The BG Times — BGG Hotness 2026-08-28

NO. 1 Dewan (2025)

PUBLISHED 2025

《Dewan》是 Space Cowboys 出品、Johannes Goupy 與 Yoann Levet 設計的區域擺放遊戲，2–4 人、約 40 分鐘：玩家收集地形牌並打出，把營地搶進最有利的位置，節奏快、決策密度高；BGG 均分 7.37（2,031 筆評分）、願望清單 1,846 筆。它今日從第 2 再升一階拿下第 1，而推力仍是同一個老問題：這款一月已在歐洲上市的 Asmodee 集團作品，美國到現在還沒有通路。今天 hellodendy 直接開了一串「給發行商：這款到底會不會在美國鋪貨？」，問什麼時候能上美國店頭的架，馬上被 olanmills 指回那串從三月吵到現在的「U.S. Release Date?」——答案依舊是沒有答案。另一頭 samezutt 那串「[US] 從加拿大零售商 BoardGameBliss 買？」也還在滾，老手替該店背書「加拿大版的 Miniature Market，很可靠」，但話題總被 40% 的關稅拉回現實。比較有趣的是今天新開的「Dewan vs Iwari」：兩款都是牌驅動的集合收集遊戲，matthulgan 玩過兩款後說「Iwari 比較燒腦、有 Knizia 的味道，Dewan 比較像 Ticket to Ride；我認為 Iwari 更聰明，二十年後還會被記得，Dewan 好玩得閃亮但五年後大概不會有人再提」；chayashida 則覺得 Dewan 的目標卡讓人清楚知道自己在追什麼，比抽象的 Iwari 更直觀。其餘新串包括：團隊模式能不能和另外三個劇本混用、SwanPanasia 的牌套尺寸合不合。 Dewan is Space Cowboys' area-placement game by Johannes Goupy and Yoann Levet for 2-4 players in about 40 minutes: you collect terrain cards and spend them to plant your camps in the most valuable spots, fast and dense with decisions. It averages 7.37 on BGG from 2,031 ratings, with 1,846 wishlist entries. It climbs one more step to #1 today, and the engine behind it is still the same old problem: a game that has been on sale in Europe since January, from an Asmodee Group publisher, still has no US distribution. Today hellodendy opened a thread aimed straight at the publisher - "will this be distributed within USA?", and when will it land on shelves - and was immediately pointed by olanmills at the "U.S. Release Date?" thread that has been running since March. The answer is still that there is no answer. Elsewhere samezutt's "[US] Buy from Canadian retailer BoardGameBliss?" thread keeps rolling, with veterans vouching for the shop as the Canadian Miniature Market, though the conversation is always dragged back to the 40% tariff. The more interesting new thread is "Dewan vs Iwari". Both are card-driven set-collection games, and matthulgan, who has played both, says Iwari is the more thinky, Knizia-esque game while Dewan is more Ticket to Ride: he believes Iwari is the cleverer design and will still be remembered in twenty years, whereas Dewan is sparkly fun that probably won't be talked about in five. Chayashida counters that Dewan's goal cards give players a clear sense of what they are aiming for, making it more straightforward than the more abstract Iwari. Other new threads today: whether team play can be combined with the other three scenarios, and whether SwanPanasia sleeves fit.

NO. 2 Medico (2026)

