A non-exhaustive list of board games for new board gamers.
Gateway Games (1 to 1 1/2 hours playtime / Simple Rulesets)
- Settlers of Catan (Mayfair)
- Carcassone (Rio Grande)
- Pandemic (Z-Man)
- Ticket to Ride (Days of Wonder)
- The Adventurers (AEG / Fantasy Flight)
- Dominion (Rio Grande)
- Robo Rally (Avalon Hill)
- Dixit (Asmodee)
- Dvonn (Rio Grande) – one of the best games ever made. Sadly, not many people know of it
Medium Weight Games (1 1/2 – 2 hours playtime / Intermediate Rulesets)
- Power Grid (Rio Grande)
- Puerto Rico (Rio Grande / Alea)
- Tomb (AEG)
- Thunderstone (AEG)
- Elder Sign (Fantasy Flight)
- Manoeuvre (GMT)
- 7 Wonders (Repos / Asmodee) – Quick game (45 minutes) but can be a bit daunting to learn
- Stone Age (Rio Grande)
- Hansa Teutonica (Z-Man)
- Memoir 44 (Days of Wonder)
- Acquire (Avalon Hill)
- Ascending Empires (Z-Man)
- Ankh Morpork (Mayfair Games) – Just released and awesome
- Talisman (Black Industries / Fantasy Flight) – Good intro to adventure games take 3+ hours of playtime but easy ruleset
Heavy Games (2 – 3 hours playtime / Time to teach/learn 30 minutes)
- Agricola (Z-Man)
- Le Havre (Z-Man)
- At the gates of Loyang (Z-Man)
- Through the Ages (Rio Grande)
- Troyes (Pearl)
- Alien Frontiers (Wild Mojo)
- Nightfall (AEG)
- Tales of the Arabian Nights (Z-Man)
Large Format Games (3+ hours / Extremely complex Rulesets)
Disclaimer: DO NOT START WITH THESE GAMES
- Battlestar Galactica (Fantasy Flight)
- Descent: Journeys in the Dark (Fantasy Flight)
- Arkham Horror (Fantasy Flight)
- Twilight Struggle – Wargame (GMT)
- Merchants & Marauders (Z-Man)
- 1830 / 18xx : (GMT or Mayfair)