14 Board Games You Must Play This (Covid) Holiday
Make the most of your time locked down with your loved ones by adding some epic board games into the mix
In today’s COVID ravaged world, we are finding ourselves quarantined with the same people day after day; each day blending together like a personal version of Groundhog Day. New ways to engage and connect with one another have become a necessity.
One of the ways that my family achieves this is through board games. I don’t know about you, but some of the best memories I have are of my grandparents and parents coming together to play games — a binding force that brought us together.
But traditionally — if we’re talking about Monopoly, Risk, or some of the games we all grew up with — those weren’t fun. They were combative and divisive. The games today are much more inclusive. They allow people to enjoy playing and strategizing against each other, rather than beating one another.
Now, I will share with you the 14 games I think you will find interesting, entertaining, less conflict-oriented, and more competitive-oriented:
This is a beautiful game about birds and is what is called an engine-building game. Which is the ability to make decisions early in the game that reaps benefits later through cumulative effects. It is a fairly simple game that allows you to begin creating environments to collect birds into your habitat. Very straightforward, very enjoyable. Younger children may not enjoy this because the theme isn’t attractive or interesting. But older people, adults particularly like this because of its beautiful artwork and theme. It also has two expansions, one for Europe and one for Oceania. However, the core game is focused on the birds of North America.
This is a great game for ages eight and up. And when I say that, I don’t mean older people will tolerate younger people playing. No — this is a game that actually allows eight-year-olds to compete just as equally with their parents. It’s also a fairly straightforward game. It takes five minutes to learn, but a lifetime to master, as it’s referred to. One of the nice things about this game is that: 1) It’s quick to set up. And, 2) It has very simple mechanics. Basically, you make one choice on your turn and it usually is a very short turn, so the game moves quickly. There’s no reading, so a younger audience can enjoy that. But it still has an element of strategy and tension. This game carries a surprising amount of intensity as you enter into the later stages of the game. Because you’re trying to vie for secret hidden objectives that can be thwarted unintentionally by your opponents. Or sometimes, intentionally by those who don’t play nicely. Highly recommend this game!
King of Tokyo is a simple game with the concept of rolling a lot of big dice as monsters are beating up on each other. And that means this is a game that is enjoyable for younger people. My daughters have enjoyed this game, but both boys and girls do, as they love to roll these dice. It’s very tactile with a lot of noise! Adults enjoy playing this game as well. There’s not a whole lot of strategy, but it is a lot of fun just simply have your monsters beat up on each other.
Of all the games on the list, Terraforming Mars is what we would refer to as the heaviest game. This is a fairly complex game, that again, includes engine-building. You make decisions early on adding to your ability to expand the decisions you make later. You are representing corporations trying to terraform the planet Mars. You each have different skills and abilities to do so. Over time you take a series of turns of modifying the heat, the oxygen level, and the water content in your attempt to terraform the planet. It is engaging with multiple paths to victory. Being fairly complex, it takes about two hours to play. There is also an app you can play, so if you want to learn the game, play it on the app first. You can introduce it to your family after you gain a better understanding. As a warning — this game is more complex than any other games on the list.
5. CODENAMES
Codenames is a great game for a group of any number of individuals. You divide into two teams, and one individual gives one-word clues to their team. Then, based on those one-word clues, the results are determined. You can even play it over zoom if you aren’t able to be with your family. This makes an easy way to engage with a large group where one person can’t dominate. It’s a lot of fun and very simple to set up. The game lasts about 15 to 20 minutes.
6. Lost Cities
Lost Cities is a two-player card game that basically has you competing to build complete sets of cards. Think about almost as competing Solitaire games. You’re trying to play each other out of the same deck to build a Solitaire. It’s along those lines with slightly different complexity. It takes about 10 minutes to play and is easy to set up. A great game for couples––my spouse beats me on a regular basis.
7. Catan
Catan is considered one of the premier new generation of games. It’s just had its 25th anniversary. This game is resource management, as you’re trading and building a small economy on the Island of Catan, and you’re exchanging back and forth. It’s for a slightly older crowd; I’d recommend 10 and older. There are some nuances of trading back and forth. There are a wide variety of expansions that allow you to experiment, once you get the Core game down. My family has played it many times and enjoyed it greatly.
8. Pandemic
Pandemic is a four-player game of cooperation. Cooperation is a new category of gaming developed over the last several years. It allows all players to compete together against the game. And, out of all the cooperation games, Pandemic is the one that dominates the market. It’s obviously very appropriate in today’s environment. You’re all members of the CDC helping to defeat the viruses that are trying to take over the world. If you win, you all win. If you fail, you all fail. For some gamers with a more competitive streak, this isn’t for them. But for those families who are looking for ways to bring people together, what a great example! Now, here’s another version of Pandemic that I highly recommend.
