Tag Archives: board games

The 2025 Conference on BIPOC Game Studies

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The 2025 Conference on BIPOC Game Studies convened this past weekend, bringing together students, game designers, college professors, and influential names in the games industry. It was organized in part by the Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester, New York.

The goal? To share research, showcase games, and discuss the future of game studies through the lens of BIPOC experiences (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color).

Here is a bullet point list of themes the conference was designed to explore:

  • Representation and Identity in Video Games
  • Digital & Analog Games as Cultural Artifact
  • Games By & About Black and Indigenous Communities
  • Decolonizing Game Development & Design
  • Integration of Indigenous & Black Knowledge Systems
  • Afrofuturism in Gaming
  • Cultural Preservation & Digital Heritage
  • Social Impact & Activism Through Games
  • Diversity, Equity & Inclusion in Playful Technologies

Both board games and video games were topics of discussion across the three-day event, with panels and presentations covering properties as varied as Yu-Gi-Oh!, collegiate Esports, The Last of Us, murder mystery games, Dragon Age, virtual reality, the cultural value of arcades, and more.

Lindsay Grace, co-chair of the Conference and Knight chair in Interactive Media at the University of Miami, eloquently explained to WXXI News why this conference was not just necessary, but invaluable:

“I think one of the most important things to recognize about games is that they are kind of a cultural artifact. And being a cultural artifact, it’s important to ask questions about what these things mean in society, or what these things mean to the people who make them.”

“… One of the things I think is really interesting in game studies is we have the opportunity to think critically about the kinds of problems we’re solving and then also the kinds of solutions we’re offering. So a lot of what people talk about in, say, decolonizing games is about reinvestigating those two questions, what’s the real problem here? What’s the source of that problem? Similarly, how are we solving the problem?”

For years, I have discussed in this blog how the world of puzzles and games not only reflects our culture and choices, but why that’s important. But I can only examine those things through one particular lens, that of a white cishet male. There are blindspots I’m unaware of and experiences I simply don’t have, despite my best efforts.

That’s why it’s so important to have other voices included in the discussion, and events like this are crucial to the health of the games industry and our understanding of why we play games at all.

While I wasn’t in attendance, I have read through the various studies and papers associated with the conference, trying to better educate myself on these topics.

And the topics presented are fascinating.

How the experiences of Black users suffer in virtual reality due to whiteness as a default in so many games.

How the roles of Black and Latinx characters in games like Overwatch and Marvel Rivals contribute to not just representation, but reinforce perceptions of particular ethnic groups only in violent situations, not those of support or providing nonviolent solutions.

How video games are being used to preserve Latinx culture and the artistic legacy of the Hmong.

I learned about topics like Quare Theory and Misogynoir (how racist and anti-Black depictions affect the public perception of Black women), explained through the medium of video games.

But the article I found myself returning to several times over the last few days was “Decolonizing Play: Exploring Frameworks for Game Design Free of Colonial Values.”

It was startling to realize just how many video games are foundationally built on the values of Colonialism, and how easy it would be to NOT reinforce those harmful cyclical patterns.

From the paper by Elaine Gomez: When the topic of colonization arises, many game developers often hesitate to get involved in meaningful and constructive design conversations around how to mitigate values that are heavily ingrained in game theory and player expectations.

Some of the conversations broached by these panels and papers are uncomfortable, but difficult conversations are worth having. Challenging the biases and preconceived notions that games are often built upon is worthwhile. (I’m hoping to reach out to some of the Conference’s participants for more details in the coming weeks to follow up on these enlightening discussions.)

In the meantime, I encourage everyone to read the proceedings from the event and take some time to really ponder the topics presented.

The world of puzzles and games is big enough for everyone, and only gets better when everyone feels included. The 2025 Conference on BIPOC Game Studies is proof of that.

Happy gaming, everyone.

The RPG and Board Game Community Reaches Out!

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One of the best parts of being a puzzle and board game guy is the amazing community of fellow players, puzzlers, and game designers that surrounds you. Yes, puzzles and games are a business, obviously, but every week I see examples of creators and companies giving back, doing charitable acts, and participating in fundraisers for good causes.

Today, I’d like to highlight a few and hopefully bring more attention to these worthwhile endeavors.

Accessible Games: Global Accessibility Awareness Day

Accessible Games understands that every person is different, and that there are many people who don’t feel represented in modern roleplaying games. To that end, they created Survival of the Able, an RPG with disabled protagonists set in medieval Europe during a zombie plague. It shows the challenges people face every day, but also shows that those people are capable of accomplishing extraordinary things. (They even published a special edition of the game that is designed to be more accessible for dyslexic players.)

Between Survival of the Able, their zine Accessible Gaming Quarterly, and their guide to more inclusive tabletop creation — Accessible Guide to RPG Layout — they’re doing a lot of advance the cause of gaming for everybody.

In honor of Global Accessibility Awareness Day (which is Thursday May 15th), they’re offering a 30% discount on their entire accessibility-focused library. You can get your discounted copies between May 15th and May 22nd at this link. Please consider participating.

Kids in the Attic: Hershey Family Recovery Bundle

Kids in the Attic is a roleplaying game company that likes to highlight the weird and whimsical in their fantasy, space, and horror games, but this week, they’re turning their attention to bringing light and kindness to a horrible situation.

They’re currently organizing the Hershey Family Recovery Bundle to support the family of Rick Hershey, a prolific artist in the tabletop roleplaying game community. All of his children were involved in a devastating car accident caused by another driver. Thankfully, they all survived, but the road ahead will be long, and everyone knows the burden that medical bills can impose.

