Definitely Tak. It's in the same category as Santorini with abstract strategy, but it's WAY deeper. And also super simple. Also, it's easy to get into since you can play online at playtak and there is a great community around it for casual and competitive play.
There are many of my favorite games on your list. Some obvious omissions are Parks, Cascadia, Harmonies and Barenpark. Since you included a few bigger games like Castles of Burgundy, then I would also have added the classic, El Grande :-)
Foundations of Rome. 3 simple actions to choose from but a lot of strategy on how to optimize placement of buildings based on how the game is developing, what is surrounding your buildings, etc.
I love seeing everyone's list. Games like these are the only ones I can get my family to play with me. If the rules take more than 10 minutes to explain, it's not making it to the table.
Love you bros! I turn 40 this Monday and it looks like my birthday present is going to be for our gestational carrier to start carrying our child before the end of the year, much sooner than we'd thought! Have a great day and keep being you guys, 'cause you guys ROCK.
I know you've been doing this for a bit now, but I just wanted to comment on how much I enjoy and appreciate the b-roll you incorporate into your top 10 lists. Very well done, beautiful cuts that really add to both the quality and quantity of your videos. Thanks for the effort. I know it takes a lot. This was a great list, btw!
I am new to this board game thing and not playing board game but playing board APP. Game looks complicated by looking at the board. I think I will try this game.
Interesting list. Everything you mentioned about Chess is much more true for Go. That is in fact my number 1 game of all time. And that despite I am more a Themer. (Terraforming Mars, Wingspan, Scythe, Sleeping Gods etc.) Go has the simplest 3 rules, but only in 2016 was a AI able to win against human. It is THE most complex game out there.
@@antondudko2385 Ragnrocks has definitely a territorial aspect, but it is an soo much easier game. Strangely enough with all the different power cards it has so many different rules and modes. The deepness, and complexity of Go is unrivaled. I play Go for over 35 years and I call myself still only a beginner.
I'll say no on Castles of Burgundy. I think when we play a game a lot we forget what it's like to learn it. I teach a lot of games and think I do a pretty good job of it, but I taught this to some new folks sometime in the past year and it felt like a medium/medium-heavy game with the things I felt like I needed to explain. I'm sure someone else would do a better job, but I think it's wrong to say Castles is a rules-light game. But-great video! I haven't tried Santorini or Unmatched or Arboretum even though I've known about them, and this makes me want to now.
agreed. Especially with every yellow tile meaning something different you have to look them up every time when you haven’t memorized them yet. I would still consider those rules.
All the tiles having different rules completely knocks it out contention for me. If at any point during the game you have to take a look in the rulebook to remember what you are supposed to do then it doesn't meet my definition of "easy to teach".
For me, the latest Awaken Realms version with the larger tiles and their use printed on the back completely fixes this problem. I’ve taught the game with several groups of new gamers and managed to keep the teach to a minimal 20 minutes and dive right into play. This beautiful game absolutely belongs on this list now IMHO.
Arboretum is one of my favorites! The rules for gameplay are indeed simple. I do find that for new players, it's hard to remember all the scoring rules. It's not that complicated, but I do wish there were little player aid cards included in the game.
My first thought when I saw the topic was Blitzkrieg. It’s so quick and easy to teach, never have to look at the rulebook, but I’m always shocked how much though goes into each decision made in the game. It feels like it would be stale since the board doesn’t change game to game, but somehow it always feels dynamic and interesting.
I was surprised at Bloody Inn - just picked that up because you said so, and i really had to sit back and plan out what i wanted to do. Turns and rules are simple - basically pick one thing to so with one card on your turn, try to bank points. But man.... so many agonizing decisions that all knot together - 7 dead cops later and I'm just shoving bodies under my neighbor's barn cause I have too many things to do and not enough turns to do them. That peasant mechanic - brilliant.
I was going to say this one, too. On your turn you either place a worker, play a card, or prepare for next season. Those are your only options. But like you said specific cards and the way they combo are what make the game more complex and interesting.
@@laurencesingh3948 I would still argue that the game works - because the rules are still simple - regardless of the text on the cards, which add to the strategy.
@@laurencesingh3948tbf lots of other wp games only have "place a worker", so what makes Everdell's simple is how almost all the worker spaces are "place here to get resources/cards/points"
I’d say The Quest For Eldorado. Super simple, the rules are on your player board! Great decisions and replayability. Would you consider Orléans eligible for this list?
Great list. I've seen Santorini and always passed it up, but after seeing this, I'm giving it a try. I like that it's a short game and it is easy to learn, challenging to play. Thanks for the list👍
I can't believe I've finally found Le Havre getting the recognition as the king of light rules/heavy strategy! Concordia always rules the discussion, and it certainly deserves to be high on the list, yet nobody seems to remember Le Havre even exists when talking about this. But it's absolutely my pick for #1 and always has been.
