Top 10 Most Played Games

[@NeoGenMike]

I think it's awesome how much you guys can argue and end it with a laugh and smile. It's encouraging.

[@gravy229]

Sam! Flip this guys table. He won't care.

[@danielhutchings5075]

NeoGenMike honestly 90% of their arguing comes from the fact that Sam is completely incapable of stringing together a coherent logical train of thought.

[@dpotter2113]

Stats! From all the Top 10 Lists with Tom, Sam, and Zee (no expansions): Overall # of Individual Games: 660 Tom's # of Individual Games: 354 Sam's # of Individual Games: 270 Zee's # of Individual Games: 342 Overall Most Discussed (10+ Times): -Cosmic Encounter - 17 -Battlestar Galactica - 16 -King of Tokyo - 16 -Shadows over Camelot - 16 -Pillars of the Earth - 14 -The Resistance - 14 -Fury of Dracula - 13 -Dominion - 12 -Bang! The Dice Game - 11 -Ghost Stories - 11 -Kingsburg - 11 -Lost Cities - 11 -Summoner Wars - 11 -Alien Frontiers - 10 -Pandemic - 10 -Cash n' Guns - 10 -Mission: Red Planet - 10 -Legendary: Marvel - 10 Tom's Most Discussed (Top 1% of Total): -Dominion - 7 -Lost Cities - 7 -Cosmic Encounter - 5 -Battlestar Galactica - 5 -King of Tokyo - 5 -Legendary: Marvel - 5 -Police Precinct - 5 Sam's Most Discussed (Top 1% of Total): -Shadows over Camelot - 9 -Battlestar Galactica - 8 -Fury of Dracula - 8 -Kingsburg - 8 -Stone Age - 8 -Cosmic Encounter - 7 -The Resistance - 7 -Bang! The Dice Game - 7 Zee's Most Discussed (Top 1% of Total): -Pillars of the Earth - 6 -Ghost Stories - 6 -Robinson Crusoe - 6 -Cosmic Encounter - 5 -King of Tokyo - 5 -Neuroshima Hex! - 5 -Alien Frontiers - 5 -Atlantis Rising - 5 -Freedom: The Underground Railroad - 5 -Magic: The Gathering - 5 -Alhambra - 5

[@stephenlowman3067]

I would think Twilight Imperium 3/4 would be on Sam's list......

[@jherrenor]

Surely Pandemic would be in Zee's most discussed. He mentions it in almost every top ten.

[@laurenaxtonbrereton6954]

Wow. Thanks for the work!

[@maxgarda]

Most useful comment ever

[@Bodyknock]

Watching this made me realize I'd be interested in seeing a follow up list of Top 10 Most Played Games from the last 5 years. A lot of the games on the video's list were things the crew played as kids growing up or in college, etc, which is cool but it makes me wonder what games they currently play the most often.

[@peteyandycreek]

Sam/ Tom / Zee 10. Blood Rage/ Cosmic Encounter/ San Juan 9. Shadows Over Camelot/ Apples to Apples/ Pandemic Legacy 8. Memoir 44/ Careers/ The Resistance 7. Carcassonne/ Stratego/ Magic the Gathering 6. Spyfall/ Lost Cities/ Dominion 5. The Resistance/ PitchCar/ Neuroshima Hex 4. King of Tokyo/ No Thanks/ Liars Dice 3. Stone Age/ Axis and Allies/ Onirim 2. Kingsburg/ Uno/ Blue Moon 1. Bang! The Dice Game/ Overpower/ Pandemic

[@MrCScottie]

peteyandycreek you know they put the list at the end of the video now?

[@Noodliest]

Thank you so much Sir.

[@ianoble]

This is the best top 10 list, in terms of sound quality. The new hire is paying off.

[@Steve-L]

+Ian Noble New microphones possibly also?

[@ianoble]

They've been using those mics for a while, but it was always very left/right heavy. Now it's nice and balanced.

[@holodust252]

+Ian Noble Actually, Sam is the only one that sounds good, because his mic is placed properly - in situations like they have, all sitting close by, mics should be placed like his was, just under the chin. But, yeah, it is improvement (though Tom sounded pretty bad - his mic is too low and he's sitting in-between two other mics).

