Top 100 Reiner Knizia Games - with Tom and Mike
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 13 ต.ค. 2024
- Tom and Mike take a look at the immense catalog of acclaimed board game designer Dr. Reiner Knizia, and choose their top 100 favorites!
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Reiner has designed 2 new games during this live stream and published 3 of them even before I finish this sentence 😅
Lol. This comment wins the internet today. So true/ dammit. This made me spit coffee out my nose and snort laugh
That intro was... FLAWLESS!
In true mathematician form, the number of games he designs follows the exponential function.
Intros since Mike and Chris have come on have been so good!
Except for the glasses
So good.
I love how in the intro the Dr had glasses on when Mike talked but when he talked had them off. 😄 I'm loving the new intros!
That sketch in the beginning is pure gold! Amazing work, guys!
T&E is without doubt his best game. That game is just a unicorn among games.. no cards, no gimmicks, no dice absolutely nothing just tiles and a board and unique and awsome set of rules..absolutely love how you are never safe and everything can change in an instant..you never not have a good move...my top 5 all time
Absolutely - I just love that game to bits.
Perhaps worth checking out Yellow & Yangtze, which is a variant of T&E
The initial sketch with Chris with and without glasses is hillarious
These intros are truly amazing and hilarious! Thanks for putting the time into them team
Underrated Knizias (whether on this list or on publishers' lists):
- LOTR: Confrontation (is it the licensing issue? why isn't this being reprinted non-stop? over 100 plays: fun, deeply strategic, thematic, interactive - one of the best modern 2p games!)
- Loot (it's a simple, but fun and quite deep card game with a THEME that makes sense; plays well with up to 8 players)
- Stephenson's Rocket (not on this list! cutthroat train eurogame with stock portfolio management)
- Tigris & Euphrates (I've recently emailed a local publisher and asked about a reprint, and they responded with something like "there will be no reprint because we focus on newer games"... Hello? Have you seen how much used T&E copies cost? Are you aware that this is top game designer's top rated game? A timeless design, unlike any other game out there.)
- Quo Vadis (not on this list! pure negotiation game when you don't have time for Dune)
- Modern Art (I'm surprised to see it rather low on this list; it's a 10/10 in my book: very clever, strategic, interactive, can bring laughter to the table, surprisingly very THEMATIC (if you get a proper version with bad art (original Hans im Gluck or CMON)).
- His kids' games. Smart games for small children that are also fun for parents are hard to come by. Knizia makes good ones, and there have been many excellent rethemes of his games with great kid-friendly art released in Poland: Pędzące Żółwie, Pędzące Ślimaki, Kurnik, Pszczółki, Nogi Za Pas!, Pędzące Żółwie: Gra Karciana, Lato z Komarami, Pędzące Jeże, Glutostwory, Detektyw Pozytywka na tropie, etc.
i highly recommend kingdoms, its so much fun
How is Tigris or Modern art underrated?
I believe all the art of Tigris & Euphrates can be found online so you could, at worst, make a copy of it yourself. But it's a dumb decision not to reprint it. Or check out Yellow & Yangtze which is a close variant.
Another Kniziaphile here, and here are my top 10:
10) High Society
9) Lord of The Rings: The Confrontation
8) Modern Art
7) My City
6) Keltis: Neue Weg, Neue Ziel
5) Blue Moon
4) Beowulf: The Legend
3) Taj Mahal
2) The Lord of The Rings
1) Tigris and Euphrates
Great list! For me, T&E is up there with Samurai.
Great list! Here's my top 10 from my favorite designer:
1) Yellow & Yangtze
2) Through The Desert
3) Medici
4) Stephenson's Rocket
5) High Society
6) Amun Re
7) Scarab Lords
8) Rapido
9) Pumafiosi
10) Schotten Totten
Y&Y is essentially a reimplementation of Tigris & Euphrates
@@InXLsisDeo Yep! I've played both and prefer Y&Y
Royal Visit not making the list astonished me. It might be my favourite Knizia game. I picked it up a couple months ago and have played it dozens of times already. Absolutely brilliant tug of war game with some big exciting moments. And the production on it is incredible.
