Monopoly may be the best-selling board game of all time, but if you’re looking for something new to play with the kids, these completely different board games to play with the family are well worth a look.
Playing a board game together is one of the simplest family activities there is – and it’s amazing how competitive everyone gets, no matter what age they are! If you’re tired of reaching for the usual suspects like Cluedo or Scrabble, here are 15 games that will shake up your next family game night.
You may also enjoy: 10 Insanely Easy Ideas For a Fun Family Game Night
Different Board Games to Play with the Family
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Pass The Pigs
Be the first to 100 points by throwing your pigs and seeing how they land. Will you get a Leaning Jowler? A Double Snouter? Or maybe the infamous Piggy Back?
Each turn, one player throws the two pigs, each of which has a dot on one side. Points are gained or lost depending on how the pigs land – simple to learn, surprisingly tense to play.
2 or more players, ages 7+
Buy Pass The Pigs from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Carcassonne
Carcassonne is a clever, exciting tile-laying game for 2–5 players that builds the area around the southern French medieval city of Carcassonne. Players lay tiles to create roads, cities, cloisters and meadows, then deploy their followers – “meeples” – as farmers, knights, monks and thieves.
The rules are easy to pick up, and the game never gets boring because the board is built from scratch every time, with endless combinations of tiles and strategies. This is a worldwide bestseller and multi-award winner, and a real must for any family board game collection.
2–6 players, ages 8+
Buy Carcassonne from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com or Boardgamer.ie
You may also enjoy: 20 Of The Best Board Games For Families
Catan
In Catan (previously known as The Settlers of Catan), you negotiate and trade raw materials to build settlements and roads. Every game creates a brand-new world on the board.
Each turn, dice determine what resources the island produces. Players collect these to grow their settlements toward 10 victory points and win the game.
The base game can be expanded with additional packs, increasing the number of players to up to 6.
3–4 players, ages 8+
Buy Catan from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com or Boardgamer.ie
Dixit
Dixit is a multi-award-winning game that tests your logic, your ability to bluff, and your powers of deduction, all with wonderfully simple rules.
Each round, one player becomes the storyteller, calling out a phrase or word that describes one of their cards. The other players choose a card of their own that best matches the clue. The cards are revealed, and everyone secretly votes on which one belongs to the storyteller.
Dixit is beautifully simple and great fun, adapting easily to any age. With extension packs adding more cards, it never gets old.
3–6 players, ages 8+
Buy Dixit from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com or Boardgamer.ie
You may also enjoy: 10 Best Family Board Games According To MyKidsTime Parents
King of Tokyo
In King of Tokyo, you play mutant monsters, giant robots and other creatures, all happily whacking each other in a bid to become the one and only King of Tokyo.
On your turn, you throw six dice with symbols that let you rack up destruction points, hoard energy, restore your health, or knock other players out of Tokyo altogether.
The fiercest player is crowned King of Tokyo – and ends up facing all the other monsters alone!
2–6 players, ages 8+
Buy King of Tokyo from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com or Boardgamer.ie
Cranium Junior
You’ll need all your acting, puzzling, sketching and code-cracking skills to win this brain-teasing family favourite.
There are four colour-coded activities to try each round – spell, puzzle, act, hum, or just guess your way to victory!
2 or more players, ages 5+
Buy Cranium Junior from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Labyrinth
Labyrinth is a race for treasure in a moving maze, and one of the best-loved board games to play with the family.
Be the first to collect all your treasures by shifting the walls of the labyrinth to create a clear path. Players take turns searching for their magical objects and characters by carefully moving through the constantly changing maze.
It’s up to you to strategically move the walls to open your own path – while blocking everyone else’s.
2–4 players, ages 7+
Buy Labyrinth from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
30 Seconds Junior
30 Seconds Junior is a team game where each player has 30 seconds to explain as many of the five concepts on their card as possible. The more terms your team guesses correctly, the further you move on the board. First team to the finish line wins.
