The best games released in 2011๐ 2025
Looking for a really good game from the year 2011? Then we have just the thing for you: our recommendation list with the best board games that were newly released in 2011.
More lists from similar periods
A list with the best games from other years can be found at the end of the page.
In addition, we have created several more lists of card & board game awards:
- The Best Games by Decade.
- The best board game awards
- The best current games-new releases
- The best classic games
List of the best new games releases in 2011:
Dixit: Odyssey
Dixit Odyssey combines the essence of a standalone game and an expansion for the award-winning Dixit by Jean-Louis Roubira, renowned for winning Germany's Spiel des Jahres award in 2010.
Nominated for 5 awards and won 3.
More details for Dixit: Odyssey- 3 - 12 Players
- 30 Minutes
- 8+ years old
- Immediately playable
Skull
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.
Nominated for 5 awards and won 2.
More details for Skull- 3 - 6 Players
- 15 - 45 Minutes
- 10+ years old
- Immediately playable
Video reviews for Skull
A Fake Artist Goes to New York
More details for A Fake Artist Goes to New YorkA Fake Artist Goes to New York is a creative and social party game that combines elements of drawing, deduction, and bluffing. It's designed for 5-10 players and offers a unique gameplay experience full of laughter and intrigue.
- 5 - 10 Players
- 20 Minutes
- 8+ years old
- Immediately playable
Rhino Hero
Rhino Hero is a dexterity-based card game that combines elements of building and strategy. Players take turns constructing a skyscraper with walls and roof cards, while moving a heroic rhino figurine up the building.
Nominated for 2 awards.
More details for Rhino Hero- 2 - 5 Players
- 5 - 15 Minutes
- 5+ years old
- Immediately playable
King of Tokyo
King of Tokyo is a game where players take on the roles of mutant monsters, robots, and aliens, all competing to become the sole King of Tokyo.
Nominated for 20 awards and won 7.
More details for King of Tokyo- 2 - 6 Players
- 30 Minutes
- 8+ years old
- Immediately playable
The Castles of Burgundy
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.
Nominated for 9 awards and won 3.
More details for The Castles of Burgundy- 2 - 4 Players
- 30 - 90 Minutes
- 12+ years old
- Medium difficulty
Video reviews for The Castles of Burgundy
Pictomania
Pictomania turns the conventional drawing game on its head by combining drawing and guessing into simultaneous, frenetic action. This game, perfect for those who pride themselves on either their quick sketching or sharp guessing skills, ensures a level playing field and promises high energy from start to finish. Over five rounds, players are challenged to draw a word or phrase indicated by randomly assigned cards while also guessing what their opponents are drawing to earn points. Missteps can lead to becoming the round's "black sheep," affecting scores negatively, making each stroke and guess a calculated risk.
Nominated for 3 awards.
More details for Pictomania- 3 - 6 Players
- 25 Minutes
- 9+ years old
- Easy to learn
Tales & Games: The Hare & the Tortoise
The Hare & the Tortoise offers a unique spin on the classic fable through a card-driven betting game where players wager on the outcomes of an animal race. This game combines strategy, luck, and deduction as players manage their hands and place their bets on various creatures, each with distinct movement abilities influenced by the cards played.
Nominated for 3 awards and won 1.
More details for Tales & Games: The Hare & the Tortoise- 2 - 5 Players
- 15 - 20 Minutes
- 7+ years old
- Immediately playable
Timeline: Events
More details for Timeline: EventsTimeline: Events is an engaging card game that challenges players' knowledge of historical events. The game is straightforward yet captivating, requiring players to correctly place cards in chronological order based on the events they depict.
- 2 - 8 Players
- 15 Minutes
- 8+ years old
- Immediately playable
Takenoko
Takenoko is a charming board game set in the Japanese Imperial court, revolving around the care of a giant panda gifted by the Chinese Emperor. Players, as court members, are tasked with managing a bamboo garden for the panda.
Nominated for 18 awards and won 7.
More details for Takenoko- 2 - 4 Players
- 45 Minutes
- 8+ years old
- Easy to learn
Video reviews for Takenoko
Sekigahara: The Unification of Japan
Sekigahara: The Unification of Japan is a strategic war game for two players, allowing them to relive the pivotal battle of Sekigahara in 1600, which unified Japan under the Tokugawa shogunate for over 250 years. Players take on the roles of either Ishida Mitsunari, defending the rightful heir, or Tokugawa Ieyasu, the most powerful daimyo, as they gather armies from their allies, all the while questioning their loyalty. With no use of dice, the game emphasizes strategy and loyalty through card mechanics, where cards are essential for motivating armies to fight. Loyalty is a fluctuating resource, represented by hand size, and battles involve deploying hidden units based on loyalty, with the potential for defections. The game aims to provide a historically accurate experience within a concise and intuitive set of rules, focusing on strategic deployment and the significance of loyalty without relying on luck to determine outcomes.
