If you aren’t deep into the weeds of the board game scene, you may not realize just how many flippin’ board games come out each year. While with video games you may have to scroll through a list of, say, a hundred or so games, board game releases are far more nebulous. Right now, over on Board Game Geek–the massive repository and forum of the hobby, and generally considered the best source for info in the hobby–there are somewhere in the region of 2,500 games and expansions listed with a release date of “2026”. I took a gander through the 25 pages of 100 entries and picked out 15 standout upcoming board games that I am very excited to (hopefully) get to my table sometime this year, and that I think folks may be interested in, too.
Brass: Pittsburgh
The third entry, following the original Brass (Lancashire) and the immensely popular Brass: Birmingham, is moving the series from across the pond over to the USA during the industrial Golden Age of the 19th century. While details are still rather sparse on what new mechanics will be found in Pittsburgh, you can expect another stellar management game as you grow your rails, make deals, build up your system, and become the ruthless industrial powerhouse you’ve always wanted to be.
Avalon: The Riven Veil
Based on the Arthurian Legend, in Avalon: The Riven Veil from Shadowborne Games, you will be taking control of various factions, such as the Fey, Guinevere and the Knights of the Round Table, Merlin and the Druids, and many more, as you contend to capture territory and reveal the mists that shroud the mystical land of Avalon. With a clever mix of card play and territory control, with a map that changes and must be rediscovered each round, Avalon has a lot going for it. Shadowborne Games made a hit with their previous game, Oathsworn, and Avalon looks like it will be one of the standout games being released in 2026. Offering a whole lot of game and intense gaming nights in your future.
World Order
Publisher Hegemonic Project Games has a penchant for creating mechanically deep, historically topical, and thought-provoking games, with their previous release, Hegemony, putting players in the role of the various social classes of the United States vying for their own goals. With their next game, World Order, they are taking their approach of teaching by playing to the world stage, with each player assuming the role of a global superpower as everyone needs to utilize diplomacy and leverage their country’s economic and military strength to expand influence across the globe. World Order looks to be quite the heavy game, but if you have the right group and like heavily strategic games, then World Order may just be the game for you.
DC Super Heroes United
Take control of a cast of some of the DC Universe’s strongest heroes like Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman to thwart the evil machinations of the likes of Darkside, Joker, and others in this cooperative title from CMON. Based on their incredibly fun and accessible Marvel United system, DC United offers a wonderful suite of content that will be a blast to play regardless of your experience in the board gaming hobby. With tons of different combinations and expansions packed full of other teams of characters, villains, and more, DC Super Heroes United should be on your radar if you are a fan of either DC or cooperative board games!
Everdell Emerland
The adorable critters of Everdell are back in a brand new title with Everdell Emerland from publisher Tycoon Games. The Everdell games are superb workerplacement and engine-building titles that have proven time and time again to be great additions to anyone’s game collection, thanks to the plethora of expansions and other standalone editions that have released since the original game back in 2018. Emeralds takes the woodland critters and heads into the tropical jungle where you will be able to place your workers around as usual, but the new ability to upgrade cards and the inclusion of the randomness from dice offer some new twists that will keep things exciting for longtime residents of Everdell when Emerland releases later this year.
Twilight Struggle: 20th Anniversary Hall of Fame Edition
Twilight Struggle: 20th Anniversary Hall of Fame Edition
Twilight Struggle is a beloved board game that delivers an intricate and entertaining look at the Cold War, and 2026 marks its 20th anniversary, so GMT Games is releasing a brand new special edition to celebrate the event. This new version of the card-driven game features a number of new inclusions that include a double-sided map with both the classic and new maps for players to play on, a new alternate scenario, and other popular variants, all in the box. For fans of history and the Cold War, grab a friend and pick up a copy of Twilight Struggle: 20th Anniversary Hall of Fame Edition.
Star Trek Ascendancy: Final Frontier
Star Trek Ascendancy: Final Frontier
Star Trek Ascendancy from publisher Gale Force Nine put players in the chairs of the starships from across the Federation, their allies, and foes in an intergalactic war game back in 2016. Now, ten years later, Gale Force Nine is back with an updated complete edition with new races, revamped gameplay, and more ways to play with Star Trek Ascendancy: The Final Frontier. Fan-favorite Gorn, Tholians, and Terran Empire join the existing roster of the Ferengi, Cardassians, Vulcans, Andorian, Borg, Breen, Romulan, Klingon, and Federation forces. For Trek-y and 4X board game aficionados, Final Frontier will be a game that you will want to beam up onto your game table.
