We are great board game fiends. We play some kind of game with friends nearly every weekend. In fact, we have gone so far as to start calling a game playing afternoon "doing chores". Here are a few of our favorites.

I decided not to put links on these to encourage you to support your local geeky board game store. We have a couple of great ones around here and I try to give them as much business as I can. :)

Settlers of Catan by Mayfair Games

In this award-winning board game for three or four players, Catan is an imaginary unexplored island, and players are explorers and settlers. The playing surface is made of hexagonal tiles that, depending on their placement, create a different environment each time the game is played. Settlers must use their resources to develop their island home, building roads and houses to create new towns. But watch out! There's a robber on the island, and that renegade can show up at any time to steal your valuable resources. The game includes a rules booklet, a game almanac (with examples and advanced rules), cardboard hexagonal tiles, a plastic game sheet, small wooden markers (for settlements, cities, and roads), playing cards, and wooden dice. Settlers of Catan takes only 15 minutes to learn, and the game can be played in a simple version for beginners or in a more complex version for experienced players.

There are many expansions available that add complexity or more players. We have spent literally hundreds of hours playing this one.
Spy Alley by Spy Alley Partners

You'll keep looking over your shoulder while playing the Spy Alley Game. A little bit of paranoia helps in this business, what with secret agents from all over the world following you around the board as you try to pick up clues to their identity and keep your own well hidden. Use your tokens, play money, cards, and scoreboards to try to complete your own mission and force your opponents to give up valuable information--but watch out for the fabled Alley, which might lead to untold dangers (or, maybe, the lucky break you need to win the game!). Up to six players can vie for world domination in this suspenseful-until-the-last-minute game.

Great for kids, too. It is not very complicated, so it is quick to learn.
Pirate's Cove by Days of Wonder

Come aboard and sail to Pirate's Cove...the legendary hideaway of thieving pirates and cutthroat buccaneers. The tales of those legendary pirates of old who've fought and survived these mysterious waters still haunt all those who yearn for a lift at sea. Armed with a secret map and starting with a modestly outfitted sloop salvaged from last winter's storm, you set sail to Pirate's Cove - your eyes filled with visions of treasure and fame, your lungs filled with the salty air of the High Seas. Your objective: to battle for the rights to plunder and become the most famed and feared Pirate the world has ever seen. To do so, you will need to navigate shrewdly, fight recklessly and pillage mercilessly. You will gain fame by winning battles' burying gold and treasure; and bragging about your exploits at the Tavern. At the end of twelve months, the pirate with the most fame will be declared the most fearsome Pirate of the High Seas!

Betrayal at House on the Hill by Avalon Games

Betrayal at House on the Hill continues the tradition of great Avalon Hill games. This horror-themed tile game never plays the same way twice. You build the house tile by tile, room by room using 50 haunting scenarios. During the game, one player becomes the traitor and must be defeated. The game is for 3-6 players and it takes about 90 minutes to play.

This one is different every time you play - once you get to a certain point in the game, you look up the scenario in a book. The game then plays out this scenario with a different bad guy and different way to win each time. It is very fun in a creepy bad horror movie way.
Squint by Out of the Box Games

(my description) Squint is like pictionary, where you are making a picture of a word and other players guess. The twist is that you use tiles with symbols (circle, wavy line, plus, triangle) on them to draw your picture. No artistic ability required just some imagination. I would recommend ditching the timer (or finding a longer one) though, because the time they give you is not enough.
King Me by Mayfair Games

With the announcement of the King's retirement, the pirouette for succession begins! All of his subjects from cobbler to cook, painter to paladin, debutante to duchess bustle about the castle in preparation for the succession. One of your favorites can attain the throne. But, beware! it will require clever maneuvering and selective positioning to be in the right place at the right time to achieve the crown!
Our Favorite Local Games Stores:

Phoenix Games 909 West Lake St
Minneapolis, MN 55408

Games By James, Rosedale Mall, Roseville, MN