Nominated for 4 awards and won 2.
More details for Sekigahara: The Unification of Japan- 2 Players
- 180 Minutes
- 14+ years old
- Medium difficulty
Animal Upon Animal: Crest Climbers
More details for Animal Upon Animal: Crest ClimbersPlayers roll dice and either place one or two animals on a stack, pass an animal to another player, or expand the base for others to build on. If animals fall during construction, players can retrieve up to two. The first player to use up all their animals wins.
- 2 - 4 Players
- 15 Minutes
- 4+ years old
- Immediately playable
Blood Bowl: Team Manager โ The Card Game
Blood Bowl: Team Manager - The Card Game offers a thrilling and competitive card game experience, combining elements of fantasy, sports, and strategic gameplay. It's an action-packed game where players manage teams in a brutal, fantastical sports league.
Nominated for 3 awards and won 1.
More details for Blood Bowl: Team Manager โ The Card Game- 2 - 4 Players
- 60 - 120 Minutes
- 14+ years old
- Easy to learn
Cheating Moth
Cheating Moth is a mischievously fun card game where cheating isn't just allowed, it's necessary to win! Players aim to get rid of all their cards, but traditional card play is only part of the strategy. You'll also need to cleverly cheat by secretly dropping cards without getting caught. Each round begins with players holding eight cards and trying to play a card onto the discard pile that is exactly one number higher or lower than the top card. But here's the twist: certain cards, like the Cheating Moth cards, can't be discarded normally and must be slyly disposed of through cheating.
Nominated for 3 awards and won 2.
More details for Cheating Moth- 3 - 5 Players
- 30 Minutes
- 7+ years old
- Immediately playable
Flash Point: Fire Rescue
Flash Point: Fire Rescue immerses players in the high-stakes role of firefighters, tasked with rescuing victims from a blazing building. This cooperative board game challenges players to strategize, take risks, and work as a unified team to avert disaster.
Nominated for 4 awards.
More details for Flash Point: Fire Rescue- 2 - 6 Players
- 45 Minutes
- 10+ years old
- Easy to learn
Video reviews for Flash Point: Fire Rescue
BraveRats
BraveRats is a simple and quick simultaneous action selection game for two players, played with cards. Each player has a hand of eight cards numbered from 0 to 7, with each card possessing a unique power. Players reveal their selected card simultaneously, with the highest card winning the round; the game continues until one player has won four rounds.
Nominated for 1 award and won 1.
More details for BraveRats- 2 Players
- 15 Minutes
- 8+ years old
- Immediately playable
Discworld: Ankh-Morpork
Discworld: Ankh-Morpork is a board game designed by Martin Wallace and Treefrog Games, set in the imaginative universe of Terry Pratchett's Discworld series, specifically in its largest city-state, Ankh-Morpork. The game captures the essence of the Discworld novels with its thematic elements and diverse characters.
Nominated for 6 awards and won 1.
More details for Discworld: Ankh-Morpork- 2 - 4 Players
- 60 Minutes
- 11+ years old
- Easy to learn
Friday
Friday, part of Friedemann Friese's Freitag-Project Series, unfolds the tale of Robinson Crusoe and his loyal partner, Friday. Stepping into Friday's shoes, players navigate the challenges of Robinson's arrival on the island, disrupting your peaceful existence. The objective is clear: assist Robinson in surviving the island and prepare him for a showdown with incoming pirates.
Nominated for 3 awards.
More details for Friday- 1 Players
- 25 Minutes
- 13+ years old
- Easy to learn
Rory's Story Cubes: Voyages
More details for Rory's Story Cubes: VoyagesRoll the dice and start your story with "Once upon a time..." using the first symbol to grab attention while linking all nine images. There are no wrong answers; the aim is to let the images spark your imagination.
- 1 - 12 Players
- 20 Minutes
- 8+ years old
- Immediately playable
Summoner Wars: Master Set
Summoner Wars: Master Set is a tactical card game that combines elements of strategy and fantasy. Players take on the roles of powerful Summoners, each harnessing the power of mysterious stones to lead their factions to victory in the war-torn world of Itharia.
