Inspired by other fellow bloggers (CliosBoardgames, RockyMountainNavy and Dude! Take Your Turn!) I also decided to have a look back at the 2020. Equipped with great app, Board Games Stats, which I am using for second consecutive year, I am able to share some interesting and insightful data. This was difficult year for all of us and analyzing the impact of pandemic on my habits, visible via below data, was pretty insightful.

Let us have a look into details below!

General insights

2020 general stats
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2019 general stats

Despite everything that was a good year from boardgames perspective – 61 different titles played (exactly the same number as in 2019!) 297 times – a rise from 255 sessions in 2019 (so by ~16%). Some of them were longer, some of them pretty short, but still, having all things concerned, I am glad that on average 2 out of 3 days were with some title! Well, that is of course the trick of statistics – there were days when I played one small game 6 times, and days with one large wargame, taking many hours 🙂

Opponents & players count

Insights into number of players and with whom I played with

Now, the impact of the “strange year” is clearly visible in above stats. I have never had so many 2-player games – I count solo sessions here too as you play against bot who is second opponent. Also, when you look at the insights with whom I played with, these were mainly VASSAL colleagues, my wife Magda and of course various Bots (solo mode). Marcin & Kuba G. were also high (my most ardent wargame players) but that was a shadow of 2019. That of course means that most sessions were done from home, during various lock-downs.

Most played titles

First 11 of 2020 most played boardgames and wargames

And now to the most important and interesting statistic! The BGStats divides all your played games into couple of categories:

  • centuries – played 100 times or more – well, not in 2020 nor in 2019 I was so biased to any one of my favorite games so much as to have over 100 sessions logged; but there were times – like in 2016 – when I played Commands Colors Ancient 165 times…
  • quarters – played 25 times or more; here we have only one, undisputed leader (there were three 3 in 2019) – my all-time-most -played-game: Commands Colors Ancients. I am sure you are not surprised 🙂 After a year away from first position it is back in glory, with almost 50% plays more then second position!
  • dimes – played 10 times or more – here is quite a nice representation of various themes and types; Commands & Colors (The Great War, Memoir’44, C&C Tricorne, C&C: Medieval, C&C Napoleonics), my favorite game of the year – Imperial Struggle, my most played euro – Wingspan as well as always engrossing adventure on the world of Gloomhaven.
Second half of 2020 most played games (places from 11 to 22)

Such an over-representation of Commands & Colors games – 6 in first 10 titles, accounting for 95 out of 297 sessions, so a third – was mainly due to various Commands & Colors online tournaments during the pandemic, which was a great way to keep in touch with many players I get to know over the years via Internet.

I am very glad that despite the adverse conditions, I manged to keep-up with my hobby. That was often a source of solace and respite for me, be it playing at home with family or in various online tournaments. I can only hope – and with myself and all of you – that 2021 will be better!

PS. Next week I will present how The Boardgames Chronicle blog itself fared in 2020 and will suggest Dear Readers a look back at some of the best articles created.