10 Board Games That Got Us Into The Hobby

[@BeforeYouPlay]

What were/are some of your favorite "gateway" games?

[@mihirshahisme]

Ticket to Ride and Pandemic for me

[@drop2vishnuvardhan]

Ticket To Ride, Jamaica, Hanabi & Istanbul

[@tomcools6244]

Pandemic & Wingspan. Been reluctant to introduce new people to Pandemic in recent times tho, feels wrong to introduce people to boardgames using Pandemic right now with COVID.

[@steveg9939]

Carcassonne, 7 wonders and Viticulture were the board games for us. We don't play these games very often nowadays but it was enough to spark my enthusiasm for the hobby!

[@levirichardson7848]

Risk, MTG, Catan, Ticket to Ride. The habit has spiraled out of control in the last few years. Lol. I see a trend of card games in Monique’s list.

[@jeffhiatt1682]

Ok we need to see this "same friend". seems he deserves a featured guest appearance.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

hahaha post Covid perhaps!

[@akmalfikri]

@@BeforeYouPlay you guys can do a skype / google meet call and record, why not?

[@iamimtiaz12]

TRUE TRUE

[@Hisplaypanic]

Man, I love watching you guys so much. There's a calming aura about watching you explain board games. Makes my day!

[@soulTC]

Totally agree.

[@judymiller4131]

As a child, the family played a lot of board games -Monopoly, Sorry, Life etc. As young adults, we switched to card games such as Euchre, Bridge, SkipBo etc. Now during Covid, my children have introduced me to Catan, Ticket to Ride and Pandemic. I am rediscovering the joys of board gaming.

[@prawnchips9461]

Wow that's cool. I hope your kids will raise families that also enjoy board games.

[@tylert.5357]

This was fun. I appreciate that Naveen mentioned his childhood games as THAT really was my gateway too. My Dad played a market game with us called Stock Ticker. But later Catan (lots of Catan when it was Settlers of Catan) Carcassonne and Ticket to Ride. I have NONE of these games in my collection anymore.

[@BoardGamesBooksAndWhat]

as a kid we constantly played Risk and after I left home for the Navy I never played again until 2011 when I came back to the same state my mom and brother live. Every month we would get together for a family event and when my mom started getting sick I came up with the idea to play board games and we jumped into Risk Legacy and then I started to grow my collection to give more variety for our monthly family events. My mom passed away on Easter of this year and still never finished Risk Legacy however it's my most treasured game in my collection because of all the edits we did as a family and I look forward to getting it put into a shadow box.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Hi Roy that is such a sweet story. I'm glad you were able to forge memories with your mom. Thank you so much for your service

[@ShimmerArc]

Stumbled onto BYP from rahdo's and I must say, this is one of my favourite board game channels now. Loved the Lacerda series, they were ... vital to my newfound enjoyment of the hobby.

[@dimpleza]

hehe :)

[@TimChuon]

Such a solid point brought up- it's one of those games where someone suggests it and you don't really get around to playing it yourself....unless you're kinda thrown in to play the game hahah I think that resonates with a ton of people! loved this video; it definitely brought back a lot of memories!!

[@BeforeYouPlay]

It felt good to make this one, glad it gave you the feels :)

[@aldztapeceria]

Watching this again after several years. I love how you guys light up when remembering the games that brought you into the happy. I can relate very much.

[@supermegavega]

The games that were introduced to my wife and I that got me into my gaming habit were along the same lines as you two. Ticket to Ride, Pandemic, Code Names, Letter Tycoon, Sequence. But the one that really set it off was was when my friends introduced to us to a six player game of Scythe! Scythe blew me away! I was so impressed by the scale (they had the extended board) and how much strategy was involved. Totally hooked. Good video, guys!

[@bagookster]

When I moved to Orlando and got into board gaming, I also used meetup to find board game groups, since non-gamer friends and family couldn’t take it anymore. I’ve since moved, but my best gaming friends were met through those meetups, and we still meet as regularly as possible and game! ❤️

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Aww that's so nice to hear that we share a similar experience! We miss getting together in those big groups and seeing everyone playing different games.

[@Shea-Key]

Florida has a very nice board game scene, and coolstuff helps support it across the state

[@BluesImprov]

I'm an "older" guy, but I remember as a teenager in the (GULP) 1960's. . .During summer vacation my friends and I would start playing baseball in the morning until it got too hot in the afternoon. Then we'd go inside and break out the boardgames. . .Our two favorites back then were Risk and Stratego. . .We played those all the time. Wish I still had those originals we played with because each of those games had wooden pieces instead of plastic. Really enjoy watching you guys. . .Makes me wish we had the games of today back in those days!

[@woega]

THE gamechanger (literally) for us was Settlers of Catan. When my gf and I moved in together (late nineties) we started with a collection of (at the time) most played mainstream games: Monopoly, Risk, Trivial Pursuit, Pictionary, Rummikub. Then at some point I was at a session with some colleagues to play Risk, but the host had just recently bought Settlers of Catan, but nobody had played it. So we thought we'd give it a try, plowed through the rules and played it twice, and the next day all the rest of us went to the store to buy it. The gameplay, interaction, variable gameboard, they were a huge eye-opener. We went to boardgame fairs, where you can try out games before you buy them, which is really nice. Our collection grew pretty fast, and I am still learning new mechanisms and still can't get enough :)

[@kenmatsuda938]

Citadels, bang(the one you guys mentioned), ticket to ride, splendor, and my still favorite game to date 7 wonders!

