Unmatched should 100% be on this list. MtG and Chess should be as well! Even War Chest could easily be on this list for those not particularly interested in mastering chess but liking the dueling tactical aspect.
MtG is a CCG not a board game and takes a LOT of time to get into if you want to actually do good in it and play competitively, not to mention huge paywall entry for good cards. So imo, unless you're OK playing MtG with just most basic decks / cards, I would skip it
Good looking haircut. Longest intro to a top ten list, and best intro. I have Star Wars DB coming tomorrow because of your review. I think Hanimakoji and Unmatched should be on this list, both are amazing. Great video as always. Keep it up boys.
My day is always better when a Boardgame Hangover video drops. Truffle Shuffle is not a two-player only game - BUT MY WORD it is GREAT as a head to head two player game. It uses mechanics similar to 7 Wonders Duel, but combined with poker hands. I love it!
These suggestions seem worth checking out. We only played 7 wonders: Duel. I will probably keep coming back to this top, because we often play 1 vs 1 🙂🙂
Caper Europe is still our favorite 1 v 1 game a year after we got it. SW Deckbuilder is quite popular too but Caper Europe always brings the most tension and laughter.
Does summoner wars have expansions? Are they needed to fully enjoy the game? I'd have added: Lost cities Star Realms Shotten Totten, Epic the card game
My wife & I, have a bunch of games on the diner table, but in the end, we're always end up playing: 7W Duel & Splendor Duel... Thanks for the list, looks like I have to go buy more Games 🙂
So glad at least one board game channel highlites the Mindbug! love it, but somehow my impression was that its only magic the gathering players that know about it, probably cause they share a creator xD
Radlands is an amazing 2 player game. Production is amazing, art is gorgeous, super tight and simple gameplay but loads of depth and synergy between cards. Love Radlands, would play it as many times in a row as an opponent would let me haha!
Have you guys tried Funkoverse and what are your thoughts? I know that it seems like a gimmick game as its a 'funko' product, but the mechanics are actually quite fun.
Additional suggestions to try: Sakura Arms, Ashes Reborn, Neuroshima Hex, Radlands, Air, land and sea Critters at war, Bullet heart, Battlecon, Sentinels of the multiverse, Dice throne
Polis is worth a look, it’s a very cutthroat euro/war, resource management game. One player plays as Sparta the other Athena. Can last anywhere from 30mins up to two hours. Splendor duel is a great one, I see it has been mentioned lots in the comments
I would add Super Fantasy Brawl, Radlands and Space Hulk! Also, I would have added Star Realms instead of Star Wars deckbuilding game, because it's basically the same game with a lot more content. Summoner Wars is on well deserved first place!
You need to try out Hanamikoji. It'll make the list somewhere because of its quick playtime (similar to Hive and Watergate, but it's portable like Hive). There are other cut-choose and hidden info games in this vein (Monsters and the Things that Destroy them, Tussie Mussie, Circle the Wagons, …) but II feel Hanamikoji captures the essence of all of them in the most accessible format. Star Wars Rebellion should be added next to War of the Ring (same game, different theme depending on theme). Given Twilight Struggle and Watergate is on there, I'd imagine Resist might make a future version of this list. Unmatched/Star Wars Epic Battles is not a pure 1-1, but it should be considered as such. It doesn't play nearly as well in the other formats (IMO). If you haven't played it, it's worth a shot (there was also Funkoverse which came out at the same time, but it fell off). For those who think Chess should make a list like this, some others to consider (but I don't think would make your list) are: Onitama, Tao Long, Battle Chest, and Shobu.
I felt undaunted Britain was a horrible game for my taste but I can see why people might like it. Some older 2 player games I enjoy are : ▫️Jaipur ▫️ Targi ▫️Neuroshima Hex ▫️Lost Cities
@@BoardGameHangover in a nutshell, the poker chips and the baggie feel much nicer than the deck of cards, the absence of luck from the dice throw makes the games less swingy and the 2v2 mode is superb as well. On the off side, it doesn't have a campaign mode though and the expansions are mostly just added units and (welcome, but) minor additions to the game.