PUBLISHED 2026

《Medico》是 Stefan Feld 與 Hall Games／Pegasus Spiele 合作的 2026 秋季新作，插畫由 Dennis Lohausen 擔綱，2–4 人、60–90 分鐘：玩家扮演中世紀歐洲的巡迴理髮外科醫師，每回合同時祕密選定 7 個地點之一，公開後在該地執行主要行動，沿途經過的驛站還能加做次要行動，一路累積名望競逐 Medicus 頭銜。它今日退居第 2，全站仍只有 9 個評分，願望清單卻已衝到 791 筆——一個設計師名字撐起整份熱度的典型案例。發行人 barandur（Ralph Bruhn）幾乎住在論壇裡：yaagma 追問「Pay Apprentices 看起來只是 Sell Remedies 的最後一步，為何要獨立列為次要行動？」他回覆大量試玩顯示玩家很容易忘記這一步，才刻意拆開寫；yaagma 則盛讚這款的易用性設計，「光是袋子指示物替書本加上箭頭這個細節，就看得出投入了多少工夫」。另一串「先手是不是比較有利？」也很熱鬧：LeoFan 排出一條先手可走的具體開局路線（送信換 1 名望、沿途賣配方換 3 枚錢幣、再換器械與知識標記），oRd3s 直接反問「你玩過了嗎？還是只看規則書？這種推論得靠實戰」，barandur 也親自下場回應，還有人順勢介紹用社群對局資料驗證先手優勢的 Altabelo。Essen（10 月 22–25 日）資訊維持不變：Hall Games 今年沒有自己的攤位，Medico 會在 Pegasus 場地展出，且確定不會有預購。 Medico is Stefan Feld's autumn 2026 release with Hall Games and Pegasus Spiele, illustrated by Dennis Lohausen, for 2-4 players in 60-90 minutes: you play a travelling barber-surgeon in medieval Europe, secretly picking one of seven destinations each round, taking a main action there and squeezing secondary actions out of the stops passed along the way, all in pursuit of the title of Medicus. It slips to #2 today on just 9 ratings, yet the wishlist has climbed to 791 - a textbook case of a designer's name carrying the entire buzz. Publisher barandur (Ralph Bruhn) practically lives in the forum. Yaagma pressed on why "Pay Apprentices" is a separate secondary action when it looks like nothing more than the last step of "Sell Remedies"; barandur answered that many playtests showed players simply forget the step, so it was broken out deliberately. Yaagma in turn praised the game's usability work, saying the detail of bag tokens adding arrows to the books alone shows how much effort went into making play easier. A "First-player advantage?" thread is just as busy: LeoFan lays out a concrete opening line for the start player - deliver the letter for 1 prestige, sell a recipe picked up along the route for 3 coins, then convert that into instruments and a knowledge marker - and oRd3s shoots back, have you actually played it or are you going off the rulebook, because these assumptions need table time. Barandur joined in personally, and another poster used the thread to pitch Altabelo, which tests suspected first-player advantages against community play data. The Essen picture (22-25 October) is unchanged: Hall Games has no stand of its own this year, so Medico will be shown at the Pegasus location, and there will be no pre-order.

NO. 3 Avalon: The Riven Veil (2026)

PUBLISHED 2026

《Avalon: The Riven Veil》是 Shadowborne Games（Oathsworn 原班人馬）推出的亞瑟王傳說區域控制遊戲，Kickstarter 募得 $935,112、6,198 名支持者，BGG 均分高達 8.69（417 筆評分）、願望清單 1,020 筆。它今日升至第 3，原因很單純：美國的集資出貨從 8 月 14 日開跑，實體遊戲正大量落地——近五天內光是這一款就有 50 串討論在動，是今天榜上最吵的一款。今天最熱的是規則爭議「用部署卡行動時能不能順便探索」（25 則）：一組玩家堅持領主部署到未探索區域時會即時把該區翻成已探索，因此可以接著用卡片下半的「移入」；JediNPC 逐條拆解行動順序，指出卡面寫的是「任一已探索區域」，Tommy_M 則強調要看部署當下的狀態，雙方仍在僵持。另一串「和其他 dudes on a map 比起來如何？」意外精彩：Starwolf33 認為它根本不是 dudes on a map，「這是一款長得像戰棋的純區域控制遊戲，沒有摧毀對手部隊或建立要塞的元素」，想打人的應該去玩 Kemet 或 Tsukuyumi；Redallure 給的最接近類比是「加了大量規則、不對稱與陣營能力的 El Grande」。配件災情也有：追加的金屬聖杯到底是什麼材質？Redallure 猜是鋅合金並提醒別在官方確認食品安全前拿來喝酒，aegontheconqueror 則說自己那只杯子軟到已經壓成橢圓形。另有 HAWTLIKWID 的長篇好評（以 Blood Rage、Ankh 為比較基準，認為 $100 的核心包內容超值），發行商本人到場道謝。 Avalon: The Riven Veil is Shadowborne Games' Arthurian area-control game from the Oathsworn team, funded on Kickstarter for $935,112 from 6,198 backers. It averages 8.69 on BGG from 417 ratings, with 1,020 wishlist entries. It moves up to #3 today for a simple reason: US crowdfunding fulfilment began on 14 August and boxes are landing in numbers - 50 separate threads have seen activity in the last five days, more than any other game on today's list. The hottest is a rules dispute about exploration during a deploy-card action, at 25 posts. One group insists that deploying a Lord into an unexplored region flips it to explored on the spot, so the card's lower "Move In" clause becomes available; JediNPC walks through the order of operations and points out the card says any one explored region, while Tommy_M argues the state at the moment of deployment is what counts. Neither side has budged. A thread asking how it compares to other dudes-on-a-map games turned out to be the most illuminating. Starwolf33 argues it isn't one at all: it is a pure area-control game that looks and feels like dudes-on-a-map, with no destroying opponents' troops, no fortified positions and no 4X elements - if you want to wreck your opponent, play Kemet or Tsukuyumi. Redallure's closest comparison is El Grande with a ton of added rules, asymmetry and player powers. There are component woes too: what is the add-on metal holy grail actually made of? Redallure guesses zamak and warns against drinking from it until food safety is officially confirmed, while aegontheconqueror reports his cup is soft enough to have warped into an oval. HAWTLIKWID also posted a long positive review, measuring it against Blood Rage and Ankh and calling the $100 core pledge excellent value - the publisher dropped in to say thanks.

