Summary

  • Board games are a fun way to bond with family, away from screens.
  • Marvel Splendor, Dixit, and Ticket to Ride offer engaging family gameplay.
  • Curated list includes games to introduce kids to your favorite hobby.

Board games are a great way to liven up family time. They're a break from the usual TV and movies, and offer something more engaging and interactive. Rather than spending time in the same space, board games ensure you actually spend time communicating with your family. There are plenty of board games out there you can play with all members of the family, espe𒈔cially your kids.

There are board games of nume𒆙rꦿous genres that can be played by everyone in the family, but it's the kids we need to worry about the most. So, we've curated a list of board games that make for a great time with your children. Sure, you may need to remind them of the rules now and then, but it's a great way to get them into your favourite hobby.

Updated on July 29, 2024, by Vaspaan Dastoor: There's nothing quite like a board games night to bring the whole family together. Of course, these games will have to be relatively simple and PG, if the kids are going to enjoy them. We've updated this list with a few more family friendly board games.

Best Board Games For Families

 Marvel Splendor

Splendor is a game about collecting jewels, with each jewel making your next moveꦏ easier. Sounds a lot like Thanos' journey to collect the Infinity Stones - he only got more powerful, making collecting the remaining stones ൩easier. So, it makes sense that a croccover between Marvel and Splendor would be seamless.

Pros & Cons
  • Infinity Stones storyline fits in perfectly with gameplay.
  • Great way to introduce kids to the game.
  • Features characters and locations from Marvel Comics.

Introducing elements of Marvel Comics and movies into anything is a great way of getting kids interested in it. However, the bonus for Marvel Splendor is that the collaboration is seamless thanks to the I🌳nfinity Stones being swapped in for the jewels from the original version. However, the win condition is a bit different, tasking you with assembliꦚng the Infinity Gauntlet with all the stones.

Dixit Board Game
Player Count
3-6
Age Recommendation
8+
Length per Game
♈ 30 minutes 🐻

Kids love telling tall tales, whether they're completely made-up adventures, or an exaggeration of something they heard. Dixit is a great way to get the kids to channel this storytelling prowess into a game. Not o🐭nly will it help them channel and articulate their thoughts, but could also result in a hilarious twist to the ongoing story.

Pros & Cons
  • Sparks children's imagination.
  • Fairly easy to play.
  • Laugh riots are sure to ensue.

Ever heard a kid tell a story and wonder where all ꦏthis imagination comes from? Well, Dixit is a great way to harness that imagination into a board game. The plot twis♍ts and story development that a child can bring to Dixit is sure to be entertaining, if nothing else.

Ticket to Ride board game box

Ticket to Ride is a great way to bring the family together and takeover the entire railway network of a continent. With simple a ruleset and a fun building system, Ticket to🀅 Ride is a great time for the entire family. It doesn't get competiti൲ve until the end, when you're tallying the scores.

Pros & Cons
  • Helps the kids learn the names of cities.
  • Completing a railway line is a great feeling.
  • Trains.

Imagine establishing the entire railway infrastructure of a continent as a family - that's some quality family bonding time. Su⛎re, sometimes your family members may cross the route you want, but there are ways to deal with it, as a family.

The Haunted Mansion: Call Of The Spirits board game box

The kids probably won't s🤪ee the nostalgia factor behind The Haunted Mansion: Call Of The Spirits, but it's a great way to introduce them to one of the most beloved Disney parks attractions. It also has a ♒spooky but not scary vibe, making it a great activity for Halloween.

Pros & Cons
  • Unique board design.
  • Nostalgic value.
  • Great for Halloween.

The Haunted Mansion: Call of the Spirits is one of those games that's spooky but not scary, making it a great game for ki꧒ds during Halloween. However, it's unique board and fun gameplay mechanics make it a great game to play any time.

star wars the black series trivial pursuit

Trivial Pursuit is a great board game to bring out with the family, but it gets better when the trivia is about something you all love. If you managed to indoctrinate your kids into the Star Wars fandom, a night of Trivial Pur🍃suit: Star Wars The Black Series Edition will be a treat for all involved.

Pros & Cons
  • Great for Star Wars fans.
  • Spans all nine movies.
  • Star Wars themed gameplay involved too.

If you're one of those parents who take pride in your kids liking the things you do, then the Trivial Pursuit: Star War🔴s The Black Seri𝓰es Edition is a great way to check how far they've come. Unfortunately this means they'll be introduced to the sequel trilogy too, but that's required to maintain a balance in the Force.

