7 Games better than Splendor – Well Almost – they don’t yet exist

Alright, my friend, let’s be real for a second. Splendor is a fantastic game. It’s simple, it’s intuitive, and it makes lets you “build an engine” that gets better and better each turn. You feel like you created an “engine” that produces returns each round. But I get it – sometimes, you just want something more. Maybe you’ve played Splendor enough and you are looking for games like Splendor that scratches the same itch but feels new and exciting. So here’s the deal: these games are almost like Splendor. Are they better? Almost – maybe – probably not? Is there a “Splendor Killer” out there. I’ve picked a handful that will hopefully give you the same thrills with resource management and engine-building as Splendor – but each have their own twist. Keeping in mind one of these games may be a Splendor Killer for you – but not someone else. I may have erred by not including this game in my series of building out a board game collection. It was by design – because I think Splendor is so popular, a lot of people already own it – if you don’t own it – stop reading and go get it now.

Let’s dive into these gems (pun absolutely intended – I apologize) and find the next game to hit your table that resembles the ease of Splendor while still offering great game play. Oh and by the way, if you still love Splendor—no judgment! There are some expansions and even a two player version, as well as a re-themed Marvel version to keep the love alive. Now, let’s take a look at those games! For those with absolutely no patience, here is a list of the games we are looking at:

Century: Spice Road	Res Arcana
Azul	It’s a Wonderful World
Gizmos	Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition
Sagrada

The games on this list take Splendor’s most beloved qualities and remix them into fresh, exciting experiences. Here’s what they all have in common:

• Engine Building: Creating an engine that grows more powerful and affords more options as the game progresses.
• Streamlined Decisions: Quick, impactful turns where every action matters – but won’t have you suffering from analysis paralysis.
• Tension and Competition: Racing your opponents to critical resources or points. I don’t mind a little “gotcha” in the games I play.
• A Satisfying Payoff: Whether it’s points, combos, or visual flair, you’re rewarded for smart planning.

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Century: Spice Road

If you liked Splendor and want something with a similar feel but still very much it’s game, then Century: Spice Road is a fantastic choice. Certainly it is a game like Splendor in that both games revolve around engine-building—(where your actions become more impactful over time)—but they achieve this in slightly different ways. While Splendor focuses on collecting gems to buy cards that make future turns easier, Century is all about trading and upgrading spices through a deck of action cards. Again if we look at what I think brings these games close to each other:

• Engine Building – In Splendor, your choice is permanent: once you buy a card, it gives you a discount forever. In Century, you build a deck of trading cards that let you convert spices into better ones. Instead of a consistent stable bonuses, you are attempting create a engine of actions that grow stronger over time.
• Streamlined Decisions – Both games have quick, but impactful turns. In Splendor, you take gems, buy a card, or reserve one. In Century, you play a card, buy a new one, or claim a point card—but you also need to manage when to pick your cards back up. You also need to pay attention to your opponents – if you are both appear to be going for the same point card – you’ll need to evaluate who may get there first.
• Tension and Competition – While Splendor has a more immediate turn to turn competition since players can grab a card before you or block nobles. Century still creates that has that tension – because often the cards available can be very lucrative – or you and your opponents may be very close to being able to fulfill a high valued point card. You’ll need to decide whether to grab the “good” conversion card – or make a play for a high point value card.
• A Satisfying Payoff – Both games make you feel powerful as your engine builds. Splendor is about affording bigger and better cards, while Century delivers the thrill of chaining smart trades into huge rewards.

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Azul

Love this at two players! I really wanted to add this to my post on Easy Two Player card games – but alas, tiles are not cards. Azul has the unique quality of being played in two very different ways—either as a relaxed, “you do you” game where you focus on your own board or as a cutthroat battle where every move is about forcing your opponent into bad positions. If you want a game like Splendor, Azul offers a similarly “pick a gem/tile” experience with a different take on engine-building, quick turns, and a strong competitive element.

• Engine Building – Splendor builds an engine by collecting gems that permanently discount future purchases, creating a sense of progression. Azul’s engine is more about board positioning—placing tiles in a way that sets up big scoring opportunities in later rounds. The better you plan, the more powerful your turns become.
• Streamlined Decisions – Both games have quick, meaningful turns. Quick – in that you are only ever doing 1 thing – but you and your opponent may spend some time deciding what that one pick will be. Splendor keeps things simple with just a few choices each round. Azul follows a similar style—you pick tiles and place them, but you also have to think ahead about how they’ll fit into your board while managing overflow penalties.
• Tension and Competition – This is where Azul shines at two players! Like Splendor, there’s a race to grab the best options first. But Azul takes it further, allowing for aggressive play. You can “hate draft” tiles just to ruin your opponent’s plans or try to force them into spots where they take penalty points. Then again – if you wan’t to play just a cozy game – that is an option as well – while not purposely going out of your way to wreck your opponents plans – there will still be a tension on which one of you picks specific tiles.
• A Satisfying Payoff – Both games offer rewarding strategies. In Splendor, your engine eventually lets you afford powerful cards effortlessly in some cases – just picking cards for free. Azul gives that same payoff when you complete high-scoring patterns, especially if you planned multiple turns ahead.