NO. 4 Horror on the Orient Express: The Board Game (2026)

PUBLISHED 2026

《Horror on the Orient Express: The Board Game》是 Chaosium 把經典克蘇魯戰役搬上桌的合作解謎作品，BGG 均分 8.05（191 筆評分）、願望清單 1,833 筆。它今日微退至第 4，熱度來自全球出貨進行式：加拿大與澳洲幾乎出完、亞洲進行中、美國也已開始寄送，新入手的玩家把論壇灌成規則問答與開箱現場——今日 BGG 熱門遊戲討論前 10 名裡，這一款就佔了兩席。其一是設計師 Sasza（Hasza151）今天上傳到 BGG 檔案區的「Investigators Dossier」玩家輔助表（本體與 Investigators Unveiled 兩份），整理了每位調查員可用的技能；串上 Anarchosyn 的回覆特別動人：「在滿是 Arkham Horror 仿作的世界裡，這款是大膽的另闢蹊徑，也比多數同類更需要動腦。老實說自從當初支持後它就慢慢淡出我的雷達，我原本沒那麼期待它到貨……」其二是 Zodiac 26 的核心盒模型上色成果，串上還在討論配色為何被美術帶著走、底座紅色怎麼配地毯。規則面，Crildon777 對「Fade to Black」儀式的裁決得到設計師親自回覆（同一線索不會疊放多枚 fade 標記），他的感想是「原來這個劇本沒我想的那麼惡毒」。另有一串頗具爭議：Escher0 分享自己用 Gemini Notebook（前身 NotebookLM）餵入全部官方文件做成的 AI 規則查詢工具，有人覺得好用，Solipsiste 則說「我問 AI 規則問到錯誤太多，已經完全放棄了」。 Horror on the Orient Express: The Board Game is Chaosium's tabletop adaptation of the classic Call of Cthulhu campaign, averaging 8.05 on BGG from 191 ratings with 1,833 wishlist entries. It edges down to #4 today, carried by fulfilment in full swing: Canada and Australia are all but complete, Asia is in progress and US shipping has started, and new owners have flooded the forum with rules questions and unboxings - two of today's ten hottest game threads across all of BGG belong to this one game. The first is the Investigators Dossier player aid that designer Sasza (Hasza151) uploaded to the BGG files section today, one for the core box and one for Investigators Unveiled, collecting the skills available to each investigator. Anarchosyn's reply in that thread stands out: in a world of Arkham Horror clones, he writes, this stands as a bold departure and a more cerebral experience than many - and admits that since backing it, the game had drifted off his radar and he wasn't especially excited for its arrival. The second is Zodiac 26's painted core set, where the discussion has turned to how closely the box art dictates everyone's colour schemes and which red matches the carpet on the bases. On rules, Crildon777's question about the Fade to Black ritual got an answer from the designer himself - fade tokens don't double-stack on a single clue - prompting the reply that the scenario is much less evil than he had feared. One more thread is genuinely divisive: Escher0 shared an AI rules reference built by feeding every official document into a Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM). Several posters find it useful; Solipsiste replies that he asked AI for rulings on many games, got so many mistakes that he stopped entirely.