[@reafdfsagassg]

Tom 10. Cosmic Encounter 09. Apples to Apples 08. Careers 07. Stratego 06. Lost Cities 05. Pitchcar 04. No Thanks! 03. Axis & Allies 02. Uno 01. Overpower Zee 10. San Juan 09. Pandemic Legacy 08. The Resistance 07. Magic: The Gathering 06. Dominion 05. Neuroshima Hex! 04. Liar's Dice 03. Onirim 02. Blue Moon 01. Pandemic Sam 10. Blood Rage 09. Shadows over Camelot 08. Memoir 44 07. Carcassonne 06. Spyfall 05. The Resistance 04. King of Tokyo 03. Stone Age 02. Kingsburg 01. BANG! The Dice Game

[@BG_StuartJ]

Careers was the go-to game for my family when I was growing up, and Tom is the only other person I hear talking about it. With the ability to choose your victory condition, the experience cards to move a specific number of spaces instead of rolling the dice, and the opportunity cards to be able to teleport to a desired profession track, it really was a step above other games of its time.

[@MarcelPogorzelski]

Well according to Sam a whole Magic Tournament would count as one game. It's really only one big game with one winner at the end.

[@samfl0res]

My son turned 7 recently and we play King of Tokyo a lot since he's 6 and a half. He took a few plays to grok the card buying and abilities, but now he's a pro gamer :D

[@ZakiJeppe]

1. DC Comics Deck Building Game 213 plays 2. Coup 188 plays 3. Star Realms 178 plays 4. The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game 155 plays 5. Sentinels of the Multiverse 79 plays 6. Dominion 72 plays 7. Spyfall 64 plays 8. Shadows of Brimstone 54 plays 9. Neuroshima Hex! 52 plays 10. Marvel Dice Masters: Avengers vs. Xmen 50 plays

[@Steve-L]

+Zaki a list I love it!

[@ZakiJeppe]

Thanks! So do I :)

[@swegjedi1695]

Holy cow calm down

[@miguelramirez5972]

+Zaki Dominion, The Resistance, Bohnanza, Pandemic/Pandemic Legacy, Jenga, Battle Line, Incan Gold, Click Clack Lumber Jack, Cash n Guns, Splendor. Honorable Mentions (Coup and Love Letter Batman), Wish I played more (TI3, K2, Fire & Axe, Defenders of the Realm, String Railway).

[@chuckm1961]

"Careers" gets some love! The best game of my childhood. Hurrah!

[@whitenoise8668]

10- Lost Cities (Hey Tom!) 9 - Coup (Quick games) 8- FUSE (yup, already) 7- Race for the Galaxy 6- Star Realms (no digital plays) 5- Bang! The Dice Game (Hey Sam!) 4- Pandemic (Hey Zee!) 3- Friday 2- Onirim (Hey Zee!) 1- Android: Netrunner

[@theduck5655]

I'd like to see a list of the games that they've spent the most time playing. That would see a bigger involvement of longer games that don't rack up plays.

[@keithtextor4892]

Props to Tom and Zee for giving us an interesting Top Ten list and sticking to the premise. I'm far more interested in what you guys played a lot of in your youth and your college days (your gaming heritage) than what you think is cool now. Maybe none of us want to admit how much how much Uno or Stratego we played as kids because NOW we think those are uncool or nonchallenging games. But it's a lot more interesting to know how we got to where we are today. Tom's story about writing strategy manuals for Stratego as a kid and Zee's story about playing games between class and rehearsals were a neat peak into what shaped them into what they are today. Bravo!

[@DeanOfDVD]

My Top 10: 1.) Magic: the Gathering 2.) Scrabble 3.) Trivial Pursuit (including all expansions) 4.) Uno 5.) Yahtzee 6.) Strat-o-Matic Baseball 7.) Monopoly 8.) Title Bout 9.) Sorry 10.) Parcheesi

[@EamonBurke]

My 4 and 6 year olds play King of Tokyo. It's easy, they buy the cards with powers they think are cool. Sometimes, you think venom is cool and you end up behind saving up for it, and come back to poison your parents later.

[@AwesomeNossum86]

If you get the nachos stuck together with the cheese, that's one nacho

[@danlucas8944]

Saving Silverman FTW

[@bifi1977]

If I order Pizza that is one Pizza (at least for me) eaven though I keep on eating it the next day.

[@rcradke87]

lol, awesome!

[@dorpth]

When you've played game A twice that takes 50 hours each time, and game B two hundred times that takes 15 minutes each, then you've played game A more.

[@jollyroger1009]

AwesomeNossum86 That's a great comment.