You can click this link to see everything included in the Hershey Family Recovery Bundle and to learn more about Rick. Please consider donating to help Rick’s family get back on their feet.

Tycoon Games: The Box of Giving

Tycoon Games has been an industry leader in charitable work and outreach for years, donating to Toys for Tots, the Boys and Girls Club, and many other worthy organizations.

Their latest endeavor is The Box of Giving, a collection of games intended to help underserved communities, schools, libraries, gaming conventions, and local non-profits experience the joy and camaraderie that comes with playing games. For the cost of shipping alone, each organization receives $500 worth of games!

Please click this link to apply for the Box of Giving program and share the link for any groups that you think would benefit from this wonderful endeavor.

Are there any charitable efforts in the board game or roleplaying world that you’d like to shout-out? Let us know in the comments below! We’d love to hear from you.

Happy gaming, everyone!

Free Board Games and RPGs?

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At the start of the pandemic in 2020, game companies around the world rallied around their customers, offering discounts, producing print-and-play versions of their games, and creating new online variants of their games to allow for Zoom play or remote play.

It was a remarkable effort at a very trying time, one that many board game enthusiasts like myself remember warmly.

So, five years later, as this baffling tariff war threatens the industry as a whole, we’re seeing the board game industry again roll with the punches and work with the audience to survive.

Some are having “tariff sales” at deep discounts to help clear inventory, gauge audience interest in certain games, or create a cash bumper to help them weather the uncertain tariff storms.

Others are making PDFs more available to customers, helping mitigate both prices for the audience and reduce production costs for the company.

Today, I want to highlight a few companies that have gone beyond that, offering free products for customers to enjoy.

Yes, they would obviously rather that you visit their shops and pay for PDFs or physical copies, but the fact that they have free board game libraries AT ALL is worthy of attention and admiration.

So here we go!

9th Level Games

Every year, dozens of roleplaying game companies create Free RPG Day handouts for game stores to offer fans. Sometimes they’re quickstart versions of the games to introduce new players. Sometimes they’re exclusive adventures or modules to play either in-store or at home. Othertimes, they’re entirely new games, free of charge.

For five years now, 9th Level Games has created their own Free RPG Day offering, the Level 1 Anthology. It’s a collection of new games by up-and-coming and established RPG creators, all centered around a theme. Last year’s edition was all about programming. This year’s is about the end of the wild west.

You can visit your friendly local game shop on June 21st this year to pick your physical copy of the game.

But if you want to check out ANY of the previous years’ Level 1 Anthologies, they continue to offer the PDFs free of charge!

9th Level Games is one of my favorite RPG companies — making classics like Kobolds Ate My Baby!, Mazes, Return to Dark Tower, and The Very Good Dogs of Chernobyl — and I’m proud to have a game featured in last year’s Level 1 collection as well as a game in this year’s upcoming collection. Please check out both the freebies and the full lineup of games on their website.

Crab Fragment Labs

A company called Cheapass Games launched with a very simple idea: they only give you what you need to play the game. No reselling you tokens and dice and chips and fake money that you can already borrow from other games. Just what you need to play their games. It was affordable and brilliant.

They’ve created some of my all-time favorite board games, including:

–The Big Idea (can you put two cards together to make a silly product and market it to your investors/other players?)
–Kill Doctor Lucky (can you eliminate the luckiest man alive?)
–Unexploded Cow (can you combine unexploded World War II ordnance and mad cows to turn a profit?)
–U.S. Patent Number 1 (can your time machine beat other time machines to the day the patent office opened and claim the very first patent?)

And while many games from the Cheapass Games era are still available, their creative legacy lives on through Crab Fragment Labs, a game company that not only develops their own clever and challenge games, but also hosts a free print-and-play library of many board games for you to enjoy.

They have a shop as well, where you can support their gaming mission. Please check them out!

Dungeons & Dragons

I know that the prices of D&D books can seem daunting these days, but what you might not know is that there are publicly available rulesets for you to enjoy right now! You can use their own quickstart rules, as well as the advice on DnDBeyond.com to delve into building your own game world free of charge!

Rowan, Rook, and Decard

If Dungeons & Dragons is still a little intimidating, no worries! Have you ever tried a one-page RPG?

Rowan, Rook, and Decard offers a brilliant library of RPG games at all price levels, and many of their one-page RPGs designed by Grant Howitt are Pay What You Want. It’s a delightfully affordable way to try out the hobby without breaking the bank! (There’s also a free RPG section!)

Want to play bears planning the perfect crime? Try Honey Heist.

Want to play a group of seagulls causing mayhem? Try Everyone Is Seagulls.

Want to see Sean Bean finally survive film? Try Seans Bean Star In: A Very Northern Christmas.

Want to combine Regency romance with giant robots? Try Pride and Extreme Prejudice.

Comedy, horror, action, long-form, short-form? They’ve got it all. Check out their entire library here!

If you’re looking to play online, you have options like Free Board Games.org, Tabletopia, and Calculators.org, as well as this list from RPG Geek.

For those with 3D printers at home, How-To Geek has collected ten board games you can print at home right now. The list includes Connect 4, Battleship, Chess, and Settlers of Catan.

You’d be amazed at what’s out there for gamers on a budget if you just know where to look. Please support any and all of these companies where you can. They’re helping keep the hobby alive, affordable, and exciting.

Happy tabletopping, everyone!

Board Games: 54% Tariff Increases and a Global Coalition to Keep Toys Tariff-Free?

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Image courtesy of wilsoncenter.org.

The insane stupid rodeo of tariff threats, retractions, delays, and new threats continues, and the board game industry is reeling.

Some companies are pausing Kickstarter pledge managers and rollouts until they consult with lawyers and printers. Others are cancelling projects outright.

