The new era of well-designed automata and solo modes for multiplayer games, coupled with excellent new solo game designs, is actually quite heartening to someone (me!) who finds something very satisfying about physically playing a game: shuffling cards, moving pieces, seeing it all spread out in front of you. (I will note that the new era has also brought some really weak solo modes for games that probably shouldn’t have had a solo mode in the first place, but I’m trying to focus on gratitude rather than griping in 2026.)

Solo gaming is now a decent-sized chunk of my gaming experiences – while I still play a lot of games with friends and family, 20% of my gaming in the first four months of 2026 was solo. Last year is was over 30% for the first few months, so this is a bit of a drop-off. For comparison, the yearly total for 2025 was 24%, the yearly total for 2024 was 31%, 2023 was 20%, 2022 was 22%, 2021 was 33%, 2020 was 19%, and 2019 was 6%. I’ve actually more opportunities for both online play (BGA and playtesting games on TTS) and in-person play this spring.

So, what follows are my thoughts on the twenty-five (25) different solo games I’ve played so far in 2026 – ordered by the number of times I’ve played them. (Note: this is not necessarily how much I like a particular game for solo play – for example, I think Arydia: The Paths We Dare Tread is an excellent solo game design but I haven’t played it [yet!] in 2026.)

Nickels

Kingdom Legacy: Feudal Kingdom (5 plays – approx. playing time: 30 minutes)

I love the concept behind Kingdom Legacy – a solo legacy deck-builder where you can improve cards and destroy cards on your way to building a kingdom. I was interested a design that was built to be expanded to continue on your journey. And, frankly, my wallet liked the price point.

The problem is that I just didn’t enjoy playing it enough to finish the initial deck. Even with all the shuffling of my deck and the drip feed of new cards, there was an element of processional progression in Kingdom Legacy that was not my cup of tea. It did not help that the rule sheet felt incomplete and eccentrically organized.

Perseverance: Castaway Chronicles (5 plays – approx. playing time: 120 minutes)

The mechanics of the game are a blend of crunchy dice-drafting decisions and worker placement with some dice combat against dinosaurs and area control thrown in for good measure. The story behind Perseverance is a like a fever dream mash-up of LOST, Jurassic Park, and Stargate – but the Mindclash Games team makes it work with evocative card & board art as well as really nice miniatures. 

I’ve barely scratched the surface of the game system – I’ve played the first three episodes and am gearing up to finally take on Episode 4. BTW, the four games (“episodes”) that make up the series are related to each mechanically – each uses a dice drafting mechanism that is placed to activate a variety of actions. But, in practice, each game develops in very different ways as the objectives of the overarching story create intriguing new puzzles for players to struggle with.

The solo system is impressive – though it is not particularly simple to learn. Thematically, the solo opponents are strong and clever to play against.

I continue to be impressed with Mindclash Games’ ability to combine “heavy” game designs with huge swaths of thematic elements… and then to produce them with such gorgeous components. It’s a pleasure just to have Perseverance out on the table.

My objective for the rest of 2026: play Episode 4 and finally play the Chronicles box that connects the four episodes together! (Yes – play all four episodes with connective tissue and rewards that stick with you… so sweet!)

Tenby (5 plays – approx. playing time: 40 minutes)

Tenby is an odd duck of a game that keeps popping up on my gaming table due to two things: first, the box is small and portable. Second, both the multiplayer and solo versions of the game are enjoyable city-building exercises with some interesting twists.

Cards in Tenby are either Town or Pier cards… and are laid out in streets. The scoring requirements for each card are predicated on the cards on the same street – often only the adjacent cards. You acquire cards by drafting from a tableau that is not refilled until the end of the round – and you decide on the drafting order by selecting a draft card in a similar manner to Kingdomino.

All of that works together nicely – and the solo system imitates another player by drafting cards away. 

Four on the Floor (or Table)

Dead Reckoning (4 plays – approx. playing time: 100 minutes)

For a game with this many interactive elements, Dead Reckoning manages to make the solo mode work and work well. Each time I play, I’m fascinated by the balance between the various victory pathways and the variety in the system.

