My Year in Games: 2012

Starting near the end of April 2011, I began to track every game I play (give or take a few, I'm sure) on Board Game Geek. And starting in January of 2012, I gave an overview of the games I played in the previous year, namely my "nickels and dimes" (games played 5+ and 10+ times, respectively).

It's time to continue that tradition. Here's my list of nickels and dimes from 2012, along with some commentary and a comparison to my list from 2011.

Stocking Stuffer Guide 2012

  "Children are grateful when Santa Claus puts in their stockings gifts of toys or sweets. Could I not be grateful to Santa Claus when he put in my stockings the gift of two miraculous legs?"
--G. K. Chesterton

There are likely as many stocking traditions as there are families who stuff stockings. I remember commercials from my youth suggesting that a diamond tennis bracelet--because it did not break the size constraint--was a suitable stocking stuffer. (If that's the case, make the stockings bigger--roughly the square, Fantasy Flight size game box.) In my family, "stocking stuffer" is a price range rather than a size limitation, and our stockings are often accompanied by bonus grocery sacks with things that are too big to fit in the stockings we have.

But for today's discussion of my recommendations for board game stocking stuffers, I'm offering two categories: one of small size, small cost games, and one of slightly larger games falling into a similar price range. Filler (stuffer?) games, if you will.

Here are my picks for 2012. Enjoy! (And if you're interested in larger games to give as gifts, check out our full 2012 gift guide.)

DeNile Is the First Stage of Sheaf (a review of Nile Deluxor)

 [Editors note: The following is a Nemesis Review, featuring opinions from our in-house eurogamer, @Farmerlenny, and his deadly enemy the thematic space-loving @Futurewolfie.  Make sure to read both opinions to get a better overall picture of the game!]

At Christmas when I was a kid, I always wanted to unwrap the big presents first. My line of reasoning went like this: toys are in big boxes, clothes are in small boxes. There are some toys small enough to fit in small boxes, but these aren't as cool as toys that come in big boxes. If I open the big boxes first, then I'll have something to play with once all I have left to open is small boxes.

Sometimes we don't grow out of these things.

It's easy for me, now that my toys are disguised as board games, to continue in the "bigger is better" mind-set. Bigger box: better bits. But this is not always the case, which brings me to Nile Deluxor.

What did I think of this small-box game? Check out the review below!