The Castles of Burgundy might be the game I have recommended most often to people who want a step up from gateway games. It is inelegant in the sense that a decade-old design is inelegant — the iconography was not designed for clarity, the boards are indistinguishable in color from several feet away — but the dice placement mechanism and the cascading bonus structure are genuinely excellent.

New editions have improved the visual design significantly. If you have never played it, the new edition is the version to buy. If you own the old edition and it works for your group, the new artwork is nice but not worth re-purchasing.

For groups that love Castles of Burgundy and want more: Great Western Trail is the logical next step. It adds a longer game arc, network building, and cattle management to a similarly satisfying decision structure.