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I need a REALLY great game for 10-12 year old boys


Meadowlark
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5 hours ago, mmasc said:

We have lots of games, but my boys always go for Uno Attack. They also like Camp. These are the ones that consistently stay in rotation. 

 

Can you link me to the camp game? When I search for it, I just get camp games, lol. My boys love to camp so this is one I'd like to check out.

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Since you have a larger family with little ones, I highly suggest Disney's Apples to Apples.

In this version, the judge has a word card (like in regular Apples to Apples), but the rest of the players have cards with pictures from Disney shows and movies. So non- and early readers can play along with everyone else. We've loved it for years, and now that my kids are all teens, they still love it.

You could give it to the younger kids as a group gift, since you are giving a game to the boys. But everyone can play it.

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2 hours ago, Meadowlark said:

 

Can you link me to the camp game? When I search for it, I just get camp games, lol. My boys love to camp so this is one I'd like to check out.

Sure! Here it is. ?

https://smile.amazon.com/d/Kids-Board-Games/Education-Outdoors-Camp-Board-Game/B0010SSBNY/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1542315919&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=camp+the+game&dpPl=1&dpID=51xHLvBWEKL&ref=plSrch

There is a fishing version too that I’m thinking about getting DC for Christmas. 

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You can’t go wrong with King of Tokyo. You play Godzilla/King Kong type monsters trying to take over Tokyo. You roll dice to attack your opponents, buy cards that give you abilities, or heal yourself. We own over 200 board games and this one is a family favorite.

https://smile.amazon.com/IELLO-King-Tokyo-Board-Game/dp/B01F46RPS4/ref=sr_1_1?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1542337836&sr=1-1&keywords=King+of+Tokyo

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We are avid board gamers and I have an 11 year-old DS.  For something they can play together I highly recommend Star Realms. For something in a larger group (3 or more players) - Coup, Love Letter, Loot, Sushi Go, and Saboteur are great. These are all inexpensive card games, easy to learn, and fairly fast paced. I know Catan and Ticket to Ride get mentioned a lot but IMHO they are a little slow for new gamers. SET and Hive are also great but more abstract theme and sometimes get old quickly because of that depending on the temperament of the kids. Another possibility is the Exit game series which are like an escape room in a box. They are not re-playable but can be a great family night in for the price of a movie ticket.

Honestly, I would stay away from some of the traditional games like Sorry and Monopoly. There are so many fantastic new games that are well designed with exciting components, great themes, and balanced game play. Barnes and Noble has a lot of the modern games and Target has a small section as well if you prefer to look and purchase in person. If rules seem complicated or unclear don't forget to check out youtube for explanations/clarification.We love watching video guides on how to play before diving into the rule book - though most of the ones I listed are pretty simple.

Hope this helps!

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I prefer King of New York to King of Tokyo, and Ticket to Ride Europe to the original Ticket to Ride.

How about Carcassonne: South Seas (a little easier than original Carcassonne - if you get the original, play a few rounds without farms first!), Sushi Go Party, Go Nuts for Donuts (which my kids insist on calling "Go Doughnuts Go!"), or Battlesheep or Tsuro or Hanabi?

You can find lots more games over at BoardGameGeek, and they also have forums.

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9 hours ago, RoundAbout said:

We are avid board gamers and I have an 11 year-old DS.  For something they can play together I highly recommend Star Realms. For something in a larger group (3 or more players) - Coup, Love Letter, Loot, Sushi Go, and Saboteur are great. These are all inexpensive card games, easy to learn, and fairly fast paced. I know Catan and Ticket to Ride get mentioned a lot but IMHO they are a little slow for new gamers. SET and Hive are also great but more abstract theme and sometimes get old quickly because of that depending on the temperament of the kids. Another possibility is the Exit game series which are like an escape room in a box. They are not re-playable but can be a great family night in for the price of a movie ticket.

Honestly, I would stay away from some of the traditional games like Sorry and Monopoly. There are so many fantastic new games that are well designed with exciting components, great themes, and balanced game play. Barnes and Noble has a lot of the modern games and Target has a small section as well if you prefer to look and purchase in person. If rules seem complicated or unclear don't forget to check out youtube for explanations/clarification.We love watching video guides on how to play before diving into the rule book - though most of the ones I listed are pretty simple.

