Saturday, October 16, 2010

And the Games Magazine Game of the Year goes to...


...um, Jump Gate?  This year Games Magazine makes an... "unusual" choice for the best game of the year.  Not a bad choice as far as I know, as I have yet to play the game to decide, but a game that I have never heard of and has made little to no waves in the gaming community.


This is actually kind of par for the course for Games Magazine.  I've been reading them since I was a little kid, before BoardGameGeek or even the advent of the internet as we know it (oh god,  so old.)  I used to get giddy when the December issue arrived always two months early.  I'd spend the afternoon drooling over all the great board games that I thought I'd never get to play.  In the last decade, since they split the board games up from the video games, their choices of top game each year have definitely been interesting.  Last year was definitely a good pick - Small World from Days of Wonder.   But take 2004, for example - Alan Moon's New England won.  This was the year another game from Alan Moon came out called Ticket to Ride.  It swept the Spiel des Jahres and remains one of the best-selling games of all time.  Does anyone still remember the out-of-print New England?  I have a copy somewhere which I had bought on the recommendation.  Must play that a second time....
I must say I'm curious to play Jump Gate, given that Small World and Torres have won previously.  But does anyone have a copy so we can try it?

6 comments:

  1. I dont think this is an "out of left field" pick thought cause the dice tower also gave it a great review

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  2. I guess I'm just curious as to how they decided this one. "Lords of Vegas" also just got a great Dice Tower review but showed up nowhere in the magazine. And given that a few Spiel des Jahres winners have also topped the list in previous years, it's curious.

    I get the feeling they wanted to push something a little more independent this year which is a nice gesture (and I'm sure Mike Worden appreciates it), but I'm uncertain yet as to whether it really is the best game this year. Again, I'll have to play it...

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  3. that is true
    but i always find with awards i never know the cut off date for them
    they always have older games in the mix like Arimaa for example
    so maybe lords of vegas didnt make the time line cut

    unless this gets picked up by a bigger publisher i dont think i will be trying it out. for a game crafters game i see that its priced pretty expensive i need a little more production value plus it will be inflated with shipping cost and tac on some customs charges for crossing the border. If i recall it Tom was impressed at the game mechanic never playing a game like it.

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  4. I really identify with your comments on growing up with Games magazine! I thought I was the only one with memories of being a kid back in the 80's with this magazine. I will always remember the anticipation of the December issue. That was like the equivalent of boardgamegeek back in the day, but special because once a year.

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  5. Yep, thos afternoons and evenings were awesome! Drooling over game after game of their top 100...

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    ReplyDelete