Christmas Gift Guide: Board and Card Games

Every board game enthusiast faces the same struggles: lack of time, lack of space, and an endless craving for new games. With this guide, I'll help you solve at least the last one!

Board Games for Little Players

It's best to start gaming early, as soon as they can hold a few cards and stop putting dice in their noses. Games for kids can be played with parents or on their own.

Setting an age limit here is tricky. From my own experience, even preschoolers can handle simple board games. They often don't even need to know how to read, as designers account for that. It mostly depends on the child's skills. Generally, tabletop games develop useful abilities like planning, tactics, cooperation, imagination, communication, and healthy competition. After all, that's why we adults play them too.

Become a burger bistro owner in Burger Bum and try to prepare the best burgers in town.

How does the human body work? With the game Let's Learn: Our Amazing Body, you'll explore it from head to toe. You'll progress along a study scale and learn plenty of fascinating facts about how our bodies function.

Čáryfuč is a beautiful game for the little ones where kids practice object recognition while parents enjoy the magic. You have to be fast! Collect as many stars as possible to become the Master of Čáryfuč.

Board Games for Casual Players

Some of us aren't as experienced with board games. You don't want to learn pages of rules; you want something quick. Something even someone who last played Ludo can understand. Let them peek into the world of great board games that won't scare them off.

Karak is a popular game that both young kids and seasoned players can handle. Its sequel is one of our best-selling games. Karak 2 is a family game that builds on the rules of the first Karak but offers a different and more complex experience. This long-awaited sequel to the popular family board game adds a whole new building mechanic and resource gathering.

The simple card game Kabo is perfect for beginners. Can you get rid of high cards faster than your opponents? And for the third pick, I've chosen an absolute classic – the new edition of the world-famous game Carcassonne. Plus, you can expand it almost infinitely with numerous expansions.

Board Games for Two Players

Games for two are a specific category. While most board games offer a two-player mode, they are often designed for four, and playing with fewer people usually involves compromises. Here, I recommend games primarily designed for two.

Battle of the Five Armies is currently among the best you can play as a duo. The game captures the iconic battle at the end of The Hobbit and offers an epic experience with a heavy dose of tactical decision-making. If you're interested in details, check out the review on our blog.

Memoir '44 (New Edition) is the ideal gift for a player fascinated by the major historical moments of WWII. This legendary game uses the simple yet brilliant Command & Colors system and realistic scenarios, allowing you to replay famous battles, from the Normandy landings to the liberation of Paris.

Kacíř: Zkáza Roanoke is an asymmetrical card game for two players set during the early colonization of America in the Roanoke settlement. The core of the game is the conflict between a witch and her hunter. The witch tries to complete a ritual and take control of the settlement, while the hunter tries to track down who the witch is disguised as. It's an atmospheric, imaginative, tense, and generally amazing game.

Board Games for Advanced Players

In this category, we don't need to pretend. Here you'll find big board games that offer hours of fun and assume the player has some experience and enough patience to master complex rules. At the same time, it doesn't always mean giant boxes full of components. You can have plenty of fun with a small box too!

ARCS: Conflict & Collapse in the Reach is a sci-fi strategy game for 2 to 4 players set in a dark and slightly quirky universe. Once you dive into this galactic struggle, you won't be able to sit quietly on your starting planet. You must expand, build, and fight. Prepare for dramatic twists. It's a true experience full of tactical maneuvering and mutual sabotage, combining unconventional mechanics.

Battle of Hoth is a fast-paced wargame with miniatures from the Star Wars universe, where you can take on the role of the fierce Imperial army or the brave Rebel defenders. Can you outsmart your opponent with cunning orders and bold, decisive strategies?

Slay the Spire: The Board Game is a cooperative deck-building adventure based on the popular video game of the same name. Create the best deck of action cards, encounter strange creatures, face hordes of bizarre monsters, discover powerful relics of immeasurable strength, and finally settle the score with the boss at the top of the mysterious Spire.

author Karel Krajča