Lists

5 Great Card Games You Should Own!

Every home should have a selection of great card games to play! And we’re not just talking about your classic decks of cards. There are so many great card games out there, perfect for the modern gamer!

Here are 5 of our favorite card games we think you should own!

One for the Whole Family!

Cover Your Kingdom

When it comes to games for the family, Grandpa Beck’s is my go to! We could easily have chosen any from their line up of family friendly games, but Cover Your Kingdom is our choice for a must own.

Why should you own it

This game is full of silly fun that you can play with a wide range of ages. We’ve played this spanning four generations, my son on one end at age 5, playing right along side his great grandmother (whose age I know better than to reveal) each recruiting clans left and right while having a great time.

Our kids love all the creatures and the funny sayings on the cards. We love that the game is easy to teach while providing a fun element of strategy for learning when to challenge another player and when to hold your cards and wait.

And lucky you! I’ve got a special discount code for you! Just enter TABLETOP25 for 25% off of Cover Your Kingdom on Amazon! (Good for a limited time! So act fast!)

A Game for Two

Claim

On nights we aren’t playing a big board game, you’ll often find us playing cards together. The 2 player trick-taking game Claim is one we reach for often!

Why you should own it

It’s rare to find a trick-taking game that plays well with just two. We love how Claim plays out in two different phases. In Phase 1 you are using your hand of cards to claim tricks that you’ll then use as your hand in Phase 2 where the tricks you take will determine the winner. Each card suit operates differently, giving players different powers and effects that they can employ and the powers can change depending on the phase! You goal is to take enough tricks to have a majority in at least 3 of the 5 suits to win the game.

I love the strategy involved in figuring out how to best use your first hand to smartly build your hand for Phase 2. It is so tricky in the best of ways!

It Fits in a Wallet…literally!

Sprawlopolis

The wallet games from Button Shy are definite musts! Whenever you can fit a game in your back pocket easier than you can fit your phone is always amazing!

Why you should own it

Sprawlopolis uses just 18 cards to create a quick city building game. Lay cards like tiles to build a sprawling city as you attempt to meet your scoring objectives. And with so few cards, each placement matters! No two games will ever be the same. We love that it plays quickly and offers a host of unique challenges as you can change the scoring objectives from game to game. It’s harder than it looks! We often win or lose games by a hair which is always exciting!
(The above image is of Sprawlopolis featured with the Beaches expansion!)

A Game with Addicting Strategy

Fantasy Realms

Fantasy Realms was an instant hit from our first play and has kept me coming back again and again ever since. Your goal is to make the best hand you can by trying to combo your cards with others in the deck to maximize each cards potential point value.

Why you should own it

What makes Fantasy Realms difficult is that you’ll never get see every card in the deck. The game ends when ten cards are in the discard area so you’ll need to make hard choices with limited information and be ready to quickly change tactics at a moment’s notice before your opponents end the game. There’s nothing better than when your combos come together in the nick of time and you score big!

The Jack of all Trades:

6 nimmt!

This classic still delights and the tension filled chaos it brings only intensifies with the more players you have! In 6 nimmt! (also known as Take 5,) your goal is to avoid taking points by simultaneously choosing cards to play into rows of race up cards. Cards are added to rows in ascending order. Each row can only hold five cards, so if yours would be the sixth, you must take the 5 cards in the row and add them to your score. It’s a simple game with a lot of fun simple strategy for players to employ!

Why you should own it

Not only is 6 nimmt! great on its own merit, but this deck of 104 numbered cards can be used to play a wide variety of many other great games as well! We’ve used this to to play games such as Llama, The Mind, The Game, and many others before purchasing! It’s a great way to try before you buy!