And these companies are being incredibly honest and forthright with their audiences. I’ve seen at least a half-dozen posts from across the industry, and there are probably many others I’ve missed.

But I want to share one in particular.

The CEO of Steve Jackson Games, Meredith Placko, put out a post about the tariff situation and how it’s affecting the industry.

Feel free to click the link to check it out, but I’m going to post much of the text here as well, because it’s straightforward and informative. It avoids hyperbole and confronts the unpleasantness awaiting board game companies going forward. Plus it gives us real numbers to crunch.

(Meredith’s comments are in quotation marks, my comments in italics.)

“On April 5th, a 54% tariff goes into effect on a wide range of goods imported from China. For those of us who create boardgames, this is not just a policy change. It’s a seismic shift.

At Steve Jackson Games, we are actively assessing what this means for our products, our pricing, and our future plans. We do know that we can’t absorb this kind of cost increase without raising prices. We’ve done our best over the past few years to shield players and retailers from the full brunt of rising freight costs and other increases, but this new tax changes the equation entirely.”

Covering the board games industry has been a rollercoaster since COVID 19 reports in China emerged and factories began shutting down. Board game companies adapted quickly, but many suffered, and more than a few closed their doors.

I was hoping that would be the worst of it for the industry, but sadly, that’s obviously no longer the case. I can only imagine what the last five years have been like for board game creators.

Image courtesy of The Wall Street Journal.

“Here are the numbers: A product we might have manufactured in China for $3.00 last year could now cost $4.62 before we even ship it across the ocean. Add freight, warehousing, fulfillment, and distribution margins, and that once-$25 game quickly becomes a $40 product. That’s not a luxury upcharge; it’s survival math.”

Getting real numbers has been a revelation, and I’ve been sharing this post all over in the hopes of people realizing the genuine effect these tariffs will have on businesses.

“Some people ask, “Why not manufacture in the U.S.?” I wish we could. But the infrastructure to support full-scale boardgame production – specialty dice making, die-cutting, custom plastic and wood components – doesn’t meaningfully exist here yet. I’ve gotten quotes. I’ve talked to factories. Even when the willingness is there, the equipment, labor, and timelines simply aren’t.

We aren’t the only company facing this challenge. The entire board game industry is having very difficult conversations right now. For some, this might mean simplifying products or delaying launches. For others, it might mean walking away from titles that are no longer economically viable. And, for what I fear will be too many, it means closing down entirely.

Tariffs, when part of a long-term strategy to bolster domestic manufacturing, can be an effective tool. But that only works when there’s a plan to build up the industries needed to take over production. There is no national plan in place to support manufacturing for the types of products we make. This isn’t about steel and semiconductors. This is about paper goods, chipboard, wood tokens, plastic trays, and color-matched ink. These new tariffs are imposing huge costs without providing alternatives, and it’s going to cost American consumers more at every level of the supply chain.”

Image courtesy of Etsy.

This is the real lesson here for anyone supporting these tariffs. You can’t just say you’re bringing manufacturing back to America. You have to DO it. You have to have the facilities, the manpower, the training, the materials, and the wherewithal. These tariffs aren’t just putting the cart before the horse, it’s pushing the cart down the hill and blaming gravity when it crashes.

“We want to be transparent with our community. This is real: Prices are going up. We’re still determining how much and where.

If you’re frustrated, you’re not alone. We are too. And if you want to help, write to your elected officials. Ask them how these new policies help American creators and small businesses. Because right now, it feels like they don’t.

We’ll keep making games. But we’ll be honest when the road gets harder, because we know you care about where your games come from – and about the people who make them.”

Hey folks, it’s your friendly neighborhood puzzle guy back again. (Just wanted to make it clear that everything you read going forward is me, not Meredith.)

It’s a rocky road ahead for board game companies.

Thankfully, we are already seeing industry leaders making moves to handle Trump’s tariffs.

The U.S. Toy Association (founded over a hundred years ago!) is trying to forge a coalition with toy and trade associations across the world with the lofty goal of a global 0% reciprocal tariff on toys.

The list of organizations agreeing to work on this is impressive… and inspiring. Sure, it’s a business decision. My cynical little heart sees that.

But imagine if they succeeded and made toys tariff-free across the globe. What a gift to parents and children around the world that would be! What a boon that could be to game designers.

(I reached out to the U.S. Toy Association to confirm if board games and RPGs fall under the toy umbrella, but have not heard back yet.)

So, what can you do in the meantime?

Well, if you have the means to do so, reach out to your officials. Support local game companies. Speak up, loudly and often.

When you think of the board game industry, you probably think of the big companies, the big brands… but there’s only a few of them.

The VAST majority are small businesses led by passionate designers, creative minds, and hardworking people of all ethnicities, ages, backgrounds, and gender identities. They are a chorus of voices that make gaming better, that tell us stories about ourselves through gameplay, that bring history alive and challenge our minds, our reflexes, our collaboration, and our cunning.

THAT is the board game industry I want to see succeed.

I hope they can weather the storm.

The more things change… (Tariffs and the Board Game Industry)

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containership

Well, this is the worst kind of deja vu.

Five years ago, in February of 2020, I wrote a blog post about how the pandemic was affecting the board game industry, particularly regarding production and shipping from China and how it was hurting (sometimes crippling) board game companies.

And now, half a decade hence, I’m writing a blog post about another global disaster affecting the board game industry:

Donald Trump.

You see, the president’s “genius” plan to enact large tariffs against the US’s trade partners, forcing the American public to pay more for goods from China, Mexico, and Canada, is guaranteed to hurt many MANY industries, and the board game industry is one of them.

