It’s below zero outside. The wind howls, and snow flurries whip against your window. There’s no way you’re leaving the warmth of your dorm room tonight. So, what do you do? Call your friends, grab some snacks and settle in for a cozy board game night!
But what should you play?
We turned to our staff to find out. From timeless classics to modern hits, they’ve shared their favorite board games and why they love them. Stay tuned as we reveal the ultimate list of must-play board games, and a few of our least favorites.
Editor-in-Chief, Bella Bakeman
Anyone who knows me knows I am a game person. I’ve been swindling my way through games like The Game of Life and Candy Land since I was a kid. As an adult, I prefer strategy games, but I’ll happily learn any game, as long as someone wants to play.
Picking one favorite game is impossible, so I won’t, instead I’ll give you my top four at the moment.
Favorite Board Games: Catan, Scrabble, Qwirkle, Tapple
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- Catan is the perfect strategy game, followed closely by classics like Risk and Monopoly. But, rather than needing to know random history facts or steal your friends’ money, you get to build cities and roads! Which I’m realizing sounds… like colonization. It’s fun though! I promise!
- Scrabble is the perfect numbers game. You read that right, the perfect numbers game. Anyone who claims Scrabble is a word game is wrong. Scrabble is not about crafting the perfect word, it’s about calculating when you can use your highest letter values on game multipliers to gain the most points. Don’t believe me? Read this CNN article about a New Zealander winning the Spanish World Scrabble championship, without knowing Spanish. If you’re looking for a word game try Bananagrams, another favorite of mine.
- Qwirkle is a non-word Scrabble-like strategy game. This game is brilliant, it’s similar to Scrabble in the way that it functions, but it’s much simpler, yet so complex. You have to play this one to really get it, and though this game is based on differentiating shapes and colors, there is a colorblind version!
- Tapple is a great group game! Tapple is one of those games that really makes you think. You’ve got 10 seconds to come up with a word that fits in the selected category, starting with a letter still remaining on the board. It goes quickly, and it’s the kind of game that will make you forget that basic ice cream flavors like “rocky road” exist.
I won’t say I have a least favorite game; all board games are great because they encourage people to play them. The more people that play board games, the happier they (and I) will be.
Managing Editor, Bonnie Lord
Favorite Board Game: Chess, Clue
I’m going to sound so boring when I say this, but my favorite board game, at least at the moment, is chess. I learned in 5th grade and always had a great time playing with my brother, even if we sometimes made up rules that didn’t quite exist.
You won’t find me winning any competitions, but I think chess is the perfect blend of strategy and relaxation. Clue is a close second, of course.
Chess, like any other board game, demands that the player slow down and talk to their competitors face-to-face, learn a new set of rules and get used to the strategy. And, while chess might seem intimidating to learn, just know that you don’t have to be super smart to win or have fun with the game. It’s best to find someone who won’t take it too seriously to play with – there’s nothing worse than trying to learn chess from a snob.
Least Favorite Board Game: Monopoly
If there’s one board game I hate, it’s Monopoly. I know it’s a classic, and yeah, I know it’s fun. But I have no desire to engage with capitalism with family and friends – I have to live in it every day, thank you very much. Sorry Monopoly man, you simply represent everything I hate about the world.
Assistant Managing Editor, Killian Altayeb
Favorite Board Game: Catan
As someone who likes to escape to different worlds in my head, one of my favorite board games is Catan. I love how it’s a perfect balance of strategy, negotiation and luck. It’s thrilling to plan settlements and trade resources, and I enjoy how every game feels different due to the randomized board setup. It’s like Risk, but if you aren’t 47 years old and a world history buff.
Whenever I play Catan, I feel like Robin Williams when he gets sucked into “Jumanji” (1995), except I have no urge to escape. Together with my family and friends, we hold each other’s hands… until we’re stabbing each other in the back for resources and power.
Least Favorite Board Game: Monopoly
If I could shower real money on everybody who also hates the fake money in Monopoly and all that the game stands for, I would. It tends to drag on for too long, and it often feels like a never-ending capitalistic grind rather than an exciting competition. The heavy reliance on luck (rolling dice or landing on specific spaces) can also make it feel unfair, and I prefer games where strategy plays a larger role.
