What are some words that I need to know in the world of board games?….Gamer Terminology

We are still new to gaming. We only been involved in the community about a year now. Here are some words we’ve learned from a few different places. The most comprehensive list I’ve found is in Gateway Island - Your Introduction to Board Games that help you to understand game mechanisms and types by playing multiple different types of mini games.

Abstract Games -these are focused on playing the game and having all of the information at one time. Examples of this would be Chess, Hive, and Blokus.

Area Control - sounds like it is, you are trying control a certain area. Examples of this would be Risk, Small World, and Spirit Island.

Cooperative Games- these are games where you lose and win together. You are working as a team. These are one of my favorite kids. Examples of this would be Zombicide, Flash Point, Pandemic, Spirit Island, and Things in Rings .

Deckbuilding Games- most of these games start with a certain set of cards that each player begins with and then they gain more cards during their turns to build a bigger and stronger deck. Example of this would be Lost Ruins of Arnak, Clank, and Mystic Vale.

Dexterity Games- players need to physically move pieces, use eye/hand coordination, and work to not knock anything over. Examples of this would be Jenga, Junk Art, Catch the Moon, and Kittin.

Drafting - this means you are picking from a selection of card, tiles, or pieces. This could be open where everyone can see the pieces or closed where only you know what you have to pick from. Examples of this would be Point Salad, Azul, and Harmonies.

Dungeon Crawlers - this is usually a fantasy maze where the heroes fight monsters and find treasures. Examples of this would be Betrayal at House on the Hill, Gloomhaven, Lairs, and Clank! Catacombs.

Gateway Game - these are simple game that can introduce someone to the hobby that usually plays in a quick amount of time. This is what people use to hook someone into being a gamer and wanting more! Examples of this would be Love Letters, Scout, Quacks, Cascadia, and Ticket to Ride.

Legacy Games- this is usually a story driven game where the players alter the game through a series of campaigns. They play it multiple times and add different components or activities to the game each time they play that continue throughout the story. Examples of this would be Pandemic Legacy, Gloomhaven, Zombie Kidz Evolution, and My City.

Meeples - small wooden “people” shaped pieces. Sometime this is in reference to other type of wooden pieces. See picture below.

Miniatures -these are plastic figures that are small versions of usually characters that are used for game play. Hardcore gameplayers love to paint these to make them more realistic. See some examples from our collection below.

Player Aid -this is a cheat sheet to help players remember what they can do when or a key for the symbols. See picture below.

Push Your Luck - you are the controller of when to stop in a game. It is a balance of deciding between risk and reward. Examples of this would be Flip 7, RA The Quacks of Quedlinburg and Making Monsters.

Social Deduction - this is a game where you are interacting with players to try and figure out some information. Sometimes these games need a lot of players. Examples of this would be Coup, Werewords, and Blood on the Clocktower.

Strategy Games - this games are very low on luck and are based on coming up with a good strategy to win the game. They are sometimes referred to as “Euro” games. This is because Europe game designers made lots of these types of games before others. Examples of this would be Catan, Puerto Rico, Carcassonne, Ticket to Ride, and Terraforming Mars.

Trick Taking - this is usually a card game, but sometimes could be tiles. Each person has a set of cards and they play a card in the center. Then the player wins the “trick” based on the rules of the game. Examples of this would be Hearts, Spades, Bridge, Jekyll and Hyde vs. Scotland Yard, Rebel Princess, and The Crew.

Worker Placement - you have a limited number of “workers” usually meeples that you can use to claim spaces on the board to grain resources and then use those resources to make things for points. Examples of this would be Agricola, Everdell, White Castle, lost Ruins of Arnak, Feast of Odin, and Apiary.