Holiday Gift Guide 2023
Written by Tessa
Welcome to our ultimate holiday board game gift guide! As the festive season approaches, delight in the joy of gifting by exploring our curated collection of board games. Whether you're searching for family-friendly classics or the perfect item for the geekiest for friends, our staff has compiled tailored recommendations for each kind of enthusiast. Let’s get right into it!
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Pokémon
Pokémon is the joy of adorable and fierce pocket monsters that everyone from players to collectors enjoy. For your favorite collector, consider picking up Paradox Rift, the newest and first set to contain Pokémon Scarlet & Violet’s Area Zero. Collectors love cracking packs of sets that they haven’t seen much of, so whatever is newest will be a real treat. Serious collectors also love the 151 set for a chance to chase the original 151 Pokémon.
Meanwhile, new players will love the new Pokémon My First Battle decks that teach the game in a smaller, easy-to-learn format. These kits come with two mini-decks of 17 cards each featuring either Squirtle and Charmander or Bulbasaur and Pikachu. Another option is the Pokémon Battle Academy, which comes with 3 prebuilt decks and all of the materials you could need. This set also comes with easy to understand instructions and playmats to guide you through your first games.
For more experienced players, decks are a good place to start. Playing with a new deck and learning its strategies are a super fun way to get better at the game. New ex or League Battle Decks like the Miraidon League Battle Deck are great, simple decks to learn new strategies. The Roaring Moon box contains competitive cards with boosters to bolster deckbuilding.
There are also the 2022 World Champion Decks, with proxy cards that replicate decks used by the world champions. These are not sanctioned for Pokémon events but allow players to learn how to use high level competitive decks.
Magic: The Gathering
We all have a favorite Magic:The Gathering player who seems to have everything they could possibly need. We have some resident experts who can help- Alapai and Rene! If you’ve come to any of our Magic: The Gathering events like Friday Night Magic or Commander Night, you’d recognize Alapai. His recommendations for different sets are going to be The Lost Caverns of Ixalan, Wilds of Eldraine and Commander Masters. The former are new sets that have really fun new cards, while Commander Masters has fun cards for the commander format.
Rene is new to the team but is a huge Magic: The Gathering fan. She is a fan of the Wilds of Eldraine alongside Alapai and is also a fan of Phyrexia: All Will Be One. Rene is newer to MTG but is so excited to learn more and give great recommendations for all of your gift buying needs
Other MTG gift options are accessories. Deck boxes give fans a place to store their deck and come in lots of different designs. Playmats give a more comfortable surface to play on and can make setup a lot more personal. Magic: The Gathering cards need to be protected, so standard-size sleeves like Dragon Shield Matte are always a warm welcome.
Deck Building
Deck building games have you take a deck and buy new cards to improve the efficiency and worth of your deck. These vary per game, but typically the goal is to make your deck as good as possible in whatever way the game determines ‘good’ is.
A fantastic game that is a personal favorite of mine (Tessa!) is Tea Dragon Society. In this adorable game, you start with a deck specific to your tea dragon, which has certain qualities that mimic your dragon’s behavior. Then, you either draw a card or spend cards from your hand to get better cards from the market. This game is super simple and very easy to learn, coming with a comic book to teach you how to play!
Our most popular deck building game is Dominion 2nd Edition, which has many expansions to improve the game as you continue through it. You are a monarch with a small, quaint kingdom, but you’d prefer to be ruling a large kingdom. Unfortunately, all of the other monarchs in the area have the exact same idea, so you must rush to get the resources before your opponents. Build your deck more efficiently than your opponents to ensure victory! A great expansion to the game is Renaissance, which is approachable while introducing fun new mechanics.
Another popular game with deck building is Dune Imperium, a strategy game based on the Dune series and film. Players use their cards and place workers to navigate political factions, defeat rivals, and acquire spice. Dune Imperium: Uprising is the standalone expansion that released just in November. Fans of Dune are sure to love the follow-up, which features a bit more combat.
Two-Player Games
For those of you who enjoy a more intimate game night with just you and one other person, why don’t you check out our selection of two-player games? These are fantastic games designed to be especially for two-players.
Another favorite of mine is Hounded, an asymmetrical two-player game where one person plays as the fox while the other is the master of hounds. The sly fox tries to evade the master of hounds, while the master of hounds must capture the fox using their army of dogs. Hounded is so easy to learn and can be played so many times while feeling fresh. Will you capture or be captured?
One that Arnel really enjoys is Hive. If you enjoy strategic games like chess, you should check out Hive. Your goal is to use your bug tiles to protect your queen while also attacking your opponent's queen. Different bugs move in different ways similar to chess, meaning there is some really interesting strategy involved.
Arnel is a big fan of two-player games, because he has another favorite-Onitama! In Onitama, you take the role of a Master guiding monk followers to attack your opponent’s master. This is a simple strategy game which has you drawing cards, taking card actions, then setting the card to the side, allowing your opponent to use them as well. Strategize to make sure your cards cannot be used to opponents’ advantage.
For a slightly more complex two-player game, Sab recommends 7 Wonders Duel. It can be thrilling, as the the turns are tight. Over three stages, players will draft and play cards to build their city or one of the 7 wonders — all toward gaining military or scientific dominance to win. This will be an excellent gift for fans of civilization-type games!
RPG and Dice
We all know somebody who loves role playing games, but it can be hard to find the perfect gift for them. If you have been to Free RPG day or any of our recent RPG events, you will know that K is our in-house expert. They have some great recommendations for anyone at any level. Some of their favorites are the Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition Starter Set, Delta Green, Monsterhearts 2, Brinkwood: The Blood of Tyrants, Catch Me and of course, dice!
