11 December 2023 , 16:00
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Family board games are a Christmas staple and a great way to get everyone off their phones and away from their screens for a little while to do something fun. But with hundreds of board game options available for all ages and interests it can be hard to know where to start if you’ve not played one for a while.
Whether you're looking for an old favourite, a new classic, something immersive or casual we've got something for you this Christmas. What's more, we've got some suggestions for some of the best co-operative games - the days of Monopoly causing festive family friction and arguments are over, as long as no-one hogs the tub of Miniature Heroes.
I’ve tested these with players of all ages (and, to be frank, levels of enthusiasm) from four to 71 years - and these were our absolute favourite games for Christmas 2023, although not all of them are fresh out this year. All links are to the best-price available online at the time of writing.
Best games for families with younger children
The Best Worst Ice Cream is a simple and beautifully illustrated game perfect for playing with young childrenOur top choice: The Best Worst Ice Cream
In numbers: For 2-5 players aged 4+. RRP £14.99, although the current best price is at .
Dog who 'always melts hearts' with his smile hopes to find a loving family
The premise: Build the most disgusting ice cream cone to win this deceptively simple and beautifully illustrated strategy game.
We especially loved: If, like us, you’re parents who love gaming and have been easing your young children into learning turn taking and focus in the hope that you can graduate from Orchard Games, this is the perfect option. It introduces a smattering of strategy in an easily-digested (no pun intended) form that’s clever, creative and fun for the whole family. Our two loved trying to come up with the most grim sounding combinations.
See also: Orchard Games’ which contains a festive version of the ever-popular Shopping List game - called, somewhat inevitably, The Christmas List Game - , (a similar but ultra cuddly version of the also excellent ) and .
Best active game
Hurry Up Chicken Butt is the game you need to burn off some energy post-Christmas dinner
Our top choice: Hurry Up Chicken Butt
In numbers: For 2-6 players aged 4+. RRP £19.99, although the current best price is at .
The premise: Quickly complete your task and pass the clucking chicken onto the next player before the game ends.
We especially loved: caused mayhem and hilarity aplenty and will be forever known in our house as ‘the game where we learned Nannie can do an impression that sounds exactly like a chicken’. This is easy to learn and a lovely way for littlies to burn off some energy from Christmas dinner, especially if it’s too cold or wet to go outside, although tweenagers might find it a bit ‘cringe’. It was a huge crowd pleaser in our house with our youngest gamers loving that they stood as much chance at winning as the grown ups and one of a handful of games we’ll be keeping out for the festive season.
Two words of warning: Firstly, it’s noisy and active so you’ll need to make sure you’ve got some space and secondly you’ll need two AAA batteries which don’t come with the game.
See also: The (try and complete hand/eye co-ordination tasks while wearing goggles that turn the world upside down) and .
Sweet rescue dog with shy personality desperate to find a new best friend
Best board games for pre-teens
Lord of the Rings The Adventure Book Game might just be the most beautiful game you play this festive season (Ravensburger)Our top choice: Lord of the Rings Adventure Book Game
In numbers: For 1-4 players aged 10+. RRP £34.99, although current best price is at .
The premise: Work with your fellow hobbits to take the One Ring to Mount Doom to destroy it and thwart the evil Sauron. Following the success of previous Adventure Book games based on and , Ravensburger has turned its attention to the Tolkein’s classic and it’s wonderful.
We especially loved: Because it’s divided into chapters it can be played over a few nights so while it’s a meaty game it doesn’t feel unwieldy and is great for shorter attention spans. Also, it has clearly been made by people who love every detail of the iconic story and it shows - the artwork, the beautifully illustrated book that underpins it all and even the game pieces are all stunning.
See also: - reset the 1955 timeline by keeping Biff away from Marty’s parents, repair the Delorean and get it to the clock tower before lightning strikes or the McFly family photo fades completely and , a similar episodic game made by people who love the source material set in JK Rowling’s world of Harry Potter. Both great co-operative options played regularly in our house.
Best board games for older teens and adults
Who Killed Mia? is a tech-heavy mystery game perfect for older teenagers
Our top choice: Who Killed Mia? Murder Mystery Game
In numbers: For 1-99 players aged 17+. RRP £29.99, although current best price is at, somewhat surreally, .
The premise: This is more of a murder mystery game with a techie twist that will appeal to older teenagers. An infamous social media influencer is murdered. Gamers must team up to solve three sets of evidence - some physical documents and cuttings included in the game box and some digital elements including videos accessible on smart phones via QR code - to identify and exonerate suspects and finally figure out .
