Five Games for Doomsday The Best Games in the World-5G4D's Top 100-60-51
Nov 21, 2025
Ben Maddox discusses the brilliance and complexity of Age of Steam while exploring the strategic tension of trick-taking games like Voodoo Prince and N'Yet. He celebrates the explosive confrontational fun of Kemet and the elegant simplicity of Ethnos. Drafting dynamics come alive in Challengers, while Seti impresses with its optimistic design. Carcassonne earns its spot as a mass-market favorite with versatile tile-building, and Ben highlights the engaging design of a Feld euro. Tune in for a dive into board game treasures!
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CabinCon: A Tiny But Perfect Convention
- Ben Maddox hosted a small convention called CabinCon in Melente, Germany with ten attendees.
- He praised the weekend as one of his best gaming experiences with no drama and lots of short games.
Elegance Through Simple Rules
- Ben argues Age of Steam may be the best-designed game on the list despite his personal difficulty with it.
- He praises its simple rules producing unfathomable depth and calls Martin Wallace a genius for this design.
Scoring Twists Make Tricks Tense
- Ben highlights Knizia's ability to apply clever scoring across genres, praising Voodoo Prince's twist on trick-taking.
- He notes elimination timing and incentive design create tension and hilarity in play.
