Board Game Categories

Board games have been played since 3,500 BC. Games like Senet, The Royal Game of Ur, Backgammon, and Mahjong captivated royalty and common folk alike in their intricacy, strategy, and entertainment. Fast forward to our day and age, board games have exploded in popularity and diversity. From a casual gamer, to a pro player, games have been designed to tickle anyone's fancy.

But here is a question, "With so many different types of games, which would should I buy?" Here is a list of different board game categories or "types" to help. Just remember, games can incorporate a mixture of these categories:

Strategy Games:

Mechanics: Resource Management, Area Control, Tile Placement

Examples: Settlers of Catan, Carcassonne, Ticket to Ride

Deck-Building Games:

Mechanics: Deck Building, Card Drafting

Examples: Dominion, Star Realms, Ascension

Worker Placement Games:

Mechanics: Worker Placement, Action Selection

Examples: Agricola, Stone Age

Cooperative Games:

Mechanics: Cooperative Play, Hidden Information

Examples: Pandemic, Forbidden Island, Ghost Stories

Resource Management Games:

Mechanics: Resource Gathering, Trading

Examples: Puerto Rico, Terraforming Mars, Settlers of Catan

Tile-Laying Games:

Mechanics: Tile Placement, Pattern Building

Examples: Azul, Carcassonne, Kingdomino

Party Games:

Mechanics: Social Interaction, Bluffing

Examples: Codenames, Dixit, Pictionary, Apples to Apples

Card Games:

Mechanics: Hand Management, Set Collection

Examples: Splendor, Sushi Go!, 7 Wonders

Deduction Games:

Mechanics: Deduction, Hidden Roles

Examples: Secret Hitler, Codenames, BANG!, WTK: War of the Three Kingdoms

Adventure Games:

Mechanics: Exploration, Storytelling

Examples: Gloomhaven, Mansions of Madness, Robinson Crusoe: Adventures on the Cursed Island

Abstract Strategy Games:

Mechanics: Pure Strategy, No Luck

Examples: Chess, Go, Hive, Stratego

Miniature Wargames:

Mechanics: Tactical Combat, Army Building

Examples: Warhammer 40,000, X-Wing Miniatures Game, Heroscape

Trading Card Games (TCGs):

Mechanics: Collectible Cards, Deck Building

Examples: Magic: The Gathering, Pokémon TCG, Yu-Gi-Oh!

Campaign/Legacy Games:

Mechanics: Evolving Gameplay, Permanent Changes, Scenarios

Examples: Pandemic Legacy, Gloomhaven

Word Games:

Mechanics: Word Formation, Vocabulary

Examples: Scrabble, Bananagrams, Boggle

Trivia Games:

Mechanics: General Knowledge Questions, Quizzes

Examples: Trivial Pursuit, Jeopardy!

Educational Games:

Mechanics: Learning Objectives, Skill Building

Examples: Brainiac, Math Bingo, Timeline

Solo Games:

Mechanics: Designed for Solo Play or Solo Player Option

Examples: Solitaire, Aeon's End, Too Many Bones

Party Deduction Games:

Mechanics: Social Deduction in a Party Setting

Examples: Werewolf (aka Mafia), BANG!, Secret Hitler

Push-Your-Luck Games:

Mechanics: Risk vs. Reward, Randomness

Examples: King of Tokyo, Quacks of Quedlinburg, Dice Throne

What are your favorites?!

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