Top 5 compared
The best board games
Phones down and everyone round the table for an evening of laughs, tactics and a bit of friendly rivalry.
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The top 5 at a glance
A good board game gets everyone talking. The right one depends on who’s playing: classics are learned in minutes and seat a crowd, modern strategy games take ten minutes to explain and get better with every play, and party games are about the laughs more than the winning.
The age on the box is about the rules as much as the small pieces, so a confident eight-year-old can often manage a game marked ten. Playing times assume everyone knows the rules, so a first game runs longer, and team and party games need four or more players to work.
What matters
- A player count that fits your usual table.
- The kind of game: a race, a puzzle or a party.
- The age on the box, against your youngest regular player.
- A playing time that suits.
#1Goliath Games Sequence
£21.99 RRP
Play a card, put a chip on the matching space of the board and race to make five in a row. Jacks are wild or take a rival’s chip off, so every turn is a choice between building your own line and blocking someone else’s.
What owners say: Owners say it has become a family favourite, simple to learn and good for adults and children together. They like the strategy in it and say it keeps their brains working.
A closer look: With a big group, split into two or three teams and sit partners apart so nobody can see a teammate’s hand. Keep a one-eyed Jack for the moment a rival is one chip from five in a row: a well-timed block wins as many games as building does.
- Plays well in teams
- Two-eyed Jacks are wild
- One-eyed Jacks remove chips
Best for: Families and big groups
- Kind of game
- Race to five in a row
- Players
- 2–12
- Ages
- 7+
- Playing time
- About 20 min
#2Plan B Games Azul
£42.99 RRP
Draft coloured tiles from shared displays, fill the rows on your board and move each finished row onto a mosaic wall inspired by Portugal’s azulejo tiles. Taking the tiles a rival needs matters as much as building your own wall, so two-player games stay tense.
What owners say: Owners find it addictive and easy to learn, and like the quality of the tiles and the look of the game. They say it balances luck and tactics nicely and that turns move quickly.
A closer look: Every tile you take but can’t place drops to the floor line at the foot of your board and costs points, so a big handful of one colour isn’t always the bargain it looks. With two players, set out five of the nine factory displays; three players use seven.
- Chunky resin tiles
- Simple rules, real choices
- Tense with two players
Best for: Couples and head-to-head games
- Kind of game
- Mosaic tile puzzle
- Players
- 2–4
- Ages
- 8+
- Playing time
- 30–45 min
#3Space Cowboys Splendor
£29.99 RRP
Every turn is one of three quick choices: take gem chips, buy a development card or reserve one for later. Each card bought is a permanent discount on the next, so a slow start snowballs into a race to 15 prestige points.
What owners say: Owners call it excellent family entertainment, with simple rules, well-made pieces and plenty of ways to win, so it replays well. They note that with four players a game can stretch to about an hour.
A closer look: Lay the cards out in three rows by level, cheapest nearest the players, so everyone can see what’s on offer. In a first game, buy a few cheap cards early instead of hoarding chips, as the discounts build up faster than you’d expect. Reserving a card also earns a gold joker chip.
- Three choices each turn
- Weighty poker-style gem chips
- Cards discount your next buy
Best for: Planning a few moves ahead
- Kind of game
- Gem-collecting race
- Players
- 2–4
- Ages
- 10+
- Playing time
- 30–45 min
#4AEG Cascadia
£39.99 RRP
Each turn you take a habitat tile and a wildlife token as a pair and fit them into your own corner of the Pacific Northwest, joining habitats into corridors and placing animals where the scoring cards reward them. It won the Spiel des Jahres in 2022.
What owners say: Owners enjoy it with partners, friends and family, find it simple to learn and lovely to look at, and like how it stretches their planning.
A closer look: Start with the family variant card, which keeps the counting simple, then move on to the wildlife scoring cards once everyone sees how tiles join up. Placing an animal on a keystone tile, one showing a single habitat, earns a nature token for a free choice of tile and animal later.
- Family scoring card included
- Wooden wildlife tokens
Best for: Solo players and nature lovers
- Kind of game
- Nature tile puzzle
- Players
- 1–4
- Ages
- 10+
- Playing time
- 30–45 min
#5Drumond Park Articulate!
£32.99 RRP
Describe the word on the card to your team without saying it, with no rhymes or sounds-like clues, and get through as many as you can in 30 seconds. Six categories, from objects to famous people, move your team round the board.
What owners say: Owners call it a classic for all ages that brings everyone together, quick to set up and fast-paced, and say it helps children with vocabulary and quick thinking.
A closer look: Let the other team hold the sand timer, so there’s no argument about when the 30 seconds are up. With mixed ages, pair a confident reader with each child, and save the noise for the Spade squares, where every team plays the same card at once.
- Describe it without saying it
- Six word categories
- Teams race round the board
Best for: Family gatherings and parties
- Kind of game
- Team party game
- Players
- 4–20+
- Ages
- 12+
- Playing time
- About 60 min
How they compare
Swipe sideways or rotate device to see all 5.
| Feature | #1Sequence | #2Azul | #3Splendor | #4Cascadia | #5Articulate! |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall | Best solo game | Best party game | |||
| Picked Rating | 9.6 | 9.5 | 9.5 | 9.5 | 9.4 |
| Price | £21.99 RRP | £42.99 RRP | £29.99 RRP | £39.99 RRP | £32.99 RRP |
| Kind of game | Race to five in a row | Mosaic tile puzzle | Gem-collecting race | Nature tile puzzle | Team party game |
| Players | 2–12 | 2–4 | 2–4 | 1–4 | 4–20+ |
| Ages | 7+ | 8+ | 10+ | 10+ | 12+ |
| Playing time | About 20 min | 30–45 min | 30–45 min | 30–45 min | About 60 min |
| Best for | Families and big groups | Couples and head-to-head games | Planning a few moves ahead | Solo players and nature lovers | Family gatherings and parties |
| Buy now | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon |
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