[@Laura_Stanford]

The board games that got me into the hobby were "Ticket to ride", "Jaipur", "Friday the 13th", "Azul" and "Lost Cites the card game"

[@warever37]

Would love and appreciate it if the Splendor champ could do a strategy video for how to win. 💪😊

[@searose6192]

I played tons of games as a kid, my grandma loved Mille borne, we played poker, chess, cribbage, backgammon, spoons etc and monopoly, but my favorites were stratego and battleship. Later when I was a young adult Settlers of Catan boom happened and even though I never played that (my mom and brother did) I did play a few really lovely hobby style games including Hera and Zeus (basically stratego with powers) and some fun hobby party games like Wise and Otherwise (like detective club but with old sayings). I then stopped playing games for over a decade until I started looking for good games for my little kids and found peaceable kingdom. I never knew kids games could be so pretty and fun! I ended up stumbling on the dice tower after about 2 years of dipping my toes in the hobby and the rest is history 😁 Glad I found you channel, this is a great introduction to you guys👍🏼

[@kirklynch]

I played games constantly as a kid, my faves were Mouse Trap, then Monopoly, then Risk.... In college, I always struggled to get people to play Trivial Pursuit or Pictionary, yet they always loved them when I got them to the table! Then years later, I found myself randomly at Gencon four or five years ago and discovered Alchemists. Now, I'm obsessed with games all over again. And have been rebuilding my collection with Evolution, Cytosis, Camel Up and many others. I found your videos on the Lacerda series and have fallen in love with CO2 and Kanban! Many thanks!!!!

[@hywel4767]

My wife and i only discovered board games this last month. We started with Azul, Quacks, Pandemic and Carcassonne, now we have tons more, favourites being Scythe, Viticulture, Great Western Trail, Quest for El Dorado and Parks.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

WOW!!!! WELCOME ABOARD!!!! I'm jealous of the feeling you probably have discovering so many great titles :)

[@LeRoi81]

Carcassonne and Dominion got me back into gaming! Now I'm playing WYG? and Lacerda Games a lot.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Surprisingly Naveen has never payed Carcassonne!

[@LeRoi81]

@@BeforeYouPlay It can be played nice with family and friends but it's also deep enough for experienced players, same with Kingdom Builder.

[@jadam42]

Terraforming Mars was my gateway game. Just loved the nuance and thematic detail in the game. I had no idea board games could be like that.

[@olloplays]

I had the misfortune of being friends with people who already went through their easy game phase before we met. So the first game I played outside of Monopoly/Sequence/Yahtzee was Small World. This doesn't seem like a difficult game to me now, but at the time I would often shut down during game nights. It was a struggle to understand the very basic rules. But now I'm out here teaching Uwe and Vital games, so I really can't complain.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

haha it's so funny looking back and thinking how mush our brains would get from "basic" games haha. What's your favorite Lacerda game?

[@olloplays]

@@BeforeYouPlay Lisboa! But, to be fair, I've only played that and The Gallerist. I'm not sure which one to try next. I feel like I need to go back to your video where you list your favorites and go from there 🤷‍♀️

[@laemotica8405]

I still don’t grasp Small World. I even mastered the rules to the original RuneWars (so overly complex), but Small World is still a complete mystery.

[@jschlotct]

I discovered this channel watching your Lacerda series (his games are sooo good!) and have continued to watch. I really enjoy your videos and look forward to more. Just wanted to say thank you for doing what you do.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Glad you like them! Thank you for continuing to support our channel!

[@Chereebers]

I always played games with my family growing up: rummy, Clue, Rummikub, and Pictionary. My first hobby games were Settlers of Catan, Carcassonne, Agricola, Shadows over Camelot, and Pandemic.

[@tychay]

Excellent game Rummikub. Fun fact: It was the second ever Spiel des Jahres winner.

[@olloplays]

I used to crush the adults when my family played Rummikub and I was a kid. It has a soft spot in my heart.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Monique loved Clue growing up. We've played Shadows over Camelot once and really really liked it. We need to circle back around and play it again sometime.

[@michaelhall7080]

Congrats Naveen on winning a Splendor tournament! Several years ago I won the online War of the Ring tournament and it was great to have as a memory of a fun competitive event I can share with others. So many games that I have shared to introduce people to the hobby. Growing up I played RPGs (AD&D, Champions) and board games were Milton Bradley series (Axis and Allies), Avalon Hill games along with TSR (Dungeon!, Knights of Camelot) and Games Workshop (Talisman). I guess early Euros for me were Coop Lord of the Rings, Settlers, Carcassonne, and Transamerica. I taught my nephews Bang!, Werewolf, Masquerade, and The Resistance as they liked to play deduction games together in a big group. Still play TTR, 7 Wonders, Dominion, Splendor and Pandemic as they are light but fun games that everyone can quickly jump into. Appreciate you both sharing your backgrounds a bit on the hobby and how it has been a positive experience for you both. I've met so many great people through this hobby and continue to be amazed and the amount of games that come out each year. Thanks and keep up the great videos!

[@BeforeYouPlay]

We love meeting new people through board games, such a great way to let down our guard and get lost in an experience!

[@alexcaraballo3189]

Azul was my gateway game. My wife, who hates games entertained me and we went to our lgs during open game day. I watched a playthrough the night before, and loved how quick it was to set up and play. So much so that we bought a copy that day, and from time to time she would ask to play it. Then pandemic, ticket to ride, and boop entered the collection. Wingspan is one wish I got the table more, but my favorite game has to be marvel Champions. I got it as a gift and bought every expansion there is.