Already, game companies are reaching out to their customers with mailing list entries and blog posts and warning them of potential price hikes being forced upon them by this half-witted political stunt.

Atlas Games, for instance, issued a post this week about the current, frustrating, entirely-avoidable situation:

Unfortunately, there’s confusion and a distinct lack of clear guidance at this point. While Canada’s announcement of tariffs they’re levying in response clearly states that goods already en route to Canada aren’t subject to them, the Trump Administration has been contradictory on how and when US tariffs will actually be applied.

For example, two 40-foot shipping containers filled with our new game Vicious Gardens arrived in Seattle on Saturday. These games are on US soil, but they haven’t yet cleared customs. We don’t know if, when they do, we may be handed a tax bill equal to 10% of their value…

We also need to place orders NOW to reprint some of our popular titles. The Pops & Bejou game CULTivate is now published by Atlas Games. It’s out of stock, but we’ve had to delay the reprint because of the lack of clarity about these import taxes. During the election campaign, Trump threatened that tariffs on Chinese-made goods could be as high as 60% to 100%.

Unlike the president and his poor explanation of the current constantly-evolving tariff agenda, these game companies are striving to be as transparent about their circumstances as possible.

That kind of honesty goes a long way with customers, and while both the companies and customers will be feeling the squeeze of these new tariff-induced costs, hopefully the companies can still remain profitable and board game fans can still enjoy these wonderful play experiences.

Sadly, this is no surprise to industry insiders. Steve Jackson Games wrote about the consequences of the tariffs back in early November, and Stonemeier Games soon followed in early December.

A few days ago, CBS8 did a report about a local game shop in San Diego that expects to take a big hit when the tariffs land.

Some companies, like Monte Cook Games, are doing limited time discounts and sales to offset the upcoming tariff pricing. Some tabletop roleplaying game companies are already considering retreating from the physical game market entirely and focusing on PDF and downloadable products to remain profitable.

Much like the ripple effect of COVID in 2020, I suspect the effect of Trump’s tariffs will be felt for years to come.

But, unfortunately, like so many things these days, we’ll have to wait and see… and hope for the best… but expect the worst.

PuzzCulture 2024 Holiday Puzzly Gift Guide: By Price

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Welcome to the PuzzCulture 2024 Holiday Puzzly Gift Guide!

hpgg tangram candle

We’re so excited to be bringing you our biggest ever gift guide! There are so many tremendously fun and puzzly products to share with you this year. We just might be your one-stop shop for all things puzzly!

In this edition of the Holiday Puzzly Gift Guide, we have endeavored to strike a balance between the most affordable price we could find for each product and the most reliable outlet to get your gifts to you in time for the holidays!

Please enjoy this assortment of dice games, puzzle games, brain teasers, card games, puzzle books, group & party games, murder mysteries, escape room games, and board games, all organized in price from lowest to highest. We’re sure you’ll find the right gift for any puzzler on your list!

Any amounts in Pounds have been placed where they’d land roughly when converted to dollars. And please note that shipping is not factored into any of these prices.

Happy puzzling!

Quick search links

Puzzle Books, Magazines, and Puzzle bundles

Since most of the puzzle books, magazines, and puzzle bundles in this year’s gift guide are between $5 and $15, and most subscription services are between $15 and $30 per year, we figured we’d bundle them all up front before we get into all of the games, puzzles, and other terrific holiday treats!

Pencil-and-paper puzzles are alive and well, and we’re happy to share some of our favorites with you.

Our friends at Penny Dell Puzzles have put together some outstanding holiday collections with puzzles galore to be solved!

Maybe you’re looking for one kind of puzzle, like their Good Time Puzzle Fun Pack ($25.95), the Crossword Extravaganza collection ($9.99), or a value pack of Jumble puzzles ($16.95)! Maybe you’d like the ease of printing puzzles at home with Print N’ Solve Seasonal Crosswords ($2.99). Either way, the folks at Penny Dell Puzzles have got you covered.

And be sure to check out their deals on Facebook and Twitter throughout the holiday season. They’ve got bundles and discounts for days!

And while we’re on the topic of puzzle books, some of the best constructors (and many favorites of the blog) have released their own books for your perusal! And with New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and USA Today puzzles to their credit, you’re sure to find some quality puzzlers within these pages!

Puzzmo Crosswords ($24.99 for two copies)

Black Crossword by Juliana Pache ($15.99)

Grids Don’t Lie, edited by Francis Heaney ($11.99)

Crimebits, puzzles by Robin Stears ($24.95)

A24’s 99 TV Crosswords, edited by Brooke Husic and Will Nediger ($34)

A-to-Gen Z Crosswords by Ada Nicolle ($12.99)

CynAcrostics Volume 10: Who, Me? by Cynthia Morris ($11.95)

25 Word Search Puzzles for Classic CHRISTMAS Lovers by Shawn Marie Simmons ($6.99)

In addition to those new collections above, here are some of our favorite puzzle books from previous years!

