Good/decent (or better) abstract board games...

[hitbyambulance]

suggestions? i'm pretty familiar with the traditional ones (Checkers, Chess, Go, Backgammon, 9 Man's Morris, Mancala, etc), so newer ones would be welcome. i do like Blokus and that one where you 'eat' the other pieces (Russian doll-like) on the grid... i have Polarity... Quoridor seemed broken...

actually, i would like suggestions on any game that has 'deep' play possibilities. these tend to not be tied to a theme, but i might be surprised....

[Sepiche]

I've never played it personally, but I hear good things about Dvonn

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[Ænima]

You should check out Samurai. It does have a light theme, but the game is very abstract in nature. It does have a little bit of luck involved, but I find that it makes each play of the game a little different, rather than taking away from the strategic depth.

[freelunch]

Abalone isn't bad.

[Grundbegriff]

Octi Extreme.



Unusually deep because it was designed as part of a research program aimed at creating a computer-resistant game. Out of print, but sometimes available on eBay.

Not terribly deep, but relatively cool (hey-- lasers!), is Khet, formerly (and for two more weeks) known as Deflexion. They're pimping the old version as a collectible (rather than flawed and trademark-violating). Buy the forthcoming one instead. The pieces are nicer.

[hitbyambulance]

Deflexion looked like my sorta thing. $40 tho... gonna wait on that. do the lasers show up in mid-air, or do you have to have a smoke machine nearby?

i have played Abalone... that was fun.
i've also played Samurai on the PC. it was worthy. didn't care so much for the camel-in-the-desert one, tho (Across the Desert?)

Dvonn looks good, and Octi looks awesome.... would like to find that.

[JonathanStrange]

Deflexion looks cool, easily learned, and with plenty of replay value. I have to consider it - and the other games mentioned here also.

[Chaz]

Deflexion (or Khet now, I guess) is very nifty. It's easy to convince people to play, because it's got lasers. There's an expansion coming out this fall that includes a beam splitter piece, which I really want.

[Archinerd]

I would also suggest Renier Kinizia's Samurai. It plays quick and looks good, but also has farily deep strategy. I also like Tigris & Euphrates, its a little more complex but shares some similarities.

Ent Decker is a little older and has a little bit too much luck in my opinion, but is still fun and has some nice exploration mechanics.

If you're looking for another Blokus like game, I've heard Gemblo is good, its similar but uses hex-pieces and supports 6 players.

If you want more of a wargame I would suggest Bonaparte at Marengo, its a 2 player Napoleonic boardgame that has been compared to chess. I really enjoy this one, but it's not easy for casual players to pick up.

[Jow]

Here's another vote for Samurai - wonderful game. Navia Drapt is another interesting game with a different take on chess, but it's a collectible game so you'd probably end up spending more than $50 if you're a completist.

[Vesper]

I've enjoyed all of the Gipf project games I've played, particularly Zertz and the original Gipf game. I've heard good things about many of the others.

[Grafvolluth]

Through the Desert

All the Gipf project games
-Dvonn
-Yinsh
-Zertz
-Gipf etc.

Hive


Checkout Boardgamegeek.com and just go the Abstract Strategy games.

[unic]

Depends on how rare stuff you're willing to hunt down.

*Star from Kadon (www.gamepuzzles.com) has become one of my favourite abstracts - it's got plenty of depth. It's sort of a mix of a territorial game and a connectivity game - to me, it in many ways feel similar to Go, the classic oriental game, but better.

Creeper from Pin International / Out of the Box (www.otb-games.com) is an interesting game, and not as light as many of the other games in Pin's series. Your goal is to connect your two corners - but to do this, you move your 8 pieces around, and can capture the other guy's pieces.

Navia Dratp is highly recommended - it's collectable, but you get plenty of game out of just buying the two starters. It's a weird chess-variant, borrowing a fair bit of influence from Shogi, and adding some very interesting twists of its own.

If you enjoy Blokus, I'd recommend looking into Rumis, which borrows some ideas from Blokus, but is with three-dimensional blocks instead of two-dimensional.

Santorini is an excellent and very different abstract - though I have no clue where to get hold off it - your best bet would be contacting the designer directly (which is how I ended up getting my copy).

The Gipf series are all good games - I'd particularly recommend Dvonn and Pünct out of them. A lot of people like Zertz the best, but to me, it feels overly tactical - a lot of setting up long puzzle-like forced sequences.

Amazons is a good territorial game, and easy to make your own copy of. There are also programs for it available online, if you want a bot to practice against.

Imago (Mem), available from Kadon, is a very different abstract games - you build patterns, that have to match patterns on the board, but with colours substituted. I haven't played anything else that is like it.

ConHex is a good connection game - but again, you'd probably have to make your own copy.

Project Kells is a very interesting and visually appealing series of abstract games. It's made by a small Irish company, but I think some of the american online shops carry it.

Finally, some games that don't look like typical abstracts, but once you come under the veneer, are abstracts, are Through the Desert, Atlanteon and Tutankhamen, all designed by Reiner Knizia.

... and while we're talking about abstract games, I'd like to put in a recommendation for Richard's pbem-server (www.gamerz.net/pbmserv) which support many obscure abstracts. Nowadays, there is a graphical webinterface for many of the games, though some of them, one still has to do the oldfashioned way, via emails.

If you need more information about any of these, www.boardgamegeek.com is a good place to start - or feel free to email me - I am big-time into abstracts.

