I am absolutely wish list games based solely on art without even knowing what the mechanisms are I also eliminate games from further consideration based on art even games that are very highly rated appealing artwork just isn't optional to me and neither is the design or gameplay

What a great aspect of board games to address. I working in the food industry on and off over my life, and a saying that stuck with me is “you eat with your eyes first”. It is 100% true and it really does apply to many aspects of our lives, so I see how it applies to board games as well. Obviously everyone has their own thing that catches their eye as beautiful is subjective. I have picked up or backed games that I found visually appealing and anytime I flay them it creates a sense of joy for the get go. Thank you for another interesting video. Cheers 🍻

Art is such an important thing in games for me too! I might have a hard time wanting to play it if I really don't like how it looks haha. I love beautiful art in games, I feel this is such a good video for me. Also the audio seems pretty good to me.

Gorgeous choices. Some of my favs are Call to Adventure, Tokaido, Abyss and Cerebria.

Wow, didn't know about Similo. I understand why you love it so much! Sadly no way to play solo for me. And yes, like I said on the last video, do look up fan-made and official solo modes. I can play so many more games thanks to those. In Canada, when you need a rarer game, check out the Quebec stores. Many have English versions as well. Often more expensive but you can get some great deals because one game that is popular in English might not sell well in Quebec for some reason. Black Angel was $50! Lillojeux, La Revanche and Le Valet can have good sales on English titles at times. Le Valet shipping is only $5 so sometimes it makes up for the price difference. Got many out of print games thanks to French stores :)

Yes I get pulled in by Art. Floriferous was a must buy, Transmissions love the little robots 🤖

Wonderland’s War has amazing art. I hummed and hawed on this one as I wasn’t sure if I would enjoy the gameplay but eventually succumbed due to the artwork. Also doesn’t hurt if you’re able to get the the plastic chits with the Kickstarter edition which I wasn’t able to get. Cool art!

The Tidal Blades (existing and upcoming) games have incredible art!

Meadow is indeed a great game with amazing art. Lotus is another game with nice flower artwork. You place cards with petal art to form flowers on the table.

If you love art, Meadow is absolutely a must-have! Fellow Canadian here, I bought a copy at Game Shack in Toronto last summer, they currently have it on backorder. Hopefully it comes back in stock soon for you, as it's definitely worth the investment! That and Parks are easily the two most beautiful games I own!

Your voice audio only comes into one earphone, I just wanted to let you know just in case that wasn't intentional. Had to unplug to hear it all, lovely video though! Beautiful games make me happy!

good picks! I am a sucker for pretty games, if its going in my collection needs to look good on instagram. seize the bean looks fun, but I could not find in any online stores.

JENNA! Oh i'm 100% in the same boat when buying games based solely on art-but bigger production games not having fun gameplay has definitely tampered that a lot for me haha! Bitoku right behind you is on my list bc of that though! 😂 thanks for the list, loved the video as always!

Nice list... I would say Wingspan, the birds are beautiful and my other choice is Canvas, maybe because your creating your own "art".

I hadn't seen it mentioned, but one reason I got into Root - apart from hearing how good it was - was the children's-storybook look to the art. It just turned out the game itself is Game of Thrones as illustrated by Richard Scarry. :)

You’re not the only one at all!! I’m like that too- I’m always drawn to the art first 😃

My daughter loves astronomy and astrology themed games, so STELLAR is on my list, too.

Great video! I’m tracking with you on how important art is for me on a boardgame. If I’m not playing it at least I can display it.

