Every tabletop game starts somewhere. Once the box is opened, the pieces distributed, and the board set up, all that’s left is figuring out who goes first.
After twodays buried in board game rule books, you might think you’ve seen everything the industry has to offer, especially when it comes to starting prompts.
But I assure you, friend, I’ve saved the best for last. Please enjoy the most elaborate, the most cartoonish, and the flat-out craziest suggestions for Who Goes First, as well as a countdown of my personal favorites.
Without further ado, let’s get into it!
Board games often have an off-the-wall premise, whether you’re dealing with aliens abducting ducks (Abducktion), using mad cows to detonate leftover war-time munitions (Unexploded Cow), or slowly going insane whilst spelling words (Unspeakable Words).
But even games with more down-to-earth concepts can still have mind-bendingly silly or crazy prompts to decide Who Goes First.
Time Masters asks for the player who last spoke with a wizard, while Star Wars Villainous: Power of the Dark Side suggests the last player to use The Force. Time Bomb Evolution lets the player who most recently evolved start the game.
Image courtesy of Disney.
1001 Karawane prefers the player who has ridden on a flying carpet most recently. In Big Monster, it’s the last player to have been to the moon who begins.
Were you the player most recently abducted by the CIA or the KGB (Secrets)? Or the player who most recently killed a monarch (Regicide)? Or the person who last destroyed an entire civilization (Gentes)?
Viking-themed games go pretty hard right out of the gate. Walhalla wants to know who most recently drank mead from a cow’s horn. Vikings, meanwhile, opts for the player who has pillaged and razed the most defenseless villages.
If you can perform miracles, I have a few recommendations for you. In Dead Man’s Cabal, the player who last raised the dead goes first. In Kazaam, the player who has most recently turned lead into gold begins. (This is also the case in Trismegistus: The Ultimate Formula, though that game accepts any alchemical transmutation.)
A successful alchemist’s copy of Monopoly…
Some games raise the bar even higher, asking for insanity AND specificity.
How specific? Well, a game of Colorado starts with the player who last visited an abandoned mine in a rusty wagon oozing coal residue.
Fantastiqa: The Rucksack Edition asks just one thing of the starting player. They want the person who most recently conducted a successful short symphony for the Mountain Moles of Mu. Simple, right?
At least Smash Up! gets specific by offering lots of options. The player who most recently experienced ANY of these scenarios can go first…
abducted by an alien
shanghaied by a pirate
bitten by a vampire
burned by a dragon
kissed by a princess
driven insane by Cthulhu
attacked by a teddy bear
eaten by an orc
Along the same lines, Cleopatra and the Society of Architects prefers the player with the best Egyptian credentials. This could be a nose as famous as Cleopatra’s, a mummified Crocodile pet, or an extensive hieroglyphic library, for instance.
Some of those starting rules listed above are pretty unusual. Thankfully, some games have a ridiculous starting request, but a more reasonable back-up suggestion all lined up. And these “In case of” scenarios can be just as entertaining as the totally bonkers starting prompts.
In Simurgh, the player who last rode a dragon goes first. But if no one has ridden a dragon, they’ll take a horse, a pony, or an extremely large dog instead. Reasonable!
Which player has most recently been to space? You get to go first in Space Explorers. And if no one has, then it’s the player who most recently watched or read something about space.
In the same vein, the player most recently abducted by aliens goes first in Pasture 51: They Came for our Angus. (Whomever has most recently been to a farm is the back-up in this case.)
Dinosaur Island suggests that the player who most recently extracted DNA from a mosquito trapped in amber begins. I mean, sure, we’ve all been there. But, if for some reason, no one at the table has successfully completed that task, you can go with the player who most recently visited a theme park.
And if that feels unlikely, consider this one.
Are you the player who last reached the peak of Mount Everest using nothing but blue-and-white-checkered stilts carved from the wood of a Mammoth tree? Then you start this particular game of The Bridges of Shangri-La. (In case of a tie, choose the wisest player of the group. I imagine that might be the person who didn’t try to climb Everest on stilts in the first place.)
The Great Heartland Hauling Co. is almost contractual in their starting prompt. The player with either (A) the best mustache or (B) the longest hair goes first. If one player has a very nice mustache and another other player has the longest hair, settle the issue with an arm-wrestling match.
This combination of physical qualities, debate, and physical challenge manages to encompass so many different Who Starts ideas that it’s genuinely impressive.
