All "Spiel des Jahres🇩🇪 2011" game award winners & nominees in comparison 2026

Embark on a journey of bluffing and suspense with Skull & Roses. This game is the epitome of strategic cunning, where every move unfolds in the minds of the players. Each participant starts by placing a face-down card, gradually revealing them one by one. The thrill escalates as players confidently claim the ability to uncover cards adorned only with roses. But beware, as opponents can challenge and bid to reveal even more cards. The highest bidder must then courageously unveil the specified number, hoping for a bed of roses and not the dreaded skull. Successfully navigating this bluffing showdown requires a poker face and unwavering eye contact, with victory hinging on two successful challenges.

Ghost Blitz is a fast-paced and exciting game that tests your reflexes and ability to recognize shapes and colors. The game revolves around Balduin, the house ghost, who has accidentally created a set of puzzling photographs with his enchanted camera, leading to a spirited game of quick thinking and fast grabbing.

In 7 Wonders, you step into the role of a leader of one of the seven great cities of the Ancient World. Your objective is to gather resources, establish commercial routes, and assert your military might. The game is not just about managing resources but also about building an architectural wonder that will stand the test of time.

The Castles of Burgundy is set in the medieval Burgundy region of France, where players assume the roles of aristocrats seeking to expand their princedoms. The game revolves around building settlements, constructing castles, engaging in river trade, mining for silver, and utilizing travelers' knowledge.

Four players enter the stage together and improvise a scene based on a unique situation known only to them. Each player knows their own rank, from 1 to 4, but not the ranks of others. Players must act in a way that makes their rank clear to the audience, and no acting experience is required to enjoy the game.

The abstract game of Qwirkle unfolds with 108 wooden blocks, each featuring six different shapes in six distinct colors. Unlike traditional board games, there is no designated board; players utilize any available flat surface.

In the dice game, players aim to be the first to push their worm's head out of the compost heap at the end of the garden. Each player selects a color and places their respective worm head on the board. Players roll the dice and advance their worm segments, placing flowers or strawberries above the worm they think will reach them first. The first worm to extend its head outside the edge of the smaller board wins.

Forbidden Island is a visually captivating cooperative board game that sets itself apart from traditional competitive games. In this thrilling adventure, players must join forces and collaborate to achieve victory instead of competing against each other. The goal is clear: work together as a team to secure a win.

Players hide various creatures behind a wooden fence made of cards, with only parts of their bodies visible. Each player has a colored pile of cards representing these hidden animals, while a central deck of search cards reveals which animals players must find. The player with the most hidden animals by the end of the game wins.

Players receive three marbles in each turn and launch them into holes at the top of a hill. The marbles then travel down a system of 3D tracks or get stuck. Players race their figures along a winding path, moving based on how many marbles are halted in front of them, and can trigger mechanisms that release stuck marbles, potentially causing them to retreat if too many marbles block their path.

Players engage in a dynamic and skillful game focused on trading valuable ingredients at an Indian spice stand. Each player secretly tosses Indian coins onto bowls depicted on the board, allowing for bluffing and the manipulation of opponents' coins. The first player to gather the necessary spices to serve the Maharaja wins the game.

A colorful cloud of smoke billows from the magic cauldron in an old magical kitchen. Apprentices must gather ingredients and light a fire to brew potions, but obstacles like the toad and stumbling spells await them. Players will navigate a square board with cauldrons and a central fireplace, using a large wooden apprentice to deliver magical ingredients while avoiding pitfalls that hide magnets and metal balls beneath the surface. The first player to successfully ignite the fire after delivering all their ingredients wins.

The game board is set up in the box, with four poles at the corners supporting elevated platforms. Each player receives a catapult, four soft pillows, and three cardboard figures in their color. Players take turns launching pillows into the box; successfully landing a pillow allows them to place a figure on a platform. The first player to get all four pillows in the box wins.

The goal is to have the fewest number of groups of stones on the board by the end of the game. Players take turns placing one of their five stones on a 9x9 grid and then drawing another stone to replace it. Players can capture an opponent's stone by placing a legal stone in its place if it does not split their own stones into more than one group.

Monsters have escaped again, but that's not entirely bad; they bring fun to the villa! Meanwhile, Grandma Frieda is outside, terrified of the monsters. Players must catch them and hide them from her before she sees them.

