The German Spiel des Jahres (Game of the Year) is perhaps the world's most prestigious game award. Founded in 1978 by a group of German game critics to promote awareness and to increase the cultural value of games, the award recognizes outstanding games based on originality, playability, and educational value of the game idea; organization, clarity and understandability of rules; packing and layout of the gameboard and the game rules; and functionality and overall quality of the game materials included. (List courtesy of Funagain Games).

Spiel des Jahres 2008:

For the daring and adventurous, there are many Lost Cities to explore. They are in the Himalayas, the ever-shifting sands of the desert, the Brazilian rain forest, ancient volcanoes and in Neptune's Realm. With limited resources the players must choose which expeditions to begin. Those with high confidence may want to up the stakes: increasing the rewards for success, but risking more should the expedition fail. The player who finds the right balance will find victory!

In Agricola (Latin for "farmer"), you're a farmer in a wooden shack with your spouse and little else. On a turn, you get to take only two actions, one for you and one for the spouse, from all the possibilities you'll find on a farm: collecting clay, wood or stone; building fences; and so on. You might think about having kids in order to get more work accomplished, but first you need to expand your house. And what are you going to feed all the little rugrats?

Build your own space ship from the available prefabricated components, and fly it to the Periphery. Of course, you may have to eat a loss, but any profits you make along the way are yours to keep, and Corporation Incorporated will pay you a bonus for quick delivery. It's possible that you will end up with an insurmountable debt and finish your days panhandling on the streets of Deneb III, but if Lady Luck should smile upon you, you just might find yourself among the 10 billion richest people in the Galaxy!

Taking on the role of a Chinese prince, In the Year of the Dragon challenges players to build up the wealth and illustriousness of his province of China in 1,000 A.D. In this elegant game, princes must seek the aid and specific talents of their courtiers that range from scholars and monks to warriors and craftsmen to head off plague, famine, and other impending disasters. Played during the course of a year, planning and preparation is paramount to fend off each month's round of adversity. And who knows when the Mongols might decide to invade your province? Each prince must use his resources and insight as best he can to protect his loyal subjects. The player that can best foresee and withstand the seemingly endless onslaught of calamities will gain more honor and victory points necessary to make it all the way through to the end In the Year of the Dragon.

Fabulous caves containing the artistic legacy or our ancient ancestors were discovered in a cave complex at Lascaux in the southwest of France. In testament to their struggle for survival, our forefathers created these stunning images that capture your imagination. Fantastic paintings of large animals long extinct leap from the walls of these caves animals known only from fossils and seen only in dreams. In the game Lascaux, you try to win majorities of animal cards by spending stones at the right moment and cleverly outfoxing other players. Explore the meeting of art and history, in the caves of Lascaux.

4 Cards... 1 Pair... 100 reasons why you SHOULD be right. It's not a word game. Its not a strategy game. It's not a bluffing game, yet all three of these elements are combined in this uniquely simple, excitingly fun, and extremely addictive game: Linq. The object of the game is to guess which two players are the Linq. If you are the Linq, you must think like your partner, and connect with him or her. The only problem is... you don't know who your partner is!

The bazaar is bustling: it's the big day of the rug market! Each player is a salesperson that tries to outwit the others. Each player has a turn to throw the dice and then move Assam, the market organizer. If Assam stops on an opponent's rug, the sales person must make a payment to its owner before putting one of his or her own rugs on the adjoining space. When the last rug has been laid, the total number of visible rugs and the number owned by each salesperson are added up: best player wins!

The awe-inspiring Metropolys is in effervescence! Talented urban planners and architects rival each other to make luxury, elegant buildings of glass and steel defying the laws of balance grow from the ground. Who will eventually impose their style to leave an indelible trail in the history of the city? The answer is in your hands! The players are urban planners in quest of prestige. Over the course of the game, they try to construct their buildings in the best places. As soon as a player has placed all of their buildings, the game ends. The player with the most prestige is the winner.

The times were hard indeed. Our ancestors worked with their legs and backs straining against wooden plows in the stony earth. Of course, progress did not stop with the wooden plow. People always searched for better tools and more productive plants to make their work more effective. In Stone Age, the players live in this time, just as our ancestors did. They collect wood, break stone and wash their gold from the river. They trade freely, expand their village, and so achieve new levels of civilization. With a balance of luck and planning, the players compete for food in this pre-historic time. Risk and grow as your ancestors did. Only then the victory ring sings to you!

The hanging gardens were one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world, as all history courses teach. But, did they actually exist? Nothing remains of their reported splendor, which was built for the eyes of Amyitis. Without an exact reference to follow, the 2-4 players will re-establish the hanging gardens according to their own tastes. Card follows card with magnificent buildings, sparkling fountains, and exotic plants as the players work to rebuild the legendary gardens. In the end, the queen will be pleased and rewards the victory palm to the player whose work on the gardens most impresses her highness.

