Top 10 Worker Placement Games
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- čas přidán 3. 07. 2024
- Tom Vasel, Zee Garcia, and Sam Healey talk about their favorite worker placement board games.
00:00 - Introduction
05:10 - Sam’s #10
06:00 - Tom’s #10
07:29 - Zee’s #10
08:56 - Zee’s #9
10:06 - Tom’s #9
10:52 - Sam’s #9
12:40 - Sam’s #8
14:14 - Tom’s #8
15:06 - Zee’s #8
17:05 - Sam’s #7
17:43 - Zee’s #7
18:35 - Tom’s #7
19:38 - Zee’s #6
20:53 - Sam’s #6
21:57 - Tom’s #6
23:28 - Sam’s #5
24:24 - Zee’s #5
25:52 - Tom’s #5
26:45 - Zee’s #4
27:42 - Sam’s #4
29:13 - Tom’s #4
32:13 - Zee’s #3
34:28 - Tom’s #3
35:21 - Sam’s #3
37:07 - Tom’s #2
37:46 - Zee’s #2
38:38 - Sam’s #2
41:31 - Sam’s #1
42:34 - Tom’s #1
43:58 - Sam’s #1
Buy great games at www.gamenerdz.com/
Find more reviews and videos at www.dicetower.com - Hry
I would love to see an updated version of this list!
Yeah, for sure.
Highly agree!
I really like the variety that you guys present. Ton has the "safe" choices. Zee has the weird and not-so-popular (niche) titles and Sam has the "strong and aggressive" gamers choices. Awesome! Keep it up guys!
You guys always make my day doing the lists. Thanks I need this before I went to work. Keep up the laughter and fun.
Great list and I loved the Dice Mechanic you all used!!! made things fun and I hope it continues!!
1- Caverna
2- Dominant Species
3- Tzolkin
4- Lords of Waterdeep (w/ exp)
5- Dungeon Petz
6- Belfort
7- Keyflower
8- Last Will
Keldorl why Caverna over Agricola?
AHHHH!!! ive been waiting for a new top ten list :D
You guys are so funny! I love watching your top 10 videos. Keep them coming!
I love how they all concentrate so much, serious look on their faces, when someone else is introducing a game on his list, to try and guess what game that is based on what he's saying and on how well they know his tastes. sometimes they even will bet that a certain game will be on someone's list in a certain position. they do this in every video and i'm feeling it.
Even though it isn't even 3 years old, this is the video I'm most interested in seeing remade. There are just so many amazing WP games that have come out since - Voyages of Marco Polo, Argent the Consortium, Champions of Midgard, Above and Below, Steam Time, Lorenzo Il Magnifico, Ancient World, etc., etc.
This list needs refreshing. Almost two years! :)
I LIVE for these lists, these videos and board game breakfast just make my day :)
Great video! I played my first worker placement game tonight (Stone Age), and I came on here to find similar games that I could introduce to my family. Thanks for the help! Pillars of the Earth appeals to me the most - too bad it's out of print!
Kingsburg was in all three lists too! :)
Caylus is the ultimate worker placement game. It doesn't age. You guys should try it.
nice truffle shuffle tom!!! lol great job again guys always look foward to your reviews
Finally! I love this genre!
Love the 'roll for initiative' guys!
I bet this list would be SOOO much different now. I know Viticulture would make Tom's list.
My current list would probably be...
10. Caverna
9. Ora et Labora
8. Mombasa
7. Targi
6. Keyflower
5. Francis Drake
4. The Voyages of Marco Polo
3. Stone Age (its just a classic and my family loves it)
2. The Ancient World
1. Viticulture (with Tuscany)
I love The Dice Tower.
You guys need a top ten Area Control games too
+LoftOfTheUniverse je suis d'accord
Great :-)
Loved the die Rollin
Just got Pillars of the Earth! Got to try it and really liked it, just got it before it got out of print in Spanish, thank you so much for the recommendation.
I'm still relatively new to modern board games, but so far I think worker placement is my favorite mechanic. Deck building might fight for the number 1 spot, for me.
