UK Games Expo Reveal 2026 Judges Choice Awards Shortlist

UK Games Expo, who are celebrating their 20th Anniversary with this years event taking place from Friday 29th to Sunday 31st May at the NEC, Birmingham, have revealed this years shortlist for their Judges Choice Awards.

Each year UKGE Award Judges from around the country play, replay, assess, discuss and finally decide on the games shortlisted as best in their category. Winners will be announced on Tuesday 12th May through their social media channels. The winners will then be entered into one of four categories that will be voted on by the attendees at UK Games Expo, with the winners then announced in the People’s Choice Awards on the Sunday of the show at 3pm on the main stage in Hall 2.

This years Judges Choice Shortlist are as follows:

BEST ABSTRACT GAME

• Ink (Final Score Games)

• Locus (Tuckers Fun Factory)

• Peranakan: Tiles and Tactics (Genie Games)

BEST ACCESSORY

• TTCombat Midwinter Minis Paint Set Bundle (TTCombat)

• Terrain Crate: Fantasy Battlefield Terrain Pack (Mantic Games)

• Venetian Quarter (Chroma) (TTCombat)

BEST BOARDGAME (AMERICAN-STYLE)

• Battle of Hoth (Days of Wonder)

• Camping Season (SweaterBear Games)

• Kryptothera The Cryptid Pursuit (NoctiLux Games)

BEST BOARDGAME (EURO-STYLE)

• Ada’s Dream (Alley Cat Games)

• Ayar: Children of the Sun (Osprey Games)

• Luthier: The Art of the Instrument Deluxe (Paverson Games)

BEST BOARDGAME (STRATEGIC)

• Epochs: Course of Cultures (Ice Makes Limited)

• World Order (Hegemonic Project Games)

• Zenith (Play Punk)

BEST CARD GAME (GENERAL)

• Duel for Cardia (Hans im Gluck)

• FlipToons (Thunderworks Games)

• Otter (Charming Games)

BEST CARD GAME (STRATEGIC)

• Age of Galaxy 2nd Edition (Portal Games)

• Citizens of the Spark (Thunderworks Games)

• Pondscape (Pink Troubadour)

BEST CHILDREN’S GAME

• Flippin’ Dinosaurs (Heartborn Studios)

• Hero Slam (Laurence King Publishing)

• Spendor Kids (Space Cowboys)

BEST DICE GAME

• Crits & Tricks (Inside Up Games)

• Las Vegas (Ravensburger/Alea)

• Moonshine (Blam!)

BEST FAMILY GAME

• Magical Athlete (CMYK)

• Sanibel (Avalon Hill)

• Twinkle Twinkle (Allplay)

BEST GAMING NOVELTY

• Bake Your Own Gingerbread Dungeon (Stone Fable)

• MicroMacro Jigsaw: The Home Game (Edition Spielwiese)

• Worms The Gift Calendar Game (Mantic Games)

BEST MINIATURES RANGE

• ArcWorlds: Gremlins! (Warp Miniatures)

• Dystopian Wars: Dominion of the Dragon - Two Player Starter Set (Warcradle Studios)

• Frostgrave: Cultists III (North Star Military Figures / Osprey Games)

BEST MINIATURE RULES

• Hope is for the Dead (Wird Designs)

• Kings of War 4th Edition (Mantic Games)

• Warmachine Core Book (Steamforged Games Ltd)

BEST PARTY GAME

• Outliars (Confident Games)

• QORK (The Op Games)

• SHUG (Wandering Games)

BEST ROLE-PLAYING GAME

• Tales of the Old West (Effekt Publishing Ltd)

• The Laundry Roleplaying Game (Cubicle 7 Entertainment Ltd)

• Totem - The Spirits’ RPG (Officina Meningi)

BEST ROLE-PLAYING GAME ADVENTURE

• Call of Cthulhu: The Sutra of Pale Leaves - Twin Suns Rising (Chaosium Inc)

• TERMINUS (Pathwork Fez Games)

• Vaesen RPG - Mythic Carpathia (Free League Publishing)

BEST ROLE-PLAYING GAME EXPANSION

• Mausoleum (Crow & Crown)

• Ryokos Guide to the Yokai Realms (Loot Tavern Publishing)

• The Field Guide to Floral Dragons Box Set (Hit Point Press)

BEST VARIANT

• Disney Villainous Treacherous Tides (Ravensburger)

• Driving Me Crazy! Route 66 Edition (Simplexity Games)

• Unmatched: The Witcher - Steel & Silver (Iello)

BEST EXPANSION

• Distilled: Cocktails (Paverson Games)

• In the Footsteps of Darwin: Correspondence (Sorry We Are French)

• Loki’s Mischief Expansion for Viking Raiders (Neowulf Games ApS)

BEST STORY, LEGACY OR ADVENTURE GAME

• Cozy Stickerville (Unexpected Games)

• The Cats of Mont Saint Michel (RAYBOX Games)

• Vantage (Stonemaier)