But as much as I enjoyed the base game solo, I’m infinitely more jazzed about playing it with the Saga and Sea Dog expansions… the addition of a campaign mode for solo play coupled with the constant drip of story elements meant I had a two week Dead Reckoning festival on my gaming table last fall.

I finally finished my Letters of Marque campaign – combining it with the new Port of Call expansion. I like the new elements added by both expansions – but I don’t think Letters of Marque will get used as much, particularly in multi-player games. (It adds enough new elements that complicate the game.)

NEOM (4 plays – approx. playing time: 25 minutes)

I love this multi-player game that mixes city-building and 7 Wonders-ish drafting… and the solo game manages to capture most of that feeling through the clever use of “packets” of tiles. I typically play 2-3 games of this at a shot… since once you’ve got it laid out, it’s easy to reset and try again. I’ve defaulted to play NEOM with all the tiles in, which offers more variety and some interesting decisions since you know that you can (sometimes) wait for the tile you need.

Interestingly, I read that Neom is the name of a planned city/community being built (or maybe not) in Saudi Arabia. (It’s an interesting internet rabbit hole to dive down.)

Three is a Magic Number

Heroscape (3 plays – approx. playing time: 40 minutes)

Heroscape is not a solo game. At all.

But I needed to playtest some scenarios – so I did it. You’ll be stunned (and surprised!) to find out my side won.  

Note: more Heroscape coverage coming soon – the new Kraken pieces are stunning (and more than a little creepy).

Pirates of Maracaibo (3 plays – approx. playing time: 40 minutes)

The first time I saw Alexander Pfister’s Maracaibo played, it took a crew of dedicated heavy gamers 4+ hours to finish. (They all loved it – but it was, well, “a lot”.) So, rather than invest in the physical game, I picked up the iPad app and played multiple games against the AI. It was, still, “a lot”.

So I was hopeful that Pirates of Maracaibo would be a little more manageable. What I didn’t expect is that it would have all of the stuff I liked about the original game with all of the churn surgically removed. What’s left is a tight and enjoyable game that entranced my son (who tried multiple heavy Pfister games I love – Great Western Trail: New Zealand, CloudAge, Skymines – and pronounced them “your kind of games, Dad”) and has been a blast for me to play against the solo bot.

I got the Commanders expansion for Christmas… it’s on my “to be played” list (behind my recently acquired copy of Perseverance: Castaway Chronicles). I’ve also actually seen (but don’t own) a copy of the Bermuda Triangle expansion – it’s a deck of 60 cards with a new module for the game (a treasure hunt).

It Takes Two

Dice Realms (2 plays – approx. playing time: 20 minutes)

The biggest issue with Dice Realms is the same for solo and competitive play – getting the game set up. Once it’s ready to go, the game flies by as you attempt to mitigate your luck (or lack thereof). In fairness, the game combines the deck-building-ish feel (courtesy of the customizable dice) along with ways to control those dice (reroll tokens & set a side tokens) that makes it much less luck dependent than it first appears.

The new Trade Expansion adds not only another type of dice (Trade dice) but also the equipment and design for solo/cooperative games and mini-campaigns. 

Flamme Rouge (2 plays – approx. playing time: 35 minutes)

I’ve tried solo-ing Flamme Rouge prior to the release of the Grand Tour expansion – and while I was and still am a big fan of the game, those experiences were only mildly interesting. (Seriously, I like the game a lot – read my review from back in 2017 or my more recent review of the Flamme Rouge expansions.)

However, the addition of Grand Tour (which gives a solid system to build multi-stage “tours” with) and some helpful solo rules ideas from the folks over on BGG makes for a great solo experience. I’ve finished my first seven stage tour… and I’m in the middle of a full 21-stage Tour de France (by way of Hendersonville, TN). The two games played this year (so far) are the continuation of that tour.

Minigolf Designer (2 plays – approx. playing time: 35 minutes)

In a multiplayer game, tiles are drafted in a similar manner to Kingdomino… while in the solo game, the player picks two tiles and places one of them. Both the solo game and the multiplayer game are fun – they are slightly heavier than Carcassonne with a greater variety of scoring decisions.

