The 2018 nominations for the coveted Spiel des Jahres Awards are now public. Thank goodness for BoardGameGeek to provide a translation from German to English for me!
As the BGG posting notes, the Spiel des Jahres are primarily aimed at family gamers. Of the three nominees, I don’t own any (although I have come close to ordering Azul). If BGG rankings are to be believed, Azul should be the run-away Gloomhaven-like hit given it is ranked as the #1 Abstract and #1 Family Game on BGG.
The Kennerspiels des Jahres, the “connoisseur’s game of the year” according to BGG, is an even weaker category for me. I know nut-thing about the nominees nor am I likely to anytime soon. As I have stated before, my gaming tastes tend to be more narrow and reflect my legacy of playing wargames. I just don’t buy into full eurogames or the “heavy cardboard” part of the hobby.
On the other hand, the Kinderspiel des Jahres (Children’s Game of the Year) is a category I watch out for because of my wife’s teaching and a new niece that I hope to introduce to proper gaming someday! Alas, I don’t recognize any of the nominees, nor do they look interesting to me for family play. I am pleased to see that the jury recommended Rhino Hero: Super Battle which I do own and the family finds enjoyable.
So what do I personally take away from the Spiel des Jahres nominations? I see another sure sign that the boardgame/tabletop gaminghobby is alive and well. But as much as hobbyists will try to say that there is no split between Eurogames and Ameritrash, a straight up comparison of the Spiel des Jahres and 2018 Origins Awards nominees or (worse yet) the 2017 Golden Geek [Fan Service] Awards shows that there is still a difference. This is not bad for the hobby. This year I tend to be an outlier in the hobby; I refuse to bow to the Cult-of-the-New (COTN) nor do I spend my precious dollars frivolously chasing away a FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)-phobia. As a result, the awarded games and my collection are diverging.
The divergence doesn’t bother me; indeed, it makes me happy that the hobby is strong enough that I can build my collection to my tastes and not have it dictated to me like so many mass-market game companies try to.
Rocky Mountain Navy Gamer 
“the hobby is strong enough that I can build my collection to my tastes”. That is an interesting observation. Having been a (board)gamer for most of my life, I feel that I have never, knowingly, been influenced by the industry. Keeping up with industry news? Why bother? My gaming wants and needs are different enough from the mainstream that I see very little to no overlap. Even when I was part owner of a FLGS I listened more to what our customers were praising, or not, than what the industry tried to push on us. Apart from the “standard” family games (Monopoly, Risk. Cluedo, Scrabble, etc.) that is.
What I’m trying to say is taht I do not think I feel the need to be either affirmed, or vindicated by the gaming industry at large. I play games, and some of them are well known, and loved, while others aren’t. That is just how I play. Your style may/will be different. Good for you. Now shall we play a game?
I think we are on the same wavelength here. At one point I asked myself if I really had a Fear Of Missing Out (FoMO) or was becoming a member of the Cult of the New but ultimately I play what I want to play. In days past I sometimes saw a “popular” thing and asked what was wrong with me. Now I know it ain’t me but them who suffer (and all to offer are insufferable). 😣
Totally agree!