NO. 5 Drillers (2026)

PUBLISHED 2026

《Drillers》是 Czech Games Edition 出品、Adam Španěl 與 Roman Bednář 設計的牌組構築遊戲，1–4 人：玩家駕駛鑽掘機甲深入廢棄礦坑，每張牌都是多用途、每往下一層礦物更好但麻煩也更大，而燃料永遠在見底。BGG 均分 7.96（415 筆評分）、願望清單 2,112 筆，Q3 2026 上市、定價 $59.99。它今日回升到第 5，熱度來自零售鋪貨的拉鋸與策略辯論同時發酵。「Retail Release?」串（22 則）裡，Game Nerdz 預購原本標 7 月 31 日出貨、至今沒下文，英國玩家則回報 7 月 19 日那週就收到了，時差讓美國買家格外焦躁。策略上最熱的是「先手玩起來很痛苦，好的開局到底怎麼開？」（17 則）：Michael_Murphy 給出範本——第一層先抓兩塊礦物就回地表，手上會有 9 枚信用點（願意棄一張牌可到 11），能優先掃走商店裡大部分的牌，也順手擋掉下一位玩家；olanmills 發文後又自己回來訂正，坦承當初沒搞清楚「地表」與「第 1 層」是兩個不同樓層。評測方面，Fuzzy Llama 的優缺點清單（主題出色、solo 模式扎實、雙層玩家板好評；多人局較弱、方塊配件品質差到有人打算另外訂替換品）與 lifeonboard 的「Drillers——明擺著的寶石！」同時在串上被反覆引用，Wargamer 更直接把它稱為今年到目前為止的年度最佳。 Drillers is Czech Games Edition's deck-builder by Adam Spanel and Roman Bednar for 1-4 players: you take a drilling mech into an abandoned mine, every card is multi-use, every level down offers better minerals and worse problems, and the fuel is always running out. It averages 7.96 on BGG from 415 ratings with 2,112 wishlist entries, a Q3 2026 release at $59.99. It climbs back to #5 today on a mix of retail-rollout friction and strategy argument. In the "Retail Release?" thread (22 posts), Game Nerdz pre-orders were originally estimated for 31 July and have gone quiet since, while UK players report receiving theirs the week of 19 July - a gap that has US buyers restless. The strategy talk is led by "Going first feels miserable - what's typically the good opener?" at 17 posts. Michael_Murphy offers the template: grab the two minerals on the first sublevel and return to the surface, which leaves you 9 credits - 11 if you discard a card - plus first dibs on most of the shop, and denies the next player at the same time. Olanmills later came back to correct his own post, admitting he hadn't realised the Surface and Floor 1 are separate floors. On reviews, Fuzzy Llama's pros-and-cons list keeps getting quoted - great theme, a strong solo mode and well-liked double-layered player boards against a weaker multiplayer game and cubes so poor that players are planning to order replacements - alongside lifeonboard's "Drillers - An Obvious Gem!". Wargamer went further and called it their board game of the year so far.

NO. 6 Jisogi: Anime Studio Tycoon (2025)

PUBLISHED 2025

《Jisogi: Anime Studio Tycoon》是 Esper Game Studio 的大盒工人放置遊戲，主題是動畫產業裡拼命的人與壓垮人的生意，美術由 Gou Eisuke、Thomas Romain、Senkawa Teien 聯手，桌面存在感極強；BGG 均分 7.58（741 筆評分）、願望清單 1,278 筆。它今日略降至第 6，熱度集中在零售版的落地時程。Good Games Publishing 的 kbrebach 在論壇宣布，他們將負責 Jisogi 1.5／零售版的全球英語發行，並在串上逐一回覆各地進度：澳洲的集資出貨會在 8 月底前完成、加拿大買不到的問題也被追問，全球零售則預計落在 2026 Q3–Q4。Essen 2026 的分工也講明白了：Esper 在自己的攤位 5K325 賣一定數量的 1.5 升級套件，Good Games 則在他們的攤位賣 1.5 完整版；原本的 Founders Edition 已經沒有庫存，不會再出現。社群這邊，PandaruExpress 那串 3D 列印收納（37 則）仍是最長的一串——起因是原廠附的收納盤「爛得很好笑」，會讓盒蓋合不上，拿掉之後空間反而綽綽有餘；另有 Meeple_Mike 的長篇好評「10/10 的 vibes，我願意再經營一次快淹死的公司」，發行人本人也在串上道謝。 Jisogi: Anime Studio Tycoon is Esper Game Studio's big-box worker-placement game about the hard-working people and the crushing business behind anime, with art by Gou Eisuke, Thomas Romain and Senkawa Teien that gives it enormous table presence. It averages 7.58 on BGG from 741 ratings with 1,278 wishlist entries. It slips slightly to #6 today, with the heat concentrated on when the retail edition actually lands. Good Games Publishing's kbrebach announced in the forum that they are handling the global English retail release of the Jisogi 1.5 edition, and has been answering region by region in-thread: Australian crowdfunding fulfilment will be complete by the end of August, and the question of where to buy it in Canada is still open. Worldwide retail is expected in Q3-Q4 2026. The Essen 2026 split is now clear as well: Esper will sell a reasonable number of 1.5 upgrade kits at their own booth, 5K325, while Good Games sells the full 1.5 edition at theirs. The original Founders Edition is gone for good - there are no more. On the community side, PandaruExpress's 3D-printed organiser thread is still the longest at 37 posts: the included insert is, in his words, hilariously bad, causing significant lid lift for no good reason, and once it comes out there is plenty of room for everything. Meeple_Mike's long review - 10/10 vibes, would operate a drowning business again - is also still drawing replies, with the publisher dropping in to say thanks.

