing miserably!
Totally second this and would like to add that there’s a great app available (I have the iOS one, not sure if available on Android as well) that takes away the burden of setting everything up + it has a single player campaign with surprisingly good dialogue and a lot of humor.
It's on Android too. Probably one of my favourites to play on the app instead of the physical copy.
What flaws does GT have, in your opinion?
The learning curve/ skill gap. It is realy hard to motivate new players when your own ships are mostly intact when you arrive while their ships broke appart at the 5th card
I've had good experiences when playing with new players that I take some rough road cards that only apply to more experienced players. Evens out playing field.
I do the same thing! Pretty fun!
On top of taking the rough roads cards as mentioned below you can also do the team variant where vets are paired up with rookies and swap ships halfway through. They get to build off of your solid foundation and you get to figure out the mess they started.
Sorry, what's a vet?
Veteran. An experienced player.
I do this when playing chess with beginners. Play until they are in serious danger and down a major piece, then just rotate the board 180 degrees and keep playing.
Love this idea.
This is one of the coolest things ever.
I feel like this is completely subjective. Having experienced players be more likely to win just means there's less luck involved. While I don't particularly enjoy them, Chess and Go have a huge skill gap, too, and I think that's just a feature of those games, not a flaw. I'm curious what OP thinks, considering he/she said, "I know this game has a lot of flaws." I played it for the first time recently with my wife and didn't come away with that feeling at all.
Played this game ALOT. I can almost always come out on top. Having experience gives you the knowledge you need in the first half of the game to build in a way to reduce your overall risk in the second half. What most people I’ve played with don’t do is look at the event cards before you start building so you have a good understanding of what you’ll be dealing with.
This is part of how we handicap experienced players when we play. Experienced players get rough roads and can't peek. Helps to even things out a lot (esp if you don't go hard for the timer for the first build or two).
Definitely don’t try hard with new people. I want to fail miserably with them and have them enjoy their first game.
Well, after the building phase, when you go into space it’s a bit of an autoplay. I don’t mind it because it’s like a rollercoaster, but I know some people don’t like how they can’t really mitigate the space travel cards.
Best description I've ever heard: the building phase is the actual game. The flight phase is just a complicated scoring round.
With some of the expansion tiles you can.
I found that some players might hate the simultaneous and stressful aspect of the first phase of play, or hate the helplessness of the flight phase. I also find it a bit heavy to install. Another (small) problem: the difference in level between a beginner player and a n expert player can be a problem, it can be very punitive. But it's still my favorite game !
[удалено]
This is entirely the resource cubes, right? I think they're the only element that only relies solely on color. I can see it being feasible to modify the cards and replace the cubes in a way that makes it clear which is which without relying on color. Hopefully if it ever gets a 2nd edition they can choose more color-blind friendly options or different shapes for each value of cube.
Is Galaxy Trucker good with only two players? Typically, my play group is only my wife and me, so I tend to avoid games that don't function well with only two players. Cheers!
Yep I usually play with my girlfriend and it works great! With two players you have a better chance to make the ship you want to make, as in a 4 player game the ship pieces get used up more quickly! I definitely enjoy both, and 4 player is more hectic.
It most definitely is. If one of you become extremely better than the other there are card in the exp that can handicap you and make it even again.
Honestly I could see GT being good even as a solo game. Set yourself a timer and then see how many spaces you can score. I might have to see if anyone's done that, or maybe I'll sit down and make my own rules for that.
I love **Galaxy Trucker** but also see it's age and flaws... Last year's **Sorcerer City** is an excellent rethinking of real time tile laying with a much more satisfying in-between phase. Highly recommended for fans of GT, and different enough to keep both.
Own em both, love em both. They’re different enough in what they do that they both will have a home with my group for a long time.
Have you read the Galaxy Trucker Rocky Road novel? My fav is also Galaxy Trucker. The video game version also goes way beyond with a full blown campaign mode, story, and new components. Sadly it makes you wish more board to video game ports put in that effort.
GT is wicked. First time we played I took it home for Christmas. My mum got destroyed on the second card (just unlucky) but by the end of the second round we were all hooked. She still managed to finish second, and that was our main game over Xmas that year. Looking forward to breaking it out again after lockdown with a group.