Parks used art so brilliantly. The aesthetic is so 70s hiking culture and it’s perfection. I love when the art and the theme match. I just ordered Stardew Valley based almost entirely on the art

Oh totally agree with you about art, it makes or breaks a game for me! Out of this video my personal favorite art is Parks, but you've officially introduced me to Seize the Bean! I gotta do some research into it, because the art and components seems so cool, AND seems like it has a solo mode!? Time to look up some playthroughs ahha For the audio, the hissing sound when you talk got a lot better!!! I can still hear it, but definitely not as bad as the last one. I personally was listening to it on my headphones, and only the audio was coming in through my right headphone, while the background music (good song selection btw it sounded nice and was at a good volume, i barely noticed it at first! haha) was only coming in through my left,,, Can't wait for the next video :)

Hi Jenna, my ideal board game would be a 1001 Arabian nights theme where there is a ton of artworks and semi-random adventures! I just love the theme. That would be chef's kiss for sure. I don't really have any particular game with awesome art otherwise.

Ahoy Jenna, great job on the video and nice picks. Meadow is both a great game and particularly beautiful.

I love a good aesthetic and design/illustration when it comes to boardgames. I love the cards of Everdell, Meadow, or Parks for instance. I also enjoy the beeples of Honey buzz. I always want my game to be that beautiful.

Big agree on PARKS, I literally gush over the artwork every time I play and always have sentimental feeling towards my local national park. I would also add that Beth Sobel is just too damn good - Cascadia, Tussie Mussie, Wingspan, Arboretum, Calico just to name a few. PS you should try Living Forest on BGA. It’s a great game imo and the art is gorgeous even on a screen would love to own it in person.

Your art is the prettiest art of all the art. Also, Santa Monica’s art reminds me of those 90’s cartoons ala Hey Arnold.

So pretty games. Love the character art in similo and Santorini, too.

With you on the artwork being very important in the decision to buy and play a board game. Hence, the reason I have never played Castles of Burgundy. Kickstarted the new version coming out though. That should get me there. I’m looking at Arnak and Everdell. Love the look there. Really like The Mico from all the Garphill games. It must be the comic book reader in me. Keep up the great board game content.

Hello Jenna. You are talking about my favorite topic...art! This is definitely what pulls me into a game...or not. Admittedly there are some games out there that I've heard are fantastic, (you know who you are) but I cannot get past the mediocre to bad design... and I'm ok with that. I wouldn't hang a painting on my wall if I wasn't completely enthralled by it, no matter how famous the artist. I am speaking solely about games in my personal collection of course. I will play others' games with art that doesn't do it for me, I just won't own it. I love so many that you mentioned. I must throw one more into the ring...Scythe. The art in this game is so immersive. Jakub Rozalski did an amazing job. Also, most anything from Ian O'Toole deserves a shout out...Merv, On Mars, CO2 Second Chance, Voidfall, Weather Machine, etc... BTW, Josh Wood heard the cries and delivered. There is an official solo variant by for Santa Monica on BGG.

When my friend came over (he's an illustrator) I asked him if he would like to see my art collection. Then I showed him my shelves of games! He likes game art too! I like some of the darker art like Tainted Grail or Arkham Horror but the prettiest game not on your list is Abyss. Thanks for the great video! Liked and Subscribed!

My first reason to look into a game is because i find the box beautiful and i would never back a kickstarter if i don't like the art even when i'm told that the game is awesome and everyone is backing it otherwise i would have backed encyclopedia xD. Honey buzz is so cute ! I personaly love the art of Brew and Hidden Leaders, each card have a different character and there is a lot of cards ! I'm waiting on Flamecraft and Verdant, *_*

I really appreciate all the b-roll which is much lacking in other youtuber videos :) thank you so much! please do keep up with creating more videos!

When I saw the title I immediately thought of Trekking the World. I got the game a little while back and I’m still absolutely obsessed with the artwork on the destination cards. I haven’t had a chance to look at the Parks one by the same company so I’m glad you included it in this video 💚.

The art in Stellar is very compelling. I have almost bought it more than once! Based on your choices in this video, I'm thinking you might also enjoy the art in Canopy. In Canopy, you are building your own rainforest. Have you tried the Pencil First game called Floriferous? The artist is French and the art is done in a beautiful watercolor style. Kohaku is a tile laying game with chunky tiles that you use to build your own koi fish pond. Finally, I don't know if this is your taste, but the art in Wonderland's War is very vibrant and whimsical. We're planning to get it to the table this Saturday and I'm looking forward to trying it out! As always, thanks for posting...!