We are in fact designing the 25th anniversary with additional modules:) We were the Lanyard sponsors!
I KNEW IT!!!
@@michaeldilisio557 Congratulations. You are not going crazy!
@@steepedgamescommunity6120 Yes! I'm glad I didn't barge in and say anything incorrect. Excited to see that. Any time frame announced?
@@DTChrisYi working on a few more things with some factories to get most designs/components locked down, but projecting an announcement in the first half of this year.
Also, this is Bryan, the Community/Retailer Manager speaking on behalf of SG:)
@@steepedgamescommunity6120 Awesome, thanks Bryan. And thanks for watching too!
My top 20:
1. Samurai
2. The Quest for El Dorado
3. Ra
4. Medici
5. Taj Mahal
6. Beowulf: The Movie Board Game (Kingdoms)
7. Ivanhoe
8. Modern Art
9. King's Road
10. Lord of the Rings: The Confrontation
11. Through the Desert
12. Ingenious
13. Schotten Totten
14. My City
15. Winner's Circle
16. Formula Motor Racing
17. Colossal Arena/Equinox
18. High Society
19. Blue Moon City
20. Tigris & Euphrates
Samurai is my "favorite", too.
Played Whale Riders this weekend, liked it a lot. Probably slides in at #12 here behind Through the Desert.
The Nordic version of Quest for El Dorado has Dutrait art and includes English rules and cards as well.
Great episode! Knizia is my all-time favorite, with Ra and Tigris & Euphrates on top. I actually also enjoy Tower of Babel, which did not make your list. I will be pullling out Blue Moon again this weekend due to this video!
Fantastic top 100. Knizia has made so many great games!
Also I loved the intro.
My most played game of all time - Battle Line (Schotten Totten). And I've never even tried the optional rules! Greatest value for money out there.
Tigris & Euphrates is my favorite Knizia game. I love the tension. I never feel like I lost due to one conflict. You have to play well the whole game.
Wheedle at 95 is UNDERRATED! If I ever come to a DT Con, I’m pulling this one out of my pocket and making Tom play it again.
Great vid, loved the sketch at the beginning. I'm fairly new to the hobby so the only ones I've played are High Society and Modern Art both of which I love. I really like how they both involve fuzzy logic and things that don't have fixed value, this seems to be a theme with his games. Definitely a few talked about today that have been added to my wishlist
Great games! My wife and I play Royal Visit a lot!
It sounds like Catchapalooza just had 36 Reiner Knizia games added to it for Mike.
Spot on with the El Dorado reappreciation comments from Mike at the beginning.
Tom - I think you’ll love Sakura. It has a similar feel to 6 Nimmt. Very chaotic, with lots of laughs when people accidentally bump into the emperor and have to lose points and move backwards on the track.
Surprised Royal Visit didn't make this list. I know the original theme was questionable, but the new theme and production is better and the game is excellent fun. (And Mike even mentioned it in passing so I know he's at least played it.)
Whats questionable about the original? Honest question. I prefeer the old version to the new mess of a theme, mechanics fits much better with the old theme
I'm waiting on delivery for Royal Visit and I'm excited for it. It seems really original and tactile. I also love the new aesthetic.
I'm not a Knizia fan. I haven't found a Knizia game so far that I really liked.
But I guess "Tigris & Euphrates" would probably be very high on my list of Knizia games. It seems to be an impressive design.
"Amun-Re" and "Taj Mahal" are also games that I want to try.
@ycuko2788 Loot / Korsar / Pirate !
I haven't played or seen much about "Battle Line".
I now feel like I need to get a copy of Twins and paste it up with images from the movie Twins.
My family and I also LOVE Blue Moon City, the original art, not the CMON version.
his top games for me:
1. RA
2. Tigris & Euphrates
3. Kingdoms (for 2 players)
4. Blue Moon Legends
5. The Quest for El Dorado
;)
13 of my 252 games are Knizia.
