Top 5 "New to Me" Board Games of June 2025

 June has already seen an uptick in gaming. Sadly we missed Origins this year but spent that weekend gaming anyway. Not at all near the normal number of games played that weekend but a nice dent in the pile. Before I get into the honorable mentions though. I got Yokohama (massively on sale) and Bus (Birthday present). Both are very good. Yokohama is a solid euro. I don't think I'd have paid full price for it but as a sale game its super solid. Bus is brutal but a lot of fun. I was interested in this as an intro to Splotter games and before I put it on to a list I think I need to play another game or two of it. Lots of honorable mentions this time because I managed to swing not one but two new games (actually 4! plays of one) right on the last weekend of the month

Honorable Mentions

Slambo

I got Slambo as part of the medallion redemption from the Kabuto Sumo Kickstarter from Allplay. It's simple, its fun. We played at 2, though it looks like it goes up to 4. Very simply game. Play numbered cards to a central pile and keep the running total between 0 and 10. Very small footprint. Just a great quick little game. I found the other tiny box game in this run (For the Emperor) much less interesting but Slambo is a keeper

Black Orchestra

Cooperative board game about the plot to assassinate Hitler. Very themey. The game is very luck driven which is thematic and works well. We came close several times to winning but ultimately were thwarted in the final phase by the "auto-lose" card. Normally I'd be upset about an automatic lose condition, however it feels very thematic and in theory is something you can plan around. I did the Kickstarter that includes the Valkyrie standalone and Resistance expansion. Its a lot of fun and a good coop game. Would definitely play again.

Cyclades

I am fully in my "Dudes on a Map" Era. Cyclades is really more of a bidding game than a straight area control game but I really liked it. The auction mechanic works supper nicely and forces you to sort of adapt to the changing state of the game without it totally locking out the choices to choose how you want to approach your strategy. Nice components. My only criticisms from the first play were that the Miniatures upgrade was probably a waste of money (no one bought any for the overwhelming majority of the game) and that the game overstayed its welcome by just a hair. Would play again. I just backed the KS for the Inis rerelease as well and am looking forward to this series hitting the table more. This was originally in the number 4 slot but a few last minute games kicked it out

 

Let's go to Japan

The best way I have to describe this one is that it is Faraway without the backwards scoring and puffed up to be more of a full game. You draft cards and build a tableau and then score from left to right. Having the right symbols increases scores and allows for objectives to be completed which gives more points. We all scored low due to distractions but I think there's a surprisingly high ceiling and a good amount of decision space. We actually went to a board game lounge in Grand Rapids and tried this there. It was a little difficult to learn and teach while eating and drinking and in a bar effectively but I've added it to my pickup list if I see it for a good price.  

Top 5 of June

5. SAS: Rogue Regiment

A WW2 themed dungeon crawl of sorts. I have the Kickstarter all in pledge for this and man-oh-man is it dripping with content. There's just so much in the box. We played the first two scenarios back to back and had a great time. The themeing is British SAS doing sneaky operations against the Axis. It's more or less your standard Action Point game, with a decent AI and patrol system. My one criticism is that it is very difficult to re enter stealth mode with the way the system works. That said, once I started to treat it more like WW2 and less like Metal Gear Solid it clicked a little better. One thing I want to call out though. The game uses cardboard tokens for everything instead of a pile of plastic miniatures. At the very very beginning i found myself wanting for figures just from a readability standpoint. However, once I was into it, I found no real difference. One thing of note, the use of cardboard counters allows for way more. This means that for every operator for example you end up with a token representing each of the following; Standing, Crouching, Spotted Standing, Spotted Crouching. Each of those is unique art work representing what the "figure" is doing. For the Germans, the art changes from shouldered rifles to firing poses. It's a very minor detail but its a great use of the media.

4. Leviathan Wilds

This is such a cool game. The game is basically Shadow of the Colossus the board game. Players climb, scale and smash crystals on giant lumbering beasts. As someone who loves the concept of "playing within a design space" there's just so much potential in the box. The components are just wonderful. The Kickstarter came with wood and acrylic upgrades. The box insert is so carefully designed that there's room for the spiral in the spiral bound book that serves as the map. There's 17 monsters to scale as well as the expansion, multiple difficulties, multiple characters, something called "the mutation deck." There's just a ton to explore and I really like the puzzle of the game. 

 

3. Galactic Cruise 

This is an interesting one to say the least. I was pitched this one as a "Lacerda lite." Having never played a Lacerda game I thought this might be a good way to dip my toes in. It's heavy game for sure. It took me a little over an hour just to punch and organize this one. I watched a how to play video twice and read the book two or three times before playing. In hindsight the game seems relatively straight forward but is very much so a turn optimization game. In some ways it reminds me of a White Castle where it feels like there's only barely enough time to get things done. I have to say though, components, layout, themeing, all absolutely superb. Its an all day experience but boy did I enjoy it. I wouldn't be surprised if I ended up with an actual Lacerda game soon

2. Toy Battle

In stark contrast to the previous game, Toy Battle is a 15 minute 2 player lane battler? Area control? Honestly it seems like a mobile game more than anything else. Turns are dead simple, place a guy on a space or draw two more guys. You can cover any empty space or a space with a troop valued lower than the one you're playing. Some troops have powers. For example the highest value has no special rules, the lowest lets you draw some extra troops. That's more or less it. Very quick, very clean, very replayable. It's rare we play a game twice in a row but we did here. 

1. Wroth 

I liked Wroth so much, I wrote a whole separate review of it. That post will drop tomorrow and you can read all about how much I loved this one. 

Overall, this was a wonderful month for gaming. Coming soon to the blog, Silver Bayonet, a new Historical project begins, and possible a secret third project. Thanks for reading.