NO. 7 Magical Athlete (2025)

PUBLISHED 2025

《Magical Athlete》是 CMYK 重製、Takashi Ishida 與 Richard Garfield 掛名的賽跑遊戲：每位選手都有一個荒謬到不該成立卻意外好玩的能力，BGG 均分 7.79（7,717 筆評分）、願望清單 5,447 筆、綜合排名第 327 名，本月 Trending Plays 也高居第 2。它今日守住第 7，而今天論壇上出現了真正的新消息：Jay_1 開串追問獨立擴充《Second Wind》何時會有更多情報，CMYK 創意總監 Alex Hague（AlxHague）親自回覆——「我們希望在 11 月 10 日推出！（新的教學影片與規則書會同日上線。）」這款擴充原本連公布都還沒公布，是八月中規則書更新時被眼尖的玩家從內頁翻出來的，CMYK 一直想等接近上市再對外說；官方也已確認新舊兩盒的選手與雙面板圖可以自由混搭，也可各自獨立遊玩。另外兩串也還在燒：vivafringe 用上億次模擬替所有選手排出的資料化 tier list，kypxon 的回應很有代表性——「我心裡的科學家愛死這篇，但玩家那一面覺得把祕密解碼出來會讓這遊戲的荒唐魅力蒸發，所以我拒絕點開」，furrygoose 則替 Big Baby 平反，指它雖然打不贏機器人，卻能卡住一整排強力選手。八月規則更新串（46 則）的重點是：同時抵達同一格時，「停在某格」類能力不會觸發。 Magical Athlete is CMYK's reissue of Takashi Ishida and Richard Garfield's racing game, in which every athlete has a power absurd enough that it shouldn't work and somehow does. It averages 7.79 on BGG from 7,717 ratings, sits at #327 overall with 5,447 wishlist entries, and is #2 on this month's Trending Plays. It holds #7 today, and the forum produced a genuine piece of news. Jay_1 opened a thread asking when more information on the standalone expansion Second Wind would appear, and CMYK creative director Alex Hague answered in person: they are hoping to launch the game on 10 November, with a new how-to-play video and book uploaded the same day. The expansion had not been formally announced at all - sharp-eyed players spotted it inside the mid-August rulebook update, and CMYK had been holding the announcement until closer to release. It has also been confirmed that racers and the double-sided boards from the old and new boxes can be freely combined, or played standalone. Two other threads are still burning. Vivafringe's data-driven tier list, built on hundreds of millions of simulated races, drew the most quotable objection from kypxon: the scientist in him loves the post, but the gamer in him refuses to read it, because decoding the hidden sauce would make the game's wacky charm evaporate. Furrygoose came to Big Baby's defence, arguing that while it fares badly against bots, it blocks a whole row of strong characters behind it. The headline from the 46-post August rules update: "stopping on a space" powers do not trigger when racers arrive simultaneously.

