Let's kick off another round-up of game-related links with the announcement of the 2026 winners of The American Tabletop Awards. In each of four categories, the ATTA jury names one winner, two recommended titles that have second billing, and two nominated titles. The winners for 2026 are:
- Early Gamers: Magical Athlete, by Richard Garfield, Takashi Ishida, and CMYK
- Casual Games: Hot Streak, by Jon Perry and CMYK
- Strategy Games: The Lord of the Rings: Fate of the Fellowship, by Matt Leacock and Z-Man Games
- Complex Games: Molly House, by Jo Kelly, Cole Wehrle, and Wehrlegig Games
Check out the ATTA website for the 2026 recommended and nominated games.
▪️ On April 30, 2026, the National Museum of Natural History in Wasington, DC will host "An Evening With Elizabeth Hargrave: Sanibel Board Game Night" ahead of the June 30, 2026 opening of an exhibit titled "From These Lands: Sharing Our Natural and Cultural Heritage". Here's a description of the event:
We'll feature a conversation with NMNH experts and game designer Elizabeth Hargrave, access to Sant Ocean Hall, and a chance to play the new game. NMNH paleobiologist Stewart Edie will moderate a discussion between Hargrave and NMNH research zoologist Chris Meyer about place-based affinity for nature, the art and science of collecting, and the biodiversity of marine ecosystems along America's coastlines.
Registration is free and encouraged since space is filled on a first come, first served basis.
▪️ The April 10, 2026 episode of the podcast Climate One, titled "Press Start: Video Games and the Climate Crisis", featured Matt Leacock and Matteo Menapace's Daybreak alongside designs that are, in fact, video games.
▪️ Japanese publisher Engames and company president Takafumi Sugiki are featured in an April 11, 2026 article on Nikkei Asia. The article states that 11,000 copies of Nokosu Dice have been sold to date, with Engames preparing "to conclude contracts with agents in 12 countries, including the U.S., Germany and France, with the aim of selling a total of 45,000 sets". (Registration is required to read this article.)
An excerpt from the article:
Board games popular in Japan tend to be different from those popular overseas. While easy-to-play games sell well in Japan, overseas board game fans tend to seek out games with complicated rules and plots. With this in mind, Sugiki noted, Engames works to adjust their rules and features to better match global demand.
▪️ On Opinionated Gamers, Larry Levy has posted his 2025 "Designer of the Year" award, with the award intended to "honor the board game designer who had the best overall body of work over the previous calendar year". Any guesses before you look?
▪️ I just ran across a December 24, 2025 post by Ree Drummond, a.k.a. The Pioneer Woman, that touts Codenames, while giving little information about the gameplay.
It's interesting to see the teasery title — "Ree Drummond Has A New Favorite Board Game For Hilariously Competitive Family Game Nights" — and the pics that focus on silliness and personalities more than anything else. For a gamer, such an article is near worthless...but for folks who just play games and don't bear that label, I'm sure this article got many of them curious to give it a try.
▪️ On February 18, 2026 on McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, Joe Wellman offered "Board Game Developer's Notes During the First Playtest of Jumanji". An excerpt:
• Turn up sadism levels in monkeys. Antics are WAY too on the playful side. Don’t be afraid to go overboard here either. I'd rather have them throwing knives and stealing police cars than — Jesus — tickling each other.
• Giant flesh-eating plants went smoothly. Creeped into the room through the ceiling and power outlets, went straight for the weakest player, players fought back with fireplace tools / wept uncontrollably. THIS is the kind of fantastical violence and emotional distress I envisioned.
• Monsoon was incredible. Water nearly reached the ceiling, players had to climb atop a chandelier and fend off alligators with a dining chair. This is the beauty of playtesting: You spend so much time dreaming up these zoological horrors, but never know what kind of furniture players will try to beat them to death with.
