Adult Board And Card Games That Make Great Gifts

If you always say you're going to learn chess, but never quite get around to it, Hive is a similar concept that you can figure out way quicker. You're trying to swarm your opponent's queen bee with beetles, ants and grasshoppers (oh my!). Each piece can move in a certain way, much like those on a chessboard. There's no set-up for this game and it has infinite replay-ability.

We will say that if even pictures of bugs creep you out, this might not be the game for you.

Promising review: "My daughter and I really enjoy this game! It’s easy to learn but challenging to master! The game itself is great quality. Tiles are thick and sturdy and the prints on them should last a very long time (without rubbing off)." — Starlily

The goal of Blank Slate isn't so much getting the best answer, it's getting an answer that will match another player. You're given prompts, you write the rest of the phrase and you try to make sure you and someone in the group are on the same page.

Promising review: "This game is so much fun. See who thinks like you...enjoy learning about each other while having lots of laughs. I have told lots of people about this great game. The seller got it to me timely and this game is exactly like it is described." — DANE MA

I'm not sure how many of us dreamt of being a Renaissance era gem merchant, but this game makes it ridiculously fun to play as one. At it's core, this is an empire-building game in which you try to monopolize the gem market and win prestige. Splendor is easily portable and a perfect dinner party game because it's engaging without taking an hour to complete.

Promising review: "A very enjoyable board game! It might seem a bit complicated at first, but once you get the hang of it, it becomes incredibly fun and strategic. Each round keeps you thinking and engaged, making it a great choice for game nights with friends or family." — Daniel Monge Arce

When Cards Against Humanity isn't going to cut it, but you're looking for a fun, quick game, it's time to Cheer Up! with a similar expert-recommended option. Tom Schenck, a sales associate, game educator and Dungeon Master at The Philly Game Shop, says Cheer Up! gives more opportunities to get creative (and inappropriate) with your answers than Cards Again Humanity, and is ideal for larger groups.

"Cheer Up! is a very popular one, I like it more than Cards Against Humanity," Schenck previously told HuffPost. "The cards that you play [put down for the prompt], are constructed out of three different cards, so it doesn't have the same repetitiveness like Cards Against Humanity can have once you've played it a bunch of times."

If you're looking for another option in the vein of Cards Against Humanity, then this Where On The Scale? game is a solid choice. Each round is a different scale from 1 to 10 ("tiny" to "huge," for example), and each player draws a different number. They then have to clues to help the other players guess where they land on the scale. There's also a separate "adults only" pack of cards for when the kids aren't around.

Promising review: "I love this game because it’s a great way to get to know the other players and their thought processes. I played with my entire family and we laughed a LOT. There’s also an adult version in the game, which can get really hysterical. Highly recommend!" — Hope

As you may have seen on TikTok, Hues and Cues involves using verbal clues to guess a specific color square on the board. This is a fun way for players to use their imaginations to come up with or decipher one-word hints, and can even lead to some healthy debate.

Promising review: "My favorite game to play during game night with our friends. I love to hear how everyone describes the different colors without saying the exact color. I have played with adults and children and they all love it." — Courtnee

This Mexican Train Dominoes set comes with a convenient carrying case to take it on the go, and contains everything your recipient will need for game night, including 91 dominoes, a scorepad to keep track and more. The game is made for two to eight players ages eight and up, making it a potential fun gift for a family or couple.

Promising review: "We played with some friends last year and decided to buy 2 to gift to family for the holidays. It was an instant hit! There are lots of ways to play but we do the classic game and everyone has loved it. My mom asked to play a game every night. It does take a while when you’re first learning so keep that in mind but once everyone knows what’s going on you can get through several hands in reasonable time. The case and dominos are really nice quality and super easy to travel with." — Hines

Finally, a way to get everyone off their phones — but still play Wordle. You heard that right: They've made a board game version of everyone's favorite app. Players switch off choosing what the secret word is and then distribute yellow and green chips as the other players guess. Some reviews say you may want to use your own dry erase markers.