[@Hisdudeness9500]

Me (Cause I feel like it) 10. Dead of Winter 9. Betrayal at House on the Hill 8. Monopoly (hey, I was young and naive) 7. Scrabble 6. Cards Against Humanity 5. Axis & Allies 4. Uno (Refer to #8) 3. Pandemic (and Legacy) 2. Race for the Galaxy 1. Dominion

[@davidirimia6463]

mine was probably dominion followed by catan xd

[@trenthogan4212]

Monopoly is incredible. Axis & Allies is my #1 of all-time

[@leeanderson9123]

There is a legitimate reason Monopoly is such a successful game. As a kid we played this nearly every afternoon before dinner for at least 3 years (total guestimate = 600 plays). mtg will outweigh that with teenage- young adult obsession.

[@Hailtothegun]

I understand what Sam's getting at. I don't agree with it, but I understand. Look at it like this: Pandemic Legacy is a book, with many chapters. Each chapter is separate yet a part of the whole. If the book has 30 chapters and you've read 20 of them, you haven't read the book 20 times. You haven't even finished reading it once; you've just experienced 20 "parts" of the larger whole.

[@ryanlee8904]

+Hailtothegun What about TV (which seems more apt since it is Season 1 of P:L)? After completing 12 episodes (1 season) of a show, do you say you watched it once?

[@kylestroup3077]

1 - Axis and Allies 2 - Risk 3 - Catan 4 - Monopoly 5 - Stratego

[@trenthogan4212]

Fantastic list, very similar to mine.

[@Salixalba1000]

Loved Over Power!! Me and the wife played this 50 times at least back in the day. Broke my heart that my cards came up missing in a move.

[@Instinctive]

1. Cosmic Encounter (1977 Eon) 2. Kingmaker (1974 Ariel) 3. Settlers of Catan 4. Panzerblitz (1970 Avalon Hill) 5. Exploration (1967 Waddington’s) 6. Imperium (1977 GDW) 7. Fight in the Skies (1966 TSR) 8. Afrika Korps (1964 Avalon Hill) 9. Android: Netrunner 10. Magic the Gathering Left out of the running: Chess, Monopoly, Stratego, Risk, all of which probably go between #1 and #2. My list shows how much more time there was for games long ago! And now there are so many great games that the only ones that can get enough plays are the lifestyle games (A:NR, MtG) and the ubiquitous Settlers. Nothing will ever catch Cosmic Encounter. I still have the shreds of my Eon copy for nostalgia's sake, and I teach the beautiful FFG reprint to the next generation :)

[@MarcelPogorzelski]

Sam, you play a variant of Spyfall where you don't count points. If you did that the number of "plays" would fall drastically.

[@Steve-L]

+Marcel Pogorzelski Yeah that's what I thought as well!

[@Mackerachi]

I actually count my plays by how often they get to the table rather than how many plays of them. If we play the same game 3 times in one night, it only gets recorded once. This helps me balance the stats for longer games and in showing my how much my group actually likes a game, rather than how many plays you can cram in on one session. Campaign games are still recorded once per day played. So if we play a 6 campaign game over 6 weeks (a game a week) it gets recorded 6 times. But if we play 2 campaign levels in one day, it's recorded once. As far as tablet/online, I count one play per week, and only if it was against a real person. Because it's so much easier to play 2 or more games of an online game, because setup and takedown isn't there, it runs faster, and it's easier to find players to play with you. I can't say these limitations effect the outcome too often. Maybe 20-30 games each year aren't recorded due to the way I count. It's not a big deal. I don't record scores/players.

[@suekuku]

Careers: I played that so much! I owned it and every week in Jr. High and much of HS, we went to a house in the boonies for banjo band rehearsal. The girl of the house was just a year or two older than me, and we got hooked on Careers. We played that every week for months on end -- and more than once in an evening!Loved that game and wish I still had a copy just for fun!

[@PreppinShootinLivin]

I'd like to see a list similar to this but it's the most played games that were designed in the last 10 years. This will take out all the old games that you played a million times because there just weren't nearly as many options and you didn't own as many games so you just played the same one over and over again. Also, I'd like to see a list similar to this that is most played games that take longer than 30 minutes to play...this filters out those games you can play 4 times in a night because they take 5-15 minutes to play....like Magic, you can play a game in 3-4 minutes or even less...so you could play it 10 times within an hour without problem.

[@edskev7696]

Yes, do this thing!

[@Patronux]

+PreppinShootinLivin I agree on a similar list but make it from the last 12 years. Also, Magic games don't tipically last that little. I would say 10-15 minutes is the average. Can go less than that, and can go a lot longer than that.

[@Popcornio]

My top 5: 1. 7 Wonders 2. Settlers of Catan 3. Carcassonne 4. Concordia 5. Splendor

[@bengoins1633]

I have played at least 77 games of Catan since January 2017. My wife and I play with my father in law and keep track of everyone's wins.