[@clintjackson6613]

For me it was Risk, Star Wars Epic Duels, Axis and Allies with my friends when I was a teen. We also really loved Munchkin. I still will play any of these today.

[@kylesmorgabord5592]

“In a couple if one person isn’t into a game, it’s not going to get played.” Feel that. I’m realizing I’ll never get to play Captain Sonar again. Lol.

[@olloplays]

I've been feeling this so hard during the pandemic. All my Euro games are untouched 😭

[@kylesmorgabord5592]

Olivia Lothary I’ve only been able to play the euro games that my partner likes, which has been great! Castles of Burgundy and Wingspan mostly, but Scythe and Concordia have been collecting dust and it’s painful.

[@Shoitaan]

Why doesn't my wife like underwater cities ;_;

[@royreyes1493]

Yup, I know how that is. But before I got married, no one really wanted to play. So I always made sure that the game does well solo. But I have hope for my wife. I’ve played azul, love letter, splendor and wreck raiders with her. Soon she will see the light.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

We think everyone is a gamer, just got to find the game that finally flicks the switch :)

[@Mercury2wo]

Nice! Didn’t realize you guys were married! Always wondered what’s the “deal” with you guys! :-) That cleared it up. Happy 3 years and cheers to many more!

[@BeforeYouPlay]

haha thank you so much!

[@aarondovauo1471]

Saw you two with Rahdo, really enjoyed the bit and tracked you down to this video. Neat to hear how many good memories are associated with each of the games. For me, similar to Naveen, I was fortunate enough to have been exposed to 'traditional boardgames' as a kid: Sorry, Aggravation, Checkers, Uno, Twixt, Chess, Scrabble, Backgammon, etc. We had a lot of family game nights and it really game me a foundational love of the hobby. Through school it was more RPGs like D&D, Star Frontiers, Top Secret, Shadowrun, Cyberpunk 2020, Rifts. We had a core group of friends who would go for exhaustive weekend sessions and it's a time I look back on fondly. After that there was a period where I was heavy into Avalon Hill's stuff, along with Bloodbowl and that line of Milton Bradley games like Axis&Allies, Fortress America, Shogun, etc. I was lucky enough to have room mates and coworkers who were heavy into the hobby and we really dove deep into these games for years. After a long hiatus away from the hobby, I rediscovered it while travelling for work. I'd seen that it was alive and well, with games like Catan and Agricola capturing people's attention, but I hadn't realized how the whole thing had exploded. Like Monique, MeetUp really got me back into playing boardgames, I was exposed to so many great people and amazing games. Stronghold, GoSu, Robinson Crusoe were some of my first purchases. I'd bring home a new game from every road trip, and it was straight down the rabbit hole after that! Now, with a decent collection and established gaming groups, I'm really enjoying introducing people to the "perfect game for them," and passing on games to new players who will love them as much as I did. It's neat how you evolve through different stages in this hobby, and it's a real treat that we have access to resources like you two. Cheers!

[@quibily]

My earliest memory playing modern board games is when, four years ago, my brother brought Above and Below to play after a family dinner. I was so intrigued by how refreshing it was! I only played it once, though, before I moved away for a while. Then, Splendor, Star Realms, and Carcassonne were big hits that I played a lot for about a year. But once I got the Agricola app, I moved onto to preferring more complex games--but I do love to bring out Splendor a few times a year, too. My friends who aren't big into gaming love it. Dose poker chips doe!!!

[@juliel5474]

Love your video. We started off similarly. Bought everything that came out for Smash Up. We recently sold them. We went with the top 100 on bgg and bought different titles on the list. We’ve figured out now what we enjoy and what’s not for us.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

The discovery process is so interesting when first getting into the hobby :)

[@juliel5474]

Before You Play I know, so much to consider and explore. We also started with heavier titles then gateway like Arkham Horror, Tzolkin and Caverna. :p

[@marisahill]

Goa is still one of your faves. you love to teach it! so fun! love that one

[@joshestes6427]

Naveen, I am so with you on the box cover, but I feel like the boring covers draw me in, but the beautiful ones end up on my shelf. Key example dust of the wings.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

lol right!!??

[@robertpatino5430]

Just watch this video all the way through. I can't believe I am so late to the party! Loved it... It was great to put the pieces together on what your were experiencing...

[@xandermichael78]

I'd played other classics like Catan and Ticket to Ride, but my real excitement for the hobby came when I went to a local game shop in Vancouver that hosted a game night on Friday nights and I went alone, found some people to play a game with and the game we grabbed peaked someone else's interest and he offered to teach it without even joining in!! So nice of him! The game was Puerto Rico. Even though I don't play it often, I think it will always be in my collection for nostalgic reasons, because as much as I love the game, the way it came into my life, being alone and unsure at a game night, being taught by someone who didn't mind giving up some of his time to teach it to us and that fact that I didn't know any of the people I was playing with! The part of the game that I loved the most was the role selection and how the active player gets the extra bonus. Still one of my favourite mechanics, though not seen too often. My first heavy game that had me see the deeper end of gaming I think was Trickerion and then The Gallerist.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Ahh Puerto Rico! I'd love to play that one again. I played it very early in my gaming career and remember enjoying it. I want to revisit it now that I have more experience in gaming.