There is a mini-expansion (Putt of No Return) to the game that adds new tiles, better artwork cards(!), and double layer boards for tracking par… and a second expansion, Minigolf Empire, that adds a campaign element to the game. (I particularly like the news cards from Empire, which can be used when playing non-campaign games as well.)

Minigolf Designer has the virtue of being very easy to set up – which means it work nicely when I just want something to tickle my mind for 30 minutes or so.

Mythwind (2 plays – approx. playing time: 90 minutes)

I’ve just begun to scratch the surface with Mythwind… I lucked into a complete set (with all the expansions) on DEEP clearance at a FLGS. I’m intrigued by the storytelling elements in the game and sheer variety of the various characters. 

So far, my single figure (Farmer) game seemed to advance very slowly, while my two figure (Innkeeper and Ranger) progressed more quickly but felt slower for solo play. I’m coming back to it when work slows down this summer.

SETI: Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (2 plays – approx. playing time: 95 minutes)

SETI has turned out to be a very divisive game from 2024 – some folks loved it, while others were completely underwhelmed by the design. Despite that mixed reaction, it’s been nominated for (and won) multiple awards. I personally really enjoyed my first three player game of it – and when the chance to pick up a lovingly used copy became available (thanks, Doug & Shelley!), I jumped at it.

I recently wrote a review of the base game AND the new Space Agencies expansion for the OG. For solo players, I think the expansion makes for an even more enjoyable (and challenging) game.

Waypoints (2 plays – approx. playing time: 25 minutes)

I think this is probably my favorite roll’n’write game from Postmark Games… and possibly my favorite roll’n’write period. The creative use of topographical maps and a hiking theme leads to interesting push-your-luck decisions and lots of variety (five maps so far!). As I’ve done with other games from this company, I’ve laminated my copies of the Waypoints boards so I can take them whenever I travel.

One Is the Loneliest Number

52 Realms: Adventures (1 play – approx. playing time: 20 minutes)

Yes, it’s another Postmark Games release – but it doesn’t use dice – instead, it employs a deck of standard playing cards to act as items, loot, equipment, monsters, and wounds. There are four dungeons and eight characters already available for 52 Realms – it’s well worth your $6 to pick up and print yourself a copy. This solo-only design is really quite something.

A Gentle Rain (1 play – approx. playing time: 15 minutes)

A beautifully produced solo tile-laying game that does exactly what it sets out to do – create a zen-like peaceful experience while giving your brain a puzzle-y challenge. It’s kind of an amazing accomplishment from Kevin Wilson (yep, the same guy who designed Android and Kinfire Chronicles!) – and my single play of A Gentle Rain this year is no reflection on what a great design it is.

Clank! Catacombs (1 play – approx. playing time: 45 minutes)

The newest entry in the very successful Clank-i-verse involves a modular board, a totally new deck of cards, and some interesting twists (freeing prisoners, using lockpicks, etc.). It’s been a wild success with my sons and with other folks as a new take on “standard” Clank!… and I appreciate that the rules even include ways to integrate the Adventuring Party expansion into the game.

As usual, Dire Wolf has done a splendid job of supporting the game with a well-written app-driven solo game. They haven’t updated it yet to include the Lairs expansion… but that didn’t stop me from using it to play through the solo campaign again.

I received the Underworld expansion for Christmas – my single play this year was an attempt to see if playing it solo is viable. So far, the jury is out – I’m hoping that Dire Wolf will update the solo app to encompass the two expansions.

Endeavor: Deep Sea (1 play – approx. playing time: 35 minutes)

My copy of the deluxe edition FINALLY arrived just before Thanksgiving. (Braeden & I had played it at Gulf Games this summer and I promptly came home and ordered a copy from Game Steward. BTW, a unsolicited plug for Game Steward’s customer service – they dealt with my questions and concerns quickly and kindly as the waiting dragged on.)

The production of Endeavor is top-notch, the puzzles inherent in the game are interesting, and I like the rhythm of how the game plays out… with two or three players or as a solo game. As I dig deeper into the included scenarios, there are a number of clever twists on the system just by changing the Impact chart and the scoring goals.

