Please list the board games. I have an old Surface laptop I’m turning into an interactive board game platform. Since Windows 11 now runs Android apps and the Surface has a touch screen, I’m thinking this would be perfect for a combination of good Windows and Android board games.
Sure thing. your mileage might vary, but I've gotten quite some good to great value out of the following (note that most have a fairly low cost of entry):
(roughly ranked from lowest to highest):
Cat lady: it's pink and with a cutesy theme...but actually works as a game. Many quality of life things to shoot for as well
kingdom builder: pretty outdated and clunky, but still functional. It can get pretty addiction once you have the rules down. A sort of strange 'go' variant
explorers: somewhat similar to kingdom builder, but multiplayer solitaire. Fun and breezy, but nothing to sink your teeth in
Mystic vale: deck building in which you upgrade the cards. Very beautiful, and with a push your lucke element
Ticket to ride: easy to learn, fun to play. One of my girlfriend's favorite apps on her phone
Terraforming mars: it works, it's functional (on my end...other reviewers have other opinions)...but I just don't like the game that much, no matter how hyped it is.
Indian summer: a tile laying game. It's good, but somewhat bland
Tsuro: a fun party game...but as a result I don't see the point to play against the AI. It'ss something to share with others (which works better with the real board game)
One deck dungeon: interesting dice roller/rpg game. Not too different from dicey dungeons. It's expansive, but not really my genre.
Lords of waterdeep: tbh I prefer stone age as simple worker placement, but that only exist(ed?) on iOS. It's not a bad game and shows the mechanics, and if you're a d&d fan I guess it's also a plus. Still: not my favorite.
Isle of skye: think carcassonne with a bidding element. I'm terrible at bidding which is why I wouldn't rate it that much. But an interesting game by any means
Cottage garden: another tile layer. Sort of light, interesting and fun. Middle of the road, if you ask me.
Sagrada: dice chucking and assigning them into positions. Abstract but beautiful. Works well on a phone.
Paperback: deck building in a scrabble game. For the wordy-fans.
Onirim: single player solitaire card game. Retail version has more "dlc" included, but the base game and at least two DLC's are worth it (plus: the base game is iirc still free). Theme might be divisive, but I think it's awesome. Plays best on a phone, though.
Star realms: another free one. i admit it's addicting and fun. Main reason I quit playing is that my favorite game company (temple gates) released their own version shortly after.
Yellow & Yangtze: absolutely top notch quality game (especially when compared to the clunky and very old tigris & euphrates). But it's a tactical game in which the tension rises up quickly. The bots are defeatable, but this game gets so tense that I don't like playing it anymore.
Root: from the same makers as Y&Y. It's a tough game to learn (one faction plays a turn based wargame, the other a programming game, the third a sort of guerilla warfare and the fourth an RPG), but the game does a good job. To the point where even board game enthusiasts refer to the app to learn it.
Raiders of the north sea: nice thematic worker placement game about gathering vikings and plundering. can't really say why it didn't grab me more than it did.
Splendor: easy to teach, kind of hard to truly master. The game's a staple in the hobby world.
Onitama: another free one. It's like chess, but with fewer pieces and the twist that when you move a piece, the "how to move your piece" card you used is passed to your opponent. A must if you like chess but are short on time.
Santorini: very simple abstract game: move one of your pieces, then build next to its destination, reach the third floor before your opponent. Extremely tactical but beautiful. And that's without the God powers that make the game even more endlessly variable. The app comes with DLC for the gods (IIRC the base game is free), and an entire campaign. But...I probably suck at it, because the AI beats me at even lower levels of play.
Istanbul: 16 positions in a 4x4 grid. All players run around on those, picking up and placing down workers to take the associated action. It's a race to...erm...4? 5? 7? some diamonts, in any case. Works like a charm and a sweet (albeit strange) race game.
Carcassonne: I only played an older version, but I presume the current (asmodee) one is equally good if not better: lay down a tile, attempt to control the part that gets the most points. I've played this when waiting for a movie to start with my gf.
Jaipur: a two player game about buying and selling goods. not that hard to learn, and having played the board game since: the app is not only a whole lot less fiddly, it also has an entire campaign/game built around it.
Dominion: without a doubt the best free app you'll find. The base game has enough variability to play for multiple hours, and unless they changed, they rotate one of the many DLC's out for free every couple of days. This is THE deck builder that started it all. Oh, and temple gates always makes quality designs AND great AI's.
Hardback: like paperback, a deck builder and scrabble combo. This one uses factions (like star realms), so which letter to pick up in which faction matters. It's more gamer-ish, but a blast. I bought the board game just to play it with Dutch words.
Roll for the galaxy: would be higher if temple gates came around to releasing the DLC, but it's still a great game. A weird one to learn, I give you that. But learn it from a youtube vid, try it some times and keep at it. I promise you that after some plays you'll love it.
Shards of infinity: that better star realms I was talking about. Learning what to buy and what not is key. As with roll, I want the expansions added (IIRC it now has three. So what's keeping these?
).
Burgle bros: Ocean's eleven the board game. You and your bros (it's a coop game) sneak into a building, avoid traps, break open the safe and try to remain uncaught. Absolutely brilliant.
Race for the galaxy: favorite board game app hands down. Best app, in fact. I admit learning's not an easy task, as it relies on multiple icons that only become clear after some repeated plays. And what you're doing is placing cards from your hand by discarding others, so there are some tough dilemma's to face. But once you start to come to terms with the rules, there's a bottomless amount of depth. I've played it hundreds of times, and I've heard from others who range in the thousands.
I wouldn't try it with all the expansions right away, but the base game itself has enough to keep you hooked for very long.
Not really tried (learning a game from an app is...not my cup of tea), but I've heard great things of the following:
Twilight struggle (2 player wargame. Played the RL version, but I'm not as blown away by it as my gaming group)
Pandemic (works single player for obvious reasons. Might be harder to find, as it's delisted on a few platforms)
Aeon's end (should try it more but wasn't a fan of the style)
Mysterium (great atmosphere, but not something I want to play against a computer)
Small world (one word: "decline")
Agricola (also delisted for some time. It is findable, but I have no idea how or even if it works properly)
Spirit island (I have the board game, but never got around to properly learning the many rules of the game).
Everdell (I have the board game. as such, I don't feel the need to try this one)
wingspan (ditto)
Blood rage (either delisted, or only on steam)
Game of thrones, 2nd edition (not my cup of game)
Scythe (this one I really SHOULD try, but I can't get myself to learning it)
Terra Mystica / Gaia project (terra mystica I just can't grasp the concepts. Since I hear gaia project is its sibling, it gets equally ignored)
Gloomhaven (got this for free on epic some time ago, but again: a beast to learn. One of the generally considered best board games, though, so should be good)
Finally: some that aren't apps, but gateways into the frey.
TTS is a playground to test or play every board game anyone scanned in for free. IIRC only available on steam
Tabletopia is similar, but the more ethic variant (the devs give explicit permission before anything gets added). Has an app and can be tried for free. Some things behind a paywall, though.
Board game arena: a site on which you can play against others (well...is more geared toward it). It misses a lot of the graphical components, though.
Psionic Roshambo
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