[@Rysk12]

Hi there, I just recently came across your channel and really enjoy the content and presentation. I also played a lot of those type of "old school" type of games as a kid, Monopoly (aka Family Fight Night), Life, Payday, Stop Thief, Risk, Battleship, etc.. What got me into the hobby was playing Pandemic and Betrayal at House on the Hill at a buddy's house. Especially Betrayal at House on the Hill, I didn't know board games could be like that :)

[@jefflaflam7685]

I was like Naveen as a little kid, my parents had a lot of the Milton Bradley games. When I got older I got introduced Settlers of Catan, Carcasonne (which is one of my all time favorites), then Dominion which really sucked me into the world of board gaming. I had no idea there were a ton of board games being published each year. Now my collection has grown to a point where I'm getting more picky on which games I buy. I start to think would this replace game X for me.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Yup that's exactly it! You always want to look at your collection from time to time for reassessment.

[@TomTom-gx3ye]

New to your channel because i live under a rock, apparently. You both are so relatable and your videos are mesmerizing. Thanks for these stories about your gaming interests and their origins.

[@MrFrancisChio]

This is a great video! It makes me recall back all the memories on how me and my partner get into the hobby. All the great memories, great people and great (and not so great) games I played. I did play quite some party games for some business gathering ice breaker like resistance, 6 nimmt and exploding kitten before I really got hook in the hobby. The game the got me interested was Splendor, which me and my partner played at my friend’s house where we even hide our chips from each other (until we realise we can’t do that in the rules after few days). Then me and my partner were in charge of purchasing board games for the business event group, and there’s where we are really impressed on what this hobby is all about. Ticket to Ride, Pandemic and Citadel: the Dark city were also the first few games that keep on surprised us on how each games are totally different from each other. Nice video! It makes me feel nostalgic and remember the passion on how me and my partner got into the hobby. Support you guys for more videos! 👍🏻👍🏻❤️❤️

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Aww thanks! Glad we were able to unlock that feeling of board game discovery! BTW we love 6 Nimmt! Have you ever played a full 10P game?

[@MrFrancisChio]

Before You Play nope~ that game wasn’t ours and that was 4 years ago. 😂 that game really needs people to hype up (and that’s normally me) to keep the energy up.

[@TheCagedRaven]

From early childhood, I've always had a love of board games and card games. My favourites were Megiddo, Othello and Mastermind (when I played them with my young children). Then some years ago, I was introduced to Scotland Yard and Catan. That did it for me. I now have close to 100 games and due to the Pandemic, quite a few of them haven't been played. My favourites right now are the ones with a solo variant, like Sagrada, Calico and Azul. But I also love Hive, Catan and Carcassonne.

[@kraun124]

Fun video! Can't wait to meet your friend! : ) Agricola was the first hobby game I purchased. But the first game I played on a regular basis was Viticulture.

[@bobnetherton4957]

Great video. Thanks for sharing your stories about how you get into the board gaming hobby. I have to credit my daughter for rekindling a long lost interest. She knew I had played games as a child. But as the youngest of the family, we quit playing when I started getting competitive :-) She also knew that I played the Avalon Hill chits and charts type of war games in high school but quit when we all went different ways to college. A couple of years ago, she was watching Wil Wheaton's youtube series about gaming and talked me into Elder Sign. What she didn't know was that I adored the Lovecraft stories. Elder Sign was a huge success and she rekindled my love of gaming.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Hi Bob that is such a cool story! Do you all play together as a family?

[@jaystewbrew]

I got into the hobby through Pandemic and all its expansions-I will definitely check out Legacy now. I really enjoy your videos since finding the channel a few weeks back via Talisman Kingdom Hearts. My wife and I purchased Lisboa after watching you two play it, and that has been an amazing experience. Thank you for your quality and family-friendly content!

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Awesome! Thank you! If you love Pandemic, then Legacy will be amazing for you guys! So glad to hear you are enjoying Lisboa! It's our favorite Lacerda :)

[@maxwellschultz4784]

Pandemic Legacy blew my mind! I've only played Pandemic base game and Iberia before then, and didn't particularly care for them, but Legacy is phreakin suite.

[@ksspang]

this is funny, it's like you're just looking at my shelf and reading off a list of my stuff! We keep them basic since we don't have friends that want super intense stuff. This was great

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Haha that's hilarious!

[@DuraheLL]

My top 3: (1) Drakborgen - Swedish rogue like crazy difficult and unforgiving game where you pick a character to enter a dungeon, draw random room tiles, have random events and everyone is trying to get to the center of the castle to the treasure chamber and then get back out of the castle with as much treasure as possible before night. Swedish classic game. Truly got me into the whole boardgaming thing (2) Arkham Horror - Played it to pieces. Over and over and over and over. Game that anyone could be taught and with difficult sessions almost every time (3) Runebound 2nd edition - still one of the best boardgames I've played. Only that it might drag on a bit too much

[@Salixalba1000]

I have really been enjoying your videos. Great topic here. Played games as a kid similar to Naveed. Then when my girls got older I started getting games to play every year at the holidays. We would play these games all year. First one was Talisman and man did we play that one to death. Then was some Zombie survival game from flying frog (can't remember the name). Then I found Pandemic while searching for games to play, and I was blown away. Never did I realize how amazing games could be. It opened a whole new world for me.

[@michaeldarling7169]

I've been a subscriber for a while and I just want you to know how great you two are! My wife and I play together most often and so I appreciate your format for that reason. This was a great video for us. My wife's favorite game, I think, is Splendor. She chooses that one a lot. Our "gateway" games though were Champions of Midgard, which works for two players but is more fun with a larger group, and Ticket to Ride Europe. We love that one because we took our kids to Europe on a month-long vacation a couple of years ago, so we could talk about the places we had actually visited. We are working on learning Pandemic too, but that game is tough! You shared a bit about yourselves here, which was great. You are very personable (and attractive, which doesn't hurt--can I say that?) and the way you treat each other has put you at the top of my favorite board game channels. There are other channels where the presenters are often contentious and seem to enjoy ridiculing each other as much as they enjoy talking about games. That gets tiresome really quickly, so I find myself gravitating to you and your natural approach. It's great how you explain each game so well and then play it through, and then conclude with your thoughts on the design. You treat each other with kindness even as you compete and it's clear that you really enjoy spending time together. Keep up the good work! (I do miss your mega-wall of games! It was fun to see how many we have as well -- or want to get.) I hope you will continue "trapping" us with more great games for many years to come. Thanks for the videos!