[@chaddreed5683]

I'd like to see a 10 best 'campaign' games list. like Descent, Imperial Assault, Pathfinder: the adventure card game....

[@Mr_Mooo]

The only problem I find with this list is something that was brought up by Tom. When you start getting in to board games, your collection builds slowly. So you end up playing your first couple of games A LOT! As your collection increases and you have more options on what you 'feel like' playing at the time. I want to see a list of games you have kept in your rotation the longest. (which you may have done already, but there is a lot of top 10's to get through ;) )

[@psbauman]

I agree with excluding video game plays. I think that the frequency of logged board game plays should fully reflect the element of setup and tear-down. That has a real effect on how often some games are played, and is one of the measures of a board game design, IMO. Video game versions mask that element.

[@ogreman2229]

I actually agree with Sam on the pandemic legacy argument. I understand classifying each round as a different play for the sake of this list but in general i believe you have to complete a game to classify as 1 play, therefore a legacy game would only be finished once you complete the whole game. Similarly with Time stories 1 play would be each full story segment no matter how many times you reset for another try or how many sessions it took to succeed.

[@BrandonGraham]

+Ogreman222 Agreed. Though he also made the point that each round of Pandemic Legacy could count as one game for "Pandemic" as a whole.

[@Steve-L]

+Ogreman222 I also agree with Sam on this, but disagree with Sam on Spyfall. isn't there a rule or variant where the winner is the one with most session wins?

[@azraelswrd]

+Doma Agape I don't think he plays that way. At least, they never mention it. Kind of like Marvel Legendary has the winner with the most points -- which they never play using that rule either.

[@thirteenways3420]

I'm surprised by all the people who complain about the in-fighting in these countdowns. To me that's what makes it interesting! I think it's funny how they push each other's buttons. If there was no disagreement it would be a snoozefest.

[@WWEisnotPunkrock]

You guys should do a top ten games that should be reprinted.

[@M4lkC0nt3nt]

..."You really played Pandemic twice" sigh. I have a real love hate option about Sam man.

[@36VZ]

+Eric Viola You mean before he says the actual name of the game? I actually like that part as it sometimes turns into a guessing game with Tom and Zee.

[@AlexCachineroG]

I don't mind the guessing game. it's fun actually. but taking a cute point into an obtuse one...yeah.

[@mike3838]

+Eric Viola I can't remember the game, but my favourite Sam quote from another Top 10 was "My number X is a game you can play with.... some people... and in the game one side is trying to win, and at the same time the other side is trying to win... and... "

[@davidfelton8528]

+Phil Buni As I listened to Sam, I heard Gimli say "It still counts as 1 !

[@danielhutchings5075]

Eric Viola you mean when he uses 100 words to say something that wouldn't even be worth saying using 15 (or any other number)? Yep.

[@santiagopedrazzoli3470]

NEXT TOP 10: TOP BOARDGAMES´ ART

[@Steve-L]

+Santiago Pedrazzoli I posted the top 10 best looking board games on the BGG thread for votes, vote on it!

[@drsquid8124]

Tokaido and Scythe are shoe-ins

[@sstvnson2615]

I agree, Zee played Pandemic Legacy twice. It's not like a campaign of D&D where one campaign can last a month or 4 decades. I would prefer we say "I've played through two boxes" since you have to buy a new box for each play through.

[@errolwilde1656]

I feel like the duration of a game should factor in. like I've played king of Tokyo like 30 times and arkham horror like 10 yet I've spent like twice the time playing arkham, lol...

[@alxgonzalez4038]

+Errol Wilde I think that would be a completely different list, something like "Top 10 games I've spent the most time playing"

[@36VZ]

+Errol Wilde I totally agree. Playing 5 games of Love Letter is not the same as playing 5 games of Alchemists. The length of the game should have been taken into the account.

[@Walter.Kolczynski]

+Errol Wilde Agreed, and it eliminates a lot of this arguing about what constitutes "one play". I played a lot of bridge in college, but is each hand a play (we used duplicate scoring)? One session? Duration spent playing would be a better list I think, instead of favoring short games you play several times in a row.

[@UtinniUtinni]

Based on Tom's criteria (most played throughout my life), my #1 most played game is one I played the mess out of with my mom when I was a baby. I'd see her disappear behind a weird barrier and then it would magically move out of the way whenever she said "Peek-a-Boo" and I giggled and giggled endlessly. Now that I'm an adult, I play it with little ones all over again. My #1 most played game, "Peek-a Boo".

