As we launch into 2021 with a naive hopefulness that this year will bring us the joy that 2020 didn’t, I thought I would share the top 10 games that kept me and my loved ones entertained throughout the holiday season and the revolving door of lockdowns most of us have experienced during the last 12 months. Between this mix of card games, board games and Zoom-friendly games, I’m sure you’ll find something to keep yourself amused during this bleak time. In no particular order, here are my favourite games at the moment:
- Catan
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This intense building board game has been one of my family’s favourites for a while. Travelling back in time, it’s your job to capitalize a piece of land on the board, acquire resources and build civilizations. You’re competing against two to three other settlers to acquire points in the form of properties. This game is full of excitement and brings out a vicious competitor in everyone who plays, much like Monopoly. Once you start playing, it becomes rather addictive. This 45-90 minute game requires strategy, tactical skill and luck of course.
While the physical game is much better, there’s an online version available on the App Store and Google Play, which is quarantine-friendly, allowing you to play with others online.
- Exploding Kittens (Original and Not-Safe-For-Work Edition)
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This card game was recently introduced to me and I’m completely obsessed with it. First launching as a Kickstarter campaign in 2011, this game was an overnight success. This Russian roulette-style card game includes four exploding kittens— if you draw one of these cards, you lose immediately unless you can diffuse the bomb with a ‘Diffuse’ card. You must try to avoid and protect yourself against the exploding kittens, using cards like ‘See the future’ and ‘Attack’. This two to five-person game is suspenseful, easy to learn and fun for the whole family.
- Taboo
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This game will leave you red-in-the-face laughing. It’s remarkable what people will come up with when they’re under pressure. You have 60 seconds to try to articulate a particular word or phrase to your teammates without giving away any crucial hints. Whether you play couples versus couples, girls against guys or just random teams, this is a great game to play in a big group of people. An online version of this game is also available here.
- Bananagrams
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Now I know this isn’t exactly a new game, but when I asked around which games people were enjoying the most, this one came up a lot.
The premise of Bananagrams is simple: it’s essentially Speed Scrabble minus the board. I prefer this to Scrabble simply because the games are quicker and more engaging. To increase the difficulty level, you can even set a central theme all the words must be associated with. Bananagrams can be played with up to four players— the first person to incorporate all their letter tiles into words wins!
- Truth or Drink
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Created and made famous by the Youtube channel Cut, Truth or Drink puts an interesting spin on your classic Truth or Dare. In this game, it’s all truths— if you choose to decline the question you’ve been asked, you drink. This game comes with five categories of cards, ranging from chill questions for mixed company, all the way up to questions that come with a warning label. This game acts as an excellent icebreaker in intimate or larger groups. The real deal’s quite pricey but there’s also a selection of Truth or Drink questions available online for free at Psycatgames.com if you want to test it out before you buy it.
- Who’s Most Likely To
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This game is exactly what it sounds like. Going around the circle, each player draws and reads a card. Everyone then votes on which player matches the description on the card best— who is most likely to…steal a golf cart, still own a Wii, laugh at their own joke, etc. The first person to be voted ‘most likely to’ 7 times, loses. This game is best played with people you know well for obvious reasons.
- For the Girls
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Believe it or not, the first time I played this game, I was sitting in the back of a trunk in a parking lot in Hamilton while it was freezing cold and raining. It was my good friend’s birthday and we had to celebrate in some way, even given the pandemic.
We played For the Girls and despite the name, this game could be played with everyone. With a selection of ‘Truth or Dare’, ‘Rapid Fire’ and ‘If You Ever’ cards, this game is loads of fun and has a ton of unique questions to keep the conversation flowing.
- Skribbl (Pictionary)
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On every occasion I’ve played this game, it has been hilarious. Who would have thought Pictionary would be so fun? Well try Pictionary while drawing with your mouse or trackpad— it totally changes the game. This online drawing game gives you the option to choose between three different objects to draw, everyone submits their guesses in the chatbox and points are awarded to those guessing and drawing for speed and accuracy. Try this out with your friends next time you’re on Facetime or Zoom— it can be tons of fun.
- Photo Roulette
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I’m sure most people by now are familiar with this infamous game that showcases all the pictures you forgot were sitting in your camera roll. Photo Roulette is available in the App Store and Google Play— all players must join a unique game pin and then the game begins to cycle through random photos from everyone’s camera roll. You must guess which person the picture belongs to in order to accumulate points! This game is played best with people you know well and I’ll say one thing about it— don’t forget to clear out your camera roll before the game starts!
- Psyched
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This is the game that was developed by Ellen and the creators of HeadsUp. Psyched is available for download in the App Store and Google Play. Once all players have entered the unique pin, the game begins. Everyone must answer bizarre questions tailored to one person at a time, each person votes for their favourite response and the ‘it’ person then decides which response best fits who they are or which one they find amusing. This is an excellent way to kick off a Zoom get-together.