NO. 8 Wingspan Pocket (2026)

PUBLISHED 2026

《Wingspan Pocket》是 Stonemaier Games 推出、Elizabeth Hargrave 設計的口袋版 Wingspan，1–5 人、約 20–30 分鐘的獨立卡牌遊戲（鳥卡與本傳不相容），每回合啟動牌陣的一排，把引擎構築壓進 20 分鐘內。它今日從第 10 跳到第 8，同時也是本月 BGG Trending Plays 的第 1 名。熱度來自零售的最後一哩：7 月 15 日官網開賣、下半月由美加歐澳四地出貨，8 月初在 Gen Con 現場亮相，線上零售則排在 8 月下旬——也就是這幾天。Stonemaier 本週還發了一篇「一個月一千個評分」的官方文章，慶祝它在玩家收到貨後僅一個月就跨過 BGG 千則評分；截至今日已累積 1,013 筆評分、均分 7.90，願望清單 2,153 筆。論壇上今天新開的是 rocksieroxrox 的「我愛 Wingspan Pocket 的地方」——精簡、更快、更好上手，最重要的是夠小，收納快、帶著走不怕。而 Pupupakia 那串「討厭本傳，愛上 Pocket」持續發酵到 8 則：他說大盒版試推五、六次全部失敗、「玩起來像在做沒薪水的辦公室工作」，steveowen 回覆自己與牌組給本傳的評分是 5.5/10、對口袋版抱有高度期待，Deeple 則一句話收尾：「這就是 Wingspan 最好的版本，沒有之一。」 Wingspan Pocket is Stonemaier Games' pocket-sized take on Wingspan, designed by Elizabeth Hargrave for 1-5 players in about 20-30 minutes: a standalone card game whose birds are not compatible with Wingspan, in which each turn you activate one row of your tableau, compressing an engine-builder into twenty minutes. It jumps from #10 to #8 today and is simultaneously #1 on BGG's Trending Plays for the month. The heat is the last mile of the retail rollout: it went on sale on the webstore on 15 July, shipped from US, Canadian, European and Australian fulfilment centres in the second half of that month, appeared at Gen Con in early August, and the online retail release was slated for late August - which is now. Stonemaier also published a piece this week titled "One Thousand Ratings in One Month", marking the game crossing a thousand BGG ratings a month after copies started arriving. It stands at 1,013 ratings and an average of 7.90 today, with 2,153 wishlist entries. Today's new thread is rocksieroxrox's "What I love about Wingspan Pocket": stripped down, easier, shorter and above all smaller, with quick setup and travel-proof. Pupupakia's "Hated Original Wingspan, Love Wingspan Pocket" has meanwhile grown to eight posts. He bounced off the big box five or six times and says it felt like doing unpaid office work; steveowen replies that both his partner and his group rated the original 5.5/10 and he has high hopes for this one; Deeple closes it out - this is the best version of Wingspan, hands down.

NO. 9 The Lord of the Rings: Fate of the Fellowship (2025)

PUBLISHED 2025

《The Lord of the Rings: Fate of the Fellowship》是 Matt Leacock 為 Z-Man Games 設計的魔戒合作遊戲，BGG 均分 8.34（11,231 筆評分）、願望清單破萬（10,140 筆）、綜合排名第 60 名。它今日退一階到第 9，熱度來自補貨：這款上市後幾乎瞬間全球售罄，今年稍早才重印回到通路，而這幾天貨終於鋪到店頭。「Back in stock??」串（11 則）就是最好的寫照——viper22husky 看到 Amazon 和其他通路突然冒出現貨，第一反應是「這些是真品嗎？還是舊刷次或假貨？」，隨後 PennyLanes 回報 Barnes & Noble 也上架了、skmac 直接在 Asmodee 官方商店下單、jondwilbs 說他家附近的 B&N 今天就擺了兩盒。變體區則有 ThumbInMyAss 兄弟倆做的 PvP 自訂規則：Fellowship 對 Sauron，兩人各用一套遊戲、在不同地點連線對戰，引入類似 Battleship 的隱藏資訊機制讓 Sauron 一方靠推理找人；串上有人心動但苦於買不起第二盒，正研究能不能拿 War of the Ring 的板塊與棋子拼出替代版。新手區則在討論單人時「角色常常 4 個行動只用得到 2 個」的老問題，老手的答覆是熟練後就很少發生，關鍵在於用戰鬥與 Merry、Pippin 的 Distract 把索倫之眼從 Frodo 身上引開。 The Lord of the Rings: Fate of the Fellowship is Matt Leacock's cooperative Tolkien game for Z-Man Games, averaging 8.34 on BGG from 11,231 ratings, with a five-figure wishlist of 10,140 and an overall rank of #60. It slides one place to #9 today, on restocking: the game sold out globally almost instantly on release, the reprint returned to distribution earlier this year, and copies have finally reached shelves this week. The "Back in stock??" thread (11 posts) captures it perfectly. Viper22husky saw copies suddenly appear on Amazon and elsewhere and asked whether they were real, fake, or old printings; PennyLanes reported them back in stock at Barnes & Noble, skmac ordered directly from the Asmodee store, and jondwilbs found two copies in his local B&N. In the variants forum, ThumbInMyAss and his brother have posted PvP custom rules - Fellowship versus Sauron - played across two copies of the game in separate locations, adding a Battleship-like hidden-information layer so the Sauron player has to deduce where everyone is. One reader is tempted but can't justify a second copy, and is working out whether tiles and pieces from War of the Ring could stand in. The newbie forum, meanwhile, is chewing over the familiar solo complaint that characters often use only two of their four actions. The veterans' answer is that this fades with practice, and the key is pulling the Eye away from Frodo through battles and Merry and Pippin's Distract.