–Doug Peterson and Jeff Chen’s It’s So Easy Crosswords ($10.93)

–Paolo Pasco’s Crossword Puzzles For Kids ($5.88)

–Eric Berlin’s Puzzlesnacks: More Than 100 Bite-Size Puzzles for Every Solver ($12.91)

–Brendan Emmett Quigley’s Octopus Crosswords ($3.17)

–Todd McClary’s Fresh Freestyle Crosswords ($5.01)

—USA Today’s Crossword Super Challenge 3 ($11.99)

–Frasier Simpson’s Cryptic Crosswords Volume 1, Volume 2, and Volume 3 ($11.95 each)

–Andrews McMeel Publishing’s Pocket Posh Sixy Sudoku Easy to Medium and Pocket Posh Sixy Sudoku Hard ($8.99 each)

—USA Today’s Sudoku Super Challenge 3 and Sudoku and Variants Super Challenge ($9.99 each)

–Andy Kravis’s Challenge Accepted!: 100 Word Searches ($8.01)

–Andrews McMeel Publishing’s Posh Take Care: Creative Challenge ($12.99)

—USA Today’s Word Fill-In Puzzles Super Challenge ($9.99)

–Andrews McMeel Publishing’s Take Care by Posh: Inspired Activities for Peace, Take Care by Posh: Inspired Activities for Clarity, Take Care by Posh: Inspired Activities for Tranquility, and Take Care by Posh: Inspired Activities for Balance [featuring crosswords and other puzzles] ($8.99 each)

Email Subscription / Downloadable Puzzles

Many top constructors and organizations market their puzzles directly to solvers, so between email subscriptions and downloadable puzzle bundles, you’ve got plenty of quality choices!

—The American Values Crossword (subscription and daily puzzles, $50 for 1 year)

–Matt Gaffney’s Weekly Crossword Contest (starts at $3 per month on Patreon)

–Peter Gordon’s Fireball Crosswords ($32 for 1 year)

–Joon Pahk’s Rows Garden puzzles ($20 for 1 year) and Variety puzzles ($15 for 1 year) OR get both for $30!

–Eric Berlin’s Puzzlesnacks bundles ($9.99 each)

–Andrew Ries’ Section Eight Puzzle Pack ($8)

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Also, there are some wonderful puzzle bundles available in exchange for donations to worthy causes!

—Grids for Good, a 42-puzzle bundle supporting groups fighting systemic racism and coronavirus relief

—Puzzles for Palestine, a 22-puzzle bundle for ending the siege of Palestine in Gaza and the West Bank

—Women of Letters, an 18-crossword bundle by female constructors in support of women’s rights causes

—These Puzzles Fund Abortion, a 23-puzzle bundle supporting women’s reproductive rights

Various Prices

Notebooks, Ornaments, and Crafts by DGhandcrafted

Up to $10

archerporthos

Star Trek Fluxx: The Archer Expansion and The Porthos Expansion (Looney Labs, card game)

Star Trek is an ever-expanding universe of stories, heroes, adventures, and questions to explore, so it’s only fitting that the ever-changing card game Fluxx has a host of Star Trek-themed card decks for you to try out. Whether you’re a fan of The Original Series or Deep Space Nine, there’s a Fluxx deck stacked with your favorite characters, villains, and pivotal moments from each show. ($22 each)

And now you can combine and cross over those decks and play Fluxx like never before with The Archer Expansion and The Porthos Expansion. These small additional decks not only introduce characters from the show Enterprise to the mix, but they allow new rules for mixing up decks and new paths to victory. Plus they add the beloved pets Porthos and Spot to the game! ($5.00 each)

And if Star Trek isn’t your style, maybe you’d enjoy Fantasy Fluxx, Wonderland Fluxx, Astronomy Fluxx, or any of the other marvelous variations on this classic quick-changing card game! ($20 each)

[Our review for the Porthos and Archer Expansions can be found here!]

Zendo Expansion Packs 1 and 2 (Looney Labs, puzzle game)

Zendo challenges you to arrange Looney pyramids and other shapes into various designs, and then see if those designs conform to a mysterious rule. Essentially, you’re trying to deduce what the secret rule is by building different designs.

And if you need additional rules to spice up your Zendo game, these two expansion packs offer new twists for all difficulty ranks, adding new wrinkles to an already devious game! ($5 each)

[Check out our full review for Zendo here and our review of Expansion Pack #2 here!]

Math Dice (ThinkFun, dice game)

Can you out-think and out-math your opponents when it comes to addition, division, square roots, and more? That’s what awaits players with Math Dice, a deviously fun game of who can get closest to the target with only their math skills and cleverness! ($6.99)

[Click here for our full review!]

Coaster Games (The Dark Imp, party/group game)

Coaster Games is a six-pack of games encompassing all sorts of gameplay styles. Counting, word building, deduction, strategy, resource management, and more, and they all fit in your pocket. Perfect for parties or quickplay fun between longer game sessions, you’re guaranteed to find something to enjoy here! (£6.99)

[Find our review of Coaster Games here!]

That’s Not a Hat (Ravensburger, party/group game)

A White Elephant gift exchange is always a fun time, especially watching the gifts getting traded all around. But, if they were still wrapped, could you remember every gift as it moved from person to person? That’s Not a Hat puts your memory to work, asking if you can recall each gift as it is hidden from view and passed around the table. It’s tougher, and more fun, than you think! ($9.99)

[Click here to check out our full review!]

Pool Party: The Painless Path to Practically Perfect Pool Playing by Robin Stears ($9.99 kindle, $24.99 hardcover)

The Island of Doctor Lucky (Cheapass Games/Greater Than Games, board game)

People have been trying to kill Doctor Lucky for over twenty years, and this time around, you’re visiting his exotic island estate to try your murderous luck against the titular Doctor! The Island of Doctor Lucky offers a new gameboard to explore, new movement mechanics, and a very distracting cat. This is the best addition to the series yet! ($10)

[Check out our full review of The Island of Doctor Lucky by clicking here!]

Up to $20

How to Fool Your Parents: 25 Brain-Breaking Magic Tricks by David Kwong ($12.99)

The Abandons (Puzzling Pixel Games, board game)

Can you escape a dangerous labyrinth that changes every time you explore it? The Abandons pits the solver against a random deck, where luck, quick decision making, and puzzly skill all must be on your side if you ever want to see daylight again. ($13)

[Check out our full review by clicking here!]

lexiconsmall

Lexicon-GO! (Winning Moves UK)

Are you a word-forming pro? Take your speed-solving skills and try them out with Lexicon-GO!, a Scrabble-style tile game suitable for solvers of all ages! ($13.95)

[Click here for our full review of Lexicon-GO!]

