Hee hee. I get it

The amount of times ive come up with ways to change the NHL while talking to my hockey-crazy family lol

Fair enough. Referring to games that may not be 'fun enough' for that characteristic (and of course for the most part, fun is subj.) Piece count and the board's sensitivity to something like a cat jumping on the table also play a role imo, multiplied by time commitment. Big example imo is Meltwater

Some games imo fall into a trap of requiring tons of focus on the game, sometimes stifling the social element for fear of interruption. They need to justify the commitment by being that much more fun or by encouraging table talk and/or providing satisfying pause points (Diplomacy is a great example)

As I have been studying game design, one phrase I often hear when it comes to feedback is "Listen to their problems. Don't listen to their solutions". (Which again, every rule has exceptions)

*Typed first not realizing the vibes of the original post ;-;

First