In this classic word game, players use their seven drawn letter-tiles to form words on the gameboard. Each word laid out earns points based on the commonality of the letters used, with certain board spaces giving bonuses. But a word can only be played if it uses at least one already-played tile or adds to an already-played word. This leads to slightly tactical play, as potential words are rejected because they would give an opponent too much access to the better bonus spaces.
Skip-a-cross was licensed by Selchow & Righter and manufactured by Cadaco. Both games have identical rules but Skip-a-cross has tiles and racks made of cardboard instead of wood. The game was also published because not enough Scrabble games were manufactured to meet the demand.
- Strong vocabulary and language appeal
- Low barrier to entry
- Good for casual play and family game nights
- Can favor players with larger vocabularies
- Scoring can be slow for new players
- Vocabulary expansion and word strategy
- Any language-based word-building on a grid
- Educational, word-focused play
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- rack management — Managing a hand of tiles to optimize word creation.
- tile placement — Strategic placement of letters to maximize scores.
- Word building — Players form words on the board using letter tiles.
- word-building — Players form words on the board using letter tiles.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- board games are just a bridge to building relationships
- we're only here for a short period of time
- there is no substitution for playing a game at a table
- start with a classic and understand what you like and don't like about that game
References (from this video)
- pure word-building appeal
- wide accessibility and recognizability
- market dominated by Scrabble-like titles; competition from others
- dictionary knowledge can be a barrier for casuals
- Vocabulary expansion, word formation
- Word-building with letter tiles
- Casual, language-centric
- Bananagrams
- Word Domination
- Hardback
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Word building / set collection — Players form words from tiles; vocabulary determines scoring opportunities.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- every card should work in exactly the same way and the simplest way of doing that is saying that you play the card once you get the benefit and then you discard the card
- it's a streamlined system so every card should work in exactly the same way
- the goal in a game of hive is to surround the queen bee
- you can see it laying out on the map as things get shut off by the other players
- there is something really satisfying and unusual about that experience
- a legacy game once in a while played with my wife
- it's basically a form of set collection... many different variations of sets which create different words
References (from this video)
- Classic word game
- Engaging for word lovers
- Satisfying word formations
- Takes way too long to play
- Requires timer discipline
- Slow pace not ideal for casual play
- Multiple hours per game
- Word formation
- Vocabulary
- Language puzzle
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- Saying that Catan is the best game out there is like saying a 95 Camry is the best car ever - sure it set the standard in its day but things have progressed since then
- Are you looking to take your game collection to the next level?
- The castles of burgundy is the perfect next step for someone who's out there wondering if there's more to life than Catan
- Metro X is a much smaller and much lighter game that carries the joy of Ticket to Ride in a package you could bring on an actual train and enjoy
- That's Pretty Clever feels like if Yahtzee had an older brother that went to college got his degree and didn't develop a gambling addiction
- Hive is just the right amount of abstract thinking to feel like a challenge while still being fun
- Picture Perfect has those elements of Clue that have made it a staple for so many years - it cranks the deduction all the way up to 11
- When was the last time you made it to the end of a game of Trivial Pursuit without either cheating or giving up or throwing the game?
- Half Truth is a trivia game the way it's meant to be played - it's quick, it's fun, and it doesn't punish you too hard if you don't know something
- If your clue giver has any form of analysis paralysis at all then you might as well pick up a new hobby because you're going to be waiting forever
- So Clover is low stakes, it's quick, it's really easy to teach and you still get all the fun of hidden clues and word association
- You still get that Scrabble satisfaction of making the perfect word but it's in a time frame that's incredibly manageable
- The Crew takes the classic trick taking game formula and adds just enough of that special sauce to make it one of the most accessible and most fun games
- There are better games out there, there are way better games out there that fit those criteria and don't make your grandma cringe
- Monikers is a perfect party game that's super easy to learn and leads to a ton of memorable moments
- I'm a board game sommelier
- I hope this list gives you some ideas on what to give or what to ask for this holiday season
References (from this video)
- classic staple
- excellent for ongoing family games
- word game fatigue in large collections
- word creation
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Word building — build words using letter tiles for points
- word construction / tile placement — build words using letter tiles for points
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- the production is incredible
- this is a long one there's a few games of my collection
- I'm keeping this one forever
- it's a great family game
- it's basically a social deduction game and it's really clever
References (from this video)
- Decent classic
- Gets worse toward end
- Fewer possibilities later
- Drags game down
- Word game
- Letter placement game
- Monopoly
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Word formation — Place letters to form words
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- I rank like games pretty much like how I feel right now about them right it's possible that next month I will rank the games way differently
- Stonespine Architects definitely an a rank game for me um really amazing
- I just absolutely love this one of my most favorite puzzly polyomino games
- Château Burgundy is still in my top three games has been for a few years
- I do not like auction games but I absolutely love Modern Art this is amazing
- My City is like an amazing entry level deck builder but you can also play with people who like to play games a lot
- Slay the Spire could be one of my games of the year wow this game is amazing
- Fallout is really messed up by its winning condition
- Pop-Up Pirate it's funny but is it a good game no it's not really a game right
- I like vegetable themed games it sounds very specific but that's the way it is
References (from this video)
- Widely played; accessible to families
- Reliant on vocabulary; variable tile draw
- Language, vocabulary building
- Word-building on a letter-based board
- Casual, educational
- Bananagrams
- Words with Friends
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- tile placement — Players place letter tiles to form words on the board.
- Vocabulary optimization — Scoring based on word value and premium squares.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- Asthma is the major force here.
- The vast majority of them disappeared.
- Kickstarter is the big new route to publish games.
- The designers aren't making a lot of money.
- We need to hope that the hobby is treated as an art form rather than as a toy.
References (from this video)
- deep, intellectually challenging
- replayable with vocabulary variety
- depends on word lists and language
- linguistic mastery and strategy
- word-building competition
- lifestyle game with intellectual depth
- Wordfeud-style games
- Bananagrams
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- rack management — manage a limited pool of letters to maximize scores.
- tile placement — form words on the board using letter tiles.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- Bridge as a game is kind of dying
- it's just a game it's not great for people with addictive personalities but what it has going for it is it only takes this deck of cards
- Monopoly isn't that bad if you're playing with the auction rules
- Go is the oldest game on this list I believe
- Scotland Yard is the genre defining game for hidden movement
- Diplomacy is a unique experience and its influences can be found in games like A Game of Thrones