Azul is a more modern example of this board game type. It has the vaguest of themes (laying Portuguese decorative tiles), and players know everything they need to from the get-go.

From kid-friendly family games to heavy strategy quests, these are our expert recommendations of the best board game gifts around. Article updated on Mar 15, 2025 James Bricknell Senior Editor ...

Modern board games are wonderful examples of interactive art, but their complexity can be intimidating. These picks ease new players into the hobby. My Family Can Never Agree on a Movie.

Sure, the classic board games like Monopoly, Risk, and Battleship are still great fun. But the number of new games has exploded in the last several years as designers dream up space adventures ...

When shopping for a complex board game that isn't so hard it's frustrating, ... For example, you may enjoy abstract games that rely entirely on strategy, ...

Though the Royal Game of Ur derives its name from the Mesopotamian metropolis where it was first unearthed, Finkel notes that archaeologists have since found more than 100 examples of the game ...

Since then, the mechanic has seen redeployment into other genres of game with mixed results, but there are loads of awesome examples. These are the best deck-building board games out there right ...