I'm on the other side of the coin for this - game play over art. Mechanisms are what draw me to a game (sometimes theme).

I know this is an older video, but it was lots of fun! I love art, and as another poster said, I don't buy a game unless it's pretty/cute, and don't mind missing out on the popular games that have substandard art and graphics, because art is so important to me. I liked how you were talking about hitting 2K subs and now you are way higher. Congrats!!

Great video! Been wanting to try Santa Monica 🥰

My wife is 3/3 for picking excellent board games based on the art. It is a decent enough indicator of enjoyment. 😅

I’m also drawn to the art of games. I like watercolor painting style art; kanagawa, evolution climate and oceans, canvas, dive. Even if the gameplay is mediocre, I like to play a pretty game. Also like honey buzz, the card art but also the nectar.

Loved this video! I am definitely adding a few of these to our to buy list

Kohaku has incredible art. Waiting for the deluxe version to get back in stock because I want acrylic tiles rather than cardboard.

Cosmic Frog caught me with the funkadelic art

Great video! I absolutely love Trekking the World and Trekking the National Parks for their artwork. It may be a bit of a spoiler but I think that I may lift this idea for a video of my own. Cool list!

Yay, another great Canadian KZfaq channel! That had to have been a hard list to do judging by the game shelf behind you! I'm also totally drawn in by theme and art, then I'll check out mechanisms and gameplay! Stellar is a great quick 2 player game and has a nice solo variant on BGG. Meadow is also beautiful, I like its gameplay but I think the art and theme really make the game for me! Another I'm watching for when it comes to Canada is Planted... looks beautiful, fun and has sun and water tokens that I'm thinking may be a Parks upgrade.

Thanks for the video! Looking forward to trying some of these games. I have the game Birdwatcher and it is a set collection game with some really good art. I’ve had a lot of fun with it. It is a lighter game.

Absolutely! The artwork in a game is definitely what draws me to it! Gameplay is usually not the first thing I look at, (unless maybe the exception of puzzle or word games, but even then, the aesthetic of the game is a huge plus!) And I totally have so many games on my wishlist based solely on the artwork or aesthetic of a game. 🎨 🖼 🎨 I haven't watched the video yet, but after watching your intro, I just had to comment that. So excited to see the games you listed!

I think the art and production value of Dwellings of Eldervale is off the charts. Check that one out. It is a worker placement (including different worker types), card tableau (engine-building) game.

Art is such a great part of board games. Always like to see Similo get a shout out - the art really enhances the gameplay; and Parks is simply amazing. For small card games, both High Society and Village Green have lovely art - and I always enjoy the art in Dixit and the various spin-off games that use big tarot sized games to display mysterious and surreal images.

Jacqui Davis is amaaaaazing!

I love art, and there are some games I wish would get a reskin because of it. A couple of my favorites off the top of my head - panorama, flamecraft, and canvas!

I really enjoyed the theme for this video. Also, Dice Forge is another game that has fantastic art, I don't know if you have it in your collection. Idea for a next video: how about telling us about other games illustrated by the same artists from this selection? i'm really curious to learn more about these artists. :) Cheers,

Akrham Horror LCG has stunning artwork and I like play game and looking on cards all the time :) And I fall in love for Micro Macro art :)

Santa Monica has a solo variant on BGG and my friend Morgan says it is really good. Some great art in these games

I definitely bought Wingspan and Now or Never because they’re pretty and when I picked up the boxes they were heavy 😂. Also want Bitoku because of the art and David Turczi solo modes are really enjoyable to me. Need to try Honey Buzz, caught a little of your stream and it looked good

I love my copy of Santa Monica for the art and the game is good too! I recently picked up Caper and a little card game called Inheritors and they both have amazing artwork! Also Inis!

