Pirate King

• Designer: Frankie Bu
• Publisher: Gigamic
• Players:2-5
• Age: 8+
• Time: 20 minutes
• Played with review copy provided by publisher

Prove your worth and become the Pirate King by facing challenges that will test your luck. In Pirate King!, every decision matters, and only those capable of mastering their ambition will claim the pirate throne. Across 7 rounds, you’ll compete against other captains to build the best deck of cards while avoiding the dreaded curses lurking in the seven seas.

Those who manage their luck well will gather valuable resources, such as gold and swords, to trade for powerful market cards or defeat terrifying monsters. These cards provide victory points and special abilities to help you get ahead of your rivals. However, greed is always lurking, and it could leave you empty-handed if you don’t play carefully.

After seven rounds, the player with the most victory points will be crowned the one and only Pirate King. Only one can claim this title—will it be you?

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Zombie Princess

• Designer: Ted Alspach
• Publisher: Bezier Games
• Players: 3-6
• Age: 10+
• Time: 45 minutes 
• preorder link: https://beziergames.com/products/zombie-princess 
• Played with review copy provided by publisher

In Rebel Princess, the princesses fought off unwarranted marriage proposals from pesky princes. Twenty-eight days later, the princes returned…as zombies!  The zombie horde is growing. It began with the princes, but it has spread to the local villagers, the adorable woodland creatures, and even our noble knights! The rebel princesses are the last of us. If they fail, the kingdom will fall forever into darkness — a true and horrific Zombieland!

Zombie Princess is the sequel to Rebel Princess. Just as Rebel Princess was a thoughtful modern spin on the classic trick-taking card game Hearts, Zombie Princess is a spin on the classic trick-taking card game Spades.

As legendary princesses in Zombie Princess, players compete individually or as teams! Each princess is armed with a unique player power, giving her or her teammate much needed flexibility or information. Zombie Princess takes place over four rounds, and each round has a special rule, making each game feel fresh and unique. Princesses bid on how many hordes of zombies they will eliminate… er… save each round. Will you eradicate the resident evil of the land, or will this be the dawn of the dead?

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The voting for the 2025 Meeples Choice Awards is complete and, due to ties, there are more winning games than usual.  Instead of the usual three winning games, this time there are five.  The winners are:

LORD OF THE RINGS: THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING – TRICK-TAKING GAME
THE LORD OF THE RINGS: FATE OF THE FELLOWSHIP
GALACTIC CRUISE
HOT STREAK
TAKE TIME

Rounding out the top ten were Vantage, Sanctuary, Star Trek: Captain’s Chair, Magical Athlete, and The Druids of Edora. Continue reading →

Twinkle Twinkle

• Designer: Ammon Anderson
• Publisher: Allplay
• Players: 1-4
• Age: 10+
• Time: 30 minutes
• Amazon affiliate link:  https://amzn.to/4nkxsQ8
• Played with review copy provided by publisher

In the tile-laying game Twinkle Twinkle, you’ll fill your star chart with clear plastic tiles, trying to connect constellations, build belts of asteroids, collect comets, pick up planets, and study them with satellites. Take care with those pesky black holes – unless you have a perfect spot for them, of course. Constellations, asteroids, comets, planets, and black holes all score differently! With 10 modular scoring conditions in the box, you can mix and match for 32 different setups. Whoever finds their highest score in the stars wins.  The game features an optional scoring app that allows you to point your phone at the board and watch it magically tally up your points!

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