My top Knizia games are:
1. Medici
2. Whale Riders
3. Yellow & Yangtze
4. Lost Cities
5. LLAMA
6. High Society
I haven't played many high rated ones but I'm looking forward to the new version of RA that is due out this year.
Notable Absences: (1) Strozzi (2) Medici vs Strozzi (3) Stephenson's Rocket (4) Merchants of Amsterdam (5) Municipium (6) Sakura (7) Great Wall of China
My kids love Secrets of the Sea and it is really fun to play it with them.
Royal Visit is a favorite of mine.
I would love to find a copy of Circus Flohcati with the dressed up fleas.
I loved this video. ALOT. Would love more videos like these with other designers!
Really great video that I'm watching late. The only glaring omission seems to be Stephenson's Rocket, which has had a few printings and a respectable level of success. I know Tom hates it, but if we're talking objective rankings, it definitely has to be on there.
In Poland we have a special edition of Dream Factory called Tytus, Romek i A'Tomek. It's based on popular comic book series about 2 boys and an chimpanzee. Instead of making movies you're creating comic books with motives that derive from the most popular ones done by Papcio Chmiel ;)
Omg that sketch was soooooo gooooood!
Thanks. This significantly extended my Knizia "to buy/try" list.
9:08 Mmmmm... Brains (rethemed as Reiner Knizia's Monkey Mischief) is not a bad game at all, especially for young players. It has the pedagogical virtue to help kids dealing with losing. 2 phase game : gaining braaaains and then stealing them from each other until last zombie standing. The monkey and bananas retheme is more young player friendly. I recommend it.
I can only do a top 10, so here is my Knizia top 10
1. Lost Cities
2. Indigo
3. Schotten Totten
4. High Society
5. Carcassonee the Castle
6. Loot
7. Modern Art
8. Looting London
9. Zero Down
10. Khan of Khans
AGE OF WAR!!! How could you miss that one?!?
Lost Cities is the only game my Wife is playing with me so far. So Tom....it is GOLD. :) Hoping to find some new inspiratons with this vid of yours....any suggestions?
I love having Mike in the show.
All I can think about now is Chris bursting through the door like the Kool-Aid man!
I just want to state my appreciation for the specific publisher Herr Knizia cites that he wants to show his exponentially growing number of board games… is Fantasy Flight games. That touch is GOLD. 😂
Just wanted to shout out my three favorite Knizia games that weren't on this list (I think):
Sushizock im Gockelwok (called Sushi Roll in France) Similar to Pikomino but maybe better?
Times Square (Royal Visit) - Great 2p tug of war. Old version has a champagne bottle meeple!
Penguin Party - So simple and fast and yet devious as you cut off other penguin's ability to party!
I'm surprised that Mike appears to think that "interaction" is unusual in Knizia's designs. Knizia has declared that he designs for player interactions - players are compelled to always pay attention to others; few of his games are soloable. Check out Ben Maddox's recent interview and this recent interview (th-cam.com/video/QizXwSJ-o48/w-d-xo.html).
Just from my own experience with Knizia games I think they are very interactive! My own personal problem with euro games is the low player interaction but it doesn't have to be so! Euros can be very interactive!
"How could I mess this up?" -Mike. My question though, "Are there rocks involved?" Great video, loved the intro
Have to disagree: the most recent and beautiful Battle Line/Schotten Totten is GMT's Battle Line Medieval (2017) which has art from Roland's Revenge, who also drew for Western Legends, Undaunted and Final Girl. There is though a new Schotten Totten 2 which is maybe what was being referred to...
Check out Polish version of Schotten Totten called "Spór o bór" (released in 2021):
boardgamegeek.com/image/6432843/schotten-totten
Great video guys. You too have great chemistry
Orongo was available in the US and Ravensberger does have games in the US with their name on the box. Bidder Up and Broom Service are two examples I can think of
Oh man, best intro!!! I watched it like 8 times hahaha keep up the awesome work!
