Make Game Night Fun Again!

Tired of playing endless games of Monopoly and Uno? Looking for activities to bring family and friends together for great conversation, lots of laughs, and maybe a bit of friendly competition? Here are a couple of great board games that will bring you hours of fun.

Dr. Eureka! Mix the Molecules, Master the Formula! I love that playing games can help kids learn without even realizing they are. I play Dr. Eureka and many other games with our three kids and in my fourth grade classroom. 

Dr. Eureka is a fun and challenging way to help kids learn how to develop problem solving skills, build their fine motor skills, and recognize patterns. This dexterity game challenges 1-4 players to match the molecules that appear on a card with the molecules in the three plastic test tubes each player has. The trick is you can’t touch the molecules (large, colorful balls) with your hands. In order to solve the puzzle you must pour the molecules from tube to tube. The game is fast, silly, and very fun. 

The thing I love most about Dr. Eureka is that while it is a competitive game, it can also be played as an activity. You can play alone, challenging yourself to see how fast you can solve each of the 54 different puzzles, or you can play together, helping each other decide which molecules to pour into which test tube. 

Dr. Eureka is made by Blue Orange Games, which is well known for its high quality family games. The components are solid, and the box has a great insert to keep everything organized. Dr. Eureka is the perfect game for families with active kids who need a quick (15 minutes) easy to learn, and fun game.

2 player games are some of my favorites. When I sit down to play a board game it is usually for the social interaction and challenge of besting a group of friends. But, there is little better than sitting down across from my wife, or kid, or a friend and going head-to-head to see who can be the best tactician. 

Lost Cities is one of my all-time favorite two player games. The game is very fast, 30 minutes at the most. Easy to set-up, shuffle a deck of cards and place the board between you and your opponent. And most importantly simple to play, take a card, play a card! I also love that you can play this game, really pay attention and think about it, but also have a conversation with your opponent and not feel distracted.

In Lost Cities you take on the role of an explorer plotting out expedition routes. The routes are symbolized by colorful cards numbered 2 through 10. The goal is to place down the cards in ascending order on your side of the board, having the numbers add up to 20 or more by the end of the game. The trick is you share the deck with your opponent and there is only one card of each number in each of the five different colors. On your turn you draw a card, adding it to your hand of eight cards, then play a card. You can either play a card to your side of the board or discard a card. But, you must pay attention to what your opponent is doing because they can take any of the cards you discarded. 

The game sounds much more complicated than it actually is. The scoring is a little convoluted but after playing about two rounds our 8 year old picked it up. Lost Cities is a great way to wind down after a long day with a quick game before bed, or it can be a game that you play for hours on a lazy Sunday afternoon. Either way you won’t be disappointed with this adventure.