Reflectron (Inverse/Project Genius, brain teaser)

Rubik’s Cubes are a puzzly tradition, but the only thing better is seeing how new solvers can innovate with the same concept. And Reflectron is literally another dimension away from the usual twisty puzzle. With different-sized cubes, Reflectron‘s shape becomes blockier and stranger with every twist! ($14.99)

[Click here for our full review]

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Exit: The Game: Dead Man on the Orient Express (Kosmos, escape room/solve the mystery game)

Exit: The Game products create an escape room experience by combining a deck of cards, a guidebook, a sliding decoder ring, an interactive phone app, and miscellaneous items to be used throughout the game. What sets Dead Man on the Orient Express above and beyond is that there’s a mystery to solve in the background, even as you tackle all the delightful escape room-style puzzles! ($14.99)

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The Oregon Trail (Pressman Toys, card game)

The classic computer game comes to life as you and your fellow players team up to survive the perilous journey along The Oregon Trail. With art evoking old-school computer games, rampant threats and calamities to endure, and a long and challenging road to travel, will any of you will make it to Oregon? ($14.99)

[Check out our full product review of The Oregon Trail by clicking here!]

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Wish You Were Here (The Enigma Emporium, puzzle by mail)

Imagine an entire mystery hidden across a handful of postcards. That’s the multilayered puzzle experience offered by Wish You Were Here, where a series of coded messages awaits you. Unravel all the secrets and discover an exciting tale of danger and spycraft along the way! ($15)

[And if you enjoy Wish You Were Here, there are all sorts of additional puzzle bundles to try out!]

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Cheapass Games in Black and White (Cheapass Games/Greater Than Games, board game)

The library of Cheapass Games is expansive, but even diehard fans don’t have the majority of the company’s original game library. Unless, that is, they own Cheapass Games in Black and White, a hardcover compendium of every game from the black-and-white era. Featuring the rulebooks for famous titles like Button Men and Kill Doctor Lucky, alongside more obscure entries like Escape from Elba, this is a terrific resource for any game fan. ($15)

A-Puzzle-A-Day puzzle calendar (Insync Games, fill the frame puzzle)

Eight puzzle pieces, 365 different puzzles. Now that’s value for your money. Can you place these Tetris-like pieces to tell today’s date, or a favorite date, or any date you choose? ($16)

Tenzi (dice game)

All of us have rolled dice in games before, but can you roll what you need as fast as possible? That’s the challenge of Tenzi, a game that pits up to four players against each other in tests of speed and dexterity. Can you roll ten 6’s before everyone else? ($16.95)

Roman Lock Box (Project Genius, brain teaser)

Take the usual gift-giving puzzle box to the next level with the Roman Lock Box. One of the brain teasers from the True Genius collection, the Roman Lock Box combines tile-sliding puzzles with traditional puzzle box elements to create a fun challenge for someone to unlock before receiving their prize! ($17.99)

[Check out our review of Roman Lock Box here!]

Egyptian Triglyph (Project Genius, brain teaser)

It’s hard enough to build a cube out of Tetris-style puzzle block shapes, but imagine trying to disassemble — and then reassemble one — INSIDE a 3-D triangular frame. Egyptian Triglyph bends your brain into new shapes and taxes your spatial awareness in very cool ways. A topnotch reinvention of a puzzly classic! ($17.99)

[Click here for our full review!]

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Enigmas Puzzle Hunt Playing Cards (David Kwong/Dave Shukan, escape room / solve the mystery game)

A puzzle hunt lurking within a normal deck of cards? It sounds impossible, but when you’re dealing with puzzler and magician David Kwong, anything can happen with Enigmas! Can you unravel the mystery hiding amongst these playing cards? ($18)

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Word Nerd Mug by Penny Press ($19)

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Codenames (Czech Games, card game)

It’s a race against time to locate all of your spies before your opponents. But in order to do so, you need to communicate information with a single word. Codenames will put your word association skills to work as you try to find secret agents disguised with code words, while avoiding innocent citizens and dangerous assassins along the way! ($19.94)

[Read our full review of Codenames here!]

Sounds Fishy (Big Potato Games, party/group game)

What’s better than a trivia game? A trivia game with bluffing! Can you convince your fellow players that your fake trivia answer is the correct one? Try your luck and your skill with Sounds Fishy! ($19.99)

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12 Days (Calliope Games, card game)

A proper holiday-themed game for the holidays? You betcha. This wagering game, based on the 12 Days of Christmas, has some of the most beautiful art in the entire card game genre. Plus the two ways to earn points — winning each day of Christmas with the lowest card in the pot vs. keeping as many of a certain value card as possible for the end of the game — offer tons of strategic opportunities in a simple card game. What a treat! ($20)

Fluxx (Looney Labs, card game)

When it comes to the constantly-evolving gameplay of Fluxx, there are all sorts of flavors to choose from! There’s Fantasy Fluxx, Wonderland Fluxx, Astronomy Fluxx, or any of the other marvelous variations on this classic quick-changing card game! ($20 each)

Up to $30

Slapzi (Tenzi, party/group game)

Slapzi will keep you on your toes. In this quick-reaction game, you’ve got to match your picture cards to the clue cards before your opponents. But with clues like “Not sold in a hardware store” or “Two of the same letter together,” this isn’t as easy as it appears! ($21.95)

[Click here to check out our full review of Slapzi!]

