The battered corners of our favourite board game boxes reminded us of the beautiful value of family play. If you treasure those giggle-worthy memories and the engaging thrill of competition or team work then you’ll love our top 8 picks!
Dopple (6 yrs+)
The perfect all-ages speedy symbol-recognition game
Dopple is a round set of 55 playing cards sporting some jazzily eye-catching symbols. Players race to match identical symbols and with each card being unique it means there’s only one symbol in common between cards.
The great thing is that there’s no turn taking! Because it’s all about speed, observation and reflexes Dopple is a hit with young kids who might struggle with knowledge and strategy. A great all-family game wth 5 variations - all equally simple and fun!
Buy Dopple here
Labyrinth (7 yrs+)
A uniquely designed, much-loved strategic board game
This unique moving maze requires strategy and planning in a race for magical hidden treasures. Players take turns seeking treasures - who can shift the labyrinth walls and clear the path for victory?!
Children quickly pick up the concept of moving the maze cards to collect their objects and to block the way of others - skill, risk and luck go well-rewarded. The curious characters, including a dragon, princess, genie and ghost, make Labyrinth feel especially enchanting.
Top Tip - don’t let your dog chew the maze pieces!
Buy Labyrinth here
Uno (7 yrs+)
Ultra-accessible and exciting ‘oooh and arh’ card game of chance
108 brightly coloured cards, some with numbers, some with symbols. The rules are easy - do everything you can to get rid of your cards! Although it says 7 yrs+ there are plenty of younger kids who will pick this game up easily.There are 25 cards each of 4 different colours and 8 action cards - each player starts with 7 cards and has to colour/number match to discard cards. Holding a handful of cards can be tricky for kids, especially when the strategic action cards tell you to pick up extras! With up to 10 players it can be fast and furious!
Top Tip - you can use the deck to play memory games with toddlers to practice colour and number recognition.
Buy Uno here
Pit (5 yrs+)
Get commodified in the funniest, most raucous trading floor game ever!
The more the merrier for this crazily noisy trading game. There are 8 commodities such as oil, gold, cars, perfume, with 9 cards for each commodity. It’s an everyone-plays-at-once game and the aim is to ‘corner the market’ with one full house of a commodity.The number of players equals the number of commodities so 5 players mean 5 commodities. Players then trade blind - offering up to 4 cards at a time. The funniest part is frantically blind-trading the same cards! An advanced version includes a Bear card and a Bull card which add to the drama - perfect for get-togethers.
Top Tip - a round table is easier for leaning over to trade cards!
Buy Pit here
Rush Hour Jnr (5 yrs+)
Addictively challenging, supremely satisfying brain-gym fun
A sliding block game on a funky chunky tile in a drawstring bag! Colourful trucks, cars and fire engines are accompanied by 40 challenge cards posing tricky-traffic problem-solving to free your ice cream van from the jam.
You can feel your brain expand as you exercise your critical thinking strategies! Vehicles can’t be picked up so you have to manoeuvre your ice cream van to freedom by carefully calculated moves. Challenge cards offer 4 difficulty levels and although it says 5 yrs+ plenty of younger kids would enjoy tackling the lower level cards!
Buy Rush Hour Jnr here
Bananagrams (7 yrs+)
Wordy working-out for mixed abilities who love some speedy anagram-tastic-ness
144 letter tiles are called a ‘bunch’ and the aim is to race to create your very own word grid using all your letters - a bit like scrabble but faster and without point scoring. Shout ‘peel’ and everyone gets to take a new tile!
There’s a ‘first words’ version for really little ones but even if an adult is racing ahead younger ones still enjoy working on their own grids. It’s creative and requires lots of ‘play’ with the letter tiles which can also be done in teams. Letter-loving addicts will love the banana shaped travel-friendly pouch!
Buy Bananagrams here
The Secret Door (4 yrs+)
Cooperative game with a thrilling race against the dreaded bong of grandfather clock
An alternative to competitive board games, players work collaboratively using memory and logic, to out-smart the thieves. Figure out which booty is missing before midnight strikes!
The exciting valuables include goblets, daggers, necklaces and rubies and are hidden under the ‘secret’ door in the cellar. The thrill comes from racing against the clock cards - each card elicits a gong and when you hit 12 gongs your time is up - who will win - the thieves or the detectives?!
Buy The Secret Door here
Crazy Coconuts (4 yrs+)
Ultra-simple silly dexterity fun for all the family
Rubber coconuts (what’s not to love!) and funky monkeys. Players try to get their monkey to propel his coconuts into the red and yellow cups!
Perfect for little kids and playful adults the silliness begins then you start winning cups from your opponent by landing a coconut in their cup. For extra chuckle-factor there are amusing cards including one that grants you permission to blow your opponents coconut mid-air!