My favorite worker placement games are:
1. Lords of Waterdeep
2. Kanban: Automotive Revolution
3. Caverna (This used to be my number 1 WP game, but Lords of Waterdeep scratched the same itch in a shorter time and without having to feed people :P)
4. Toledo
The only WP game I don't like is Alchemists.
Woohoo!
Sam saved the day, I couldn't believe Stone Age didn't make anyone's list!
***** I don't know about perfect, but they're quite good. Stone Age is more of a gateway game so I can see more experienced gamers not including it on their personal favorite top 10.
I love worker placement games. So many ideas of new games to play.
Time to revisit this list guys.
Caylus is a great worker placement
Top 10 sodas consumed during these episodes! Every time you guys come with different stuff. I'm jealous!
Technically as far as I know some of the earliest worker placement games came from computer games. Warcraft comes to mind where you place your peons and such to mine gold, chop wood, build buildings etc.
I was a little sad there was no love for my favorite, dungeon lords. There is a game that not only has the tension of not getting the job you want but it also matters that you pick it second or third. For me it is the perfect level of strategy and playing the players. Finally while it is a different game with the different number of players it is a lot of fun no matter how many.
Euphoria is a very good and fun worker placement game, might not be top 10 but definitely worth checking it out and the DT review as well. It has a bump mechanic on some locations as well, where you can take over the space but the person you bump gets their "worker" back to place again or even bump again.
Actually, there were 3 they had in common - Empires, Pillars, and Kingsburg. Not surprised to see Pillars of the Earth because they have been praising it for quite some time. Surprised Tzolkin and Keyflower didn't make it. Good solid list, though.
Zee... I agree with you, Santiago de Cuba is a worker placement as that mechanic is very important to the game to win. You can losse a game easily if you are not placing your workers on the right buildings. Great game too! :)
Missing from your list is the follow up to The Pillars of the Earth, 'World Without End'. In my gaming group, we like it more than is predecessor... Really good game!
What about Euphoria?! My family's favorite worker placement, it's my wife's favorite game!
sad it wasn't mentioned :(
I see your wilds t shirt. I went to the one in NC as a teenager.
You guys should really redo this list. There's been some amazing worker placement games that've come out in the last few years.
Tzolk'in :The Mayan Calendar
Regarding Zee’s comment in the beginning about cooperative games not qualifying as worker placement because of a lack of tension from another player blocking a spot you want to use, I would argue that a cooperative worker placement game simply replaces that tension with the stress of not feeling as if you have enough workers available to perform all the actions you want to do in order to help beat the game. So really there is simply a difference in the source of tension between two sub-genres of worker placement, cooperative and competitive, but both types would be still be worker placement in my opinion.
Vasel pronunciations are the best part of these videos.
I just bought Targi; I can't wait to play it!
No Euphoria... No Fresco... No Viticulture?
Hang in there Zee. Me and the wife play Targi online alot. It is a great 2 player worker placement. It's fun because it almost forces you to step on each others toes. It's the desert. Resources should be scarce. Getting the card at the intersection of two of your guys is also a very unique and fun mechanic. The Robber adds alot of hassle blocking cards and stealing your stuff or your points if you don't have stuff. It's almost like in the rough world of living in a desert you have to prepare to be raided by having extra resources to fall back on. I think it's actually a very thematic game. As much as Tom likes "take that" games I think he would enjoy it. Plus alot of the cards give you special abilities which he also likes. I'm not sure if I have a bead on what Sam likes. It's not in space or in the D&D realm and there are no miniatures. But as much as he likes Stone Age I think he might like it as well.
Thanks for having Yedo in your top ten list! If you can' t find real samurai around wanting to play Yedo, I'll come over ;). It's a real honor that our game appears in your list ;). We are working on our next game ( Kill shakespeare, currently on kickstarter : www.kickstarter.com/projects/idwgames/kill-shakespeare?ref=live). Maybe we can also persuade Zee and Sam ;). But let's not think of future project right now, and just enjoy the fact that Yedo is in this video, … Thanks for the great vids !! Greets,
Thomas
AH, the introduction of the giant dice
For a 4 member family (parents and 8 & 12 age kids) do you prefer Stone Age or Lords of Waterdeep and which one takes less time to complete? Thank you.
I recently ordered Kingsburg and Caverna, so I think I am in good shape.