The real measure of how much I like Endeavor – it took me eight games to finally beat an opponent (yes, the solo system or a real live human). And I still enjoyed each and every game… so much so that it was #3 on my Best New (to me!) Games of 2025 list.

Jisogi: Anime Studio Tycoon (1 play – approx. playing time: 55 minutes)

While the artwork/graphic design of Jisogi is thematically perfect, this worker placement game doesn’t quite have enough “oomph” in the gameplay to make me want to try it again. There are some nice bits of theme (the workers at your tiny anime studio are all burned out when the game begins, chasing trends in what customers want is constantly changing, etc.) but it wasn’t a particularly exciting game to play.

Let’s Go To Japan (1 play – approx. playing time: 35 minutes)

The production of the game is top-notch… the artwork is gorgeous… and it has actually has the solo play to match those. It’s “just” a drafting game – but when playing solo, the things you don’t choose are being fed to your opponent, the rival travel agent. (Dale wrote a really great preview/review of this game that convinced me to back it on Kickstarter.)

I’m just not convinced the Day Trip expansion adds enough to the game to warrant the extra hassle.

Luthier (1 play – approx. playing time: 2 hours)

I loved Paverson’s first hit (Distilled) and so was really excited to play Luthier. My first (and so far only) multiplayer game involved some very tricky timing decisions that made one of our players frustrated – but I found it really fascinating. My single solo play doesn’t have those same issues (the timing choices are much more obvious in what is essentially a two player game) but is still a very interesting optimization puzzle.

I’m looking forward to trying this again – both solo and multiplayer!

Nemo’s War (1 play – approx. playing time: 70 minutes)

Nemo’s War manages to blend Euro mechanics and old-school wargame elements along with a compelling theme. On top of that, the various objectives change the game and how you play by just changing the scoring to reflect Nemo’s vision of a “better” world. 

The newest expasnion – Journey’s End – dramatically expands the number of possible adventures, adds two more objectives, and has a rewritten rulebook that makes the game easier to learn and play.

I did try Nemo’s War as a multi-player cooperative – which was actually much more enjoyable than I thought it would be. (The rules in the newest edition for this work very well.) Still, I prefer it as designed – an amazing solo game.

Nucleum (1 play – approx. playing time: 90 minutes)

I’m not sure it’s fair to call this a play – as I had to stop mid-game. I think there’s a lot to like in this design, but the solo engine changes enough of the base game rules that I’m still fighting to make sense of it.

My theory is that this is like Expedition Earth (another crunchy game from designer Dávid Turczi) – once I get how Nucleum works straight in my head, I’ll enjoy it a whole lot more.

Trails of Tucana (1 play – approx. playing time: 20 minutes)

A really lovely little flip-n-write route building game that I found courtesy of a Twitter friend (hi, Daniel!). Less rules overhead than Cartographers, but with the same “make the best of what you get” vibe. Trails of Tucana has become a travel staple for me – easy to play in a small space with lots of press-your-luck angst on many flips of the cards.

I have had the chance to play with the Ferry expansion maps now, and they add a couple of small twists without doing any damage to the very solid base game.

Unmatched: Battle of Legends (1 play – approx. playing time: 20 minutes)

A single play to experiment with a strategy choice for my most recent Unmatched review… but if you really want to play Unmatched solo, you should be using the Unmatched Adventures boxes. I’ve reviewed both of them – Tales to Amaze! and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – for the OG.

Voidfall (1 play – approx. playing time: 2 hours 30 minutes)

Normally, I’d balk at a game with a non-random combat system and intertwined mechanisms – but the theme of defeating the Voidborn is so tightly woven into the design & flow of the game that I find myself lost in the world and the puzzle of trying to expand my civilization’s capabilities whilst fending off the encroachment of mind-altering evil. 

The game comes with a myriad of player factions and stunning gorgeous production – as well being fully playable as a solo (the way I have been playing), cooperative, and competitive game.

The team here at the OG had a great conversation about Voidfall.

I received review copies of Flamme Rouge (and most of the expansions), the Renegade Heroscape releases, and the mentioned Unmatched boxes. The rest of the games on this list were either purchased by me or given to me as a gift.