Best Board Games for Fun (2024)

The learning curve is pretty intense, so if you are not accustomed to playing strategy, world-building, and engine-building games, there's going to be a learning curve.

The game provides a rewarding challenge, as players must learn to optimize their actions and adapt to different faction and player mat combinations.

The artwork and design are stunning, featuring intricate details in both the board and the pieces.

The theme of an alternate 1920s Europe featuring mechs is unique and well-integrated into the gameplay.

There is high replayability due to the different factions and player mat combinations, which offer a new challenge with each game.

The game can become repetitive after several plays without expansions because the core mechanics remain the same.

The game offers a grand-scale experience in a relatively short amount of time, with most games lasting around 115 minutes.

The setup time can be lengthy, taking about 45 minutes.

Betrayal is a bit more complicated than your average gateway game, but it's well worth learning.

The game has 50 haunt scenarios, and each tells a different story with different victory conditions.

Some of the rules are still really unclear, and truth be told, if you have a game with all these different permutations, cards, and tiles trying to come together in a cohesive manner, it's going to be very difficult to eliminate all of the ambiguity.

I love it because it's like you and your friends are suddenly plunged into a Scooby-Doo episode or one of those 50s B movies.

The Third Edition looks bright and vivid, especially with the 45 tiles appearing more refreshed than before and featuring so much color.

The component quality is definitely a step down from the previous version. The toes in this edition are a little bit thinner, and the artwork isn't as nice.

The fact that, as we mentioned, you have 50 haunts, which means you could play this at least 50 times without seeing the same thing, makes it shockingly good value for money.

With only 9 Omens in the game, you'll frequently draw through most, if not all, of the entire Omen deck every game, putting a damper on repeat value.

It's great with three to six players; the more, the merrier, and it'll take about an hour to play.

Player elimination is still a massive problem in this game. You would think that after, I don't know, was it six different editions, they would have fixed this. However, a lot of the haunts mean that if you die, that's it; you are done.

The legacy aspect adds an almost campaign-like element to the game, which is why it has two designers.

The game is divided into months, so you have January, February, March, etc.

You can really just have no chance at all of winning because of the luck of the draw.

It's evocative and unpredictable, and the theme is immediately exciting to everyone.

Pandemic Legacy is just like Risk Legacy, but with one vitally important difference.

You're going to create your own problems and your own twists, and you're going to destroy your own cities.

This means that you'll play between 12 and 24 limited games, and that's it.

Your copy of Pandemic Legacy is going to be unique compared to anyone else's in the world.

It is much more expensive than during the pandemic; it's probably twice the price, if not more.

The game is divided into months, so you have January, February, March, etc.

We consumed it in the same way we would a TV show, really, and that is by binge-watching.

You can play each of these twice. If you fail, you get a second chance to do it.

The Quacks of Quedlinburg isn't going to overwhelm anybody.

The game has a pleasant mid-weight feel to it.

The game has a very bubbly appearance.

The white chips, especially since they're used more than any other chips, are really beat up.

You can mix and match them, which, of course, allows the game to have expansions.

The chip problem is perhaps my only negative aspect of the game.

And because the game takes place simultaneously, there's no sitting around and waiting.

This method of drawing chips from the bag can be used in all previous rounds if you prefer, but it will extend the length of the game.

This is one of those games that can be taught in less than five minutes.

I believe this game is just about perfectly complex for the audience.

It's easy to teach, and new gamers can really get into it and have a good time.

The art was the first thing that drew me to this game.

The art of this game is a major attraction, and its table presence is simply lovely.

The artwork is really beautiful, and the tokens, along with the colorfulness of the terrain, are engaging.

It gets better every time you play because you discover new combos.

There are limited opportunities, which makes it more challenging.

The game has consistently brought happiness to the table.

You can play it pretty quickly if you want to.

This game can take a little longer, especially if you're teaching new players.

A four-player count is doable, but it's a bit slow.

Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion is much easier to set up and get going.

The rulebooks also do a much better job of easing newcomers into the game with this handy-dandy 'how to play' guide.

The game introduces its mechanics gradually, easing players into the experience without overwhelming them.

The game features a well-developed universe with unique characters and a strong thematic design.

The scenario book, with its built-in maps, enhances the thematic experience and reduces setup time.

The narrative arc and story could be more engaging, as they fall short in delivering a memorable experience.

The game offers a substantial amount of content with 25 scenarios, providing many hours of gameplay.

Once the campaign is completed, there may be limited replay value, as most scenarios and character cards will have been experienced.

The game is designed to be more concise, featuring scenarios that are generally shorter than those in the original Gloomhaven.

Some scenarios can still take a long time to complete, especially when playing solo or with a full group.

Each player chooses their own villain, and each villain has their own objective that they must meet in order to win the game.

It can be a little difficult to know each villain's objective when you're playing it until you've played it a few times.

There is a luck-of-the-draw factor because you have cards, and you're playing the hand management aspect of it.

The card art is top-notch, as you would imagine, and the villain pawns are almost worth the price of admission on their own.

The game creators have done an excellent job of developing various objectives, tasks, and ways of playing for each of the villains.

Overall, there are 15 villains if you have all the expansion packs.

Having said that some of the villains have easier objectives than others, the balance between them isn't as perfect as it could be.

With smaller accounts, you have enough room to make even tricky plans possible, as the fake cards will come a little less frequently.

Plus, since turns can take some planning, smaller counts keep things moving at a decent pace, while higher counts have the potential to become a bit more of a marathon.

Gloomhaven is probably an RPG-type game, a dungeon crawler where you roll some dice, move your people on a map, and then roll some more dice to attack the enemies. However, everything you do is actually dictated by your hand of cards.

The game has a steep learning curve and can be overwhelming due to its complexity and the number of components.

I think the setting here is a fully realized, bustling city with various activities happening, and the theme is unique. It's not the usual fantasy trope.

Some players may find the production quality lacking compared to other high-end games, due to issues like poorly aligned punch boards and unpainted miniatures.

Gloomhaven offers a vast amount of content, with over 70 campaign missions and a high replayability factor due to its legacy elements and character progression.

The game's length and complexity might deter some players from completing it, and the setup time can be a barrier to frequent play.

Each session can be saved and resumed, allowing for flexible playtime management.

Individual sessions can be lengthy, often lasting 60 to 90 minutes or more, which may not suit all players.