Board Games | New Releases

nana, which was later reprinted as Trio, is a card game in which players are looking for three of a kind. The deck consists of 36 cards, numbered 1-12 three times. Players receive some cards in hand, which they are required to sort from low to high, and the remaining cards are placed face down on the table. On your turn, choose any single card to reveal, either the low or high card from a player's hand (including your own) or any face-down card from the table. Then, do this again. If the two cards show the same number, continue your turn; if they do not, return the cards to where they came from and end your turn. If you reveal three cards showing the same number, take these cards as a set in front of you. If you are the first player to collect three sets, you win — except that a player wins immediately if they collect the set of 7s or two sets that add or subtract to 7, e.g., 4s and 11s. Note that nana and Trio contain identical components, but nana is labeled for 2-5 players, while Trio is labeled for 3-6 players. Trio has slight changes to the rules, with players using all cards no matter the player count. Additionally, you play in normal mode — winning with three sets or the 7s — or "spicy" mode, winning with two linked sets or the 7s. Finally, Trio includes rules for playing in teams with four or six players.

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Sheep in Disguise is a vibrant and strategic card game about protecting adorably-helpless Sheep from being devoured by the many outrageous and dangerous predators of the world. Collect Flocks of Sheep, keep them safe from Attacks, and use Action cards to destroy anyone that gets in your way! Players take turns drawing cards to collect matching sets of disguised Sheep and a variety of powerful Action cards. When a player has collected 3 Sheep of a kind, they must be placed face up on the table immediately. This set of 3 Sheep is called a Flock. In a 4 player game, the first person to collect 4 unique Flocks is the winner. On their turn, a player may use as many Action cards as they like by playing them to the Discard. They may also make one trade with the Field per turn. The Field is a constantly changing group of cards in the middle of the table that players can exchange cards with to help them build a strong hand. The Field guarantees that the game isn’t completely luck of the draw and allows the player to strategize and build combo moves in order to progress their game. Players can also target an opponent's Flock by placing an Expose card on top of it. This Action exposes the Flock's disguise, leaving them vulnerable to an Attack! Players must choose to take the risk of leaving their Flock exposed or pay to remove the Expose card, ensuring the Flock's identity remains a secret. When an Attack card is drawn, all Exposed Flocks are destroyed! Be strategic and be devious. If you play your cards right, you can turn the Attack card into an extremely powerful tool to help you get ahead... otherwise, you may end up as the victim. If you find yourself falling behind, don't worry! All players are in it until the very end and one big move is all it takes to flip the whole game on its head!

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Crabs in a Bucket is a fast-paced shedding type card game for 2-6 players that blends luck, strategy, and a cast of colorful crab characters. The goal of the game is to be the first player to play or discard their entire hand. At the beginning of the game, players are dealt 7 cards each from the deck. The deck consists of 52 suited cards (resembling a standard deck) and 22 "Joker Crabs," which are unsuited. In the process of playing and discarding their hands, players utilize two separate discard piles, one for suited cards (referred to simply as "The Discard Pile") and another for Joker Crabs (referred to as the Joker Pile). Suited cards may be played on the discard pile on top of other cards that match their suit or number. Once a suited card is played, a player may also discard all cards of higher value of the same suit from their hand. Jacks, Queens, and Kings have special effects referred to as "punishments." As long as a Jack, Queen, or King is on the top of the discard pile, no Joker Crabs may be played. Additionally, if a player cannot play on them, they must draw cards at the end of their turn. Joker Crabs, all based on real crab species, have unique effects. 21 of these cards may strategically benefit the player, by, for instance, forcing an opponent to draw from their hand or allowing them to play unique combos. One of the Joker Crabs--the Lobster--functions as a sort of barrier to victory, since it cannot be played. Players must find creative ways of discarding it without playing it. In addition, some general rules keep gameplay streamlined. For instance, players may not exceed 10 cards in their hand at the beginning of their turn. If, for some reason, a player begins their turn with over 10 cards, they may discard down to 10 cards before initiating their turn.

