We love tabletop games because it reels us back in together and takes us away from those beautiful TV, computer and phone screens we tend to spend a lot of time with. :) It allows us to think strategically or just plan have a lot of real-life fun. We've gathered quite a collection over the past few years, but of course, each of us have our favorites and we'd like to share these with you! In no particular order:
Jerry's Picks: The games I have been enjoying lately really fall into two
different categories, cooperative games and games set in a fantasy theme.
Fantasy games have always peaked my interest and I have come to love co-op
games because I get to team up with Amy instead of playing against her, just
like life, it's us vs. the game!
1. Mice and Mystics
This game is one of our newest games! The players play as a
group of adventurers who are turned into mice and have to try and save the
kingdom! It is an involved game but has such a rich story that is integrated
into the game-play it's hard not to get addicted and want to play the next
chapter in the tale! Once again strategy is key to finishing the quest at hand
or lose a game that may take 2 hours to play.
2. Forbidden Island
Our first co-op game we ever played! It's exploring an
island to try and collect all the treasures before the island sinks into the
abyss dragging the explorers down with it! The game has great re-play ability
and is easy to teach to new players. Even losing to the game is enjoyable
(which will happen). With easy setup and simple rules it's perfect for tabletop
day!
3. Carcassonne
Imagine being a French architect and getting to design a
countryside with monasteries, giant castles, rolling fields, and dangerous
roads. Carcassonne is a tile laying game where players build a French
countryside in a race for points to see who has the best tactics! It does not
sound as exciting as it really is. A simple game to teach and play, but full of
change and strategy!
4. Munchkin
Munchkin is a great fantasy style game without all the
complicated rules, boards, figures, and in depth story. It's a card game that
lets you equip your munchkin with funny and sarcastic equipment, kick down a
door in a dungeon, fight a monster and collect treasure! Players are competing
to reach level ten to win but can help each other out, for a price of course.
The downside to this game, for us anyway, is that it requires at least 3 people
to play.
5. Pandemic
Another excellent co-op game! Players are fighting to save
the world from 4 diseases, which are running rampant across the continents!
Each player has a different job that will help aid in the saving of the world!
Setup is a little more complicated then Forbidden Island but game-play is
almost as easy.
Amy's Picks: It's clear from my list that I love card games. Haha. I like games that I can pack up and take with us and light-hearted games that are going to make me laugh.
1. Smash Up
Smash Up is really one of the funnest games I've ever played. It's called a "shuffle-building" card game where you pick 2 factions of sci-fi/horror/fantasy characters and blend them together to create a super team to play against the other players. We have 5 different expansions of this game (including the Big Geeky Box) and the more crazy faction combos the better.
Dinosaur-Pirates will always be my favorite.
Dinosaur-Pirates will always be my favorite.
2. Ticket To Ride
I love this game because it's a great gateway game. We've played this game with our families and it is always a hit. Ticket to Ride is a travel game where you try to cover as many train-routes to build up as many points as you can. It's not as portable as some other games and you need some space to play, but watching people who thought this would be a boring game, end up having a lot of fun and asking to play it again and again each time and improving their strategy each time, is amazing.
3. Hive Carbon
Jerry and I often play games on our own and finding some great two-player games can be hard. We recently bought Hive this past Fall to give it a try and it's been a great addition to our collection. Hive is a tile game, and mildly reminds me of playing dominos, but with a little more strategy. I'm really looking forward to playing this game outside over the Spring/Summer because the tiles are heavy enough they won't fly away like can happen with a card game.
4. Fluxx
Fluxx is a great compact game to throw in my bag to bring just about anywhere. It's a card game where the rules constantly change. We have Star Fluxx, Pirate Fluxx, Monty Python Fluxx, Zombie Fluxx and Holiday Fluxx. I love Fluxx because it's just a light-hearted game that anybody can play, but is so easy to really strategize and win big. Holiday Fluxx is a fun game for the winter holidays and a little easier (No Creepers) for the family to pick up on.
5. Cards Against Humanity
No offense (well... some offense), but if you haven't heard about this game yet, go out and freakin' buy it. This game will change the way you look at people to see just how horrible they really are. CAH is a card game where you try to win over the Card Czar with the craziest, dirtiest answer! It's definitely not a family game, though we have played it with certain over-18-year-old family members, and it is the most hilarious game ever. FYI: It's not for the faint of heart. Enjoy! ;)
We hope you enjoyed our lists and hope that you are planning to try some fun games this April 11th for International TableTop Day! If you think you don't have anyone to play, click here to find some TableTop Day events in your area. Join the community of gamers by using the #tabletopday on whatever social media you use and share the games you play!
Let us know in the comments what some of your favorite games are! Do you have any games you like to play as a "gateway" game for new players?