Great list, love the choice of beer and bread. One of my favs that would fit on this list is The Estates. Really fun auction city building game, the rules are light and intuitive.
Great video guys! honestly suprised that weather machine didn't make the cut. maybe honerable mention. LOL All jokes aside love the content. My favorite board game channel for sure
Solid list. I’d add Finca, Hive and most Reiner Knizia games. Le Havre is one of Uwe’s heaviest games according to BGG. I guess because despite the simple rules it gets REALLY crunchy if you want to do well, i.e. make as much money as possible.
A game I wish received more attention is Kingdomino. I’m not sure I would consider it a deep strategy game. But it is a strategy game that is really easy to learn and a lot of fun. It only takes 20 minutes to play.
Targi’s a good candidate. Reef for another abstract game. I think Reef is highly underrated. It’s so ridiculously easy to teach and incredibly satisfying as you start chaining your goal cards together while simultaneously collecting resources from those same goal cards then constantly raking in money. I also thought it was a genius touch to keep the coin diameter the same so you can’t tell by looking at someone’s stack how much money they actually have. Whether that was intentional or not I don’t know.
Loved the list, I'm excited to go check out Beer and Bread! One game that I've really loved for its simplicity is Tiny Towns - pick a resource and match them to build a building!
Excellent idea for a list and good choices! Totally agree that Arboretum is a brain melter, it just looks so sweet and innocent. Santorini is an absolute gem. Anyone who likes abstract strategy should own Santorini. Can't agree on CoB however, it has a good amount of rules and concepts to learn IMO. Thanks for the list!
Great list ! Mind would be : (no specific order) 1) Mangrovia 2) Arboretum 3) Glass Road 4) Bloody Inn 5) Photograph (wind the film) 6) Five Tribes 7) Ethnos 8) Glory to Rome 9) The Crew 10) Hansa teutonica
Some of the simplest games I have are also easily some of the best and my most enjoyable to interact with my friends. Zoo vadis, the crew, Whitehall mystery, the king is dead, battle line, Azul. So easy to teach, you don't get hung up on "well that's not a valid move because you can't move that piece into a space containing that piece". You just hop in and the complexity all comes from playing the people across from you
On a podcast I heard about a site (can’t remember it) where they grade a games weight twice. So rules is weighted 1-5 and play depth we is A-E. A game like go which has very few rules but sooooo much depth may and up a 1.5-E Personally I like this far more than the BGG rating system.
Ohhhh, sounds amazing! I really would like that everybody is doing that. Because the amount of rules is not the same as the depth of a game! I really hope BGG and others will implement such a system 🤞🤞🤞
@@TheBrothersMurphHi guys, you got the connection to BGG :)) Please convince them to implement a rating for amount of rules and a rating for depth 😃 Pretty please 😺
No Reiner Knizia? High Society, Schotten Totten, Through the Desert, etc. He is the king of cleverly simple games that make you hate yourself and this is why we love him.
I looooove this type of games! Less rules, high depth! I am always looking for Top 10 videos of this kind! The problem with the "many rules" games is that you will forget the rules in a month and then you don't want to touch that game again because you know you have to learn again the rules!!! I really wish more games would be like Concordia! You can play it anytime without looking into the rule book 😄
Nice top 10! Many of them will be in my top 10. Here are some you didn’t mention and that will definitely be in my top 10: Anachrony, On Mars, Lisboa, Voidfall, CO2: Second Chance.
Khet. It's literally referred to as laser chess. Super simple, super strategic. I recommend playing it with a chess clock to keep games short. I will also say, I think Unmatched is actually best in a 2v2 setting. It's a lot more forgiving for new players because players can dip in and out easier.
First game that came to my mind for this catagory was Innovation. You have two actions and can do four things on your turn (really only three things as one of them is just scoring an acheivement). You play a card, draw a card, or do what the card says on it. Pick to do two of those things each turn. Thats it. But it will get crazy complicated as each card does very different things your cards evolve as the game goes on.
You do a great job listing more modern games. I was sitting here waiting for GO to be announced. Rules: Place stones on intersection Can not repeat same move Surrounded stones are captured. Winning: The one with the biggest area wins
@@TheBrothersMurph If you get your hands on a set i really recommend to go for it and try So very VERY few rules but it wasnt untill 2015 when the original "alphaGo" was the FIRST Ai to beat a professional GO player. Before this no one really sucseeded cuase the depth of gameplay is so great
I like Raptor for its simplicity to depth ratio. Abalone (a marble pusher) is also on my list. Perhaps Crokinole would land just outside my top 10, maybe in the 10th or 11th spot. Most think of it as a shuffleboard like game, and it is. However, the standout rule is that if you don’t hit an opponent’s piece on your turn, your piece is removed, no matter where it lands. This creates some fascinating tactical decisions. Fun fact: It was invented in 1876 in Ontario, Canada, my home province, so maybe I’m a bit biased! Dixit is another favourite of mine. It has an incredibly simple rule set, but the scoring system at the end of each round is what elevates the game. The design is inspiring; so much depth emerges from such elegant simplicity. If you play Dixit Oddesty, the Dixit variant, you can expand the player count to 12. They achieve this by adding an extra voting token for each player, which increases the points available each round. This tweak keeps the game moving even with a higher player count. It’s brilliant, a single rule transforms a 1-6 player game into a max 12 player experience. Great game design! I also really like Crew and will have to try some of the others mentioned. Mythic Michife looks fun. I like Santorini, great game.
