One of the most prestigious awards in board gaming is given out every year by a jury of German-speaking game critics from Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. The Spiel des Jahres (German for “Game of the Year”) has been awarded each year since 1978 to games released in Germany over the preceding 12 months, and is an indication of the prominence of Germany in the rise of Eurogames since the 1990s. The Spiel des Jahres fueled some of that rise, drawing the attention of German gamers to new games that then broke out into the global market, such as Settlers of Catan, the winner for 1995. Many other winners went on to become classics and remain in print, such as Ticket to Ride, Dominion, Tikal, Carcassonne, and Azul.
The appeal of the award is not just in its recognition of quality design, but also in its focus on less complex, family-style games. Games with complex rules, role-playing games, miniatures and collectible card games, and wargames aren’t included in the main awards, so the winners tend to be more accessible to a wider audience. The focus is on playability and clarity, as well as design. To balance that focus on the middle of the