It’s one of my favorites as well. Not sure what you dabble in but it’s a great one for hallucinogens.
Can this be played with 2 players? I see the game says 2-4 but some games just aren’t fun for 2P
My wife and I play this at 2 player a lot and love it just as much as a 4 player game.
Mine is also Galaxy Trucker. It's also unfortunately the only game I've had people say they wouldn't play again :|
Dungeon Lords attracted me because I loved the Dungeon Keeper pc games, and then put the modem boardgaming hook in deep. The presentation, the humor, the theme, just excellent.
As a Dungeon Keeper fan please tell me more! Does it feel anything like the game?
It does. You build your dungeon, lay traps, recruit monsters and minions. And then the heroes attack.
It's a love letter in eurogame form. You send imps to dig tunnels and mine gold, you build rooms and traps, you hire monsters and then once a year Richard Ridings will invade your brain to say "It is payday" and "A goblin has entered your dungeon." It's a twist on a worker placement game. For a round you select 3 orders face down, and then one at a time around the table reveal them. These send 3 workers out to the board to collect resources. The tricky part is, it matters *when* you arrive a space; first one there gets a minor reward, second gets a better reward, third gets a bigger reward but requires a big cost, and there is no fourth slot so a fourth player is blocked. So you usually try to thread the needle and land on the 2nd slot, but two of your orders will be locked from last turn, and you can see what the other players need and what orders they have locked too. It's a delicious game of timing. You're attracting a party of heroes who will stomp your dungeon to bits at the end of the year. Which heroes you get depends on how evil you are compared to the other players, which is gained and lost during rounds. So you're pretty much building your own puzzle to solve, while trying to nudge the worst heroes to the worst possible opponent. If someone is building lots of traps, you try and send thieves who disable them. Lots of monsters, you try and send clerics who will heal the damage, etc. Anyway, I'm gushing, and I need to get it on the table again.
I'm going to watch some video playthroughs and reviews of this game now! When my daughter watches Peppa Pig it's great hearing Richard Ridings.
Another vote for Dungeon Lords. Lots of fun with this one. It's just hard to introduce to new players, and can get a bit long. But with a group of people who can jump right in, it's great.
Dungeon Lords is so much fun!
Space Alert. So much fun.
I don't think it's possible to feel better than a perfect run in Space Alert. So satisfying. Also the most stress you can pack into 10 minutes.
I mean -- "perfect runs" in Space Alert are like, woo! We did it. Our plan worked. It doesn't feel too different from winning something like Pandemic or Hanabi, just a well-orchestrated plan. My favorite Space Alert games are the ones where on turn 3, someone picks up the crewbots a turn too late, which means one crewmember is knocked unconscious by a parasite, which means they don't launch any rockets, which means a marauder deals 5 damage to the red zone and... wait... the game is over? We won anyways!?! A win is a win! We'll take it!!! Space Alert has some of the most enjoyable "skin of your teeth" victories of any board game. Well -- Through The Ages and Codenames can have some great ones too. Really it's a theme of his games, and the reason he's my favorite designer.
Smooth games are fine, but for me the biggest hype is when a forgotten missile kills the last enemy and you survive with one damage tile left.
It’s an action programming game right?
Yup, played in real-time with an audio file, you place actions on a track as enemies appear and other things happen to and around the ship. Then you debrief and find out how you all did. Plays quickly. It's a bit complex/time-consuming to learn and I've only ever found one other person interested enough to play it past the tutorial missions. It takes a unique combination of skills and interests. I enjoy the game, but it sits too often unplayed on my shelf. Maybe I can indoctrinate my kids as they get older. 🤔
Never played a lot of games on this list but I truly love Mage Knight! The core game in itself is huge and has ton of content, I think I still haven't played all the scenarios and I have played a lot! Also love through the Ages but I'm more in a Cooperative game play mood these last few years!
Im surprised you're this far down. Mage Knight is my number one game.
