A display of some of Allplay's small box games including French Toast, Torchlit, and Mountain Goats next to our game of the week sign.

Sample gameplay of the game French Toast, by Allplay.

Looking for a goofy, cooperative party for the whole family? Allplay has you covered with their latest small box release, French Toast, now available at Games By James.

Players interpret clues placed on a hot and cold style track and try to guess the word the alien is attempting to communicate.

A display of the game Wispwood along with a bit of the demo peeking through the bottom of the image.

A picture of sample gameplay of the game Wispwood, on display at our Southdale location.

Check out the latest release by CGE, the adorable, puzzly, family weight Wispwood. Now available at Games by James.

Players choose a wisp tile and shape from the center board and then place that wisp into their personal tableau, with each scored based on the randomized scoring card at end of round.

Display of Cozy Stickerville. You can see the player boards below.

Picture of a game of Cozy Stickerville, featuring player boards with some stickers and played action cards.

Ready for a breezy rural life away from the city? Cozy Stickerville is a new game by Unexpected Games where you do just that with the magic of stickers.

In Cozy Stickerville, players play event cards, place stickers to develop their town, and make choices to create emergent narrative.

A picture of the storefront of the newly remodeled Mall of America Games By James location.

A picture of the store floor at our Mall of America Games By James location.

The new section of the store added in the remodel at our Mall of America Games By James location.

Our Mall of America Games By James location has location has been successfully remodeled and has now reopened for business! 🎉

Come check out the newly updated, larger space on the 3rd floor of the East side of the Mall, around the inside of the rotunda.

A picture of the cover of the box of the game Oddities.

A picture of sample gameplay from the game Oddities. This game features 3 players having played through 2 rounds of gameplay.

Check out this cute and easy to learn card game by local publisher Twisted Branch Games.

In this game, players will play oddities into their collection for points, sabotage their opponents with misfits, and gain special effects with quirk cards. First player to 6 points is declared the winner.

Picture of Sanibel, the latest game by Elizabeth Hargrave, and her most popular title Wingspan.

Get ready to have a relaxing stroll on the beach with Sanibel, the latest game from acclaimed Wingspan designer Elizabeth Hargrave.

As you walk along the shore, collect seashells and place them in your bag to earn points in this easy to learn pattern building, tile-placement game.

This month we challenged our customers to guess how many puzzle pieces they thought were in a jar and awarded those with the closest guess, per store, 100 Victory Points. Let's hear it for our winners! 🎉

Congratulations to:

Peter C
Sue H
Minh H
Mel J
Kristin S
Leanne S
Andy V
Eric R

Puzzlers compete in teams to complete the first 500 piece teams puzzle challenge at the Saint Paul Winter Carnival.

The Saint Paul Winter Carnival Puzzle Competition is in full swing!

The first puzzle contest, the 500 piece teams challenge, has completed. But don't forget the 1000 piece teams challenge at 11:15AM and 500 piece teams open contest at 3PM.

Join us tomorrow for even more fun!

Left: The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Trick-Taking Game Right: The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Tick-Taking Game with attached promo pack Note that the promo pack will be included with sale of The Two Towers Trick-Taking Game while supplies last.

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Trick-Taking Game is now available at Games By James.

Whether you've played the Fellowship of the Ring Trick-Taking Game or not, take on the roles of classic characters and play through the story of the Two Towers in this cooperative trick taking game!

A small sampling of the Handscraft and Rolife product on offer at Games By James.

A picture of the inside of The Detective House Rolife display.

Looking for something to do while stuck at home during these cold winter months?

Games By James offers a number of book nooks and shelf displays by Handscraft and Rolife. The perfect crafty activity to work on at home with a warm drink of your choice!

Sign saying: January is National Puzzle Month! Let's celebrate with a deal on PuzzleTwist puzzles: buy 2, get 1 FREE! PuzzleTwist and Maynard's Signature Series jigsaw puzzles. This deal is valid 1/5/2026 through 1/23/2026 while supplies last. Not applicable to previous purchases. Not combinable with other promotions or coupons, except the Victory Points Program.

Did you know January is National Puzzle Month?

In honor of this, Games by James will be offering a buy two get one deal on all PuzzleTwist and Maynard's Signature Series brand puzzles through 1/23/26.

Stop by your local Games By James and take advantage of this puzzling deal!

Picture describing the sale in detail: "Year end sale: Buy 2 Get 1 Free on over 100 items! Look for the green price stickers While supplies last, through January 4th 2026"

Our annual end of year sale is upon us!

From now until January 4th (1/4/26), all items in store with a green sticker will qualify for this buy two get one sale. Stop by your local Games By James and stock up on games to play in the new year!

Display of party games, great for the holidays. Clockwise from left: Smug Owls, Blind Jack, Red Flags, and Landmarks.

Times up, the holidays are here! Are you prepared to entertain your friends and family?

If not, stop in to your local Games By James and check out these small box party games the whole family can enjoy. Perfect for large groups of gamers and non-gamers alike.

A display of various Blue Orange titles, including Giant Kingdomino, which is available free with purchase of $60 or more in Blue Orange products until December 24th at Games By James and Air Traffic locations.

From now until Dec 24th, purchase $60 worth of Blue Orange product and receive a free copy of Giant Kingdomino!

Blue Orange offers a wide variety of games, including games to appeal to everyone from kids, to families, to the strategy gamer.

Picture of the 2 PuzzleTwist Puzzle Derby puzzles along with a sign advertising the at home derby contest and how $5 goes to Second Harvest Heartland.

