So full confession… some board games are a bit boring aren’t they? And I say that as someone who LOVES a game. With half-term coming up and spending more time at home that any of us could have anticipated, I thought I’d share my top games that I genuinely enjoy and would (and have!) play without the kids.
My boys are now 8 and 12 and both enjoy playing these. Where possible I have included the recommend age for the game and a link (to Amazon for ease but obviously lots of other places to buy from).
Wizard – a simple pack of cards with a few additional special cards played a little like whist. Predict the number of “tricks” that you will win each round as the number of cards in your hand increases each round. A really great game which I first learnt with friends in the pub (remember those?!)! It’s officially for 10 years and up, but my now 8 year-old plays it and has done since he’s about 7.
221B Baker Street – this is our latest favourite. Almost like a grown-up Cluedo with a different complex case to solve each game. I would agree with the recommended age of 10 and over as some of the clues are quite tricky to solve, but we play with my 8 year-old as part of a team with a grown up and he loves it too.
Quirkle – a Scrabble type tile layout but instead of letters, you have shapes and colours. Maximise your points by creating new rows or columns of matching shapes or colours. A good challenge for the recommended age of six and definitely something which both my boys enjoy.
Carcasonne – another tile based game but this time with parts of cities and their surroundings which you must build one tile at a time and finish to score points. It’s a hard one to describe to do it justice, but I really highly recommend this one. Good for 7 and over. There are variations and expansion packs once you’re as hooked as we are!
And not forgetting our other favourites Forbidden Island (see my review here), Splendor (details here) – I’m currently on a losing streak to my 12 year-old!
If none of these take your fancy, I’ve previously recommended my favourite classic board games.
I would love to know your favourites so drop me a line!
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