Games for Families: The Ones We Play Over and Over
Finding board games that work with large families can be tough. We have a huge variety of ages in our house which makes choosing games complicated.
The best family board games are ones that can be played by a variety of ages and can accommodate many players. We have owned a LOT of games over the years. We only keep the ones we actually play and enjoy. Every time I attempt to “declutter” the game closet I get significant pushback from my family, and kids. Recently I asked my kids what their favorite board games were so here they are.
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The Best Card Games for Families
Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza
Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza is probably my favorite out of all the games on this list. This game is easy to learn and is fast-paced…Absolutely no sitting around waiting for your turn. It is deceptively simple…and tricky. We got this game when Apollo was nine and he was able to play this game on even ground with the rest of us. This game takes just minutes to learn and is perfect for large groups.
Number of players: 3-8
Ages: 8 & up
Playtime: 5-10 minutes
Sushi Go
Sushi Go is made by Gamewright, one of my favorite game makers. In this game, you get dealt cards and then attempt to combine them to make fun sushi dishes trying to earn the most points. The twist? After each turn, you pass your cards to the next player meaning you never know what you’ll have next. This game is fun and easy to learn, and I love the cute little sushi designs.
Number of players: 2-5 (or you can grab the Sushi Go Party designed for 2-8 players)
Ages: 8 & up
Playtime: 15 minutes
Over Under Ostrich
This game is similar to Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza. Designed for 2-8 players it can be learned in minutes. It is fast paced with no waiting on turns (everyone plays at once). Warning: this game is designed to make you look silly…but it is guaranteed to bring on laughter.
Number of players: 3-8
Ages: 8 & up
Playtime: 5-10 minutes
Cards Against Humanity Family Edition
This game is perfect for parents who love Cards Against Humanity but also care about their eternal souls. Cards Against Humanity Family Edition is just like the original game, but with the dirty parts removed. This game is guaranteed to cause laughter and joy.
Number of players: 2-12
Ages: 8 & up
Playtime: 15 minutes
Code names
Code Names is another one of my personal favorites and made my several of my kids’ list for favorite games.
From Amazon:
“Two rival spymasters know the secret identities of 25 agents. Their teammates know the agents only by their codenames. The teams compete to see who can make contact with all of their agents first.
To play Code Names you divide into two teams; blue and red. You lay out all the cards with the word side up. Each “spymaster” knows the placement of the blue and red cards which is dictated by the square card (seen in the lower right in the photo above). Each team is competing to get all of their spies first while avoiding the assassin. To find the spies the spymaster looks at the words and tries to come up with one word that will be a hint to the spies. For instance, in the photo above I might say, “outdoors, four” trying to get my partner to guess four words that go with the clue “outdoors” in this case, I am trying to get my partner to say “bridge, robin, spring, and duck”. If they accidentally choose a card that has the opponent’s spy, that is one team for the opponent. If they accidentally turn over the assassin, the other team automatically wins.
This turns into a fun game of word play, word association, and a test of how well you know your partner.
Would You Rather?
The premise of this game? To choose between to equally horrible (or wonderful) choices. Such as:
Would you rather always have to pick your nose when talking to someone? Or always spit on people when talking to them?
This game is a great icebreaker and conversation starter. We ditched the board part of this game years ago and just use the cards. There are also several books, which we love to use on long car rides. This game will make you laugh, I promise!
Number of players: 2-6
Ages: 8 & up
Playtime: 15 minutesBest New Games
Family Game Night Games
I am listing these games separately because they all work well if you are hosting a game night or have a really large onefamily. Most are designed for a larger number of players and all are easy to learn. These are games that will have you laughing hard…so make sure you bring your sense of humor and plenty of snacks.
Game Night in a Can
“Create new animal species for Noah’s Ark, competitively fly paper airplanes, make a commercial for something in the room, bump butts as many times as you can in 30 seconds, and so much more!”
We played this fun game when Jared was here to visit before he and Tilly got married. We had so much fun. We were laughing until our sides hurt. This game is unlike any board game you’ve tried. It has nearly endless possibilities for games and no one will be bored. The pictures above are from one of our games with Jared. This game is great for families because it covers a variety of ages and up to 20 players! If you have younger kids playing, you can play as a team. We played boys against girls when Jared was here.
Number of players: 4 or more
Ages: 7 & Up (will work with younger kids as long as you team up)
Playtime: 5-60 minutes
Beanboozled
My kids’ cousins gave Beanboozled to them a few years back and they still can’t stop talking about it (thankfully we can order refills off of Amazon). This simple game comes with a spinner and Jelly Belly jelly beans. The idea is, you spin the spinner and then have to eat a Jelly Belly of that color. The catch?
