You tell me: Best (so far) of 2011....

We're almost halfway through the year and I sure haven't played that many of the 2011 releases (So far this year I seem to be buying older games that came out before 2010.)  But of the few I own or have played, here are my favourites:

Runner-ups:

Alien Frontiers - Okay, so this has been out for over a year.  But for awhile it was impossible to grab a copy of this tremendously fun dice-fest.  It can be a little long with beginners, but games are always close and there is always room for clever and nasty manouevres.  And it's got the nicest production values I've seen of any game in the last 5 years!

Airlines Europe - I've mentioned this game many times but the Alan Moon re-do of Union Pacific/Airlines is tighter on turns, simpler to understand, and the shortest in the series by far.  It's subtle and challenging and just fantastic.





My favourite so far:

Mord Im Arosa - This rather silly game of dropping cubes in the top of a tower and listening to where they fall is one of the cleverest, most orginal games to come out in years.  There's tons of interaction and a real risk and reward balance to the game.  But who cares about any of that...  It's just the most fun I've had all year.  A game for anyone and everyone.

What have been your favourite new ones this year?