Board Game Gift Guide 2023: Strategy Games
Strategy games are the perfect choice for nights you really want to buckle down and get your brain working. These games are some of our absolute favorites and the perfect next step up from the family game category. Often, though not always, these games can take upward of an hour, making them a better choice for adults, teens, and tweens with longer attention spans.
board game gift guide strategy 2023
I really enjoyed the challenge Earth provides players — the sheer number of cards offers endless ways to build a high scoring tableau. If you are into planning for and building card combos, you’ll love the card synergies you’ll be able to create in Earth.
Ages 12-14+ 1-5 Players (best with 2) Competitive
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If you’re a fan of critter games, Meadow is a perfect match! Beautiful watercolor art, fantastic gameplay, and games that feel unique every single time.
Ages 10+ 1-4 Players. Competitive.
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I love the use of the rondel which always provides interesting choices for players. Plus this puzzly game has some of the cutest animal meeples!
Ages 10+ 1-5 Players. Competitive.
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An excellent theme makes for one of the most unique two player games I’ve ever played. This game is perfect for cozy, cooperative, date nights in.
Ages 10-12+ 2 Players Cooperative.
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I love how Living Forest combines multiple of our favorite mechanics. It has a little bit of deck building, push your luck, racing to the end, tile placement! A delightful buffet that works beautifully.
Ages 10+ 1-4 Players. Competitive.
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If you’ve been looking for a way to get into Marvel Legendary, this is the game for you! Comes with its own play mat (a necessity!) and a great selection of heroes to team up and masterminds to fight! If you’re a seasoned Legendary player, this set will integrate right in!
Ages 12-14+ Competitive/Cooperative
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We love the head to head battle! We’ve played a ton of deck building games and just love some of the unique mechanics this game brings to this genre! You don’t have to be a Star Wars fan to enjoy this game, but if you are, you’re going to love it even more!
Ages 12+ 2 Players. Competitive.
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I’m a sucker for a race to the win game and Orichalcum delivers! There are lots of different path to win — players will have fun taking their different ones and rushing towards victory!
Ages 10+ 2-4 Players. Competitive.
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Full of all the engine-building goodness you could ever want! This game took us by surprise in the best way!
Ages 12+ 2-4 Players. Competitive
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We’ve had this game for years and still consider it one of the bests! I’m so excited that it’s getting another chance to delight players with updated art in this new version!
Ages 10+ 2-4 Players. Competitive.
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This game has allll the number crunching, strategy puzzling goodness you could ever want. We think this is one of the better heavier options that still manages to be thematic and welcoming to learn.
Ages 12+ 2-4 Players Competitive.
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I kid you not — after our first play we could not stop gushing about how fun First Rat was. Silly themes with fun and interesting mechanics is truly the key to success in the board game world.
Ages 10+ 1-5 Players. Competitive.
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This legacy game is a wonderful gift for Sagrada super fans. It can get very tricky with all of the new and unique placement restrictions. I love that when your legacy campaign is over (or heck even during!) your player sheets can be colored in like a beautiful adult coloring book.
Ages 13+ 2-4 Players. Competitive.
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I love a good auction game and Nidavellir delivers one of the most interesting! I love the challenge of trying to recruit the best heroes to build powerful sets of characters. Each has their own way of scoring which gives player plenty to strategize over for both their own game and how to thwart their opponents’.
Ages 10+ 2-5 Players. Competitive.
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Oh what a delight Flight can be! That is until you push your luck a little too far and come crashing down! This game perfectly pairs theme with game mechanics.
Ages 12+ 1-4 Players. Competitive
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Get ready to race! On the surface, this seems like a simple hand management game. But quickly realize there is so much more here as you attempt to control your speed, cool your engine, shift your car, and jockey for position so you cross that finish line first!
Ages 10+ 1-6 Players. Competitive.
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I won’t lie — some of these puzzles hurt my brain! This is the perfect gift for your logic puzzle experts.
Ages 14+ 1-4 Players (great solo.) Competitive.
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One of our very favorite games. It’s perfection. You’re building a bag full of followers that you’ll draw out to take actions, use abilities, and expand your mercantile expeditions. There’s so much to manage but Orleans is a breeze to pick up and a joy to play!
Ages 12+ 2-4 Players. Competitive
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Pan Am has you trying to build a global airline system and is one of my favorite options for Ticket to Ride fans ready for that next challenge. It has a wonderful economic element where you’ll bid on landing rights in prime locations, upgrade your fleet with longer range planes, and even buy stock.
Ages 12+ 2-4 Players. Competitive
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Fantastic Factories is perfect for players who want a strategy game that’s easy to learn. We think it plays great at two and is a really fun solo choice as well!
Ages 14+ (we think 10+) 1-5 Players. Competitive.
board game gift guide strategy 2023
