The trickiest bit about making a guide to the best board games is choosing what you should leave out. There's almost too much choice. In fact, the tabletop scene is full to bursting with incredible ideas that'll light your imagination on fire (anyone who still thinks that board games are just for stuffy Christmas gatherings are in for a surprise). After plenty of thought and lots of wisdomous chin-stroking - shush, it's a word - we've finally got the definitive list of our very favorite board games. In our eyes, these are the best of the best and deserve a place on everyone's shelf.
No matter whether they're board games for adults or board games for kids, our recommendations below feature a cool hook and theme to help them stand out from the crowd. The best board games are replayable as well; besides being great value, they'll keep you coming back to the table for months on end. Finally, we've also been sure to include the best cooperative board games for those who want a break from competition, not to mention smaller board games for 2 people that can be used on the go. Basically, there should be something for everyone here.
There's nothing quite like taking part in your own horror movie. Betrayal at House on the Hill casts you as one of six tropes (creepy little girl with a doll? check) before setting everyone loose in a mansion that's revealed room by room. Unfortunately, something's waiting for you all inside. And as you've probably guessed, it's not too pleasant.
Because of this, Betrayal's gameplay is dripping with tension. Each player lays down room tiles drawn at random as they explore the house, and that results in a unique setting each time. You never know what you'll find through the next door, either - your journey triggers creepy events, calamities, and 'Omens' as you go. Find enough Omens and a full-blown horror scenario will kick in. This is where things get properly tense; one of 50 missions is chosen and the house turns on its inhabitants with swift, often-bizarre savagery. Perhaps a serial killer strides through the door, eager to hunt you one by one. Maybe a monstrous creature awakens in the basement, or the house starts sinking into a swamp. Regardless, you'll need to work as a team if you want to get out of there alive. Well, most of you will need to work as a team. You see, one player may be revealed as a traitor at this point. They have special rules of their own, and the majority of them boil down to murdering everyone else. Which is enough to get them taken off the Christmas card list, to be honest.
Anyway. Once you've gotten your head around the base game, you can shake things up with a special Legacy edition. This adds persistent consequences to each session, building a long-term story that's entirely unique.
This board game adaptation translates the franchise's theme, gameplay, and art-style perfectly. Using scenarios inspired by Fallout 3 and Fallout 4, this take on the post-apocalyptic Wasteland feels one hell of a lot like playing the video game... only now your friends can come along for the ride. It's a tabletop version of Fallout 76, in other words, and one that works brilliantly even if you're playing solo.
Fortunately for us, this board game doesn't share the teething troubles of its online counterpart. Players set off to explore what's left of America, build influence among factions, beat the snot out of monsters, and complete side-quests that'll earn them even more stuff. It's a satisfying gameplay loop. However, what's really pleasing about this game is the attention to detail. Everything feels drawn straight from the Fallout universe, right down to the card descriptions and artwork. The downside? The length of each session is a blessing or a curse depending on how you look at it; games can last 2-3 hours. Still, If you're willing to invest the time and you have friends who love a bit of Fallout, you couldn't ask for anything better.
Never has a board game been more on-brand than Villainous; it delights in making you as mean as possible. It's also surprisingly tactical. There's a lot of unexpected depth here, and it takes skill to come out on top in this battle of dastardly backstabbing. Gorgeous artwork and beautiful playing pieces are the icing on this very, very appealing cake. It's a pain to explain for the first time, but trust us: you'll be hooked once you've got it.
Based on classic Disney movies both old and new (ish), Villainous casts you as a famous baddie looking to get their own way. Malificent must place a curse on each area of the board, Jafar needs to get his hands on the lamp, Ursula wants Triton's trident, and so on. But that's not the coolest part. In an inspired twist, each villain has unique abilities inspired by their personality from the films. As an example, King John's got underhand methods of sponging yet more money from his foes. These skills come in very handy when trying to undermine other players - for added spice, you're also attempting to scupper your opponents' plans while working toward your own. You can drop pesky heroes like Ariel on top of them to block some of their moves, for instance. This makes the game a whole lot more devious; good strategy is needed to do so while furthering your own goals.
