The Best Tabletop Games to Play with Family and Friends
Tabletop games make spending time with family and friends much more fun and engaging. You learn and outwit each other while keeping your brain active. However, due to the many tabletop games in the market including card games, board games, dice games and others, you may have a difficult time trying to decide which one to choose.
This is a review of some of the best tabletop games in the market, which are guaranteed to give you and your kids or friends a fun time.
Munchkin Deluxe
Munchkin deluxe is an adventurous card game that features 168 cards, a game board, 6 standees that are colored, a die, 6 player cards and rules. The game features a dungeon adventure where you and your friends can compete in killing monsters and grabbing magic items. A game with six players can take about one hour.
The game involves leveling up where the player works their way up from slaughtering plants, slime and eventually to the dragon. Players start at level one and use various methods to level up such as playing special treasure cards, selling items and defeating monsters. The winner is the person who gets to level 10 first.
Pros
- In this deluxe edition, each standee has a card that shows the gender and color of the player. In addition, the gameboard is large, which enables you to keep all your cards in place.
- The whole family can play it because it accommodates six people of all ages. This makes it a suitable family game.
- It is easy to learn and can be played by experienced and new players.
- The rules are easy to understand and clear.
- The game has humor and fun.
- You can expand the game for more fun.
Cons
- It does not feature a place to store the cards.
- For someone who wants to play the game a lot, the humor may wane fast.
- The backstabbing may result in a loss of friends if you are the kind of person who takes such things seriously.
Munchkin deluxe is a card game to keep you and your friends entertained. It’s fun and makes the hours run fast considering the backstabbing and humor. However, if you are an ardent player, you may find the game boring after some time and you may need to expand on it.
Pandemic
Pandemic is a board game. It features finding cures for the four diseases that are potential outbreaks in the world. The players work as a team to find the cure for these diseases because it’s a cooperative game. To cure a disease, the specialist needs four cards. The game comes with a rulebook, a board, 6 wooden research stations, 96 wooden disease cubes, 116 cards, 6 markers and 7 wooden pawns. It has a playtime of about one hour.
Pros
- The game is dramatic and captivating as you and the other players fly all over the world with a quest to cure four plagues that have threatened to remove the humans from the earth.
- Children from ten years old can also play it.
- It is an expandable game if the players want more excitement.
- It is a cooperative game and the players have to play together to control or cure the diseases. This promotes cooperation instead of competition.
Cons
- The game can be played by up to four players and therefore can be limiting if you are a large family or have many friends.
- An experienced player may spoil the game by showing others what to do, although this can be curbed by including an expansion.
Pandemic takes about one hour of fun trying to fight diseases as you and your friends find the best way to do it. However, if you are many, you may have to take turns because it accommodates up to only four players.
Connect 4
Connect 4 is an easy to play game that involves two players. It features a grid, 21 red discs, 21 yellow discs, a slide bar and 2 legs. It also has instructions for ease of use. The game is played by dropping the discs in the grid until the first person gets four discs in a row. A player can choose either the red or the yellow discs. The discs can be connected horizontally, diagonally or vertically.
Pros
- The game is simple and easy to play and can be played even by the very young. It only involves dropping the discs in the grid and you can block the opponent with your disc if you see they are likely to win. The winner pulls out the slide bars in order to release the discs and start the game again.
- Those who do not understand English can also play it because it only requires the arranging of discs.
Cons
- The game is too easy and may not be challenging enough for older players.
- It can only be played by two players and therefore may not be suitable for a large family or many friends.
- The pieces making the game are not as strong as those that made the earlier version of the game.
Connect 4 is a simple game that you can use to keep yourselves busy while having fun. However, it may not be as challenging as some players may prefer and only two people can play it.
Conclusion
Munchkin takes the first position in this review. Up to six players can play it and it’s fun and stimulating for both new and experienced players. It is also expandable.
Pandemic takes the second place. It can accommodate up to four players and it is also expandable. It’s also fun as players try to find the cure for the diseases.
The third place is the Connect 4 which, although is an exciting game and can be played by the non-English speaking, it can only accommodate two players.