A Persian folklore game where players rotate physical astrolabes to hunt demons has won the 2026 Cardboard Edison Award, the long-running prize for the best unpublished board game designs. Astrolabe, designed by Iranian video game veteran Yasaman Farazan, beat out 396 entries (nearly four times the number from a decade ago) to take first place.
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Find events near youIn Astrolabe, two to five players are exorcists in a Persian folklore world, using astrolabes to read the stars, track demons, and bind them into artifacts over 45 to 90 minutes. The action-selection system has each player secretly rotate their astrolabe to lock in an action, a number, and a time of day. Reveals happen in ascending order, so reading the table matters as much as planning your own turn. The 80-plus-strong judging panel called it "thematic, toyetic, and an absolute joy to engage with."
The Cardboard Edison Award was launched in 2012 by Suzanne Zinsli and Chris Zinsli to surface unpublished designs and connect designers with publishers. Entries have more than doubled since 2020, and this year's judges included designers Ben Rosset, Matthew Dunstan, and Marceline Leiman, according to BoardGameWire.
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Start organising for freeRounding out the top four were Cameron Fleming's Broadway-themed push-your-luck deckbuilder Limelight in second, Luke Wolyncewicz's quick-play animal-catching game Braggin' Wranglers in third, and Alan Leduc's sea turtle movement-queue game Hatchlings in fourth.
Winners don't get a cash prize, but they do get a louder megaphone. Past Cardboard Edison finalists have gone on to publishing deals, and Astrolabe's physical astrolabe component will likely catch a publisher's eye. There's no announced release date yet, but if it lands at a UK convention down the line, Backseat Gamer can help you round up a group to try it.
Sources: Cardboard Edison | BoardGameWire
