Essen 2026: nine boxes already catching my eye (and it's only a starter)

The other night, instead of sleeping, I was scrolling through publishers' Essen announcements. Bad idea for bedtime, great idea for what comes next: three months out, the first boxes are surfacing, and I already have an itch of a list. So I might as well share this first sort, hot off the press.

One honest note before we dive in: this is a very first selection, based on what I've managed to catch of the announced releases. It's not a ranking, and definitely not the final list. Some titles are missing, of course, and plenty more will surface before October (Essen hits over 1,700 new releases some years, so we've only seen the tip of the iceberg). I'll be back with updates at the 2-months mark, then the 1-month mark, as the announcements pour in over summer and autumn. Treat this page as a living one.

The show in brief: SPIEL Essen, 22 to 25 October 2026, at Messe Essen (Germany). To grasp the beast, the 2025 edition drew 220,000 visitors from over 80 countries, 948 exhibitors and 1,716 new releases. In short, the biggest board game gathering in the world. And the 2026 exhibition space is already sold out, if you needed a sign it's going to be packed.

Nine games, then, grouped by publisher. In no order of preference: this is my first pick, not a leaderboard.

Click here to Essen Spiel !

Devir brings a trio (and not a random one)

The Spanish publisher shows up with three titles aimed at three different cravings, and it's here that I find my biggest curiosities.

Let's start with Gaudí, my number-one glance. After Barcelona, Dani Garcia stays in Catalonia but turns to the architect who shaped the city. On your turn, you move around a central board to grab tiles and trigger actions, scoring across three pillars: Nature, Catalonia, Religion. The clever twist, the one that reels me in: only your two lowest scores count at the end. No charging headfirst into one color; you have to balance, like assembling stained glass. The tile-laying even echoes the trencadís, Gaudí's signature broken mosaic. On paper, vintage Garcia: elegant, tense, nicely thematic.

• 

• 

• 

Still at Devir, still Dani Garcia, but in a more mysterious register: Niraya. The central idea is gorgeous. You're both the archaeologist unearthing the remains of a lost forest civilization, and a member of that civilization being unearthed. Your present self and your past self can cooperate across the centuries. A dual-role concept I haven't seen often, and it looks promising. A cautious caveat: the specs are still fuzzy and the release date wavers between late 2026 and 2027 depending on the source. Worth watching, with no guarantee it'll be on the tables by October.

The third is Shugendo, and here you have my full attention: Simone Luciani doing push-your-luck is not something I turn down. Each round runs in three beats (Reveal, Action, Recruitment). You flip cards from your deck to build your community (farms, wells, that sort of thing), until you stop or "explode" by revealing one yōkai too many. Tense press-your-luck wrapped in a sacred-mountain Japanese theme, with Jorge Monlongo's unmistakable art. A 50-60 minute footprint: the "smart late-night" pick of the trio.

Czech Games Edition digs deep (literally)

When CGE puts out a box, I look, almost by reflex. Drillers sends you piloting mechs through an abandoned mine to extract whatever a forgotten mining corporation left behind. Under the theme sits a deck-building engine where you mine, upgrade your gear and juggle resources. The real hook is the shared resource system: every decision you make creates opportunities and headaches for everyone around the table. The 30 to 120 minute range hints at scalable depth. In short, a CGE that seems to own its complexity without tripping over it.

Cranio Creations bets on the double-life card

Second Luciani on the list (the man is everywhere this year), but far lighter: Minikin City, co-designed with Matthieu Verdier. A clever card game where each card leads a double life. Its colors and values pay off immediately, while its icons and effects only score at game end, provided you've placed enough minikins on them. Thirty minutes, 2 to 5 players: the twitchy optimization Luciani can do in his sleep. Perfect to open or close a game night. Personally, it's the freshness that wins me over, in both its design and its mechanics: the kind of small format that lightens up a table without any fuss.

Feuerland goes big (with a big box)

Uwe Rosenberg's house is aiming for a hefty one: Greenwood. You play an ancient spirit leading a band of companions to free the forest's mystical creatures from the druids' clutches. The component list sets the tone: 151 unique cards, over 200 wooden pieces, four clan boards, each with a special power in the advanced game. An off-beat bestiary (Night Stalkers, Crystal Stags, you get the picture) and Feuerland-grade depth. Note: it goes through crowdfunding on Gamefound first, so the real thing to watch here is the delivery timeline.

Pink Troubadour bets on botany

A Eurogame devoted to the father of taxonomy took some nerve: Carl von Linné, by Michal Peichl. You explore remote regions, collect and study rare specimens, cultivate a botanical garden, correspond with learned institutions and publish influential works. Every action feeds two currencies, reputation and knowledge, that decide the winner. The hook is its "lens" system: you constantly trade off between fieldwork and academic study. The rulebook is already online, a sign of a mature project. An erudite, original theme, exactly the kind of bet I love seeing land at Essen. I'll admit it really pulls me in, but it also looks quite demanding. So I'm holding my final verdict until I can get it onto a table at a festival.

Albi rebuilds a dreamlike Prague

We cross paths with Michal Peichl again (told you, he's everywhere), this time co-credited on Prague Unseen. An ambitious game, 120 minutes stated, about a reimagined Prague you rebuild with the help of mythical creatures. Mechanical detail is still thin at this stage, but the Czech DNA is there: strong heritage theme, polished art by Jindřich Pavlásek, long format. A serious pick for fans of big themed Euros. I'll dig in as soon as the specs firm up.

Roc Nest Games slips in the feel-good note

Every selection needs one, and Smallfolk takes the job. A light, cozy tableau-builder by Gloria Lau and Alfie Wright. You travel the world, visit wonders and explore each region's folk tales to build your own little mythology. Gentle strategy, warm art, family-plus footprint. The kind of title that won't make hardcore headlines but always finds a spot on the table. I won't pretend to be neutral here: I'm a fan of tableau builders, and this art direction completely wins me over. That one is very high on my personal radar. Kickstarter-born, European distribution still to be confirmed.

Verdict (provisional, and that's the point)

Honestly, it's hard to pick. If you twist my arm, my three biggest cravings right now are still Gaudí (the most polished Garcia on paper), Shugendo (Luciani on unusual ground) and Drillers (because you rarely turn down a CGE). But my heart also leans toward Smallfolk, for its cozy mood and my admitted soft spot for tableau builders, toward Minikin Cityfor its freshness, and toward Carl von Linné, more demanding, which I really want to test at a festival before calling it. Three names up front, then, but a selection where almost everything tempts me.

But I'll say it again, because it matters: this is a first snapshot, not the final one. Whole publishers are missing, some big engines haven't revealed everything, and summer will be rich in announcements. So I'll be back at the 2-months mark (a fresh batch of titles, first preview impressions), then at the 1-month mark (the consolidated selection, right before packing the bags). One thing is already clear to me: this Essen edition smells of great releases. Until then, tell me in the comments which game catches YOUR eye, and whether you're making the trip.