Every adult knows the struggle. You work all week, sleep all weekend, and spend your nights wondering where your days went. Before you know it, you realize you haven’t had human company outside of your coworkers for weeks, and are starting to forget what your friends even look like.
The solution? Time to organize a game night. A full night of forgetting adult responsibilities, delving into an immersive deck of cards, and letting loose with the people you choose to spend your free time with. A night like this doesn’t happen often, so when it does, it’s best to have some solid games on hand to ensure an absolutely incredible game night.
15. Cards Against Humanity
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Bring out the best of your friends' humor with this classic.
This adult twist on the childhood classic Apples to Apples is a great way to start any game night. One player is assigned the “judge” and pulls a black card. Players must then anonymously submit a white card designed to fill in the blanks of the black card’s prompt. May the most amusing submission win.
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Dark Humor; Cards Against Humanity is known for its prompts that border the line between outrageously funny and frankly slightly distasteful.
No Set Ending; Cards Against Humanity can be played for as long or as short as the players desire, making it an easy game to warm up to.
Ice Breakers; with humorous inserts and a variety of different ways to play, Cards Against Humanity serves as a great ice breaker for any game night, especially if there are any new members to your group.
14. Pandemic
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Time to stop 2020 from happening again.
Disease is spreading and it’s up to you and your band of friends to stop it. The goal of Pandemic is to create cures for emerging diseases by matching like-colored cards, and eventually eradicate all diseases from the board. This is complicated by the fact that new diseases are constantly cropping up, and are in danger of spreading if left unchecked for too long.
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Cooperation; the focus on cooperation rather than conflict makes this the perfect party game.
Crisis management; live out fantasies of helping the world manage a very realistic (thanks Covid) crisis.
Disease; if you have a special interest in contagious diseases, Pandemic is sure to be a fun, immersive experience to delve into.
13. Arkham Horror
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Defeat Ancient Ones in this horror filled game.
As Ancient Ones seek entry into our world, players must take up the roles of investigators in order to solve mysteries and stop the Ancient Ones from proceeding with their plans. Investigator roles are made more interesting by their flaws - everyone has one, each serving to hinder the investigation in a unique way. Close the gates to stop the Ancient Ones and win the game. Fail, and watch the Ancient Ones take over the world. Oh, and also, you lose the game.
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Lovecraftian Horror; Based on Lovecraft’s Arkham, Arkham Horror features all sorts of lore enticing to a Lovecraft fan.
Deck Building Games; Build a custom deck each time you play to make gameplay unique and exciting each time.
Roleplay; Mainly a roleplaying game, assume your investigator role with gusto and become someone else for the night.
12. Blockbuster
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Reliver your childhood in this charades game.
In this fast-paced, fun charades-based game, players first go head to head in a challenge of wits as they have to name as many items in a category as possible. Whoever wins by having the last say, gets the first pick of 3 out of 6 task cards. As players complete the cards successfully, they collect the cards as points.
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Categories; Blockbuster challenges players to think on their feet and complete categories.
Charades; Numerous tasks to be completed require acting out for other players to guess.
Silliness; From shouting matches to bizarre tasks, Blockbuster is sure to bring out your silly side and encourage laughter.
11. Nine to Five
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Bring fun back to business with this buzzword game.
This adult-focused game plays on different business “buzzwords”. Players are given 10 buzzwords that they need to use during their chosen gameplay. The first to use all 10, wins. These words can be used in a variety of business scenarios, including sending emails to your “coworkers”.
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Mature Humor; Nine to Five was designed by adults, for adults. If you like a little more adult humor in your business meetings, this may be the game for you.
Word-Play; This is less of a business game in the traditional sense of using business tactics to win. Instead, it plays on common business lingo and etiquette with a dash of humor to wrap it together.
Business Simulations; Players choose what kind of work place they want to be fictionally located in and what situation their buzzwords need to be used in.
10. Raccoon Tycoon
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Be the raccoon you were always meant to be in this business game.
Raccoon Tycoon is a classic resource business game. Players produce goods, raising their value on the board, aiming to then sell goods at their peak price for profit. The money gained can then be used to buy buildings or towns, or win railroad auctions. Each action wins players “victory points” with the player with the most VP winning at the end of the game.
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Economics; Raccoon Tycoon’s resources follow real-life supply and demand rules. When players sell resources and increase the supply, the price of the resource is decreased.
Routes to Victory; Focus on buying towns, amassing buildings, or winning auctions - each can get you victory points to up your score at the end.
Cute Designs; From the Raccoons to the Cat railroad tiles, players can enjoy the silliness of the cute designs while trying to bankrupt each other.
9. Uno
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Enjoy reliving childhood memories as you drown your friends in Draw 2's.
An absolute classic, any game night would be remiss without at least one round of Uno. Players are dealt a hand of seven cards of a mix of four different colors. Cards are discarded as the same color or the same numbersare matched. Gameplay is spiced up by the addition of Draw 2, Draw 4, and Wild Cards.
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Classics; Almost everyone knows how to play Uno, making it an easy game to break out amongst friends.
Easy Game Play; If you’re looking for something simple, the rules of Uno are easy to grasp and follow along with.
Excitement; Although simple, Uno has enough twists and turns to make it a fun and exciting game to engage your game night attendees.
8. Zombie Fluxx
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Rules change all the time in a zombie apocalypse.
Zombie Fluxx is the zombie-based card game of your little paranormal dreams. Draw cards with weapons you can use against the zombies, and work with Friend cards to destroy the zombies and elude the Creeper card, which will hinder your winning chances. Be prepared to turn on your friends if they turn into zombies!
Gameplay changes as players are allowed to introduce and change rules throughout the rounds as they please.
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Card-Based Games; Zombie Fluxx is a card game with a huge variety of cards to switch up gameplay every time you play.
