Every year, we find a bunch of “new” games and all demand some form of playtime. We had the chance to pick a few and play a bit with them to see what they are about. How they play and why we wanted to play again. To some surprises, there are board games as well as wargames on this list. Next to that, we also look at some really anticipated releases coming next year. Let’s crack on with the top 3 Best New Games of 2024.
Also note, that not all the games came out in 2024. We discovered them this year and played them first.
Number 3, Warcrow, from Corvus Belli
By far the biggest game on this list. Warcrow is a skirmish game that can be expanded towards a full scale wargame. It has some nice features to it that make it stand out from the rest of the dicerollers out there.
In Warcrow, you control one of the seven (if I’m correct) factions. The Scions of Yaldabeoth are in the Warcrow Adventures core box. It’s 100% compatible with Warcrow, but did not get an official release through the Warcrow channel. The Scions are only available through a separate game system. For some this is a downside, for others a chance to play another game with the same characters.
It would have been higher on the list, if it weren’t for some small things. Because of the lack of factions, this product could have gotten higher if they released more models for it. They do have a hefty release schedule with Infinity being a big part of their company, so on the other hand, it’s expected that they have to manage it a bit around.
The good and bad
What does the game bring that makes it good? For starters, Warcrow has a couple of nice mechanics that can scale up the game, but never feel too much. The game keeps its speed and actions are resolved faster. A small negative and feels like a money grab for accessories, is the measurement system. They use strides instead of the regular cm or inches. A stride is 1,5 cm and does well, but you need their own rulers.
The material used for the models is perfectly fine, but the operators that make the models are in dire need of some more training, as the biggest downside in the community is the quality of the models. They either don’t fit, fit perfectly or have gaps the size of New York in them. For the price you are paying for the game, one could have expected a bit more quality.
The Siocast models is still not enough to keep you away from the game, as this is a blast to play and the narrative in the game is more than enough to keep you wanting for more and the addition of extra units makes you want to keep expanding the game. I can see Warcrow doing really well in the long run. A perfectly earned 3rd place and if you want to check out the game for yourself, check it out here!
Number 2, Clash of Rhyfles (This Quar’s War) from Zombiesmith and Wargames Atlantic
Another skirmish game that made it to the list. Sitting perfectly in the middle, not for the lack of models, but because there simply is a game that made us have even more fun than we had with this silly shoot em up. This game promises to be a fun wargame without a lot of rules and that is exactly what you get. Stupidly fast and crazy situations with your anteaters.
The story of the game is that the Coftyrans (filthy animals) and the Crusaders (the heroes of the story, fighting back the blue filth) have been at war for the past 800 years. Is this what makes the game fun? No, but this does contribute to the feeling of the game and why the stats are written like they are.
What makes the game fun is that essentially, every quar is just a quar. One has a bit more rights and can push others forward, but the stats are the same. The others have bigger guns and can shoot further. You don’t need to remember yourself 500 stats of quar, because you at most have 2 or 3 different ones. As the bulk of your squad of 10 has the same weapons, there is no remembering there too, so the pure and simple fun of the game is 100% in playing the game!
Poking with a stick
One of the best mechanics of the year is what we called the “poke it with a stick” action. The game just calls it a “check”. Poking it is a more fun way to check. You then have a model go and see what happened with the model. You “poke it with a stick” to see if its alive.
The second one is the great mystery of the war. Every turn, the opposing player picks a card, where there is 3, 4 or 5 leaves on a tree depicted. This is the amount of actions you have. The active player has a minimum of 3 actions, but needs to ask the opponent (that sees the card) if he or she has an action left.
This game is the ultimate beer and pretzels wargame and makes you laugh out loud more than once during the match. This SHOULD have been number one, if it weren’t for the monster of a game that is on number 1. You can check out the Quar and all of their quirks here.
Number 1, Dungeon Digger from Tin Hat Games
I’m not telling the story how I got to know the game, you can read that here. At first, this game gives you the “is this it?” vibes, but when you start playing with 3 players, this silly game becomes a powerhouse of a board game and that’s how I like them!
At it’s core, Dungeon Digger is all about harassing your opponents in the most silly ways imaginable in the game. Each player represents one of the dungeons six lords, each with special abilities and powers. You have a board in front of you, where the players start of with their dungeon entrance. From there, every turn a tile is laid down, or an amount of tiles up to the ability of the lord you chose. You earn points by having the longest halls, the most special tiles and so on.
The complication comes when there is no more room on the board and the dungeons become interconnected. You then all of a sudden see a shift in gameplay from a Carcassonne style tile laying game to a conquering game with highly expendable flat goblins called stooges. These stooges fight, conquer and sacrifice (by blowing up halls or just jumping in a pit) themselves for the greater good, which is your gold pile.
At the end, when someone reaches the needed amount of points (depending on how many play), the gold pile, hall lengths and so on are counted and added to the then reached point value of that player. Then, after that, the winner is chosen by the most points gathered. The fun thing here, is that the initial winner of the game does not have to be the final winner. This keeps all the players on edge up until the very last count.
Winning by replayability
Like I said, this game pays off harassment of other players and does so in the most wacky way possible. Losing is just another reason to start over and harass the winning player more. This makes replayability 100% and makes you want to get revenge on the others even harder than last time. The whole reason that we don’t have this game in stock or even on the shop at the moment, is because it never got the chance to reach the shop. It has been sold out the second it came in.
This makes this silly game the undisputed winner of 2024 and does it with flying colors! If you can get your hands on this game, take it without hesitation and play the living daylights out of it.
Honorable Mention, Eldfall Chronicles from Freecompany
There is one game that got our attention just a tad too late, is Eldfall Chronicles. As of writing, we are diving into the game and what at first looks like a fantasy Infinity clone, is shaping up to become a rather special little thing. Freecompany has tried to put this game on the tables of many and has gathered a competition scene already! This has to mean something, and we certainly are going to dive in deeper in 2025. Expect to see more of it in the near future, as we have a feeling this game can become quite big with some loving.
Next up: What has 2025 in store for us and what will certainly get more attention, at least from us. The lookahead!