Nowadays, you’ll find thousands of games that you can download to your smartphone and play whenever you want. To some people, this might sound like the best news they’ve ever heard, but if you think about it, most of these games are mind-numbing and repetitive, missing the charm of a good old board game that will have you work your brains no matter how old you are. Board games are fun to play, educational, and a good way to compete against other people in a friendly environment. So, if you want to give someone a good reason to take their eyes off their smart devices and work their minds a little bit, here are some board games that they might like.
Chronology
This game can be highly enjoyable for people who know all about history. At first glance, the timeline cards might seem like they’re fairly easy to place in chronological order, but as the game progresses, doing this will become increasingly difficult as the time gaps between events will shrink. It is no surprise that a standard Chronology game is going to take about 120 minutes; however, it’s a great chance to hone your historical knowledge.
Scrabble
If you’re a fan of learning too many words, then scrabble is the best game to unleash that passion. You can play this game with your friends, family, or children to help them build a sizable vocabulary by urging them to create different formations of words. If you don’t know the infamous game, Scrabble is played by 2-4 players who use letters that are written on the tiles to make possible variations of words. Making a collection of words from letters using the unscramble tool is going to expand your vocabulary and will teach you how to use prefixes and suffixes correctly, and as you make a habit of playing scrabble, you’ll find your word-derivation skills significantly improving over time. Usually, players aren’t allowed to play scrabble with dictionaries or any useful tool in hand to increase the level of difficulty and competition. However, beginners, especially young players, are welcome to use them; this is an important step for them to learn about new words and establish that knowledge at a young age.
Risk
If you’re more into fantasy/warfare board games, then Risk has all the features you want in a board game. Risk can be played by 2-5 players and it takes approximately 120-180 to finish a game. Like any strategic game, you’ll have army units to fight with, territories to defend, allies and enemies, and plenty of lands to take over. So, this game is definitely going to help you sharpen your logical-thinking, strategies, and decision-making skills. There is no way of predicting who’s going to win at the end, which kind of emphasizes why this game can be so addictive.
Ticket to Ride
When playing Ticket to Ride, you’re expected to claim all the railway routes on the map by collecting train card cars to do so. If you build your railway routes to multiple cities and unique destinations, you’re going to earn points. The rules are not really hard to understand, but it can be a bit tricky, as you’ll find yourself trying to act quickly to claim the best routes and earn more points. It is an excellent way to train your logical and strategic skills and it is also the perfect game to play with friends or family (2-5 people) to pass the time. There are different editions of this game, so make sure to check them out before you choose a map.
Prime Climb
If you like mathematical games more than strategizing, then we recommend that you try Prime Climb. This colorful game is perfect for teens and pre-teens to learn the basic rules of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Prime Climb can be played by 2-4 players who roll the dice and move their pawns across the colorful spiral to reach the 101 circles at the center of the spiral. When players roll the dice, they are going to add, subtract, multiply, or divide the numbers they get until they can reach the 101 destinations. Players are also provided with a multiplication table and 24 prime cards that direct their movement.
Board games are one of the best methods to spend quality time with your friends and loved ones. It develops your cognitive skills and adds to your knowledge, the longer you play them. The generation of instant gratification lacks the skills of setting goals and being patient, but educational board games can change that fact, so be sure to try out one of the suggestions listed above and enjoy some quality time with your friends and family.