Vampire Survivors: The Board Game
Vampire Survivors: The Board Game
In the world of indie games, few video games in the past few years exploded in quite the same way as Vampire Survivors, and now you will be able to fend off waves of the undead in a new way with Vampire Survivors: The Board Game, published by Grey Fox Games. Featuring the same iconic art from the video game, you and your friends will be working together to try and survive against waves of enemies, working to power yourselves up while taking on bosses, all in an effort to prepare for the eventual arrival of the Reaper.
Cyberpunk Legends
Publisher Night Crew Games is bringing the narrative focus of the world of Cyberpunk and turning it into a cooperative card game that you and your friends will get to play later this year with Cyberpunk Legends. With multiple scenarios you can play through, each with different paths and backgrounds, you can explore what gives Cyberpunk Legends its replayability. Cyberpunk Legends has the added benefit of having Mike Pondsmith, the creator of Cyberpunk, actively involved in the game’s development, so whether you are looking for a new game to play with your friends or even tackle solo, keep an eye on Cyberpunk Legends.
Arkham Horror Living Card Game – Chapter 2
Fantasy Flight Games is releasing a brand-new core box of their highly successful Arkham Horror Living Card Game this year, introducing the first of the new evergreen content and truly kicking off the game’s new cadence of releases. The Arkham Horror LCG is a great game to play with friends or on your own as you investigate and fight your way through scenarios and narrative adventures, all the while improving your deck of cards with new weapons and abilities to help you tackle the eldritch horrors that wait in the shadows. Compatible with existing sets, this new core set will be a fantastic starting point for anyone who has wanted to jump on the Arkham train.
Imperial Borders: The Congress of Vienna
The latest game from the wargame legend, Larry Harris Jr. – the creator of the legendary Axis & Allies games – Imperial Borders, is nearly upon us, and anyone whose a fan of strategic war games should take note. Published by Nightingale Games, who worked with Harris on War Games, Imperial Borders shifts the conflict from World Wars to 1815 and the Congress of Vienna in Austria as you plot, scheme, and negotiate to grasp victory and dominance of the region in this alternate history. This game is massive, so hopefully you have a big table ready!
Munchkin: Vox Machina
Munchkin is one of those classic “must have” sort of games that folks should have at least one copy of on their game shelf. It’s silly tried-and-true gameplay of fighting monsters, making uneasy truces, and sticking it to your friends at the last minute have all helped this series stick around since the first edition released back in 2001. This year sees the release of a Critical Role Campaign 1 variant that highlights the characters and foes of Vox Machina and pairs it with the gameplay Munchkin fans have enjoyed for over two decades. Munchkin is a great sort of game to introduce to your non-board gaming friends, and with the gorgeous art and the pop culture appeal of Vox Machina, make this one game to keep an eye on.
The Game Makers
Never doubt the ability of board game designers to make a game based on any topic, including making board games themselves. The Game Makers is a simultaneous worker placement game where you and the other players are all working to create the best board games from a list of 300 real board games to earn points based on the type of games you are producing. To build these games, you will be picking up resources from the middle of the spinning rondel and using them to create the same games that may be living on your actual game shelf. The Game Makers is a heavier game and features a theme that (if you’re reading this list) we can all support: board games.
Honor’s End
Known for a wide variety of competitive games like Mythic Mischief, the occasionally cooperative Moonrakers, or their hidden roles game, such as Veiled Fates, IV Studios is stepping deep into the cooperative pond with the narrative-driven Honor’s End. In this deck-building game, you and your friends take on the roles of knights as you fight off foes and navigate through an intricate tale where your choices matter, and rolls of dice will determine your fate. With the same high-quality fans have come to expect from the studio, Honor’s End looks to be a fresh new adventure for new and returning fans alike.
Black Rose Wars: Revised
Sling spells as powerful wizards in this new edition of the Black Rose Wars series from Ludus Magnus Studio. Players will construct decks of powerful spells from various schools in an effort to defeat rival spellcasters, completing quests, earning the most points, and becoming the new head of the Black Rose Wars guild. As you move around the randomly-generated tiled layout of the Lodge, you will be summoning magical creatures and dealing with the constant struggle of not only the other players, but the living will of the Black Rose itself, which can earn its own points and take you out just the same. The Black Rose Wars games are high-action, customization, and replayability,y and a must-watch for fans of dueling board games.
