A new year means new game announcements and plays to look forward to. Like all game fans we are reading the lists of things to come. In this article we round up our most anticipated board games set to release in 2023.
Age of Comics: The Golden Years
Run a comic book publishing company in this worker placement game set in the golden age of comics. “In each round the players, in turn, must position 4 meeples (workers called editors). They can choose 4 out of 6 spaces, called publishing tasks. There are 6 publishing tasks in total that can be performed in any order and lead to 6 specific player actions: hire, develop, ideas, print, sales, and royalties.” Age of Comics: The Golden Years at BGG
Age of Rome
This gorgeous title from Teetorum Games is a worker placement game set in 44 B.C. Players are Roman co-emperors trying to gain control just after the fall of Caesar. “In Age of Rome, each player is assigned a hero with their respective player board, then are given secret quests and starting resources of Denarii, Followers, Scheme tokens, Legions, and Votes. Then they spend nine rounds competing on a rotating board to earn Glory Points.” Age of Rome at BGG
Arborea
A new worker placement game from Alley Cat Games and designer Dani Garcia where you play a “patron spirit guiding your villagers to heal and grow the landscape around them.” Arborea at BGG
Artisans of Splendent Vale
Artisans of Splendent Vale is a cooperative adventure game set in a magical land. You play as a troupe of artisans who explore the beauty of the Splendent Vale while getting better at your individual crafts. Overcome challenges during tactical action scenes played out on specialized grid maps. Teamwork and careful strategy will be crucial during these encounters. Read more at Renegade Game Studios.
Arcs
Just look at that cool Moebius-inspired artwork. It’s hard to dislike anything from the creative minds at Leder Games. After the success of Root and Oath, the team of Cole Wehrle and Kyle Ferrin deliver a 4x science fiction themed board game called Arcs. With a 1-2 hour game time, 3-4 players in Arcs fight for control of a crumbling empire as a heroic admiral, canny diplomat, or wealthy magnate. You can preorder a copy of Arcs on the Leder Games Kickstarter page. And you can see a lot of great artwork and read about the game’s development in the designer diary.
Axis & Allies
After a licensing deal with Hasbro, Renegade has announced the release of four Axis & Allies board games for 2023. Axis & Allies Europe 1940, Pacific 1940, 1941, and 1942 in May of this year with updated rulebooks. Read more at Renegade Game Studios.
Earth
This tableau builder from Inside Up games is made for 1-5 players where players build a climate and ecosystem. “Create a self-supporting engine of growth, expansion, and supply by drafting from a deck of over 364 unique cards and strategically placing them in their tableau.” Earth at BGG
Fliptown
In this stratgeic flip and write game for 1-4 players you earn the most stars by exploring a western town using a standard deck of cards. “How will you earn your spurs in this untamed land? Will you help settle the town? Blaze a trail to new discoveries? Mine for gold? Or turn to a life of lawlessness?” Fliptown at BGG
The Fox Experiment
Elizabeth Hargrave (Wingspan) and Pandasauras Games team up for a cute but hefty roll and write game based on domesticating wild foxes. Read more about The Fox Experiment on the game’s Kickstarter page.
Hollywood 1947
Hollywood 1947 from Facade Games is a social deduction game that simulates a “red scare” of that film making era. In the game each player will secretly be a Patriot, Communist, or Rising Star trying to make films and hide their true loyalties. We’ve enjoyed games from Travis Hancock and Sarah Keele so we look forward to playing this one when it releases. Read more about Hollywood 1947 on the game’s Kickstarter page.
Mission Control Critical Orbit
In this cooperative roll and write game you play as flight controllers trying to avoid catastrophe. “Up to 3 players take on the roles of Flight Controllers. Each of the Controller players have unique tasks that earn tools the Aethernaut player needs to restore oxygen and critical systems to the damaged rocket. If the Aethernaut can build a path with polyominoes before the 20 minute timer runs out, you win.” Mission Control Critical Orbit on BGG
On Tour: Paris and New York
We love the original On Tour roll and write game and we’re excited to play this next edition. Designer Chad DeShon teams up with Alban Viard for a dice rolling trip through the roaring 1920’s as you try to play in as many jazz clubs as possible. On Tour: Paris and New York on BGG
Once Upon a Line
Once Upon a Line from Lucky Duck Games looks like a unique take on narrative board gaming. This game combines a scratch-off crossword puzzle mechanic with immersive storytelling. You can read more about Once Upon a Line on the game’s Kickstarter page.