[@TheBrokenMeeple]

A cool list, but wow! I can't disagree more with Sam's approach. Doesn't matter if it's a card game or a board game it still counts. And as Zee says, how many times did you set up the game and then put it away? Or finish a specific scenario? Pandemic Legacy is a 18+ played game by the time you finish it, not only a "single" play! :P

[@avisian8063]

yeah but then many peoples list would be: Solitaire/Patience Rummy Chess Draughts/Checkers Monopoly Uno Mancala So I see what he is getting at. The name of the list kight be most played, but we have an expectation that its edited for relevance, interest, and taste. he just drew the line at anything he wouldnt reccomend.

[@TeChNoWC7]

In retrospect I think Sam has a point. You’ve had the full experience of For Sale multiple times, but the full experience of Pandemic Legacy twice. You know For Sale inside and out, but not the case with Pandemic Legacy. It’s like watching a movie vs a tv show; sure you might have spent more time on the tv show, but if you’ve watched 50 episodes of it but seen a single movie 20 times, you are more familiar with the movie.

[@davidkuck]

I would argue that a Pandemic Legacy campaign is 12-24 plays of Pandemic with slightly different rules for each play. I'm with Zee.

[@evilgiraffe123]

Realize how old the video is, but want to thank you guys for excluding digital plays. Mainly for the reason to see what games hit the table most frequently. (when there are a multitude of options instead of what games have the best app implementation)

[@monoludico6166]

Thanks for this video guys. Mine is: 1. Dominion. 2. Race for the Galaxy. 3. The Lord of the Rings LCG (mostly solo). 4. Carcassonne. 5. Ticket to Ride. 6. Lost Cities. 7. 7 wonders. 8. War of the Ring. 9. Agricola. 10. The Castles of Burgundy.

[@dabearz27]

I actually agree with Sam on the Legacy/D&D subject. One session/campaign/whatever of those games is still one full-fledged game...you're just taking breaks between each session. Now, vanilla Pandemic...each one of those games is different, and should be counted as separate plays. I've only played one D&D campaign, but I don't feel like I've played it 20-30 times. I feel like I've played through one story out of countless others.

[@darksidegaming5605]

Sam, you are on point about the legacy game/dnd campaign, sorry Zee I would say that a game play is from when you start the game until when you finish it. Irrelevant of how many sessions or time it takes to do so. Pandemic Legacy starts at the beginning of month 1, and ends after month 12, that is one play through. A dnd campaign starts at session 1 and goes until the story arc is over. If that takes 1 session or 10 years worth of sessions it's still one campaign. I would relate the legacy games to a book after you finish the last chapter you've finished the book. Each game is a chapter, it's not over till you've finished the book. In that same style of analogy, most games are short stories, you start them and then you finish the play and it's over...the next time you go to play, you are simply re-reading the story, not moving on to the next part.

[@PhoenixFlight94]

nice hat Sam! the Hawks are on the "Cup every other year plan"

[@marcoschaub8978]

It's actually pretty clear and a matter of definition: A *game* can consist of one or more *campaigns*, and each campaign is played in *sessions* where a session can consist of one or more *plays*. A similar question is: If I play Magic casually and I play three times, then it's three plays. But if I play in a tournament and it's best-of-three, then suddenly my three plays become one play? No.

[@TheOldMan-75]

Boardgames are pretty much my biggest hobby but that intro is still way too exciting for anything boardgame related :D

[@DinklySmooth]

I can see Sam's point. It depends on what you mean by "played" as in start to finish, the finish being the ultimate goal of the game. So essentially all the pandemic legacy games count as scenarios of sorts, with the greater goal being finishing the year.

[@sidneyleejohnson]

kudos for SH for calling out chess and checkers at the end. Not sure why he didn't include Risk and Monopoly but I suppose he grouped them into "stuff like that". Also likely left out were classic card games (War, Hearts, Spades, Canasta, etc.)

[@MikeysLegend]

This was one of my most fave videos to watch. Great chemistry between Zee and Sam again

[@natelinhart114]

One of the funniest lists. I'm shocked Overpower was Tom's No. 1 and Uno was his No. 2. Actually would have guessed Stratego or Dominion.

[@RockCh4lk]

Sam is a Blackhawks fan!? Blues fan here, great series!

[@davidwayneflowers]

AXIS AND ALLIES!!!! Finally made a list. I played a ton as a kid. Wish I could play more now but hard to find people to play with. Classic.

