What time of year is it? “Summer?” you ask. “Campaign Game Season!”

Currently ranked #1 on Board Game Geek

Campaign games are great for a group of friends who want another reason to get together. These games are defined by multiple play sessions with the same people and a group storytelling experience. Some examples of these games are Gloomhaven, Pandemic Legacy, and Betrayal Legacy, the sequel to the popular Betrayal at House on the Hill. Yes, you heard that right. Betrayal Legacy is a game that exists! Betrayal at House on the Hill is a game for adventurers who like to explore and defeat monsters. Betrayal Legacy was released November of 2019, and it is a great spin on the original Betrayal at House on the Hill, as it plays the same mechanics while just creating a story line of characters repeating in future games and adding another layer of complexity for future plays.

A question that ran through my mind before writing this was, “what is the difference between a campaign game and a legacy game?” For this answer I had to go to my board game expert friends. After hearing from them and looking through the internet, what I have learned is:

Legacy: played with the same group of people, with a storyline that unfolds over many plays of the game, though once the campaign is over, the game is not replayable.

Campaign: played with the same group of people, with a storyline that unfolds over many plays of the game BUT the game can be played afterward.

Legacy games are well known for tearing up cards and destroying pieces once they are no longer required in the game, but this includes pieces that may be required if you attempt at playing the game again after the legacy is complete. Legacy games are often also campaign games, but not all campaign games are legacy games. In campaign games, changes can be undone, and you can reset the game or campaign at any time.

Charterstone is a campaign game that I am a huge fan of and highly recommend. You still get to unfold a story with your friends, and as you do so, you build a board. Don’t worry, this is not a spoiler. It is an assumption you will automatically make as soon as you open the board. Given that you are building a board, you will have a unique board at the close of your game. Not only will your board be unique after the campaign, but at any time if you want to play this game just for fun, which you can play through it even in the middle of the campaign. The board is completely useable in-between campaign plays, which is a unique feature of Charterstone.

As heavy as some of these games may sound, there are family friendly campaign games! Stuffed Fables is a fun game where you play as stuffed animals trying to save the little girl who owns them from all of the monsters under the bed. This is a family-friendly dice rolling game, with a bit of strategy but has a great storyline that kids will love.

Campaign games are the ideal reason to get together with friends. They come in all range of levels, all story types and for all group sizes. Here are other great campaign games to check out: Mice and Mystics, Near and Far, Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective, T.I.M.E. Stories, and many more. Have fun!