[@BeforeYouPlay]

We've played Champions of Midgard once and really liked it, base game only with 4 players. Heard it is great with the expansions. That's so cool you were able to travel for a whole month!! We've been talking about a 6 week trip to Europe next year (hopefully things will open up!). Thanks for following along with us as we put out vidoes, we plan to keep the train rolling :)

[@scyldscefing3913]

This is actually a great list. It gives a nod to the process of becoming a hobby board gamer, instead of treating it as a discrete event.

[@JEV03]

Agreed, the question "what was your gateway game" is one I always respond "well I could say this one but that one was when really started getting into it, and this OTHER one was when I started to really know what kind of stuff I like..." I like seeing the journey.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Thanks! Yeah that's what we were trying to go for :)

[@alexconti7932]

Downfall of Pompeii was also among first purchases and I also love the artwork :) . Such an amazing game, glad to see it still getting love in 2020. Myself, I have 2 edition with the 3 "wild" lava tile. First games were Power Grid, Ticket to Ride, Love Letter, Mr. Jack.

[@darrenmatthews1667]

yep. Pandemic got me into the hobby. My wife does not accept losing well which i learned the hard way a few years ago and that killed any idea of playing games. Then a couple years ago, i picked up pandemic and the whole family loved it. Most of my collection is co-op. I love working together with people and the feeling of camaraderie you get when the group wins.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Aww that's nice to hear that you guys are all playing together! The Crew is a nice light filler co-op game. It's inexpensive and lots of fun.

[@JEV03]

This is a great list, it's really cool getting to hear your story! I liked hearing about you getting mixed up when learning 7 Wonders. If my wife feels discouraged because of getting confused by a game, I try to reassure her that it's pretty normal to get a little mixed up. I hear it gets easier to learn new games over time, but I'm still at the point where I struggle while trying to teach myself a new medium game... and I still catch myself making rule mistakes several games in. Getting games that have good solo modes for me has helped me feel more comfortable with purchasing a game that I am not so sure my wife would enjoy. That way I can rest assured that game will still get played even if my wife is less often in the mood to sit down to a board game than I am.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

We love to look back and laugh about that 7 Wonders story. What's your favorite game you bought for the solo and turned out your wife also enjoyed?

[@JEV03]

@@BeforeYouPlay Tapestry! I stayed away from it at first because I wasn't super interested in civ-themed games and heard that it was a controversial game. However I grew to really like the solo mode after playing it on Tabletopia so when I saw it was on sale for half price a few weeks ago I got it with the intent of playing it solo. My wife asked to play it and she really enjoyed it! She likes the civilization theme better than me and likes seeing what happens as she advances on the track. While I doubt it will dethrone Wingspan as our "go-to" game, I'm interested to see if this one follows a trajectory. She struggled with Wingspan at first but I can't seem to beat her at all now!

[@nighthunterz00z45]

We are just getting in to the hobby. I have a history back to Civilization in the 90s but my wife and daughter do not. Our first game and what we are playing now is Mice and Mystics!

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Oh nice that's such a good one! Have you guys played Azul? I'd highly recommend it!

[@nighthunterz00z45]

Before You Play I know of it but never played it. I will look into it. I’m not sure if the pretty tiles will attract or confuse!? LOL Thanks for the recommend!

[@laemotica8405]

Mice and Mystics is *great*!!!

[@boardgameman6298]

And to think I lived in Orange County all my life until last October when I moved to Knoxville TN. Would of been great to bump into you both. Grew up in Cypress and was living in Stanton before I moved.

[@Physiology-E-Paathshala]

I got into modern board gaming this march during lockdown....Ticket to ride europe is the one that got me hooked....Havent looked back ever since....Have almost 19 titles in my collection right now

[@michellenorton6977]

We would go to my brother in law's house and he always had unique board games that we loved. Our biggest gateway game that got us buying our own collection was Resistance. It was all downhill from there. Most of the games you mentioned here are in our collection still.

[@stevegibbsonline]

My wife and I started out with Starship Catan as our first hobby game, closely followed by Tsuro and then Forbidden Island. It was these three that sucked us into the gaming vortex, and we've been trapped (willingly) ever since! Thanks for sharing part of your story. It's always fascinating to hear the wildly different influences and experiences that draw folks into gaming. Normally at this time of year, my wife and I would be making plans to head to the LAX convention next weekend. It was a nice surprise to hear your shoutout for Strategicon. The past few years we've been going to Gateway and Orccon every 6 months. We usually skip Gamex since I tend to buy too many new games each time we go, so we limit ourselves to once every 6 months! Who knows, maybe one of these days, we'll run into you there. Looking forward to many more videos. Keep it up!

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Hi Steve! So cool you are a fellow Strategiconer! We miss it and really hope that February can happen next year!

[@aaronclark7687]

I've really fallen in love with your videos. Thanks for doing what you are doing and thanks for sharing this list!

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Thank you so much for the support!

