What was played in 2023: The Vault Games End of Year Wrap Up!

We love playing games, and turns out, so do all of you! We’d like to thank you all for hanging out at Vault for the past year, and what better way to do that than to give you a brand new (or old and familiar, depending on your playing repertoire) list of games that the friendly faces at your local game store loved. Here is a list of our team's favourite games from the past year, and why they think YOU should check them out too! 

Cassie - she/her - Executive Manager, Customer Responder, and Cat Herder

Earth - an engaging tableau builder that has elements of terraforming mars. It's nice and thinky and keeps you coming back for more!

Highly recommended: Spots, Witcher: Old World, Flamecraft, Jurrassic World: The Legacy of Isla Nublar

Dylan - he/him - CEO and Final Boss Battle of the Vault 

PauperEDH. This year, our homies at Netherworld invited us to be part of their TrashMTG event playing some PauperEDH and now I'm hooked. The premise? It's like normal commander, except your commander can be any uncommon creature, and the rest of your deck MUST be common cards. It has lead to some of the jankiest builds I've run, and some of the best games of commander I've ever played. I'm now assessing new sets based on commons and what has downshifted to fit into PauperEDH (thank you Commander Masters). I'm onto my fifth deck and am growing concerned that it will soon eclipse my regular commander collection.

Also, WITCHER: THE OLD WORLD. I'm a MASSIVE fan of the Witcher universe, particularly with what CD Projekt Red has brought to it via the video games, and when Go On Board's Kickstarter hit, I was in! It's full of awesome miniatures that I hope to use in a Witcher RPG campaign one day, and the mechanics blend every aspect of adventuring in the Witcher world beautifully, from levelling up your character, completing quests, and refining your action deck so you can pull off some uniquely deadly combos against foes, both human and monster alike, as you travel the continent. You can even enjoy a round of Dice Poker at the inn against the crowd or other players. I'm hooked.

Bec - she/her - Human Herder and Resident Vampire

Godtear. For me, it was the first time I've played a skirmish/wargame and immediately felt like I got it, and was able to adequately teach it after only one game. I also loved being able to see the different types of unit combos people choose and finding the styles of play that I enjoy the most, as a lot of the usual decision paralysis that I find in other games was taken out of it so I could focus more on the basics.

Runners up/Recommendations: Final Girl, Troika!, Magical Kitties Save the Day!

Josh - he/him - Clayfield's sword-wielding, Bahamut-summoning, Store Manager

Godtear
Godtear
Godtear
Godtear

And the Final Fantasy TCG. The Final Fantasy TCG continues to impress me with its clean resource system its smooth gameplay experience and its concise victory condition. If you don't have a TCG in your arsenal of games I would highly recomend this one. My only gripe with it is the art can range from amazing art unique to the TCG and screen grabs from the games but even that has its charm. Seeing art from my favourite games in the series always fills me with a sense of warm nostalgia.

Trent - Card diviner and Sentient Walking Hair Puff

Legion Imperialis! Honestly, this game just tickles me in all the right ways. It does away with Games Workshops "your turn, my turn" design philosophy and utilises activation-based turn structure along with an order system that both creates a competitive and tactical feel to the game and makes the players really feel like commanders of gigantic armies! It's hard to pass up the feeling of pushing itty-bitty tanks around a board and having the opportunity to play titanicus and aeronautica models makes the game super visually impressive. No other GW game has me as excited as Legion Imperialis does, and I'm so keen to see where they take it going forward!

Kerry - She/her - Astronaut and Clayfield Board Game Kween

Sky Team, the two-player-only game about landing a plane, was the absolute stand out game for me this year. In this cooperative game you can only discuss your plans in the first half of each round, after which you roll your dice in secret behind player screens and take actions, trying to anticipate what your team mate needs you to do to succeed. It comes with a log book of different flights which increase in difficulty, keeping the game interesting and making each step more of a puzzle than the last.

Surf's Up is a game coming to retail next year but I was lucky enough to snag a copy from the creator. This game is going to be big. Surf's Up is a short-and-sweet bidding card game which has been a delight to play even when I am being wiped out over and over.

I also have to second loving Earth. It has been my favourite longer game of the year. Earth is pretty easy to teach and play, but it has such a wealth of decision making that it is interesting and fun too. It has almost no downtime, and much like another favourite of mine, Space Base, it includes a mechanism which allows you to be able to do something on everyone else's turn. 

Challengers is one of those games that I looked at and thought that the concept is so silly that I would probably love it. The gameplay is so simple for this one: you draft cards to create and fill out your deck between rounds of fighting a opponent just by flipping cards from your shuffled deck. Basically an autobattler, this game has already provided over 22 hours of enjoyment between me and my friends. 

Rhi - she/her - The local events wizard for the CBD store

Flamecraft. With an easy-to-teach format, this is a game I always reach for when friends come over, looking for an easy entry to the gaming hobby. The art is so cute and approachable, and the game feels so cozy. It's always a winner on games night!

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If you’re looking for further tailored game reviews, feel free to come into the store and have a chat with our staff! With an encyclopedic knowledge of our shelves and hours of their own gaming experience, you’re sure to leave with a game perfect to play with your friends, or even solo! We’re looking forward to the next year in games, and can’t wait to see you at the table. ;)