Spielvibe
🏆 Board Game Awards
Winners, nominees and recommendations of the major German board game awards — from Spiel des Jahres to Deutscher Spielepreis. The most reliable buying advice there is: browse it year by year, back to 1979.
✨ 2026 winners & nominees
The jury's final picks — out of hundreds of new releases.
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The awards
The most influential critics' award for board and card games in the German-speaking world, awarded annually by an independent jury since 1979.
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Winner 2026Awarded since 2011 for more demanding games – for players looking for a bit more depth and challenge.
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Winner 2026The Spiel des Jahres jury's dedicated award for the best children's game, independent since 2001.
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Winner 2026A players' choice award since 1990, tallied from votes by retailers and gamers – traditionally favouring more strategic titles. Annual Top-10 list.
A children's game award voted by families and children, alongside the Deutscher Spielepreis.
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Winner 2025The card-game award of Fairplay magazine, since 1991 – an annual ranking of the year's best card games.
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Winner 2025An award for the best board-game artwork, in the family-game and children's-game categories.
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Winner 2023🏛️ Multi-award winners
These games won several awards — recommendations don’t get safer than this.
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The Crew: The Quest for Planet Nine
🃏 À la carte 2020 · 🥇 DSP 2020 · 🧠 Kennerspiel 2020
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7 Wonders
🃏 À la carte 2011 · 🥇 DSP 2011 · 🧠 Kennerspiel 2011
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Dominion
🏆 SdJ 2009 · 🃏 À la carte 2009 · 🥇 DSP 2009
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Forest Shuffle
🃏 À la carte 2024 · 🥇 DSP 2024
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Magic Keys
🎲 Kinderspielepreis 2024 · 🧸 Kinderspiel 2024
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Mysterium Kids: Captain Echo's Treasure
🎲 Kinderspielepreis 2023 · 🧸 Kinderspiel 2023
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Wingspan
🥇 DSP 2019 · 🧠 Kennerspiel 2019
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Azul
🏆 SdJ 2018 · 🥇 DSP 2018
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ICECOOL
🎲 Kinderspielepreis 2017 · 🧸 Kinderspiel 2017
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Spinderella
🎲 Kinderspielepreis 2015 · 🧸 Kinderspiel 2015
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Legends of Andor
🎨 Graf Ludo 2013 · 🧠 Kennerspiel 2013
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Hanabi
🏆 SdJ 2013 · 🃏 À la carte 2013
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Village
🥇 DSP 2012 · 🧠 Kennerspiel 2012
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Fresco
🎨 Graf Ludo 2010 · 🥇 DSP 2010
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Whoowasit?
🎲 Kinderspielepreis 2008 · 🧸 Kinderspiel 2008
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Carcassonne
🏆 SdJ 2001 · 🥇 DSP 2001
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Tikal
🏆 SdJ 1999 · 🥇 DSP 1999
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El Grande
🏆 SdJ 1996 · 🥇 DSP 1996
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Catan
🏆 SdJ 1995 · 🥇 DSP 1995
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6 Nimmt!
🃏 À la carte 1994 · 🥇 DSP 1994
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Hoity Toity
🏆 SdJ 1990 · 🥇 DSP 1990
🔎 Discover award-winning games
Filter by award, result and decade — every card shows what the game won and when.
191 games
Rebirth
★ 7.1 · 👥 2–4 · 60 min
Kennerspiel 2026 · Winner
JinxO
★ 5.8 · 👥 4–7 · 45 min
SdJ 2026 · Winner
Mooki Island
★ 5.6 · 👥 2 · 10 min · $15
Kinderspiel 2026 · Winner
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Endeavor: Deep Sea
★ 7.7 · 👥 1–4 · 120 min · $67
Kennerspiel 2025 · Winner
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Bomb Busters
★ 7.6 · 👥 2–5 · 30 min · $40
SdJ 2025 · Winner
Castle Combo
★ 7.3 · 👥 2–5 · 25 min · $28
À la carte 2025 · Winner
Little Alchemists
★ 5.9 · 👥 2–4 · 40 min · $55
Kinderspielepreis 2025 · Winner
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Cherry on the Cake
★ 5.6 · 👥 2–4 · 20 min · $61
Kinderspiel 2025 · Winner
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Sky Team
★ 7.9 · 👥 2 · 20 min · $32
SdJ 2024 · Winner
Forest Shuffle
★ 7.5 · 👥 2–5 · 60 min · $25
DSP 2024 · Winner
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Daybreak
★ 7.1 · 👥 1–4 · 120 min
Kennerspiel 2024 · Winner
Magic Keys
★ 5.8 · 👥 2–4 · 30 min
Kinderspiel 2024 · Winner
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Planet Unknown
★ 7.4 · 👥 1–6 · 80 min · $72
DSP 2023 · Winner
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Sea Salt & Paper
★ 7.3 · 👥 2–4 · 45 min
À la carte 2023 · Winner
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Dorfromantik: The Board Game
★ 7.2 · 👥 1–6 · 60 min · $45
SdJ 2023 · Winner
Evergreen
★ 6.7 · 👥 1–4 · 45 min
Graf Ludo 2023 · Winner
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Challengers!
★ 6.7 · 👥 1–8 · 45 min · $40
Kennerspiel 2023 · Winner
Mysterium Kids: Captain Echo's Treasure
★ 5.7 · 👥 2–6 · 21 min · $35
Kinderspiel 2023 · Winner
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Ark Nova
★ 8.4 · 👥 1–4 · 150 min
DSP 2022 · Winner
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Cascadia
★ 7.7 · 👥 1–4 · 45 min · $38
SdJ 2022 · Winner
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SCOUT
★ 7.6 · 👥 2–5 · 20 min · $23
À la carte 2022 · Winner
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Living Forest
★ 6.8 · 👥 1–4 · 40 min
Kennerspiel 2022 · Winner
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Glow
★ 6.3 · 👥 2–4 · 45 min
Graf Ludo 2022 · Winner
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Quacks & Co.: Quedlinburg Dash
★ 6.1 · 👥 2–4 · 25 min · $30
Kinderspielepreis 2022 · Winner
How the awards work
- Winner:
- Chosen by the jury as the year's best game (Deutscher Spielepreis: #1 of the public vote).
- Nominated:
- A finalist — one of three games on the jury's official shortlist.
- Recommended:
- Additionally recommended by the jury — excellent, but not in the final three.
- Rank 2–10:
- Public ranking: retailers and avid gamers vote (Deutscher Spielepreis, À la carte).
Spiel des Jahres, Kennerspiel and Kinderspiel are awarded by an independent critics jury (Spiel des Jahres e.V.). The Deutscher Spielepreis is a public vote, À la carte is run by Fairplay magazine, Graf Ludo honours game artwork.