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In the fast-paced matching game Anarchy Pancakes, each player starts with seven pancake cards that feature various misfit toppings, such as an earthworm, a flaming donut, and a skull wearing a party hat. On the count of three, players attempt to match their pancake cards' toppings to other players' toppings, forcing them to take the cards and form a "pancake stack". The first player to get rid of all of their cards and shout "Anarchy pancakes!" wins that round and collects a "slab 'o butter". The first player to receive two slabs 'o butter wins. The cards in Anarchy Pancakes resemble those in Spot it!/Dobble, and Exploding Kittens developed this design in collaboration with Spot it! publisher Zygomatic Games.

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In Avant Carde, you want to build a collection of stunning cubist artwork. Each player starts with a deck of ten so-so cards: 1s and 2s in six colors that don't match and four high-value cards, each in a different color. Each player draws a hand of seven cards, then puts on the best exhibition possible by matching colors and numbers, e.g. red 11, red 1, purple 1, purple 13. Each card you play earns you $1, and in turn players can buy cards from the gallery stacks: a 2 costs $2, a 3 $3, etc. Once per turn, you can bury a top card in a gallery stack on the bottom of that stack. If you don't spend all of your money and don't already have a change token, take a change token from the bank; it's worth $1 when you decide to spend it. End your turn by discarding all played cards and cards still in hand, then draw a hand of seven cards, shuffling your discard pile when necessary. Six patrons numbered 2-7 are in play, and they give cards additional powers. If you played the most 2s, for example, you have an extra $1 to spend; if you played a 3, you can trash a card from your hand or played area; when you play a 4, you can change either its color or number. Avant Carde includes multiple sets of patrons, and you can use the cards from a single set or mix them. Why are you building this collection? To gain awards! If you earn at least $6, you gain an award, and higher amounts net you more awards. Earning $11 is worth four awards, and while you might wonder how you can earn $11, a 7 patron lets you draw additional cards on a turn and a 5 patron lets you earn an extra $1 for each 5. When the deck of awards runs out, whoever has collected the most awards wins.

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    It's 1995...you've got a paper due first thing in the morning and your trusty computer has chosen tonight to slow to a crawl. You reboot, you task kill, you pet the monitor gently, no dice. You're filled with dread as you realize you have only one option left. That's right. Clear your schedule, baby, it's time to D-D-D-DEFRAG! Defrag is a hand management grid puzzle game in which you are attempting to rearrange and consolidate various file fragments before exhausting your resources. Defrag has several solo and multiplayer game modes, including a series of increasingly difficult challenges with unique goals.

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In Maps of Misterra, you play as explorers have discovered a mystical and unknown island. Your goal: Explore the island and complete your personal and hidden objectives while proposing a correct cartography of the island to earn maximum points. To set up, place a central board representing the island on the table, and give each player a personal map they will use to transcribe their discoveries. Each turn, players choose two actions among these: Move their explorer pawn on the central board. Discover new terrains close to your explorer pawn, choosing from four randomly drawn tiles. Claim control of areas. A type of terrain on the central island must be explored twice before being validated. Thus, the unvalidated terrain types can change — "You thought you saw grass? You were mistaken." — and then your personal map will no longer match the central board. You have to find the ideal balance between your personal objectives, and a correct cartography of the island.

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  You are the world's mightiest heroes, but you are a little...dead. Sitting atop Valhalla, you tell each other stories of your epic lives. Who among you was the greatest? Combine cards to create "memories" from your past and "correct" the others by changing theirs! Collect Adventures to spin the tallest tales and score the most points.

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 It’s summer time, and amid the forest lies the glade. In The Glade, you fill your personal forest board with sets of forest tiles (played from your tile rack) that feature creatures, leaves, and forest fruits. Create sets of three tiles to place one of your toadstool counters onto the central glade board. Complete a set of four tiles to add a toadstool to your store. Claim toadstool counters from the glade for your store by playing matching forest tiles. Play toadstool counters into enclosures in your forest to create extra actions. When one player has played all twelve of their toadstool counters or when all the forest tiles have been drawn from the bag, the player with the most points wins. After playing the basic game, progress to the "matching" game in which you also match your forest tiles to the creatures, leaves, or forest fruits on your forest board.

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