Top 10 Best Board Games of All Time
The world of board games is a magical realm where strategy, luck, and friendly competition combine to give us countless hours of joy and entertainment. From the earliest forms of checkers played in ancient civilizations to the modern, complex games that unfold entire universes on our dining room tables, board games have been a part of human history for millennia. They have the power to bring people together, create memorable moments, and challenge our minds in the most enjoyable ways possible.But how do we go about picking the best board games of all time? What makes one game rise above the rest?
Is it the intricate strategy it demands, leaving us chewing our nails as we plan our next move? Is it the thrill of unpredictability, where a roll of the dice can change everything? Perhaps it's the rich and immersive storyline that draws us into its world, or maybe it's simply how much laughter and fun it brings to our game nights.
Monopoly is a popular board game that involves buying, selling and trading properties on a board with different squares. The goal of the game is to bankrupt the other players by charging them rent when they land on your properties. The game also has special cards and spaces that can affect the gameplay, such as Chance, Community Chest, Jail and Free Parking. Monopoly can be played by two to eight players, and each player chooses a token to represent them on the board. The game is based on the economic concept of monopoly, where a single entity dominates a market and eliminates competition. I love Monopoly. I agree that the game can be incredibly luck-based and whoever has the most properties at the beginning tends to win. If you think Monopoly takes ages, make sure you follow the rules in the instruction manual. Not using the free parking space as a money-collecting space helps keep the game short, and I don't know why people have that house rule. You also need to auction properties if the player who lands on it does not wish to buy. I am just putting these two official rules out there that make the game easier and faster.
Overall, Monopoly is a great game to play on a family game night. Just don't let anyone flip the game board once they go bankrupt!
Chess is a two-player strategy game that originated in India in the 6th century. The game is played on a square board with 64 squares of alternating colors, usually black and white. Each player controls 16 pieces: one king, one queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights and eight pawns. The goal of the game is to checkmate the opponent's king, which means to trap it so that it cannot escape from any attack. Chess is one of the most popular and widely studied games in the world, with a rich history and culture. Chess has many benefits for the mind, such as improving concentration, memory, logic and creativity. Chess is a very strategic game, and you really have to think. If you don't play strategically, you will lose. I think chess is the best board game because it helps you with real-life situations. If you're capable of applying chess strategies to your life, then you'll win. Everything goes according to chess. If you analyze real life, you'll see that your life is full of sacrifices (like when you've said bad words or done bad things) and strategy. It's like a war where you protect the king, your children. The one who knows chess can rule the world better than the one who knows Risk. The chess player will understand the risks of everything. So, I guess it really helps.
The board game Life is a classic family game that simulates the major events of a person's life, such as education, career, marriage, children, and retirement. The game was created by Milton Bradley in 1860 and has been updated several times to reflect the changing society and culture. The game is played on a board with a winding track that represents the journey of life, with spaces that correspond to different situations or choices. Players spin a wheel to determine how many spaces they move and follow the instructions on the space they land on. Some spaces require players to draw cards that give them additional rewards or penalties, such as money, fame, lawsuits, or taxes. The game also involves collecting pegs that represent spouses and children and placing them in the player's car token. The game ends when all players reach the retirement space at the end of the board. The player with the most money and life points wins the game. I love the game of Life because there are so many different ways your game could go. It could turn out to be an incredible game where you have tons of money, or you could end up losing, with no money, no house, nothing. This game is great for people aged 7 and up.
This game is great! I played it with a few of my friends before deciding to purchase it myself. It's great fun. Definitely a must-have with my family. We played it for three hours, then stopped, and it left my friends and I wanting to play more.
I love this game so much, especially the new versions with all the new stuff. My best score was when I played one-on-one, and my opponent ended with 3.5 million dollars, but I ended with 5.9 million dollars! So fun, a must-play!