A better balanced mechanism for determining Ranking would be to use an expected value of 50(actually lower for Mike as doesn't have 100 games) for when 1 player didn't make 1-
The intro alone should get a nomination for an Oscar next year
We want a Kniziapalooza.
Did I order Yangtze from Poland just to "Be Like Mike"?....Yes, I did...Mike Dilisio is a National Treasure!!
Millie Fiori is great! Knizia does Wolfgang Warsch (Ganz Shön Clever the board game).
I can't believe I actually sat through this entire episode...
But as I suspected, some (most?) of his best games are not games I have played, heard of, or seen for sale anywhere.
Going to have to go hunting to find more of the good stuff. Also...some of the games with a lower rating look very interesting to me.
Who can you guys find to rank all of Bruno Cathala's games?
That would be Zee Garcia
The print & play game surprised me. A great idea if anyone at DT is a connoisseur of print & play games for a top 10 list, hint hint. 🤓
Isn't it about time to call this phenomenon the greatest board game designer of the millennium? Maybe a special surprice 2023 Dice Tower award?
“Looks to be frozen”. ( Matches the opening skit).
Piatnik has a couple of more letters, is situated in Vienna Austria and might not be a big Boardgame publisher but it is one of the biggest producers of classic Card-Decks in the world and at it for almost 200 years.
Obviously Klaus-Jürgen Wredes name does in no shape or form resemble what ever Tom sad.
In case this was lost in translation. Loving the video and the intro.
I only have the following games:
Age of War
The Hobbit (not the one mentioned on this list)
Lord of the Rings
Lost Cities
Lost Cities The Board Game
I like Lost Cities The Board Game better than Lost Cities because of the theme comes through a bit more, but have only played a couple times and don't care for the setup.
I have only played The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings as solo walkthroughs to figure the game out.
Age of War is a nice dice chucker, though it can drag on if the dice are not coming up favorably for anyone.
I've played Ra, and am thinking of getting the new version when it is available.
I've also printed out and played a few rounds of the Decathlon game.
I find it amusing when a knizia sequel comes out where the major change is from square grids to hex grids :) Tigris and Euphrates to Yellow and Yangtze, now My City to My Island. Are there any others?
Ingenious to Axio went the other way. From hexes to squares!
Kings road is pretty good, actually. It IS area control, not just an area control “aspect” to it as mike said. Super light, but one of the best gateway AC games, what mint control wishes to be. It’s actually like a lighter version of mission red planet imho, if you can imagine something lighter than that. I’m not sure which design was first (as you said KR is based on an even earlier game of his own) but I’m guessing knizias, and then Cathala expanded on the idea.
Sorry if I misspoke on the level of area control in the game. It’s been a while since I played, so I’m not surprised if I missed nuance on this (or others in the list as well…we covered a lot of games). It’s definitely older than Mission Red Planet in its original form.
@@michaeldilisio557 it’s all good! Didn’t mean to be too hard on you. I’ve been a fan of yours since your early days of solo mode games btw. I enjoyed the knizia review a lot! I wish zee was there too! He has a lot of knizias on his top 100 I think and I like his knizia reviews as well.
ON BGG somebody posted a potential campaign was coming up Q4 this year for Through the desert, any confirmations on this?
Indeed, being reprinted by Allplay in their upcoming kickstarter with two new games.
Thank you @@DTChrisYi
Ra the dice game is my favorite!
Age of War can take forever
kingdoms is the most underrated game by reiner, such a fun game
Happy to see Age of War get some love. Even serious board gamers seem tend to not be aware of it. Great quick game and cheap too.