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Alice is Missing (Hunters Entertainment, escape room / solve the mystery game)

Can you and your fellow players solve a mystery without ever saying a word? That’s the challenge offered by the uniquely atmospheric and haunting RPG mystery game Alice Is Missing.

A game played entirely through text messaging, each player takes on the role of a character in the town of Silent Falls, trying to find out what happened to Alice Briarwood. We promise, you’ve never played anything like it. ($21.99)

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Puzzometry (jigsaw puzzle)

For a next-level jigsaw challenge, Puzzometry is tough to top. These beautiful pieces can be combined in seemingly endless combinations, and yet, there’s only one solution. Available in seven different styles — Puzzometry ($22.33), Puzzometry Jr. ($17.58), Puzzometry Squares ($22.33), Puzzometry Hex ($22.33), Puzzometry Steps ($22.33), Puzzometry Six ($22.33), and Puzzometry Jr. 2 ($17.58) — you’ve got distinct challenges appropriate for all different ages!

[Check out the full review of the original Puzzometry by clicking here!]

Athena (Project Genius, brain teaser)

Put your chess skills and tactics to the test with Athena. A puzzle requiring you to think several steps ahead in order to reunite a statue with its pedestal on a busy archaeological dig site, Athena has over 50 challenging patterns for you to solve! ($24.99)

[Click here for our full review!]

Decrypto (IELLO, party/group game)

Can you covertly communicate with your teammates without revealing your secret code to the opponent team? That’s the name of the game in Decrypto, a party game all about word association and deduction. The first team to crack the opposing team’s codes twice wins! ($24.99)

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Qwirkle (MindWare, board game)

A wonderful mix of Uno and Mexican Train Dominoes, Qwirkle is a tile-placing game where you try to maximize your points while minimizing the help you give to your opponents. With six bright colors and six different shapes to match up, Qwirkle is endless fun that’s so easy to jump into! ($24.99)

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Cracker Games: The Imp Box (The Dark Imp, party/group game)

Six unique family games in a reusable box that looks like a Christmas cracker? What an idea! Voting, collecting, observation, and trading are among the gameplay styles you’ll find in The Imp Box, and this neat little package packs a lot of variety into a small space! (£19.99)

Escape Room Advent Calendar (Insync Games, escape room / solve the mystery game)

This advent calendar has no numbers on the doors, and solving a daily puzzle is the only way to figure out which door to open! This clever, festive, chocolate-filled treat is a puzzly twist on a holiday classic! ($20 / $26)

Spaceteam (Timber and Bolt, card game)

Can you repair your ship and get the engines up and running before a black hole ends your space adventure forever? That’s the name of the game in Spaceteam, a cooperative, communication-based game where you have to accomplish various tasks with your fellow players while sharing tools. It’s delightful chaos, heightened by the five-minute hourglass timer counting down your dwindling seconds before disaster strikes! A definite favorite around here. ($27.95)

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Gloom (Atlas Games, card game)

Do you enjoy The Addams Family or the art of Edward Gorey? Then Gloom might be a strategy game worth checking out. In this tactical game with a sinister twist, you’re trying to make your Victorian family miserable for points and the lives of your opponents’ families better! Yup, misfortune equals good fortune for you! With gorgeous transparent cards you can lay over each other to track your scores, there’s no storytelling game out there quite like it.

With loads of expansions to add to the creepy world of Gloom — as well as the Gloomier spinoff game — this is hilariously macabre fun! ($27.95)

Tavern Puzzles / Tucker-Jones House Inc. (brain teaser)

These hand-forged beauties are ready to challenge your dexterity and cleverness, as you accept the Tavern Puzzles challenge. Whether you’re trying to remove twice as many pieces in a Collaborative Effort or free the triangle from Tridiculous, you’re sure to put your skills to the test. ($29.95 each)

Archimedes’ Gear (Project Genius, brain teaser)

Not just one of the most beautiful, but one of the most challenging brain teasers I’ve ever come across, Archimedes’ Gear marvels with its simplicity. Can you puzzle out how to separate the two pieces, and then put them back again? This one will keep you guessing! ($29.99)

[Click here to check out our full review!]

Unlock! Games (Asmodee, escape room / solve the mystery game)

Unlock! games consist of entirely of a deck of cards and your app. The cards provide locations, challenges, helpful items, solutions, and warnings, all identified with numbered or lettered cards in the deck. There are numerous Unlock! escape games to try — covering everything from haunted houses to desert islands — and they’re offered in sets of three! ($29.99)

Up to $40

The Light in the Mist (Allplay, solve the mystery game)

We’ve got puzzles in calendars, puzzle boxes, games, and playing cards, but how about a puzzle AND a story hidden in a tarot deck? The Light in the Mist walks you through the memories of a missing friend and creates a unique puzzle-solving experience! ($32)

Wavelength (Asmodee, party/group game)

Can you get your teammates to pick the exact spot on the dial you want… with a single word? That’s the challenge of Wavelength, a literal game of inches that shows where our opinions differ and where they align. A terrific party game you can learn in seconds! ($34.99)

Castle Panic! (Fireside Games, board game)

Can you and your fellow players repel wave after wave of monsters as a team? Tackle a unique spin on traditional tower defense games in this cooperative game of resource management and tactics! ($35)

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Godzilla: Tokyo Clash (Funko Games, board game)

Choose one of these four iconic monsters and let loose your fury all over Tokyo in Godzilla: Tokyo Clash. This tactical monster-vs.-monster game allows you to smash buildings, vehicles, and your fellow monsters on a game board that’s different every time you play! Will you be King of the Monsters by the time Tokyo is in ruins? ($35)

[Check out our full review of Godzilla: Tokyo Clash here!]

