The UK's biggest tabletop gathering just dropped its 20th-anniversary Judges Choice Awards roll, and the winners are a smart mix of headline hits and underdog picks. Twenty categories, twenty winners, all crowned today on UKGE's social channels, two weeks ahead of the show on 29 to 31 May at the NEC in Birmingham.
Run game nights? Backseat Gamer handles RSVPs, waitlists, date polling, and game voting so you can focus on playing.
Start organising for freeThe headline grabbers won't surprise anyone who's been paying attention. Luthier, Paverson Games' worker-placement-and-hidden-bidding game about crafting instruments for Mozart and his patrons, took Best Euro-Style Board Game after topping numerous end-of-year lists. Vantage, Jamey Stegmaier's open-world cooperative explorer (which also doubled up at the Golden Geeks this week), won Best Story, Legacy or Adventure Game. And Days of Wonder's Star Wars: Battle of Hoth, the Command & Colors-system battle game, scooped Best American-Style.
The more interesting names sit lower down the list. Ink from Final Score Games beat Locus and Peranakan for Best Abstract. Pondscape, Tomas Holek's lovely frog-themed grid-builder from Pink Troubadour, won Best Strategic Card Game. Crits & Tricks (Inside Up Games) won Best Dice Game with its D&D-flavoured trick-taker that swaps card values for polyhedral dice. Effekt Publishing's Tales of the Old West took Best Roleplaying Game, and Chaosium's Call of Cthulhu: The Sutra of Pale Leaves, a 1980s Japan campaign featuring the King in Yellow, won Best RPG Adventure. SHUG from Wandering Games edged out Outliars and QORK for Best Party Game.
Stop juggling Meetup, WhatsApp, and spreadsheets. One platform for your gaming group's events, RSVPs, and member management.
See how it worksAll winners now advance to the People's Choice round, voted on by attendees during the show. UKGE turns 20 this year and is expecting another packed three days at the NEC. If you're heading to Birmingham, see who else is going on Backseat Gamer, or set up a community meetup for your group at the show. A massive con is far less overwhelming when you've got people to meet up with for a play of any of these winners.
Sources: Tabletop Sentinel | UK Games Expo | Geek Native
