The best board game deals of October Prime Day

Back in 2019, Polygon asked four leading board game designers for their picks for the most influential board games of the decade. What did Rob Daviau, Elizabeth Hargrave, and Jamey Stegmaier’s lists all have in common? 7 Wonders, a game they all credited for opening up their eyes as tabletop game designers. The base game accommodates up to seven players, and with its signature brand of simultaneous play everyone can feel engaged the whole way through.

Whitehall Mystery is an overlooked gem of a hidden movement game, where one player secretly plots their course on a hidden map and everyone else tries to hunt them down. The theming here is key, however, as it puts players on the hunt for a mysterious murderer in Victorian London. It’s a fast-moving experience that rewards repeating the game after switching up roles at the table.

Uwe Rosenberg’s masterpiece Agricola is one of those board games that you need to play at least once to really understand how much it has influenced a generation of players and designers. First released in 2007, this newly revised edition is a mountain of meeples that brings order and a surprising amount of complexity to subsistence farming.

First released way back in 2017, Fallout The Board Game is a surprisingly solid offering from Fantasy Flight Games that tells a number of compelling little stories from the Fallout universe using an elaborate deck of numbered cards. I highly recommend the Atomic Bonds upgrade pack ($16.99), which converts the base game fully into a cooperative experience.

For fans of strategy games, it doesn’t get much better than Nemesis — unless it’s Nemesis Lockdown. This sequel to Awaken Realms’ 2018 hit both expands and refines the thrilling hidden role adventure game, cementing the series as the definitive homage to the James Cameron’s Alien franchise on the tabletop.

Star Wars Villainous: Scum and Villainy isn’t just the only Star Wars board game up for grabs this October Prime Day — it’s also among the newest games on this list. Released last summer, the standalone expansion stars Boba Fett, Cad Bane, and the Seventh Sister. It’s also compatible with all other version of Star Wars Villainous.

A two-player take on a classic, Arkham Horror: The Card Game’s Lovecraftian themes are sure to delight any horror fan with cultists, ancient monsters, madness, and more. Choose a character and work together to build decks to rival the forces plaguing the city of Arkham. The unpredictability of the encounter deck helps keep playthroughs fresh and outcomes uncertain.

Embark on epic quests in Middle-Earth, The Lord of the RIngs: Card Game’s revised core set has everything you need to immediately embark on a four-player adventure — no boosters required. This new version boasts increased contents and quality-of-life improvements and beautiful artwork on every card.

A favorite of Polygon’s Overboard team, Concept is a hilarious party game based on the classic Charades, but with the charming physicality of a physical game board to track your guesses.

Just One, the hit word-guessing game, is a snappy little gem that can easily kick off a night of longer games with a bang. Or kick back with a few beverages and play it all night, your call.

Catan: Starfarers Duel is the unlikely reboot of an obscure 2001 game called Starship Catan. This two-player variant has solid reviews, but the 75-minute playtime seems like it might be a bit of a tough sell for all but the most dedicated players.

Another Uwe Rosenberg classic, Patchwork is a tile-laying game inspired by quilting that plays quickly and teaches well.

Finally, Splendor Duel turns the beloved gem-buying game Splendor into a taught little two-player experience knife fight of a strategy game.