Gift Guides 2019 – family games

The family that plays together stays together!

Traditional board games have taken a little backseat these days but I am here to tell you the opposite. Haha! Because they provide hours of family fun time. And best of all, everyone in the family can play some games. Grandma, grandpa, parents, uncles, nieces and children can all gather to enjoy games together.

I admit that we do not play as much as we want to because something else often comes up, but we do here and there. And we actually always carry a set of UNO cards whenever we are out and about. Antoine and Romy often ask for a round of Cluedo, Leonor still loves memory and the little monkey adores a rabbit game she received for her third birthday last year.

That is why I put together a gift guide with family games. Because in this digital era, all the screens, and information overload… sitting around a table with a board game is kinda cool.

And there are some lasting memories you will create. Not to forget, board games actually teach children many valuable lessons. Because the older adults are modeling how to follow rules, how to be a good sport, how to take turns, and how to share.

So why not putting a fun family game under the tree that you can enjoy all together during the holidays. When it is dark and cold outside…

1. This game is genius. A ridiculously fun game* of drawing, acting and describing. How will you draw a sweaty crab snowboarding? Or describe an itchy teacher playing the guitar? One of the best things about this game is that it works just as well with 2 players as it does with 10 and it works for all ages. And the rules are simple and setup couldn’t be easier.
A back to basics innocent game which gets everyone laughing and having tons of fun!

2. Can you discover the 6 mysteries hidden within the Escape Puzzle, and save the Earth? Escape Rooms are the live gaming trend. And just like live gamers in their escape rooms, escape puzzlers also dive into an exciting story which spirits them off to mysterious worlds. So, once all 759 pieces are in the right place, your imagination, intuition and powers of deduction come into play! But you will only be the hero of the story if – piece by piece – you can also solve the last great puzzle and make your escape.
The puzzle is normal in the sense that you put it together like a regular 2D Puzzle but with a catch. Because the box image does not entirely match the puzzle image. And once the puzzle is complete there are several clues within the puzzle to help you figure out how to escape your puzzle. Different!

3. Winner of the coveted Game of the Year award in 1995 and a classic today. I played this in my twenties with friends that were into board games. And Settlers of Catan* was a firm favourite. The combination of simplicity and strategy makes this game a hit and brings out the competitive spirit in anyone. Players arrive as settlers on the island of Catan, rich with wood, stone, clay, wheat and sheep. Rolling dice to harvest those resources then making trades with their rivals. Next, players develop their settlements into cities while building roads and hiring brave knights to defend their colony. Addictive!

4. This always-up-to-date quiz game is the first board game that is powered by the googly assistant. Which means that you can play a multi-activity quiz game that is always evolving and up-to-date. With over 1, 500 questions for you and other players to compete, you can ask your Google Assistant for the most up-to-date answers to see who wins!Extra: Drops new content packs regularly for free. And it is a very versatile games too. You can just skip the rules and let the googly assistant take you through each game! Or you play offline with the provided quiz cards. And it is totally open ended, meaning you can play as long or short as you wich.

5. Another favourite that I used to play a lot. In Carcassonne*, players build the area surrounding this impressive city, one tile at a time. They then place a meeple on fields, cities, roads or monasteries in order to score as many points as possible. These meeples will become knights, monks, farmers and thieves, depending on where they are placed. This new edition includes two expansions: The River and the Abbot. Carcassonne seems simple at first, but the more you play it, the more it will grow on you. Promised! Love the strategic part and it is a great game to play with children ages 8 and up.

6. Who can keep a watchful eye over the Harry Potter Maze and find the hidden paths to Hogwarts? But beware – anything can happen in the depths of the labyrinth, where the walls constantly move, revealing dark, unexplored passages. The classic in the HP version – a must have for every fan. Big or small!

7. Everyone needs a Jenga* in their house, because there are not many games you can play over and over again with any age group!

8. A family strategy game* for kids and adults that only takes seconds to learn but hours to master. I like the simplicity of the game – no gimmicks, no batteries, but fun, addictive and colourful. The premise of the game is that you sit down with up to three other people. Each chooses a single stack of brightly coloured tiles, and you take turns to put down tiles to get a row of five. Whilst blocking your opponents and they block you in turn. Incredibly simple, super fun and great to enjoy anywhere, especially during travels or waiting for food in a restaurant.

9. The game is all about trying to work out what your friends and family would choose from a scenario with three possible answers. In this version of Sussed* you will learn a lot about your friends and family as its sparks all sorts of conversations. I think it is perfect to play during a family holiday. And again, you can make it as long or short as you wish.

10. If your children can play UNO, they will master this one too. Skip-bo* will test your skills and strategy! Be the first to use all your cards by creating sequential stacks.

11. Classic backgammon!

12. This award winning colour-coded cooperative matching game* has two play levels so it will grow with your child. Children will learn simple strategy and social development skills while playing this game which is the winner of seven awards.