Games for people (me) who don’t like games? Thinking board games, card games, not video or computer games. To be played by at least two people, IRL.

Question

amy hagedorn · Answer

Anomia: I <3 Anomia

Karen Fischer · Answer

Dixit: This game is so fun. It's French, and the way it works is that there's a deck of cards with ethereal, strange paintings on them. Each player gets seven cards. The one who is "it" comes up with a word to describe their chosen card, i.e. "it" card, and the other players insert two cards into a pile facedown with the "it" card, and then the other players flip all of the cards over and try to guess which card was the choice for the "it" person.

It's harder than you think, but all about psychology, storytelling, and imagery. It also comes with some fun moments for reflection on interpretation with friends.

Don't buy from Amazon - find it at a small business, Poshmark, somewhere else.

Sarah Cooney · Answer

Outfoxed! A Cooperative Whodunit Game: Technically for children but just as enjoyable for adults! I love a cooperative board game and this one is so fun.

Tony Paganelli · Answer

Boop: Like chess but with cats. Looks simple and dumb. Is neither. Takes minutes to learn but a long time to master. A game lasts about 20 minutes. Highly recommended.

Elizabeth Clayton Wester · Answer

Yatzy!: The perfect game for people who don't love games. You can play it at a bar. You can play it at a table. You can play it with two people, you can play it with a group. You can have a conversation about something else while you're playing it. You can make up house rules, and there are beautifully designed versions out there these days. It's generally pretty fast, and an excellent mix of chance and strategy. All around winner of a game.

E.T. · Answer

Wavelength: Wavelength has been perfect for parties where guests are meeting for the first time! It’s harder to make accurate guesses that way, but the game gives people a chance to get to know each other and has always led to uncontrollable laughter.

E.T. · Answer

Hive: I received Hive as a birthday gift, and it’s become my favorite two-player strategy game! I like it when my games are portable and have played this while on dates with my husband to coffee shops, a taproom, and even the nature center. The game play is similar to chess, but less complicated and in my opinion, more fun. The hexagonal tiles are made of resin (smooth, slightly weighted) and that’s part of what makes the game so satisfying.

Kristi · Answer

Spot It!: I’m a total board game grinch but this is so simple, fun and shockingly brain-teasey. Every card will have a picture that matches the other card and you try to spot yours before whoever you’re playing with. It’s so simple and fun because it doesn’t get dominated by the one person who is good at the game. And a quick play!

reo · Answer

Beasts of Balance: I have tried to play many of the games being recommended to you and a lot of them I simply cannot get my mind to grasp (it’s like my brain turns into static trying to understand the rules of most of them). This game I enjoy! Very fun, simple rules, cute as hell, and good for all ages.

Jules · Answer

1, 4, 24: many a temporary barroom friendship has been formed with the helps of 1-4-24. play for dollars!

Catherine Davis · Answer

Bananagrams: My favorite but you do need to be a word nerd. My father in law played once and said he’d never play again haha. But I love it. 🤓

grayaelc · Answer

Splendor Board Game: Great with 2 players and can go quick.

grayaelc · Answer

Suburbia: I married into a board game family and have had to play a lot of games and they are mostly not for me. But this game is fun. I willingly play it 2 player with my husband. You’re trying to build the ideal suburb. Highly recommend building beautiful lake front developments.

Peach Kelly · Answer

Ticket to Ride: I am also a board game hater and protest every time I’m asked to play. But I LOVE TICKET TO RIDE! Once I figured out the rules, it became fun! You pick a card that tells you a train path from one city to another and you have to build it with little train cars. People will try to sabotage your route but then you can sabotage theirs back! It’s fun!

Jess · Answer

Smug Owls: A delightful riddle-making game. Flip over cards to make a riddling question, then each player invents an answer. Best answer collects cards, but we mostly ignore the scoring and just play for riddling fun!

Sarah Schneider · Answer

Codenames Duet: I only really like cooperative games (can’t imagine a worse game than “Sorry”) and this one is my favorite to play with my husband. Very easy to learn and very funny to experience your partner’s thought process through the clues they give.

GK · Answer

Poetry for Neanderthals, 2-6 Players, Ages 7+: Super fun game -- you have to use one-syllable words to describe something with a timer running. Harder than you think!

GK · Answer

Telestrations 8-Player Board Game: This game is hilarious, best with big groups and always has me laughing/crying.