The board game Clue is a classic mystery game that challenges players to solve a murder by finding out who did it, with what weapon, and in which room. The game is based on the original Cluedo game that was created in England in 1949 by Anthony E. Pratt. The game can be played by 3 to 6 players, who take on the roles of one of the six suspects: Miss Scarlet, Colonel Mustard, Mrs. White, Mr. Green, Mrs. Peacock, and Professor Plum. The game board depicts a mansion with nine rooms, and the players move around the board using dice or cards. The players also have cards that represent the six suspects, six weapons, and nine rooms. One card from each category is secretly placed in an envelope at the start of the game, and these cards are the solution to the murder. The players must use deduction and logic to eliminate the possible combinations of cards by asking questions to each other and making accusations when they think they have solved the case. The first player to correctly guess the cards in the envelope wins the game. Clue is a fun family game. It is the best detective game there is. I love it! My family and I play it every free time that we get. I love it so much that if it were a person, I would want to marry it. It is the BEST!
Clue is my most favorite of all board games! The point of the game is to try to solve the murder. It's a great family game and isn't too long or too short. The only thing I would note is that it may not be appropriate for young kids (under 7 years) because it's about a murder.
I love this game. It's fun and easy to play. It also makes you think a lot. It's perfect for a wet weekend.
Risk is a popular board game that involves strategic planning, diplomacy and luck. The game is played on a map of the world divided into 42 territories. The objective is to conquer all the territories by attacking and defending with dice rolls. Players can form alliances, negotiate and betray each other to gain an advantage. Risk can be played by two to six players, and each game can last from a few hours to several days. Simple enough to teach to anyone, yet complex enough to satisfy more hardcore gamers. There are multiple versions, including a few spin-offs of popular franchises. Although the arrows are much more boring than the detailed infantry units of previous versions, the choice for mission-based gameplay with a variety of objectives and power-ups, as well as better balanced cards-to-troops ratios, gives the most recent version an edge over previous versions. If you want to take it to the next level, you can make up different units with strengths and weaknesses or additional mission objectives with varied power-ups and so on. My only real complaint about this game is that its "lengthy playtime" of 3-4 hours (despite being nothing compared to most war games) scares off a lot of first-timers.
The board game Settlers of Catan is a strategy game for three to six players that involves building settlements, roads and cities on a variable hexagonal board. The game is based on trading and managing resources such as wood, brick, sheep, wheat and ore. Each player earns victory points for their constructions and achievements, and the first player to reach 10 points wins the game. The game is popular for its balance of luck and skill, its replay value and its social interaction. Catan is simple fun. The game is similar to Age of Empires for the personal computer. The progression is amazing, and there are many ways to win, so the game can be played again and again.
I'm glad to have purchased one and do not mind others of the sort. Good job to all settlers, and may the upgrades benefit your beliefs. A great idea at last put together in the real world. It features beautiful design and game mechanics that engage the imagination each time around. Neat.
I started playing this game when I was 12, just by chance, when I went to my friend's cottage. His great aunt had billions of board games. I had never even heard of this one, but once I started playing it, my friend, his family, and I played it every morning until I left the cottage and got it at home. It's so fun, and it has both luck and strategy in it. There are lots of rules, but once you know all the rules, you'll love it!
Scrabble is a word game in which two to four players score points by placing tiles, each bearing a single letter, onto a game board divided into a 15×15 grid of squares. The tiles must form words that, in crossword fashion, read left to right in rows or downward in columns, and be included in a standard dictionary or lexicon. The game also has two blank tiles that are unmarked and can represent any letter. Once laid on the board, however, the choice of the letter that it represents is fixed until the end of the game. The words must also be connected to previously played words. The game ends when all letters have been drawn and one player uses all their tiles or when all possible plays have been made. As games go, Scrabble has everything. Each game is different due to the luck of the draw, but your own cleverness and skill can compensate for a bad draw. It's also terrific for teaching children logic, spelling, spatial relations, and more.
