Congratulations to Gavan Brown, Matt Tolman, Martin Wallace, and Roxley for Brass: Birmingham rising to the level of #1 ranked game in the BoardGameGeek database!
That said, I’ll note that games tend to flip-flop in positions on the BGG rankings when the difference in the Geek Rating is less than a hundredth of a point, so Gloomhaven and Brass: Birmingham will likely swap spots for a while until…well, who knows?
It’s not like any of these rankings are fixed in time or that a game lands in its “proper” spot and never moves again. The rankings don’t indicate absolute greatness, but rather greatness for a good number of people who are fans of that particular game or game genre.
Gloomhaven, for example, isn’t a game that casual game players will pick up on a whim, but rather an experience that calls out to those who might be interested in what it specifically offers. I don’t fall into that bucket, so I’m unlikely to ever play the game, which means I’ll never add my (likely low) rating to the game page. You could get a “proper” rating for a game only if you forced everyone in the world to play it and rate it — and coerced ratings probably aren’t a reliable measure either, so let’s not go there.
Rankings and ratings have meaning only insofar as your tastes match the tastes of others. Don’t assume that all highly-ranked games are recommended for you, and don’t avoid that low-rated game that seems like a perfect match for your tastes. You do you, boo.