Thanks for the ideas and game suggestions! within this list I feel Unmatched is exactly what I'm looking for. I began watching with Neuroshima Hex in mind. It's asymmetrical, teach as you go, has luck of the draw mechanics with chess-like tactics.
In my opinion, Reiner Knizia has this category mostly down to a tee. Especially his auction games, like Modern Art, or Ra. The rules are pretty simple, but it's still basically impossible to tell what a given auction lot is worth. And there will be 3-4 other players struggling with the exact same issues. Trying to determine whether you want to use whatever limited resources you have this time, or hope for something better down the line. They massage my brain wonderfully.
I was hoping to see Ginkgopolis on here. I haven’t played but I was hoping to see it on the list so I would have encouragement to learn the rules haha. Great list friends
Really love the list and that Arboretum, Concordia and Beer&Bread are on it - they totally deserve it! However, if you want a game with super lightweight rules and really heavy complexity, try Curious Cargo: the best headache of my life!
Ticket to ride is my most played game with various groups and family for this very reason, literally 2 options for the turn, a selection of objectives and the rest is strategy. Probably played over 100 times in the past year or so and that's all on the Europe map, once you start adding the new maps this game is infinite fun
For my tastes, my list would be: - Santorini (no argument there!) - War Chest - Onitmama - Air, Land, and Sea - Battle Line - Lost Cities - Guillotine - Hive (much prefer this to Chess) - Love Letter - Stratego
I really liked this list!! I'll add Bonanza, Trajan (I feel that Stefan Feld makes a great job at this type of games) and Sea Salt & Paper, one of my recent favorites.
Thanks for the recommendations in this nice video! However, I do feel a ranking like this not having Chess on the number 1 spot is simply incorrect (or maybe 2, depending on whether you prefer Go). No matter whether you like or dislike Chess, it is the pinnacle of a game having simple rules versus an incredible amount of strategy.
Ha well all our lists are subjective lists based on which games we LIKE playing and chess certainly is not something we enjoy. But it does absolutely fit this description to a T.
Have you guys played Furnace? I love how simple and - as you said - Elegant the game is. Super easy to learn, to set up, but there's a lot to think about in the bidding phase, and then depending on whether you play the advanced rules, or the simple rules, there are interesting choices to make in the production phase.
I don't agree with you about #5 CoB being a game with simple rules. I only played it for the first time recently when I received the new edition and from the moment I started unpacking it I did not see this as being simple. You mentioned the monasteries being complex - yeah, they are! But the rules required careful reading and even in our first game we had questions, we played some rules wrong (i.e. how often mines generate income) . . . there are a LOT of rules to unpack. Today, I love the game and I look forward to playing it as often as possible, but I will always remember the learning curve I had to get over to play this game. In my opinion, it is misleading to put it on this list. But I agree with many others you have here.
WOW what a list; 4 of my favorite games in it: Le Havre, Concordia, Arboretum and Crew. I just love Le Havre at 3 or 4 players game not 2 players. Also, Le Havre is the best Uwe Rosenburg in my book.
I actually agree with Castles of Burgundy. Roll dice and allocate to actions. Of course, there's so much to learn, but once you get the strategies, it's fairly simple, rule-wise
Agreed with most of the games on the list, especially Concordia and Castles of Burgundy. However, The Great Zimbabwe deserves a spot on that list-at least in the Top 5.
I love these types for games so I added a few of these to my wish list. So may good games out there! I think Cascadia and Photosynthesis also fit the bill very nicely. Both are great games!
I was absolutly certain that your number one would be Gingkopolis. It’s first in m’y opinion, without a doubt! A game where you have 2 options on your turn, but so much possibilities! Love this game as you do I think…
Just played Marrakesh (Feld) today and while it shouldn’t be on this list, once I learned the rules the game played sooo smoothly, like a harmonious balanced dance.
For me, it has to have a shorter teach and simpler rules to be considered "rules light". So here's my list of five games, in no particular order, because ordering is hard: -Land vs Sea -Hive -Azul -Thurn and Taxis -Cascadia
Good call! I got a used copy of it a while back and haven’t played but when I read the rules I was astonished by how kinda simple and easy to get into it was. Gotta actually get that played
@@TheBrothersMurph it's definitely not an aesthetically pleasing game in this modern day of beautiful games but the mechanics and gameplay is always tight and clean. It's always like you have all the information in front of you to play a perfect game and no matter what by turn three or four everything always starting going to hell..
