The Spiel des Jahres (German for ''Game of the Year'') is arguably the most prestigious Board Game award for German-style Board Game s.
The award was created in 1978 to reward excellence in game design, and to promote top-quality games in the German market.
It is thought that the existence and popularity of the award is one of the major drivers of the quality of games coming out of Germany .
AWARD CRITERA
The award is given by a jury, which reviews games released in Germany in the preceding twelve months. The award generally goes to a 'family style' game. Games such as Wargames are not considered.
The award critera are:
# Game idea & originality
# Rule structure & clarity
# Presentation (art and parts)
# Game mechanics
2005 NOMINATIONS
The nominations for the 2005 award were released on 8 May2005 with the winner announced 27 June2005 . The five games nominated were:
