by W. Eric Martin

▪️ To follow up an earlier November 2025 post, KOSMOS has now revealed more of its early 2026 line-up. Klaus Teuber‘s Catan Dice Game, which first appeared in 2007, will be re-released as CATAN: Das Würfelspiel, with this edition featuring embossed dice and graphics that match the newest edition of the CATAN base game.

▪️ That title will be accompanied by CATAN: Das Kartenspiel, which is not Klaus Teuber’s 1996 Catan Card Game, but a new design by Benjamin Teuber for 3-4 players.

In this standalone game, you’ll use and trade the 120 cards to build roads and settlements, then develop the latter into cities, while also building an army of knights.

▪️ Inka and Markus Brand‘s EXIT: Das Spiel game line turns ten in 2026, and it will see four new entries in the first half of 2026, starting with EXIT: Das Spiel – Der perfekte Einbruch (“The Perfect Break-In”). This limited-edition anniversary release will feature extra gadgets and “an extra puzzle” inside its metal tin.

▪️ The other three EXIT titles fall into the various categories that the Brands and KOSMOS have introduced over the past ten years. In decreasing levels of dangerousness, they are:

• EXIT: Das Puzzle – Die drei ???: Toteninsel (“Island of the Dead”)

• EXIT: Das Spiel – Family: Der verlorene Piratenschatz (“The Lost Pirate Treasure”)

• EXIT: Das Spiel – Kids: Rätselspass im Meer (“Riddle Fun in the Sea”)

▪️ Another game line seeing a new title is Grzegorz Rejchtman‘s Ubongo!, which will be joined by Ubongo! Flex, a 1-4 player game in which you “assemble the template as quickly as possible and then fill it with the correct shapes”. The box demonstrates this gameplay behavior, which apparently has you building two levels of pieces each turn.

▪️ The Adventure Games line from Phil Walker-Harding and Matthew Dunstan will receive a new entry as well, with co-design by Ute Wielandt, who has participated in two previous Adventure Games titles. Here’s an overview of Adventure Games: Mission Mars, which is for 1-4 players:

September 2076: No signal has been sent from Mars Base Alpha for weeks. What’s going on there on Mars?

The United Earth Government is sending a rescue mission to the first settlement on Mars. Step into the shoes of astronauts with special abilities and take on exciting roles – experience the story, make decisions, and combine items like in a point-and-click game.

▪️ The storytelling continues in Die Jury: Die Welle des Schweigens (“The Wave of Silence”), the second such title from Jacob Berg following 2025’s Die Jury: Zwei Gesichter – Ein Schuss. As with that earlier title, you’ll need to deduce what’s happened in a situation solely be listening and reasoning. Here’s the pitch:

Was it self-defense or murder?

Take on the role of the jury and immerse yourself in an interactive true-crime experience on the high seas! Discuss the new criminal case, evaluate evidence and listen to audio recordings from the courtroom: pleas, witness statements, police reports, and expert opinions provide new clues.

Round by round, you reconstruct the last hours of 41-year-old Allan Hansen — and pass judgment on his mysterious death on a fishing boat in the North Atlantic.

▪️ More crime awaits in Perfect Murder, a two-player game by Tobias Tesar that tosses aside the co-operative nature of the previous title:

A murder took place in the villa — but who’s behind it?

In this gripping head-to-head game, one side takes on the role of the murderer, the other that of the detective. Can the detective uncover the truth, or will the murderer manage to get away scot-free by laying false trails?

With nine suspects, twelve weapons, and eight rooms, a new case unfolds every time. Bluffing, deduction, and clever combination make each game a thrilling adventure.

▪️ In a more lighthearted vein, we have Play: The Music Party Game from Mariano Di Martino, which I would guess is a German-language edition of 2024’s music trivia game Marimic: The Musical Time Machine. Here is KOSMOS’ description of this 2-10 player game:

Who knows the music world best? From oldies and classics to modern chart hits, create a playlist of your favorite music and play with a selection of over 4,000 songs!

Let’s travel through music history: Listen to the songs and collect points for correctly categorizing them in this fun and lighthearted guessing game.

Whether playing together or against each other, thanks to the flexible genre and artist selection from over twelve categories, you can create playlists for your own unique group.

Is this where we drop random music recommendations? If so, I’ll nominate Bicep’s “Poly Pineapple“.

▪️ Finally, KOSMOS has just a regular ol’ board game, a 1-4 player co-operative game from Bernhard Weber called Temple Twist:

Deep in the jungle, a unique adventure awaits. Rumors speak of an ancient temple where valuable treasures await. But it’s a labyrinth!

Try to find your way together. Using action cards, you’ll navigate the 3D temple, move walls, or rotate the entire building — but without revealing the contents of your hand!

Think ahead, plan ahead, and experience the thrill: Can you master this clever skill challenge together?