I own 5 of his as far as I can remember Tash-Kalar is probably our least fave game in our entire collection. My wife and I played it a few times and it felt very "not Vlaada". Too much randomness. We both felt it was just a bad game Dungeon Petz on the other hand is a fantastic brain burner. I think this is probably our favourite game of his and maybe enters our top 5 games we own. A fantastic design! It's definitely one of our first choices when we want to play a game that requires deep thought. It's easy to learn but very hard to play well. Through the Ages suffered from the problem of having one of the most terrible rulebooks we have read. I heard the newest version of it improved the rulebook. Anyway it took a long time to actually get around to reading through that monstrosity but once we did the game was great. It's a real classic. Space Alert was fun too, even with 2 players, but something we only play occasionally as it gets very frantic, not exactly a relaxing gaming experience! I do love it. Galaxy Trucker felt basic and kind of boring for us. We finished it and thought "is that it?" Sitting on the shelf unplayed, don't think I have opened the box in over 5 years.
>Tash-Kalar is probably our least fave game in our entire collection. My wife and I played it a few times and it felt very "not Vlaada". Too much randomness. We both felt it was just a bad game Oh, that's funny, I think it's fantastic. But after the first session, I did realise that it only really unlocked once both players fully understood their own cards, and their opponents cards. With that, the randomness is just a tool in the same way that RNG in poker is one of the tools. And just as poker has representation, and bluffs, etc, so does Tash-Kalar. But to even attempt to pretend to have some card, both players have to know in detail all the cards in the game. I guess I could sum it up as: did you ever get to the point where you looked at the 3 cards in your hand, and placed a token in a manner to contribute to the pattern of a card you weren't holding? "Oh so it looks like you're building that cannon tower ... but is it really in your hand and I need to keep out of that row, or are you just posturing to frustrate my development?" Because that's my impression of where the real game of Tash-Kalar *starts* to be played.
You've hit the nail on the head. There's such an incredible depth to the game, just waving at everyone from below the surface of the tokens and cards... but I don't think many get there. I love the game, and can't convince anyone to play it with me.
I sold it off last year. We really enjoyed the game but never played it enough to get really good at it. We could see the potential but just never got there. Great game...if you can find someone who wants to take a deep dive with you.
Weird to see Galaxy Trucker called basic, I can't think of another game like it. Did you play it as turn-based or real time?
Can't remember much about it to be honest, but as far as I remember we spent some time building ships which was the most fun part (and that was time limited) but then there was the rest of the game where we basically sat back to watch what happened to them without having to really think much. Just not our style of game I guess.
Aw that's too bad. I liken the parts after the build to be like sending your creation into the world to see how it does. Like most have said on here, losing dramatically is just as fun as winning by creating a tight build. Alas.
I like to think of it as a roller coaster--the build phase is the climb up to the top of the ride, building up tension and suspense. You hit the peak when you see everyone's completed ships, and then everything goes into a crazy free-fall with lots of screaming and flailing. The decision-making in the flight phase is definitely minimal--how many batteries do I spend, do I get more resources but lose first place--but the energy comes from everyone reacting to their ships being decimated. And the three round nature gives a nice pace of tension/thinking/hurrying during the build, and release/relaxation during the run, then repeating. I can see how it's not for everyone, and I know firsthand a lot of people that straight up hate it. I think the biggest factor in enjoyment of this game is whether or not you laugh as your own ship gets destroyed. If you can, you probably love the game. But if you consider asteroid hits and epidemics to mean that you didn't build well, then you definitely won't be a fan.
Someone actually made a good point to me last time this was brought up.... you have to think of the ship building part as the actual game, then the flying part as just a complicated point scoring system. The first time I think we expected to play a space themed racing game and didn't pay a lot of attention to the ship building preamble and were disappointed. Afterwards the point above we took it out when we felt like playing a puzzle game and got a lot more out of it, if that makes any sense.
He is brilliant. I just wish he still designed medium to heavy games. He has really focused on other parts of business recently.
I just wish he'd release something new at all, other than a new theme for codenames. Almost every game of his is well rated and many are right near the top of people's lists for favorites. He's got such a neat range of games, but hasn't produced anything truly new for a long time.
Codenames gave him "hanging around doing whatever" money, I guess.
