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

 Continuing from my previous post last Monday, I have the rest of the five games from that list that I have alternate recommendations for games for!

Like I noted in my previous post, I did try to be a bit off the wall with some of these later games, so they will be a bit more eclectic in how they relate to the original games that I post here. There might be a similar mechanic, a similar theme, or just something that I associated between the two games.

As I also noted in my previous games, feel free to comment below on what you think might work better as an association, or just question my weird taste. 

If you liked Clank!: A Deck-Building Adventure...

I could wax poetic about Clank! and the excellent deck-building mechanics that the game has added into the game paired with some fantastic push-your luck elements that leaves me wanting to play again after every game. However, with me attempting to keep this to a shorter description, I'll just stick with that for now. This series has seen over 70 separate plays over three games (Clank!, Clank! In! Space!, and Clank!: Catacombs) and I've picked up about half of the expansions for the base game and the space-based version.

There's so much cleverness that is in this game and every time I have played it, I've ended up learning something new or being able to try a different strategy. It's hands down one of my favorite games ever and even after so many plays, I still find myself wanting to play again and again.

Might I suggest trying Robot Quest Arena?

Pairing deck-building mechanics with robot fighting in an arena a-la Battlebots? Sign me up!

The game utilizes some fantastically designed deck-building elements to not only allow players to move and attack with their chonky, well built robots on the arena board, but also buy new cards to add to their deck that allow them to be even more powerful and dangerous as the game progresses. The artwork in the game is great as well and the simple to understand iconography takes something that could be difficult to parse and makes it easy to play.

With many multiplayer fighting games, there is always a concern of player elimination and having one (or more) players have to spend their time waiting for the game to end once they have been eliminated. Robot Quest Arena gets around this concern by cleverly utilizing health crystals as both a resource for each robot, for victory points, and to track when the game is ending.

A specific number of blue crystals is utilized per game and that is set as the players final health point for their robot. Once a player's bot is knocked out, they refill their health and take a crystal from the pool and then place their bot back in the arena for more fighting. If all the crystals are gone, once the final bot is knocked out, that ends the game and scoring proceeds.

It's a fun little deck-builder and after playing it, I immediately knew that I would want a copy for myself (which I still have yet to obtain, despite my best efforts to).

If you liked Azul...

Not much needs to be said about this absolutely classic game. It's beautiful on the table, easy to play, and features a fantastic gameplay loop that draws in people over and over again.

Plus the game plays amazingly at 2 players and it's extremely fun to parse out and plan how each move is going to set up the creation of your tile mosaic, only to have it come crashing down when your partner steals the tiles that you want.

There's a reason that this game is so high on the BGG lists and it's a pairing of both fantastic gameplay and beautiful artwork on the tiles, creating a truly timeless game.

Might I suggest trying River Valley Glassworks?

Maybe I'm just jumping on the bandwagon here with River Valley Glassworks, but I've quickly accumulated over 10 plays of the game on BGA, and that was in two weeks of finding and then learning to play the game. There's something about it that feels extremely close to Azul, but different enough that I have a different experience with the game.

It features much of the same, "Take a set of resources then place on your board" gameplay, but there's an additional element to it as players have to spend a resource to get the resources on the river tiles. That plays well with having to make decisions about what resources to take as there are some more rare than others that may end up making it harder to earn a competitive score.

Add in that scoring works both horizontally and vertically on the board with players scoring their two highest columns (for a tie of 3+ columns the lowest point columns are chosen) and gaining points for unbroken horizontal placements from left to right.

There's so much in this game and I feel like I'm just getting used to it. I will say that I prefer it slightly more than Azul, but only just as the game is really fun to play and I hope to get my hands on a copy of it soon.

If you liked Robinson Crusoe: Adventures on the Cursed Island...

Robinson Crusoe: Adventures on the Cursed Island is brutal. There is so much going on in the game that its easy to make a mistake at the beginning of the game that can have long-term effects and result in the loss of the game in the final rounds.

It definitely is a tough game, but that is mitigated by experience and playing with someone else who has played the game before. When I had an opportunity to play the game with a group of friends, we were greatly assisted by one of our friends having played the game previously and being able to help provide support and examples of what worked and what didn't to reduce the loss chance percentage (it was still high, but mitigated).

With such a high difficulty and learning curve with all of the various rules that are included in the game, this can be an absolutely daunting game to master, but it rewards those who attempt it. Robinson Crusoe: Adventures on the Cursed Island definitely feels like trying to survive a shipwreck and I applaud the devs for making such a fantastic game.

Might I suggest trying The 7th Continent?

Fast forward a few decades in the timeline with gameplay and you have a game that feels like Robinson Crusoe, but also adds its own twist and flair to the exploration and survival genre. With more of an emphasis on exploration and discovery rather than surviving (although that still is a big part), the 7th Continent really adds in a dash of otherworldly mystery when playing the game.

While both games play excellently at one player, this is where The 7th Continent shines through. With a fantastic drop in/drop out system to allow players to add additional characters if a friend wants to join (or leave), the game is extremely feature rich and has a great Jules Verne/HP Lovecraftian feel to it.