[@lisamarin8836]

I also got into the hobby in a big way because of MeetUp in 2015! Before that I knew I liked tabletop games and had played some popular gateway games like Catan, Ticket to Ride and Seven Wonders with my friends. But when I moved to the UK for a sabbatical and wanted to meet people, I started attending London on Board meet-ups. I remember signing up for Game of Thrones and prepping for hours beforehand so that I wouldn't slow things down too much, and then the next day I played my first game of The Resistance: Avalon, which became a focus for my spare time to a ridiculous level. Since then, I've attended conventions in the UK and France, started writing my own board game blog, learned hundreds of new games, and made board gaming buddies around the world. I have a question for you two, and maybe you have already answered it in a video or comment elsewhere: how did you make the journey from hobby gamers to highly productive KZbin reviewers/previewers (in addition to your day jobs, I imagine)?

[@cindyyager1829]

Best board game ever is Aquire! An original Book Shelf game. My family and many other family friends have played this game for at least 20 years. Never gets boring.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Such a classic, it's a shame we have yet to play it!

[@rhover]

Loved hearing your "origin story" and congrats on 3 years of marriage! We're also a couple in healthcare but much older than you two. My sibs always played games as kids, and I started branching off the beaten track in the late 70's with WarpWar and Ogre, then AD&D. In college, played Cosmic Encounter (with all the supplements!) and Dune from Eon, Runequest, Traveller, The Fantasy Trip, and GURPS RPGs. After college, met my wife and played a lot of backgammon but also found a few friends for Arkham Horror and Web & Starship. We moved out west to San Diego before 2000, and we would often visit a college roommate near LAX - we'd all play Settlers of Catan and Citadels, until they moved away. We've played many games with our kids, but they've all gone to college and beyond now. I continue to buy games so I've got ~150 all over the house which I'd mostly just look at :-( . But now with COVID keeping everyone at home, I have gotten to game again with my college buddies using Tabletop Simulator - recently tried Dune Imperium and thanks to Kickstarter, we've also played the Tiny Epic Games, Space Race, and Rocketmen. My wife and I have played Oceans, Catan Starfarers, Alien Frontiers with the kids, and since Xmas have been doing "escape puzzles" - the series from Ravensburger where you complete the puzzle, solve the embedded brainteasers which identify specific puzzle pieces, then reassemble those pieces into a picture solution to the escape question. Lastly, I have Chronicles of Crime 1400 sitting on the shelf and looking forward to trying it with my wife after seeing your review!

[@joshhart379]

Bang! Is a great game. This was one of my initial games as well. I got into the hobby through my DnD group. It was the small games like Skull that hooked me at how different and fun modern games are.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Hi Josh that's awesome to hear! Do you still do DnD?

[@joshhart379]

@@BeforeYouPlay I moved onto other RPGs like Coriolis, then had a baby so tricky to find the time now (plus Covid) but hopefully more in the future.

[@damaddestgamer]

For modern boardgaming I started with - Splendor, King of Tokyo, 7 Wonders, Discworld, Carcassonne, Power Grid, Avalon, Lords of Waterdeep.

[@the_boardgameexperience]

I could probably do a top 10 as well, so I'll go with : - Zombicide - Shadows over Camelot - Memoir '44 - Sobek - Power Grid - Coup - Catan - Lost Cities - Pandemic - Star Realms

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Memoir '44 is a game I've always been extremely interested in. -Naveen

[@anz10]

@@BeforeYouPlay its super fun, my boyfriend and I play for free on steam every night it's super fun 😆 the most complex game we have played so far is terraforming mars but we want to expand further into the hobby

[@Console_Yourself]

Great channel! I love seeing your reviews and play throughs. It's great when I'm able to find new games that I know I''ll enjoy.

[@bobbyd7948]

Really enjoyed watching this video. Love the way you talk about games and share your experiences.

[@jamesmorgan1967]

My story is pretty typical. I picked up Pandemic a couple of years ago, followed a while later by One Night Ultimate Werewolf. That got things started! We had dozens of board games as a child and I also played a lot of card games growing up (hearts, spades, spit, cribbage, pinochle). I agree with what Naveen said about "foundational childhood memories" of playing games. I'm careful not to go too fast in introducing a game with people who haven't had those foundational experiences. How about a Friday filler playthrough of the Pompeii game with "The Friend?" : ) Also, I would be very interested in seeing a segment on what steps you took in moving from your introduction to the hobby into heavier games. (You started to talk about this at the end of the video.) Many people do videos on "gateway games," but I haven't seen much on this topic. Would also be open to any tips you might have regarding how to make the transition.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Hi James, it sounds like we had a similar experience. We might play The Downfall of Pompeii one day on the channel :). We'll try to address tips to transition in a later video as well. Great idea!

[@malikouda7952]

I felt the same way Naveen did about deckbuilders until I played Slay the Spire. Maybe he should give that a shot. Now I can't get enough of the genre

[@royreyes1493]

The games I first played were Exploding Kittens, Star Trek Five Year Mission and Pandemic.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Totally forgot about Exploding Kittens! That's certainly an honorable mention :)

[@musikkimies]

Another great video. Games that got me into the hobby: Catan, Dominion, and Innovation (still one of my favorites).

[@veerchasm1]

Fellow healthcare provider here! I too love “dry” euro art because it feels like a time capsule of the game. Deck builder’s are a painful slog to me also and I’m just not that good at them. Really enjoy your gaming stories and reviews

[@LucasGentry]

This was such a joy-filled video. Thank you so much for sharing it :-) (I'm a little late on wishing this, but congrats on 3 years!)