Recently, we have gotten some popular new dice. Metallic Dice Games has a beautiful, sharp-edge resin dice set with tiny frogs inside, wacky silicone dice that bounce when rolled, and a vast assortment of dice filled with anything you could imagine. Alongside dice, RPG players also enjoy accessories like dice towers or dice trays. These make dice rolling a little more contained and dramatic for those scary, intense rolls.
Modern Classics
So many games come out every year, so we thought we’d give a bit of love to some ‘modern classics.’ These games are household staples that have massively grown in popularity over the years.
The one that so many people know is Catan. While we will never know if its Cah-tahn or Ca-tan, we will always know that Catan is one of the games that has made modern board gaming thrive. For those who don’t know the game, players settle the island of Catan, fighting for land and resources. The game also has many popular expansions including 5-6 player extensions, Seafarers, which has you exploring islands along the coast as well as the mainland, and Cities and Knights, which has you building defenses against barbarians that have come to pillage Catan.
Another modern classic for those train kids is Ticket to Ride. Ticket to Ride is a game of simple strategy where you place trains going from one place to another, earning points based on route lengths and objective cards. There are many different versions and expansions to Ticket to Ride, but one that has a special place in our hearts is Ticket to Ride San Francisco. Other than being located in the birthplace of Gamescape, this edition is a smaller-scale version of the main game that’s much shorter to play. There are also bonus points sprinkled around the map to incentivize players to take certain routes.
New to Gaming
Board gaming is a hobby that everyone can get involved in. We always need more players for the inevitable event of people canceling on board game nights! There are lots of simple games that ease players into more modern board gaming. Many of these games are favorites of staff and community alike!
Wingspan has been on our best sellers list for a long time now. Wingspan is a medium weight engine builder, with easy to learn mechanics, that has you building up your bird sanctuary. As you grow your sanctuary, your actions get more efficient, making turns very satisfying by the end of the game. There are so many different birds, all with unique actions to make each game feel different. This allows you to try out different strategies, making Wingspan a great game for beginners.
Sea Salt and Paper is another fantastic game and recent release. This is a set collection game where you risk giving your opponents more time, or end the turn immediately. Will you let yourself get the final extra points, or will you cut everyone off? Sea Salt and Paper is a small and simple game that is perfect for beginners and is a staff favorite.
For those of you who love adorable friendly dragons (who am I kidding, that's everyone), you should check out Flamecraft. In the world of Flamecraft, you are a Flamekeeper who can communicate with the artisanal dragons of the town. Your job is to make sure that the dragons end up in the right shops to improve with their talents. Flamecraft is a beautiful and straightforward game that draws everyone in with its phenomenal design. Come and check it out!
A less strategy-heavy social deduction game for all of those tricksters is One Night Ultimate Werewolf. There are two teams: the village versus the werewolves. The werewolves try to trick the villagers into banishing one of their own, while the villagers are trying to eliminate one of the werewolves. The twist is you may not be on the same team by the end of the night, as roles may swap. Figure out who the bad guys are after a night of pure chaos! This game is perfect for warming up to a board game night with chatting.
Puzzles
Puzzles, puzzles, puzzles: we all have someone in our life who loves puzzles more than people. A new challenge to tackle is always welcome for your most avid puzzler. Our resident puzzle expert is Kendra! She knows more about puzzles than the rest of the staff combined. Her favorite brands for overall quality are Ravensburger and Pomegranate, Clementoni has some fantastic environmental impacts, Eurographics has great options for the history buffs and Artifact has excellent quality wooden puzzles.
For your favorite puzzler, you could also consider picking up a puzzle board or mat to carry a puzzle anywhere, from the couch to the bed. Many of them come with covers, which are great if one has furry friends. They are a fantastic way to make puzzling take up less space and keep all the pieces together.
Miniature Wargaming
Miniature wargaming is a great hobby that allows you to take charge of your forces against another squadron or army. There are so many options varying from sci-fi to fantasy to horror to gothic. Our in-house experts are Arnel and Sergio, who are always happy to run your ear off about their favorite games!
You’ll find Arnel at Battletech and X-Wing Game Nights, and he is also a big fan of Snap Ships Tactics. Battletech has you commanding mech suits the size of buildings in intergalactic war. Meanwhile, X-Wing has you controlling the most well known ships of Star Wars. Snap Ships Tactics allows you to make modular and fully customizable ships that allow you to play with whatever strategy you prefer!
Meanwhile, Sergio can be found at Skirmish Night, playing all types of games. The ones that he won’t shut his babbler about are Conquest, Moonstone and Malifaux. Conquest is a fast-paced miniatures game with some fantastic models, and Malifaux is a horror-themed skirmish game with exciting fighting. On the flipside, Moonstone is a fantasy themed skirmish game where everyone is on the hunt for Moonstones. Players can jump right in with starter sets for Conquest, Moonstone, and Malifaux.
Miniature Painting
The other side of the miniature hobby is painting. Sergio, Arnel, Kendra and myself (Tessa) are avid miniature painters who love talking about our favorite products. You can typically find Sergio and Arnel at Hobby Night painting alongside the community.
Some of Sergio’s favorite products are the Artis Opus paint brushes, Scale75 paints and models from Big Child Creative Models and Neko Galaxies. Scale75 is a wonderful paint brand that has been working closely with the store, with excellent products to show for it. Artis Opus paint brushes will make every brush stroke feel like heaven, even the less intentional ones. And finally, having high quality models means that you are going to have more fun painting, highlighting your favorite details and bringing them to life.