If your group loves a game that turns everyone into amateur mind-readers, Dito! deserves a spot on your radar before this weekend. The party game from Game Factory is one of three finalists for the 2026 Spiel des Jahres, the German award widely treated as the biggest prize in the hobby, and the winner is announced in Berlin on 12 July.
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See how it worksDito! (sold internationally as JinxO) is a fast word game for three to seven players. Each round, a card offers a category, anything from "countries with good food" to "things people would sell their soul for", and everyone secretly writes answers into a small grid. You score when your answers match other players, with a bonus when exactly one other person lands on the same word as you. It rewards reading the room rather than being clever on your own, which is why it plays so well with a mixed table of gamers and non-gamers.
It is designed by Martin Ang and runs about half an hour, so it slots neatly into the start or end of a games night. The competition is stiff: it is up against the cooperative sticker game Cozy Stickerville and the sorting puzzle Morty Sorty Magic Shop for the red Spiel des Jahres pawn.
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Find events near youA Spiel des Jahres nod tends to send a game flying off shelves, so if the mind-meld hook appeals, it is worth grabbing a copy before any win empties the warehouses. Got a group who would enjoy it? Round them up on Backseat Gamer.
Sources: Spiel des Jahres | ICv2
