The White Castle

Himeji Castle, three bridges, and never enough workers.

A tight Japanese-themed euro built around dice placement. Dice arrive on three bridges, and where you take them from dictates what you can do — send workers into the gardens, up the castle or into the court, each with its own scoring track.

It's a small box that plays like a much bigger game, running about an hour with almost no downtime. Plays one to four, and the solo mode is genuinely good rather than an afterthought.

Perfect for: euro players, people who like being squeezed for choices, and anyone who thinks 'small box' means 'small game'.