Castles of Burgundy doesn't belong on this list, IMO. It's not an especially difficult teach, but it's not what I'd call easy. Some that I would include: Web of Power Medieval Merchant Condottiere Medici Dominion (since you only need to teach the cards in the current game) Space Base (this one is borderline; none of the cards is hard, but there are a lot of them)
Haven’t played the first 2 so can’t comment on those and we should have given knizia some love. He is absolutely the king of this topic. It could have been all his games
Have you guys played 'WARLINE: Maneuver Strategy & Tactics'? Definitely more than 4 rules (not too heavy though), but insane level of strategy right from the start. Fast games and fast reset, so good.
Glad that Santorini is here one of the most lovely strategy Game that we have You could play zodiac-clash it has a Lot of strategie too and looks awesome too
There is a huge oversight here in the OG games department... Designers like Knizia, Colovini and Dorra mastered the simple rules deep strategy formula! Just look at games like MarraCash, Bridges of Shangri-La, Orongo -- or see Michael Schacht's many stellar designs like Mogul. Games like this will blow games like Le Havre out of the water in the rules to depth of strategy ratio
What game do you think should be on the list? Oh and make sure to subscribe!
Definitely Tak. It's in the same category as Santorini with abstract strategy, but it's WAY deeper. And also super simple. Also, it's easy to get into since you can play online at playtak and there is a great community around it for casual and competitive play.
There are many of my favorite games on your list. Some obvious omissions are Parks, Cascadia, Harmonies and Barenpark. Since you included a few bigger games like Castles of Burgundy, then I would also have added the classic, El Grande :-)
Chess should definitely have gotten an honorable mention. Other than that, carcassonne and star realms 😁
The Loop is possibly also one who could be on the list.
You have a great channel with a lot of positivism! 👍🏻
Foundations of Rome. 3 simple actions to choose from but a lot of strategy on how to optimize placement of buildings based on how the game is developing, what is surrounding your buildings, etc.
I feel like Hansa Teutonica is the most elegant design in all of board gaming and would have been my vote for number one on this list.
I'd say that spot belongs to Concordia, but HT is a great shout
Such a good game!
Hansa was on the short list and DEF could have been on this list
HT is my favorite game of all time. Good call!
Hansa Teutonica is a great candidate for this list. I totally agree.
I love seeing everyone's list. Games like these are the only ones I can get my family to play with me. If the rules take more than 10 minutes to explain, it's not making it to the table.
Love you bros! I turn 40 this Monday and it looks like my birthday present is going to be for our gestational carrier to start carrying our child before the end of the year, much sooner than we'd thought! Have a great day and keep being you guys, 'cause you guys ROCK.
Oh my gosh Teej thank you so so much for the generosity! And congrats on the accelerated timeline! Let's goooooo!!
I know you've been doing this for a bit now, but I just wanted to comment on how much I enjoy and appreciate the b-roll you incorporate into your top 10 lists. Very well done, beautiful cuts that really add to both the quality and quantity of your videos. Thanks for the effort. I know it takes a lot.
This was a great list, btw!
Awwww thank you for those kind words we really love having good b roll so it always makes us happy when someone appreciates it!
So glad to see Concordia on this list. One of the few games you never need to look at the rule book.
I am new to this board game thing and not playing board game but playing board APP.
Game looks complicated by looking at the board. I think I will try this game.
Interesting list. Everything you mentioned about Chess is much more true for Go. That is in fact my number 1 game of all time. And that despite I am more a Themer. (Terraforming Mars, Wingspan, Scythe, Sleeping Gods etc.) Go has the simplest 3 rules, but only in 2016 was a AI able to win against human. It is THE most complex game out there.
@@antondudko2385 Ragnrocks has definitely a territorial aspect, but it is an soo much easier game. Strangely enough with all the different power cards it has so many different rules and modes. The deepness, and complexity of Go is unrivaled. I play Go for over 35 years and I call myself still only a beginner.
Thanks for this list. Low rule complexity, deep strategy is a beautiful balance
I'll say no on Castles of Burgundy. I think when we play a game a lot we forget what it's like to learn it. I teach a lot of games and think I do a pretty good job of it, but I taught this to some new folks sometime in the past year and it felt like a medium/medium-heavy game with the things I felt like I needed to explain. I'm sure someone else would do a better job, but I think it's wrong to say Castles is a rules-light game.
But-great video! I haven't tried Santorini or Unmatched or Arboretum even though I've known about them, and this makes me want to now.
agreed. Especially with every yellow tile meaning something different you have to look them up every time when you haven’t memorized them yet. I would still consider those rules.