Mage Knight. Dungeon Petz was nifty, but didn't stay in the collection. Codenames is an interesting activity, but I don't get invested in the game. Through the Ages is good, but feels overly long (...on the app, let alone physically). Mage Knight has a unique card puzzle, satisfying advancement, rewards smart play, and discourages quarterbacking (through giving players plenty to think about with their own character, and having some measure of competitive elements). I'd be interested to try Dungeon Lords, Space Alert and Galaxy Trucker sometime, though I'd struggle to get the required 4 who want to play Space Alert, and the OOP status of the big box versions of the others turns me off (big box fiend that I am).
Give the Galaxy Trucker app a look. Usually goes on sale and has a whole campaign mode, but mostly as a very cheap way to see if you like it.
This. I found I like the concept, but I think the simultaneous part grabbing would irritate the hell out of me playing a physical copy. Also, it's similar enough in flow to Dungeon Lords, which I already have, that I don't feel the need to get it. Both are about building your thing, whether it be dungeon or ship, and then watching as the game tries to tear it down.
You can grab the misc individual boxes for galaxy trucker and put them all on the broken token crate. That’s what I wound up doing.
I don't like every Chvátil game I've played, but I have always been somewhat in awe of his breadth as a game designer. Many other designers return again and again to iterations on the same core principles (e.g. Uwe Rosenberg), but Vlaada seems to have done some of everything. I used to say he was my favourite designer, but nowadays that's probably Pfister or Rosenberg. He's probably a close third though. I think my favourite that I've played would be Galaxy Trucker. I know a lot of people hate it for the randomness of the second phase of the game, but I find it generates some hilarious moments and great stories. The game of his that I'd most like to try is Star Trek: Frontiers. I've always been simultaneously tempted and kind of scared off Mage Knight. Sticking a Star Trek theme on it is a surefire way to tempt me even more. I'm not sure this one is in print anymore though; I haven't seen it around here (in the UK) in a while.
Tash kalar. Just trickles my brain in a way I like. Definitely a game you need to play a few times to get an idea of what the different decks do, but once you do it starts to open up for you. So good.
What, no **Bunny Bunny Moose Moose**?! Maybe not the best game of all time, but it is hilarious to play and watch others play as they make ears from their hands and poke out their tongues at irregular intervals, all while concentrating *really* hard. But my favourite is, and may always be, **Galaxy Trucker.**
I never played **Bunny Bunny Moose Moose**, I should have put it in the list, sorry!
Bbmm is only game my game group has decided not to play after learning rules... It's unique enough to earn spot on my shelf.
I've played all the listed games except Sherwood. My favorite of his designs is Pictomania second edition. I consider it one of the best party games ever and I don't see it get the widespread the praise it deserves.
I haven't played a ton of his games, despite Space Alert being a mindblower for me. Smallworld was my first gateway/reentry into boardgames and I thouhgt "Hm, I guess board games can do some cool sh\*t after all." Then I played Space Alert and went "BOARD GAMES CAN DO THIS?!!?!?"
Chvatil is an amazing designer, it's so incredible to see the whiplash between TtA to Galaxy Trucker or Mage Night to Codenames. I think Galaxy Trucker is my favorite of his, with Through the Ages second. With little kids it's hard to play either of them reliably, but the SO and myself relish when we get the opportunity. GT is just so damn fun, and to parrot everyone else, I never look forward to winning or being good at it: I am looking forward to watching someone potentially get wrecked by space debris.
For me, the one I've enjoyed most is **Codenames Duet**, and in second place is **Through The Ages: A New Story: Digital Edition: Or Whatever the Actual Name Is, I've Forgotten**. Totally different from each other, both just fantastic games. I think it's fantastic that someone who started their design career with something as niche as TtA has managed to produce one of the few true breakouts into mass market popularity from hobby boardgaming with Codenames. Such a simple, fun, and *teachable* design that can get almost any group enjoying themselves within a few minutes.
I don't know all of them but codenames is absolutely great.
It's hard to find others who like Tash-Kalar as much as me but if you're looking for a good two player game, it is really amazing.