Players take on the role of Ali Baba and his friends, eagerly grabbing treasures and escaping the cave before the thieves return. The game involves moving based on the number of treasures on the current tile, claiming it and placing a new one while managing tile orientation to avoid walls. If a newly placed tile shows a bandit, the bandit moves closer to the cave entrance, and players risk losing their treasures if caught. The winner is the player who escapes with the most treasures.

Set in Australia, the game involves eight dream birds gathering at the sacred rock Uluru at sunset. Players must coordinate their moves to fulfill as many birds' wishes as possible before time runs out, as each unfulfilled wish results in penalty points. The game features varying difficulty levels, allowing players of all ages and skills to compete together.

Players compete against each other and the clock in this game. Each player has a small world map with empty spaces, selecting tiles representing various animals and environments to create complete areas on their map. When time runs out, players earn points for completed environments and lose points for mismatched tiles and empty spaces. The game features three difficulty levels along with additional goals for earning and losing bonus points, as well as rules for solo play.

In Asara, players immerse themselves in a competitive world of architectural magnificence, aiming to become the most renowned builder by erecting the tallest and most beautifully adorned towers. This strategic game unfolds over four rounds, symbolizing four years, during which builders must cleverly gather and assemble tower pieces to construct their masterpieces. The game mechanics revolve around a strategic use of a hand of colored cards, which players use to claim action spaces on the board. These spaces provide essential resources, such as tower pieces and funds, or opportunities to build and enhance your towers.

In the year 1413, England is under the rule of the ambitious King Henry V of Lancaster. His grand vision includes the unification of England and the conquest of the coveted French crown. In the midst of this pivotal period, noble families vie for influence and power. Lancaster, a strategic board game from the designer of Glen More, invites players to step into the shoes of these aristocratic families. Who among them will prove to be the most loyal supporter of the young king and rise as the most influential Lord of their time?

Strasbourg is a strategic board game set in the 15th-century political landscape of Strasbourg, where the influence of craftsmen guilds is paramount. Players assume the roles of heads of rising families, vying to secure their place in various guilds. Success in this game hinges on the astute management of influence points, which are crucial for advancing family members as apprentices, assistants, or master craftsmen — if you can afford the admission fees. However, the power of the church and nobility should not be overlooked, as they play a critical role in the city’s dynamics.

Luna: In the Domain of the Moon Priestess is a captivating tactical board game that immerses players in a struggle for influence and power in the domain of the Moon Priestess.

Players start a resort on a tourist island with just a single plot of land. They can build chalets for tourists, create attractions to keep them longer, or set up signs to guide visitors to their resort. Managing limited family members for various tasks is crucial, as each action consumes time, emphasizing the importance of wise money and time management.

Players must remember the order of animal movements or sounds and imitate them correctly to win. A player selects from thirty round tokens in five different colors and rolls a colored die to determine which token will be added to the selected ones. The player then mimics the images on the tiles, engaging with themes like an elephant's trunk movement, a wolf's howl, or the pout of a monkey, all within a zoo context.

This game can only be played with a Tiptoi, an "intelligent" pen with an integrated MP3 player that responds when pointed at activated products. Players must solve tasks by directing the Tiptoi at the correct images, letters, or words on the game components. The game features three difficulty levels and helps children become more familiar with letters, but it may become boring once their reading skills improve.

Oh no! The zookeeper is sick today! Players need to feed the animals by grabbing a food bucket and figuring out which animal gets what food.

A hungry T-Rex has spotted a small Dromaesaurus, and since it runs much faster, the players must be cleverer to escape. This cooperative game trains concentration as players match cards to move the Dromaesaurus. If they can’t match, they can ask another player for the required card, while the T-Rex moves based on dice rolls. The game is won if the Dromaesaurus is not caught when all cards are played.

In Banana Jump, players control different animals while a baboon jumps from tree to tree around the edge of the board. Players roll two dice each turn; rolling a color symbol allows them to place an animal on the clearing, while rolling a baboon or banana moves the baboon accordingly. Players earn coins by filling rows or placing their own animals, and the winner is determined either by the baboon completing its circuit first or by the player with the most coins when the clearing is filled.