2023 TechRaptor Awards - Board Game of the Year

Each year we're treated to an absolute deluge of great tabletop gaming. From collectible card games and tabletop roleplaying games, to board games we simply can't put down, 2023 has been a banner year for tabletop gaming. 

Here are the nominees for TechRaptor's 2023 Board Game of the Year.

Nominees:

• Archeos Society (Read Our Review)
• Disney Lorcana (Read Our Beginner's Guide)
• Dungeons & Dragons: Planescape - Adventures in the Multiverse (Read Our Review)
• Star Wars: The Deckbuilding Game (Read Our Review)
• Warhammer 40K: 10th Edition (Read Our First Impressions)

Third Place: Warhammer 40K: 10th Edition

Warhammer 40K, the sci-fi spinoff of the original Warhammer Fantasy wargaming behemoth, has been around so long it seems surprising we're only just now hitting the game's tenth edition! But after launching this summer, we've been totally taken with the game's new approach.

With their tagline: "Simplified, not simple" sung like a rally cry across the tabletop battlefield, the goal of this new edition was to trim some of the excess rules, reduce some of the unnecessary flipping between books, and generally streamline the game a bit more. What we got with 10th edition is a game that is approachable, faster than ever before, and extremely fun!

First released in the Leviathan box set pictured (and only partly painted) above, there are now rules and updated codexes for every army in the game! So whether you want to play as the stomping Space Marines, the destructive Orks, the elegant and lethal Aeldari, or any of the other myriad armies in the game, now's a perfect time to jump in. If you've ever been looking for a way into the game, this new edition is the way to go!

Second Place: Archeos Society

In my review of Archeos Society, right there in the headline of my article, I ask the question "Is this the year's best board game?" Now that 2023 has come to a close, I can say with certainty - yes! It sure is!

Though the purview of this Best Of list covers all tabletop, and therefore there's one juggernaut in the CCG space bringing Archeos to the overall #2 spot, as far as literal board games go - it doesn't get any better than Archeos Society. This game elegantly blends card drafting, set collection, and push your luck elements into an easy to learn, easy to teach masterpiece of a light-to-mid-weight game!

Play as explorers charting new paths and making new discoveries in the deepest, most mysterious parts of the world, and score points based on collecting sets of helpers along the way. Will you focus on collecting one type of card and advancing one of your advancement tracks far beyond all others? Or will you spread your attention and hope to scoop up lots of smaller point plays? The choice is yours in Archeos Society.

First Place: Disney Lorcana Trading Card Game

The house of the mouse is stronger than ever with the release of Disney Lorcana Trading Card Game - a new collectible card game where players summon magical characters from the world of Disney and send them on quests to be the first to find the most lore.

To say that Lorcana has gripped our household is an understatement. With it's approachable gameplay (think of it like "Magic where you can't do anything on your opponent's turn"), fun Disney IP (both deep cuts and new favorites), and solid roadmap ahead for 2024, the only thing Disney Lorcana lacked in 2023 was... enough product to go around!

Now that we're seeing more stores get more product in, we can't think of a game we'd more strongly recommend to anyone interested in Trading Card Games. Get in on the ground floor with us, it's going to be a wild ride!