I love Scrabble. I always end up with at least 200 points, or 175, or a tiny bit less. Of course, my dad's high score was around 370 or something. But I still love this game. It really makes you think.
You normally wouldn't really want to play Scrabble, but once you start playing, you suddenly treat it as one of the best games in the world.
Battleship is a two-player strategy game that simulates naval warfare. Each player has a grid of 10 by 10 squares, where they secretly place five ships of different sizes. The players take turns to call out coordinates on the grid, trying to hit and sink the opponent's ships. The first player to sink all of the enemy's ships wins the game. Battleship can be played with physical boards and pegs, or with electronic devices that have sound and light effects. This game is absolutely amazing. It combines luck and strategy, so every time you play it, it will be a different experience.
Battleship is a fun, great game to play. I probably play it every week for fun.
It is very interesting. It improved my sense of guessing.
Checkers is a two-player board game that involves moving pieces diagonally across a square grid. The objective of the game is to capture all of the opponent's pieces or block them from making any legal moves. Checkers is a simple but strategic game that can be enjoyed by people of all ages and skill levels. Checkers is probably the simplest board game, but it still requires good strategy if you want to win. I don't play it that much, but I still love it.
Its simplicity, yet need for total strategy, easily makes it the best board game for anyone to play.
I can't even play this game on the computer, and (by you I mean anyone) you expect me to play it in real life?!?!
Sorry is a board game that involves moving four pawns of the same color from a start space to a home space. The game is based on the ancient Indian game of Pachisi, but with some modifications. The game is played with a deck of cards that determine how far a pawn can move. Some cards allow players to bump other pawns back to start, or to slide along special spaces on the board. The first player to get all four pawns to the home space wins the game. Sorry is very deep, yet easy to get into. It also has a good amount of strategy involved, as each player controls four different pieces. In games like Monopoly, you roll a die, move that many spaces, and that's it. In Sorry, numbers have more variability. For example, getting a 2 lets you draw another card, or getting a 4 forces you to move backward. Needless to say, I always have a good time with this game, and I highly recommend it.
I have decided I hate Sorry. As a child, I loved it. I played it with my dad all the time. Now I am a father, and my 4-year-old son loves Sorry. Loves it. Sorry is on the table at least twice a week. How did my dad do it? For this newfound feeling for the game, and my son's love for it, it must be a top 10.
The Newcomers
The best, bar none, of the American Revolutionary War games.
1776 was good, but WtP turned it up a notch.
One of the all-time favorites.
Like Settlers/Seafarers of Catan, but if someone blocks you, you can raise armies and go to war with them.
The board game Candyland is a classic game for young children that involves moving gingerbread pawns along a colorful track to reach the candy castle. The game is easy to play and does not require any reading skills. Players draw cards that show either one or two squares of a certain color, or a special pink card with a picture of a location on the board. The player then moves their pawn to the next square of that color, or to the location shown on the pink card. Some pink cards have shortcuts that allow players to skip ahead, while others have obstacles that send players back or make them lose a turn. The first player to reach the candy castle wins the game. When you rate a game on 'best of all time,' you have to include influence in your decision. Not everyone has played Risk, Apples to Apples, or Ticket to Ride - or even Chess (ouch), sad but true. EVERYONE has played Candyland. It is the gateway board game. It must be a top 5 based on this alone.
I love Candyland. It should be in the top 10, to be honest.
I remember that this was my very first board game I ever played when I was little.
Snakes and Ladders is a popular board game for children that originated in ancient India. The game consists of a grid of numbered squares, some of which have ladders that allow players to climb up to higher squares, and some of which have snakes that make players slide down to lower squares. The objective of the game is to reach the last square on the board before the other players. The game is based on chance, as players roll a die to determine how many squares they can move. The game also teaches moral lessons, as the ladders represent virtues and the snakes represent vices. For those of you saying it is Chutes and Ladders, not Snakes and Ladders, a little fact is that in North America the game is called Chutes and Ladders, and in the rest of the world, it's called Snakes and Ladders. It's the same game, but if you're wondering, Snakes and Ladders came first. It's really fun for youngsters.
