Top 10 Hardest Two-Player Turn-Based Strategy Board Games to Master
If you're into two-player strategy games, you know they're more than just a way to pass the time - they're battles of wit, skill, and endurance. Some of these games are easy to pick up but take a lifetime to master, while others challenge you right out of the gate with their depth and complexity. This list dives into some of the most challenging games out there, where every move counts and even the smallest mistake can set off a chain reaction you'll spend the rest of the match trying to recover from.It takes 5 minutes to learn but a lifetime to master. It might not be as well known in the Western world as the other games on this list, but it is far and above in its own realm of complexity and depth. Most people think chess is the king of board games, but Go has been around much longer and is more widespread. At one point, it was considered a game of chance because the true depth of this wonderful and beautiful game couldn't be comprehended.
I have heard it said, Five minutes to learn, a lifetime to master. I suspect it's more apt to say, Five minutes to learn, a lifetime to become able. This game seems so complex and nuanced that I sometimes question the possibility of mastery.
Played on an 8x8 grid, Chess involves strategic movement of six unique piece types with distinct rules to achieve checkmate by trapping the opponent's king. The game emphasizes tactical foresight, positional play, and endgame mastery. With more possibilities in a single game than atoms in the universe, I believe chess is the hardest game ever. Go-playing computers have not reached the elite level of play because no serious work is being done on the game. Checkers has already been solved by computers.
There have been thousands of books written on how to be a great chess player, and even today, we are still discovering new aspects of strategy and tactical play that those before us never thought of. This is truly a very hard board game to "master."
Often referred to as Japanese chess, Shogi features a 9x9 board and pieces that can be promoted or reused after capture by the opponent. It introduces dynamic tactics through the ability to "drop" captured pieces back into play. This is far more complex than chess, as pieces that are captured return to the game. Also, most pieces promote to completely different units.
Shogi is mathematically proven to be the most complex chess-like game in the world.
A simple board game to understand. How to master it? Don't be the first to attack.
A very geometrically linear yet abstract board game.
On an 8x8 grid, players alternate placing discs to outflank and flip the opponent's pieces to their own color, with the goal of having the majority of pieces at the end. Strategic control of corners and edges is pivotal in gameplay. If you consume too many pieces, you lose. If you fail to race for the corners, you lose. Simple as that. Your opponents won't let you get the corners no matter what, so deal with it.
Love it! I've played since I was a child and have only lost three times in five decades.
I learned this from a computer and I loved it, but it does not get as close to chess.
Played on a 9x10 board, Xiangqi features unique pieces like the cannon and an emphasis on protecting the general while maneuvering through a river and palace. The game combines positional play and swift tactical exchanges. Xiangqi is very similar to the Western world's version of chess, with a few but noticeable differences. This is one that deserves to be third on this list.
Tactical-style gameplay. Each piece has weird movements and its own set of rules for offense, making it hard.
Much more difficult than chess. It's very hard to defend your pieces due to the wide variety of offenses.
This two-player game features hidden-piece mechanics on a 10x10 board where players aim to capture the opponent's flag while protecting their own. It involves both strategic positioning and the deduction of enemy piece identities. A strategy game like chess but with vastly more pieces, and worst of all, they are all cloaked until they attack! Which one is the bomb? Which one is the spy? How am I supposed to find the flag?!
You gotta have a good memory, be good with strategies, and you're set.
It's a board game. It takes a long time to complete (even with two players). The reliance on luck makes it especially hard.
A challenging game, yet really fun and addicting.
You gotta take advantage of probability.
Played on a grid, Gomoku involves placing stones to form an unbroken line of five while blocking the opponent's attempts to do the same. It shares origins with Go but is simpler in objectives and quicker to play.
The Newcomers
Players secretly place ships on a grid and alternate guessing coordinates to locate and sink the opponent's fleet. The game emphasizes deduction and anticipation of the opponent's strategy.Easy to learn, with just the right amount of luck, but the better player will almost always win.
You can learn the rules in 5 minutes, but it takes years to master. It has very simple rules that create very challenging games. Its rules are so easy that even a 4-year-old could learn them. It was made to show that humans can still dominate computers. Arimaa has more possible moves in a game than chess. For example, chess has 1 followed by 123 zeros possible games, while Arimaa has 1 followed by 402 zeros. If every possible game was an atom, we would need six universes for every game of Arimaa.
A simplified variant of Shogi, Hasami Shogi involves capturing pieces by surrounding them horizontally or vertically on a grid. The game emphasizes positional strategy and the management of multiple threats. It is really easy to learn how to play, but good luck winning. I can tell you I have never won a game of this. It's one of the easiest games to learn, but it kicks in when you start to actually play.