NO. 10 SETI: Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (2024)

PUBLISHED 2024

《SETI: Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence》是 Czech Games Edition 於 2024 年推出、Tomáš Holek 設計的太空探索重策遊戲：玩家經營太空機構，掃描鄰近星域、分析訊號、發射探測器登陸行星與衛星，卡牌上畫的都是 ISS、大型強子對撞機、毅力號、航海家號等真實科技。BGG 綜合排名第 14、均分 8.41（21,677 筆評分）、願望清單近 1.2 萬筆。它今日新進榜、直接站上第 10，取代跌出榜外的 Raiders of Scythia: Omens——而這款不是新品，是一款長銷經典反覆回到熱門榜的典型。論壇上甚至有一串就叫「SETI 為什麼會在熱門榜上？」，玩家自己的解讀相當到位：arienmalec 指出「它兩年來一直掛在熱門榜，因為大家喜歡它、玩它、談它、搜尋它」；n_k_c 認為現在是展會季，各地區域型 con 讓它一直被開桌；Alealogist 則提醒 Space Agencies 擴充在各國分批到貨（英國解完缺貨、法文版與豪華指示物夏末抵達加拿大），「熱度就這樣在世界各地不同時間持續發生」；stormburns 更放話「不用一年它就會是 BGG 第 4 名」。今日實際在動的是 maurogibertoni 的八月單人挑戰（24 則，8 月 31 日截止）、以及「基本盒的外星人出得太慢」（21 則）——Raindog__ 抱怨四人局到第五回合中段才翻出第一個外星人，根本來不及互動，回覆的共識是：問題不在遊戲，而在沒人做掃描，掃描其實非常強、卻經常被新手低估。 SETI: Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence is Czech Games Edition's 2024 space-exploration heavyweight by Tomas Holek: you run a space agency, scanning nearby space, analysing the data and launching probes to land on planets and moons, across 200-plus cards illustrating real technologies like the ISS, the Large Hadron Collider, Perseverance and Voyager. It is #14 on BGG overall, averaging 8.41 from 21,677 ratings with a wishlist just short of 12,000. It enters the list today straight at #10, replacing Raiders of Scythia: Omens - and it is not a new release but a textbook case of an evergreen returning to the Hotness. There is even a thread on the game's own forum titled "Why is seti on the hotness?", and the players' own answers are sharp. Arienmalec notes it has been on the Hotness for two straight years, probably because people like it, play it, talk about it and search for it. N_k_c points to convention season, with regional cons across the US putting it back on tables. Alealogist observes that the Space Agencies expansion keeps landing country by country - UK backorders cleared, the French edition and deluxe tokens reaching Canada at the end of summer - so the hype keeps going around the world at different times. Stormburns simply predicts it will be ranked #4 on BGG within a year. What is actually moving today is maurogibertoni's August solo challenge (24 posts, closing 31 August) and "Base game, aliens slow to come out" (21 posts), where Raindog__ complains that in a four-player game no alien appeared until the middle of round five, leaving no time to interact with it. The consensus reply: the game isn't broken, nobody was scanning - scanning is powerful and routinely underrated by new players.