Family Game Night: 10 Great Games You Need
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Now that many of us are finding ourselves home and spending WAY more time than ever before with our families (thanks to COVID-19), we are all looking for ways to keep the kids – and ourselves – entertained. My solution is easy: FAMILY GAME NIGHT!
Growing up, my family didn’t need stay-at-home orders to inspire us to play games, as it was always our favorite thing to do. It was a wonderful bonding experience where we shared many laughs and good times, and our love of playing games together has lasted into adulthood.
Through all of this gaming we have all become pretty competitive, and we are also typically pretty good at most games. After all, practice makes perfect.
We have one close friend, who is also quite competitive, who became frustrated one night of playing games with us declaring that, “The Nixes ALWAYS win!”
Another at the table, who was a Nix through marriage, pointed out that she was a “Nix” who didn’t always win. To this our friend replied, “Yeah, but you’re not a blood Nix.”
We all had a good laugh at the idea of being the “Blood Nixes” like we were some kind of gang, all thanks to our love of friendly competition.
I now have children of my own, and it has been very important to me to continue the tradition of family game nights. They have also learned to love games, and it has been fun as they have gotten older and skills have developed to allow us to play more in-depth games than the Candyland of years ago.
Maybe if I keep at it, we can one day be known as the “Blood Wilsons.” One can dream…
With that all being said, I would like to share with you some of our favorite games to play as a family. My children span the ages of 4 to 12, so obviously there are some games geared more towards the little ones and others more for the older children, but I will share them all!
1. All Things Poker
Poker, in all of its various forms, has always been a go-to for my family. As a kid, we always played with dried pinto beans as “money,” but it is so much more rewarding to play with actual poker chips – whether you are playing with real money behind them or not. You will find many uses for a basic set of poker chips, and it just makes all forms of the game more fun.
2. Catan (and Expansions)
“The incredibly popular, multi award winning civilization building board game of harvesting and trading resources.”
Catan is one of those games that has developed a cult following – with songs depicting people’s love for it. And once you play, you’ll understand why all the fuss. It is definitely not a game for small children (recommended age is 10 and up), but this is one of our favorite games to play with our older kids. This is also a game with endless expansion possibilities – our favorites being Seafarers and Cities & Knights. With so many variations and ways to expand on the fun, this is one game your family will never tire of.
3. The Game of Life
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, I’m sure you have played Life a time or two. However, what I never realized until recently is that every version is SOOO different. I grew up playing the 90’s version of Life, which I loved but did not realize was not the “original.” We finally purchased the original Life game and have found it to be our favorite overall.
New editions are fun, with kids especially loving the electronic banking option of newer editions, but none is as cutthroat at the original game, which we love. Just know that they are all very different, and it is definitely worth trying more than one version to see what your family likes best.
4. Farkle
Farkle is far and away one of our favorite family games. It requires no set-up, and you can play to whatever score you’d like, so it’s perfect when you want a quick and easy game that is still packed with fun. It reminds me of the traditional Yahtzee that I grew up loving, only Farkle is even better. Like Yahtzee, Farkle is also a dice scoring game, but Farkle allows you to press your luck, going for as many or as few points each turn as you want. This allows the gamblers in the family to really test the limits – sometimes paying off, and sometimes losing points they didn’t “bank” first.
5. Jackbox Games
The Jackbox Party Pack games offer an amazing twist on the typical board game. These are interactive games downloaded directly to your Amazon account (though also available through PlayStation and others), and they are played on your TV where everyone joins with a separate device (phone, tablet, laptop, whatever). Some games ask questions, some require you to draw, some you work together to solve puzzles – the possibilities are endless. We have had some of our best laughs playing these games with our kids and with other adults (make sure the family friendly option is selected if kids will be playing). And every time we have introduced these games to someone new, they are immediately asking how they can buy them for themselves. Each party pack comes with 5 different games, which is an amazing deal and gives so much variety to the typical game night.
6. LCR (Left, Center, Right)
This is another very basic, very easy, yet very fun dice game for the whole family (recommended ages 5 and up). Like Farkle, there is almost no set up, and games are very quick, allowing for multiple rounds of fun. The game is meant to be played with the included chips, but we sometimes play a variation with quarters where each gets to keep their winnings. This game is definitely another crowd pleasure that small kids and adults will love.
7. Trouble
Trouble is a classic game and has always been one of our favorites to play with small kids. Suggested for ages 5 and up, but with help, we have even had 3-year-old kids play and love this game. They especially giggle over being “trouble” and messing up the other players. It is a simple, yet fun game for small children, and even comes in a variety of editions for whatever your kids like best – Trolls, Avengers, Shopkins – the possibilities are endless.
8. Ticket to Ride
Ticket to Ride is another super unique game with a cult-like following where you compete to build train routes all along the U.S., earning points for the more routes you can complete – while competing with your opponents and cutting each other off.
It is such a great game, and even teaches U.S. geography. The original version is too difficult for smaller kids, but there is a “First Journey” edition available for kids as young as 6.
9. Busytown
Busytown has always been one of our favorites for small kids. It is technically for ages 4 and up, but even younger can play with assistance. It is basically a seek and find game, but the board that extends over 6 feet is what makes it such a treat for kids. As a result, we often play on the floor, but set-up otherwise is pretty basic, and kids LOVE it.
10. Telestrations
Telestrations is sure to provide many laughs for both kids and adults. This game brings to life the ancient game of “telephone” by allowing people to draw a picture or phrase, and then pass their books around for others to draw, until the final depiction is nothing like the original word or phrase. It is hilarious to visually see how “telephone” can morph from person to person. This game is so much fun, as evidenced by such great reviews.
~ Jennifer ~