We especially loved: blurs the line between a board game and a more immersive, almost escape room style experience and it made for a very entertaining evening. This is a one-off game (after all, once you've figured out the murderer there's no point replaying it) so if you're going to get it it's definitely worth shopping around for the lowest price but it was huge amounts of fun and everyone who joined in was very much invested by the end. If you're a fan of true crime documentaries, and detective shows this is a great option for Christmas.
See also: For a more traditional game, our top pick and the Flanders family favourite for a good few years is - create a stained glass window more beautiful than that of your opponent craftspeople by pulling transparent coloured dice from a bag in a game that’s a lovely mix between completing a puzzle on your own and thwarting other people from doing theirs.
Best co-operative board games
Scotland Yard Sherlock Holmes edition is a great new take on a board game classicOur top choice: Scotland Yard Sherlock Holmes
In numbers: For 2-6 players aged 10+. RRP £24.99, although current best price is .
The premise: Travel the streets of London by carriage, tram or tube as one of Sherlock Holmes’ team working to apprehend the criminal mastermind Moriarty. Will you catch him where Scotland Yard has failed or will he disappear forever into the London fog?
We especially loved: Ravensburger’s popular imprint getting a new lease of life with arguably the world’s most iconic detective at the helm. Fans of the original Scotland Yard game will notice a few small differences here and there - not just in terms of character names but also the number of rounds which tightens up game play - but despite the changes, it’s as fun as ever. Playing it with someone who’d not ever tried the original he described it as Ticket to Ride meets Cluedo and, actually on reflection, that feels pretty fair.
See also: for fans of transport-themed games or anyone who’s wanted to try Ticket to Ride as it’s a perfect stand-alone (albeit slightly smaller than the US) version of the game perfect for little ones from around five-years-old with a bit of help. If you’re looking for a co-op game for younger players too then try , a cute and well put together game where stuffed toys work together on an adventure to save the child they love.
Best two player games
(HANDOUT TESCO)
Our top choice: Disney Lorcana
In numbers: This is a two player game but each player will need their own starting deck, available from £17.99 from shops including and . You can choose from five different starting decks, all of which have slightly different characters and powers.
The premise: Using a deck of 60 cards, players must collect 20 lore points to win by completing quests or playing their special abilities. There's also the opportunity to play song cards which trigger one-off actions that can help you win or scupper an opponent as well as, in our house at least, seeing us all burst into song - Be Our Guest was definitely an early favourite on that front.
We especially loved: With Disney celebrating 100 years this year there is, inevitably, an amazing amount of beloved characters included in and we all had our favourites. has been designed to be easy to learn for younger players and people who may not have played trading card games before and if our experiences with our young playtesters are anything to go by this is very much the case.
is a great deck building game and perfect stocking filler for Christmas. There's enough for experienced gamers to get to grips with in terms of deck building but it's simple enough as a stepping off point for younger players that everyone can join in.
See also: which has a very similar dynamic but a superhero theme instead. You can start with either an or base deck and there’s even a QR code linked to a video tutorial to help younger players navigate through the instructions.
Best games for large groups
Clipology might just be the ultimate game for movie buffs
Our top choice: Clipology
In numbers: For 2 or more players players aged 13+ (but this one is ripe for teams). RRP £24.99, although current best price is which frankly feels so low I checked it twice in case it was an error.
The premise: The ultimate game for movie buffs, using streamed clips of classic movies of all genres that can be played through your TV or tablet/phone device.
We especially loved: If you’re big film fans and want a game that doesn’t take an hour of reading the rules, that’s sociable, fun and likely to kickstart lots of debate on great films, then this might be the ultimate casual game this Christmas. Getting the game to work was a bit fiddly to start - we tried streaming direct to our Samsung smart TV but found in the end the least glitchy option was to run it on a phone and cast it using Google Smart View.
But once it was working this was a blast all round. The questions were a good mixture of movie trivia, observation and film knowledge and there were a wide range of films chosen from The Goonies and Fast Times at Ridgemont High to the latest Jurassic World film.
See also: , basically a digital version of Trivial Pursuit. Everyone needs their own screen to play it on but questions can then be tailored for the age of players. - don’t worry, grown ups can play too. Perfect for big groups and involves describing something without using the actual word, often unintentional comedy gold, (up to ten players, advice is from age six but we’ve played with younger).
What board games are you playing this Christmas? Let us know in the comments or your recommendations.