Yup. Castles is known for having an awful rules book too.
All the tiles having different rules completely knocks it out contention for me. If at any point during the game you have to take a look in the rulebook to remember what you are supposed to do then it doesn't meet my definition of "easy to teach".
For me, the latest Awaken Realms version with the larger tiles and their use printed on the back completely fixes this problem. I’ve taught the game with several groups of new gamers and managed to keep the teach to a minimal 20 minutes and dive right into play. This beautiful game absolutely belongs on this list now IMHO.
Arboretum is one of my favorites! The rules for gameplay are indeed simple. I do find that for new players, it's hard to remember all the scoring rules. It's not that complicated, but I do wish there were little player aid cards included in the game.
My first thought when I saw the topic was Blitzkrieg. It’s so quick and easy to teach, never have to look at the rulebook, but I’m always shocked how much though goes into each decision made in the game. It feels like it would be stale since the board doesn’t change game to game, but somehow it always feels dynamic and interesting.
Right there with you on Unmatched - first thing I thought of was Little Red. She broke my brainium trying to plan out her basket bonuses.
Glad to see Santorini on this list. It was the first game that came to my mind when I read "Light Rules And Heavy Strategy"
I have had Concordia sitting here for a year, untouched. You've convinced me it's time to give it a go!
try it, its amazing 😉
Great list. I love Onitama as well as the original miniature game - Chess :) in this regard.
Was about to say this, too!!!
I was surprised at Bloody Inn - just picked that up because you said so, and i really had to sit back and plan out what i wanted to do. Turns and rules are simple - basically pick one thing to so with one card on your turn, try to bank points. But man.... so many agonizing decisions that all knot together - 7 dead cops later and I'm just shoving bodies under my neighbor's barn cause I have too many things to do and not enough turns to do them. That peasant mechanic - brilliant.
Everdell has arguably also a super simple rule set - the complexities arise from the cards and card combos.
I was going to say this one, too. On your turn you either place a worker, play a card, or prepare for next season. Those are your only options. But like you said specific cards and the way they combo are what make the game more complex and interesting.
@@laurencesingh3948 I would still argue that the game works - because the rules are still simple - regardless of the text on the cards, which add to the strategy.
@@laurencesingh3948tbf lots of other wp games only have "place a worker", so what makes Everdell's simple is how almost all the worker spaces are "place here to get resources/cards/points"
Almost any Knizia game fits this as well. My favorites are Ra and Quest for El Dorado
Funny thing is we hadn't played Ra, but we DID play Ra the day this video came out, and it definitely could have made this list
Tigris and Euphrates is an excellent example of this.
@@jonsparks3152T&E is the least good example of easy Knizia games, being his heaviest game. There are so many other great ones, though.
I’d say The Quest For Eldorado. Super simple, the rules are on your player board! Great decisions and replayability.
Would you consider Orléans eligible for this list?
How in the heck did Hanamikoji not make this list? I think I bought it because y'all said it was one of the best at this.
Great list. I've seen Santorini and always passed it up, but after seeing this, I'm giving it a try. I like that it's a short game and it is easy to learn, challenging to play. Thanks for the list👍
There's a mobile app for Santorini that is pretty good if you want to test it out first.
@@lanethomason6000 Thanks!
I can't believe I've finally found Le Havre getting the recognition as the king of light rules/heavy strategy! Concordia always rules the discussion, and it certainly deserves to be high on the list, yet nobody seems to remember Le Havre even exists when talking about this.
But it's absolutely my pick for #1 and always has been.
Le Havre for life
Great list, love the choice of beer and bread. One of my favs that would fit on this list is The Estates. Really fun auction city building game, the rules are light and intuitive.
Love this topic. My favorite type of game is simple to learn hard to master.
I would add - Cascadia, Mandala, Battleline, Jaipur, Targi to the list.
Great video guys! honestly suprised that weather machine didn't make the cut. maybe honerable mention. LOL All jokes aside love the content. My favorite board game channel for sure
Solid list. I’d add Finca, Hive and most Reiner Knizia games.
Le Havre is one of Uwe’s heaviest games according to BGG. I guess because despite the simple rules it gets REALLY crunchy if you want to do well, i.e. make as much money as possible.
A game I wish received more attention is Kingdomino. I’m not sure I would consider it a deep strategy game. But it is a strategy game that is really easy to learn and a lot of fun. It only takes 20 minutes to play.
Targi’s a good candidate. Reef for another abstract game. I think Reef is highly underrated. It’s so ridiculously easy to teach and incredibly satisfying as you start chaining your goal cards together while simultaneously collecting resources from those same goal cards then constantly raking in money. I also thought it was a genius touch to keep the coin diameter the same so you can’t tell by looking at someone’s stack how much money they actually have. Whether that was intentional or not I don’t know.
War Chest was my first thought.
Great video, thank you!