Ha! Zee couldn't force Pandemic into this list!
Problem with pillars of the earth is that it's out of print and the only copy you can get is like 180 bucks. Stone Age is 40...well worth it!
I love upon a salty ocean because of the market fluctuation component. However, the buildings are not necessarily balanced and it lends to everyone going for a similar strategy.
Tom, will you make top ten games for 7 players. Please...
I'd put Caverna and 7 Wonders on that list :)
Just learned about some games recently and then revisited this. I'm currently wondering why Village didn't make anyone's list.
LOVE those Boss Dice you guys are rolling. I am so happy when I see Tom, Sam and Zee have uploaded a new video. It's like sitting down to watch a favorite show on TV. Good picks on the list. I would have had Snowdonia, Belfort, Dungeon Petz, Fresco and Village somewhere on my list. I think. I agree with Manhattan Project, Pillars and Carson City and Stone Age. My, there are so many good worker placement games. Dice Tower is always a hit!
A little surprised that nobody mentioned Tzolk'in :/
I'm going through a huge WP phase at the moment, so this list was great for me. Torn between getting Le Havre or Spyrium next. Thoughts?
Not to mention or at least talk about Caylus, inconceivable!
The guy that owns and taught me "Stone Age" explained it this way :"It's like Agricola where you have important spaces you want to put your workers, except if someone takes the spot, in Stone Age, you still have something useful to do instead of wasting your turn"
Not to sound snarky, but most of the fun in Agricola is learning to adapt to what others do and develop new strategies to win. Where is the tension if you can always do what you want to in a turn?
Could you guys post the list ? thanks a lot
Use your Dice Tower to determine who goes first.
The music at the start and end is fantastic. I wish I was able to listen to it without the breakup/noise...
I am going to guess Joe Stedman was the inside joke there for Age of Empires? Good video guys, you are putting alot of games on my radar.
No, he was not.
I stand corrected, just had a hunch :)
I love Agricola, Nog good at it. But still much fun!
Dominant Species is the best
Michael Hastriter I am going to have to agree with you here. I love the game. I my game group the game is despised because they say it is too random. However, I don't see it as random. I just see their strategy as inflexible. There is definitely a take that component to the game, but it is my favorite GMT game.
When you said almost no games let you knock out another player's worker, I'm surprised you didn't mention Lancaster from Queen Games. It is very confrontational like that, and a lot of fun. Give some love to the brave knights of Lancaster!
It was great to see Tom do a victory dance!
No Belfort! Maybe it's to new and also one of Ryan's fav games.
Coal baron & village are my best
Thoughts: Can't believe Russian Railroads or Tzolkin didn't make the lists, and seeing Tom in a Wilds shirt was surprising.
A worker placement list missing both Dominant Species, and Pret-a-Porter is a shame. I'm also still a fan of the original Agricola. I'm in agreement with Carson City, Alien Frontiers, and The Pillars of the Earth though, but the last one requires the expansion.
Dominant Species is more of an area-control game to me
Shami Tsai, it definitely is an area control game, but the worker placement aspect is easily as important. It is how you gain control of the board. The same also applies to *Alien Frontiers*, which did show up on a couple of lists.
i love pret a porter too ! other than the bad rulebook , it is pretty good
Dominant Species got a very rave review by Tom when it came out. I can think of a couple reasons why it might not be on the list though. I lot of games have come out since and it might be that it got pushed down. Also, it's a longer, more involved game so maybe it doesn't get much play from these guys and just was forgotten.
Zee needs to do reviews of the games on his Top Ten lists with no Dice Tower review. I just don't get enough information on games like Wiraqocha to determine if I want to buy it from the abbreviated descriptions given in the Top Ten lists.
Almost want to play Wiraqocha just because the mere utterance of its title stopped Sam from taking a drink of his soda. (15:11) Now that's power!
I went back to see what you're referring to. Haha. Great observation.
I am not saying I played Wiraqocha before you guys but I am saying I blind bought it from boards and bits when it was almost never mentioned on bgg. It seems a little odd to me. I have not yet decided if I like it. I have the expansion stickers done on the reverse side of the pieces and the rules for the expansion though.