Nominated for 4 awards.
More details for Summoner Wars: Master Set- 2 - 4 Players
- 30 - 60 Minutes
- 9+ years old
- Medium difficulty
Schnappt Hubi!
In the cooperative game, players explore an old house by first constructing a 3D maze from "broken" walls and then pursuing a ghost. Each player starts in a corner of a 4x4 grid house, discovering wall types using a compass device. The goal is to find the "magical doors" to summon the ghost "Hubi," with the challenge increasing through different difficulty levels and a timer for the hardest mode.
Nominated for 1 award and won 1.
โญ๏ธ Kinderspiel des Jahres 2012
More details for Schnappt Hubi!- 2 - 4 Players
- 20 Minutes
- 5+ years old
- Immediately playable
Saboteur Gold
More details for Saboteur GoldPlayers assume the roles of gold-mining dwarfs or saboteurs trying to impede their progress. Each turn, a player can lay down a tunnel card to dig towards a goal card, or play an action card to help or hinder others. The game includes additional role and action cards, as well as new tunnel cards, and allows for team play where only those who find gold score points.
- 2 - 12 Players
- 30 Minutes
- 8+ years old
- Immediately playable
Cover Your Assets
More details for Cover Your AssetsThis energetic and competitive card game has players vying to become the first millionaire by building towers of matching sets from 10 different types of asset cards, such as jewels and classic cars. The top set in your stack is vulnerable to theft, and players can challenge each other to defend their assets using matching cards. The game is quick to learn and appeals to a wide range of ages, making it perfect for mixed groups.
- 2 - 6 Players
- 20 - 40 Minutes
- 7+ years old
- Immediately playable
12 Days
More details for 12 DaysThe holiday-themed card game transforms the famous song "Twelve Days of Christmas" into a fast-paced experience. Over twelve rounds, players try to re-gift unwanted cards while keeping strong cards to win the day and earn bonus points at the end.
- 3 - 5 Players
- 15 Minutes
- 8+ years old
- Immediately playable
Da ist der Wurm drin
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.
Nominated for 3 awards and won 2.
โญ๏ธ Kinderspiel des Jahres 2011
More details for Da ist der Wurm drin- 2 - 4 Players
- 15 - 20 Minutes
- 4+ years old
- Immediately playable
Ultimate Warriorz
More details for Ultimate WarriorzUltimate Warriorz is a revamped version of Mad Arena, featuring improved components and rules. Players select a character and fight in a small arena, managing their action cards carefully. Each character card has unique attributes for melee and ranged attacks, speed, and initiative, along with special actions that can affect others.
- 2 - 8 Players
- 30 Minutes
- 8+ years old
- Immediately playable
Streams
More details for StreamsSchlingo Bingo combines markers, score sheets, and a set of forty numbered cards or tiles. Players must fill their score sheets with drawn numbers and aim to arrange them in non-decreasing order for points. The longer the sequence of ascending numbers, the higher the score, and the player with the highest total wins after all pieces have been drawn.
- 1 - 99 Players
- 10 Minutes
- 8+ years old
- Immediately playable
Video reviews for Streams
Kingdom Builder
Kingdom Builder is a strategic board game where players shape their domains by building settlements, with the ultimate goal of earning the most gold by the end of the game.
Nominated for 13 awards and won 2.
โญ๏ธ Spiel des Jahres 2012
More details for Kingdom Builder- 2 - 4 Players
- 45 Minutes
- 8+ years old
- Easy to learn
Dungeon Fighter
Dungeon Fighter is a whimsical and cooperative board game where players embark on an adventurous journey into a fantasy dungeon filled with danger and humor. As heroes, they delve into a multi-tiered dungeon, facing various monsters, including classic mythical creatures like Medusa, the Minotaur, and dragons, while searching for treasure and acquiring magical items.
Nominated for 1 award.
More details for Dungeon Fighter- 1 - 6 Players
- 45 - 60 Minutes
- 14+ years old
- Easy to learn
Panic on Wall Street!
More details for Panic on Wall Street!Players take on the role of a freewheeling capitalist aiming to outmaneuver their competitors and establish themselves as industrial giants. The game divides participants into managers and investors, each competing to accumulate more money by the end of five rounds. In each round, a noisy two-minute free trade occurs where managers negotiate share prices with investors, who then collect earnings after economic shifts caused by dice rolls impact player balances.
- 3 - 11 Players
- 30 - 45 Minutes
- 14+ years old
- Easy to learn
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