Jess · Answer

The Fuzzies: An aesthetically pleasing variation on Jenga. (Though a Jenga tower can also be a thing of beauty!) I especially enjoy that knocking fuzzballs out of place doesn’t end the game, but instead adds a constraint to your next turn.

lindsay · Answer

Catan!!: Truly my friends’ and my fav game - the learning curve is basically nil, it’s immediately engaging and each time you play you get more and more into the strategy. ORRR you can just play super loose with no strategy and it’s STILL fun for everyone xx

Molly · Answer

Monopoly Deal: Everyone I’ve introduced this to loves it. Easy to learn, quick to play. The best parts of the OG board game and none of the bad. I always bring this to pubs or on trips. I think it costs $5!

Bex · Answer

“What’s my thought like?”: Basically verbal apples to apples. Perfect for around the fire or roadtrips. I’ve always been too impatient for learning board game rules, but love the funny squabbles this game gets my friends in. Explained here: https://www.ludozofi.com/home/games/what-is-my-thought-like/

Kate H. · Answer

Fluxx: Not everyone’s cup of tea, but a very unique set of rules (they change constantly).

JV · Answer

Don't Go Anywhere Without Pass The Pigs: Rule: We don’t go anywhere without the Pigs. Two pigs the size of nickels, a perfect bar game, just have everyone at the table keep their own score. To play: throw the pigs and bank as many points in one turn as you can (the points are determined by the way the pigs fall on their noses, feet, backs or butts.) The first player to score 100 points wins.

Maryn · Answer

Hues and Cues: Not a traditional game person myself, but I love this one! It has been a hit with friends and family too.

Jess · Answer

Lacuna: This is one of the most aesthetically pleasing games I own. The colors are great, the pieces have a nice heft in the hand, and the whole thing comes in a cute tube that you can toss in your bag and take anywhere.

Mari · Answer

The Game (Pandasaurus Games): The Game is fun, quick and pleasurable. You work together, the cards have attractive graphics, there is no need to count up points or anything. Super satisfying. Can be played alone too.

Nitabel · Answer

Pass the Pigs: It’s dice, but pigs. Very fun little moments of suspense while they tumble around. They come in a case the size of a box of tic-tacs with a little scorecard and pencil. Keep it in your purse and pull it out whenever you need entertaining. Add gambling to raise the stakes. Makes an excellent drinking game, too.

Bean · Answer

Spots The Board Game!!: as a person who also doesn’t like board games, i am OBSESSED with this one! picked it up myself simply bc it looked so cute and i wanted to support a small game store. now, like 3 years later, i have been trying to get everyone that comes to my house to play it! i even pack it to see my family bc they (as board game haters) also love it!

Emilie Bienvenew · Answer

Card game : Flip 7: Rules are really easy to understand (a mix of black jack & UNO): once mastered, here you go for rounds of stress of turning each card and cheering for your mates (for good & bad reasons !).

Play as of 3 people and as of 8 years old.

Emilie Bienvenew · Answer

Play at La Pétanque: Whatever the age, grab the boules and the cochonnet, a couple of friends, a flat area outside and go for it :

In pétanque, the objective is to score points by positioning one's boules closer to the target ball than those of the opponent after all boules have been thrown. This is achieved by throwing or rolling boules closer to the small target ball.

If you're in France look for any parks or in dedicated facilities called boulodromes.

Jess · Answer

Person Do Thing: This is a delightful guessing game with a very small footprint. One player gets a card with a word they must explain, and a list of words they may use to do so. (Think of it as reverse Taboo.) Everyone else can guess. All you need is the space to put out a stack of cards, you can play for as long or as short as you want, and it's easy for people to step in and out of the game as desired.

The only caveat is that as people get excited about the game, it can get a bit noisy, but I think that just makes a party more fun!

Mary · Answer

Sequence: My in-laws love to play games (no pun intended), and my mother-in-law introduced me to Sequence. I was skeptical at first because my family isn’t big on playing games (again, no pun intended). This one is so much fun! It doesn’t take long to learn, and the rounds are pretty quick.

Sarah Beck · Answer

Mancala: A very peaceful and pretty game to play with kids as young as 5. The best part is its a game that allows for conversation to happen along side it, kind of like chatting in the car, an easy activity to learn a lot about what's on your kids mind.

Sarah Beck · Answer

set game: Fun, speedy pattern matching game. No need to share a language, and works with kids as young as 5 in my experience 💕 packable! This is one of our vacation games.

Amy · Answer

Lost Cities - The Card Game: I love games, but my husband doesn’t. This is a game we both find very fun and have honestly played for hours on end.