5 Hot Games I’m looking forward to at SaltCon Spring 2026

SaltCon Spring 2026 is only a couple of weeks away and the excitement is building.

I’ve attended our local board game convention near Salt Lake City, Utah for 15 years and have loved seeing it grow every year. More than 2,500 people are anticipated to attend again this year to enjoy 4 days of gaming fun.

One of the aspects I look forward to each year is trying out some of the Hot Games.

These are recent board game releases that so many people are interested in playing that the organizers set up dedicated tables just for these games. Rather than only having a copy or two in the Game Library for people to check out. These games are always set up and volunteers are in place to teach the games over and over. That way a ton more people get a chance to try them out.

From the 8 Hot Games this year, the 5 I’m most looking forward to playing are:

Foundations of Rome

While not brand new this year, I’ve had Foundations of Rome on my “want to play” list for a while. So this will probably be the first Hot Game table I sit down at on opening day of SaltCon.

It’s a city-building board game where players are architects competing to own land and build magnificent structures – including domūs and insulae, fountains, foundries, and more. The goal of the game is to gain glory for yourself and the empire. Players collect Glory Points at the end of each round based on the population and commerce they’ve brought to the city as well as for civic buildings that may also score on their opponents buildings.

The game involves elements of area control, tile laying and hand management.

In addition to the game play, from the photos I’ve seen, it looks fantastic on the table. The TETRIS-type building shapes simply draw me in. I hope it delivers a great game experience.

Gazebo

When I first saw an image of Gazebo being played, it reminded me a lot of an older game I liked called Qin. Although it’s been more than 11 years since I’ve played Qin, I still have the game on my shelf and can’t stand parting with it. Mainly because it has simple game play that hides complex strategies.

I remember how much I enjoy it and know it will eventually get to the table again. Then when I checked the description for recently-published Gazebo, it was right there – “Gazebo is an evolution of Reiner Knizia’s classic game Qin.”

Boom!

Of course, I’m going to jump at the chance to try this new implementation of the game play.

In the game, players take turns placing dominos on the shared garden map to establish nooks of different types: flower, foliage, or water. When a player creates a nook, they place one of their gazebos on top of it, and by connecting their nook to a patio, they can claim the patio and place a gazebo on it. But like in typical area-control game fashion, areas can change ownership. Larger nooks can absorb smaller nooks, and patios can be stolen by other players.

Bring it on!

A Place For All My Books

Last year I read more books than I’ve ever read in one year. And my list of books “to read” grew even more. So when I saw a new game called, A Place For All My Books, of course I wanted to take a closer look.

Now I’m excited to get that chance at SaltCon.

In the game, players collect projects, stack, sort, and rearrange colorful books. Over nine rounds, players tinker with the stacks in their apartment to complete small projects and prepare for the next excursion into town – where they’ll shop for more books, more projects, and other neat things to fill up their place.

Reviewers of the game also say the game is like a puzzle of efficiency – which is something I’m really looking forward to experiencing.

Sanctuary

Plan, design, and manage a zoo? Sign me up!

Of course, that’s also not something new in board game themes. There are already a ton of board games with animal themes and about managing them in some way. But this one has really caught my eye.

Why?

Mainly because it’s a simplified game based on Ark Nova – a board game that shot to the top of board game hotness since it’s release in 2021. Ark Nova currently sits at #4 in the rankings on BoardGameGeek with almost 60,000 voters giving such high ratings. I’ve been curious about Ark Nova for a while, but keep putting it off because there’s a lot to get through in learning the game.

Sanctuary on the other hand, looks like the right level of complexity that I enjoy. So now rather than diving deep into Ark Nova, I can get a taste through this streamlined version of zoo management.

Plus, the reviews are coming in very positively. They say it has depth but not “deep crunch” depth and is approachable for families.

Let’s go see the animals!

Hot Streak

I’ve played a bunch of wacky racing games and usually have a great time doing so. Well, Hot Streak looks like another such fun game and I’m interested in giving it a try.

I don’t know a lot about the specifics of the game play yet, but when I see “chaos” and “randomness” in the descriptions, I get an idea of what to expect going in – and not to take it very serious. This will totally be a palette cleanser between strategy board games over the course of the con.

There’s also another crazy race game on the SaltCon Hot Games list, Magical Athlete. Since I’ve already played Magical Athlete a few times already, it’s not on my Hot Games to play list. However, it is a funny race game to play and would recommend it.

Let’s see if Hot Streak gets a similar recommendation after I play it.

 

If you’re going to SaltCon Spring 2026, which games are you most looking forward to playing?