10 Best Classic Board Games

If you are looking for the best classic board games to play with friends and family, this list is a great place to start and these 10 are excellent choices to begin with whether you are just starting out and haven’t played a board game since you were a kid or are in the mood for a tried and true quintessential board game.  You can even play some of these online or on your smartphone. For some other ideas, check out our list of two best player board games.

1. Chess

Chess is one of the most complex of the classics, though not without reward. Once the rules are understood, this stimulating game offers fantastic mental exercise. Absolutely worth learning and playing, many a child and adult has been taught how to play chess. Each player must maneuver their 6 chess pieces on the board in accordance with their specific movements. To win, a player must capture the opponent’s king by putting him a position such that he cannot avoid capture, thereby calling checkmate. Check Price.

Fun Fact: Checkmate actually comes from the word ‘shah mat’, which is Arabic for ‘the king is dead’.

2. Chinese Checkers

Chinese Checkers is a popular game that remains a classic across households. Fun and easy to learn, the objective is to get your marbles across the star shaped board to the other side before your opponent. Players take turns moving marbles one at a time, however, can make consecutive jumps between marbles extending thedistance their marbles can travel. Chinese Checkers plays between 2-6 players, and never gets old as every game is different. Check Price.

Fun Fact: The game was invented in Germany, and not China as one may be tempted to think.

3. Checkers

A classic that has stood the test of time, for two players, the setup and concept are simple enough, though winning not so much. One players is black, the other red, and the objective is to capture as many of the other player’s pieces before they can do the same to you. Pieces move diagonally and may go backward or forward so check and make sure your pieces aren’t suddenly able to be captured as the game goes on! Check Price.

Fun Fact: Also called draughts in the UK, checkers is a universal game that is fast paced and adored by many.

4. Monopoly

Monopoly is a game that is known and loved all over the world, and the Parker Brothers released and 80th Anniversary World Edition a few years ago to celebrate. One of the most classic board games that has touched almost every child and adult, the goal of the game is to acquire and develop property and collect rent from other players. And, Monopoly was originally called the Landlord’s Game to show that buying was superior to renting. There are over 300 editions of the game, including The Game of Thrones Edition and the Friends (TV SHOW) Edition, so players have many chances to win. Check Price.

Fun Fact: The longest game of Monopoly lasted 70 straight days.

5. Go

Go is a game I played as a child and remember fondly, in addition to the other classic games on this list. Though the rules, board, and pieces are very simple, the game is quite complex in part because the board is so large. Meant for two players, the goal of the game is to surround more territory than your opponent, and capture your opponent’s pieces. Though it looks deceivingly simple, Go is not for the faint-hearted as it can take masterful strategy to win, and hundreds of moves to finish a game. Check Price.

Fun Fact: This game was invented in China and is likely the oldest game in history that is still played today.

6. Boggle

The second most popular word game in the world, Boggle is an absolute gem, and you would never know how much fun you can have with a few dice with letters on them. Play this classic game with another player or alone to see how many different words you can create from letters randomly arranged in a 4×4 grid in 3 minutes. Words must be 3 letters long and words that both you and your opponent come up with won’t count. Toss the dice in the box and let the word games begin! Check Price.

Fun Fact: If you want more Boggle in your life, you can still get the 100 Boggle Puzzles (Improve Your Game) book that was published in the UK but is now out of print.

7. Stratego

A highly engaging flawless two-player strategy board game where each of the players arrange and play their 30 pieces that are comprised of bombs, scouts, captains, a marshal, a flag, and spy and more on the board. Players can move and also attack their opponents pieces by moving directly across from an opponent’s piece, all with the goal or surfacing and capturing their opponent’s flag before their own is found! A rewarding and intense game, players must buckle in and be aware that they will be attacked! Not for the faint-hearted, this game has put many players in a tizzy, including myself! Check Price.

Fun Fact: Stratego was designed by a French lady, Mademoiselle Hermance Edan, before the first World War and was originally called L’attaque.

8. Othello

Not the play written by Shakespeare, Othello is also referred to as Reversi and has been around since the 1880’s. Othello is a classic strategy game and unique in that each piece or disk has a black side and a white side. One player is black and another white, and players may flip the color of their opponents piece(s) when their disc is both above and below their opponent’s disc.When you successfully sandwich an opponent’s disk or disks, you flip to your own color. Check Price.

Fun Fact(s): Othello was a Nintendo arcade game, and the 2018 World Championship was held in Prague. Watch player’s play!

9. Backgammon

A fantastic classic game that is reminiscent of cigars, smoke, parlours, and train rides, Backgammon is an incredibly popular game that is played by many in local clubs and wider tournaments. This is one of the best 2 player board games, where players take turns moving their checkers in accordance with their dice. To win, you must move all your checkers from the board before your opponent by choosing which pieces to move and when. This is no easy feat, and there is much thought that goes into the game for advanced players. Check Price.

Fun Fact: In a 1982 case, State of Oregon v Barr, backgammon was almost subject to Oregon’s strict gambling laws but was ultimately deemed to be a game of skill and not chance by the Judge.

10. Dominoes

This classic game has a rich tradition and there are many variations that may be played with one double-six set of 28 dominoes. To play the a common version of dominos known as blocking, players each take seven dominoes from the 28 and the rest are not used. Player’s tilt their dominos so the other player cannot see what they have and must match tile ends until one player has used their tiles. In a draw game, players may also pull tiles from the communal pile of dominoes. Read more about rules and variations of Dominoes. Check Price.

Fun Fact: Domino Day took place in the Netherlands from 1998-2009, with the highest toppled domino count at over 4 millions dominos!