Those on your list I love are Undaunted, 7 Wonders Duel, and Rebellion. I have been intrigued with Summoner Wars but if you give it such a high recommendation I’ll just have to try it. One I think you guys would love is Blitzkrieg! It is a game where you draw tiles from a bag and place them in different theaters of war in WW2. Your goal is to have more points, which mostly comes down to winning in more of the theaters of war. Each tile has abilities and each space has abilities to get points, extra strength, or add other tiles to your bag to hopefully draw later. Super cool one that only takes 20 minutes and makes you really want to play over and over.
Such a weird list, there are so many more duel games that are great and worth trying. Just from top of my head: Unmatched, Warhammer Underworlds, MTG Commander, Commands & Colors games (Ancients, The Great war, Memoir 44), Warchest
Good list guys! I am also thinking Sekigahara: Unification of Japan could be on this list. I even like playing Dune Imperium with just 2 people and the despoiler AI is fine
my go to 1v1 game since i discovered it a year ago is radlands. honestly a little surprised to see no mention of it. never heard of summoner wars though. gonna have to check that out
Great recommendations! I am with you on all of these except for Undaunted. I bounced hard off that system for some reason, but that is just my personal taste.
I loved the first summoner wars, 2nd edition however was a huge disappointment for me personally I HATE THE ART STYLE so much. Some other great 1vs1 games are Unmatched, War Chest, EPIC, Star realms, ASHES rise of phoenixborn
What you should try - scratch that, what you MUST try is TWISTED FABLES (preferably Deluxe edition). Similar to Undaunted, it is mainly a deckbuilder but you move your character's miniature with the cardplay. Hard decisions to be made, tactics vs. strategy, great asymmetric characters. I normally don't like 1v1 (except Mindbug), but this one is awesome.
Clank! Netrunner. Spectre Ops. Targi. Seriously you need to check these before the next list. (And if they ever #$@* reprint Battlelore - that one is a no brainer).
@@kelliealanis9485 I play Summoner Wars 1 and Massive Darkness 1 because the sequels are worse games unlike Dominion 2nd Ed, Zombicide 2nd Ed and Ashes Reborn where the sequels are better games. It’s not outdated if it’s better.
Magic the Gatheriiiiiiing is missing so much! 😃 I tried Summoner Wars, but man, Magic is quicker, smaller and better I think. To combat the steep cost try Starter Kit, there is a LOTR one right now, one from previous year and in September they are releasing another one. Or the latest Game Night box with 5 decks. It's a great value and no need to build decks and spend a lot of cash. 😁
Unmatched should 100% be on this list. MtG and Chess should be as well! Even War Chest could easily be on this list for those not particularly interested in mastering chess but liking the dueling tactical aspect.
Unmatched was the first thing I thought of too. That and dice throne.
Unmaaaaaaaatched!! I'm addicted 🎉😂❤
Yes, Unmatched seems to be very popular. Good choices.
MtG is a CCG not a board game and takes a LOT of time to get into if you want to actually do good in it and play competitively, not to mention huge paywall entry for good cards. So imo, unless you're OK playing MtG with just most basic decks / cards, I would skip it
Good looking haircut. Longest intro to a top ten list, and best intro. I have Star Wars DB coming tomorrow because of your review. I think Hanimakoji and Unmatched should be on this list, both are amazing. Great video as always. Keep it up boys.
My day is always better when a Boardgame Hangover video drops. Truffle Shuffle is not a two-player only game - BUT MY WORD it is GREAT as a head to head two player game. It uses mechanics similar to 7 Wonders Duel, but combined with poker hands. I love it!
Are you talking about the truffle shuffle from the goonies?
@@thomasjclay Nope. I am talking about Truffle Shuffle the card game created by the folks who designed Point Salad.
