Family games keep things light and easy to learn, the kind you can pull out with anyone at the table without spending half an hour on rules. They’re meant for laughs, a bit of friendly competition, and that feeling of just enjoying a game together, whether you’re a seasoned player or brand new to the hobby.
Some examples of family games are The Peak Team, Movie Fight and 10 To Leave.
Fantastic Trails – Ants, Numbers, and the Long Way Home
When you first look at Fantastic Trails, it gives off a pretty relaxed first impression. Colourful artwork, cute ants, a small box… it all looks quite approachable. Then you start playing and realise these ants are asking you to make some surprisingly difficult decisions. In Fantastic Trails, you’re building up your own ant colony by…
Fluffypede – A Card Game of Plush Construction
The world of Fluffypede is built around this sudden obsession with giant fluffy plush creatures called Fluffypedes, and the whole thing feels just weird enough to immediately get your attention. You play as toymakers trying to stitch these creatures together while fighting over limited materials, changing builds, and scoring chances that can disappear one turn…
Link City – Building by Association
Most cooperative games ask players to stop something terrible from happening. A virus spreads across the world, monsters appear, a spaceship breaks apart, or somebody accidentally opens a portal to another dimension. Link City goes in a much stranger direction. Here, the big challenge is trying to agree on where an alien embassy should be…
Giraffe Raffe – Climbing Toward the Last Apple
In Giraffe Raffe, a group of hungry giraffes gathers around apple trees, all trying to reach fruit hanging just a little too high above them. At first glance, it looks like a very cheerful little card game. Bright colours, goofy giraffes, tiny wooden apples… the sort of thing that gives off “nice family game” energy…
Madcala – Wonderland Mancala
When I first saw Madcala on the table, I expected something chaotic. Colorful gems, twisted Wonderland characters, glowing cats with creepy smiles, oversized tea-party artwork… it gives the impression that the game is going to spiral into nonsense after a few turns. That’s not really what happens. Underneath all the Wonderland weirdness sits a surprisingly…
Planepita – Aliens on a Magnetic Planet
Far beyond Earth, different alien factions are fighting over control of a drifting planet somewhere in space. Players launch their little alien crews onto the surface using cardboard launch pads, trying to control the most valuable areas before everyone else ruins their plans. Some aliens stay exposed for more power, others flip over and magnetically…
Wingspan: Americas Expansion – Hummingbirds Enter the Habitat
In Wingspan, you spend most of the game building little combinations of birds, food, eggs, and card effects while trying to turn your nature reserve into a proper point machine by the final round. One bird gives you food, another lets you draw cards, another suddenly makes your whole wetland row much better than it…
Got Five! – Everyone Sees Your Numbers Except You
There’s something slightly uncomfortable about sitting at a table where everybody can see your numbers except you. That’s basically the whole idea behind Got Five!, and it works better than I expected. Every player has five hidden numbered tiles in front of them, but the numbers face outward, so only the other players can see…
Moddervarkens: Schoonheidswedstrijd – The Beauty Pig Expansion
Farmer Bert has clearly accepted that his pigs are never going to behave like respectable farm animals. Right before the big village beauty contest, they once again decide to throw themselves straight into the mud instead of staying clean for five minutes. So now the farmer is desperately trying to wash them, decorate them with…
Tanbo – Harvesting in Circles
When we first saw Tanbo, we thought it was going to be one of those small farming games you play while relaxing with a cup of tea. Cute rice paddies, colorful wooden pieces, countryside vibes… you know the type. But after a few turns, we realised the game cared much more about positioning and timing…
Strategeti – An Abstract Battle with Animal Instincts
When we first saw Strategeti, we expected something pretty light. Animal miniatures, warm colours, Serengeti theme… you kind of assume it’s going to be a relaxed family strategy game where everyone builds lines and politely pretends they totally saw that move coming. Yeah… not really. Strategeti turns into a much more tactical and direct little…
Coloro – Chasing Colors Across a Shrinking Grid
Coloro is one of those games that looks a lot softer than it actually is. You see the colorful wooden pieces, the little origami symbols, the clean layout on the table… and you kind of expect something easygoing. Then a few turns later somebody traps you into a terrible move and suddenly the mood changes…
Forest Shuffle – More Than a Relaxing Nature Game
Nature games have become really popular lately, and I get why. There is something nice about sitting around a table building forests, planting trees, and pretending we are all peaceful people for an hour. Forest Shuffle definitely looks like that kind of game at first. You see foxes, birds, mushrooms, butterflies… everything looks relaxing. Then…
Moddervarkens (Drecksau / Dirty Pig) – Keeping Your Pigs Dirty
In Moddervarkens, every pig just wants one thing in life: mud. Your job is to make sure all your pigs end up filthy before the other players manage to do the same. Of course, it never stays that simple for long. Somebody throws rain at the table, sends in a farmer with a brush, or…
Card Trip Europe – Drafting a Road Trip Across Europe
There’s something fun about games that immediately make you think about travelling. Not in the big “quit your job and backpack across Europe” kind of way, but more like scrolling through photos of places you’d like to visit someday while sitting on your couch with snacks nearby. That’s kind of the feeling Card Trip gave…
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