If You Liked That... I Have Another Option for You! - Part 1 of 2

 It seems to me that there are a metric ton of "if you liked this, then you should try this" geeklists, or posts that say "X game replaced X game in my collection due to doing things better" and I think that's reasonable, especially with how many games that are out there. There's only so much out there that one can play and space for most people is at a minimum, so it can be difficult to choose what game to include in collections, especially since game boxes tend to be quite large.

Those posts and geeklists are great as it opens up options to look into for new games and try new games that I wouldn't normally give a chance. With every game out there vying for attention, I thought that I take a look at 10 different games over the next two weeks and my recommendation for alternative games to try out.

This list could go one of three ways when writing it:

- I could focus on games that are in the general public knowledge and provide recommendations for those that are new to the board game hobby sphere. This would be a list built for newer players whose knowledge of board games digs as deep as far as popular games like Monopoly, UNO, and Cards Against Humanity. It wouldn't be deep and I'm not certain how much traction it would gain here on BGG, so I'm probably going to leave that idea as one I do later once I'm a bit more established.

- Alternatively, I could focus on the top 100 games and the games that I've played in the list and offer alternatives to that list. It would be focused on my personal opinions on the popular games here on BGG and offer some alternatives to those games. Naturally, these would all be my own opinions, but I think there are quite a few games out there that deserve additional attention, especially since they aren't in the top 100 games for whatever reason.

- Finally, I could just go buck wild and choose 10 games that are just randomly chosen from my collection and offer a selection of alternatives for the game based on my thoughts and feelings. This seems like a really fun idea, but I'm not certain where it would lead. I think I will probably save this for a bit later as it would be fun to do a "random game challenge" for a blog post.

As I write this out, I find myself leaning towards the second option and I think that's what I'll do with this post, but I'm going to keep the other two options in my back pocket for a later post. They're really fun options and I think that it would be fun to try a random game "if you like x then try x" post, or random game challenge.

So without me rambling on too long, here's a "If you've played X Game, try X game" list. I'm going to be exploring some lesser known games here on this list, along with some alternatives to the games that I listed in an effort to give a bit of variety. Each game will be in the top 100 and the "try x" game will be outside of that metric. They might not necessarily be the better version, but it will be similar to the original game, enough that I think they deserve to be played at least once or twice.]

Since this list got far longer than I expected, I am going to be splitting it into two posts as to not make it too long. The first five games will be here on this post and the next five will be next week to ensure that I don't ramble too long.

I'll be trying to match themes, mechanics or a bit of both with my recommendations, so there will be some variety in what I recommend and it might not necessarily make sense until I give my reasoning. Even after if you're still like "that makes no sense," feel free to leave a comment and I'll be happy to discuss it further. 

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If you liked Wingspan...

I loved playing Wingspan the first few times that I had an opportunity to play it. It was a beautiful game and it was extremely easy and fun for me to pick up, to the point where, after my second play, I wanted to get a copy of the game myself.

There was something so inviting about it's gameplay that made it feel super easy to teach to others, even non-gamers, and with each expansion that came out for the game, there was something new added to the gameplay that just made it better. I absolutely love the way everything falls into place when you build your tableau and engine, but for me, I just couldn't get behind the bird theme. For whatever reason, it never spoke to me and I held off on picking up a copy for my collection for a long time.

Might I suggest trying Wyrmspan?

Ok so this was a bit of a "gimme," but I can't help but make the comparison as I really like Wyrmspan over Wingspan. The game feels so much deeper than it's older bird-based brother and I love the depth that it allows for with strategy. Plus with the dragon theme, it has a decidedly more fantastical bent to it, which fits my collection and love much better.

Some might argue that Wyrmspan feels like a cash grab, but I disagree. The game adds enough unique feel and gameplay to the original Wingspan that I wouldn't feel like either was repeated, even if I did have both in my collection. While Wingspan is an excellent gateway game, Wyrmspan is where the meat lies and that's really what I appreciate about it. Not only is there more thought and strategy that goes into the latter game, there's also a bunch of growth that has gone into development and I can tell that the creators wanted to take the incredible feel of Wingspan and make it better. Which I think they accomplished extremely well.