Happily, there's plenty more where that came from - Villainous has got two expansions on the horizon that add more beloved characters to the fun, ranging from Scar to Hades.
Its namesake may have been pushing daisies since 2013, but Blockbuster: The Game is the life of the party. This brand-new movie quiz is fast-paced and surprisingly brutal, which obviously makes it a hoot when the drinks and jokes are flowing. Its awesome VHS theming is also cool as hell.
Your goal is to team up and collect a deck of eight 'genre' cards, but each turn begins with a one-on-one round. After being handed a category (e.g. "spy movies"), both sides take it in turns to yell out a movie as quick as they can before resetting the 15-second timer. Whoever can't think of anything loses. The winner then picks 6 movie cards for the next stage of the game, 'Triple Charades Jeopardy'. Their job? To act out, quote, and describe 3 of those cards for their team (don't worry if you can't remember a real quote, by the way - you're allowed to make something up). The trouble is, you've only got 30 seconds to do it. That's why winning Round One becomes so crucial; you can keep the easy cards for yourself and saddle your opponents with the hardest ones. It’s deliciously evil, and I love it.
You don't need to be a film buff to play, either. As it says on the box, Blockbuster is a "movie game for anyone who has ever seen a movie". No in-depth trivia is required, and that makes it so much more accessible.
Bananagrams may sound daft, but it's pure gold if you're into word games. As the lovechild of Scrabble, Upwords, and your average pen-and-paper puzzle, this game challenges its players to make a crossword from letter tiles. Because each word must be connected to another one and make sense (which is a right pig if you've got a handful of 'z' and 'q'), it gives your gray matter a workout. You'll need to be quick, too. Once someone's used up their pile of letters, you all take another tile… even those who haven't finished their crossword yet. This ratchets up the pressure in a big way; if you're not on your toes, you could find yourself with a mountain of letters to wade through. Don't worry about being left behind, though. Because the game keeps going until no tiles are left, there's room for underdogs to pull off a last-minute win nonetheless. That's an amazing feeling, and managing to create a long word full of awkward letters (now's the time to break out 'antidisestablishmentarianism') is just as empowering.
Thanks to Bananagram's small playing pieces and petite case, it's also ideal for gaming on the go. It can easily fit into a pocket or bag, and that means you're able to take it with you when out and about. There are plenty of alternative versions, too - you can get a Party Edition that adds amusing new rules, Double Bananagrams for larger groups, and more.
Gloomhaven is where it's at if you want a deep, engrossing fantasy RPG to lose yourself in. Along with an enormous box stuffed with miniatures and over 1,700 cards, the consequences of one game carry into the next. This provides a sprawling adventure across multiple sessions, making it a bite-size introduction to the likes of Dungeons and Dragons.
As a wandering mercenary, your team will brave dark depths in search of loot while battling monsters via turn-based combat. Meanwhile, every scenario and choice builds on your group's unique story (much like a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure book). It's fairly easy to get your head around, though. Despite dealing with persistent stats that evolve with your character, the manual is surprisingly straightforward. It's expensive, yes, but it's also the sort game that will keep you going for months on end.
Reluctant to shell out that much cash? We hear you, and there's a solution; Gloomhaven now has a digital adaptation on Steam.
Deduction and deception go hand-in-hand for One Night Ultimate Werewolf, a game that practically makes wink murder a competitive sport. It starts out simply enough; each player is randomly cast as one of a motley collection of village residents. Yet they're not the only ones playing - hidden amongst them are werewolves who seek to prey on the unsuspecting villagers. Over the course of an in-game night (in which everyone secretly plays their moves) you must figure out who that monster is before they get you. That's not as easy as it sounds. Because many roles allow for subterfuge, you can never be absolutely sure who is telling the truth.
