Finding the right gift for the board gamer in your life can be daunting. There’s over 100,000 unique board game items, so we’ve curated a list of our go-to recommendations for different types of board game fans. Consider this list to be your industrial strength neodymium magnet, because it’ll pull a needle out of the haystack in no time flat!
Without further ado, here’s our top recommendations for Games to Gift!
Kids Games (under 6) — Rhino Hero and Unicorn Glitterluck. Both great games to get the young ones used to how board games play out. Rhino Hero is my personal favorite out of the two, you get to stack cards into a big tower.
Kids Games (6 to 12) — Exploding Kittens and Sushi Go. Exploding Kittens is not only the perfect game for fans of kittens or explosions, but it’s also got a sense of humor that shines during gameplay. Sushi Go is a pick-and-pass game with a delightful art style where you’re hopefully not out-picked or out-witted by the rest of the table.
Teen Games — MicroMacro and We Didn‘t Playtest This at All. MicroMacro is Where’s Waldo meets Columbo. You’ll solve various tiny crimes in a city by following tiny people through their tiny lives. We Didn’t Playtest This at All has a sharp sense of humor, and it’s easy to pick up. Perfect for the smart aleck on your list.
Party Games — Coup and Hues and Cues. In Coup, everyone takes on hidden roles, but since no one knows each other’s roles, you can use any abilities of any role! Lots of bluffing and backstabbing to be had here. Hues and Cues is super easy to pick up, and will have you reinterpreting colors in ways you never quite expected.
2 Player Games — Hive, Patchwork, and Fox in the Forest. 3 easy to learn games with strategy that runs deep. For more on all 3 of these, check out a more in–depth article here.
Light Games — Codenames and Dixit. Both of these games involve one player giving clues that are then interpreted by another. Codenames is all about language, whereas Dixit is deeply entrenched in images and art.
Euro Games — 7 Wonders and Carcassonne. Both classics in the genre, these are a great way to dip your toes into Euro-style games. 7 Wonders is about the building of human civilization through various means, and Carcassonne brings players to the southern French countryside, laying areas to complete projects, or to hinder their opponents’.
Deck Builder — Dominion and Clank! These are two staples of deckbuilding. Dominion is many players’ first experience with a deck building game, and for good reason: it’s reliable and lovable. Clank takes the deck building concept and puts it into a memorable action-adventure dungeon delving experience.
Worker Placement — Apiary and Everdell. Everdell is a beautiful looking, and multi-award winning game about animal-folk trying their best to thrive in the woodland. Apiary is a new game to the shelf about sentient bee-people furthering their goals in space. With over 20 factions to play as, I think Apiary may become a classic in the coming years.
Co-operative — Pandemic and the Exit/Unlock games. In Pandemic, the table works together to stop the spread of a disease spreading worldwide, and hopefully develop a cure for it. Exit and Unlock games are often called an escape room in a box, and they’ve all got unique adventures to go on and mysteries to be solved.
Strategy — Root and Hive. Root is a favorite around here, and it’s clear why. Each of the factions plays in unique ways, the art is uniquely charming, and the table politics are off-the-charts fun. Hive is similar to chess, if chess was rebuilt from the ground up with hexagons and bugs.
Games for the elderly — Tsuro and Five Crowns. Tsuro is a great pick for everyone, but it’s an especially great pick for older players since the game can easily be learned, and the pieces are legible and tactile. Five Crowns is a rummy-style card game that’s great for card game fans who want to shake it up a little.
D&D/Roleplaying Fans — DICE!!! For the RPG fans it’s all about the dice. We have many many sets ranging from Chessex plastic sets to dice cut from actual gemstone, but the Pound ‘o’ Dice is perfect for extreme dice enthusiasts.
Warhammer Fans — If you know what army your Warhammer player likes, picking up some models from their faction is a surefire hit. If you’re not quite sure, paint pots make for great stocking stuffers, and miniatures carrying cases will always come in handy.
Magic Fans — Sleeves are always welcomed by Magic players, they can never have enough. But if you’re able, find out how they play. If they mention Commander, we have a selection of Commander decks in stock. But regardless, you can never go wrong with packs of the newest set.
Puzzle Fans — Any Ravensburger puzzle. Seriously. Any of ‘em. They’re high quality, and they’ve got a variety of prints. If you know your puzzler has a long backlog and don’t want to pile another on top, the Stand & Go puzzle easel is a super nifty tool!
This list is a solid survey of gifts for most tabletop gamers, but if you still feel like there’s not quite the right fit for someone on your list, drop in any time and we’ll be happy to make a recommendation!
