My husband and I both enjoyed board games growing up. This has continued into our adult life. In fact, instead of poker night, my husband has a weekly game night. A group of them get together and play a variety of board games. We aren’t talking Dungeons and Dragons… there’s a large gamut of games he has invested in. We have an entire closet OVERFLOWING with board games. Fast forward to marriage and the problem nearly every millennial couple faces: we need something to do other than binge watch Netflix.
Finding a board game that works well for only two people is a struggle. Compound that with my husband and I being quite competitive and some nights things don’t end well. If you love board games and are looking for the best board games for couples, here are some of our play-tested recommendations.
Onitama – “10 minutes to play, a lifetime to master!”
Onitama is a quick game, perfect for playing a couple rounds while the pizza is in the oven. It requires very minimal set up: a few “pawns” and a select number of cards. It’s great for anyone who loves strategy. Full disclosure: I am terrible at chess, but I love this! The images on the cards makes it easier for me to process and strategize my next move.
Pandemic Board Game
This is my absolute favorite game! It is a blast with two people and gets more challenging with more people. My husband bought this game because it is cooperative, hence solving our “we’re too competitive and often sore losers and winners” dilema. I loved it from the very first time we played it. The Shi-notes version of it: there’s a virus, you’re the CDC, work together and save the world.
Once you buy this game and love it, there are a ton of ways to mix it up so it’s not the same ol’ game. There are several expansions. If you’re wanting to make it an even better board game as a couple invest in the Legacy version. You can only play the Legacy “story” one time; each time you play you are making permanent changes to the board/deck. Depending on how you do as a team you will get 12-24 rounds out of the game. Talk about a lot of board game date nights decided for you!
If you have a question about a specific expansion feel free to contact me. We have all of them. The only con I can say about this game is that the guys never want to play it, so I rarely get to play it with a full group.
Rummikub Tile Board Game
This was a new-to-us game this year. We received it as play-testers for some changes they were making to a new edition. While it was never a game we thought we would have purchased before, we have been pleasantly surprised. It’s a fun mash up of rummy concepts in a tile version. To be honest, we don’t play fully by the rules as we don’t use the timer. Hard to believe with a self-proclaimed competitive couple playing board games, huh?!
Chronicles of Crime Board Game
Now is your chance to star in your own board game night of True Detective. In Chronicles of Crime you use an app on your phone and a variety of tiles to solve a case. This is another cooperative board game, and really helps to work on your communication skills as a couple. If you have VR glasses there is a fun aspect of the game where you are exploring the crime scene virtually to find clues. I think we’ve played about 5 times as of this posting. We can’t wait to keep it up and see what new cases they continue to add!
Fluxx Card Game
Okay, I am going to break away from “board” games and make an exception for this one card game. We were getting ready to play Zombie Fluxx the night my husband proposed, so this game holds a sentimental piece of my heart. There are various themes of Fluxx you can buy, many based around pop culture. Lovers of Doctor Who, Star Trek, Pirates and beyond will find something they love I’m sure. Fluxx is a card game where the rules and how you win are constantly evolving. It can be incredibly frustrating when you’re ready to win the next turn but someone changed the rules. Despite the frustration it is still a lot of fun to play as a couple or with a group of friends.