[@jimsmith7445]

Great idea for a top 10 list!!! I agree with Zee... MTG, between the deck building element and the curiosity of seeing who's deck might be better. I agree with Sam... Memoir 44 (all expansions). 1) Chess (with my dad and uncle) 2) Cribbage (with my dad and uncle) 3) Old AH war games (with my friend George) 4) Operation Tannhauser (developing new scenarios) 5) Panzer Blitz and Panzer Leader (as a solo player) 6) Poker (5 card draw and 7 card stud) 7) Hearts and Spades (in the army) 8) Carcassonne (making up new games within the pieces) 9) **** MTG (the best!) 10)Gears of War ( new and standard scenarios) Great top 10 list... ***11) "Warfighter" with all expansions

[@larsenden8474]

Why focus on number of plays rather than time played?

[@AgentKuo]

+Lars Enden cuz that's a lot harder to measure

[@larsenden8474]

+Carl Frodge I suppose. But it's not like any precise measurements are really happening here.

[@AgentKuo]

Good point, but they can at least estimate the number, worth time, who knows, especially with games like apples to apples, that end whenever the players feel like

[@TheProteanGeek]

I'd like to see and compare the both. Coup drops off and TI3 jumps on for example.

[@r_hoho]

I would say one thing that make number played make sense is a question "Do you want to play again ?" I once played Power grid for 2h with my group and they said " No, we don't want to play it again" that's 1 play and then we play No thank! for 10min and they said " Yes, let's play again" and we played like 10 more time in a row for a total of 1h30min. At the end of the day, no doubt our Most played game would be No Thank! and I think that's make more sense then " you know, yesterday we played power grid the most "

[@petermobius]

Dominion is the only modern hobby game that can hold a flame to all my childhood plays. Risk, Chess, Connect 4, Monopoly, Clue. Chess *easily* takes the lifetime win though as I've played even more as an adult as a child.

[@XRay44]

I agree with Zee and Tom in regard to the spirit of the list. It's not "The games you've played the most that you like". It's "Games you've played the most". It's a shame Sam didn't go by this because I am very interested to hear what all Sam has played over the years that he felt the need to disqualify from the official list.

[@Steve-L]

+Wes Ray He didn't go into detail, but many of those he played grudgingly. At least it appeared he was about to say something to that effect.

[@G33kCulture]

I cant believe how different Tom looks than a video from last Oct. You look fantastic and the weight you dropped is quite noticeable.

[@landmarkforum3652]

Chess, Poker and Oh Hell, in no particular order, probably comprise more plays than all my other games put together.

[@bezoris2g]

Great show. Gratified to hear Tom's shout-out for Axis&Allies, something I've been playing with my friend Jon for over 20 years. We recently sprang for the expansion packs to the tune of $450 (roughly). While I typically win, it's been a lot of fun. (Jon continues to play the Axis)

[@MegaIndecisive]

My top ten played (recording plays since 2009) - mostly short games. 1. Loopin' Louie 2. Crokinole 3. Coup 4. Hive 5. We Didn't Playtest This At All 6. Resistance (original and Avalon) 7. No Thanks! 8. Pandemic 9. Sorry! Sliders 10. Splendor Almost there: Spyfall, 6 Nimmt!, Wits & Wagers, Love Letter, Ca$h n Gun$, Jungle Speed, Coconuts, One Night Ultimate Werewolf, Codenames, Coloretto, Magic The Gathering, For Sale, Ingenious, Fairy Tale, Dixit

[@Locutius11]

One of the best and funniest episodes ever.

[@twenty-sidedturtle2107]

Initially I was with Sam on the "Legacy" thing, because each play has its own ruleset so you only get all the rules if you play through the whole thing. However, thinking about it, if I play Five Tribes and then add the expansion and play again, I would still say I played Five Tribes twice even though the rule set was slightly different.

[@GrandElemental]

+Twenty-Sided Turtle Indeed. And following that kind of thinking, then technically playing with a different number of players, even if the core game otherwise stays the same, is a different game, because of some slight rule variations. It makes absolutely no sense in the context of this kind of list.

[@twenty-sidedturtle2107]

+GrandElemental I agree, but there is sort of a grey area. I'm not sure how many "times" I've played TIME Stories, for example. Three? Because I've played each scenario once or five because that's how many game sessions its been? Or eight because that's how many "runs" it took? I think Sam has a point, but yeah, I'd go with Zee.

[@ExBruinsFan]

1 - Statis Pro Baseball. 2 - Spellfire (CCG) 3 - Scrolls (online CCG)

[@Zion-18]

I only started logging plays in December, and I don't count digital plays. My top 10 ranges between 11 and 26 times: 10. Zombie Dice 9. Bang! the Dice Game 8. Lanterns 7. Patchwork 6. Exploding Kittens 5. Sushi Go! 4. Pairs 3. Love Letter 2. One Night Ultimate Werewolf 1. The Game If I go all time, I'd have to include Scrabble, Life, Stratego, and Monopoly.

