guest post from Allen: 2011 in review

Another guest post. I also asked Allen to write about his 2011.

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2011 was a great year for gaming, I think I must have played around 30+ new games this year and bought more games than I had time to play. This year was also the year of Kickstarter. I have supported more than 11 games on Kickstarter. I think I have bought about 50 games this year excluding the ones that I’ve kickstarted.

Below are some of my top 10 games that I've played in 2011. Most of the games played here were with my gaming buddies Han & Hiew. Unlike my gaming buddies, I can hardly remember the details of our gaming sessions but I can certainly remember I had a great time playing. You can read the reviews on this blog on all the games listed and our gaming sessions, so I'll just keep it simple here.

1. Maria - A great Euro-wargame... Another game that I simply don't know how to win and I just love it.
   Maria

2. Sid Meier's Civilization: The Board Game - I really like this game a lot and the best part is I've never won a single game. We must have played 4-5 times and each time I find it more interesting. Only until recently thanks to my Secret Santa I owned a copy of this game. I have the expansion now and I think this will see more plays in 2012.
   Sid Meier's Civilization: The Board Game (Fantasy Flight Games)

3. Innovation + Expansion - This must be the most requested game by me, every time we can't think of anything short to play I'll definitely suggest this.
4. Dominant Species - Chaotic but it's really fun. Well, you either hate it or love it. I think it is one of the best 3 hour games I've played.
5. Troyes - Another game that I've played mostly online. At one time I was in the world top 3. Played about 100+ games and I still find it interesting. Played face-to-face only twice. Not a favourite among my gaming group so this will just sit on the shelves.
6. Merchants & Marauders - This game is kinda like a filler to us because we can complete a game in less than an hour. A game that I won't mind playing over and over again.
7. 7 Wonders - Enough good things have been said about this game. I think I must have played over 1000 games on the PC since each game only lasts about 2 mins. The problem is that I lose every time I play against humans.
8. Navegador - A great rondel game which I've enjoyed.
9. Omen: Reign of War - A simple 2 player card game which I enjoyed a lot. Played just once with Han’s copy and I liked it a lot. Now it's on Kickstarter, and I’ve ordered a copy.
10. Tammany Hall - An area majority game with a bidding element added. It is a great game with such simple rules. This is one of the very few games that I can actually teach.
    Tammany Hall

Honourable mentions:

1. Here I Stand - Finally had the chance to play this beast. It is really satisfying. Time flies by and by the time we ended the game it was already like 9 hours. A great epic game that I wish I could play more often.
2. Successors - Another GMT war game with a nice story behind the game.
3. Sekigahara - One of the best 2P war games I've ever played, even better than Twilight Struggle.

Games that I’ve Kickstarted in 2011:

1. Omen: Reign of War
   Omen: Reign of War has great artwork.

2. Flash Point: Fire Rescue (received)
3. Glory to Rome
4. Carnival (received)
5. Get Bit! (received)
6. Startup Fever (received)
7. Kings of Air and Steam
8. Sunrise City
9. Empires of the Void
10. D-Day Dice
11. Forceball: Futurisitic Hockey Card Game (received)

Personal observations in 2011:

1. Games I like tend to be the games that I do not own. I don’t understand why this is happening, at some point this year I would like to get a copy of these games.
2. I like games that I can’t win. I don’t understand why this is happening either. Maria, Sid Meier's Civilization: The Board Game, Here I Stand and Successors are the games that I truly enjoy but I just can’t win.
3. I like playing games with 3 players. I can truly understand this. Playing with Han and Hiew is enjoyable even when we’re playing a game that sucks. I guess it is the company that matters. Sadly, Han will be leaving for Australia this year. We will have a hard time finding a replacement.
4. I like playing games with dice and luck. I used to be a euro-centric gamer and I used to hate games that involve dice, but this year after playing so many games, my tastes have certainly changed. I really enjoy dice rolling and games with a bit of luck involved. Games like Puerto Rico and Power Grid which I enjoyed in the past have been sitting on the shelves for quite some time and I’m less likely to suggest them when we have our gaming nights.
5. I like games from GMT. I have been gaming since 2007 and only in year 2011 that I began buying games produced by GMT. Some of the games that they produced are the ones that I truly enjoyed.

My aims for 2012:

1. Play more buy less. Try to do more research when buying.
2. Try to read the rules of the new games I bought. At least it will ease the burden of our only "official rules reader" in the group.