My favorite board games so far are Candy Land, Chutes and Ladders, and Girl Talk (the 1995 edition). My least favorite ones include Heartthrob: The Dream Date Game, Girl Talk Date Line, Twister, Electronic True You Personality Profiler Game, and Electronic Dream Phone (the 1996 edition).
Ticket to Ride is a board game that challenges players to build train routes across various regions of the world. The game is designed for two to five players and takes about an hour to play. Each player has a set of colored train pieces and a hand of cards that match the colors of the train tracks on the board. On their turn, players can either draw more cards, claim a route by playing cards of the same color as the route, or draw new destination cards that give them points for connecting specific cities. The game ends when one player has only two or fewer train pieces left, and then the player with the most points wins. Best game to get people who don't normally play games to start playing games. Super easy and super fun. (I recommend Europe)
Best family game. Way better than "Sorry," that's for sure. Should be much higher on the list.
Ticket to Ride is a suitable family game for up to six players. It has different versions. It should be number one.
Trivial Pursuit is a popular board game that tests the general knowledge and culture of the players. The game was created in 1979 by two Canadian journalists, Chris Haney and Scott Abbott, who wanted to play Scrabble but realized they were missing some tiles. They decided to make their own game with questions on various topics such as history, geography, entertainment, arts and literature, science and nature, and sports and leisure. The game consists of a circular board with six wedges of different colors, each representing a category. The players move around the board by rolling a die and answering questions from cards. If they land on a wedge space and answer correctly, they collect that wedge. The first player to collect all six wedges and answer a final question wins the game. Trivial Pursuit has been translated into many languages and has spawned several editions and spin-offs over the years. Awesome game! It's really fun to play with people who have no idea what their history, science, etc., is.
Definitely one of the most fun board games I've ever played.
I love this game because it drives your imagination. It brings structure to anything you can think of and immerses you in a fantastic world. It is the largest influence on role-playing games. Without Dungeons and Dragons, games like World of Warcraft and The Elder Scrolls wouldn't exist.
More people should play this game. With the proper guidance, casual players can learn to enjoy it, and critical thinkers will feel right at home with the strategic options and builds they can create within this game. I believe it deserves to be scored higher because it has influenced so many games, but only too few see the true value of what an amazing game this truly is. Pick it up and play with your friends and family. You won't be disappointed.
Good even for younger children about 4+. Helps develop observation skills and discerning skills. Plus, it's just fun. Easy to learn.
Stratego is a board game for two players that involves strategy, memory and bluffing. The game is played on a 10x10 grid, where each player controls 40 pieces representing different military ranks and special units. The objective of the game is to capture the opponent's flag or eliminate all their movable pieces. The pieces are placed on the board face down, so that only the owner can see their identity. The players take turns moving one piece at a time, either horizontally or vertically. When a piece moves onto a square occupied by an enemy piece, a battle occurs. The higher-ranked piece wins and removes the lower-ranked piece from the board. If the pieces have the same rank, both are removed. Some pieces have special abilities, such as bombs that can destroy any piece except the miner, or spies that can defeat the highest-ranked piece (the marshal) if they attack first. The game ends when one player captures the flag of the other player or has no more movable pieces left. Stratego is a great game. Unfortunately, all the stores I've been to have taken this item out of stock. I don't know how long it's been since they stopped buying Stratego, but not many people know about it now.
Buy this game, people, and be amazed at the fun you will have!
I've been playing this game since I was 10 years old. I haven't found any other board game as addictive as this.
Especially with the old wooden pieces, it's a great game of strategy (duh) that is unique every game!