7th Continent, like Robinson Crusoe, has a ton of rules to learn, but in my experience, was far more easily grasped by playing the game and didn't feel as punishing if a mistake was made. The game itself rewards experience and knowledge of the mechanics and doesn't hand anything to the player, but allows players to learn and grow through the multiple sessions that are played.

Like Robinson Crusoe, don't expect to win on your first or second play of the game (or second or third), but know that you'll begin to learn about the mechanics of the land you're exploring. It's tough, it's brutal, and it's absolutely incredible.

If you liked Heat: Pedal to the Metal...

This is one that I know has had quite a bit of heated (heh) discussion about how it plays and how it compares to other racing games. Some people absolutely love the racing in the game and the tight gameplay that it offers, while others are not a big fan of the game and think it's overrated.

Personally, I find the deck-building, heat-management, push your car as far as possible while also being clever about your movement, to be absolutely thrilling. There's so much in the box and I'm floored at how many different modules that there are that allow players to mix and match what is in the game. The included "Legends" module also adds in some fairly difficult AI racers that can be played not only with a solo player, but also with players up to 5 to add an additional set of racers.

Every time I have had the opportunity to play the game, I've been impressed with how fast and smoothly it plays. The simultaneous actions taken by players at the start of the round allow for a quick gameplay loop and the constant reactions that players make to the other cars on the road is something that makes this game really special.

There's so much to unpack with the game and I cannot wait to play more and more with my wife.

Might I suggest trying Dungeon Kart?

If you're not a fan of the realistic (or semi-realistic) racing mechanics of Heat, then Dungeon Kart might be more up your alley. Rather than focusing on a more realistic style of racing, Dungeon Kart takes the item throwing, bumping and crashing, chaos of kart racing and throws it on the table with the addition of customizable courses.

The game also plays pretty quickly and adds in some chaotic fun to the mix with the various item boxes (or "spells" as they are called in the game), and really feels good with the catchup mechanics in the game. Every time that I have played, I've ended up having a photo finish at the end of the game, and that's despite numerous times where players are quite a bit ahead of everyone else.

The game is best at 3-4 players but does play 2-8 players. Be prepared to have quite a bit of down time during those games with a larger group as despite the game's zippiness in turns, it does require each person to take a turn and those that take longer are going to slow the entire group. 3-4 players seems to be the ideal player count, although 2 players is just as fun.

If you're looking for an alternative racing game that is both easy to learn and fun to play, I'd recommend Dungeon Kart in a heartbeat.

If you liked Five Tribes: The Djinns of Naqala...

I love the Arabian theme with Five Tribes. It oozes from the cards, the tokens, and the rulebook. The "mancala"-esque gameplay of Five Tribes is also interesting, but I feel like it doesn't do the incredible theme justice.

I personally wasn't that impressed with the game when I played it, but that was at two players and with a friend who had played the game over and over again. He absolutely smoked me in the game and the point spread was so wide, I didn't ever really feel like I had a chance to really catch up to my friend during the game. I do need to give the game another chance, but for now, I think there are other games that I would rather play that have an Arabian theme to them.

Obviously, this is just one guy's opinion on the game and there's a reason that the game is highly rated. It features really tight gameplay and excellent design, but I just didn't really click with it when I played it. I did however click with the game that I'm suggesting below...

Might I suggest trying Tales of the Arabian Nights?

This one is a bit harder to recommend since it's out of print, but it is still one of the most fun "storytelling" games that I have had a chance to play. Tales of the Arabian Nights has led to a few games that take the idea of a giant book that has thousands upon thousands of scenarios that are based off of your choices (Agents of SMERSH and the upcoming Tales of the Arthurian Knights are two) and it's easy to see why when you play the game.

The entire game feels much less like a "game" and more of a journey. There are winners and losers in the game, yes, but it's more about what crazy journey that you go on in this epic tale inspired by Aladdin and Sinbad. While Five Tribes does a great job of using the theme to its gameplay, Tales of the Arabian Nights takes the player and shoves them directly into the story of the game.

Players could find themselves married to the eldest daughter of a sheik, having ugly children, and stricken with the "Accursed" debuff which allows other players to give you a number for your roll after interacting with a sandstorm in the desert. Or players could choose to "honor" a beggar in the street, only to find out that it was a djinn in disguise who grants the player innumerable wealth and takes them to the underwater kingdom of the mermaids.

There's no telling what might happen in this game and it's absolutely fantastic. If you want a game that truly delves into the theme of Arabian Nights, djinn, and the mystery that could happen, Tales of the Arabian Nights is for you.

Final Thoughts

This post took a long time to write since I had so many thoughts about the games that I had played in the top 100 and then I wanted to make sure that I associated each game with another one that I had played previously. This is in no way an exhaustive list of what I've played and there are so many games out there that I have yet to even talk about with this blog. But with me playing more and more new games, I doubt it's ever going to be possible to note them all here on this blog.

Still, I enjoyed this thought experiment and hope that I offered a few new games for you to try out!

Give me your thoughts:What are some of the games that you have found either because of this blog, or due to other blogs here on BGG? Are there any games that you feel would be better associated with any of the 10 games I listed between these posts? What is your favorite new game experience that you've had in the last few years?

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 2/9/2024*