Loved the list, I'm excited to go check out Beer and Bread! One game that I've really loved for its simplicity is Tiny Towns - pick a resource and match them to build a building!
Excellent idea for a list and good choices! Totally agree that Arboretum is a brain melter, it just looks so sweet and innocent. Santorini is an absolute gem. Anyone who likes abstract strategy should own Santorini. Can't agree on CoB however, it has a good amount of rules and concepts to learn IMO. Thanks for the list!
I agree. It may only have four possible actions per dice but I feel like there are a few too many rules for this list.
Great list, I like a lot of these games. I'll add Azul, Akropolis, It's a Wonderful World, and Land vs Sea.
Great list ! Mind would be : (no specific order)
1) Mangrovia
2) Arboretum
3) Glass Road
4) Bloody Inn
5) Photograph (wind the film)
6) Five Tribes
7) Ethnos
8) Glory to Rome
9) The Crew
10) Hansa teutonica
Mangrovia, nice! 🎉
Some of the simplest games I have are also easily some of the best and my most enjoyable to interact with my friends. Zoo vadis, the crew, Whitehall mystery, the king is dead, battle line, Azul. So easy to teach, you don't get hung up on "well that's not a valid move because you can't move that piece into a space containing that piece". You just hop in and the complexity all comes from playing the people across from you
Great list, I think Sea Salt Paper would make this list as well.
On a podcast I heard about a site (can’t remember it) where they grade a games weight twice. So rules is weighted 1-5 and play depth we is A-E.
A game like go which has very few rules but sooooo much depth may and up a 1.5-E
Personally I like this far more than the BGG rating system.
Oh that’s cool! A very good rating system
Do you mean the Mogul Scale? Yes, I think that is a lot better than the BGG system.
Ohhhh, sounds amazing! I really would like that everybody is doing that. Because the amount of rules is not the same as the depth of a game! I really hope BGG and others will implement such a system 🤞🤞🤞
@@TheBrothersMurphHi guys, you got the connection to BGG :)) Please convince them to implement a rating for amount of rules and a rating for depth 😃 Pretty please 😺
Hansa Teutonica and Turing Machine. Great list! I never heard of Mythic Miachief til now, going to vheck that one out 🙂
'Brew the best bread and bake the breast beer'
- Murph Brothers, 2023
No Reiner Knizia? High Society, Schotten Totten, Through the Desert, etc. He is the king of cleverly simple games that make you hate yourself and this is why we love him.
We were joking that this entire list could be his games. He definitely is the king of that.
I looooove this type of games! Less rules, high depth! I am always looking for Top 10 videos of this kind! The problem with the "many rules" games is that you will forget the rules in a month and then you don't want to touch that game again because you know you have to learn again the rules!!! I really wish more games would be like Concordia! You can play it anytime without looking into the rule book 😄
Nice top 10! Many of them will be in my top 10. Here are some you didn’t mention and that will definitely be in my top 10:
Anachrony, On Mars, Lisboa, Voidfall, CO2: Second Chance.
I think Go would be my number one pick followed by Chess.
Classics!
Khet. It's literally referred to as laser chess. Super simple, super strategic. I recommend playing it with a chess clock to keep games short.
I will also say, I think Unmatched is actually best in a 2v2 setting. It's a lot more forgiving for new players because players can dip in and out easier.
First game that came to my mind for this catagory was Innovation. You have two actions and can do four things on your turn (really only three things as one of them is just scoring an acheivement). You play a card, draw a card, or do what the card says on it. Pick to do two of those things each turn. Thats it. But it will get crazy complicated as each card does very different things your cards evolve as the game goes on.
Great call on innovation
Great list, thank you! I love Concordia and Le Have. A more recent favorite like this is Guild of Merchant Explorers.
You do a great job listing more modern games. I was sitting here waiting for GO to be announced.
Rules:
Place stones on intersection
Can not repeat same move
Surrounded stones are captured.
Winning:
The one with the biggest area wins
We have always wanted to play Go. Absolutely great choice for this kind of list
@@TheBrothersMurph If you get your hands on a set i really recommend to go for it and try
So very VERY few rules but it wasnt untill 2015 when the original "alphaGo" was the FIRST Ai to beat a professional GO player.
Before this no one really sucseeded cuase the depth of gameplay is so great
These are some of my favourite types of games cause they’re easy to teach and can get to the table often
Heck yeah!
A lot of unexpected games on that list, I really like those kinds of games. Another good one I would add is Azul (and its variants).
For me, the best examples are: Skull (the very best), and Love Letter.
I like Raptor for its simplicity to depth ratio. Abalone (a marble pusher) is also on my list. Perhaps Crokinole would land just outside my top 10, maybe in the 10th or 11th spot. Most think of it as a shuffleboard like game, and it is. However, the standout rule is that if you don’t hit an opponent’s piece on your turn, your piece is removed, no matter where it lands. This creates some fascinating tactical decisions. Fun fact: It was invented in 1876 in Ontario, Canada, my home province, so maybe I’m a bit biased!
