The best games for the whole family
Secretly, we enjoy the silliness as much as the grand and compelling. And if there's anything cozy with a capital A, it's playing games with the family after dinner. In winter it is wonderful with a glass of red on the left and the burning fireplace on the right. Or during those endless summer evenings at the campsite and then playing dice and playing cards with the whole clique. These are the best games for the whole family.
How we prefer to see cats... Just kidding of course.
Funny card game, for young and old, provided you like cats, explosions, laser beams and sometimes also goats. This tactical game is a variant of Russian roulette, but with exploding kittens. You take cards from the deck until you draw one of the dreaded exploding kittens. Then you immediately lose.
With all other cards you can defend yourself, attack, skip a turn or distract the cats.
We like: 'Just a couple having fun' (the founders of the best card game) presents a new game in collaboration with The Coconut Club. 'Just Questions Junior' is packed with creative and in-depth questions that not only provide answers, but above all, connection and fun. And yes, the nice thing about these questions is that they are also suitable for kids. The new junior game, created in collaboration with Nadine Coco (youth psychologist & founder of The Coconut Club), gives children the opportunity to discover the magic of asking questions. After all, you can't start early enough. Think of questions like “What was your best age?” or “What memory would you never forget?”.
Ideal for rainy days indoors, but also great for the park, with grandparents, at school or at the campsite. Light a campfire and just ask. Good to know: the questions are available in English, Dutch and German and the game comes with a cotton bag.
This is so much fun, a personalized quartet for family or friends or even colleagues. It really is a joke, of course it depends on how original you are, but it will be fine.
Suppose you have a brother named Pieter and he always has a morning mood, then you put that on a quartet card. And then: “Dad, can I have 'Pieter always has a morning mood'?” Or this one, your sister's name is Charlotte and it sounds like this: “Pieter, Charlotte likes me: I'm a vain person.” You understand, that just creates moments of laughter at the kitchen table.
The nice thing is, you can also design the cards yourself. From photos to the color of the text. Oh and the box, of course you choose a group photo for that. Also a nice gift to give and receive.
Number one is - how could it be otherwise - the card game UNO. Simple and addictive. The aim is to ruff a previously played card with a card of the same suit or symbol. Can be taken anywhere and that's handy, because once you start using it you can use every lost fifteen minutes to play a game. From the same makers and also wonderfully easy: Skip Bo. Fun for two or with a larger group.
For 2 to 10 players. From 7 years.
Beautiful special editions of Monopoly are regularly published, good old Monopoly. One of the favorites is the Van Gogh Museum version. Based on the various works of Vincent van Gogh, you follow the eventful life of the world-famous artist. It's all in the cool details, such as the houses and hotels in Van Gogh colors (Sunflower yellow and Dutch Orange) and special pawns. The various paintings by the Dutch master are explained in the game booklet.
For 2 to 8 players. From 8 years.
Not new, but different every time: the Werewolves of Wakkerdam. A role-playing game in which the good citizens hunt the angry werewolves. The only question is who exactly those werewolves are. A game leader hands out the roles and in addition to wolves and citizens, there is also a witch and a hunter, for example. The wolves first send away a citizen and then the citizens meet to discuss which wolf will be eliminated. Long story short: Werewolves is the game for a camping party. Lighting a campfire, putting the kids to bed way too late: this must be a summer evening.
For 8 to 18 players. From 10 years.
Another hit at the campsite: Kubb. A 'kubb' means wooden block and that is exactly what it is: a game made of high-quality rubber wood. Kubb is from Sweden and you play outside on the grass. The idea is to use the sticks to knock down all the other's towers. Finally, if you floor the king, you win. In Sweden it is a national sport
number one and you see them do it that way, those handsome Northerners. Comes in a handy box with a handle, so you can easily take it with you to the park.
For 2 to 12 players. From 5 years.
Suddenly there was the day when my daughter only pranced around in tutus. Glitter, pink, ribbons, all that. The big hit is the Prima Ballerina game, where she can place different dance positions with cards and then imitate them. So sweet. By the way, all Haba games are in a handy fit-in-your-bag format. Another success: Kleine Boomgaard.
For 2 to 6 players. From 4 years.
During our student days we spent whole evenings 'stunt piloting' with roommates. That was accompanied by shots and – it was a previous life – a nice puff. We have adjusted the rules a little with the offspring and have to say, it is almost as fun. Stef keeps flying past the chickens in his plane and by pressing his arm in time you prevent him from tackling your chickens. Success guaranteed.
For 2 to 4 players. From 4 years.
Photo: @zodoeteleanoradat
Make sure your nails are clipped, because this game is nerve-wracking. Why? Within 30 seconds you must describe 5 words from the card to your fellow buddy, or vice versa. There is a catch though. You are not allowed to define the word. Did we say nerve-wracking? Every correctly guessed word brings you one step closer to the finish. Tip of the day: there is also a 30 seconds app. A lot cheaper and then you don't have to lug around a game.
For 3 to 20 players. From 7 years.
Fact that almost everyone knows how Bill goes from 'Who is it?' looks says enough. One of the all-time favorite games to play with your UK. A game lasts fifteen minutes and there is a travel edition.
For 2 players. From 6 years.
That one weekend that we were on Terschelling for the festival of the year and that festival ultimately did not take place? We ended up spending those days playing yaht.
There is also a children's version of Farm Yatzy, fun for minis aged 4 years and older.
For 2 – 5 players. From 6 years.
An (unjustifiably) slightly less popular brother of Uno, it is nerve-wracking Ligretto. A super fast card game where you have to work quickly. Let the inner gamer but come up within you. Many a bickering and arguing has already occurred before this, no worthy loser? Don't start this. Ligretto is played with at least 2 people, although it only becomes really fun with four players. For more opponents, the makers of Ligretto have produced extended versions (with different cards, in different colors). The more the mare…
Well, explaining this game is one thing crime, so just start playing and you'll soon get the Ligretto addiction.
1 box is good for 2-4 players. From 7 years.
A slower game but much more exciting. Black Stories are the cards with pitch-black, lugubrious and yes, often far-fetched stories. The purpose of the black story is for you to guess what exactly happened based on a short description (was it murder or an accident?). A nice game that you can play from the couch. Everyone takes turns reading a card, snacks within reach, nice company and you have a pleasant evening. If you have finished them all, don't worry, 10 versions have already been released and there is even one real crime variant on the market.
The makers have made slightly less gruesome variants for the little ones. No less fun, like White Stories and Green Stories (from 8 years), with horror stories and fairy tales.
Another exciting candle tile that will make you want to get blood out of each other's nails: Take 5. The game where you can bluff, count smartly (so keep your wits about you) and just need a lot of damn luck. Different cards with penalty points on one and values on the other (which can be useful to you). Each round, everyone chooses a card from their own deck and places it face down in front of them. Everyone turns over their card at the same time and adds their card to the cards already on the table, with the player starting with the lowest card, and so on. Difficult to understand, cat in the cup when you play it.
From 10 years. 2-10 players
