Family Board Game?

Question

I would like to buy a family board game. I have "Cranium" but am ready for a new one. My family is very competitive and likes to have fun. Any suggestions?

Answer 1

May be you need "settlers of catan". I think is great for competitive people.

Answer 2

My family has always played either Life or Risk together- pretty competitive but you can definitely have fun with it at the same time. Or maybe a Trivial Pursuit game if your family is more into those kinds of games. Also all are for ages 8+ I believe. Family Game Night! That's good that some families still do fun things together...

Answer 3

The Cranium company has a few more family games-why not check out one of those? Especially if you liked Cranium. www.cranium.com

Answer 4

Depending on how large your family is, try CatchPhrase. I personally love Scene It; they have a lot of different versions too, but you need a DVD player. There's always the old standard Trivial Pursuit. A game that doesn't really require competition but is fun is Imaginiff.

Answer 5

We have a generic version of the Pictionary game called The Big Picture. It's fun to play. Monopoly, classic Trivial Pursuit, and Clue are big favs with my family, as well.

Answer 6

Apples2Apples is always a blast. ($15 to $25?) 2 to 10 or so players
There are many versions too. One player has an adjective card, and the rest of the players needs to pick the best noun card that the one player would choose as the best answer. Fun part is the answer picked is subjective, so it helps to know that one player.
(e.g. "clean".... out of: baseball, bank, and gym, best answer was gym b/c despite how sweaty and disguisting gyms are, the one player's gym is actually kept very clean)
(e.g.2 some guy likes monkeys, so he'll alwasy choose "flying monkeys" as the BA)

*I second Settlers Of Catan. ($20 to $30) 3-4 players ($15 to $20) 5-6 players with player expansion
It may be too much for kids under 10, since there is some thinking and planning that may be above them, but worst comes to worst, u could always give them a handicap and when they get older and better, lose that handicap and play normally now that you're on an even playing field. I like this game alot b/c:
-due to it having complexity while still keeping it simple.
-good social aspect. You trade with players to try to get what u want without giving other players too big of an edge, ask them why they did what they did, or just yak about stuff unrelated to the game
-great mid-game and endings. Unlike games like Monopoly where u knwo who's gonna win, but have to play on for 1 to 3 more hours for it to officially end, I've played over 400 games of Settlers (between in real life and online) and roughly a third of those games, not only did someone else win, but it was someone who was in last place at the time when all the players casted their "bets"

*Seafarers of Catan ($20 to $30) 3 to 4 plyaers ($15 to $20) 5-6 players with player expansion
this is an expansion to Settlers of Catan. U need to kno how to play Settlers, not to mention own a copy of Settlers to play it, but it adds extra elements without destroying what makes Settlers of Catan such a good game. Else, stick with Settlers

*Reiner Knizia's Samurai ($25 to $35) 2-4 players
instructions are only 4 pages, so it's easy to pick up and play. U place tokens down on territory in attempt to capture as many figures as possible, while outwitting your opponent.

Pirates of the Cove ($?) 2 to 6 players?
nice pirate theme. You try to outwit and outbattle each other, in addition to the "computer controlled" Blackbeard while exploring islands and hunting down the most treasure. There's stats u keep track of and upgrade/downgrade in the game (like speed, firepower, cargo capacity) which gives it a sense of achievement and growth other amassing treasure, and special ability cards brings about some neat twists.

The starred entries are not only German board games, but also happen to be more costly than your typical board games. Similar to the ipod vs other mp3 players debate, there are clear reasons if the higher price puts ppl off, but if enjoy the games, they're really worth the extra $$, which whjile noticeable, isn't breaking the bank either.

I guess it doesn't come to a surprise that my top pick would Settlers of Catan. Good to see families still getting into board games despite all the online gaming and stuff age that we live in

Answer 7

Check out the games at Days of Wonder: http://www.daysofwonder.com/ They have some excellent games--I personally recommend 'Ticket to Ride' as a family game. 'Cleopatra' is also easy to learn and a great deal of fun for a family.

My all-time favourite game is 'Carcassonne'. There are a number of expansions as well. It is made by Rio Grande games, who have a number of other terrific games you would enjoy:
http://www.riograndegames.com

There are also some good games by Fantasy Flight:
http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/ Look for games by Reiner Knizia, like 'Through the Desert' or 'Blue Moon City.'

'Tsuro' is a quick, easy game, and beautifully made. Younger children would like it:
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/16992

Check out Board Game Geek for more suggestions:
http://www.boardgamegeek.com

Answer 8

Trivial Pursuit Disney Edition.
Scrabble.
Monopoly.
Twister.
Absoulute Balderdash.
Battleships.
Boggle.
Cluedo.
Connect 4.
Game Of life.
Pictionary.
Scatagories.
Scene It.
Chess.

Answer 9

Have you guys every played "scattagories" or even "mad gabs" then of course there is always the classics such as "monopoly, sorry, life, risk...When I want to buy a new game I usually will go to game section in a dept store and just read the bottom of the box and see what it is all about and then buy if it sound interesting.
have fun

Answer 10

Cathedral
n the game of Cathedral, the playing board represents the site of the walled city. Two sets of playing pieces symbolize both the buildings and the two opposing forces who battle to gain control by strategically positioning their building pieces back on the board. In this award-winning game of competition and rivalry, victory goes to the player who is best at blocking and out-maneuvering their opponent.

Quoridor
A 2-person strategy game with 3- and 4-player variations, the rules take 2 minutes to learn, while the play variety is endless. Easy for children to learn and play, opponents create a maze to impede but not trap their opponent. A good game is a series of strategically crucial moves, often leading to an exciting race to the finish.

Quarto (my personal favorite)
You win by getting four in a row of color, shape or height of pieces. The twist is your opponent picks which piece you must play next. A game for two players.

Quixo
Players place and move cubes in order to rearrange the play area, so they have 5 of their own cubes in a row. Quixo plays like a very advanced version of Tic Tac Toe where one tries to get five in a row.

Fact or Crap
Trivia game where you hear a statement, (Seaweed extract is used in ice-cream.) and you have to decide if its a Fact, or if it's Crap. (In this case, Fact.) This fast-paced twist on the common trivia game will keep your group guessing, and give everyone a chance to show their smarts with questions from all over the trivia spectrum.

Apples to Apples
Party game that is fun for four to ten players! Each round is filled with surprising and outrageous comparisons from a wide range of people, places, things and events. Fast moving and refreshing, Apples to Apples is great for any get-together with family and friends.

25 Words or Less
You've got 1 minute and 25 words (or less!) of clues to get your teammates to shout out the five words on the card. Great party fun for groups of all sizes.

A to Z
Word game that covers everything from A to Z! Race the clock and your opponents in this word game. A roll of the dice will determine your fate with the electronic timer, your opponents, and the list of catagories. With each category, try to name as many items that start with different letters as you can, covering that first letter on your game board. The first to cover all letters from A to Z wins!

to name a few - this should provide hours of entertainment

Answer 11

A good board game would be Monopoly, it can help with thinking and etc.

Scrabble really isn't a board game, but it can help with thinking. The bigger the words are the more points you get.