These suggestions seem worth checking out. We only played 7 wonders: Duel. I will probably keep coming back to this top, because we often play 1 vs 1 🙂🙂
I would have Unmatched, Dice Thrones and Radlands on the list for sure.
Best type of games! :D Our collection is full of these
Hive and War of the Ring one of my favorites as 1vs1. I Would add Crokinole, Radlands and Caper Europe, all 3 fantastic 1vs1 games :)
would you say radlands is better than star wars deck builder?
They are both good games
@@FriendlyNeighborhoodAngler but if i could get only one...?
@@Sanseye ill prolly would get Radlands, but if you love SW than that :D
Splendor duel should be on this list as well
Summoner wars 2 and it's online version is incredible! Can't get enough of it
Cool list!
I would add:
- Radlands
- Company of Heroes
- Super Fantasy Brawl
- Skytear
- Star Wars Imperial Assault Skirmish Mode ❤️
I love summoner wars and seven wonders duel. I also reccomend lost cities its simple and easy to teach.
Some really good ones on this list. I'll add: Android Netrunner, Warhammer Diskwars, Mage Wars and especially Walls of Scydonia
Ahh, Netrunner. It has been too long since I have really played that one. Will have to take a look at other ones as well.
Caper Europe is still our favorite 1 v 1 game a year after we got it. SW Deckbuilder is quite popular too but Caper Europe always brings the most tension and laughter.
I like canopy, splendor duel, dice throne, beer and bread, and caper Europe. Thanks for the video.
Amazing picks.
Few more great games which me and my wife love:
1. Blitzkrieg! WWII in 20 minutes
2. Botanik
3. Jaipur
4. Spies & Lies
Why is unmatched not on this list??!! Its SO good!
Does summoner wars have expansions? Are they needed to fully enjoy the game?
I'd have added:
Lost cities
Star Realms
Shotten Totten,
Epic the card game
Yes, summoner wars has expansions. No, they are not needed
Surprised to not see Unmatched on this list! Still a great selection though!
Splendor Duel and Silver Bullet are played a lot 1vs1 here.
Summoner wars is my fave game! What an incredible head to head skirmish game
My go to 1vs1 is Dice Throne. Love how all the characters play differently.
This was a great video with a lot of classic games.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Good list guys!
I would have put Onitama somewhere in the top three though.
My wife & I, have a bunch of games on the diner table, but in the end, we're always end up playing: 7W Duel & Splendor Duel...
Thanks for the list, looks like I have to go buy more Games 🙂
So glad at least one board game channel highlites the Mindbug! love it, but somehow my impression was that its only magic the gathering players that know about it, probably cause they share a creator xD
Splendor Duel is my fave. 2 player game at the moment.
Summoner wars is my favorite as well. But we play a lot more Lost Cities. So easy to start and very quick with great decision making.
LOVE Lost Cities! Also Schotten Totten
What about District Noir? It's not a Knizia game, but boy does it feel like one
I always wonder how they get the boxes to slide out to the middle so smooth
Where can I find the video with the link for that website that sells all board games with shipping? TIA
Radlands is an amazing 2 player game. Production is amazing, art is gorgeous, super tight and simple gameplay but loads of depth and synergy between cards. Love Radlands, would play it as many times in a row as an opponent would let me haha!
With you there mate. Can I add Vaalbara, risk strike, air land and sea,gears of war card game. All great for two players.
Absolutly👍
Outnumbered - brilliant! 👍
I think Klask is the most obvious game missing from this list
Unmatched and Dice Throne some of the best dueling board games
Big thumbs up to hive! What a game
Pensei que iria ver Radlands aqui, é um jogo incrível também.
Have you guys tried Funkoverse and what are your thoughts? I know that it seems like a gimmick game as its a 'funko' product, but the mechanics are actually quite fun.
