Tikal

In Tikal, players explore the ruins of a mysterious jungle city, uncovering temples and collecting treasures. The game uses action points each turn to move workers, excavate sites, and guard discoveries. The modular board creates a new map every game, and volcano tiles add tension by forcing periodic scoring. Beautifully thematic, with a great balance of strategy and exploration, Tikal won the Spiel des Jahres in 1999 and remains a treasure among tactical board games.