If you are in need of a few ideas to do as a family, I found that making Family Night a weekly occurrence in our household has proven positive wonders for family unity and overall empowerment in each family member’s attitude. Sometimes your days can bleed into each other, so when that starts happening it just might be the best time to switch things up a bit. Like beginning a weekly family tradition in playing fun family games at homes!
We travel often enough as it is that it feels even more important to establish a set of concrete, stable expectations for the children, a schedule that will highly unlikely get derailed regardless of geography. Our Family Night is every Thursday evening while Family Movie Night is every Wednesday night (only if the kids do not attend kids church that night).
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10 Fun Family Games To Play At Home
Although Family Night can sometimes be called Family Game Night in our household, the concept still holds true: we do something together as a family, which most oftentimes are family games to play at home! I have accumulated a list of our favorite top 10 family game night products that you will want to check out for your own family fun night ideas (and to break up the monotony that your days can sometimes turn into).
Watch Ya Mouth Throwdown Edition Card Game
If you are anywhere at all you will not have missed this game called Watch Ya Mouth Throwdown Edition Card Game, which has quickly turned into one of the most popular games of the year. Even families with 8 kids and 2 parents (up to 10 people) can play this hilariously fun game for the family.
I don’t care how old you are, it’s still fun to not talk right and have someone guess what you are saying, or vice versa. My children have always gotten a kick out of it and shamelessly so have I. That pretty much sums up this particular game: put the provided mouth retractor in your mouth while reading what is on a card. Your players will have a heck of a time trying to guess what it is that you are saying, but if they do get it correct, their team wins points. And thus how you achieve winning status, by collecting all of the points you acquired from guessing correctly what the other team’s card was. But that’s not all…
What is particularly fun about this Watch Ya Mouth Throwdown Edition game board game is that it adds extra fun because you get do some of your favorite bar games, drawing, singing and taking part in relay race activities. Trust me – this is hands-down one of the best games for the whole family.
It has 143 phrases, so kids that are elementary-aged and over will be able to play. Even so, there is still an option to invest in an adult expansion pack if you want a fun adult-version game to play at home for adults or with friends!
Catan
The most addictive family game on the market is Catan, a strategic-based game. And I don’t know about you but I’m a strategizer by default – everything I view in games I like to be able to view different outputs and options in my mind. This simple and straightforward to learn board game is one that will go down in your family history as one of the best family games to play at home ever. How do I know? It’s won the “Game of the Century” award!
The goal here in Catan is to help your settlers tame the Catan isle. Slightly akin to Monopoly game, you trade with other players, lucky dice, or cards in order to acquire resources and develop your settlement while also revealing the regions and harbors of the isle.
Designed for 3 to 4 players, each game lasts about an hour, so it doesn’t drag on all night, although it does offer excellent replay value. What I mean by that is, no two games are ever the same because each time you play you will experience something slightly different. But no worries – a full instructional booklet is included so that you and the family can quickly learn how to play.
USAOPOLY Clue: Harry Potter Game
Travel throughout Hogwarts Castle to find the mystery! If you love trying to find out “whodunnit” then you’ll love this favorite family game, the Harry Potter Clue version! USAoploy Clue Harry Potter game is a classic family game night favorite of mystery! Everyone’s goal is to solve the mystery behind the disappearance of a student that attends Hogwart’s school.
Play as one of the Harry Potter characters and, along the way, discover who “did it” with “what item” or spell they used, and “where” the missing student was last seen or possibly finally attacked. I found that one of the most exciting aspects of the game is when you move around the board, moving staircases and hidden passages are revealed!
You could also find yourself looking straight into the face of the Dark Mark! No worries though – gain protection through allies, help cards, and spells. Collect your clues and, once you figure out all of them, you’ll show up to Dumbledore’s office to report all of your findings.
Your family will love playing this Clue Harry Potter version for sure. It’s always fun watching everyone trying to guess who did it, with what, and where! (Plus, educationally, it helps in the building blocks of circumstances and events in my children’s minds!)
Blink – The World’s Fastest Game! by Mattel Games
We like games that travel well, so this particular game from the makers of Uno called Blink is one we like to pull out without having to spend hours learning the ropes on. With this family fun game, this is one you can play quick and just break out on family game night if you aren’t in the mood for a full-blown family circus game!
Blink is known as the world’s fastest game and for good reason. You are competing with the single goal of eliminating all of the cards in your draw pile. Eliminate the cards by matching the color, shape or number of the cards one either 1 or 2 different piles.
Test your reflexes and response time – see how fast you can do it against your opponent!
Dragonwood: A Game of Dice & Daring Board Game
Even though this family game night idea isn’t one to last all night (only about 30 minutes), it is still fun in its strategy base! Dragonwood A Game of Dice & Daring is a game that teaches children more about probability and mathematics.
Capturing creatures is the goal of this fun family board game. There are 3 options to consider on each turn: each player chooses whether to draw a card or attempt to capture a creature or gain an enhancement. You will learn what strategy works best for you every time you play, which can be a slightly different experience every time you do so.
At first glance the Dragonwood game can look like a lot to learn but fret not, fellow mother-in-arms; instructions provided make it simple enough to understand to play that even your young children will have a blast playing it! It is surprisingly addictive, as you will soon see!
Forbidden Island Card Game
Do you need a game that stimulates your adult mind while not being too complex for your kids to play? Popular for many years already without the slightest sign of slowing down, Forbidden Island Card Game is a true family game night favorite – it’s actually won the Mensa Favorite Brainy Games Award a few years ago!