Blokus is a strategy board game for two to four players. The goal of the game is to place as many of your colored tiles on the board as possible, while blocking your opponents from doing the same. Each player starts with 21 tiles of different shapes and sizes, and must place them on the board in a way that only the corners of the same color touch. The game ends when no more tiles can be placed, and the player with the most squares covered wins. Blokus is a game that requires spatial thinking, planning and creativity. Excellent game for ages 5 and up. Good for developing logic and spatial relations skills. Easy to learn, but mastery takes a bit more time.
Blokus is a game of strategy. It is very underrated, in my opinion.
Great fun, quick game. It doesn't have to take all day.
Scattergories is a board game that challenges players to come up with words that fit a specific category and start with a certain letter. The game is played in rounds, each with a different letter and a list of 12 categories. Players have a limited amount of time to write down a word for each category that begins with the chosen letter and is not a proper noun, a hyphenated word, or an abbreviation. Players score points for each word that is unique among all the players' answers. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins. Can't believe this isn't at least in the Top 10. Causes less arguments than Monopoly, at least.
It's fun to think of something and compare at the end!
Mastermind is a board game for two players, where one player creates a secret code of four colored pegs and the other player tries to guess it in a limited number of attempts. The code-maker gives feedback to the code-breaker after each guess, using black and white pegs to indicate how many pegs are of the right color and in the right position, or of the right color but in the wrong position. The game can be played with different levels of difficulty, by varying the number of colors, the number of pegs, or the number of guesses allowed. Mastermind is a game of logic, deduction and strategy that challenges both players to think creatively and analytically. Mastermind has been around for decades. It's simple in concept but requires deductive reasoning skills. It's a great little game that is sure to please players of all ages. It's best to look for an older, used version.
Crazy fun. The more players, the merrier. Good for older children through adults. Love it.
Too much fun! It's hilarious 90% of the time. The other 10% is if you dislike or can't perform a card.
Carcassonne is a tile-laying board game for two to five players, designed by Klaus-Jürgen Wrede and published by Hans im Glück in 2000. The game is set in the medieval fortified city of Carcassonne in southern France and features a map-building mechanic where players draw and place tiles to create roads, cities, fields and monasteries. Players can also deploy their followers, called meeples, on the tiles to score points based on the completed features. The game is easy to learn and play, but offers strategic depth and replay value. Carcassonne has won several awards and has spawned many expansions and spin-offs. Another gateway game, which is based on tile-laying and worker placement. Easy to learn, yet it can get complex with strategies if you so choose.
Number two on my list. This game gets even better when you start adding the expansions.
Infinitely replayable and expandable. We play with a myriad of rule changes, and it's always still fun.
Fun game, makes you think, but super enjoyable.
Fun family game and game night game.
Great game for families and friends.
Trouble is awesome as a family game. One that even young ones can play. A precocious three-year-old could even join in.
Pop-O-Matic Trouble is the best. You cannot lose the dice!
What is this doing at #27? It should be in the top 10!
Axis and Allies is a board game that simulates the Second World War. It is played by two to five players, who control the major powers of the war: Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States and the Soviet Union. The game has two scenarios: 1941 and 1942, each with different starting positions and objectives. The game is divided into rounds, each consisting of several phases: research, purchase, combat movement, combat resolution, non-combat movement, mobilization and income collection. The game ends when one side controls enough victory cities or surrenders. For all intents and purposes, this is Risk 2.0. The difference is this: more complex troops, setup, and combat. But also more fun (well, sometimes). This game can be extremely long if everyone involved knows what they are doing, but will typically take 5-6 hours. The massive variety of troops and strategies really help make this game replayable.
My only real complaints are that the setup provides no leniency, forcing players to instead make strategy with what they are given (I prefer the "choose your territory and troop placement" style of war game, and while you can make edits, even small changes can lead to huge imbalances later in the game), and few people are willing to learn this game due to its insane amount of depth. Fortunately, strategies can be almost completely different every time you play, adding higher replayability than most war games with a forced setup. An underrated gem in board gaming history for sure.