Family games recommendations

[Caravansandfestivals]

Looking for some new family games. We have all the usual ones: monopoly, frustration, connect 4, cluedo, operation, Jenga, dobble etc etc. kids are aged 8 and 10 and are very competitive 😀. Any recommendations please?

Ticket to Ride
Splendor

You can try them out on-line (and loads others) at Boardgamearena.com, there are probably other sites as well.

My recommendations:

Ticket To Ride (compete to build train lines, and you can have fun blocking other people)

Survive (rescue your people from a volcanic island; try to eat your opponents' people with sharks)

Castle Panic is good, though it's cooperative rather than competitive (ie you all band together to try to defeat monsters)

Also, have a look and see whether there's a board game cafe near you - they're a great way to try out lots of games and see which ones you'd like to buy!

Quacks of Quedlinberg
Machi Koro
King of Tokyo
Yahtzee
Forbidden Desert/Sky
Sushi Go

Look at Zuto Games websites for lots of ideas that aren't as run of the mill as toy shops.

Cards against humanity family edition was very popular in our house

Labyrinth
Articulate (there is a kids version too)

Ticket to Ride and Wingspan are the favourites here for those ages.

Also agree with a pp about going to a board game cafe to try out a few, or plug the names into youtube and you can watch games being played through to learn the rules/see if you think your kids will like them.

(Be a bit careful where you buy them, knock off versions are rife online, not surprising when you consider many of them are upwards of £40 and its just printed carboard, so easy to copy, but it means the quality is rubbish, the board doesn't align etc)

Rummikub and Yahtzee were our favourites

Harry Potter Cluedo

Carcassonne
Quirkle
Ticket to Ride (might be a bit tricky for an 8 year old?)
Articulate kids
Forbidden Island

Wingspan
Terraforming mars

great suggestions! Thanks all 😀

Taco cat goat cheese pizza

We love telestrations. It's hilarious

We got Blokus after it was recommended here and it's great - only one rule to follow and the teenagers really liked it

Great suggestions on here, I second Telestrations, Sushi Go, Splendor and Quacks. Ticket to ride is also great. Maybe 8 is a bit young but there's a Sherlock Holmes game where you work collaboratively to solve a crime which is a brilliant afternoon activity

Ticket to ride Europe edition is the best one.
Catan
Cluedo
Monopoly
Game of life
Payday
Dinosaur island
Villainous

Dixit!!

Bananagrams!

I see that @Lottsbiffandsmudge has already recommended "Forbidden Island" but for us that was the gateway into "co-operative" games which teach teamwork and strategy; the players are all trying to work as a team to "beat the game." We now love those. ("Pandemic" is the next step up from that for slightly older kids.)

Also "Port Royal" (not co-operative but fun and cheap).

Outsmarted
Cluedo
Scotland Yard

Are all popular here

Battle for Hogwarts

Expensive but fantastic playability and a great intro board/ card game play. We’ve had it for several years and still play a few times a month.

This is great - we love Blokus & ticket to ride & definitely want a new game for Christmas. Dc are 9 & nearly 13. Amazon often do a game discount - they can be ££££

We love Sushi Go. Also the Back to the Future game (I know the same people have done Wizard of Oz and ET versions this year which I'm pondering too) - basically it's a co-operative game so while everyone gets a turn people are working together so minimal rows/stress.

We love...

Cluedo
Payday
Rummikub
Bananagrams
Uno (loads of options)
Game of life
Crystal maze
Exploding kittens