As with all games of this type, the fun lies both in making accurate deductions based on fact and gut feeling, and in successfully throwing others under the bus (you rascal). Over the course of each ten-minute game, suspicion runs rampant and, because there's always the chance that there are no werewolves in any given match, innocent players will have to talk their way out of a death sentence. The free accompanying app also makes set-up a breeze, especially for sessions with more players. Which is the best way to experience One Night Ultimate Werewolf, as it so happens. A bunch of hapless victims to trick and double-cross? Bring it on.
Lara Croft often works alone, and now we can see why - this game is all about screwing over other players in a scramble to victory. As you'd expect, Tomb Raider Legends: The Board Game tasks you with plundering an artefact from trap-filled dungeons… but everyone else wants to get there first. To make matters worse, replica artefacts litter the board so you can never be certain who's got their mitts on the real one. What follows is half-an-hour of bluffing, backstabbing, and theft. It's like poker mixed with dungeon-crawling, and I'm totally here for it.
Happily, each 'room' of the tomb is randomly selected. This means you can't be certain of what's coming. To increase your anxiety even more, many feature a unique challenge, enemy, or status effect that range from dinosaur lairs to deadly rapids. This threat must be defeated before anyone can progress to the next stage, so you've got to be tactical about whether you tackle the danger head-on, heal yourself, or attack your foes while they're distracted. It becomes even more strategic because players need to decide their moves well in advance - you end up trying to second-guess what everyone else is going to do. Although the rules aren't always clear, once you understand them this becomes a fast-paced game with a wicked edge. There really is no honor amongst thieves...
Most party games rely on silliness or trivia to function. Codenames is a clever alternative that throws strategy into the mix. One player invents single-word clues that guide their team-mates toward particular cards laid out in a grid. This clue can be anything (it might rhyme with the target, make a compound word, or be a synonym), but no hints are allowed to be given beyond that. In other words, get ready to go crazy watching your team talk their way out of right answers.
It's also harder to come up with clues than it sounds, leading to moments of quiet as players desperately think of links. While that may be too thoughtful for a knees-up, it's perfect for later in the evening when things are winding down. It's a great icebreaker, too; finding out the reasoning behind someone else's clue can teach you a lot about them (for example, they might connect the word 'blue' with 'milk' because they're a Star Wars fan).
King of Tokyo is about being one of several tongue-in-cheek super-monsters crashing through the city. There are analogues for Godzilla and King Kong, of course, but let's not forget about Space Penguin. Or the giant 'Cyber Kitty' robot. I'm not making these up, by the way; that knowing silliness is charming and just one reason why this game is such a hoot.
Another reason is its easy-to-understand gameplay. In essence, you compete with your fellow monsters to be the one doing the smashing each turn. This earns you points, as does buying cards that represent goofy mass destruction. Want to battle players, on the other hand? Yet more cards enhance your monster with powers like extra heads, poison spit, and a spiked tail you can use to fight. There's a social element, too; you can conspire with rivals to topple whoever's stomping through the city. No matter what you choose, all this gets resolved via a Yahtzee-style mechanic you can explain to anyone in seconds.
Cosmic Encounter was first published in 1977 and has been through numerous editions since, but all of them have something in common - they're brilliant. Each player gets a unique alien power from a huge deck, and then they have to try and establish colonies on rivals' planets. Not that it's as straightforward as that. For each encounter, the players involved negotiate with everyone else for temporary alliances. This ensures that no two games are the same.
While it's pretty simple, Cosmic Encounter's got an odd setup that can seem peculiar to those familiar with traditional attack and defence games. Once you've gotten to grips with it, though, the ever-changing alien powers make every game a blast. Examples include winning encounters by losing, reversing card numbers so 17 becomes 71, or being able to resurrect lost ships. If the options in the box aren’t enough for you, there's a big selection of expansions to add.
