One evening, 30 guests and far too many games
12/6/2026
Translation: machine translated
Pictures: Eveline Jordi
Our community team organised a board game night. Around 30 guests spent five hours playing party games, games for connoisseurs, classics and new releases. We laughed, chatted and, now and then, swore a bit.
Friday evening, just before 5 pm. At the «BREAK» in Zurich’s Kreis 5, the first game boxes are already on the tables. Our community team has invited around 30 people from the Galaxus community. They shop with us, read our content, leave comments or are involved with our platform in other ways.
On the tables lie stacks of cards, tiles, pens, instructions – and that brief moment of uncertainty that accompanies almost every games evening: Where shall I sit? What shall we play? And who’s going to explain the game to me? After three minutes, I realise anyway: I’ve only understood half of it.
Which game first?
With so many games, I hardly know where to start. «Dito!», «Morty Sorty Magic Shop», «Boss Fighters QR», «Moon Colony Bloodbath», «The Island of the Mookies», «Flip 7», «Castle Combo», «Got Five!», «Frantic», «Krakel Orakel», «Tichu», «Faraway», «Sky Team», «Sattgrün», «Take Time» and many more titles are available. Should I stick to one game all evening or switch every 30 minutes? I’ll switch.
First think like the others, then play a game
First I’ll play «Me too!». The game is a great way to get started. Nobody has to spend ages explaining the rules, and yet everyone gets chatting straight away. You choose terms that as many players as possible will also choose. Or at least ones that are similar enough. It sounds simple, but it quickly shows just how differently people think. What’s obvious to one person might seem completely absurd to the next. That’s what makes it funny.
Later, «Flip 7» ends up on the table. The rules are quickly grasped, the game moves swiftly and escalates just as quickly. One more card is fine. Maybe two. Perhaps it’s better not to. Nevertheless, someone is constantly going for more. Sometimes it goes wrong. Everyone at the table knows: the risk can be foolish. Never mind.
Frantic remains Frantic
After that, we’ll play the «Frantic» board game. Anyone familiar with «Frantic» knows what the group is in for: schadenfreude, nasty cards, bad decisions and the faint hope that it’ll hit someone else harder than it hits you. The board game is reminiscent of the card game, but doesn’t simply scale it up. On the table, more elements interplay, and the dynamics remain chaotic.
At «Faraway», calm descends. At least on the surface. Inside, the whole table is doing the maths. At first, the game seems harmless, but it soon turns out to be a brainteaser. You lay out cards from left to right and later score them from right to left. A clever move can end up amounting to nothing, or vice versa. After the first game, someone often says: «Now I’ve got it – let’s play again.»
Don’t tick things off – get hooked
Anyone playing here doesn’t have to tick off as long a list as possible. You sit down at a table, learn a rule, make mistakes together and have a laugh about them. Some rounds are noisy, others require concentration. Some groups discuss, others just react. In between, guests eat and drink, pick up the next game or watch what’s happening at the neighbouring table.
The mix is particularly lovely. Alongside well-known titles such as «Codenames», «Skip-Bo», «Machi Koro», «Tichu» or «Skull King», the latest releases are also available. Several of these are in the running for the Game of the Year, Connoisseur’s Game of the Year or Children’s Game of the Year. The evening will feature a mix of new releases and classics. Just like at an open buffet, players can choose between light-hearted, tactical, silly, mean-spirited, calm or completely over-the-top games.
Comments turn into conversations
Five hours later, nobody has tried every game. With this selection, that would be unrealistic. But the rounds provide stories: someone wins by a narrow margin, someone makes completely wrong connections between terms, someone plays an unnecessarily risky card. And time and again, people who may previously have known each other only from the comments section find themselves laughing together.
In the end, one thing remains clear: board games aren’t just about rules, mechanics and attractive components. They bring people together around a table. On «‘Who can explain it briefly?’» is quickly followed by ‘ «’ ‘Another round?’».
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Header image: Eveline Jordi
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