| Top 10 Easy-to-Find Games of 2010 Jan 8th 2012, 11:04 Saving priceless treasures from a sinking island. Traveling across North and South America. Building a tower of words. Sumo wrestling with hamsters. Conjuring up adventure with Harry Potter. It's all possible with the games on this list, which can be found in good local toy stores, or in mass-market retailers like Toys R Us, Target, and Barnes & Noble. Here are my picks for the best easy-to-find games of 2010. What do you think were the best new easy-to-find games of 2010? Please share your thoughts here! You might also be interested in my picks for the best board games of 2010 and the best card games of 2010.) 
Image courtesy of GamewrightFor 2 to 4 players, ages 8 and up. Designed by Matt Leacock, published by Gamewright. In this cooperative game from the designer of Pandemic, players work together to save four treasures from a sinking island. The 24 tiles of the island are laid out randomly, and each player is given a role (diver, engineer, explorer, messenger, navigator, or pilot) with a unique power. As the game progresses, players collect cards to claim the treasures while the island sinks around them. When the treasures are in hand, our heroes must race to meet the helicopter and fly away before the island is gone. There are four difficulty levels, and many games come down to the last possible moment. Forbidden Island is the best family game I've played in many years. 
Image courtesy of North Star GamesFor 3 to 10 players, ages 8 and up. Designed by Dominic Crapuchettes, published by North Star Games. The original Wits & Wagers is one of my favorite games. This edition, which can be played with some children as young as six, features simplified rules and scoring plus 300 family-friendly questions (e.g., "How many different colors of Fruit Loops are there?"). Players each write down a guess, and the answers are sorted. Using two meeples (one worth one point, the other two), players then bet on the answer(s) they believe are right. The player whose answer is closest and everyone who bet on that answer score points. Wits & Wagers Family is perfect for parents and kids to play together. 
Image courtesy of USAopolyFor 4 to 8 players (best with 8), ages 10 and up. Designer not credited (based on the Telephone Game), published by USAopoly.
This is a fantastic game for families and friends. Each player has a dry-erase sketch pad and starts the game by drawing a picture to represent a word or phrase (randomly selected from a card). The pads are then passed one player to the right; that person flips the page and writes down a guess of what was drawn. The next player draws the new word or phrase and so on until every pad is back where it started. There are rules for scoring, but the real fun is revealing the bizarre and hilarious paths that seemingly every sketch pad takes. Every time I've played, I nearly wound up on the floor from laughing so hard. 
Image courtesy of Out of the Box PublishingFor 2 to 4 players, ages 10 and up. Designed by Alan R. Moon and Aaron Weissblum, published by Out of the Box Publishing. This is the fifth entry in the 10 Days... series, after Africa, Asia, Europe, and the USA. This time, travelers are developing an itinerary for a 10-day journey through North America, South America, and the Caribbean. The goal is to be the first to create a legal travel plan by placing 10 tiles in the appropriate order in your rack. You can walk between adjacent countries, fly between countries of the same color (with the right airplane), or cruise between two countries (with the right waterway tiles). I strongly recommend 10 Days in the Americas -- or any of the series -- to families who enjoy light strategy games. 
Image courtesy of HasbroFor 1 or more players, ages 8 and up. Designer not credited, published by Hasbro.
Scrabble Flash, known as Boggle Flash outside the United States, shines in its creative use of technology. In the main game ("Flash"; two others are included), players race to form as many words as possible in 75 seconds, sliding the innovative electronic Scrabble Flash blocks into position. The letters on the five blocks change each game, and by using "SmartLink" technology, the blocks recognize when a word has been formed, beeping and flashing. The blocks also keep the time and score, telling players at the end of each round how many words they formed and how many were possible. Word game fans who are also technophiles need to buy this game. 
Image courtesy of ZimZala GamesFor 2 to 4 players, ages 10 and up. Designed by Forrest-Pruzan Creative, published by ZimZala Games.
Whoever decided to combine a word game with a dexterity / building game is a genius. Play begins by placing the 26 oversized letter shapes in a circle and setting a pawn between any two of them. The first player rolls a die, moves the pawn, and chooses one of the letters on either side to start a tower of letters. Subsequent players must build up by using the notches and plugs on the letters; you score points by forming a word. If the tower falls on your turn, you lose points. Konexi is a flat-out fun word game. Another new word game worth your consideration is Lexigo (from independent publisher Wiggles 3D). 
Image courtesy of Wizards of the Coast / HasbroFor 2 players, ages 8 and up. Designed by Colby Dauch, Rob Daviau, Chris Dupuis, Jerry Hawthorne, Peter Lee, and Craig Van Ness, published by Wizards of the Coast / Hasbro. Although 2010 marked the end of the line for HeroScape, it's hard to complain too loudly when fans of the game have been treated to so many base sets and expansions through the years, including the 2010 release of this new Dungeons and Dragons-themed base set and three additional waves of D&D-themed expansions. That's 42 new heroes and nine new squads. Battle for the Underdark itself comes with 10 figures, 55 terrain pieces (including new "shadow" tiles) and more. This is a worthy addition to any serious Heroscaper's collection and a decent introduction for new players. 
Image courtesy of HasbroFor 2 to 4 players, ages 8 and up. Designed by Rudell Design, published by Hasbro.
Nab-It! is played without a game board and challenges players to create words in a crossword style, using colorful, interlocking plastic tiles that can also be stacked to form new words. Each player has a different color, and at the end of the game each word is worth a single point -- but only the player who placed the most tiles on the highest level of each word scores. (If there is a tie, all tied players score.) Nab-It! is another excellent option for word game fans. 
Image courtesy of LegoFor 2 to 4 players, ages 8 and up. Designed by Cephas Howard, published by Lego.
First, it must be said that this game has an incredible look. When it's set up, the four corner flags and the tower in the middle of the board are impressive. And the Lego die is awesome, with faces that are customizable and rubber edges that make it very bouncy. The gameplay does not disappoint either. Players move around the board as classrooms and hallways shift, trying to collect what they need to complete their homework and return to the starting room. Other new games published by Lego in 2010 include Creationary, Minotaurus, and Lava Dragon. 
Image courtesy of GamewrightFor 2 to 4 players, ages 8 and up. Designed by Mary Jo Reutter, published by Gamewright.
Sumo wrestling hamsters. Need I say more? Maybe just a bit... This is a very simple, very quick game that will mostly appeal to children. But it can also be surprisingly addictive for adults who don't find the idea of controlling a sumo wrestling hamster to be too silly. The heavyset hamsters are magnetically connected to sticks that players move beneath the elevated game board to knock their opponent's rodent out of the circle. Some hamsters will earn the right to eat, making them heavier and more difficult to defeat.  | |
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