Before I conclude this three-day journey through the world of board game starting gimmicks with my personal favorites, I would like to highlight one delightful subset of starting rules: the “player to the left” option.
Dominion is perhaps the most famous game to use this mechanic, suggesting that the player sitting to the left of whomever won the previous game should start. Since play passes to the left, this means the person who won the previous game goes last. It’s an elegant equalizer for all involved.
Flock Together has a nice variation on this, opting for the player to the left of the player who most recently ate chicken to begin the game.
And Galaktico is absolutely ruthless in this regard, suggesting that play starts with the player to the left of the most impatient player (meaning the most impatient person must go last). That’s brutal!
I’ll conclude today’s post with my favorite Who Goes First prompts. After reading through hundreds and hundreds of board game rule sets, these are the ten I liked the most. They’re an eclectic mix of creative, sincere, silly, and thematic hooks.
#10: Tzolk’in: The Mayan Calendar
Give the Starting Player Marker to the player who most recently sacrificed something. This can be as silly or as serious as you choose, offering a whole range of potential debate opponents.
#9: T-Rex’s Holiday
The player with the most scars from animal scratches begins. This is clearly someone who deserves a little reward.
#8: Terror Below
The player who most recently defeated a worm in combat begins. The door is wide open on this one, and the debate never fails to make everyone at the table laugh.
#7: Tempus
The player who most recently had a great idea begins. As you can tell, I love a passionate debate, and this one has led to some genuinely fascinating pre-game discussions.
#6: A Thief’s Fortune
The player who most recently borrowed something and never returned it begins. Confession time, you light-fingered fiends!
#5: Fog of Love
The player who last blew a kiss begins. I just think this suggestion is so lovely.
#4: Surfosaurus MAX
The most experienced paleontologist/surfer begins. While you could interpret this as the most experienced paleontologist OR surfer, I prefer to debate who best embodies the qualities of both a paleontologist AND a surfer.
#3: Potemkin Empire
The player who most recently had to deal with government bureaucracy. Again, this is someone who absolutely deserves a little kindness.
#2: Trogdor!!: The Board Game
The player with the coolest consonant cluster in their name begins. This one is so unique that I had to put it high on my list. Reward those people whose names are constantly getting mispronounced!
#1: Fairy Tails
The player who most recently took a walk in the forest while contemplating the existence of hidden peoples begins. Plenty of games ask who went hiking or walking in the forest last, but the contemplation aspect makes this one so cute and considerate.
Thank you for taking this deep dive with me into the world of board games. It’s been an absolute blast to dig through not only my own extensive board game collection, but the brilliant archive of Who Goes First rules compiled at First Player Fun. Please check them out!
Did I (somehow) manage to miss your favorite starting prompt across these three days, fellow tabletopper? Let me know in the comments section below! I’d love to hear from you.
Every tabletop game starts somewhere. Once the box is opened, the pieces distributed, and the board set up, all that’s left is figuring out who goes first.
As you could tell from yesterday’s post, there are literally hundreds of ways to choose Who Starts. But yesterday’s options were centered mostly around the players on that given day of play. Their age, physical characteristics, recent travels, personal experiences, and so on.
In today’s exploration of board game rules, we’re looking at starting prompts where you have a fighting chance to earn the right to go first.
Sometimes, a game poses a small competition to decide who goes first.
It can be a physical challenge, like who can jump the highest (Dancing Eggs), or who can balance on one foot like a flamingo for the longest (Animal Upon Animal), or who can dance the Flamenco the best (Citrus).
In Bardwood Grove, it’s the player who can hold a note the longest. In Mega Mouth, it’s whoever can say “mmmmmmm” the longest without taking a breath. In Gheos, it’s the player who can refrain the longest from laughing.
It can also be based on the quickest person to respond to a prompt:
The first player who chants “ego sum primus ludio” 3 times (Don’t Go In There)
The first player to compliment another (I’m Right You’re Wrong)
The first player to make a trumpet sound and announce themselves as the starting player (For Crown and Kingdom)
Sometimes, it’s not being first, but being loudest, like in Stratelite, where the player who shouts “I will crush you all!” the loudest gets to start, or in Dungeonology: Rigor Mortis, where the player who yells “Yes, Dark Lord!” loudest in goblin language begins.
Naturally, some games have a performance aspect to their starting prompt.
These can run the gamut from making the weirdest shape with your tongue (Foramina!) or saying “I am a super secret super spy” in Sean Connery’s voice the best (Covert) to the most impressive imitation of Godzilla’s scream (Godzilla Total War) or making the best Chupacabra noise (Chupacabra: Survive the Night).
