Sky Team joins Catan and Ticket to Ride by winning prestigious German award
Nearly a full year after sticking the landing at Gen Con in Indianapolis, Sky Team has won the Spiel des Jahres, the prestigious German award given to the best board game of the year. The announcement, made Sunday in a blog post, formally welcomes the hit cooperative game to the ranks of modern classics such as Catan, Carcassonne, and Ticket to Ride.
In Sky Team, players take on the role of the pilot and co-pilot of a large airliner trying to land their fully-laden plane on the runway. The roughly 20-minute experience is full of delightful tension, as players battle the elements and jockey with other planes for priority to land at one of dozens of international airports.
“Sky Team is impressive from take-off to landing in terms of gameplay, atmosphere and theme,” said the jury. “The short rounds can be very rewarding if you win and if you miss the landing, you will want to try again straight away.”
Publisher Le Scorpion Masqué has been on a bit of a roll these past few years, with its 2022 hit Turing Machine also pulling down several notable industry awards. The studio is also known for Decrypto, which holds a place of prominence on Polygon’s list of the best board games. Given the sudden interest, know that Sky Team is seemingly in short supply at some retailers. While your local game store likely has a copy alongside the new expansion, Sky Team: Turbulence, we also found the core game currently available at Barnes & Noble.
Prices taken at time of publishing.
• 2 players, age 14+
• Playtime: 20 minutes
• Similar games: Apollo
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