[@bogganstoryteller]

My first grader has his own copy of King of Tokyo. He plays it sans coaching just fine (with the Power Up expansion).

[@youssef1931]

i think "deception murder in hong kong " should take part in one of these lists it's really amazing

[@zmiq86]

My top 10: 1. The Resistance: Avalon 2. Love Letter 3. A Game of Thrones: The Board Game (Second Edition) 4. Betrayal at House on the Hill 5. Elder Sign 6. Munchkin 7. Dead of Winter 8. Ticket to Ride 9. Spyfall 10. One Night Ultimate Werewolf All the games that I have put here are games that I conceder and classify as true BOARD GAMES. Things like Chess, Monopoly, Snakes and Ladders, Mikado and cetera and TCGs or LCGs like Magic the Gathering and Netrunner were not included. Although, it is hard to make a definite and exact list of the most played games when you don't record your plays ... but I feel it that way :)

[@Discalle112]

If i play a campaign of descent, have i only played it once? No, sam is absurd as usual.

[@Straddllw]

Yes, you have. Agree with Sam.

[@danielhutchings5075]

Carl Hintze absurd? That's putting it way too nicely.

[@headphonecatty]

Carcassonne and Star Realms used to be big go-tos for gaming in my experience since they're quick. Dominion, Mice & Mystics, lots of things fell to the wayside since I usually had to leave for work in the evening an they would take up the whole time I had. Now I have a consistent gaming group with the ability to play longer since getting a better job. That's my story anyways.

[@egamruf]

There's no necessary dichotomy. Both Sam and Zee are correct. It's a pretty decent analogy to the old 'Ship of Theseus' so-called paradox - it just depends on how you look at it.

[@TheProteanGeek]

I get both sides of the legacy argument. Zee has completed it twice. Like if you play through a video game you've played it through once, true. You may have played a bunch of sessions though. If you stop watching a movie and then you finish it later have you seen it twice or once? That narrative element lends to Sam's point of view. Ultimately though I side with the idea that each play of each month is a play. Like each Imperial Assault mission is one play.

[@linusottosson5425]

Pandemic Legacy - Season 1. A season of many individual games maybe? The thing that I scratch my head the most about is Sams #10, at 5:04 he says he's played it 6 or 7 times. Does he only have 10 games that he played more than 7 times? But he also seems to included it on the list because of future plays of the game?

[@e7diablo]

Just want to go on record saying I agree with Sam. Zee can count his two campaigns of Pandemic Legacy as either 35 games of Pandemic or 2 games of Pandemic Legacy. Since he put PL on the list, his count is 2.

[@DeanOfDVD]

I think I should still have all my Overpower decks somewhere, but I sadly have no idea where they are.

[@andrewhazlewood4569]

If it is measured as the most time spent playing the game, Talisman, Medici and Thebes might crack my top 10. Just based on number of plays - 500 and Cribbage are my most played - both traditional card games. Crokinole, Magic the Gathering, Pandemic. Sequence - which I played regularly with my wife and another couple. Scrabble, Apples to Apples, Fairy Tale and Citadels.

[@smoothcriminal28]

My list: 1. King of Tokyo ( haven't played it in a while though) 2. Ticket to Ride ( no longer own) 3. Castles of Burgundy 4. Agricola All creatures 5. Stone Age 6. Greed 7. Raptor 8. La Isla 9. Karuba 10. Five Tribes

[@philheaton1619]

I finally gave up on this because the list wasn't true to its own title. Ipad implementations of board games didn't count, although Zee did say that it wouldn't have made any difference. There was talk about how games played when you were children didn't count. It was Tom's statement that he had played a bunch of MtG, but he didn't count those that made me quit watching. I didn't wait to see if games of Quariors or Dicemasters wouldn't count for the same reason.

[@_Brittany_.]

Could totally understand Sams argument on legacy it’s like have you see a whole movie if you’ve continually paused it in segments finally seeing the end the 12th pause. That said Zee does have a justified choice because a legacy game is like watching a tv show. Every episode is an episode even though it’s not the whole season wrapped up.

[@GentrovoKolyova]

This is your best top ten ever! Thank you! My family loves it.

[@Lanthanaas]

I agree with Sam. It only counts as 1 for a broken up campaign style game, no matter how many sessions it takes.

[@Tennethums1]

Jamaica would be one of my groups top played. Because of its simplicity and the fact it accommodates so many players...not to mention it’s beautiful. In fact, we’ve played it so much I’m kind of burned out, ha! And kudos on Stratego! The best game ever created!!!