3 or more players, ages 5+
Buy 30 Seconds Junior here
Blokus
Blokus is simple enough for anyone to pick up. Each player has 21 pieces, and there’s just one rule: every piece you play must touch another piece of the same colour – but only at the corners.
Protect your territory by fitting as many pieces on the board as you can while strategically blocking your opponents.
2–4 players, ages 7+
Buy Blokus from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com or Boardgamer.ie
Ticket to Ride
Ticket to Ride can be learned in under 15 minutes and enjoyed again and again, whether it’s your first time building a rail empire or a long-standing family favourite.
Players embark on a cross-country train adventure, collecting cards that let them claim colour-coded railway routes across a map of the USA. The longer the route claimed, the more points earned – but the more cards needed to claim it.
By building longer connecting routes, players try to complete destination tickets for bonus points – or face a penalty if they fail.
2–5 players, ages 8+
Buy Ticket to Ride from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Animal Upon Animal
There’s pandemonium on the farm! Who can stack the hen on top of the sheep? And is there any space left for the dog?
Animal Upon Animal is a stacking game – roll the die and stack the matching animal on its tile, on top of whatever’s already there.
2–4 players, ages 4+
Buy Animal Upon Animal from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com or Boardgamer.ie
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Othello
Use cunning tactics to outwit your opponent in the classic Othello board game. In this fast-paced strategy game, you try to trap your rival’s playing pieces and flip them to your colour. The lead can change in an instant with a single flip, and the player with the most pieces of their colour at the end wins.
2 players, ages 7+
Buy Othello from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Battle Sheep
Opposing sheep herds go head to fluffy head in a strategy game the whole family will love. The goal is to occupy the most pastures with your sheep. On your turn, you split a stack of sheep and move part of it as far as possible in a straight line to a new pasture.
Watch out for sneaky sheep, and plan your moves carefully to fence out your rivals! The board is assembled differently every game, so there’s always a new challenge.
2–4 players, ages 7+
Buy Battle Sheep from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Azul
In Azul, you’re a tile-laying artist challenged to decorate the walls of the Royal Palace of Évora. Players take turns drafting coloured tiles from shared suppliers onto their own player board.
Later in the round, points are scored based on how tiles have been placed – extra points for specific patterns and completed sets, but wasted tiles cost you. The player with the most points at the end wins.
2–4 players, ages 8+
Buy Azul from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com or Boardgamer.ie
Abalone
In Abalone, players take turns pushing marbles around the board, aiming to push six of their opponent’s marbles off the edge. The key idea is that a line of marbles has weight based on how many are lined up together.
You’ll need a heavier group to push a column along its line – but with six possible directions of attack, it’s genuinely difficult to defend every side at once.
2 players, ages 7+
Buy Abalone from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
You may also enjoy: 15 Fun Card Games For Kids
Do you have any of these board games at home? What other completely different board games would you recommend to play with the family? Leave a comment below – we’d love to hear from you!
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s a good board game for a family with a big age gap between kids?
Look for games with simple, flexible rules that don’t rely heavily on reading or complex strategy – Animal Upon Animal, Pass The Pigs and Cranium Junior all work well across a wide age range, since younger children can join in without needing much explanation.
Which of these games is best for a quick game night?
Pass The Pigs, 30 Seconds Junior and Animal Upon Animal are all quick to set up and play, making them great choices for a short burst of family fun on a busy evening.
Are any of these games good for just two players?
Yes – Othello and Abalone are both designed specifically for two players and make excellent head-to-head strategy games for older kids, teens or a parent-and-child match-up.
Do I need to buy expansion packs to enjoy these games?
No. Every game listed here is complete and fully playable as a standalone box. Expansions (available for games like Catan and Dixit) simply add extra variety if your family falls in love with a particular game.
Related Reads
- 10 Insanely Easy Ideas For a Fun Family Game Night
- 20 Of The Best Board Games For Families
- 10 Best Family Board Games According To MyKidsTime Parents
- 15 Fun Card Games For Kids
Save This for Your Next Rainy Day
Bookmark this list for the next wet afternoon or family game night – there’s something here for every age and every mood, from quick dice games to slow strategic battles.
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