(This citation pulled out separately, since it's a little long and I use it a lot.)
Willughby, Francis. A Volume of Plaies. (Manuscript in the Middleton collection, University of Nottingham, shelfmark Li 113.) c1665-70. Transcription currently in production by Jeff Singman, Dorothy Johnston, and David Cram. Expected publication in 1998, from Scholar Press. Draft transcription courtesy Jeff Singman.
This book is part of, essentially, an encyclopedia of gaming. It is a great pity that the book was never finished, but what we have of it is enormously useful. Willughby covers virtually all aspects of "gaming", both tabletop and active, and views all of them with a scholar's eye; his attention to detail is far greater than that of any of his contemporaries. The book is invaluable for any serious study of games in the 17th century, and I recommend highly that any serious student of games pick it up as soon as it is generally available.
(Also, the editorial material, even in the limited draft edition I have, is greatly helpful...)