I completely agree with Zee's opinion on WP games. I went through a phase where I really liked them, but now the only ones I still have are Yedo and Tzolk'in. They just all feel really samey and having multiple ones feels less satisfying than having multiple games from most other genres.
Given that Tom put Targi atop his "Best of Kosmos 2 player" list, safe to say he agrees with Zee on that one too.
'TZolk'in: The Mayan Calendar' is my #1.
And hands down my favorite 2p game (which happens to be worker placement) is Agricola: All Creatures Big and Small. For those looking for a 2p game for a couple, look no further, it's simply perfect. In fact, maybe I'd place it above TZolk'in...
Dominant Species would have been on my list for sure, but maybe it's too much of a hybird with area control. However, the worker placement portion is critical to the game.
Dominant species is my all time favourite game, I love it so much. I find it so hard to get people who want to play it though, because of game length and I've been told some people find it hard to learn.
I watched this video awile back, but hadn't had much experience with Worker Placement games, now I have, so here is my Top 10:
1. Alien Frontiers (Tom you need to try Outer Belt, it's awesome!)
2. Carson City (needs 3 to be enjoyable, it's junk with 2, but 3 or more a great game!)
3. Deadwood (another game that needs 3, perhaps my 1st work replacement game I played)
4. Belfort (replaced Pillars of the Earth in my collection)
5. Pillars of the Earth (still enjoy it, but Belfort scratches the same itch much better and got double the price for this OOP game)
6. Caverna (an ok to good game, starting to leave my enjoyment zone)
7. Cargo Noir (a tolerable to ok game I would play again)
8. Stone Age (a tolerable game)
9. Spyrium (I would defintely try it again, not my flavor, but unique)
10. Lords of Waterdeep (1st or 2nd work placement game I played. Did not like it. I am a big Ameritrash gamer, and my favorite genre is fantasy, this thinly themed game I thought did disservice to the genre. I like Belfort, it is a worker placement game with fantasy beings, but it isn't an adventure game and doesn't take it's theme as serious. I would play LoW again in the right circumstance.)
So as you can see, to get 10 Worker Placement games in a top 10, I had to dig pretty low. The top 4 I like quite well and hope to enjoy for years. Pillars is an intersection for the others I would have no regret never playing again. Pillars itself I would play almost anytime asked, I just think Belfort sratches that itch better. Pillars is more serious, but both great games.
Kingsburg would be #11, and I want to try it again. I played it just as a 2 player game once, and I was very dissapointed with it. I initially thought I would like it more than Alien Frontiers since it had a fantasy type theme. Alien Frontiers was the opposite, I was surprised how much I liked it. I expected to like it, but it is my 4th favorite game overall, which makes it my #1 Worker Placement game.
36:54 is my favorite moment.
Was this episode "The Dawn of the Giant Dice"? When were the giant (countdown) D20s introduced?
(HELP!) Very pleased they did this list as I'm trying to pick a worker-placement game to buy and introduce to my group... but I still can't decide! (I haven't played any of these yet but I can tell I'll like it)
I'm after a kind of med-weight game so it's easy to teach, with a fairly wide-appeal theme. I was considering Caverna because of the theme but it looks like it might be a little heavy for new players (tell me if I'm wrong!). Lords of Waterdeep looks about the right weight but the theme might put off some. I was possibly leaning towards Francis Drake before I watched this
Now thanks to this video I'm also thinking about Alien Frontiers or Manhattan Project. I wanted to have my list narrowed down not increased! Maybe fellow CZcamsrs can help?
Lords of Waterdeep worked well in our group. 60% of our normal game group has zero interest in fantasy or D&D and they were hooked after the first game.
And where is Kolejka? Translated as Queue in English? It's very history themed for Sam. It takes place in 1980s communist Poland. BGG has it as a "hand management" game and I can totally see that, but you do have to place your tokens to collect the items to win. I would argue that your placement of your pawns makes it a worker placement (as well).
+Billy W it such a bad game and it brings no enjoiment when plaied. I own that and I haven't played in the last 2 years just because it brings no fun. and the in depth mechanics aren't too much
So, I am guessing that this was filmed before the move.
Cool list! Glad to see Spyrium in there - but it IS a worker placement game, no doubt about it! Kingsburg and Caverna are also deserving of the list. I wouldn't have put Robinson anywhere near the list even it was allowed.
