Caper Europe wins 2024 DuAli
Caper Europe published by Feuerland is the winner of the 2024 DuAli prize, which is awarded annually to the best two-player game. Games club Ali Baba Spieleclub officially presented the winners with the award on the evening of 2 February 2024 at the Spielwarenmesse in Nuremberg. This was already the second time the ceremony had been held as part of the new GamingHour event. The test period for the 2024 award was the most successful yet for Ali Baba Spieleclub, Germany’s largest club for board and other tabletop games, since it launched the DuAli ten years ago.
The idea for the DuAli was born at the Spielwarenmesse 2012. Two years later, again during the Spielwarenmesse, Ali Baba Spieleclub began the first test period for this award for the best two-player game. With 21 submissions from 20 publishers this year, the club has had the strongest set of entries to date. “We are very pleased with how the DuAli has evolved, including everything surrounding it”, explained Club President Christian Wallisch.
Winner on points
Caper Europe won the 2024 DuAli with a score of 43.19 points out of a possible 50. Pacifica from Kosmos took second (39.90 points), while District Noir from Game Factory placed third (36 points). Caper Europe therefore now ranks among the very well-known and popular games that have won the award to date and takes over from last year’s winner, Splendor Duel.
“We also encountered something new this year”, said Martin Brock-Konzen, First Vice-President, as publisher Jumbo had already put Caper forward for the award a few years back. While Caper Europe from Feuerland does build on this title, it is now a new and different game due to numerous crucial rule changes and was therefore eligible to participate.
The 21 games submitted were again judged by Ali Baba Spieleclub members. All could assign up to ten points in each of the three categories – “look and feel”, “game instructions” and “enjoyment”. The points awarded for enjoyment were then multiplied by three to reflect the fact that this is what matters most to players. This means a maximum of 50 points could be scored.
New application period running
The DuAli test period always runs from 1 November to 31 October, so games that first appeared and were available in German stores between 1 November 2022 and 31 October 2023 were eligible for the latest award. The new test period is therefore already underway, and publishers, designers and distributors can submit games to Ali Baba Spieleclub. The specific process for this is described in the DuAli section of the Ali Baba Spieleclub website: www.ali-baba-spieleclub.de.