Additional suggestions to try: Sakura Arms, Ashes Reborn, Neuroshima Hex, Radlands, Air, land and sea Critters at war, Bullet heart, Battlecon, Sentinels of the multiverse, Dice throne
santorini, not specifically 2p but by far best played with 2
Polis is worth a look, it’s a very cutthroat euro/war, resource management game. One player plays as Sparta the other Athena. Can last anywhere from 30mins up to two hours. Splendor duel is a great one, I see it has been mentioned lots in the comments
I would add Super Fantasy Brawl, Radlands and Space Hulk! Also, I would have added Star Realms instead of Star Wars deckbuilding game, because it's basically the same game with a lot more content.
Summoner Wars is on well deserved first place!
Good suggestions, will have to look into those.
You need to try out Hanamikoji. It'll make the list somewhere because of its quick playtime (similar to Hive and Watergate, but it's portable like Hive). There are other cut-choose and hidden info games in this vein (Monsters and the Things that Destroy them, Tussie Mussie, Circle the Wagons, …) but II feel Hanamikoji captures the essence of all of them in the most accessible format.
Star Wars Rebellion should be added next to War of the Ring (same game, different theme depending on theme).
Given Twilight Struggle and Watergate is on there, I'd imagine Resist might make a future version of this list.
Unmatched/Star Wars Epic Battles is not a pure 1-1, but it should be considered as such. It doesn't play nearly as well in the other formats (IMO). If you haven't played it, it's worth a shot (there was also Funkoverse which came out at the same time, but it fell off).
For those who think Chess should make a list like this, some others to consider (but I don't think would make your list) are: Onitama, Tao Long, Battle Chest, and Shobu.
Hanamikoji is GREAT
I think you meant War Chest ;)
I felt undaunted Britain was a horrible game for my taste but I can see why people might like it.
Some older 2 player games I enjoy are :
▫️Jaipur
▫️ Targi
▫️Neuroshima Hex
▫️Lost Cities
Pagan, Star Wars Rebellion, Radlands are my three 1vs1 favorites
We have watergate, 7 wonders duel and star wars rebellion from this list....watergate being my favourite, it's excellent, a must buy😊
Thanks for the list! My fav 1v1 is UNMATCHED!
Since the list seems to promote budget (as little expansions as possible):
Quoridor and Santorini
Check out Caper: Europe! One of my favorite two-player only games
I replaced the undaunted series with war chest. Similar game but I love the fact that there's no dice throw to screw up plans.
Also, same designers ;) Will have to check that one out.
@@BoardGameHangover in a nutshell, the poker chips and the baggie feel much nicer than the deck of cards, the absence of luck from the dice throw makes the games less swingy and the 2v2 mode is superb as well.
On the off side, it doesn't have a campaign mode though and the expansions are mostly just added units and (welcome, but) minor additions to the game.
Those on your list I love are Undaunted, 7 Wonders Duel, and Rebellion. I have been intrigued with Summoner Wars but if you give it such a high recommendation I’ll just have to try it.
One I think you guys would love is Blitzkrieg! It is a game where you draw tiles from a bag and place them in different theaters of war in WW2. Your goal is to have more points, which mostly comes down to winning in more of the theaters of war. Each tile has abilities and each space has abilities to get points, extra strength, or add other tiles to your bag to hopefully draw later. Super cool one that only takes 20 minutes and makes you really want to play over and over.
also: great tshirt janis
Fantastic list. Fields of Arle is up there on mine, for sure...
Such a weird list, there are so many more duel games that are great and worth trying. Just from top of my head: Unmatched, Warhammer Underworlds, MTG Commander, Commands & Colors games (Ancients, The Great war, Memoir 44), Warchest
Solid list. I miss Targi, Hanamikoji and Jaipur
YOU ARE BOTH AWESOME! ❤❤❤
Good list guys! I am also thinking Sekigahara: Unification of Japan could be on this list. I even like playing Dune Imperium with just 2 people and the despoiler AI is fine
Great list
I will add air land and sea
I also really like Sorcerer from Wize Wizard Games and Hero Realms. They aren't very popular, but they are great games. Good list though.
