One of our favorite ways to spend time together is by playing a great board game for date night! With 6 kids, you can imagine that finding a sitter and getting out of the house isn’t always an easy task. But that doesn’t mean that date nights have to take a back seat.

We strongly believe in making time to spend together as a couple. Sometimes that looks like going out to dinner and a movie, sometimes it’s a Netflix binge of a new favorite show, and other times it looks like picking up a new game to play together.

What We Look for in a Date Night Game

While any game you love can make a great date night game, our criteria for date night shifts ever so slightly.

I like to prioritize the date over the game.

The goal of a date is to connect and enjoy your time together. That means the game should help create an environment to do that.

The games we like to choose for date nights won’t take up your whole evening. No need to plan hours around a huge game. Likewise, the games below are not overly complex and are relatively free of frustrating elements. Not only do we want you to be able to chat together while playing, but we also don’t want to ruin a perfectly good date with an argument over rules.

Most importantly, these are all games we feel are very fun to play as a couple. Some are two-player only, others allow for more.

Either way, they’re Tabletop Family Date Night Approved! 

So grab your favorite drinks, a selection of delicious snacks (we love a good charcuterie board!) turn on some background tunes and get ready for a fun night together!

This is the fifth installment in our Date Night Series.

Click here for the First, Second, Third, and Fourth installments!

Two Player Games

Lofoten

This brand-new game about Viking shipping goods is a fun twist on hand management and set collection. The game design has built-in scalability with three different available modules, so you can make the game as simple or complex to fit your mood. A large number of scoring objects offers strong variability from game to game. 

It’s fast, fun, and provides excellent tension for two players.

Hive

Hive is everything we want in a two-player abstract game, quick to set up and explain, beautiful pieces that are begging to be touched, and hidden layers of depth compel you to explore it more. With the option to add additional insect expansions if you need some added variety, this game is perfect for any date night at home, or on the go with the pocket edition. 

Splendor Duel

This is the latest popular family game to get the “duel” glow-up treatment. Splendor Duel switches up how the resources are gathered which freshens up the gameplay and player tension while still keeping the core gameplay that is at the heart of splendor. We prefer Splendor Duel to the original for two player plays. 

Qawale

The latest game in the wonderful series of abstract games from Gigamic, Qawale, is the perfect choice for a cozy date night. We lovingly refer to it as Mancala Pancakes. It is simple to learn and plays smoothly. The gameplay is reminiscent of classic games like connect four and mancala, giving off nostalgic vibes. It is so easy to set up and play you can easily carry on a conversation with your date. Depending on whether you think the pieces look like Pancakes, hamburgers, or chicken nuggets, you can let it determine your date night menu as well!

The Game: Face to Face

The game Face to Face is a two-player competitive version of the cooperative card game, “The Game”. The Game’s gameplay is top-notch for anyone who loves dueling card games.

This hand management game is a race to get rid of all your cards. The twist is you can only play your numbered cards in ascending or descending piles. You can choose to play a card on your opponent’s stack, but doing so must help them. And if you don’t help your opponent by playing on their deck(s), you cannot refill your hand entirely, thus hurting yourself.

If you like “The Game” definitely check out this two-player version for a great date night card game.

Games that Play Great at Two

A common misconception is that the best game for two players are games made specifically for two players. 

In reality, the vast majority of board games play fantastically at the two player count. The best part of the below titles, is that not only will you have a fun date night with them, but you can also play them with your friends the next time you host a game night! 

It’s a Wonderful World

It’s a Wonderful World is a delightful engine-building drafting game that we play perfectly at two. Do not confuse this with It’s a Wonderful Kingdom, a follow-up game that is designed for two players that we did not enjoy. While most drafting games are less than ideal when only playing with two players, we don’t find that to be a problem. 

For added fun, we recommend the War & Peace expansion which makes It’s A Wonderful World into a six-game replayable campaign game so you can guarantee you have multiple date nights.

Planted

This lovely drafting game is simple to pick up and fun at all player counts. We loved the beautiful art, fantastic components, and the calming quality of collecting and feeding house plants.

My City

For fans of tile placement puzzles and legacy games, check out My City!

We love the Tetris style challenge of trying to fit all the pieces you need together and how each game adds new challenges to solve as you permanently change your board for future games. 

My City has low player interaction with a slight solitaire feel and made for a wonderful month of date nights for us. This is perfect for any player that loves Patchwork! (Another date night game we love!) 

Akropolis

The perfect game for couples who love building cities! Akropolis will not only have you building out but also up as you gather your city sections to add to your expanding coastal city. We love the challenge of building city districts that can expand upwards without covering up to many value point opportunities on the bottom. With high replay value, this is one you’re sure to come back to again and again. 

Everdell

Everdell is a beautiful game that’s a joy to both look at and play. Gather your woodland critters to place them out of the board to gather the delightful components included in this A+ production. 

We’ve loved playing the base game as well as with the Spirecrest and Pearlbrook expansions. Everdell has the right amount of enjoyable strategy combined with relaxing and pleasant gameplay that makes each game a treat regardless of who wins. 

Cooperative Games

And for those that want to cozy up and work together, here are a few cooperative games to check out! 

Viticulture World (expansion)

We put Viticulture on our very first date night post and it’s still one of our favorites. Viticulture World is perfect for anyone who loves the base game and is ready for a cooperative challenge.

Burgle Bros.

This is a super clever game where you’re in the act of pulling off a heist and need to evade capture in a highly secure building. You move around each floor of the building to try and find each safe before escaping off the roof in your helicopter. 

We have been loving playing this on Board Game Arena recently while snuggled on the couch!

Level 10

I’m a sucker for a small card games. We loved the retro, 8 bit video game art and the enjoyable challenge of trying to play all our cards to get to the final level. Level 10 is simple fun you can play quickly together.

Flash Point Fire Rescue

We’ve had this game in our collection for years and it still slaps. Work together to save people from a burning building, put out the fire, and keep the house from collapsing. 

You really have to work together to quickly plan out your moves so you work as a team before the fire takes you out. 

Unlock Legendary Adventures

You can never go wrong with a mystery game. Unlock! Legendary Adventures comes with three unique scenarios in progressive difficulties. We love the smooth integration of the app into the game without it taking over the tabletop experience.