TZAAR is a game about making choices. Both players have 30 pieces, divided in three types: 6 Tzaars, 9 Tzarras and 15 Totts. The 3 types of pieces form a trinity: they cannot exist without each other. The aim is either to make the opponent run out of one of the three types of pieces or to put him in a position in which he cannot capture anymore. The tricky question the players will have to ask themselves on each of their turns is: "Shall I make myself stronger or my opponent weaker?" Meaning: will you capture an opponent's piece and make him weaker, or will you jump on top of one of your own pieces and make yourself stronger? If you choose to jump on top of your own pieces too often, you will probably leave your opponent with too many pieces on the board. On the other hand, if you capture too often, you may end up with pieces that are not strong enough at the end of the game. What to do? Up to you to decide!

Welcome to The Sorcerer's first Grand Prix! Sometimes, if the night is clear and you look to the sky you will be able to see strange objects zigzagging between the stars. They are not shooting stars, meteors, or flying saucers! You are fortunate, for you have just witnessed a race between witches on their flying brooms! Wicked Witches Way is a board game which will put you in command of a flying witch's broom that you will have to control with daring and mastery.

Whether it is the druid, the witch, or the wizard, All these masters of magic help the players brew their potions, helping them to become rich and successful. Players take turns at the different roles, but also compete for them. The player who can best choose when to take risks and compete and when to sit back and allows others the center stage will win the game! So who will make the best witch's brew?

Spiel des Jahres 2007:

• Alchemist - The most talented Adepts of the mystical arts come from around the world to compete for the title of Supreme Adept!
• Arkadia - In a remote land there lies a region with undulating hills and fertile valleys. Settlers have laid the foundation stone for the city of Arkadia.
• Imperial - A challenging strategy game based in Europe in the age of imperialism.
• Notre Dame - Players take on the roles of the heads of influential families in Paris at the end of the 14th century.
• Skybridge - The sky is the limit in this 3-D architecture strategy project.
• The Pillars of the Earth - Players join together to help build Kingsbridge Cathedral in this strategy game based on Ken Follett's best-selling novel.
• Thebes - Each player is an archaeologist, traveling across Europe and excavating at antique places.
• Thief of Bagdad - You have planned a big mission for this night -- to steal no less than 4 treasures from the palace in Baghdad.
• Vikings - Each player is the leader of a band of Vikings. His task is to scout and then settle the islands off the coast of his homeland.
• Yspahan - 1598. Yspahan the Fair becomes the capital of the Persian Empire in this marketplace strategy game.
• Zooloretto - Each player uses small, large, wild and exotic animals and their young to try and attract as many visitors as possible to their zoo.

Spiel des Jahres 2006:

• Aqua Romana - Rome does not have enough drinking water and you must build aqueducts to bring the people the water they need.
• Blue Moon City - Blue Moon City lies in ruin, but the people have vowed to restore the city to its former magnificence.
• Buccaneer - Pirates cast jealous glances at the large trading ships and hatch plans to get the lucrative booty.
• Mesopotamia: Cradle of Civilization - Lead a clan to explore and colonize ancient Mesopotamia.
• Shadows Over Camelot - a unique collaborative game where you join forces with the Knights of the Round Table in an attempt to protect Camelot.

Spiel des Jahres 2005:

• Around the World in 80 Days - Complete the journey in less than 80 days to win the bet and the accolades of your comrades.
• Jambo - You're a trader competing to sell tea, hide, fruits, salt, silk, and trinkets.
• Power Grid - An energetic economic game where the object is to supply the most cities with efficient and reliable power.

Spiel des Jahres 2004:

• Carcassonne: The Castle - An exciting tile-laying competition between two players to expand the castle.
• Maharaja - The maharaja has called, and you must build magnificent houses and palaces in his name.
• Saint Petersburg - A tactical game for Russian tycoons - build baroque palaces, wide boulevards, and elegant bridges.
• Ticket to Ride - Balance greed with speed to build your railroad across America.

Spiel des Jahres 2003:

• Alhambra - Build the most beautiful and splendorous palace to be crowned the winner.
• Amun-Re - Build the most pyramids and offer the appropriate sacrifices to Amun Re.
• Clans - Set in late prehistory, your challenge is to build the largest and strongest clan.
• Coloretto - Like a Chameleon, a player must change his color many times during this game.
• Die Dracheninsel - You're a treasure hunter on dragon island looking for the legendary dragon hoard.
• The Werewolves of Millers Hollow - Who among the villagers of Millers Hollow are werewolves?

Spiel des Jahres 2002:

• Blokus - A fascinating strategy game for the whole family, very easy to learn, yet challenging to play.
• Dvonn - A challenging stacking game with very simple rules - control as many pieces as possible by building stacks.
• Puerto Rico - Be a settler, mayor, builder, craftsman, trader, or captain in 1543 Puerto Rico.
• San Gimignano - You're the head of an aristocratic family, trying to construct as many towers as possible.

Spiel des Jahres 2001:

• Babel - You and your opponent try to build and maintain temples in ancient Mesopotamia. How high can you go?
• Carcassonne - Develop the area around the southern French city of Caracassonne by placing land tiles.
• Hexen Rennen - The clans of the weather, fog, thunder and wood witches have their annual summer solstice race.

Spiel des Jahres 2000:

• Carolus Magnus - Try to gain the Emperor's favor - and perhaps the right of succession - in the court of Charlemagne.
• Frank's Zoo - A fun family card game with humor, interaction, partnership and strategy.
• Torres - Build the tallest and largest castles to earn the throne.