Pollen
Reiner Knizia designed and Beth Sobel illustrated this tile laying game where players lay tiles to get insects to pollinate your flowers. Published by Allplay, Pollen has beautiful artwork and looks to be a visual spatial sort of board game. Pollen on BGG
Rolling Heights
Rolling Heights from AEG looks like it has great table appeal with Lego-like pieces and meeples that you roll (instead of dice). You then contract workers to construct skyscrapers in this roll-and-build board game. Designer John D. Clair had success with games like Cubitos, Space Base, and Mystic Vale, so we have high hopes for this new board game from Alderac. Rolling Heights on BGG
Ryozen
This beautiful board game is a 2-4 player worker placement game set in a fantasy world. It features a rotating board and multiple points to victory as you “secure the best places for your kin to gather or manage resources, recruit more allies with asymmetrical abilities, influence the tie-breaker and collect cards to improve your strategy.” Ryozen at BGG
Scholars of the South Tigris
Shem Phillips returns with Sam Macdonald where players “hire skilled linguists to translate the foreign scrolls into Arabic” and increase knowledge in various areas of science and mathematics. We loved many of the previous titles from Garphill Games and look forward to trying this title as well. Scholars of the South Tigris on BGG
Septima
Septima is a strategy game about witchcraft from Mindclash Games, creators of fan-favorites like Anachrony and Voidfall. The company’s new game looks to be a lighter game than previous releases. Press release says that “Septima is Mindclash Games’ most accessible title to date” and we are eager to try. Septima on BGG
Slay The Spire
It makes sense that a video game based on card game mechanics would wind up as a card game. Slay The Spire comes to physical form this year after a well-funded Kickstarter campaign. We look forward to experiencing how they pack in so many card variations into physical form. This one looks to be one of the most interesting new board games of the year. Slay the Spire on BGG
Sleeping Gods: Distant Skies
Ryan Laukat returns with a sequel to Sleeping Gods where “you and your friends trek through a vast landscape as you read branching storylines and meet vivid characters.” Laukat and Red Raven games are always pushing boundaries of narrative gaming. Distant Skies looks like it’s moving in interesting new directions. Sleeping Gods Distant Skies at BGG
Steam Up
Who can resist a game of Dim Sum? This gorgeous game emulates a meal of Dim Sum with players accumulating different steamers just like you would IRL. We read about this game over at Dicebreaker where creator Pauline Kong explained the inspiration for this beautiful board game: “We know there are many existing Asian-themed board games, but we thought having a game designed by Asians who are from the culture is what makes Steam Up authentic. For players who have eaten dim sum before, we want their play of Steam Up, to bring back memories of eating their favorite dishes. For players who are unfamiliar with this particular Chinese cuisine, we hope our game will spark gamers’ interest to have a food adventure and go to a restaurant that serves traditional dim sum.” Steam up on BGG
The Witcher: Old World
The Witcher: Old World is a Kickstarter-funded game based on the show and books of the same series. In the game you play a Witcher in the times before Geralt of Rivia, in a time when monsters roamed. In this adventure game, 2-5 players travel across a map to embark on quests and fight monsters. Deck-building mechanics let players customize their abilities. The first player to collect a certain number of trophies wins. The Witcher: Old World on BGG
Trailblazers
Bitewig Games‘ Trailblazers looks like a unique twist on card collection and visual spatial puzzles where you build routes with cards. “Players compete to earn the most points by building hiking, biking, and kayaking loops from their campsites of the matching trail type.” Looks like my kind of game. Trailblazers on BGG
Undaunted: Battle of Britain
In this new standalone game in the Undaunted series, strategic warfare moves to Britain with dogfighting and aerial combat. We’ve enjoyed almost all of the Undaunted titles so far and can’t wait to play this one. Undaunted Battle of Britain on BGG
Woodcraft
Gather wood, craft goods, and sell to customers in this clever dice rolling worker placement game. “During the game, players complete their projects with wood (dice) that can be cut down to size, glued back together, and adjusted using dice manipulation to be as efficient as possible with their resources.” Woodcraft looks to be one of the more interesting new board games this year. Woodcraft at BGG
