Get your hands on some board games for your teens! Board games have come a long way from the classic staples like Monopoly and Scrabble. Now there’s a huge range of board games to choose from.
For teenagers, board games provide a perfect blend of entertainment, strategy, and social interaction, making them an excellent way to bond with family or enjoy time with friends.
Whether you’re looking to do some family bonding over a family game night or give your teen an engaging activity when they are hanging out with their friends, there’s a game out there that fits the bill.
In this blog post, we’ll explore some of the best board games that are perfect for teenagers. We’ve included games that offer great family fun, as well as those that teens can play independently with their friends. From hilarious fun games to intense strategy games, dive into the world of board gaming and find the perfect match for your teen’s next game night
5 Second Rule
Think you’re good at quick thinking and fast talking. Try playing the 5 Second Rule. This fun game involves naming three things in less than 5 seconds. It’s a fun game that will keep your brain cells buzzing. Answer questions like “Name 3 International Airports”, “Name 3 Planets” or “Name 3 U.S. Presidents”.
Cards Against Humanity
Don’t worry about getting the the Family Edition of Cards Against Humanity. If your teens aren’t easily offended, choose Cards Against Humanity. (If they are, go through the cards and remove the most offensive cards). In each round, one player asks a question from a black card. and everyone answers with their funniest white card. There’s now an Australian version which Cards Against Humanity describes as “Adapted from the original American edition to suit your vapid, fun-loving culture”.
Catan (or Settlers of Catan)
We’ve just recently started playing Catan following a recomendation from another family and we’re hooked. How best to explain Catan? It’s a multiplayer board game that involves strategy and luck. The board features nineteen hexagonal tiles known as terrain hexes.
Players attempt to be the dominant force on the island of Catan by building settlements, cities, and roads on them. However, the dice determines the resources that you get. The number that’s rolled determines which terrain hex produces resources. It’s a challenge to learn at first but worth it. We recommend watching the video that explains it.
The Chameleon
One of you is the chameleon. In this board game The Chameleon, your job is to blend in and not get caught. Catch that chameleon! Everyone else is trying to work out who the Chameleon is. Everyone suspects everyone else at the beginning. Using one carefully chosen word based on a secret topic, you each try to smoke out the Chameleon, who doesn’t know what the secret topic is
Cluedo
In this classic murder mystery game, players put their brains to the test as they work out the murder that’s occurred through which cards the other players don’t have. If your family’s fond of murder mysteries, then this is the game for you.
Dumb Questions To Ask Your Friends
Your teens can learn more about their friends by playing Dumb Questions To Ask Your Friends! This year’s ultimate party starter, players have to guess which question their friend has answered from their answer. With 400 dumb questions to ask, this is hilarious fun and a great way to find out more about their friends.
Exploding Kittens
Exploding Kittens is a strategic card game in which players take turns drawing cards until someone draws an exploding kitten and loses the game. Think Russian Roulette but just in a board game! Start the game by putting the cards face down and players take turns drawing cards, until someone draws an exploding kitten card. If they do, they explode and are out of the card game unless they have a diffuse card.
Flip 7
Flip over cards one by one without flipping the same number twice. Sounds easy? Think again! This isn’t just any deck of cards… In Flip 7, there’s only one 1 card, two 2’s, three 3’s, etc plus a bunch of special cards that can score you extra points, give you a second chance, or freeze you or your opponents in your tracks. Are you the type of player to play it safe and bank points before you bust, or are you going to risk it all and go for the bonus points by flipping over seven in a row? Press your luck meets strategy in this addictive card game that’s sure to be the greatest card game you’ve ever played!
The Game of Life
Teach teen some life lessons in The Game of Life board game. As they progress around the board going from Start to Retirement, there’s all kinds of milestones to achieve including getting a job, getting married, having kids. The winner is the player with the most money at the end of the game, much like in real life!
Get the Ick
Do you get the icks? Get the Ick is a fun and easy card game that makes the perfect gift for teenagers and adults. Just guess which ick the other players hate the most. Simple! This is an entertaining party game where you can form new friendships with a mutual hatred for ick (or bond over the shared shame of being guilty of one!)