Great list, a couple I haven’t heard of that I must try. Battlecon, Devastation of Indines has great, sketchy anime art!

Great concept for a vid on boardgames. Art is one of the biggest reasons for collecting games. For me, it is Inis. Had to get it for the Celtic Art alone. The box and cards are very unique. Another that has always been a favorite that I won’t get rid of because of the art is Troyes. Medieval themes have always been attractive to me. Fun video, thanks.

Wow so many new games I haven’t heard of & am excited to try!! I p much require games to be pretty- if I’m going to be paying for and invest time into a game, it better be aesthetically pleasing 😂 that said, I JUST got castles of burgundy today LOL so that’s an exception to my rule Also SO GLAD to hear you’re liking PARKS solo!!!

Art is the first think I'm looking in a board game too!

Great video Jenna! But I can’t believe you left Everdell off this list! :)

YES! Great video topic. So many games I will not buy cause I can't stand the art. I want to love Tapestry so much but can't stand the mishmash of styles in it :( My top choices: Everdell, Meadow, Parks, 7 Wonders, all Elf Creek Games (Atlantis Rising, Honey Buzz, Merchants of the Dark Road), Lost Ruins of Arnak, Professor Evil and the Citadel of Time (cool underrated coop game), etc. Oh and I love anything by Vincent Dutrait. I bought the Premium Flamecraft off 401 games, they are the only ones doing pre-orders for that one. It's just for the upgrades dragons and tokens, not extra content but it's going to be my candy-game of the year ;) For Sci-fi, my fav is Terraforming Mars Ares Expedition. The realism of the drawings mixed with the realistic yet futuristic science is off the charts! Other art form with 3D that I love is Tang Garden!! If you haven't tried it, judging for your other favourites, I would give this a go! Paris is also gorgeous and with 3D elements.

oOoOoh I love all your picks! 💕 I still think you should do board-game-interpretive-dance when you got a subscriber milestone 🤪 games with art you might like that I love: - Trickerion (and upcoming Septima!!) - Spire’s End and Hildegard (for solo Sundays, brilliant character art!) - Empires of the Void 2 (goooooorgeous space art) - Raiders of Scythia (I’m sorry I keep suggesting it, but it’s so cool) little games with great art: Spicy, Elevenses, The Shipwreck Arcana ooh and do you have the Santa Monica Long Weekend expansion?? it’s so good! you can get it from their website. also, I’m in Ajax right now visiting family so I feel closer to you lol hiiiiiii 👋🏽 been thinking about visiting some southern Ontario board game cafes!

Yep I do too. I have loads of games for the artwork. El Dorado and golden temple expansion have amazing artwork on the cards… they are 2 of my favourites.

I am very guilty when it comes to buying / backing games that are gorgeous. If it catches my eye, I am drawn in; however, most of the time I will read up on it and determine if it's the right move, although there are a few that I just didn't care and bought for the art alone. On the plus side they have turned out fantastic. I don't know if you've seen all of the art for Wonderlands War, but it is whimsical and perfectly Alice. Another game that I love that is beautifully drawn is Good Puppers! It's a very new to the hobby friendly game with beautiful illustrations. Sorry, I could sit here and gush about my love for art and board games. . .

All these games look beautiful 😻

I’m a sucker for the artwork in Inis. It’s tickles a special place in my brain.

no lost ruins of arnak? the art is so good

Hello Jenna, really good pick. I do like art in Everdale, Cabo (new edition), Radlands too. And, just came on my mind, unique art is in Cave evil, maybe not for everyone, but ... :)

The most beautiful part of the whole video is the host 😍 😍

I love Parks for its artwork. Does anyone know if it has a solo mode? I do have the similar game Trails but I'd really like to play Parks solo!

