24 of the Best Board Games for Holiday Gifting in 2025

Agricola is one of the best board games ever made, and it’s also one of the best examples of worker placement mechanics. The concept is simple: players each use their farmer and wife (both called “workers”) to perform various actions throughout the seasons, such as gathering wood or vegetables, improving their farm, building enclosures, buying animals, having children and much more. Over time, players have children (more workers to use) and expand their farm. The problem in all this, however, is rarity: Agricola is a difficult game. Even without an opponent stopping you from performing certain actions, you often feel like you’re just getting by: getting just enough food to feed your family for the winter. Players often end up with very few (or negative) points on their first playthrough, but when you start to learn, it’s incredibly satisfying.