Germans love board gaming in a way we could never match in the US or Britain—and the four-day Internationale Spieltage in Essen reflects this fanaticism. For four days every October, the hordes descend on this western German city by the hundreds of thousands, numbers that totally eclipse the likes of Gen Con or even San Diego’s Comic Con.

This year, more than 174,000 avid gamers, designers, publishers, and vendors showed up for the 33rd Essen Spiel. Exhibitors from 50 countries brought with them an estimated 1,200 (!) new games to show, indies nestling cheek by jowl with major companies like Asmodee, Pegasus, and Hans im Glück.