Holy smokes, Encyclopedia looks gorgeous! And it looks like my type of game: I teach biology, and was always into observing and reading about animals, Darwin's expedition etc etc :)

I'm right there with you concerning art. I don't want to be too negative or put down this game too much in case it gets better with a reprint, but if you like good, unified art (by which I mean art that looks like it was all made by the same artist), I would not recommend Widget Ridge. That, along with the fairly confusing rules really put the game off for me. That being said, I ordered and should be receiving Herbaceous later today, and the art and theme make me incredibly excited to play! Anyway, yall have a nice day! :)

Nice video ! I’m also drawn mostly by the art, as I studied cinema and art, and that’s why I’d probably never buy any of these games, although Parks and Bitoku have pretty good art (I would buy them if I liked the gameplay for sure). Cuteness for cuteness is easy. I’m personally more attracted to games like Scythe and Expeditions, Etherfields (the most beautiful board game I have ever seen, just a bit expensive for me right now), Tainted Grail (same), Mysterium, Oath, Arkham Horror, a few others I forget. I like Wingspan artwork too, looks like scientific illustrations a bit. Still not sure if I should buy it though. But I’d like to see more unique art and less generic cuteness in board games in general. Just thinking that I’d love to have a game made by Dave McKean, Kent Williams or Bill Sienkiewicz for instance. I’d sell my small whole collection of board games to get one game from one of these guys.

Some of my choices are older games but I love the artwork! So let's just get this out of the way....Star Wars Legion, Rebellion, X-Wing, and Imperial Assault. I love how they didn't go "cheap" and just use movie stills. Cutesy chibi....which I usually don't like : the fractured and forgotten game Super Dungeon Explore. Brilliant artwork and I love the game boards, especially Von Drakk Manor! Asian persuasion: Tang's Garden, Hanamikoji, Takenoko, and Forbidden Fortress (Shadows of Brimstone) Pathfinder anything....I just love this for fantasy art! Abstract aesthetics: Sagrada and Azul Others : Bioshock Infinite - Siege of Columbia, Rajas of the Ganges, Relic (WH 40k version of Talisman)....not a big fun of Talisman the game, never was, but if you're going to do it play Relic! That board is simply amazing! Thank you for the video!

I backed Septima because of you! I’m so excited ☺️☺️☺️

The game that is pulling me in by the art is not yet on Kickstarter. Unconscious Mind’s art looks incredible. I don’t even know how the game plays and I’m interested.

Stellar is my favourite 2p game. Super underrated.

the aesthetics in a game is also a draw for me. a recent one that comes to mind is septima. i would get it for the art alone though probably wouldn't play it.

My biggest complaint about Paint The Roses is the artwork. The red and purple roses are very hard to tell apart, both on the tiles and on the clue sheets. The colors are too close and, while they have slightly different shapes, the images are too small. That actually turns into a meta-clue. "He's looking closely at his whim, so it must include a red or purple rose." Other than that the artwork is incredible.

Where I can get “Seize the Bean” in USA?

First off, love you videos! keep them coming! would love to see a list of favorite games to play as 2 players, since the pandemic it seems like our board game groups have all broken up haha so we play mostly just the two of us now. ALSO, you have sold me on Seize the bean, it's officially on my list, but I can't find it anywhere. Did you back it on Kickstarter?

Ashes Rise of the Phoenixborn is a game I bought on look alone. By far the most beautiful game I own.

There are so many board games coming out each year that you can't get them all. I use the art and theme as two filters to cut down on the number of games I'll consider getting. I backed Encyclopedia on KS and I managed to order Meadow when it briefly came back into stock, but my order is still waiting on a pre-ordered item.

I am the same way. It's really hard to get a game with bad art into my collection. I got interested in Feudum for the art and stayed for the sandbox euro goodness! Other tops for art for me are Root, Wingspan, Mushroom Cats, Townsfolk Tussle, Isle of Cats, Parks, and Video Vortex.