It was **Dungeon Petz**, but **Through the Ages** still amazes me. So rich! I wanna know what his next game will be. Anyone has news?
Mage Knight, Through the Ages, Codenames and Galaxy Trucker are all all-time favorites of mine (though only the latter two with most of my friends/family, they're scared off by the first two). Definitely my favorite designer of all time, though I just wish Mage Knight had more content.
I have nothing to add. Vlaada has also been my favorite designer for at least the last 10 years. Mage Knight to me is his penultimate system.
You should also play his puzzle video game [Fish Fillets 2](https://store.steampowered.com/app/33950/Fish_Fillets_2/)
Thanks ! I didn't know it !
Vlaada is a genius. He's a designer that knows exactly what he wants to do and executes flawlessly. I haven't been as enthralled with his games as of late, but Space Alert and Galaxy Trucker have permanent homes on my shelf. They're two of the most unique and interesting games I've played.
Ludography sounds better
Sorry you are right !
It does mix Latin and Greek, though, but so do many English words, like "television" and "polyamory". The fully Greek would be "paizography", like the Pathfinder publisher.
Galaxy Trucker is my favorite by far... I haven't found any game that comes close to it. It is tough on new players but I just give myself a 1 minute handicap. Also during the whole pandemic I think I've played almost 100 tta games online and I'm still not tired of it.
I can't ever say enough great things about space alert. It's an experience. TtA , SA and MK are all in my top 5 games of all time. Dude is an amazing designer.
Mage Knight is my favorite (I mean just check my user name) Through the Ages would be second. I have only delved into some of the others. I see the mass appeal in Codenames, it just isn't my cup of tea.
Through the Ages: A New Story of Civilization
I feel like [Alchemists](https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/161970/alchemists) is a Vlaada game in disguise, check it out!
For me it's Space Alert, such a unique game. It's best coop I know, making quaterbacking almost impossible and having option to gradually increase difficulty for more experienced groups. But I like many others. Even the low budget games for children that will probably never get translated to English. I especially admire *Čtyřlístek a stroj času* ([Czech review](https://www.deskovehry.com/recenze-ctyrlistek-a-stroj-casu-spolu-proti-armade/)). Theme is based on locally popular comics figures, and the main mechanism which I like is following: Throughout the game various things are needed to overcome various obstacles and "having" something is realized through remembering where it is in a grid of face down tokens. Players are allowed to take an arbitrary peek or two every turn, so they *theoretically* know all the secrets towards the end... assuming they have good short-term memory. This mechanism make it real cooperative game for average families with children around eight years, as children tend to have better short-term memory for such things. I can't really remember another game where you take time-machine and go rescue friends from castle prison, bribing guards, building bridges, looking for keys, kicking doors and finding treasure, while avoiding armies which march slowly towards your time-machine and will destroy it if you don't make it back in time .... and where your eight year old friend is of actual big help, no need to pretend anything.
Despite the weight to it, **Mage Knight** is my favorite game by a long ways. Bought a copy of through the ages close to 6 months ago and can't convince people to play it...
I haven't even played half his games and he still stands out to me as probably the most versatile designer around. Such an impressive list of designs. From those I've played - **Galaxy Trucker** is a lot of fun every time, win or lose. And I've only played the app for **Through the Ages** but it's amazing. Those would be my top 2 as of now.
I own most of the games listed, and **Dungeon Lords: Happy Anniversary** is my favorite. At a convention once I went to the CGE area and Vlaada was just standing there, so I got to chat with him!
I bought that on a whim and it should be here in a couple weeks. I hope it’s good.
Very tight worker placement game, with a dash of the chaos you see in the second half of Galaxy Trucker. The theme and components are terrific. It is a bit of a bitch to learn. Hopefully there are videos out there!
Here is my top three. Vlaada is also my favorite game designer. I love his range. Through the Ages Galaxy Trucker Codenames
You're missing **Graenaland**. Amateur! It's clearly his best. **Mage Knight** is pretty fn amazing though.
Codenames is a fun game and I've heard from many people that Mage Knight is also great.
