The brief
We’re going to need something that’s:
- Accessible (easy and quick to learn)
- Multiplayer, ideally where everybody wins or loses together (Euro games like Ticket to Ride) and nobody sits out after leaving early (e.g. Risk)
- Not too densely themed – this can put a lot of players off
- Can play at least one game in under ~1 hour
- Isn’t Monopoly, Jenga, Cluedo or anything mind-numbingly miserable
Suggestions
For top themed choices, I’m thinking:
Pandemic (2008)
Easy to play. Easy to learn. I’ve played a hundred games of this so could teach quite quickly. Well balanced co-operative so everybody wins or loses together. Probably a favourite. Only downside is it’s capped at 4 players. Depends how many are coming.
Heat: Pedal to the Metal (2022)
I haven’t played this, but it’s one of the top ranked games on BGG and has been on my list for a while. Ticks all the brief boxes and bonus is up to 5 players. If it’s fun I might order myself a copy. Very strong contender.
The Crew: Mission Deep Sea (2021)
Also on my shelf and only played a few times. Solid rating. Super easy to learn. The theme doesn’t really matter here, it’s a basic trick-taking game.
Getting a bit heavier on the learning curve, but potential outsiders…
Root (2018)
On my shelf. Never played it because I don’t have enough friends. The cute and cuddly animal theme may put people off, but they may also like the novelty of it being asymmetric – every player has their own set of rules. Slightly heavy on the difficulty front.
Wingspan (2019)
I’ve heard excellent things about this. Looks like the weighting is easy too for learning. The theme might put the alpha-males of the group off – fortunately the most alpha male of your circle is probably Baxter so we’re all good here.
Ticket to Ride (2004)
A solid game for groups of mixed interest and ability. I’ll be honest, I don’t massively enjoy playing this, but it’s a safe choice for a mixed group, for sure.
Risk (1959)
The world has definitely moved on from Risk, but it’s a solid-ish gateway game if people want to play something familiar and easy to learn. Not fun if you’re the first out, though.
For abstract games, I don’t really play many outside of chess. We could probably find a few in the café and test them.
Will keep this updated as I think of more.