Opinions/Features Editor, Jocelyn Kincaid-Beal
I come from a big board game family; I grew up playing Talisman, Seven Wonders, Sequence and countless others. As I developed into my own person with my own interests, I became more drawn to word games and bluffing games.
Favorite Board Games: Stardew Valley: The Board Game, Codenames
Stardew Valley: The Board Game is a board game adaptation of my favorite video game of all time, and I think it was very well done. It takes important elements and mechanics of the video game and redesigns them to be board-game-friendly. It’s a very fun reimagining of one of my favorite things in the world, and it allows me to share that thing with my aforementioned board-game-loving family.
Codenames is NYT Connections meets Taboo, and I love it. It engages my word-loving brain, and it’s pretty accessible to non-board-gamers; I’ve shared it with several different audiences.
Least Favorite Board Game: Ticket to Ride
I think this is a hot take, but my least favorite board game is Ticket to Ride. In my family, this is a cutthroat game of sabotaging your loved ones via trains. Personally, that is not my idea of fun. Also, the game is themed around something I’m famously bad at: geography. Every time I play it, I realize I was wrong about what state some city is in.
Assistant News Editor, Heidi Faramelli
Favorite Board Game: Chutes and Ladders
My favorite board game is Chutes and Ladders. It’s simple enough that you can play it with different age groups, but you can also still be extremely competitive, making it fun for all ages. The exhilaration I feel as I climb up a large portion of the board via ladder is unmatched, and the disappointment in landing on a “chute,” or slide, humbles me quickly.
Also, I had the older version (which has now been re-released as the “Nostalgia Edition” – way to make me feel old, Hasbro) and the little icons of children doing various activities like gardening or ice skating were always so cute to me.
Every time I play this game, I feel like a kid again. I remember playing it with my Grandma Sheila. She recently reminded me that when I was four, I landed below a chute and climbed up it. She told me I couldn’t do that, and I replied, “If you want to win, you make up your own rules!”
Little Heidi was a savage.
Part-Time Staff Writer, Finn Brady
I tend to lean towards video games because they are easy to boot up and give me instant dopamine boosts, but I still enjoy sitting down and playing board games with my family and friends.
Favorite Board Games: The Game of Life, Clue
One of my favorite board games is The Game of Life because I always played it with my family growing up, on vacations or just on a slow night. I also loved playing Clue mostly because I cracked the game and can win easily.
Basically, I like games where I can use logic.
Sometimes playing board games makes me happy, but I get too overly competitive. I’m banned from playing ping pong for the same reason.
Even so, playing these board games makes me feel closer with those I play with. It’s a bonding experience I crave after being here at Albion for so long.
Part-Time Staff Writer, Sophia Valchine
Favorite Board Game: Sorry, Clue
I haven’t played board games in a long time, but I do remember that my favorite game was Sorry.
My friends and family were ruthless with this game, bumping everyone’s pawns out of the way every chance they got. I love unserious competitions like this where we could laugh no matter who won.
The stakes were higher when we played at my grandma’s; she always had a prize like a handful of quarters or a small toy from Dollar Tree. But no matter who won, she always had a little prize for each of us.
I also remember playing Clue a lot, more so with friends. I love the style of the board and the mini weapons. It’s probably where my love for collecting mini trinkets started.
Volunteer Staff Writer, Bella Fabrizio
Favorite Board Game: Scrabble
My all-time favorite board game is Scrabble. I think a big reason why I love it so much is because it’s a game I play with my family, so there’s definitely an emotional attachment there. I’m a huge word nerd, so I love a game where I get to make as many words as I can that get me as many points as possible.
I feel calm and focused when I play this game – it’s not stressful because you can take as much time as you want to plan your next move. Though I usually play Scrabble with my family, I would immediately jump at the chance to play with pretty much anyone who offers.
Least Favorite Board Game: Anything With a Timer!
I don’t hate any specific board game, but a type of game I can’t stand is a game with a timer. I hate being under pressure because my brain freezes up and only focuses on the time. If I’m being rushed, I’m not having fun.
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