Each regular flavored jelly bean has a nasty counterpart…will you get Peach? Or Barf? Chocolate Pudding? Or Canned Dog Food? Lime? Or Lawn Clippings?
You won’t know until you taste them.
You can see our family playing this game in the post Beanboozled: The Family Game You Really Must Try!
Number of players: 2 or more
Ages: 5 & up
Playtime: 5 minutes
The Game of Things
We have been playing this game so often lately and it is one of my personal favorites. I love word games and this one is so much fun. In this game person picks a card that says something such as, “things you shouldn’t do at a funeral” or “things you wish your grandma would say”. Each player writes down an answer. The answers can be serious, funny, totally inappropriate, or silly. There are no “wrong” answers. The reader then reads all the answers out loud and each player has to guess which player wrote which response. This is where it gets really fun. You not only need to write down an answer but make sure no one can guess which answer is yours. This game is guaranteed to bring some laughs.
Number of players: 4-8
Ages: 10 & up
Playtime: 15 minutes
Apples to Apples
This is an old favorite but I am listing it here because it really is one of the best games to play with a large number of people and a variety of ages.
Number of players: 4-8
Ages: 8 & up
Playtime: 15 minutes
In a Pickle
From Amazon:
“Can a giraffe fit in a phone booth? Does a sofa fit in a shopping cart? It all depends on how you size it up in this game of creative thinking and outrageous scenarios. Try to win a set of cards by fitting smaller things into bigger things“
This game is a personal favorite of might because it involves two of my favorite things: wordplay and arguing. Does a sofa fit in a shopping cart? It does if it’s a doll sofa…Can the universe fit in the refrigerator? Yes…if you can find a way to convince your opponents anyway. This game takes just minutes to learn and is full of creative thinking and hilarity.
Number of players: 2-6
Ages: 10 & up
Playtime: 15 minutes
Escape Room
Okay, this isn’t exactly large-family friendly but I have to include it because it is my all-time favorite game. In this game, you have 60 minutes to solve the puzzle and escape.
We hosted an Escape Room game night a couple of years ago and my teens loved it. Escape Room is an interactive game where all 3-5 team members work together to solve the puzzle and escape. Everyone has to share their clues, take careful notes and put their brains together if there is any hope of escaping. This game is for ages sixteen and up.
Number of players: 3-5 (more players if you team up)
Ages: 10 & up
Playtime: 60 minutes
The Best Family Board Games
Cashflow
Cashflow isn’t exactly designed for younger kids but I have to mention it because it is my older kids’ favorite board game. We were introduced to this game by our good friends Greg and Merriann. My kids and Chuck love it. It’s a long game and pencils, paper, and calculators are involved, but this game is great for learning real-life skills and so fun, my kids beg to play it.
Number of players: 2-4
Ages: 14 & up
Playtime: 60 minutes
Settlers of Catan
This made the list of games my children insisted I had to include. This is a strategy game where you build, trade, and settle on the island of Catan. Each time you play you set up the game board so it is always different and challenging in new ways.
Last Christmas my parents bought our family this amazing personalized wooden Settlers of Catan board. Our Settlers of Catan board went through many iterations, including a handmade cardboard version for a while (thanks to Enoch’s creativity and skill).
Number of players 3-4 (5-6 if you buy the extension pack)
Ages: 10 and up
Playtime: 60 minutes, 15 minutes to learn
Seven Wonders
Seven Wonders is similar to Settlers of Catan but easier to learn and play (in my opinion). Each player is a leader of one of the seven greatest cities of the Ancient World. Players gather resources, develop commercial routes, and build their military force. Seven Wonders has multiple modes of play and expansion packs that can be purchased.
Number of players: 3-7
Ages: 10 and up
Playtime: 30 minutes, 15 minutes to learn
Fun Games to Play at Home With Younger Kids
Hiss
Number of players: 2-5
Ages: 4&up
Playtime: 15 minutes
Postman Observation Game
Number of players:
Ages:
Playtime:
Spot It!
Number of players: 2-8
Ages: 3 & up
This game is a simple as it gets with games (you try to find matching objects on each card) but it deceptively hard. Each card has eight objects and any two given cards only have one match. You simply flip over two cards. The first person to spot the match, wins those cards. I play this game nearly every day with Percy and Monty (ages 2&4).
Playtime: 15 minutes
Postman Observation Game
You can read my full review of the Postman Observation Game here.
21 Best Games for Preschoolers
This is a great post with games ideas from Tiny Hands, Tiny Home
Please let me know your favorite family board games in the comments!
Great post. My family loves board games so we’re always looking for new ones to try. The age group and playtime you included was very helpful and made it easier for us to choose the next board game to try!