[@Jighm]

You were right, Tom. "Uno is number 2."

[@CD-zd6zr]

trying to remember where all my overpower cards went, it was one of the first games that i came up with custom additions for (I made up my own for superheros i didn't have)

[@bcmaledragon]

For me my top 10 most played board games are 1) Monopoly 2) Scrabble 3) Trivial Pursuit 4) Ticket to Ride(I always break this game out whenever I play with coworkers, friends, or new players to my board game group...I've played it a good 200+ times since getting it back in December 2016) 5) Jamaica(Another game that I'll break out when playing with coworkers,friends, and new players to my board game group) 6) Kingdomino( I've played this game a good 30+ times since getting it 3 weeks ago). 7) Sheriff of Nottingham 8) Royals 9) Stone Age 10) Tzolk'in: The Mayan Calendar

[@Granmoe]

I agree with Sam on Pandemic Legacy. For example if you play Descent 1ed or 2ed I would count it the same game, the mechanics dont change so much to say in general that it would make a difference.

[@KRX_]

I agree with Sam, the entire game, start to finish is all 14 events together. That would be one play[through] of Pandemic Legacy.

[@leenicholas3279]

Don't worry Sam, I understand where you're coming from! I disagree, but I get what you're saying. If Zee had been counting multiple sessions of T.I.M.E. Stories whilst doing the same scenario (say you just ended each session when you reset the cards due to running out of TU) then I would agree with you completely - that's just one, multi-sessioned game. For Legacy, though, each game has a distinct beginning and end that you can physically 'win' or 'lose' so I've always counted them as separate games. Keep up the good work, buddy! Watching you guys banter is a blessing to me each week!

[@edk3083]

I wholeheartedly agree with you, Sam. Your point is solid.

[@BobHarrison1229]

"And I would argue, 'Who cares?'." - Voice of the People

[@HeathAldrich]

Tom, I used to play Overpower when I was in Middle School, and I played it until the DC set came out and it broke the original set, or at least to me it did. It was my favorite CCG of the time. I recently got into Dice Masters, and DM really reminds me of Overpower, with a heavy dose of MtG. I hope Wizkids keeps producing Dice Masters for a long time.

[@sarahlanger2605]

My most played games from number 1 to 10: Codenames, Pandemic, 7 Wonders, Sushi Go!, Istanbul, Port Royal, Seasons, Spyfall, Unusual Suspects, Legends of Andor.

[@waterwixxxer]

I've now played Hearthstone the most. After that it is Innovation, Splendor, Dominion, Kupferkessel Co, Takenoko, and Lost Cities.

[@IdlestHands]

I can certainly see Sam's argument regarding legacy games only counting as one play through. But, as he said, its semantics. I tend to think of legacy games like a RPG campaign, if it takes six sessions then you have played the game six times but only completed one campaign (as playing a game does not intrinsically mean to completion). So Zee has played the game 35 times, but only to completion twice.

[@AlexCachineroG]

this is the truest comment. how is this not an obvious conclusion to the whole discussion. if in one week you lived with zee and played poker 10 times and zee played 2 campaigns of PL to completion in 35 "sessions", what do you think your small talk would sound like? it wouldn't be, "man, zee played so much more poker than PL this week! it would be, "man, zee played the MESS out of PL this week, and even managed to complete two campaigns!" sophistry ded.

[@lizardgirl72]

Definitely UNO, recently uno FLIP has become a family favorite. You can see both sides which adds a fun strategy element and some surprise

[@jcb3393]

+The Dice Tower Next list I want to see is: "Top 10 Games spent the most time playing" This list is so heavily weighted toward quick/light games that I think a more accurate measure of love for a particular game is amount of time spent playing the game. (For example, 5 games of Lost Cities would count significantly less than 1 game of TI3).

[@klaskteacup]

I'm with Sam. Legacy is one play from story begin to end. For instance if when you play a video game it's treated as one play from story begin to end right?

[@inhumanbookworm]

Sam's argument on Pandemic Legacy is very interesting. If you play, let's say Fallout 3 using save game and going through the campaign then it is actually one play. Payers will rather refer to the second play when they use new character and start the game from the beginning, so a board game that is played over multiple sessions that are actually tied to each other with a story should be treated as one game. If someone would say 'I played Pandemic Legacy three times' most people would probably say 'Why?'. Right?

[@melissacoats6855]

I do find it a little weird that for as long as Zee has played games that his #10 only has 35 play throughs Also zero Catans also.