Hope this helps!

Yes-so helpful! Can I ask if you had to choose one card game for the ages of my kids, which would it be? The boys are almost 12, 10.5 and 8, plus girls 7, 5. It would be nice if any of them could play. I'm finding it hard to challenge my older kids while allowing the others to play too.

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On 11/16/2018 at 1:45 AM, RoundAbout said:

For something in a larger group (3 or more players) - Coup, Love Letter, Loot, Sushi Go, and Saboteur are great.

I'll mention that Love Letter is also great for two players. 

 

There are different versions of what is effectively the same game in case the princess theme of the original does not entice:

Letters to Santa Boxed Edition Card Game

Love Letter The Hobbit

Lovecraft Letter Board Games

Love Letter: Legend of The Five Rings

Love Letter Archer: Once You Go Blackmail

Regards,
Kareni

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1 hour ago, Meadowlark said:

Can I ask if you had to choose one card game for the ages of my kids, which would it be? The boys are almost 12, 10.5 and 8, plus girls 7, 5. It would be nice if any of them could play.

Our daughter starting playing SET: The Family Game of Visual Perception at about age six, so this is one game you might consider.

Another game to consider is Rat-A-Tat-Cat

Regards,
Kareni

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King of Tokyo, Forbbiden Island (there are two offshoots of this as well), Castle Panic is GREAT, and Risk for longer gameplay.  And Dungeons and Dragons has a board game, The Wrath of Ashardalon or something like that.  There might be more board games out there for dungeons and dragons as well, but that's what my son got last year for Christmas. 

We are getting my son Theory11 playing cards because they are so pretty and he likes doing magic tricks.  So that's always an idea. 

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4 hours ago, Meadowlark said:

Yes-so helpful! Can I ask if you had to choose one card game for the ages of my kids, which would it be? The boys are almost 12, 10.5 and 8, plus girls 7, 5. It would be nice if any of them could play. I'm finding it hard to challenge my older kids while allowing the others to play too.

 

I would say Love Letter for sure! 

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Just updating because I totally appreciate all of these ideas!

I think I've narrowed it down to:

Memoir 44 (I have a total WW2 fanastic)
King of Toyko-so many of you recommended it! I do wonder, what's the diff between that and King of New York?
Castle Panic maybe? Many reviews said it was too simplistic though...

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I do wonder, what's the diff between that and King of New York?

 

As it's the second game in the family, it has some rule changes that make it a little more complex (in a good way). With games, I find it's often the case that the sequels are a little better. Not like movies at all! But it's still not a terribly heavy game. Either one of those is a good "gateway game" for people just dipping their toe into the hobby. (One note - the booklet of rules for either of those looks interminable. It's not, and it's simpler than it seems. Read it yourself before you wrap the game for the kids, and then just throw them into it. It's easy to pick up, and much easier than reading the rules aloud.)

Quote

Castle Panic maybe? Many reviews said it was too simplistic though...

 

If your kids are mostly familiar with Monopoly and Life on the Farm and other games of that ilk (mostly "roll the dice and move your mice" dealios) then they might want to ramp up the complexity level slowly - especially if you want them to be able to play with their younger sibs. The sort of thing that board game fans call "too simplistic" and what board game newbies call "too simplistic" don't always overlap much ?

Edited by Tanaqui
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  • 2 weeks later...
5 hours ago, Tanaqui said:

Sooooo, what did you ultimately pick and how are you all liking it?

 

HI! So, I ended up getting Catan, Ticket to Ride, Pandemic, Clue and plan to get UNO Attack. I got them all 50% on Amazon's deal of the day. My 5 older kids will get them for Christmas so I can't report on them yet, but I'm pretty excited to play something besides Monopoly for awhile!

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Those are some good choices! If you like them, listen, I have a spare set of Sushi Go Party cards but NOT IN THE TIN. I've been wondering what to do with them, and I can send them on. (You may end up with a printout of the rules instead of the formal booklet as well.) I'm always happy to induct more people into the hobby.

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