One you also left off is (don’t laugh) Zombiegeddon. Reviews of this game are pretty much nonexistent, but it’s a shame. It’s actually not bad and I would highly recommend it to light gamers and knizia fans especially. It has both a mass market mechanism but several euro mechanisms all at once without feeling overwhelmed. It’s a pawn moving game (no rolling) and is set collection mostly, but it’s also one of those games where the tile spaces are removed on your moves so the board becomes smaller on each turn. On top of that, it is pick up and delivery as you are trying to place supplies on bunkers during the first and second phases of the game. As if that’s not enough, it has the blue lagoon thing where the first phase determines the start of your second phase. Your pawns start on the bunkers you supplied. If you weren’t able to get there and supply one, you can’t start a pawn there in the second phase. And what is more, you have to collect weapons to destroy enemies and zombies (the latter of which only come in the second phase). You have to make sure you collect enough and don’t use them all in the first phase on enemies so you can get the points for killing zombies later. Make sure you use them all as weapons are worth zero points at the end. There are also obstacles and ways of transporting. Not his best, but one overlooked game that is worth mentioning.
The Dutrait version in the Nordic countries has English cards and rules as well in the box.
I played Money on the iPhone a LOT. It was awesome. Sadly not available anymore.
Tigris & Euphrates definitely one of the best games ever designed. Not sure what's stressful in it, bu it's certainly a brain burner, so it's for chess amateurs. I would like to try Ra and Amun-Re.
Electric Boogaloo - outstanding!
Great stuff, as always! I always enjoy listening to your videos. But as someone who almost exclusively listens to your content, I was a little sad that at least 3 titles were never mentioned (which is something you are usually very aware of), including two, I believe, in the top ten. Number two, for sure. It’s nit-picky and not a huge deal, but I would have liked to have heard the games. Guess I’ll have to actually WATCH the top ten. : )
I think Sumatra is good fun! Subtle design.
Great Wall of China is really good also, underrated Knizia
This year alone I am buying at least 4 Knizias
I backed the RA Gamefounding.
You should definately look at the new Polish version of Schotten Totten: Spór o Bór ;).
Can’t believe that Qin is so low. Should be in the top 20 at least.
And Escalation didn’t even score a mention.
Also can’t believe that Tom says that he’s surprised that he hasn’t played Indigo, as I geekmailed him a few years ago, that he should give it a go as it is a superior game to either Tsuro or Metro and he said that it wasn’t his sort of game.
Good god. 100 games from one man. And not even a comprehensive list. That is insane.
Lol that intro hahah awesome
High Entertainment value with that two guys.
LLAMA should be top 50 easily.
Can’t wait to see where Whoowasit? falls.
Was Flea Circus on there?
For a top 10 idea - best games for your quiver (very small form factor)
Timestamps/chapters?
I think you left of Knights of Charlemagne. Surprising, since Tom wrote a long and detailed review of it. It was a long time ago so maybe that’s why. Or because he didn’t video it, idk. I bought it from his recommendation and my family loves it. One of our most played knizias. Sort of like battle line but more of a card majority game than poker mechanic. Really cool. Like it better than battle line.
Yeah, this is a good call. I like Knights of Charlemagne. I’d have to consult my list to see if I had it, and it just didn’t make the master list or not, but it would definitely be in my top half.
@@michaeldilisio557 yep, same here, mike. I own just over 30 kinizia games and this one would be in the top half definitely.
@@michaeldilisio557 oh yeah, and it’s multi player too, unlike battle line which is another reason why I like it better.
The ones I’ve played from best to worst:
High Society
Modern Art
Lost Cities
The Quest for El Dorado
Schotten Totten
Sakura
Age of War
The Lord of the Rings
Priests of Ra (never played the original)
Strozzi
I have Medici no Blue Moon City on my shelf of shame.
Give Medici a go. It's one of my favourites, especially if you are into the auction games and like set collection.
Best Intro :D :D
Best intro ever!
Definitely disagree with royal visit not making the list. One of my wife and I's most played games.
Those people are marketing material
A game that I think was neglected is Genesis. I’m guessing because it isn’t widely played. Great knizia game.
Great episode. My wife and I have played Lost cities a ridiculous amount. I play the Ingenious app daily. Mmmm brains! barely rated a mention but we've used that as a quick filler quite a bit. And so many more... I thought we had a lot of RK's games, I now realise that we're not even begun on a collection.
I can understand T&E being too stressful but in no way modern art is an old design :)