In Genji, the player who can tell the most romantic or moving love story begins. In Lift Off! Get me off this Planet!, it’s the player with the best story about being stranded by their own accord. (Obviously, a few of these may require some debate among the players.)
Some board games prefer a mental challenge to a physical one, testing your wittiness, trivia knowledge, or other examples of cerebral acuity.
Can you be…
The first player to come up with a punny dinosaur joke (Dinosaur Island: Rawr ‘n Write)
The player who can name the most of Jupiter’s moons (Exoplanets)
The player who comes closest when guessing the current time (Chrononauts)
The player who can recall the earliest positive memory begins (Vivid Memories)
Speaking of debate, it’s one of my favorite options when it comes to determining Who Goes First. And there is no shortage of weird, wacky, and wonderful suggestions in board games for this one.
In Oath of the Brotherhood, you must debate which player looks the most like a pirate. In Hellapagos, it’s the one who most resembles a castaway. In Tudor, the one who looks the most like Henry VIII, or one of his wives.
In Obama Llama, it’s the person who most resembles either Obama or a llama. And continuing the thread of silly game names, Bunny Bunny Moose Moose asks for the player who looks the most like a moose. (Don’t worry. If there’s a tie, you can choose the player who looks most like a rabbit instead.)
Which player struck the most chivalrous pose? (Medieval Academy)
Which player most recently did something Scottish? (Glascow)
Which player has held the strangest job? (Funny Business)
Which player has the most hipster cred? (Streets)
Which player has the best taste in music? (On Tour)
Which player has had the worst day? (Gloom)
Who has befriended the most unusual animal? (Wondrous Creatures)
Which player can best make the claim of being a rocket scientist? (Launchpad 23)
Who has the shadiest laugh (Swindler)? The most diabolical laugh (Spare Parts: TheGame of Undead Army Building)? Who cackles the most like a vile and greedy medieval pardoner (The Road to Canterbury)?
And some of these are sure to spark a spirited debate.
I mean, how do you decide which player is the most alien (Space Beans)? What about the one who has most recently gone insane (Cthulhu Realms)? The player with the most authentic name (Burgen Land)? Or the one most likely to be from a parallel universe (Trouble: Across the Spider-Verse Part One)?
The weirdest? (Play Me: Alice in Wonderdice) The most angelic? (The Deadlies) The most daring? (Carnegie) The smartest? (That’s Pretty Clever aka Ganz schön clever) The most evolved? (On the Origin of Species)
Image courtesy of Ctrl+Alt+Del.
I mentioned in yesterday’s post that Hot Tin Roof‘s starting prompt could ruffle some feathers. But it’s hardly alone amongst board games whose starting rules could cause fireworks.
Do you want be considered the most evil (Dark Minions) or the most sinister (Complots)? Would you be cool with being named the most malicious (Doodle Dungeon) or the blood-thirstiest (Dungeonville)?
The most suspicious-looking (Spyfall)? The one with the sneakiest eyes (Shifty EyedSpies)? The sneakiest in general (Clank!)? The most cunning (Volto)?
I mean, it’s not exactly a compliment to be told you look the most stressed, which would let you go first in Chakra. Or that you’re the player who most desperately needs a vacation, which makes you first to act in Kahuna.
Bears vs. Babies asks who had the most recent tantrum. Aristocracy asks who most recently made an unreasonable demand. In Awkward Guests: The Walton Case, it’s the player who the host considers to be the most awkward guest. Oof. That’s a rough one.
But not as rough as debating which player LOOKS the oldest. I can’t remember which game I saw this prompt in, but man, that’s guaranteed to start a fight.
I’ll conclude today’s deep drive into board game Who Goes First options with a short list of games that ask you to confess to crimes in order to earn that coveted starting spot.
Yup. How bad do you want that first move or die roll?
It’s the player who last committed a crime who starts in La Cosa Nostra. The player who most recently robbed a bank gets to go first in Escape Plan.
In Trial by Trolley, the player who last thought about murdering someone begins. In The Brigade, it’s the player who most recently set something on fire.
Do the crimes do get more specific? You bet they do.
In Prohibitionists, it’s the player who most recently smashed open a cask of bootleg whiskey with an axe. (Naturally, this wasn’t a crime at the time, but it sure would be now! That’s MY cask of bootleg whiskey!)