Herd Mentality
This is the game where you need to think like the crowd to win. In Herd Mentality, if your answer is the odd one out, you’ll be saddled with the Pink Cow – and you don’t want that!
Monopoly
It’s a classic game of real estate wheeling and dealing. Best of all, Monopoly teaches your teens about property, budgeting, rent and taxes. There’s also loads of different versions of Monopoly including the Newcastle Monopoly game and Maitland Monopoly which features local landmarks.
Scrabble
Expand your teens’ vocabulary and get them playing Scrabble. In this classic game, players choose seven letter tiles and then try to form a word. Great way to get teens spelling. Also, it tests out their math skills especially when adding the tile numbers and multiplying for triple word scores. Just remember to have a dictionary handy to verify words. If you want to make it more interesting and learn some teen lingo, let them use words from the Urban Dictionary!
Smart Ass
Yell out your answer in the Smart Ass board game! That’s the point of this trivia game. One player reads a series of clues that get increasingly easier and the other players try to be the first to guess the correct answer. It’s a fun game, with amusing ass references on the board. Players get to throw the dice to choose a category. They include Who Am I? Where am I? What am I? and Hard Ass! There’s also expansion packs such as 90s Nostalgia and Geek Chic.
Want an example of a question? Yell out the answer when you’ve figured it out. “I am a musician. I am a child of destiny. I think when life gives you lemons, make Lemonade. My daughter is Blue sometimes. I am the first woman to win six Grammys in one night. My fans sometimes call themselves the Beehive. I am sometime Sasha Fierce, sometime the Queen. Who am I? with the initial B?” Guess Beyonce? You’re right. Read the Newy with Kids review.
Stupid Deaths
If your family’s a fan of twisted humour, the Stupid Deaths board game is for you. In this game, players have to guess whether a stupid death is real or made up. You vote True or False using your coffin cards. If you’re wrong, the Grim Reaper moves closer to you and eventually you die (or at least you’re out of the game). It’s a super funny game and you won’t believe how some people die. Read the Newy with Kids review.
That Sound Game
That Sound Game is a fast paced, interactive and very noisy party game created here in Australia. The goal is to get your team to guess as many answers on the category cards as they can in a minute. Use any combination of sounds and movements, but your hands must be behind your back. You also get Lifelines. Use them strategically to help you win.
Ticket to Ride
Ticket to Ride is a popular and award-winning board game which combines elements of strategy, planning, and a bit of luck, making it an engaging and accessible game for players of all ages, including teenagers and families. The primary goal in Ticket to Ride is to collect train cards and use them to claim railway routes on a map, connecting various cities to complete destination tickets. There’s different versions of the game including Ticket to Ride Europe, Ticket to Ride Asia as well as individual countries including USA, Japan, India and United Kingdom and France. Great way to learn about geography.
Wavelength
Wavelength is a social guessing game for two teams focused on mind-reading. Teams alternate turns, rotating a dial on a spectrum to guess the hidden location of a bullseye. For each turn, one teammate acts as the Psychic who knows where the bullseye is, drawing a card with a binary pair (e.g., Job – Career). The Psychic then gives a conceptual clue to their team, indicating where on that spectrum they believe the bullseye lies between the two extremes.
You Can’t Say Umm
Umm? Can you avoid saying it? You Can’t Say Umm is the ultimate noisy party game with a simple mission – avoid saying “umm” at all costs! Two teams race to navigate their way to victory by describing bizarre things from random cards. But here’s the catch: every “umm” triggers the bell, ramping up the pressure.
Zombie Kittens
Explosions and resurrection! For of Exploding Kittens comes Zombie Kittens: a new version of Exploding Kittens, doubling as an expansion for any deck. Experience a game-changer: Player Resurrection! Featuring fresh artwork and cards, Zombie Kittens injects new life into your gameplay. Are you ready to rise from the undead and conquer the apocalypse?