Congrats on the windfall, Jeffra! The Board Game Geek Top 50 list is a good place to start. From the list I would say Wingspan, Root, and Catan are all must-haves.
A few that aren't on the list but which I would consider necessities include Uno, Ticket to Ride, Villainous, Apples to Apples, and some really basic stuff like checkers, chess, and/or go sets.
Twilight Imperium and Betrayal at House on the Hill are the two most played games our board game club uses- but those games are kind of elaborate, which is what the club likes, so they might not be the best selections for a general audience. It depends on what your collecting focus is.
For D&D- get the Starter Set and the Core Rules Set and then monitor to see whether the popularity warrants additional purchasing in the future. Between those two sets, you've got the essentials.
You can also see a bunch of other librarian game recommendations on the GameRT Blog - look for the monthly "GameRT Recommends" feature.
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Elizabeth Brown
Outreach & Instruction Librarian
University of Colorado, Colorado Springs
She/Her/Hers
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Original Message:
Sent: Apr 12, 2023 08:26 PM
From: Jeffra Bussmann
Subject: Popular Tabletop Games at Your University/College Library?
Hi all,
I suddenly have $500 to spend in buying tabletop games over the next few weeks. I wonder if any of you would be willing to share your top 10-15 most popularly checked out or used tabletop games?
Additionally, I am thinking of spending some of this money on a D&D Starter Kit set. Any recommendations for how/what to put into this?
Thanks so much!
Jeffra
--
Jeffra Diane Bussmann (she/her/hers), MLIS
Associate Librarian
Liaison to Chemistry/Biochemistry, Mathematics, Physics
and the Institute for STEM Education
Interim Liaison to Earth & Environmental Sciences,
and Engineering
California State University, East BayUniversity Library
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Hayward, CA 94542
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