Very nice selection. I would recommend Black Angel. It's the prettiest dystopian Sci Fi game I have played. It uses vibrant colors and definitely stands out on the table. It is a worker placement/dice placement cooperative competitive game. Totally understand not getting into Kickstarters.

Great list/topic for a video. One thought: it seems that you are mostly defining art in terms of 2d pictures, like on cards. But there are many forms of art - you could consider literature art. That doesn’t apply to most rulebooks, hehe. But flavor text that is really immersive? And there are other forms of visual arts that greatly affect table-presence and many games in your list - sculpts (miniatures) and components, for example. And your listed games have them in spades, like MotDR, for example.

Splendor is my favorite!

Wingspan is right behind her 😩

Ryan laukat games for sure are always on top of my list. Andrew Bosley as well, especially Everdell. I also really like Luis Brueh, but his games are typically my style.

Creature Comforts & Brew are super cute as well. some more I find very nice too: Dixit / Detective Club / Stella / Muse / Mysterium (Park); On Mars, Kodama Forest, Colors of Kasane, Dale of Merchants, ArchRavels, Tea Dragon Society card games , Tidal Blades, Cabo, Unstable Unicorn, Wingspan, Origami, It's a Wonderful World, Tranquility, Anachrony, Yamatai, Vindication, Power Plants, Rajas of the Ganges, Oros, Namiji, Momiji, Keystone, Kabuto Sumo, Ice, Hanamikoji, Hamlet, Gugong, Forests of Pangaea, Endless Winter, Dwellings of Eldervale, Chai, Dream Home

Glow!

Sunset over Water can be played solo, too. Love Creature Comforts because the art is so cute. Personally I do be!I've that colour and components need good attractive art because it makes one want to play ! Canopy and Herbaceous are both nice. Have you played Hippocrates ? Great table-water board 😊😊😊 Anyway, I only play solo so the art of games helps to cheer me up. Thanks....more solos, p!ease. PS: With over 500 games, I do not know which games I have not played....well, more than played for sure.

Audio is unfortunately only on the right audio channel

Really enjoyed the video. Thanks for mentioning Bitoku! I bought it a while back and looking forward to playing it soon. Stunning! BUT I'm not sure why nobody has pointed out the AUDIO quality. Your voice is just coming from the right speaker and there's a very quiet background music from the left speaker. Haven't noticed this in your other videos, so hope it's a one off. Cheers!

Such a beautiful list of games! What are your thoughts on Merchants of the dark road at two player?

If you had to pick one, which would you choose for a beginner gamer

Radlands, Everdell, Imperium Classics/Legends

Art is a huge factor for me-I'm always more inclined to try a game if I find it visually appealing. The flip side is, it's all the more disappointing when the game play doesn't live up to the design. Meadow was the toughest example of this. It might be the most beautiful game I've ever played, but tried it with different people at different player counts, and every time we found ourselves comparing it unfavorably to Wingspan in terms of mechanics and depth. And when shelf space is limited, sometimes you have to make hard choices-even if it means getting rid of a gorgeous work of art! Stellar was another one that's quite beautiful, but the gameplay was a bit "meh" for us; we thought the theme and the art were hugely disconnected, and if it weren't for the space theme (which my partner LOVES) and the fact that it's such a small box, we'd probably have gotten rid of that one, too. But I would say both are definitely worth trying, at least. We're in agreement on Parks, at least! I'd also suggest checking out Abyss, Arboretum, Ghost Stories, and (if you like campaign games) Mice & Mystics. All wildly different, but all quite beautiful. And some crowdfunded games to keep an eye out for would be The Stuff of Legend, Nightmare Cathedral, and Beast. I never buy game peripherals, but Beast looked so jaw dropping that I actually added the art book to my pledge!

Im a huge sucker for pretty games. My #1 so far is dwellings of eldervale, just all around good, pretty, good solo good with 2,3,4 players. Just makes me so happy.

I can only hear audio on my right side

I think Living Forest might be available to play on Board Game Arena