[@OurFamilyPlaysGames]

Really cool video! 😁❤❤

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Glad you liked it!!

[@OscarDelgadilloAntar]

I have almost all of the Smash Up expansions! I also grew up with your Milton-Bradley variety games, but was introduced to Dominion and Catan. The first game I bought was Puerto Rico, so like Naveen I also like dry, crusty looking art.

[@orlando.N4]

Great vid!! It’s great hearing these stories & reading ppl’s gateways also. As 4 me; Catan, Alhambra, Puerto Rico, Carcassonne, Ticket to Ride... But then ... Goa, Castles of Burgundy, Madeira, Lisboa & Kanban kept bringing me back heavily. Luv U guys, Happy New Year!!

[@stevegeorge7773]

Love coops. The 99 percent of games are competitive and I always felt awkward ‘winning’,,,, in a game. Always felt everyone should win,,, or loss together. Artwork always makes me go for a game. I have games I just purchased, never played, just for the art. So theme for me is central as the Art speaks to me. Being a history nerd has seen me buy games to realise I’m never going to play these games,,, still love them and still have them to this day which is years and years after. I pull them out and just look at them,,, it’s for me an experience enjoyed.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

What game's art is your favorite?

[@stevegeorge7773]

Before You Play I hate to feel predictable but Lesboa is close to art that would tick all the boxes for its use in this medium. The Mindclash has, across their product, Art that is really great. Although I’m not, personally, prone to pastels. There are many for different reasons and it would be like responding to the question “what’s your favourite movie...”

[@TheYashakami]

I enjoy heavy games but I absolutely love munchkin. I used to have a whole bunch of them but they were tragically lost in a back seat oil spill.

[@carlagino3161]

I love that art style too Navine, Troyes is one of my favorite!

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Same here, that art is very non traditional!

[@benrichardson2837]

Similarly started with Ticket To Ride ~6 years ago and branched into 7 Wonders, Dominion, Power Grid, and Tomorrow in the earlier days. Still play Power Grid on occasion (and would play the others but haven't gotten them back to the table in awhile). Lords of Waterdeep and Castles of Burgundy were early additions to a collection that has now grown quickly (especially over quarantine). Funnily enough I agree with Naveen on boring-looking euro game box art! I've never played Calimala, for instance, yet I'm drawn to it for the look of the game (and the fact it looks like an interesting play). Love your content!

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Sounds like you dove in very similarly to us. We love Castles of Burgundy too! Naveen likes Calimala as well haha.

[@AssortedMeeples]

Great list of games. Splendor and 7 Wonders were both huge games for our group, as well. Munchkin is another one that didn't have quite the same impact but we enjoy it and it gets into the rotation every so often. For me the shift occurred with Lords of Waterdeep, which just completely blew my mind that board games could be just that good.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Thank you! Lords of Waterdeep is fantastic! Monique played the IOS app for a long, long while.

[@musicforall1859]

Just subscribed. Liked very much this video. I started with a card game "Exploding kittens" then I got "Unstable Unicorns" and then "Jaipur" then Codenames. And Dixit which I just love. And Splendor and Azul.....etc. I just got trapped into the hobby the past March, this year. I've got Wingspan which I really enjoy playing it (and am very happy that it has a nice solo mode which I enjoy). Now my heaviest game is Terraforming Mars which is amazing. And as I don't have anyone to play with I so much appreciate that this game also has a great solo mode. Now I'm Planning to get Scythe or Viticulture for my birthday next October!! Haha. Great video guys. Watching from Dublin Ireland

[@annamengel4700]

Thanks for the video! Maybe you could do a co-op top 5 thing at some point? That would be awesome :) My journey was quite similar to yours: Dominion - Munchkin- 7 Wonders - Terra Mystica - Gaia Project

[@BeforeYouPlay]

I wish we have a larger sample size of Co-Ops. Perhaps in the future we can do a video with that in mind. :)

[@pauloyanez2640]

Just found your channel. You´re such funny and love your videos and opinions keep going!!!

[@petergross7235]

That was a fun video, thanks for sharing! I started my deep dive after I was invited to play a 6 player game of Arkham Horror (2nd Ed.) WITH two expansions. I was so taken aback that this kind of game could even exist, it was magical. It took almost 4 hours to finish the game in a loss. But I was hooked from there. I still own a modest copy of AH2E, but more to help me remember that great night and how it all started. I do bring it out on Halloween as a tradition.

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Wow that's so cool Peter! Glad the length of the game didn't deter you. Arkham is definitely different compared to most people's game that grabbed them.

[@marknadeski7485]

This is a great video and wonderful topic. Love the story of Naveen and the Splendor tournament. Also enjoyed reading the comments and seeing what games others started with. Brings back a lot of memories to see Dark Tower and some of the other games. I guess the games I associate with me getting into modern gaming are Star Wars CCG, Carcassonne, Blokus, Cityscape, Ticket to Ride, Catan, Puerto Rico, Agricola, Power Grid and Caylus.

[@benjoslin3782]

Thanks for the tip on “7 Blunders”

[@BeforeYouPlay]

No problem 👍

[@Makkoiurufu]

Settlers of Catan is what got in me into board games. After that was Carcassone, Forbidden Dessert and after that I was hooked on to trying different games. Settlers and pandemic are usually my go today but I have few others that I enjoy

[@BeforeYouPlay]

We still love settlers of catan. Have you tried any of the expansions?