Even though it isn’t an all-nighter type of game and only lasts about half an hour, it still takes some thinking on a strategic level on your part, along with some problem-solving skills and cooperation. Children will learn how to work as a team to capture sacred treasure on the forbidden island. The island sinks a little at a time with each turn, so find the treasures as a team or you might lose by sinking down with the island!
Days of Wonder: Ticket to Ride
Need a fast-paced game? Days of Wonder Ticket to Ride is an award-winning game with a lot of replay value that only lasts about 30 to 60 minutes. Dubbed as one of the most popular specialty games on the market, it’s all about “connecting iconic North America” and building train routes to earn points.
Have you ever heard of Phileas Fogg’s Around the World in 80 days feat? Days of Wonder game celebrates it as each player tries to travel by rail to as many different cities across North America as they can in 7 days! The goal of this fun family game night idea is to make your way around the board, collecting and playing matching cards in order to claim different railway routes.
This beginner strategy based game will definitely be enjoyed by young and old alike!
Castle Panic
Do you have children in the family that you want to introduce fun family board games to? Castle Panic is the perfect game for board game beginners since it is one of the few on the list that can also be played alone!
The player protects his or her castle against monsters by slaying all monsters with one tower left standing. If a family sits around the game board to play, it teaches the children how to cooperate and play as a family (rather than against one another).
[mailerlite_form form_id=3]Something truly different about this game that sets it apart from other games is that you can actually change and customize the rules for different game variations!
Castle Panic is a game that is totally fun to play with the family or by yourself and it isn’t overly competitive. Up to 6 players can play this family game board together and it’s fantastic for encouraging cooperative play for children.
Forbidden Desert Board Game
This fun family game night idea is the second Forbidden Game to feature on the list, and for good reason, since it’s another variation of cooperative learning for children. In Forbidden Desert Board Game children learn to work as a team to recover a legendary flying machine that was buried within the ruins of an ancient city in the desert.
Cooperative learning and strategy is the name of the game here. A fun fact about this family board game is that it incorporates features not found in other games, like that the board is ever-changing. Pretty cool, right? It is challenging yet easy enough to grasp for late elementary to middle schoolers and up. Forbidden Desert also helps players come up with a strategy to prevent from dying so much and also in order to win!
Such a fun game to that the whole family can play on family game night, especially those fans who are looking for non-competition game options. If you have ever played any of the Forbidden games, you’ll know you’ll love it. (I’m a Forbidden fan!)
Ravensburger Labyrinth Board Game for Kids and Adults
Do you like mazes and labyrinths? If so, you’ll love this action-packed family-friendly game idea called Ravensburger Labyrinth that is excellent for both children and adults. It is easy to play and designed for 2-4 players ages 7 and over.
It’s an excellent family game where you need to find characters and objects in an ever-changing maze! The winner is the one who finds the shortest route through the labyrinth and manages to make it back to the starting square after collecting all of their characters and objects.
A strategy game that forces you to think ahead, Ravensburger Labyrinth Board Game also has an element of competitiveness, which allows you to potentially force other players to different parts on the board. As the labyrinth walls move, traps are revealed for even more challenges!
Strategy Videos for Game Boards
Because we travel often, and because we have a toddler plus homeschooled elementary-aged kids, I am more biased toward games that introduce educational approaches in critical thinking. My kids are definitely in the information age of video learning, so I know that some of these games offer strategy videos, like on YouTube, to bring home different ideas on various strategic approaches.
One such example of strategy videos for family games is the one for Forbidden Desert Game Board:
Top 10 Fun Family Games To Play At Home
Not an exhaustive list of family game night ideas by any means, but a collection of both award-winning games and fantastic educational approaches in the games that everyone in the family can enjoy, no matter the age. A couple more ideas are:
Hearts
Hearts used to be a game that you had to play with a physical deck of cards and three other live players. However, now you have the opportunity to play online. If your family wants to compete at different times, they can log on to Hearts.land and play against the computer or play you in multiplayer mode to see who wins.
Jigsaw Puzzles
Jigsaw puzzles are definitely a good family activity. Whether you’re striving to complete a 3000-piece puzzle or you’re just going through an easy 300-piece, there are tons of options out there that are family-friendly. In addition, if you’re looking for something to play online, Im-a-puzzle.com allows you to choose from thousands of online jigsaw puzzles and customize the settings to meet your exact needs. Additionally, you can upload a custom image and create an online jigsaw puzzle to share with the rest of your family!
Whether you’re looking for something competitive or collaborative or even strategic, look through my list of favorite family game night games and you’ll find a family favorite too!
What are some of your family’s favorite game selections? Share in the comments to inspire other moms such as yourself for new family game night ideas!
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What a pity, that you haven’t mentioned any chess related game. Story Time Chess is a great tool to teach your kids chess, and may also help you to learn if you’re not so hot at the game yourself! It uses an interactive storybook to help teach kids about chess through fun characters. Kids can visualize the pieces through these character cutouts that are attached to the chess pieces, which helps to understand how each piece moves.Introducing chess to our children is a very good idea. It’s important to know, it might sound obvious, but isn’t so, that you can do it from a very young age and you don’t have to explain it with proper rules. Why? This is the obvious part – because there is no fun in it. But with books like this, by Richard James, or like the one writen by Makism Aksanov (net-boss.org/chess-puzzles-for-kids-by-maksim-aksanov) and by many, many more chess entthusiasts, it’s very easy to teach with all the fun and play, and make with this game a very rich, fantasy world of our kids 🙂
Hey Ivy! Thanks for sharing your thoughts as well as for your ideas on other games to share about. I will look more into chess-related games. Admittedly, I have never heard of Story Time Chess, but I myself love chess and I do find it a wonderful way to teach kids logic and reasoning, among other golden nuggets of development. Again, thank you for sharing!
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