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Gearjits Roller Coaster (Gearjits, marble puzzle)

Bring your puzzle skills to life as you assemble a working roller coaster from these wooden pieces. Assembling handcranks and gears to operate the machine along with the structure of the roller coaster itself makes this 3-D puzzle more exciting and satisfying than the average 3-D puzzle. ($39.95)

Tile Securing Travel Scrabble (Hammacher Schlemmer, board game)

Hammacher Schlemmer has always been home to some intriguing Scrabble variants available — who could forget their World’s Largest Scrabble Game? — but when it comes to travel-friendly puzzle game fun, they’ve got just the thing. Tile Securing Travel Scrabble is perfect for those who want to solve on the go! Take your game anywhere and rest assured not a single tile will have moved! ($39.95)

Sagrada (Floodgate Games, dice game)

One of the most beautiful strategy games on the market today, Sagrada is a singularly peaceful gaming experience. Compete with other players to build the most beautiful stained glass window, but with dice instead of glass! Unique and challenging, Sagrada is something else. ($39.95)

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Tsuro: The Game of the Path (Calliope Games, board game)

A path-laying game with tons of style and historical spirit, Tsuro casts up to eight players as flying dragons, and tasks you with laying out your path with special tiles. Try not to meet any other dragons or fly off the board! It’s a simple mechanic with plenty of replay value, and perfect for quick games with large groups. ($40)

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Cluebox Escape Rooms in a Box (iDventure, brain teaser)

These multi-stage puzzle boxes are completely self-contained. You need to explore every inch of its surface to find clues and tools to unlock each stage of the puzzle box and reveal further challenges. Whether you delve into Davy Jones Locker ($49.99) or try to unravel the mystery of Schrodinger’s Cat ($39.99), you will definitely find your puzzly mettle tested by these devious devices!

Up to $50

Zendo (Looney Labs, puzzle game)

Puzzle games are all about the rules, but what if you don’t know the rules? That’s where Zendo comes in. In this puzzle game, you arrange Looney pyramids and other shapes into various designs, and then see if those designs conform to a mysterious rule. A game of deduction and trial-and-error, Zendo is a very different solving experience. ($44)

Plus there are two expansion packs available for Zendo, each offering additional rules and varying in difficulty! ($5 each)

[Check out our full review for Zendo here and our review of Expansion Pack #2 here!]

Knot Dice Celtic Animals (Black Oak Games, dice game)

Can you twist, turn, and spin these dice to complete beautiful, elaborate patterns inspired by Celtic knots? That’s the name of the game with Knot Dice Celtic Animals, a dice game as challenging as it is gorgeous. With single-player and multi-player puzzles included, you’ll be tying yourself in knots for days! ($45, available in several colors)

And you can add new wrinkles and patterns to your solving with Knot Dice and Knot Dice Squared! ($40 and $45, respectively)

[Click here to check out our full review of Knot Dice and Knot Dice Squared!]

Chessplus

The first thing you learn in chess is how the pieces move. But what if that could change? What if you could make new pieces that move in unexpected ways? How would that change the game? With Chessplus, you’ll find out, as you mix and match chess pieces in order to capture your opponent’s king. The possibilities really are endless! ($45)

[Click here for our full review of Chessplus!]

Pinbox 3000 (Cardboard Teck Instantute, puzzle game)

How about the chance to build your own game? Is that puzzle enough for you? Pinbox 3000 provides all the pieces you’ll need, plus valuable advice for brainstorming and creating your very own pinball game. It’s endlessly customizable, so you can make your Pinbox pinball game as simple or as complex as you like! ($49.95)

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Cluebox Escape Rooms in a Box: Davy Jones’ Locker (iDventure, brain teaser)

This multi-stage puzzle box (on the left) is completely self-contained. Explore every inch of its surface to unlock each stage of the puzzle box and reveal further puzzles. Delve into Davy Jones Locker and solve these nautically themed challenges! ($49.99)

The Great Dinosaur Rush (APE Games, board game)

Bring the insane real-life rivalry of paleontologists Cope and Marsh to life in The Great Dinosaur Rush! As you collect fossils and discover your own unique dinosaur, you must also steal bones, sabotage other scientists, and more! Show off your cunning and creativity in this game that proves historical truth is weirder than fiction! ($50)

$60 and Over

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Geode Puzzle (Uncommon Goods, jigsaw puzzle)

Forget looking for the edge pieces, because these nature-based puzzles take jigsaws beyond the usual patterning. Geode Puzzle‘s flowing, unusual shapes and vibrant colors create a unique solving experience. ($65)

Lightbox (Eric Clough, brain teaser)

A puzzle box unlike anything you’ve ever seen, Lightbox creates different patterns of shadow and light as you shift and arrange the various plastic plates that make up the box. As you twist and reset them, different electrical connections are made, and different plates light up. As gorgeous as it is challenging, Lightbox is a very eye-catching puzzle that always wows new solvers. ($85)

[Check out our full review of Lightbox by clicking here!]

Gravitrax Starter-Set XXL (Ravensburger, marble puzzle / game)

Simply the coolest marble run builder I’ve ever seen, the Gravitrax Starter-Set XXL offers hundreds of pieces and a terrific base to build upon. Create ramps, loops, and elaborate patterns with ease! And although there are smaller Gravitrax games to start with, the Gravitrax Starter-Set XXL is an absolute wonder! ($129.99)

[Click here for our full review!]

Thank you to all of the constructors, designers, and companies taking part in this year’s holiday puzzly gift guide! So great to have so many of you back, and so marvelous to welcome so many new faces and new puzzles and games!