This is the legacy version of Pandemic. Legacy version games actually physically change the game every time you play. This is a radical concept for those of us who grew up with Monopoly and Risk — that you would literally tear up cards as you play the game because they’ll never be played in the game again. We might have done that out of frustration, but this is actually planned into the game.
I highly recommend Pandemic Legacy, Season 1; it’s considered one of the best games ever. Not just a great cooperative game or legacy game, but one of the best games of all time. Every game is a month of the year, starting in January. And, you work through the year trying to save the world from the encroaching pandemic. I know it sounds like the version of Pandemic I just mentioned. The difference is, if you succeed or fail, it has permanent repercussions on every game afterward. This makes it a very unique experience as you play over the 12 months of the game. It’s one of our favorite games in my family.
10. Splendor
Splendor is a terrific, quick, and easy, two to four-player game. The two-player version versus the four-player version can be a very different dynamic and is something to be considered. This is another engine-building game — something that seems to be popular at my house. The object is to collect gems so that you can buy increasingly more expensive gems as the game progresses. Ultimately ending the game when somebody reaches 15 points; having the most gems. Very straightforward. I’ve played this game in 10 minutes and turned around to play it again. Not to mention, the artwork is beautiful.
11. Camel Up
Camel Up is a camel racing game. Not only have I had a lot of fun with this game, but I’ve sent this one to other members of my family to enjoy — the kids and adults alike. It’s silly, it’s crazy, and it’s not necessarily about who can win the camel race, but more so about who can guess which camel is going to win.
I hate to use the words betting or gambling, particularly around young family members, but that’s basically what this is. You’re wagering on which camel you think will win, through a series of guessing and card play. It’s a lot of fun and all ages eight and up can join. The reason I enjoy this game so much is that it’s not necessarily a game of skill, but it’s more of a game of intuitiveness and gambling — with gambling comes luck!
12. Munchkin
Munchkin is extremely popular, especially with my grandson. I don’t like it, but it’s on my list anyway because a lot of people like this game. It’s a silly and simple card game with multiple variations. You can have the vendor’s version, the dungeon version, the space version, the superheroes version, or any other version. It doesn’t matter what theme, Munchkins has done it. It’s made up of a card game that we’d call the dungeon crawl. You’re going through a dungeon, beating up monsters, and getting loot. This is why my six-year-old grandson loves it — he gets to beat up on stuff and gather loot. There’s little strategy involved, it’s pretty mindless, quick, and funny. I play it and enjoy it with my grandson. I put it on the list because it has to be there, but not necessarily because I’m going to pick that box up. However, you just might enjoy it.
13. Forbidden Desert
Forbidden Desert is by the creator of Pandemic as well, so it’s a similar theme. It’s also a cooperative game. You’re all on a desert, crash-landed, trying to put together a mythical flying machine before the desert storms overwhelm you. You each have a unique skill. The board is a dynamic set of tiles that move throughout the game, as the storm moves throughout the board. It’s a very simple game as far as mechanics, but each of you has a role. It scales in fun by the number of people who play — up to four. There’s an Island version, Forbidden Island, which is a sinking Island. These games are created by Matt Leacock, and he’s done a fantastic job of bringing people together, cooperating to beat the game rather than competing against each other.
14. Colt Express
That brings up my last game, Colt Express. Whenever I have visitors (before the pandemic) — from other countries such as Russia, Germany, France, or England — this is often the game I pull out to play first. It has no writing and includes a 3D cardboard train that’s fun to set up on the table. You have little bandits who are robbing the train, and you move them throughout the train robbing and beating up each other. It’s a fantastic game that both children and adults love. There is an element of luck involved and includes a unique mechanic that requires you to plan in public what you’re going to do many turns ahead. This allows the other players to anticipate what you’re going to do, but you all have to make your move at the same time.
I realize that doesn’t quite make sense, but trust me, if you have four or more people and you need to find a game that would be fun for all types of folks, you can’t go wrong with Colt Express.
In fact, I took this on a cruise with my parents and siblings; all adults. We spent hours playing this game — shooting, robbing, and beating up on each other. For a family get-together, there’s nothing better than getting to beat up your family members in a game!
Conclusion
This was simply MY list of games. I hope you might find games interesting to your group of individuals, as you’re stuck home during the holidays or COVID lockdown. May you make cherished memories with your loved ones and have fun while you’re at it — maybe even learn something new!
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