Tzolkin MAY feature in my Top 10, but I'm not sure. It's ok, but it's a brainbuster and very difficult to teach to people. I felt "meh" after it - funky gears, but hard to teach and I'm not convinced it's balanced - all the games I've played/seen going for god favours always dominates.
Tzolk'in didn't really start to shine for me until after my 8th or so game. Which sounds ridiculous, normally I would have no patience for something like that, but MAN the game started climbing my list in a hurry once I really got the hang of it.
God favor definitely dominates, but that doesn't mean it's imbalanced, you just can't ignore it and I think that is very fitting. There's a way to pump the God track no matter what strategy you go for, either through skulls, using the research track, by dumping corn, or through building. This is why the game takes many plays to shine, you have to really understand every strategy to fully appreciate it.
what about village? an absolutely amazing worker placement
Strategic and operational wargames have been "worker placement" games for ages. They often involve controlling production centers, preventing competitors from getting those resources, carefully choosing where best to place units, etc. Why don't we think of such wargames as worker placement games?
I think that worker placement seems to imply a level of abstraction, I guess...? They also don't usually require taking into account things like geographic adjacency, supply lines, and actual combat between the workers. Hmm, I shall ponder this further, heh.
They often involve a level of "send dude here and to a limited number of spots in order to grab resources or powers for a whosiwhatsit."
Hmmm... I wonder if Argent: the Consortium would have made the list.
Just before the reveal of number 2 Im like "where is Stone Age and Waterdeep?" I think Sam has a kindred gaming spirit lol
I love Lords of Waterdeep. I own it and play it regularly. I really dont see any backstabbery. At least not so much as is warranted in any other WP game. And I really agree with Sam, which doesnt happen often, that WP games are by far my favorite game to play.
Action placement!!!
Would it be possible for you guys to do a top 10 for 2 players.
Already done:
watch?v=pB6ReLCZ-Fg
omg not sleeping for another hour now
No Belfort???? Inconceivable.
Shocked that Zee doesn't like Lords of Waterdeep at all. That game has a ton of appeal. I'd better understand if it was low on his list... but that he doesn't like it at all is interesting.
He's not big on the fantasy theme...that's the main reason that we've talked about.
Sam Healey Ah... yeah, I'm a fantasy junkie, so I'm definitely on the opposite side of the fence with him there. :-)
I think it is a great game, but I still do not like it.
The theme is super bland and tacked on.
I played Waterdeep before, and it felt super horribly generic. That's not to say that I wouldn't play it again, but it's not something that I felt was super fun in any way. Mind you, I've only played a couple other worker placement games, including Kingsburg-esque Castles of Burgundy and Last Will, and I think that either of those two games do a much better job at offering room for impressive stratagem. That being said, I think Last Will is way too dependent on card melding for scoring that the worker placement feels arbitrary 80% of the time, and Castles of Burgundy I've managed to win every time I've played despite deliberately avoiding optimal actions, and neither of those really spoke to me as being great games.
I'm starting to think that I don't like worker placement games.
Bit off topic, but could anyone please tell me what the intro tune is taken from? Thanks.
As listed in the credits, Timothy Pinkham was hired to make the music. He's got a website you can check out. But, the Dice Tower theme he made years ago is not the track you're referring to, and I haven't been able to figure out what the new theme's track name is. Beautifully done, isn't it? I would love to hear a 5 minute version.
I love Stone Age, but I'm not sure it would beat Caverna for me, or even Fields of Arle.
Is there a short-list?
Would have listed Atlantis Rising. It's a great worker placement and is a co-op. There is PLENTY of tension.
Lee
36:53... some things can't be unseen...
I agree with Sam's assessment that Spyrium is a worker placement, it just wouldn't make my list because I didn't love the game. It's an interesting concept, and I love Steampunk, but there was just something about the game that didn't click for me.
The table looks like the table from Geek & Sundry's Table Top. What's the deal? Is there a "Delux Gaming Table" store that supplies both, or is there some meta overlap?
Yep its from Geekchiq - this one is the emissary table I believe
love love love Yedo
So what's the difference between a Euro game and a worker placement game?