The editors' favourite board games

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Dune: Imperium

(André Lamartine)
There's no point in skimping on the praise here: the Dune: Imperium licence is one of the most brilliant things ever to be spread out on our gaming tables. Nor are we exaggerating when we say that Dune: Imperium should be on every board gamer's shelf. There's not a dull moment in this phenomenal game, which is all about conquering Dune at all costs. When you're not fighting over squares to place your pieces on, you're constantly playing a political game about which faction to form an alliance with and how many soldiers to sacrifice to win the game's constant conflicts. Dune: Imperium is a wonderful blend of worker placement mechanics and deckbuilding, where you slowly but surely build up an intriguing deck of cards that provides an addictive amount of flavour every time you play. The latest edition called "Dune: Imperium - Uprising" is also EVEN better and EVEN more polished. What are you waiting for, you lazy sandworm? Save your summer with Dune: Imperium!

Final Girl

(André Lamartine)
Horror film fans, behold! Sometimes it can be a pure privilege to experience a solo game if it's as thoughtful and passionate as the horror flick Final Girl, which itself is a wonderful love letter to the conventions of the horror film genre. As the title suggests, you play as one of many 'final girls' who have grown tired of running from their abusers and instead build up the courage to face their nightmare head on. This is done by playing dice and trading cards to increase your chances of slaying the bad guy once and for all. The boss mechanics are easy to learn and if you tolerate a high luck factor in your games, Final Girl will deliver plenty of unforgettably intense confrontations. The best thing about Final Girl? Charmingly, each expansion is packaged as a VHS cassette, with each "film" offering new horror movie villains to play with. So everything from Freddy Krueger clones, zombies and The Thing-scented mutants are available for horror enthusiasts who want to brighten up their summer evenings with cosy gaming fun...

Planet Unknown

(André Lamartine)
Sometimes the number of players around the table is a bit tricky. Some games become uneven if there aren't the right number of players and if there are too many players, the game night can risk becoming a long drawn out mess. However, these problems are eliminated with Planet Unknown, a polyomino game for up to six players that works equally well regardless of the number of players as all participants play their rounds simultaneously. Planet Unknown is as simple as it is difficult to master, with each player having to colonise their own planet with the most efficient tile placements possible to out-compete their opponents. Planet Unknown is one of those games that is always a guaranteed hit regardless of the gaming group thanks to its accessibility and cleverness, where each player has to pick a tile from a spinning UFO and make sure to fill their planet as much as possible. It's like Tetris with plenty of tactical depth and seemingly endless replay value, making Planet Unknown a lifesaver every time.

Sushi Go Party

(Marcus Persson)
One of the essential games to have on the shelf at home, perfect for squeezing in between two heavier, more complex titles and which lends itself well to being enjoyed by multiple age groups thanks to its simple, clear concept. Sushi Go Party is simply a card game where you pick a card, play it and then pass the pile on to the next person, with the aim of ultimately scoring the most points through various combinations. This is repeated over three rounds, with each card having different rules for how it scores points. As more and more cards are played, it is also possible to predict to some extent what your opponent is trying to achieve, which creates the potential for a lot of excitement. Unlike the original, the "Party" box also supports up to eight players instead of just five, without taking up more space. Sushi Go Party is as clever as it is simple, with a fantastically fun theme and expressive, beautiful components.

Taco Back Goat Cheese Pizza

(Marcus Persson)
The sequel to the equally charming and tongue-in-cheek Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza follows in the same crazy footsteps while delivering more of the same extremely accessible fun. Young or old, it doesn't matter. Taco Back Goat Cheese Pizza offers something for all ages and whether it's a bit of family fun that's the goal, or entertaining friends while waiting for the BBQ goodness to finish. Taco Back Goat Cheese Pizza won't disappoint and is easily customised for anything from two to eight players. The game can best be described as an intense word game where the cards you play down in front of you dictate what you should do, or more correctly - say, each turn. On your turn, you turn over a card from your pile and say Taco, the next player does the same but says Cat (etc), until sooner or later you match cards with what you say. And then you have to be quick as a ferret and not be the last to react, which is punished by having to pick up everything in your hand. Simple but sneaky and incredibly entertaining, for all ages!

Joking Hazard

(Marcus Persson)
Another light-hearted card game to keep you entertained on warm summer evenings, this time with the terribly delightful Cyanide & Happiness at the centre. It's a competition to put together the most zealously evil (but entertaining) comics possible, with content varying wildly from brutal and crude to dark and offensive. All in the best possible way, provided you and your party aren't a bunch of dull, dry bums, of course. And if you've ever been in contact with or played Cards Against Humanity, you'll recognise a lot here. One player acts as a judge and draws a random card that makes up one of the series' panels. Then it's up to the remaining players to choose two other cards from their hand to complement it, to form the sickest, funniest or just most disgusting combination possible. The more visual aspect of Joking Hazard is its real strength which in our opinion gives it an upper hand over Cards Against Humanity.

Dodos Riding Dinos

(Jonas Mäki)
I'm not really a super fan of board games that require physical skill, throwing things and the like. But... Dodo's Riding Dinos is the exception that proves the rule, and is basically a fairly simple racing-based board game, but with just enough craziness to feel like Mario Kart in board game form - there's even a Rainbow Road-inspired track. Up to eight people can take part and a race usually takes half an hour, during which there's almost guaranteed to be a lot of laughter. The basic premise is that everyone chooses a card for each round and shows it at the same time. There are regular blues and powerful reds. But if too many people take a red card, they don't count, so using them is very risky. In addition, there are green cards that can overturn conditions. The big thing about the game, however, is the various types of bonus items that are supposed to be used with terrible precision to hinder others and help oneself. Nothing ever goes right, though, and the phrase "just one more race" is uttered almost every time this gem is pulled out.

Unmatched

(Jonas Mäki)
Normally, I'm not a fan of team-based games, preferring where everyone plays against each other. Unmatched, however, is team-based versus where two warriors fight each other. The theme is that there really isn't a theme and it's teeming with characters like Dracula, Achilles, Robin Hood, Daredevil, Bruce Lee, Jurassic Park dinosaurs and Sherlock Homes. Everyone has their own unique deck of cards and then it's just a matter of fighting. There is always a shortage of cards, which should be enough to both fight the enemy and defend yourself. It quickly becomes an exciting cat and mouse game where you go around each other and try to find the right opportunity to attack. Simple rules where most things are written on the cards you use make this a great game I can highly recommend.

Star Wars: Outer Rim

(Jonas Mäki)
One problem with Star Wars games is that they rarely feel particularly Star Wars, and most of the time they're just popular characters and ships slapped onto a game that might as well be Star Trek or Lord of the Rings. Star Wars: Outer Rim, however, delivers that Star Wars feeling in spades as we, as bounty hunters, buy ships, travel around the galaxy, do small missions and encounter unforeseen events. There are several paths to victory and often a well thought out plan can go to waste while someone who is in last place with the help of simpler missions manages to earn the big bucks and can upgrade to a better ship and leave with the victory. You should be a Star Wars fan to appreciate all the fun and clever details, but if you are, you are in for a real treat, and I can also recommend the expansion Unfinished Business which is terribly good.