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Gizmos

If you love Splendor, then Gizmos is a fantastic next step! It keeps the same smooth, engine-building gameplay but adds even more satisfying combos. While Splendor is all about collecting gems to buy cards, Gizmos takes a more dynamic approach—building a chain reaction of effects that can turn a simple action into a huge payoff. I will say that Gizmos is a bit more “thinky” than Splendor and you may find players diving down a rabbit hole trying to decide which is the right card to pick up – but still mechanically they are very similar – just a bit different on how that final engine fires – Here’s how they line up:

• Engine Building – In Splendor, your engine grows by collecting gem bonuses that make future purchases cheaper. Gizmos takes this idea further by letting you build a machine of interconnected effects. Every action—picking a marble, drawing a card, or filing one for later—can trigger extra bonuses, leading to explosive turns as your engine ramps up. While Splendor may have been the most widely known Engine Builder – I feel like Gizmos has leaned into that mechanic the most! You feel like you really are building an engine of sorts.
• Streamlined Decisions – Both games keep turns quick and simple. In Splendor, you take gems, buy a card, or reserve one. Gizmos follows a similar structure—you pick a marble (your energy source), buy a card, or file one for later. However, Gizmos adds a fun twist: as your engine improves, one action might trigger multiple bonuses, making each turn more exciting without slowing down the game to much. Your mileage may vary here as some people may be prone to over analyze their current situation.
• Tension and Competition – Like Splendor, Gizmos has a race element—you’re competing for the best cards before your opponents grab them. There’s a little less direct blocking than in Splendor, but smart players can still anticipate what their opponents need and take key cards first. That only gets you so far though – as you need to be mindful of your own engine as well.
• A Satisfying Payoff – Splendor makes you feel powerful as your engine lets you afford bigger and better cards. Gizmos delivers a similar rush, but instead of just collecting discounts, you’re triggering chain reactions that make each turn feel more rewarding. Watching your machine fire off multiple effects in one go is an incredibly satisfying moment.

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Sagrada

Another great game in this series on games like Splendor is Sagrada. With Sagrada you are looking at another elegant, accessible game with satisfying engine-building and competition, Sagrada is a great choice! It shares some DNA with Azul, but instead of placing colorful tiles, you’re drafting dice—carefully considering both their color and number while aiming for the best scoring opportunities. Here’s how it compares to Splendor:

• Engine Building – Splendor builds an engine by collecting gem bonuses that make future purchases cheaper. Sagrada takes a different approach—you’re crafting a stained-glass window by placing dice, gradually creating a board where every choice impacts future turns. Instead of making purchases easier, you’re opening up more placement options while also balancing strict placement rules.
• Streamlined Decisions –Like Splendor – generally the turns are going to be pretty straightforward mechanically. In Splendor, you take gems, buy a card, or reserve one. Sagrada follows a similar rhythm—draft a die and place it in your window. The challenge comes from managing both color and number restrictions while making the most of available scoring opportunities.
• Tension and Competition – In stead of grabbing gem cards – you’ll be drafting dice. In Sagrada, dice drafting means you need to grab the best options before your opponents do, especially in a two-player game where denying a key die can be just as important as taking one you need.
• A Satisfying Payoff – Splendor rewards careful planning by making late-game purchases feel effortless. Sagrada offers a different but equally rewarding payoff—seeing your window come together, fulfilling tricky placement requirements, and maximizing your score based on the unique objectives in play.

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Res Arcana

If you love Splendor but are looking for something with more depth and interaction, Res Arcana is a fantastic next step. Of all the games we’ve compared, this one has the biggest learning curve—it’s a bit trickier to grasp at first, but once you understand how the pieces fit together, it’s incredibly rewarding. Instead of slowly building up an economy like in Splendor, Res Arcana throws you into a high-stakes duel where finding the best synergies in your limited deck is key.