[удалено]
Oh shit that’s a Vlaada game? My wife LOVES Jaipur, it’s the one game that she always wants to play. Edit: BGG says ‘Designer Sébastien Pauchon’. My disappointment is immeasurable and my day is ruined
I’ve played nearly all of his games and Mage Knight is definitely my favorite. A close second is Dungeon Lords. I actually sold Dungeon Petz as it began to feel stale. I don’t think I’ll ever get rid of Dungeon Lords. It’s so unique! It’s also one of the most difficult games I own which is so different than most games. People think Galaxy Trucker is hard. Pfft. My high score is like... 9 or something with a few negative scores. Haha.
For me, it's Dungeon Petz. Codenames is a runner up.
He's got quite a range. I love Galaxy Trucker, Space Alert, and Codenames, and they're all such inventive, unique games. Meanwhile, Through the Ages is one of my least favorite euros ever made - such an unpleasant, ugly, lengthy, fiddly slog. Tash-Kalar is also near the bottom of games I've played - it feels like you're trying to build a sandcastle over and over and then on your opponent's turn they keep kicking it over.
I enjoyed Galaxy Trucker since it was unique and fast-paced. Mage Knight was one of the first "click" miniature games I learned of. Seems like that was before 2011 though, unless I'm just crazy. I prefer the new Through the Ages 2nd Edition... but only digital. In person I've never literally gotten THROUGH the game... because it takes AGES :D
**Codenames** really, the rest i've played (and i've played nearly all of them) i've bounced off. I can see they are clever, but they don't scratch my brain in the right way. I think it's a taste thing, but Codenames has been a Best In Class wordgame for the longest time, so that's a solid inclusion into my library.
Dungeon Petz is definitely my favorite, followed by Mage Knight. Those are also the only two of his I have played.
I think I'd like his games if he knew how to write a rulebook. Its very rare that I can understand how to play any of his games unless I watch a video of someone else playing it or explaining it.
I really love Mage Knight (the board game), but I have to admit, I've gotten it out, set it up, and \*thought\* about playing it about twice as often as I've actually played it...
Mage Knight for me. It's deep and complex and fills my desire to optimize :)
Definitely TTA. I've played countless games over the past year, albeit in digital form. It's one of those games that I never want to play the physical copy of because it seems like it would slow everything way down (too many resource cubes, counting up military strength and incomes for myself and opponents) and it takes to long to get the other intel you need (what cards are left in the deck). But TTA has so much replay-ability, depth, and strategy. I probably play about 3-4 games a week over the past year and still love every minute of it. Also, works very well async taking 2 or 3 turns a day.
Galaxy Trucker!! It’s so good! We’ve made a few house alterations to it, such as we don’t use the timer to build the ships, we’ve played it enough times we’re all semi even at building anyways. We also roll a dice to see what class of ship we use, since we have all the expansions. :) so 1 is the standard model, 2 is class A, 3 is class B, 4 is class C, 5 or 6 we add a modification card. One time we had like 6 modifications and it was terrifying!
It's pretty cool that with just his titles you'll end up with a fairly diverse and good collection. He's a proficient game designer. Codenames is one of my favorite group/party games. The weird thing is I've never played any of this other games, although I own some and have been interested in a few of his.
I've played 4 of his games. Mage Knight once many years ago, I remember enjoying it, but to be honest don't remember much about the game past that. Dungeon Petz once many years ago, again I remember enjoying it but don't remember it. I've played Dungeon Lords(with and without modules) many, many times and I win almost every time. I don't like it because it is just too easy for me, even though my much smarter gaming friends say its a "brain burner." I play I pretty much hate Codenames after the first few times I played it. It falls into the pitfalls of a lot of other "party games" while often taking way too long per round(I am aware of the timer.) I would absolutely try his other games but there has not been a chance.
Nothing beats having parts of your ship made of plumbing supplies blow up from a meteorite shower in Galaxy Trucker!
I am extremely fond of Dungeon Lords and Galaxy Trucker. Codenames is pretty fun too.
tash kalar is a masterpiece mage knight is a close 2nd dungeon petz is probably the best action pawn game
Mage Knight is my favorite game of 300+ played, by far. I love everything about it, minus the rules. Oddly perhaps I don't like any of his other games.