In addition to posting my reviews here, I generally also post excerpts on BoardGameGeek. It’s been a good way to reach a big segment of my target audience and has generally let to more comments and interaction than any other platform.

After one of my recent posts on BoardGameGeek, a reader commented that he’d be unwilling to part with 7 Wonders even if he had to cut his collection to five games.

This comment got me thinking about what five games from my collection I’d choose if I had to cut it to that number. My first thought is that it would be a really painful experience to get rid of many of my favorite games. Luckily, it’s just a hypothetical scenario.

After considering about it for a bit, I think that if I had to cut my game collection to just five games, it would look something like this:
1) It would be important to keep a light ‘party’ game for entertaining big groups. There are lots of great choices in this category, but I feel that Codenames is the clear winner here. Always a guaranteed hit and accommodates widely varying group sizes.

Honorable Mention: One Night Ultimate Werewolf, Incan Gold

2) I’d need a two-player game as well, and it has to be one that both my wife and I always enjoy playing. There are a handful of solid choices, but I can confidently say we’d go with Patchwork. Keep an eye out for a review of this one very soon.

Honorable Mention: Castles of Mad King Ludwig, Carcassonne, Ticket to Ride

3) It would also be crucial to have a medium or heavy weight game that I could break out when playing with serious gamers. It’s tough to pick just one, but my favorite game of the moment is Inis. My recent review of Inis fully explains what I like about this one.

Honorable Mention: Castles of Burgundy, Dead of Winter

4) As my Pandemic Legacy review might let on, I love legacy games. As such, I’d be hard pressed to part with whatever legacy game I’m currently in the middle of, and at the moment it’s Seafall. It has its flaws for sure, but regardless I’m really enjoying it. Plus we’re so far along in the campaign that it would be very hard to part with this one before we’ve finished it.

If you asked me this question later this year, I’d expect Pandemic Legacy Season 2 or Gloomhaven to slot in here instead.

5) The last spot remaining is a wild card. Of all the other games in my collection, what would be the hardest to part with. This one’s an extremely tough decision but my gut says Istanbul. It plays well with a variety of group sizes and I’ve enjoyed it for a long time. Here’s my full review of Istanbul if you want to know more about why I think it’s such a great game.

Honorable Mention: Isle of Skye, Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective, Captain Sonar, 7 Wonders