2019 – Diamond Climber Board Game Award Winners

2019 was a hell of a year for board games.

We went birding with Wingspan, a Kennerspiel des Jahres winning board game from first time designer Elizabeth Hargrave; one which also received writeups in the New York Times, Nature, and the Smithsonian Magazine. We re-created Frankenstein’s monster in Abomination: Heir of Frankenstein. We acted as Afghani power brokers in the 19th century in Pax Pamir 2nd Edition. And we ate our salad…lots of Point Salad.

Meeple Mountain is now in our 5th year and we’re thrilled to have the privilege of bringing reviews and articles to you about all facets of board gaming. Our writing team has spent the past two months working on our official nominees, and in early December we also began collecting votes for the fan favorites. We’re particularly proud of the time we spent working through the nomination and voting process for this year’s awards.

So without further ado please join me in congratulating the winners of the 2019 Diamond Climber board game awards.

• Best Reprint Game
• Best Coop Game
• Best Artwork
• Best Light Game
• Best Kickstarter Game
• Best Family Game
• Best RPG
• Best Thematic Game
• Best Gateway Game
• Best Import Game
• Best Expansion
• Best Two Player Game
• Best Euro Game
• Game of the Year

Best Reprint

Dune
	Best Reprint Nominees Age of Steam Bus The Castles of Burgundy Dune Irish Gauge Q.E.
Fan Favorite Winner: Dune

Best Coop

Horrified
	Best Coop Nominees Adventure Games: The Dungeon Cthulhu: Death May Die Horrified Letter Jam Marvel Champions: The Card Game Zombie Kidz Evolution
Fan Favorite Winner: Letter Jam Read our review of Letter Jam.

Best Artwork

Wingspan
	Best Artwork Nominees Bosk Detective: City of Angels PARKS Vast: The Mysterious Manor Wingspan
Fan Favorite Winner: PARKS Read our review of PARKS.

Best Light Game

Point Salad
	Best Light Game Nominees Draftosaurus Letter Jam Point Salad Silver & Gold Sushi Roll Traffic Jam
Fan Favorite Winner: Point Salad

Best Kickstarter

Awkward Guests
	Best Kickstarter Nominees Awkward Guests Bargain Quest City of the Big Shoulders Paladins of the West Kingdom Q.E. Suburbia: Collector’s Edition
Fan Favorite Winner: Tainted Grail: Fall of Avalon

Best Family Game

Tiny Towns
	Best Family Game Nominees Letter Jam PARKS Slide Quest Tiny Towns Tuki Wingspan
Fan Favorite Winner: PARKS Read our review of PARKS.

Best RPG

Star Crossed
	Best RPG Nominees A Town Called Malice Alien: The Roleplaying Game For the Queen Pathfinder 2nd Edition The Expanse Roleplaying Game Star Crossed
Fan Favorite Winner: The Expanse & Pathfinder 2nd Edition

Best Thematic Game

Horrified
	Best Thematic Game Nominees Adventure Games: The Dungeon Detective: City of Angels Horrified MegaCity: Oceania Warehouse 13 Wingspan
Fan Favorite Winner: Tainted Grail: Fall of Avalon

Best Gateway Game

Tiny Towns
	Best Gateway Game Nominees Foodies Horrified Point Salad Tiny Towns Wavelength Wingspan
Fan Favorite Winner: Wingspan Read our review of Wingspan.

Best Import Game

Silver & Gold
	Best Import Game Nominees In Front of the Elevators Nine Tiles Panic Silver & Gold The Crew: The Quest for Planet Nine Tokyo Tsukiji Market Trails of Tucana
Fan Favorite Winner(s): Silver & Gold and Nine Tiles Panic Read our review of Silver & Gold. Read our review of Nine Tiles Panic.

Best Expansion

The Quacks Of Quedlinburg: The Herb Witches
	Best Expansion Nominees Barenpark: The Bad News Bears Inis: Seasons of Inis PitchCar Extension 7: The Loop The Quacks Of Quedlinburg: The Herb Witches War Chest Nobility Wingspan: European Expansion
Fan Favorite Winner: The Quacks Of Quedlinburg: The Herb Witches Read our review of The Quacks Of Quedlinburg.

Best Two Player

SHŌBU
	Best Two Player Nominees Football Highlights 2052 Imhotep: the Duel Mandala Moon Base SHŌBU Watergate
Fan Favorite Winner: Watergate

Best Euro

Paladins of the West Kingdom
	Best Euro Nominees City of the Big Shoulders Nova Luna Paladins of the West Kingdom The Magnificent The Taverns of Tiefenthal Tokyo Tsukiji Market
Fan Favorite Winner: Wingspan Read our review of Wingspan.

Game of the Year

Wingspan
	Game of the Year Nominees Clank Legacy: Acquisitions Incorporated Detective: City of Angels Horrified Marvel Champions: The Card Game The Taverns of Tiefenthal Wingspan
Fan Favorite Winner: Wingspan Read our review of Wingspan.