• Engine Building – Splendor makes engine-building straightforward: collect gems to make future purchases easier. Res Arcana takes a more strategic approach. You start with just eight unique cards, and the challenge is figuring out how to turn them into a powerful engine—generating resources, triggering abilities, and ultimately converting them into victory points.
• Streamlined Decisions – While Splendor has simple, predictable turns, Res Arcana demands more planning. Your choices—playing a card, using an ability, or claiming a scoring condition—are still quick, but because every player has a different deck, the best move isn’t always obvious. It requires more thinking ahead, but turns stay snappy once you’re familiar with the game.
• Tension and Competition – Splendor has a subtle race for cards and nobles, but Res Arcana makes competition direct. Players race to claim limited victory conditions, and some cards even let you attack or block opponents. This adds a layer of player interaction that Splendor doesn’t have.
• A Satisfying Payoff – Splendor rewards long-term planning with an engine that gradually makes purchases easier. Res Arcana, however, delivers moments where a well-built engine suddenly erupts—letting you generate a flood of resources or grab a game-winning monument in a single turn.

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It’s A Wonderful World

If Splendor drew you in with its smooth engine-building and race for points, It’s a Wonderful World takes those elements and expands them into a larger, more strategic puzzle. While both games are about optimizing resources to build an efficient engine, It’s a Wonderful World adds a layer of long-term planning with card drafting and resource production that scales up over time. One of the reasons I like this game in the mix is hwo well it handles up to 4 players without bogging down time to much – because it’s primarily a drafting game were action is happening simultaneously, it scales well with more players. Here’s how they compare:

• Engine Building – Instead of simply collecting bonuses to make purchases easier, It’s a Wonderful World has you drafting and constructing a tableau of buildings that fuel an evolving production chain. Early choices shape your economy, and by the final round, your engine is firing on all cylinders, generating huge resource payouts.
• Streamlined Decisions – The game introduces a drafting phase, adding an extra layer of decision-making, but turns remain quick since production happens simultaneously. While there’s more to consider than just picking up gems, the game flows smoothly once you grasp the rhythm.
• Tension and Competition – Players aren’t just racing for points; they’re competing over limited cards in the draft. Every pick matters—not just for your own strategy, but also for denying opponents the perfect piece of their engine. The indirect competition feels more pronounced than in some other engine-building games.
  
• A Satisfying Payoff – The sense of progression builds throughout the game, leading to an explosive final round where everything comes together. Watching your well-planned production chain churn out resources at just the right moment is incredibly rewarding. Though at the same time – you can certainly feel that level of pain, by missing one resource to complete a card.

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Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition

If you love the engine-building and smooth progression of Splendor but want something with more complexity, Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition offers a deeper, more strategic experience. While this is the biggest leap among the games we’ve compared, it still shares core elements—building an economy, optimizing efficiency, and racing for key cards. Plus, for those already familiar with Terraforming Mars, this streamlined version keeps the core feel while delivering a faster-paced game.

• Engine Building – Instead of collecting permanent bonuses for future purchases, Ares Expedition revolves around managing resources and developing a tableau of cards that provide ongoing benefits. The key is finding synergy between production, discounts, and powerful abilities to maximize efficiency over time.
• Streamlined Decisions – While it has more moving parts than Splendor, the game keeps turns flowing with simultaneous action selection. Players choose a phase (such as production, card play, or research), and everyone acts at the same time, keeping downtime low despite the deeper strategy.
• Tension and Competition – The race to claim milestones, build lucrative engine combos, and terraform the planet creates plenty of competitive moments. While direct interaction is minimal, blocking key actions, grabbing critical cards, and outpacing opponents in engine efficiency all add layers of tension.
• A Satisfying Payoff – Watching your tableau develop into a powerful economy is highly rewarding, especially as your engine reaches its peak in the later rounds. Well-planned turns can create huge payoffs, allowing you to generate resources, fund projects, and score points in satisfying ways.
  

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No matter what drew you to Splendor—the smooth engine-building classic with quick decisions, and the built in tension of grabbing the right cards – there’s a game out there that can capture that same magic while offering something new. Whether you’re looking for a light and accessible next step like Azul or Sagrada, a deeper challenge like Res Arcana or Ares Expedition, or something that adds drafting, combo-building, or direct competition, each of these games expands on Splendor’s core ideas in unique ways. If you’re ready to take the next step in your board gaming journey, any of these titles will provide the same rewarding sense of progression and strategy—while keeping that fun, engaging gameplay that made you love Splendor in the first place! To be sure -I don’t think anything has taken Splendor spot as the premier engine builder game. It’s simplicity yet engaging mechanics are just so tough to match.

The games above though should still attempt to quench that thirst of a game like Splendor – accessible, engaging, and most of all fun