You guys should make a video on the Othello game. As Well as the Quoridor game. I also would recommend the Weiqi game.
my go to 1v1 game since i discovered it a year ago is radlands. honestly a little surprised to see no mention of it. never heard of summoner wars though. gonna have to check that out
Great recommendations! I am with you on all of these except for Undaunted. I bounced hard off that system for some reason, but that is just my personal taste.
Have you played or seen Onitama?
Chess like game simple and quick to learn, hard to master
tnx for really nice videos.
how about code names the Duet game?
For me, Unmatched is the best 1v1 game
Radlands!!!
Actually a great list, guys!
Thanks so much. Which is your favorite from this list?
what you think about Brass: Birmingham? 1vs1..
Great list, I've got the same number 1
I love this kind of content 😅💋
You guys haven’t done your research. Any list without watergate on it is a complete fail. That game is better than anything on your list.
Emm... Watergate is #1 on our list. Maybe we are thinking of different Watergates?
Radlands
Splendor Duel
War Chest
War of the Ring is fun. I would like to try SW Rebellion.
My favorite 2 not to make the list are probably rad lands and unmatched
What a list!!!
None of my favorite games on the list.
1. Unmatched
2. Ivion
3. Dice Throne
Please check out Naga Raja - I am sure it will be there in Top 10 2 player game
Crystal Clans!!! It’s by the same publisher as Summoner Wars.
I loved the first summoner wars, 2nd edition however was a huge disappointment for me personally I HATE THE ART STYLE so much. Some other great 1vs1 games are Unmatched, War Chest, EPIC, Star realms, ASHES rise of phoenixborn
Seasons, Ankh and Aquatica
Fave 2-player games not on this list: Lost Cities and Targi. Loooove Targi.
Chess is #1
What you should try - scratch that, what you MUST try is TWISTED FABLES (preferably Deluxe edition). Similar to Undaunted, it is mainly a deckbuilder but you move your character's miniature with the cardplay. Hard decisions to be made, tactics vs. strategy, great asymmetric characters. I normally don't like 1v1 (except Mindbug), but this one is awesome.
Clank! Netrunner. Spectre Ops. Targi. Seriously you need to check these before the next list.
(And if they ever #$@* reprint Battlelore - that one is a no brainer).
No Unmatched?
Unmatched should be here.
Dice throne should be here.
Villainous should be here.
Summoner wars so good
Putting keyforge instead of Netrunner is a crime 😭
No Sniper Elite? No Unmatched? Air, land and sea? Oh, no! :)
not really competitive but I love Botanik
Will have to look at it.
Arboretum - so cutthroat!
Gosu X should be on that list !
Summoner wars but 1st edition 😉
2nd edition is way better
I love 1st Ed Summoner Wars and 2nd Ed art is just so bad. Play 2nd Ed if that is all you can get.
@@Toadbabe you got an outdated game
@@kelliealanis9485 I play Summoner Wars 1 and Massive Darkness 1 because the sequels are worse games unlike Dominion 2nd Ed, Zombicide 2nd Ed and Ashes Reborn where the sequels are better games. It’s not outdated if it’s better.
@@Toadbabe nah
Santorini and Kahuna
Where SW Rebellion? :D
Neuroshima Hex is the best 1 vs 1 game
I was waiting for Unmatched throughout the video :(
SANTORINI!!!!
you unmatched with unmatched (((
My gf and I love Star Realms!
No Unmatched? Im shocked
Magic the Gatheriiiiiiing is missing so much! 😃 I tried Summoner Wars, but man, Magic is quicker, smaller and better I think. To combat the steep cost try Starter Kit, there is a LOTR one right now, one from previous year and in September they are releasing another one. Or the latest Game Night box with 5 decks. It's a great value and no need to build decks and spend a lot of cash. 😁