Promising review: "The game comes with everything you need - a scoreboard, three game boards, the privacy shields, three dry erase markers and yellow and green tiles to mark your letters just like the online version." — Mary Braxton

Statistics nerds, rejoice! For a visual card game based on connecting prompts to not-actually-scientific line graphs, Schenck recommends Charty Party. “[This is] one of my favorites,” Schenck said.

The game asks players to match a graph with the funniest Y-axis as a punchline (so no, you don't need to do math). This one is recommended for players aged 17 and up, thanks to content that the brand describes as “PG-13,” but there's also an all-ages version available.

Meet Azul, a tile placement game that's a little like making mini puzzles, only extra competitive. Recreate colorful mosaics with smaller tiles, race each other and see who makes the most accurate pieces.

Promising review: "Fun game recommended by family. Takes a little time to get the strategy to playing this. There's definitely different strategies that you can use, and there's still a bit of luck and unpredictability, making it a great game!" — SMD

This game went viral on TikTok for the silly fun it brings, so if you're shopping for a social media-savvy person, there's a chance they may have seen this one online. Incohearent is light and quick and not too intimate, so it's great for bigger parties or hanging out with new friends you're still getting to know. It asks players to sound out gibberish phrases and decode the meaning before time runs out.

Promising review: "So back in the day, our family played the game mad gab all the time. We loved it! When I stumbled acrossed this I couldn't wait to see if we would love it just as much. We got it for Christmas and on new years invited some close friends and family over for game night! We all laughed soooo hard and had such a good night playing it! We loved that it was more of an 'adult' version with some of the cards. I could see where overtime you may be able to memorize some of the answers especially if played frequently. We still love it and will continue to keep this one in our rotation for our 'adult' game nights!" — Denise dunn

Tell Me Without Telling Me brings the joy of the internet to real life. Styled after the TikTok meme, this game gives you a prompt with a word you're not allowed to say, inviting you to act or talk around it. Reviewers say it's laugh-out-loud funny and totally topical.

Promising review: "The creators did not hold back on this game!! It’s a creative, smart and full of adrenaline once you get started. The packaging is perfect and easy to store everything back into place, the timer makes your adrenaline pump and the NSFW deck… WATCH OUT! The creators went there!! It’s AMAZING! 100 out of 5 stars! The rounds are perfectly timed and the deck keeps things speedy and interesting. This is a must have to bring out to parties and drink along to. You’ll learn new things from your team mates you didn’t think they would know (wink) haha!! Love love love!!" — Jonathan & Jose

In the world of board games, Off Topic is like Scattergories' cool Gen Z cousin. Roll a die to find your letter, then think of as many answers starting with that letter as you can for your given prompt. Then, debate among your friends to see who wins each round. It's played on little white boards to keep everything speedy.

Promising review: "My friends and I do a weekly game night and we are always looking for fun new group games to try. This one was an absolute hit. It's kind of like the old school Scattergories but you can write more than word down, including entire phrases. We had so much fun laughing at the crazy things each of us came up with for some of the topics. I can't wait to play again (warning, it's not a kid's game. Some of the topics are adult)." — beachlover

Snake Oil requires players to pitch fantastical products to imaginary customers, all prompted by cards adorned with charmingly low-fi illustrations. Gameplay can expand up to 10 players ideally aged 10 and up.

Promising review: “This is a fun, fast-paced party game that makes you think, but not too hard. As soon as we played it at a Halloween party, we knew we had to get it. Then I let my husband open it early, and we played it at our Christmas party, and it was a hit. I've only played it with adults, but I expect it works for younger ages as long as the players are of comparable cognitive maturity. One or two kids playing against a bunch of adults might be at a disadvantage, unless the adults played down to them. It really takes creativity and a quick wit.” — Amy Gunkler