Best Card Game
disney villains: the card game

Disney Villains: The Card Game tasks players with creating a deck of iconic baddies from throughout Disney history. Scar, Jafar, Ursula, they're all in there, and Disney's heroes are trying to stop you from assembling them and enacting their evil plans. A simple game to pick up and play suitable for all the family.

Pros & Cons
  • Very easy for almost all ages to understand
  • Effectively a classic card game with an evil Disney twist
  • Just about every iconic Disney villain is in here
  • Basically just a fancy set of Disney playing cards

Disney has a real talent when it comes to creating villains. That's a blessing and a curse. A blessing because it makes Disney movies that much better. A curse because it ultimately means fans love the villain🎃s too. Rather than dial back the quality of its baddies, Disney has made merch like Disney Villains: The Card Game. In this game's universe, players are the villains, assembling a team of baddies and henchmen to take down the heroes. A card game that turns the Disney formula on its head, is a lot of fun, and is very easy to understand.

Best Value
Goats' Day Out
Player Count
2-5
Age Recommendation
8+
Length per Game
30-60 minu🎀tes
Publishing Co
ThinkFun

Goats have escaped from a local petting zoo and now they're eating everything in sight. Your goal in Goats' Day Out isn't to stop them, but to help them. Move around the board, strategically choosing what your goat eats as you try to become the first player to fill their farm animal's tummy.

Pros & Cons
  • Equal parts strategic and silly
  • Guaranteed to get lots of laughs
  • Very reasonably priced
  • Not as simple as it looks

Animals escaping from a zoo is usually a reason to panic. Not when that zoo is a petting zoo, and the animals running riot are goats. You might have been a little panicked had you been tasked with rounding up the goats, but that's not the goal here. In Goats🧸' Day Out, you are t💎he goats, and all you need to do is eat as much as you can get your grubby little hooves on. That won't be as simple as it sounds, though. The goats' bellies are a very specific shape which means you can't just cram anything in there, and the routes you take and what lies ahead shift all the time.

Best Quick Game
that's not a hat card game

That's Not A Hat is a simple yet captivating game that tests both your memory and your ability to deceive. Cards that represent gifts are shown, flipped, and passed around, and you have to either remember what's on them or convince everyone you do as you pass them to someone else.

Pros & Cons
  • Very easy to pick up and play
  • High replay value
  • Very cheap
  • Incredibly basic

When most people hear the❀ term board game, they probably think of sitting around a big square while someone explains an elaborate set of rules, hours of their life set aside so they can play it. Not all board games need to be that. It's Not A Hat is the exact opposite. The rules are easy to understand, there are no board and game pieces to keep track of, and a round could be all done in ten minutes. All you need are the cards. Cards are flipped over and players need to remember what's on them. Either be honest, if your memory is good enough, or bluff well enough that your rivals believe you can remember what's on the cards.

Best Deck Building Game
Sushi Go Party! board game box
Player Count
2-♐8 players
Length per Game
💝 20 minutes ꧋

A great twist on the classic card game. Sushi Go Party! is a great way to spend 🐻time with the family, especially if its sushi night. The adorable sushi art will not only be fun for the꧅ kids, but will also whet your appetite for the maki rolls later on.

Pros & Cons
  • Adorable artwork.
  • Simple ruleset.
  • Games don't last too long.

Most k🎶ids take a while to develop a taste for sushi, and deck building. Sushi Go Party! is a great way to introduce them to both these amazing things in a fun way. Besides, with most of the rules explained on the cards themselves, it'll be easy to teach eve𝄹ryone how to play this game.

Best Deduction Game
Codenames card game box
Age Recommendation
10+
Game Duration
15 m💜inutes
Number of Players
2 - 8

Here's one to keep everyone on their toes. One player fro😼m each team must use an alphanumeric code to indicate which card on the table is the spy. While this may be a bit advanced for younger kids, it's a great team-based game to play with the family. The goofy art also helps keep it fun.

Pros & Cons
  • Relatively easy ruleset.
  • High replayability value.
  • Requires four or more players.

Codenames makes for a great party game, but that doesn't ℱm𒉰ean you need to be having an actual party to play it. As long as there are four or more players, a game of Codename can create absolute chaos during family time. Hopefully, real spies don't have it this bad in their line of work.