[@DenisRyan]

What a fantastic idea for a video! I've seen lots of channels do Top Ten lists, or Teen Gateway Games, but I've never seen anyone do the ten games that were their own personal gateway into the hobby! My honourable mentions include Monopoly, specifically an X-Men edition I got in college street I should have known better. All my gamer friends played it with me once, looking back now, clearly just supporting me. They were the best. I salvaged all the pewter figures from it once I got rid of it. Apart from that two others were from my childhood. Curse of the Idol from when I was around 10 or 11 was a simple roll and move game with moving gears and an idol that spat out a diamond, but it was different from other games at the time. Finally, in an act of absolute divine inspiration, when I was a teen, my mum once got me a copy of Cluedo (Clue in the US) that was much more "gamery" than the standard version. Called Cluedo: Super Sleuth, you actually build the mansion as you explore, so every game is unique. It also includes pewter figures for all the player characters and key NPCs (including a dog!!). It is quiet different from basic Cluedo, and I played it A LOT! In fact, it still sits on my shelf in a place of pride! But the actual games that pulled me deep, deep, deep into this hobby are probably Carcassonne, Catan, Ticket to Ride and then Battlestar Galactica, which was right around the moment my eyes were opened to all the possibilities that board gaming offers. BSG changed everything, and I still love it and have everything they released for it. It's glorious! If you check my own personal channel, one of the recent videos is my own Top Ten from a while back. Nothing professional, just for fun, but I do wax lyrical about my love of BSG and nine others! Thanks for making great content!

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Woah and X-Men themed Monopoly game? I've got to see how they did that! It's amazing what all these foundational games did for exposing people into the hobby! 😁

[@10schicks]

My gateway games: Honorable Mentions: Trivial Pursuit/ 13 Dead End Drive/ Trouble/Uno Oldest to newest: Diplomacy Phase 10 Cranium Balderdash Smash Up Also I totally have one of those "that same friend", they are keepers for sure.

[@machineFa8]

I started the hobbie when I got introduced to 'ticket to ride' by a friend and wow that was it..

[@BeforeYouPlay]

Nice! What's your favorite game now?

[@raymyers700]

I love boring covers too! I laughed when you showcased your heavy game Naveen. My son once pulled out all my games where there is a "pilgrim wearing a coffee filter around his neck ". It's the same with Alea games. I love bling in games...but I want my Alea games to stay bland and drab. If they produced something like Eagle Gryphon Lacerta...I'd lose it :D

[@BeforeYouPlay]

LOL OMG!!! Pilgrim with a coffee filter HAHAHAHAHA!!!. I'm with you. ALEA MUST NOT CHANGE COURSE! - Naveen

[@raymyers700]

Before You Play agreed! If Alea changes their cardboard thickness to anything thicker OR thinner : I'm gonna take legal action against them! :D

[@Johan_g]

Talisman and Risk was probably my gateway, but I played lots of others. This is more than 30 years ago, so hard to remember what came first. But my mother had Monopoly and Finance and some other games too that I also played for a long time.

[@heidicakessoapco5343]

Congrats on three years of marriage! I think it's great that you share the love of Board Gaming. I am just getting back into board gaming, since my hubby and I are home a lot more due to COVID, and we don't want to rot our brains staring at the boob tube. We love Carcassonne, [bought the Big Box and are several expansions in]. That is saying a lot since my husband doesn't really like board games much, with a few exceptions. He especially doesn't like the quick paced games. We enjoy games that are not a rush to play. I watched you two play Fort, and purchased it and can't wait to play it. Also have Isle of Cats. Ticket to Ride is also on it's way after seeing it played a few weeks ago. Bought Cloud City, but it's too simplistic. I hope that the makers add an expansion with more complexity and more parts, [trees, fountains, perhaps...] We like PG themed games. Do you have any other recommendations for game that allow two or more players? We have played many of the classics, [Monopoly, Risk - still great games ]. Thanks for your insight. I am so glad you are willing to play the games for all of us to see. It's much to watch it played than to read instructions, and you are so thorough and articulate at explaining the rules of play! 👍😊

[@jonhenderson1902]

Just found this channel. I really like the format. I have a lot of matches with games you listed. Love them at first, then traded them away or sold them (Smash Up, Splendor, Just Desserts) Games that got me into the hobby: Catan (obviously), Ticket to Ride, Chaos in the Old World, and Shogun. I checked out your previous list of videos and it looks like you are more Euro-focused, as am I. Just picked up Maracaibo and am looking forward to playing it with real people soon. Thanks for the videos!

[@sergiojuan217]

It was your video of New York zoo that got me into your videos. These are so high quality!

[@marisahill]

remember when I had the scream track for pompeii every time a villager went into the volcano. good times

[@BeforeYouPlay]

lol OMG Yessss! hahahaha

[@michellesmith1298]

Splendor, Ascension, and One Night Ultimate werewolf were some on my faves that got me started. 👌🏻mainly splendor tho😊

[@hiannenguyen5206]

Red dragon Inn and elrich horror was my gateway. Great pick btw

[@BeforeYouPlay]

We STILL haven't played those 2 games! We really want to go back from like 2009 and look at the top 20 games that came out each year and try and play them :)

[@aronquemarr7434]

Would have been nice for the friend to have a name.

[@repeataftermeme75]

Villages by Fridgecrisis Games Pandemic (base game as well) The Gnomes of Zavandor Those are the three that got me back into the hobby. Like your husband, I too grew up on similar games. Stopped playing all three but will play Pandemic whenever we realize we still have it lol. Now our collection like most has grown big and we have our own library of games. Roll N writes tend to be a favorite genre of games for my wife. Point Salad is a fun one to play. For a simple game Point Salad allows to score pretty big.