Dixit is another favourite of mine. It has an incredibly simple rule set, but the scoring system at the end of each round is what elevates the game. The design is inspiring; so much depth emerges from such elegant simplicity.
If you play Dixit Oddesty, the Dixit variant, you can expand the player count to 12. They achieve this by adding an extra voting token for each player, which increases the points available each round. This tweak keeps the game moving even with a higher player count. It’s brilliant, a single rule transforms a 1-6 player game into a max 12 player experience. Great game design!
I also really like Crew and will have to try some of the others mentioned. Mythic Michife looks fun. I like Santorini, great game.
Thanks for the ideas and game suggestions! within this list I feel Unmatched is exactly what I'm looking for. I began watching with Neuroshima Hex in mind. It's asymmetrical, teach as you go, has luck of the draw mechanics with chess-like tactics.
In my opinion, Reiner Knizia has this category mostly down to a tee. Especially his auction games, like Modern Art, or Ra. The rules are pretty simple, but it's still basically impossible to tell what a given auction lot is worth. And there will be 3-4 other players struggling with the exact same issues. Trying to determine whether you want to use whatever limited resources you have this time, or hope for something better down the line. They massage my brain wonderfully.
What a great video! The subject, the talk and the images are all amazing!
Subscribed. :)
Wahoo happy to have ya!
I was hoping to see Ginkgopolis on here. I haven’t played but I was hoping to see it on the list so I would have encouragement to learn the rules haha. Great list friends
Same... I haven't played it either, but I heard about its stature!
Concordia becomes even more varialbe with just one extra resource of salt from Salsa expansion
Really love the list and that Arboretum, Concordia and Beer&Bread are on it - they totally deserve it! However, if you want a game with super lightweight rules and really heavy complexity, try Curious Cargo: the best headache of my life!
What a great list idea. For me, my #1 would be El Grande. But you had some great choices.
Ticket to ride is my most played game with various groups and family for this very reason, literally 2 options for the turn, a selection of objectives and the rest is strategy. Probably played over 100 times in the past year or so and that's all on the Europe map, once you start adding the new maps this game is infinite fun
Ticket to Ride is so great for this!
Only games I like on the list are Concordia and Unmatched. Good video though guys.👍 Enjoy the content, even if our tastes differ.😊
I absolutely love Mythic Mischief. I also have had Santeria on my to buy list but have not pulled the trigger, now I think its time. 😊
Great topic! I love Santorini and will have to take a look at Mythic Mischief. Another great abstract is Warchest.
Thanks for the video. I love MIke's shirt with the Sagrada theme.
Cool! Now can you do a video on “Top 10 Games with Heavy Rules & Light Strategy”? (Just for a joke, maybe)!
Thanks.
I also liked Finca, Tobago, and Gold West, also RA is great for that as well. I do love Concordia, so I'm glad it was on the list.
+1 for Finca.
For my tastes, my list would be:
- Santorini (no argument there!)
- War Chest
- Onitmama
- Air, Land, and Sea
- Battle Line
- Lost Cities
- Guillotine
- Hive (much prefer this to Chess)
- Love Letter
- Stratego
I really liked this list!! I'll add Bonanza, Trajan (I feel that Stefan Feld makes a great job at this type of games) and Sea Salt & Paper, one of my recent favorites.
Love bohnanza! Bohnanza is the favourite gateway game for my wife and I to teach guests
Thanks for the recommendations in this nice video! However, I do feel a ranking like this not having Chess on the number 1 spot is simply incorrect (or maybe 2, depending on whether you prefer Go). No matter whether you like or dislike Chess, it is the pinnacle of a game having simple rules versus an incredible amount of strategy.
Ha well all our lists are subjective lists based on which games we LIKE playing and chess certainly is not something we enjoy. But it does absolutely fit this description to a T.
This is the best list ever, it's exactly what i was looking for ❤❤❤ thank you very much for it ❤❤❤
You're welcome 😊
a must have and the must added game for this list is "THE KING IS DEAD 2nd EDITION"
Perfect video! My wife hates rules but I love heavy strategy and this is perfect.
21:42 “brew the best bread & bake the best beer” 😂
Have you guys played Furnace? I love how simple and - as you said - Elegant the game is. Super easy to learn, to set up, but there's a lot to think about in the bidding phase, and then depending on whether you play the advanced rules, or the simple rules, there are interesting choices to make in the production phase.
Heck yeah! Furnace is solid!
Great video on just the kind of game I like - and that got me into the hobby in the first place.
For me this category a must. Azul the queen’s garden or Creature comforts are like this.
