It’s game night and you’re staring at the same old games you’ve played a hundred times before and are thinking that maybe it’s time to invest in some new ones. But what new games should you buy? That’s the hard question, because if you buy a cool looking game that you’ve never played before, you risk spending money on a game that turns out to be a dud. What’s more disappointing than that? Luckily for you, that’s where I come in. Resident nerd and boardgame expert, I’ve come to save the day with twelve game recommendations that my game night group loves. So although you haven’t played these games before, you can get the inside scoop from a fellow gamer and feel more confident when you go out to buy your next game.
Tortuga
Ages: 12+
Playing time: 20-40 min
Number of players: 2-9
Deception, mutiny, and other pirate-y shenanigans makes this game one of our favorites. Each player holds a secret loyalty to the British or French and the goal is to get the most treasure in your team's holds before the Spanish Armada arrives. Players use vote and event cards (with their fingers crossed that they’re trusting the right people) to change the course of game.
Salem
Ages: 12+
Playing time: 20-40 min
Number of players: 4-12
Put your friendships to the test with this game! You’ll see whether your friends stay loyal and true, or whether they’ll demand that you be burned as a witch! Use cards to accuse or defend your friends of witchcraft, along with other cards that spice things up. Depending on who you really are, the goal is either to destroy the witches or turn the whole town evil.
Deadwood
Ages: 13+
Playing time: 20-40 min
Number of players: 2-9
Deadwood is a wild west card and dice game where the goal is to win the gold with your guns. Talk about a rootin’ tootin’ time! The interesting dynamic in this game is balancing your time between helping your team get to the final showdown while also making sure that you’ll have the guns to beat out your teammates when you do get to that showdown. It’s a simple but clever game that we’ve enjoyed the more we’ve played it.
What Comes to Mind?
Ages: 10+
Playing time: 20 min
Number of players: 3+
This game reminds me of Scattergories (if you’ve ever played that), but quicker. With this game, everyone writes down answers to prompts in hopes to match other players’ answers. It’s a good game for those who hate waiting for their turn since everyone writes down their answers at the same time. We had some good laughs while playing since this game doesn’t stop you from putting all sorts of goofy answers.
Name Five
Ages: 12+
Playing time: 30 min
Number of players: 2+
I don’t know if this game was made to be a high energy game, but it certainly is with my game night group. We all get really into this game as we frantically shout out answers for the prompts. The goal is to name five items for each topic. You get a topic like “name five songs with animals,” and then you have to say five different answers before the timer runs out if you want to keep moving along the board. It’s the kind of game that’ll work your brain and get you to laugh at the same time.
Oddly Obvious!
Ages: 12+
Playing time: 20 min
Number of players: 3+
This game satisfies my need for puns and wordplay. To play, one person puts up a card and reads a prompt like “Army Animal,” and then everyone else has to look at the card covered in words and figure out which word matches the prompt. The word for “Army Animal” is “Octopus” since an octopus has a lot of “arms,” making it an army. Hardy, har, har. One rule change I recommend: make it so that players can only pick an answer once because otherwise, everyone (at least my friends) will just shout out all the words on the card until they happen upon the right answer.
99 or Bust
Ages: 10+
Playing time: 20 min
Number of players: 2-4 players
This game is a fun and simple one - it’s similar to UNO. Everyone takes turns playing number cards in the middle with the goal to not go over 99. Whoever goes over 99 loses the round and loses a chip. On top of that, there are special cards to throw everyone off and keep your friends on their toes. Even those of us who aren’t math-brained love this one.
Tsuro
Ages: 8+
Playing time: 2-8
Number of players: 20 min
With this game, everyone takes turns placing path tiles on the board. Everyone’s dragon (yes, you get to be a dragon!) follows the path in front of them and continues until their path leads them off the board, at which point they lose! The goal is to stay on the board until the very end. It’s an easy game to learn but becomes a tricky maze of a game once you get going.
Roll for It!
Ages: 8+
Playing time: 20-40 min
Number of players: 2-8
If you’re looking for a good dice game, then you should check this one out. The goal is to get points by rolling dice to match what’s on the cards. It’s not too hard to play - there’s some strategy in choosing where to place your dice and then a fair amount of luck in the actual dice rolling. Prepare to blow on your dice or whatever you do for luck because you’ll want it for this game.
Hive Mind
Ages: 8+
Playing time: 30-90 min
Number of players: 3-12
This is a fun one! Only the bees who think in harmony can stay in the overcrowded hive, so the goal of the game is to answer prompts with the same answers as the other players. It’s a fun game for our game night group because it gets everyone trying to think like everyone else. It’s been funny afterward when everyone tries to explain why they picked certain answers.
Ancestree
Ages: 8+
Playing time: 20-40 min
Number of players: 2-6
I’d recommend “branching” out to get this game (ba dum crash). With this game, you rotate a hand of tiles, picking a tile each time you rotate, and then you earn points depending on how well the tiles you choose match up. The goal is to prove that you have the greatest lineage of them all! You’ll reveal all kinds of ancestors - ones of wealth and power, and the occasional black sheep of the family.
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