Turning on Friends; In the ever-changing game play, players must be prepared for allies to turn into enemies in an instant.
Chaotic Gameplay; With ever-changing rules, Zombie Fluxx has the ability to switch up at any moment at the whims of the players.
7. Avalon
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Get ready to lie your butt off in this mafia game.
In this “mafia” type game, players assume the mantle of characters from the Legend of King Arthur and attempt to root out “good” versus “evil”. Throughout the game, players will go on quests. Members of the “good” team, who are aligned with Merlin will want to pass these quests. Members of the “evil” team, the servant of Mordred, will want these quests to fail, without giving away their own alignment.
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Deception; this game is based on being able to lie and deceive your friends effectively to hide your own basis in the game.
Deduction; beyond simply hiding who you are, it’s imperative to also try to deduce who your friends are and what they might be hiding.
Arthurian Legend; with characters like Mordred, Morgana, and Merlin, there’s so much to love in Avalon for any Arthurian fan.
6. Betrayal at the House on the Hill
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A traitor lurks in your midst...
Players are able to choose from a range of characters, each with different strengths and weaknesses, and set about exploring a haunted house. As players explore, they build the board from a number of tiles, finding a number of omens that will eventually trigger “the haunting”.
The player that triggered the haunting becomes the “Traitor”. There are a plethora of different haunts that can occur, each featuring a slew of paranormal activities such as ghosts, witches, demon possession, zombie attacks, and more.
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Building Your Board; Betrayal has a whole host of rooms for players to build the haunted house of their dreams.
Pre-set characters; Betrayal has set characters, each with their own starting stats (that can be raised or lowered throughout the game through different actions).
Variable Game Play; The haunt, traitor, and goal of the game depend on the room of the house and the omen that was pulled. Therefore, it is very rare to get the same haunting twice in a row, making Betrayal very replayable.
5. Telestrations
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Pull out those drawing skills for this pictionary game on steroids.
In this pictionary meets telephone fusion, players each brainstorm a word and write it down using whiteboard markers on the provided flip notebooks. The player will then draw the word before passing the notebook to the next player who needs to guess what the drawing is. That player writes down their guess, then passes to the next player who needs to draw the guess. In this way, the notebook completes a full round and ends up back with the original player, who can share the original word versus what the last guess was.
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Drawing; This game is based on your drawing skills, so time to show off!
Chaos; Just like telephone, the words in Telestrations rarely end up resembling their original forms, resulting in some good old-fashioned chaos.
Simple Fun; With no winners or losers, players can simply focus on having fun and making their best drawings.
4. FunEmployed
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Put those interview skills to work and get a job already.
It’s time to get a job in this role-playing game. Players are given cards with different “attributes” and have to pretend to be applying for different jobs. The catch? They have to use each attribute in their elevator pitch to get the job, no matter how ridiculous.
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Being a bit ridiculous; With attributes like having an Irish accent to having a foot fetish, be prepared to get a little ridiculous with your answers, and have fun with it!
Thinking on your toes; Think quickly to come up with a pitch that includes all of your attributes!
Variable Games; With a range of jobs and attributes, there’s a great variety of rounds that can be played, making it a great game to replay over and over again!
3. Anomia
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Think on your feet in this categories game.
In this matching game, players flip cards until the symbols on two cards match. The first player to shout an answer that matches the category of the symbol gets to keep the card. Run out of cards, and get kicked from the game. Never fear though - pay attention to gameplay and shout a match to get yourself back in the running.
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Fast-paced games; Anomia is based on players’ abilities to think quickly and be faster than their opponents.
Categories; If you have a large range of knowledge and enjoy flaunting it, Anomia may be the game for you.
Redemption; No one is ever really out in this game, with “slap jack” type rules that allow players to earn their way back into the gameplay.
2. Exploding Kittens
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Be careful — any kitten may be on the verge of exploding.
This unique card-based game has one very simple rule: don’t explode the kittens. Players take turns pulling cards from a deck and are able to take actions using the cards in their hands. Pull the exploding kittens card and lose a life. Lose both lives and you’re out of the game. The last person standing is deemed the winner.
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Luck; A lot of this game is simply based on the luck of the cards you do or do not draw.
Suspense; Revel in the suspense of drawing a card without knowing if it will be your last.
Easy gameplay; With easy to understand rules, cards with fun illustrations, and a unique premise, Exploding Kittens is an easy game to pick up and enjoy with your friends.
1. One Night Werewolf
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Betrayal, werewolves, and alliances – this game has it all.
A crowd favorite, One Night Werewolf is perhaps the most well-known of the modern-day Mafia board games. Werewolves take the place of Mafia members in committing foul acts in the midst of the night, and it’s up to a crew of Villager characters to bring the Werewolves to justice. The game comes equipped with an app that serves as the Narrator character so that each player can take a role in the game.
At the beginning of the game, each player is given a role that is known only to them. During the night, the different characters complete different actions. For example, the Troublemaker will switch two players’ cards around, or the Seer may take a peek at someone else’s card. This gives a special twist to One Night, as the role that you went to sleep as may not be the role that you wake up as. It’s your goal to figure out what character you are and then try to help the Werewolves or the Villagers succeed accordingly.
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Mafia Games; Mafia stands as possibly the most popular party game of all time, and this spin-off does not disappoint.
Fast-Paced Rounds; You can set each round to have a timer of five or fewer minutes, giving you the incentive to wrap up voting for the Werewolf in a timely manner.
Customizable Games; One Night comes with sixteen different cards, of which a maximum of ten will ever be used at a time. This means you can swap out what roles are being included in order to customize and change up your rounds.
Born to the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, Julia spends her days collecting sea shells, walking barefoot, and pretending if she tries hard enough, she can still become a mermaid one day.