I don't agree with you about #5 CoB being a game with simple rules. I only played it for the first time recently when I received the new edition and from the moment I started unpacking it I did not see this as being simple. You mentioned the monasteries being complex - yeah, they are! But the rules required careful reading and even in our first game we had questions, we played some rules wrong (i.e. how often mines generate income) . . . there are a LOT of rules to unpack. Today, I love the game and I look forward to playing it as often as possible, but I will always remember the learning curve I had to get over to play this game. In my opinion, it is misleading to put it on this list. But I agree with many others you have here.
WOW what a list; 4 of my favorite games in it: Le Havre, Concordia, Arboretum and Crew. I just love Le Havre at 3 or 4 players game not 2 players. Also, Le Havre is the best Uwe Rosenburg in my book.
Great list! I’d add “Hansa Teutonica” to he list. 👍
How is it possible to make a list like this and not even mention Reiner knizia? That's his entire MO.
I agree! Several of his games would fit well into this category
I immediately think of Kramer & Kiesling!
Yea, huge miss here.
Agreed
Love Arboretum! Scoring confuses new players, but it's so good.
I’m an outlier for sure, but I find Concordia dull as dishwater.
Same. Most overrated game on BGG.
I actually agree with Castles of Burgundy. Roll dice and allocate to actions. Of course, there's so much to learn, but once you get the strategies, it's fairly simple, rule-wise
Agreed with most of the games on the list, especially Concordia and Castles of Burgundy. However, The Great Zimbabwe deserves a spot on that list-at least in the Top 5.
I love these types for games so I added a few of these to my wish list. So may good games out there! I think Cascadia and Photosynthesis also fit the bill very nicely. Both are great games!
Wow, I own and/or like 8 of the games you listed. I love few rules with high strategy.
I was absolutly certain that your number one would be Gingkopolis. It’s first in m’y opinion, without a doubt! A game where you have 2 options on your turn, but so much possibilities! Love this game as you do I think…
We definitely thought about it for this list. I think it could make a good candidate for sure
Just played Marrakesh (Feld) today and while it shouldn’t be on this list, once I learned the rules the game played sooo smoothly, like a harmonious balanced dance.
Castles of Burgundy is one of my favorite two player games. Also great with three people, but just great for two. Great choice.
For me, it has to have a shorter teach and simpler rules to be considered "rules light".
So here's my list of five games, in no particular order, because ordering is hard:
-Land vs Sea
-Hive
-Azul
-Thurn and Taxis
-Cascadia
Not another Euro, not another abstract, not another abstract card game: I'd suggest the very successful Mindbug!
Good call!
Homeworlds has about 6 rules, and very simple components, and is a fairly complex and fun 2-player game.
Expected 10 Knizia games, but none?! Oh my
We probably should have added one but we definitely were laughing saying that this whole list could be his games
Before I watch the video. Year of the dragon comes to mind for me
Good call! I got a used copy of it a while back and haven’t played but when I read the rules I was astonished by how kinda simple and easy to get into it was. Gotta actually get that played
@@TheBrothersMurph it's definitely not an aesthetically pleasing game in this modern day of beautiful games but the mechanics and gameplay is always tight and clean. It's always like you have all the information in front of you to play a perfect game and no matter what by turn three or four everything always starting going to hell..
Castles of Burgundy doesn't belong on this list, IMO. It's not an especially difficult teach, but it's not what I'd call easy.
Some that I would include:
Web of Power
Medieval Merchant
Condottiere
Medici
Dominion (since you only need to teach the cards in the current game)
Space Base (this one is borderline; none of the cards is hard, but there are a lot of them)
No Go? No The King is Dead? You could have given a Knizia game an honourable mention (maybe Babylonia?).
Haven’t played the first 2 so can’t comment on those and we should have given knizia some love. He is absolutely the king of this topic. It could have been all his games
Have you guys played 'WARLINE: Maneuver Strategy & Tactics'? Definitely more than 4 rules (not too heavy though), but insane level of strategy right from the start. Fast games and fast reset, so good.
Flux is a really simple game. It starts with 2 rules, and you can add and remove rules based on the cards that are played.
Glad that Santorini is here one of the most lovely strategy Game that we have You could play zodiac-clash it has a Lot of strategie too and looks awesome too
Thanks for the video! I decided to get beer and bread as my best game :)
So I currently have EVERYTHING for unmatched…except the brothers murph official/unofficial set. 😞 how does one squire that set?
We have a pledge manager that will open up soon and you can get it there. Keep an eye out for that announement
There is a huge oversight here in the OG games department... Designers like Knizia, Colovini and Dorra mastered the simple rules deep strategy formula! Just look at games like MarraCash, Bridges of Shangri-La, Orongo -- or see Michael Schacht's many stellar designs like Mogul. Games like this will blow games like Le Havre out of the water in the rules to depth of strategy ratio
You definitely aren’t wrong about anything you said but keep in mind these are always subjective lists based on our personal taste in games