If you liked Terraforming Mars...

Oh, Terraforming Mars. This game had been on my "to play" list for such a long time that I didn't know if it would be possible for it to live up to the hype that had been generated in my head. And yet, when I played the game, I had such an amazing time with it and immediately launched multiple games of Terraforming Mars on BGA.

There's so much to unpack with this game and that's just with the digital implementation of the game on BGA. I haven't yet had a chance to play the game with any expansions beyond the "Prelude" expansion and it's like I'm a kid in a candy store. There's so much for me to choose from and I cannot wait to get my hands on a physical copy of the game and unpack everything that it potentially has for me.

I will note however, that the game is long and it can be pretty daunting to teach to new players. There's a lot going on with Terraforming Mars and for someone who doesn't regularly play games, that can be a tough sell.

Might I suggest trying Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition?

While Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition might be a reimplementation of the original game, I think that it's so much more than that. While it does strip down a bunch of mechanics from the base game, I think Ares Expedition shines with it's excellent card play and clever reimplementation of the original game to make it quicker and much more beginner friendly.

Obviously, if I had the choice between the two games, I would choose Terraforming Mars in a heartbeat, but I'm not always the one choosing the games and I often have to take into account the preferences of others. If I had my way, I think I would play probably 50%-60% medium weight strategy games, with the rest being a smattering of other game types. However, strategy games can often be daunting for other people, especially with large boards that sit on the table and look intimidating.

I think that Ares Expedition solves that intimidation factor quite well by making the board much smaller and focusing on the cards rather than the board. There's still an element of strategy and engine-building to Ares Expedition, but it also slims it down to make it seem more accessible. I'm certain that I'll have a much easier time getting it to the table with Sarah (and others) than Terraforming Mars, if not only because it looks significantly less intimidating than the original game.

If you liked Cascadia...

There's something so relaxing about this game. Building out a series of different habitats that are all interconnected, all while placing beautifully designed wooden circles with various screen-printed animals on them hoping to accomplish various tasks related to placement of the animals. It's a really puzzly and chill game that despite being able to be played up to five players, still feels like there's not too much "take that" when playing the game.

I personally also love that there's a "campaign" included in the game as well, as it allows for significant replayability with the various scenarios included as well as additional achievements that winners of multiplayer games can take for accomplishing certain objectives like obtaining a certain number of points or using only four animal types.

Plus with the included solo mode, I'm more than happy to play this again and again after a long day. It's a great unwinding game and I love the feel of it.

Might I suggest trying Land vs Sea?

This one was a bit of an unknown to me and I was flip-flopping on whether or not to include this or another game (which I'll note below) to recommend. Still, I have played this one versus the other, so here we are.

Land Vs. Sea takes the simple idea of placing tiles with matching edges and makes it a competitive game. When playing with two players, each player chooses land or sea and then attempts to complete enclosed areas of those segments to score points. Adding in a third or fourth player changes how scoring works, and there are even additional rulesets that add more complicated scoring to the game.

It's a simple, yet visually beautiful game that takes the land-laying aspect of Cascadia and adds a versus mechanic to it.

I also want to mention Dorfromantik: The Board Game here as well as that also takes the tile-laying aspect of Cascadia and makes a game of it. Players must build out their countryside cooperatively, looking to score the most points with their landscape that they build with the beautifully included tiles. Additionally, like Cascadia, there is an included campaign mode in Dorfromantik that unlocks new tiles to play with, which adds more depth to the game.

I haven't played the board game version, but I have sunk quite a bit of time into the video game and if it's anything like it's predecessor, the board game is just as relaxed and chill as the original video game was.

If you liked Lords of Waterdeep...

Lords of Waterdeep is a really clever and cool game. It takes the worker-placement mechanic and distills it down to pretty much just that. Players place a worker, perform the action associated with that space, and then maybe complete a quest. There's not much more to the game and while simple in nature, the game itself is anything but.

With hidden end-game bonuses, intrigue cards that promote player interactions, and variable setup so each time you play there will be a different feel to the game, Lords of Waterdeep houses quite a bit in the amazing looking box.