Best Art
Wingspan board game box
Original Release Date
2019-00-00
Player Count
1-5
Age Recommendation
10+
Length per Game
🌃 40-70 minutes
Publishing Co
⛦ Stonemaier Games

Wingspan is a beautifully designed game that's perfect for family game night. The water colour art of the birds is a great way to teach your kids about our feathery friends, as they even have some bird facts printed below♏ eacꦚh image. The goal of the game is to build the best bird sanctuary.

Pros & Cons
  • Gorgeous water colour art.
  • Great way to learn more about birds.
  • Fun set pieces.

Everybody loves birds. So, why not spend family game night trying ♋to build a sanctuary for them? Sure, it will teach your kids a bit about birds, but Wingspan will also teach them some beginner level strategy. The water colours on the cards is the highlight of this board game, and may even spark your child's interest in art.

Best Strategy Board Game
Pandemic Legacy: Season 1 board game box

This one is definitely for older kids, as you may want to shield your younger ones from the difficulty of living through a pandemic. However, nothing is more special on game night than sav𝓡ing the world as a family. You may need to assist your kids with their next moves a bit, but Pandemic Legacy: Season 1 is a great starting point for getting into strategy co-op games.

Pros & Cons
  • Great for teaching your children about working together.
  • Could spark an interest in medicine.
  • Prompts strategy-based discussions with your kids.

Forming a plan, executing it, and adapting when things don't go as planned is all part and parcel of a family trip. So, what better way to train for this as a ♐family than a game of Pandemic Legacy: Season 1? It requires a bit more complex strategy, so it's ideal for kids who are a bit older.

Best Tile Game
Azul board game box
Player Count
2-4
Age Recommendation
8+
Length per Game
�🌜� 30-45 minutes

Azul may be the simplest lo🙈oking game on this list, but I can assure you it's not as easy as you may think. Strategically placing tiles to maximize your points is not only more diffi🎀cult than it looks, but also makes for a great brain exercise for the kids. Who knows, maybe it will also improve their spatial awareness.

Pros & Cons
  • Beautifully designed tiles and boards.
  • Great for training spatial awareness and math.
  • Simpler puzzle mechanics.
  • Can only be played by a maximum of four players

Azul is not only a pretty looking game, but also requires strategy with an element of puzzle solving. It may not seem like the most fun 🍒game for younger kids, but once they grow to appreciate puzzles and matching, Azul may become a regular at your family game nights.

Best Abstract Strategy Board Game
Santorini board game box

While the game itself is fun, there are a number of things we can all learn from Santorini. It's a great tile-based movement board game that rewards strategic gameplay. However🌜, it also teaches us about the ancient Greek pantheon. Thankfully, it includes PG-13 versions of the gods, and doesn't mention their more 'adventurous' exploits.

Pros & Cons
  • Great art and cute looking set pieces.
  • Introduction to Greek mythology.

Santorini, while being a strategy tile-based game, is pretty simple in terms of gameplay. The aim is to be the first to get to the top of a three-story tower. It's a great introduction to beginner level strategy, and the cards may even pique an interest in G🧔reek mythology.

Scotland Yard

Scotland Yard is a simple and great game about the police chasing a criminal across London. It doesn't feature complicated mechanics or adult themes, so it's perfect for older kids. It's also a great way to teach them about the🦋 city of London.

Pros & Cons
  • Great for kids aged years ten and up.
  • Promotes critical thinking.

While Scotland Yard is about chasing down criminals, there aren't any adult themes to it. So, it makes for a great game to play with older children who may find certain games a bit too childish.

Munchkin Marvel Edition

Munchkin is already a hit with the kids, but the hilarious themes of the game make it great f﷽or adults too. While this particular edition will appe💫al to little Marvel fans, there are plenty of editions for various interests. And the best part? You can mix the cards in with any older deck.

Pros & Cons
  • Great for younger Marvel fans.
  • Can be added to any other Munchkin deck.

The biggest appeal of Munchkin is that th﷽ere'♒s an edition for almost every kind of interest. And, these editions canbe mixed up to form one large game as well. That's a great way of piquing interest as well as keeping things fresh.

FAQ

Are board games good for families?

Board games are a great way to spend time with your family as they encourage communic♊ation and also boost mental health and knowledge.

What is the world's most famous board game?

Based on the number of republished editions and translations, Monopoly can be considered t൲he most popular board game.

Which is the toughest board game in the world?

Chess is believed to be one of t💧he t𒀰oughest board games, due to its various approaches and strategies.

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