In tabletop games and video games, game mechanics specify how a game works for the players. Game mechanics include the rules or ludemes that govern and guide player actions, as well as the game's response to them. A rule is an instruction on how to play, while a ludeme is an element of play, such as the L-shaped move of the knight in chess. The interplay of various mechanics determines the game's complexity and how the players interact with the game. All games use game mechanics; however, different theories disagree about their degree of importance to a game. The process and study of game design includes efforts to develop game mechanics that engage players.
Pandemic is a cooperative board game designed by Matt Leacock and first published by Z-Man Games in the United States in 2008. Pandemic is based on the premise that four diseases have broken out in the world, each threatening to wipe out a region. The game accommodates two to four players, each playing one of seven possible roles: dispatcher, medic, scientist, researcher, operations expert, contingency planner, or quarantine specialist. Through the combined effort of all the players, the goal is to discover all four cures before any of several game-losing conditions are reached.
Dominion is a card game created by Donald X. Vaccarino and published by Rio Grande Games. Originally published in 2008, it was the first deck-building game, and inspired a genre of games building on its central mechanic.
7 Wonders is a board game created by Antoine Bauza in 2010 and originally published by Repos Production. Three decks of cards featuring images of historical civilizations, armed conflicts, and commercial activity are used in the card drafting game 7 Wonders. The game received critical success upon its release, and won numerous awards, including the inaugural Kennerspiel des Jahres connoisseurs' award in 2011.
Lords of Waterdeep is a German-style board game designed by Peter Lee and Rodney Thompson and published by Wizards of the Coast in 2012. The game is set in Waterdeep, a fictional city in the Forgotten Realms campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. Players take the roles of the masked rulers of Waterdeep, deploying agents and hiring adventurers to complete quests and increase their influence over the city.
Splendor is a multiplayer card-based board game, designed by Marc André and illustrated by Pascal Quidault. It was published in 2014 by Space Cowboys (Asmodee). Players are gem merchants of the Renaissance, developing gem mines, transportation, and shops to accumulate prestige points. Splendor received positive reviews and received numerous awards, including winner of Golden Geek Best Family Board Game. It was nominated for the Spiel des Jahres Game of the Year in 2014. The game also received a mobile application and an expansion released in 2017.
Scythe is a board game for one to five players designed by Jamey Stegmaier and published by Stonemaier Games in 2016. Set in an alternative history version of 1920s Europe, players control factions that produce resources, develop economic infrastructure, and use dieselpunk combat mechs to engage in combat and control territories. Players take up to two actions per turn using individual player boards, and the game proceeds until one player has earned six achievements. At this point, the players receive coins for the achievements they have attained and the territories they control, and the player with the most coins is declared the winner.
Terraforming Mars is a board game for 1 to 5 players designed by Jacob Fryxelius and published by FryxGames in 2016, and thereafter by 12 others, including Stronghold Games. In Terraforming Mars, players take the role of corporations working together to terraform the planet Mars by raising the temperature, adding oxygen to the atmosphere, covering the planet's surface with water and creating plant and animal life. The game incorporates elements of resource management, engine building, and strategic planning. Players compete to earn the most victory points, which are measured by their contribution to terraforming and to human infrastructure. These goals are achieved by collecting income and resources which allow them to play various projects, represented by cards that increase their income or resources, build infrastructure, or directly contribute to terraforming the planet. The game was received positively by fans and critics, and received numerous awards.
Gloomhaven is a cooperative board game for one to four players designed by Isaac Childres and published by Cephalofair Games in 2017. It is a campaign-based dungeon crawl game including a narrative campaign, 95 unique playable scenarios, and 17 playable classes. Since its introduction the game has been acclaimed by reviewers, and has been described as one of the best board games ever made.
A roguelike deck-building game is a hybrid genre of video games that combines the nature of deck-building card games with procedural-generated randomness from roguelike games.
Wingspan is a board game designed by Elizabeth Hargrave and published by Stonemaier Games in 2019. It is a card-driven, engine-building board game in which players compete to attract birds to their wildlife reserves. During the game's development process, Hargrave constructed personal charts of birds observed in Maryland, with statistics sourced from various biological databases; the special powers of birds were also selected to resemble real-life characteristics. Upon its release, Wingspan received critical and commercial acclaim for its gameplay, accurate thematic elements, and artwork. The game also won numerous awards, including the 2019 Kennerspiel des Jahres. Several expansions and a digital edition have been subsequently published.
Root: A Game of Woodland Might and Right is a 2018 asymmetric strategy wargame board game designed by Cole Wehrle, illustrated by Kyle Ferrin, and published by Leder Games. In Root, players compete for the most victory points through moving and battling using various factions with unique abilities. Upon its release, Root received positive reviews, and was followed by four expansions. A digital version, developed by Dire Wolf Digital, was released in 2020.
Inscryption is a 2021 roguelike deck-building game developed by Daniel Mullins Games and published by Devolver Digital. Directed by Daniel Mullins, it was originally released for Windows on October 19, 2021, and on Linux, macOS, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S over the following two years. The game puts the player in a cabin where a mysterious gamemaster makes them play a tabletop game.
Sagrada is a dice-drafting board game designed by Adrian Adamescu and Daryl Andrews and published in 2017 by Floodgate Games. Each player constructs a stained-glass window using dice on a personal 4×5 game board board with restrictions on the types of dice that can be played on each space. Players gain points by completing public and secret objectives for dice placements, and the one with the most after ten rounds is the winner.
Parks is a board game with a theme based on the national parks of the United States, published by Keymaster Games. The game's art was derived from the Fifty-Nine Parks Print Series.
Oceans is a nature-themed strategy board game published in 2020 by North Star Games. It is a game in the Evolution series.
Viticulture is a worker placement board game published by Stonemaier Games in 2013. The game's design was crowdfunded via a campaign on Kickstarter, with the concept of players building an Italian vineyard. Upon its release, Viticulture received praise for its engagement, but its luck was critiqued. Several expansions and reprints were later released.
Ark Nova is a strategic board game for up to four people. It was designed by game designer Mathias Wigge, and first published in 2021. In Ark Nova, players aim to score conservation and appeal points by building a zoo. Upon its release, Ark Nova received positive reviews and received several awards.
Cascadia is a 2021 board game designed by Randy Flynn and published by Flatout Games. In Cascadia, players draft and add habitat tokens and matching wildlife tokens to score victory points based on various scoring conditions. Upon its release, Cascadia received critical success, with reviewers praising its components, accessibility, and strategy, but also noting its lack of player interaction. Cascadia won the 2022 Spiel des Jahres and the 2023 International Gamers Award for the Best solo game.
Tapestry is a 2019 strategy board game designed by Jamey Stegmaier and published by Stonemaier Games.