Need a last minute gift for a loved one? Check out these two newly released PuzzleTwist Holiday Puzzle Derby puzzles.

Because they come pre-wrapped, they make for a perfect last minute pick up for the Holidays. And on top of that, $5 of your purchase goes on to support Second Harvest Heartland.

Toys For Tots Donations accepted here.

Games By James is proud to partner with Toys for Tots this Holiday season. Stop by one of our locations any time from now until December 15th to make a donation of toys and/or games intended for children 14 and under.

A display of the game Heat: Pedal to the Medal, flanked by its expansions Heat: Heavy Rain and Heat: Tunnel Vision.

The holidays are around the corner, so race on over to Games By James and check out one of the best recent strategy games for high player counts.

Manage your hand of cards and use your heat wisely to eke out advantage in Heat: Pedal to the Metal, a deck building and racing game for 1-6 players.

An endcap at Games by James featuring locally designed games like ours! Oath, Root, For, and more.

Today is an awesome day to celebrate your favorite local businesses. (Like your FLGS!) If you're out and about, explore your community's bakeries, coffee shops, book stores, and more. #ShopSmall #SmallBusinessSaturday

MEET & GREET: War and Aether - Games By James, Mall of America | ZG Studios ZG Studios is having another Meet & Greet at Games By James in the Mall of America of Bloomington! Stop by any time between 12:00PM and 2:00PM to meet the creator, ask questions, and get a signed copy...

Friendly Reminder, we've got a Meet & Greet coming up at @gamesbyjames.bsky.social in Mall of America in 1 Week!

www.zgstudios.net/event-detail...

Our window display, showcasing the game of the year winners for this year. Secret Identity, Magical Kitties Save the Day!, and Spirit Island.

The results are in: Spirit Island, Magical Kitties Save the Day!, and Secret Identity have won our prestigious game of the year awards for 2025. As voted by you, our customers!

Spirit Island - Best Strategy Game
Magical Kitties Save the Day! - Best Family Game
Secret Identity - Best Party Game

Sign stating: "Free gift with any purchase of $50 or more, while supplies last. When you make a qualifying purchase, you may choose a free gift. Your gift may come from either of the Gift Tiers for which your purchase qualifies. Promotion valid for limited time only, while supplies last. Not valid on previous purchases. Balances paid using gift card(s) and/or Victory Points do not contribute to the spending threshold when qualifying for a free gift. This promotion cannot be combined with other coupons or discounts. If an item that qualified the purchaser to receive a free gift is returned without also returning the gift, the value of the gift will be deducted from the return amount."

Doing some Holiday shopping early this year? Stop by any of our Games By James or Air Traffic locations from today through Sunday, 11/30/25, and receive a free gift from us with a qualifying purchase, while supplies last.

A display of Ticket to Ride board games along with the promotional pieces players can receive at this event. Promotional train sets come in black, blue, orange, and pink. We also have some alternate score track pieces that may be used as prize support.

Don't forget, our casual Ticket to Ride tournament tomorrow, 11/18, at 6:00pm at our Southdale store location in Edina. For this free event, everyone will take home a fun package of alternate color promotional trains for their personal game. Winner receives all four!

Hope to see you there!

A display of Ticket to Ride games and promotional prizes.

A closer look at the four different promotional train sets, as well as some replacement score tracker tokens that may be used as prize support.

Fan of Ticket to Ride? Join us at our Southdale location's event space at 6:00pm on Tuesday 11/18/25 for a casual Ticket to Ride tournament and some Ticket to Ride goodies! Players will get a promotional train set to keep, with the winner receiving all four.

Players of all skill levels welcome!

Don't forget, War and Aether Meet and Greet coming up THIS SATURDAY at the Games by James Mall of America at noon!

Last minute change of plans! Instead of our regular 6:00 D&D campaign, this Wednesday 10/29 we will be hosting a special s p o o k y Call of Cthulhu one-shot session! Call our Ridgedale Center location at 763-540-1832 or check gamesbyjames.com/events.php for additional details.

Queen Swarm by Mindware Games is on demo at the Games by James at Southdale Center.

We just got in Queen Swarm from MindWare! It's a family-friendly 2-player abstract strategy game about controlling the beehive. Stop by and play a demo game, then pick up your copy!

MEET & GREET: War and Aether - Games By James, Mall of America | ZG Studios ZG Studios is having a Meet & Greet event at Games By James in the Mall of America of Bloomington! Stop by any time between 12:00PM and 2:00PM to meet the creator, ask questions, and get a signed copy...

We've got TWO new Meet & Greet Events coming up at @gamesbyjames.bsky.social in the Mall of America! Set your schedules and stop on by!

November 1st: www.zgstudios.net/event-detail...

December 6th: www.zgstudios.net/event-detail...

Trick or Treat in spooky font Image of a black fidget spinner Games by James logo Air Traffic Kites & Games logo "Games" and "Kites & Games" in the logos have been replaced with the same spooky font.

Trick or Treat! This October, stop into your favorite Games by James and pull a spinner for your chance at up to 250 Victory Points! Find more information in our newsletter: gamesbyjames.com/newsletter.p...

Correction/Addition: Dave and Abe will be at the store from 10am through noon.

Copies of Luthier and the Luthier Deluxe edition sit in the local games window at the Games by James at Mall of America.

Distilled sits in the local games window at the Games by James at Mall of America.

Just confirmed! Dave Beck and Abe Burson, co-designers of @paverson.bsky.social's newest title, Luthier, will be at Games by James at the Mall of America THIS SATURDAY 10/11 to sign copies of their game! Dave will also sign copies of his 2023 game, Distilled. Hope to see you there!