Additionally, with the Lords of Waterdeep: Scoundrels of Skullport expansion, players are given more mechanics to work with, along with additional intrigue cards, new buildings to build in the city, and a host of new quests to complete. There's a ton of replayability in the box, allowing for this to be played over and over again. There's also a head to head version, Dorfromantik: The Duel, that is available to play if you like to be more competitive with your games versus cooperative.

Might I suggest trying Champions of Midgard?

I really am trying to get out of the top 200 or so games, but there's just so much goodness in that range that I cannot help but suggest it!

Champions of Midgard takes the basic worker placement mechanic that is present in Lords of Waterdeep and adds an extra layer with the inclusion of the ability to fight monsters at the end of the round. With the fantastic Viking theme, Champions has players building up their clan of warriors, only to send them off to die in glorious battle against the hordes of monsters that are present in Norse Mythology.

The combat is super simple as well and doesn't get bogged down in too many rules, which can be a concern when introducing a combat mechanic to your game. I always enjoyed seeing if I could take out the ogres, draugr, and other nordic monsters with my assembled men and the addition of the leader powers made for a really fun and surprisingly deep game.

Add in both the Valhalla and The Dark Mountains expansions for a truly well-crafted and balanced game that still feels like it doesn't do too much beyond the basic worker placement mechanic.

If you liked Everdell...

Ok. I've fanboyed enough about Everdell and how much I love this game. I'm in love with the incredible nature of the game and how it feels so good to move your animeeples and build a beautiful tableau in front of you as the game progresses from season to season.

It's Sarah's favorite game in our collection and the game just oozes beauty, especially when the Evertree is all set up on the table and cards start to be laid out in the meadow and in player's cities.

The game just feels so good to play and every time I finish up a game, I want to hop back in and play again. It plays so smoothly and cleverly and I cannot get enough of how much I love this game, especially when adding in all the expansions. I shamelessly own the "Complete Collection" version of the game and absolutely love how good it looks on my shelf.

Might I suggest trying Castles of Mad King Ludwig?

While these two games might not feel terribly connected, just hear me out: both games look absolutely fantastic on the table when all is said and done. Each commands such an incredible table presence and especially the second edition of Castles makes the rooms pop with all the new artwork.

I own the Collector's Edition of Castles of Mad King Ludwig, but even the base game looks absolutely amazing with the new artwork and features much of the same tableau-building mechanics as found in Everdell. There's more of an element of player interaction with players taking turns setting the cost of each of the rooms in Castles, but it feels similar enough that those who have played Everdell will appreciate the game.

Add in a dash of end game bonuses, hidden victory points, a beautiful point tracking board, and a load of different expansions and you have a game that is different enough than Everdell, but still looks just as good on the table.

Final Thoughts

This post took far longer and ended up being far bigger than I had originally anticipated. I thought that I could make recommendations for 10 games without it getting out of hand, but then as I wrote more and more, I realized that I was fooling myself. There's so much that I have to say about each game that it just got longer and longer, and that is why I ended up splitting this into two parts.

Naturally, there are so many great games out there and I did my best to try to find games that were at least semi-close to one another in feel, but each person's opinion is going to be different on how they feel about a game. My hope is that I might bring a few games to your attention that you've never heard of to give you an opportunity to try them and to give a bit of insight on what they offer.

If you have any suggestions for other games that might feel similar to the games that I posted here, feel free to note them in the comments! I really appreciate the various games that you all have commented on and added to these posts. It really makes this community feel truly helpful and connected, and that's my primary point with this blog. Let's be positive and encourage one another's enjoyment of the games we all play! It's such a wide world of games and there's so many cool things to discover!

Give me your thoughts:What games from the top 100 have you played and what would you recommend that's similar to them that's outside that top 100 list? What's the game with the lowest ranking here on BGG that you've played? What games have you played from this list and what are ones that are similar that you could recommend?

As always, thank you so much for checking out this blog. If you liked it, please hit the green thumb  at the top of the page and feel free to leave a comment on the post. I appreciate all interactions and will respond to everything that I can. If you really liked the post and want more ramblings, feel free to subscribe and get new posts every Monday/Wednesday/Friday.

*Originally posted on BoardGameGeek on 26/8/2024*