I have both Pandemic and Galaxy Trucker, and would recommend either.
Having said that, I have both Pandemic and Galaxy Trucker, so if you don't end up buying them, you are welcome to borrow them some time. Hey, I might even get to play you sometime - it's a long trip, but it'll be worth it. ;)
For people who like games like Carcasonne, Settlers and Ticket, I really like Portabello Market, which is about placing market stalls, and trying to grab the best sites.
Another game that has recently got some play with us is Chelsea - this has some low scores from some on BGG as a "kiddie game", which I don't think it deserves. It is certainly a kid-friendly game (as it is fairly easy to learn, and mainly involves matching/changing colours), but it is just as good with competitive gamers, in my opinion.
You can't really go wrong with Shadows over Camelot, in my opinion. Great game with or without the Merlin expansion.
Finally, I must mention Catan Histories: Struggle for Rome. Although a Catan variant, it somehow combines the familiar Catan mechanism for getting resources with a war game, with competing tribes of Barbarian Hordes trying to muscle in on a falling Rome. It is currently my favourite game that I have played, but don't actually own; so I urge you to get it, of course!
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I have both Pandemic and Galaxy Trucker, and would recommend either.
Having said that, I have both Pandemic and Galaxy Trucker, so if you don't end up buying them, you are welcome to borrow them some time. Hey, I might even get to play you sometime - it's a long trip, but it'll be worth it. ;)
For people who like games like Carcasonne, Settlers and Ticket, I really like Portabello Market, which is about placing market stalls, and trying to grab the best sites.
Another game that has recently got some play with us is Chelsea - this has some low scores from some on BGG as a "kiddie game", which I don't think it deserves. It is certainly a kid-friendly game (as it is fairly easy to learn, and mainly involves matching/changing colours), but it is just as good with competitive gamers, in my opinion.
You can't really go wrong with Shadows over Camelot, in my opinion. Great game with or without the Merlin expansion.
Finally, I must mention Catan Histories: Struggle for Rome. Although a Catan variant, it somehow combines the familiar Catan mechanism for getting resources with a war game, with competing tribes of Barbarian Hordes trying to muscle in on a falling Rome. It is currently my favourite game that I have played, but don't actually own; so I urge you to get it, of course!