[Scanner]

I haven't played most of the above games, but I do have the starter sets of Navia Dratp and really enjoy it.

Octi Extreme.

Unusually deep because it was designed as part of a research program aimed at creating a computer-resistant game. Out of print, but sometimes available on eBay.

Well, I just snagged one on ebay based on your recommendation, so I hope it's good! It's the tinkertoy version and not the pictured plastic version, though.

[KleineTako]

For online, you should also check out http://www.brettspielwelt.de/. There are more than enough english speakers on there to make it fun.

This one isn't exactly theme-light, but it's one of the best bidding/low-luck games I own: Power Grid

I've also had great luck with Bohnanza. It's a light, fun card game that is very easy to teach to newcomers.

[Juntei]

Ricochet Robot!

[Mithridates]

Maybe it was already mentioned, but I like Ingenious from Reiner Knizia. It's also known as Einfach Genial. The link is to an online version of it.

[hitbyambulance]

it's been about a decade since i originally posted this topic, so i would like to know what are good and new abstract board games that have come out since 2005? had found some really nice ones thanks to this thread, and think it's time to get up to date again.

(and supposedly the Gipf Project games will be reprinted this year)

[Blackhawk]

I'm not sure what qualifies as 'abstract', but I can't help but recommend Qwirkle. Very simple rules, but it has a decent amount of depth. Visually appealing, quick to teach.

[Anonymous Bosch]

My favourite has to be Hive Carbon:


(click to embiggen)

The goal of the game is to place or move your various pieces in and around the 'The Hive' so that they completely surround the opponent's queen bee. It's two-player only, and plays like a freeform version of chess, and much like chess, is incredibly easy to learn, yet difficult to master. Makes for a splendid travel game, too, as it includes a travel case to accomodate all the pieces, and can be played anywhere on any flat surface. The pieces themselves are made out of excellent-quality thick and solid bakelite, and are a real pleasure to handle.

The Carbon version's identical to the original Hive game, only with a monochrome design of black insects on white pieces and white insects on black pieces. It also includes two expansions, the Mosquito and the Ladybug, which must otherwise be purchased seperately with the original edition. There's also Hive Pocket, which is a much smaller, and even more portable edition that also includes the Mosquito and Ladybug expansions.

[Anonymous Bosch]

One other more recent abstract game also comes to mind, and that's Patchwork.

I don't own it, though I do remember it being immensely enjoyable when I played it. Seriously, don't let the theme put you off; it's an absolutely top-notch Uwe Rosenberg light abstract game, that involves a clever mix of money management, spatial planning, opponent reading, and time management, along with a great Tetris-like feel.

[Archinerd]

One other more recent abstract game also comes to mind, and that's Patchwork.

I don't own it, though I do remember it being immensely enjoyable when I played it. Seriously, don't let the theme put you off; it's an absolutely top-notch Uwe Rosenberg light abstract game, that involves a clever mix of money management, spatial planning, opponent reading, and time management, along with a great Tetris-like feel.

Yep. I've been recommending this to everybody I see since I got it.

[Chrisoc13]

I recommend patchwork, hive pocket, and recently I've been enjoying Torres. I'll think of some others.

[AWS260]

My favourite has to be Hive Carbon:

I really like this too. The Carbon version is so nice to handle and transports very easily.

[Anonymous Bosch]

I was discussing this with a friend earlier, who reminded me of another worthwhile and somewhat-recent abstract game, namely The Duke:



The game is played on a small 6x6 gameboard, with the goal being to capture the opponent's Duke, so it's certainly reminiscent of chess. Unlike chess though, you play using a variety of wooden tile pieces, each of which moves in different and interesting ways, clearly depicted on the tile itself. What makes it more interesting though, is after each move with a piece, you flip it over and it'll show a new set of movement patterns. So each piece on the board alternates between two different possible movement patterns. The constant flipping of tiles makes for a surprisingly innovative game, as pieces can change from a knight/bishop hybrid to something more akin to a jumping rook. Fortunately, the new moves are all balanced, as well as easy to use and understand. So no one piece will completely break the game, or leave you confused as to how to play them. If you end your movement in a square occupied by an opponent's tile, you capture it. Capture the opponent's Duke, and the game is won.

The game also involves a degree of unpredictability, as your various pieces are kept hidden in a cloth bag during play, and are chosen at random when deployed to the board, which eliminates any tedious memorization of chess openings or the like. The random nature of the drawn tiles also means that veteran players must adjust strategies on the fly, while new players won’t get instantly annihilated. I'd say the average game lasts for around fifteen to twenty minutes or so, so it plays fairly quickly, too.

If the game is of any interest, it's worth noting that the publisher provides a free print & play version of the game that can be downloaded from their web site (along with all the rules and reference sheets n' such). So, if you like, you can try before you buy.

[hitbyambulance]

i've played Qwirkle and the original Hive before, but i appreciate the Carbon visual update. Patchwork, Torres and The Duke all look promising.

[LordMortis]

it's been about a decade since i originally posted this topic, so i would like to know what are good and new abstract board games that have come out since 2005? had found some really nice ones thanks to this thread, and think it's time to get up to date again.

(and supposedly the Gipf Project games will be reprinted this year)

He doesn't post very often but if you get ThatSteveGuy to peek around, he always brings new and interesting abstract games to OctoCon.