Board game recommedation for short and sweet games
April 25, 2022 4:18 PM Subscribe
I want to give a board game to my friends! They prefer games for 2 to 6 people that can be finished in 30 minutes to one hour tops.
These are some games that they like:
* Quartz
* Ticket to ride
* Istambul
* Seven Wonders
* Splendor
* Dixit
* Sushi go
I know nothing about games, but I care about the aesthetics. Good looking games, then :)
These are some games that they like:
* Quartz
* Ticket to ride
* Istambul
* Seven Wonders
* Splendor
* Dixit
* Sushi go
I know nothing about games, but I care about the aesthetics. Good looking games, then :)
Morels!
posted by rockindata at 4:34 PM on April 25, 2022
posted by rockindata at 4:34 PM on April 25, 2022
Hive is great for two people. Yikes all the board games we play take more than an hour.
Taco vs Burrito?
Munchkin?
posted by Arctostaphylos at 4:39 PM on April 25, 2022
Taco vs Burrito?
Munchkin?
posted by Arctostaphylos at 4:39 PM on April 25, 2022
Exploding Kittens
posted by nickggully at 4:45 PM on April 25, 2022
posted by nickggully at 4:45 PM on April 25, 2022
Tsuro is pretty good for two players, and way better for more. Fluxx (or any of the thousands of variants the company sells—I'm partial to Monty Python) can usually be played in less than 30 minutes, but you do once in a while get the weird draw that leads to a long game.
posted by General Malaise at 5:06 PM on April 25, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by General Malaise at 5:06 PM on April 25, 2022 [2 favorites]
Sagrado is nice game about building stained glass tiles. The card games Parade and Arboretum are both nice and quick too.
If it's appropriate to get them a two-player-only game, Seven Wonders Duel is a nice game.
posted by mark k at 5:09 PM on April 25, 2022 [2 favorites]
If it's appropriate to get them a two-player-only game, Seven Wonders Duel is a nice game.
posted by mark k at 5:09 PM on April 25, 2022 [2 favorites]
I love Seven Wonders Duel and it is my go-to for 2 players. Consider King of Tokyo - fun and fast and lots of great artwork.
posted by jeoc at 5:22 PM on April 25, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by jeoc at 5:22 PM on April 25, 2022 [1 favorite]
Go Nuts for Donuts hits pretty close to the same itch as Sushi Go, imo.
Patchwork Doodle - and a large set of colors to mark with - has gone over really well in our house. It's even better with the Plus expansion; it was well worth tracking down. (I ended up printing more of our own blank boards from the files at BoardGameGeek - the score sheets turn out so cool, I've been threatening to make a "quilt" out of them.)
Forbidden Island and Desert are excellent co-op games. We have Sky, but still haven't played it, so I can't vouch for it.
Queendomino, Carcassonne, Sagrada, Labyrinth, ... I know there are more, but most of our games are stored under my bed right now.
Munchkin, in my experience, has the potential to go long... so maybe not it. I highly recommend Catan and Rivals for Catan... but they're more like 45-120 minutes, imo.
posted by stormyteal at 5:37 PM on April 25, 2022 [2 favorites]
Patchwork Doodle - and a large set of colors to mark with - has gone over really well in our house. It's even better with the Plus expansion; it was well worth tracking down. (I ended up printing more of our own blank boards from the files at BoardGameGeek - the score sheets turn out so cool, I've been threatening to make a "quilt" out of them.)
Forbidden Island and Desert are excellent co-op games. We have Sky, but still haven't played it, so I can't vouch for it.
Queendomino, Carcassonne, Sagrada, Labyrinth, ... I know there are more, but most of our games are stored under my bed right now.
Munchkin, in my experience, has the potential to go long... so maybe not it. I highly recommend Catan and Rivals for Catan... but they're more like 45-120 minutes, imo.
posted by stormyteal at 5:37 PM on April 25, 2022 [2 favorites]
Seconding Azul, Hive, and Qwirkle. Cribbage is an oldie but a goodie. Illimat is awesome.
Anti-reccommendation for 7 Wonders Duel because there are too many formulas to remember; there are too many little "if this happens then that rule is in play EXCEPT when blah blah blah" things to learn and too damn many pieces.
posted by blnkfrnk at 5:39 PM on April 25, 2022
Anti-reccommendation for 7 Wonders Duel because there are too many formulas to remember; there are too many little "if this happens then that rule is in play EXCEPT when blah blah blah" things to learn and too damn many pieces.
posted by blnkfrnk at 5:39 PM on April 25, 2022
Codenames has the verbal playfulness of Dixit and really does take 30 to 60 minutes. Always a favorite among my friends. Four or more players.
posted by drdanger at 5:40 PM on April 25, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by drdanger at 5:40 PM on April 25, 2022 [1 favorite]
Lanterns is simple, pretty to look at, engaging, and fun.
posted by Winnie the Proust at 5:40 PM on April 25, 2022
posted by Winnie the Proust at 5:40 PM on April 25, 2022
Also throwing in for Qwirkle and Azul.
Tentative recommendation for Trellis -- I think it's great but I feel like it takes a couple of games to pick up on. I also don't know how well it works with just two people (although you can play it with two people) and it tops out at 4. However, each game is pretty short and it is gorgeous.
posted by edencosmic at 5:49 PM on April 25, 2022
Tentative recommendation for Trellis -- I think it's great but I feel like it takes a couple of games to pick up on. I also don't know how well it works with just two people (although you can play it with two people) and it tops out at 4. However, each game is pretty short and it is gorgeous.
posted by edencosmic at 5:49 PM on April 25, 2022
Patchwork. Two player, plays fast, scratches that Tetris spatial itch.
posted by spamandkimchi at 6:40 PM on April 25, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by spamandkimchi at 6:40 PM on April 25, 2022 [1 favorite]
https://www.majorfun.com/illusion/
Is a quick fun little palette cleanser, and can be played almost anywhere. Short, surprisingly intense games were everyone laughed the handful of times I've played it.
posted by Jacen at 7:05 PM on April 25, 2022
Is a quick fun little palette cleanser, and can be played almost anywhere. Short, surprisingly intense games were everyone laughed the handful of times I've played it.
posted by Jacen at 7:05 PM on April 25, 2022
Wingspan says play time is 40-70 minutes, but we found it was on the lower end of that estimate once we were all familiar with the game play.
posted by soelo at 7:52 PM on April 25, 2022
posted by soelo at 7:52 PM on April 25, 2022
My group has been enjoying Everdell. It can run a bit longer or shorter depending on various factors but the vibes are super chill and the aesthetic is delightful.
posted by Mizu at 7:56 PM on April 25, 2022
posted by Mizu at 7:56 PM on April 25, 2022
6-nimmit (2-10 players, fast)
Wizard, (2-6 players) is great if you like trick taking games.
For Sale! (3-6 players) is a good blind auction game.
QE (2-3 players) is the same-ish theme taken to its logical conclusion.
posted by genrand at 8:46 PM on April 25, 2022
Wizard, (2-6 players) is great if you like trick taking games.
For Sale! (3-6 players) is a good blind auction game.
QE (2-3 players) is the same-ish theme taken to its logical conclusion.
posted by genrand at 8:46 PM on April 25, 2022
Lost Cities and Forbidden Island/Forbidden Desert, if co-op is alright. Nthing Azul!
posted by rachaelfaith at 9:00 PM on April 25, 2022 [3 favorites]
posted by rachaelfaith at 9:00 PM on April 25, 2022 [3 favorites]
Another vote for patchwork - one of the best 2-player games I've played. Basically taking turns to draft tetris pieces to try and fill your quilt.
posted by Lorc at 12:18 AM on April 26, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by Lorc at 12:18 AM on April 26, 2022 [1 favorite]
Nthing Lost Cities and Patchwork for 2 players and adding London which is 2-4 players. Nthing Forbidden Island for 4, then adding Survive! Escape from Atlantis and It's a Wonderful World.
posted by nkknkk at 4:59 AM on April 26, 2022
posted by nkknkk at 4:59 AM on April 26, 2022
Would recommend games from the Railroad Ink series as a quick, fun option that scales up neatly from 1 to 6 as well as Love Letter, which is a fast, 4 player classic!
If it's exclusively 2-player options you're looking for, would highly recommend Air, Land and Sea and my current favourite Watergate.
posted by doomsyrup at 5:05 AM on April 26, 2022 [1 favorite]
If it's exclusively 2-player options you're looking for, would highly recommend Air, Land and Sea and my current favourite Watergate.
posted by doomsyrup at 5:05 AM on April 26, 2022 [1 favorite]
We love Mysterium, which is beautiful and works really well with large and smaller groups (we've never played it as a 2-player but I know it can be done). We actually have a family joke about how long it takes to play a game, because the box indicates it as "42 minutes," without any reference to how many players that might mean.
posted by Mchelly at 8:25 AM on April 26, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by Mchelly at 8:25 AM on April 26, 2022 [1 favorite]
Looks like they're firmly in the Family game category on Boardgamegeek. Other great games in this territory:
The Quacks of Quedlinburg.
Machi Koro.
Kingdomino.
Century: Spice Road.
Medici.
Imhotep.
Love Letter.
High Society.
Karuba.
Tokaido.
Deep Sea Adventure.
Incan Gold (possibly badged as Diamante).
posted by some little punk in a rocket at 4:19 AM on April 27, 2022
The Quacks of Quedlinburg.
Machi Koro.
Kingdomino.
Century: Spice Road.
Medici.
Imhotep.
Love Letter.
High Society.
Karuba.
Tokaido.
Deep Sea Adventure.
Incan Gold (possibly badged as Diamante).
posted by some little punk in a rocket at 4:19 AM on April 27, 2022
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by SaltySalticid at 4:25 PM on April 25, 2022 [3 favorites]