And finally, in 10′ to Kill, the last player to have killed someone begins. They do add the caveat that it could be a noisy neighbor, an annoying mother-in-law, or a really hard boss in a video game, but still.
You know, in some of these cases, I think I’d be fine going second.
How apropos, since this is the second entry in a three-part series. I simply could not narrow down the list of bonkers, clever, hilarious, and sinister possibilities.
I’ll be concluding the series tomorrow with the most elaborate prompts, the most insane ones, and my list of all-time favorites. So be sure to come back tomorrow for even more board game-specific fun!
Do you have any favorite Who Starts rules for board games? Let us know in the comments section below! We’d love to hear from you.
Every tabletop game starts somewhere. Once the box is opened, the pieces distributed, and the board set up, all that’s left is figuring out who goes first.
There are a few traditional ways to sort this out. Sometimes, the oldest person at the table goes first, showing the younger players how to proceed. Sometimes, the youngest player goes first, getting a chance to dive right in. Sometimes, a simple roll of the dice or a few rounds of rock-paper-scissors determines who goes first.
But there are plenty of board games that have their own idea of how to start.
So please join me on a deep dive into the many, many, MANY ways you can choose who goes first in a board game!
Birthdays are a frequent topic when it comes to choosing the first player.
It can be whose birthday is closest to a given date, like in Duck Dealer, where the player born closest to November 24, 1967 begins, or in Agatha Christie: Death on the Cards, where the player whose birthday is closest to Agatha Christie’s begins.
Closest to The Year of the Rat (Fruits Basket: Friends of the Zodiac), February 12th (Killer Bunnies and the Quest for the Magic Carrot), or the next equinox (Equinox) all come to mind. In The Stars Are Right, it’s the player whose birthday is next, while in the card game Quixx, it’s the player whose birthday is furthest from the day you play.
Many games determine who goes first by physical characteristics.
In Takenoko, it’s the tallest player. In Guillotine, the player with the longest neck. In Titus Tentacle, the longest arms. In Small World, the person whose ears are most pointed. In Pyramix, the person with the most triangular nose.
The longest hair, the largest shoes, the hairiest, the smallest, the huskiest voice… these are all on the table.
In the cat-themed Hot Tin Roof, it’s the player with the longest whiskers. And if there’s a tie, it’s the person whose breath smells the most like fish. (That one might cause a fight, honestly.)
Other games rely on something more conditional, something that could change from game session to game session.
Who is the hungriest or thirstiest, when the game’s gimmick centers around food. In Roll to the South Pole, it’s whomever has the coldest nose. In Snowblind: Race for the Pole, it’s the player with the coldest hands begins. In the Rick and Morty: The Ricks Must Be Crazy Multiverse Game, the player with the lowest cellphone battery begins.
Or it’s based on the last time you did something related to the game.
Please make sure your sheep consent to caressing before you proceed…
In Sheepland, it’s the player who most recently caressed a sheep. Yes, they use the word “caress” specifically. In Steam Works, it’s the player who most recently built something.
In The Lady and the Tiger, it’s the person who last opened a door. In Golems, it’s the last player who built a snowman. In Flip City, it’s the last player to have flipped a table. (So the person who most recently played Monopoly, I’d bet.)
Who last went hiking, or helped someone, or last petted an animal. Who last visited a museum, watered a plant, read a book, fed a duck, dug a hole, made tea, drank tea, rode a train. Who most recently experienced deja vu, who woke up earliest, who woke up latest. (Each one of these examples showed up multiple times in my research!)
A lot of them involve choices or actions, but some games use a starting criteria that’s out of your control.
In ALIEN: Fate of the Nostromo, it’s the player who most recently had a cat hiss at them. In Let’s Make a Bus Route, it’s the player who recently spent the longest time as a bus passenger.
Were you the person who most recently saw a firefly (Smile), or a full moon (Catch the Moon), or a shooting star (Astra)? Maybe you were the person most recently burnt by the Sun (Solar Storm).
In Copper Country, the player with the oldest penny begins. In Good Cop Bad Cop, the player who was most recently shot (!) begins. (Apparently, it can be in a game or real life.)
A lot of board games have location-specific starting hooks. Often it’s which player has been to the game’s setting most recently.
(At least in Merkator, if you haven’t been to Hamburg, it can instead be the player who most recently ate a hamburger.)
This is especially common with water-based settings. Who lives closest to water (Le Havre), who was most recently on an island (Forbidden Island), or has been deepest in the sea (Nautilus). Builders of R’lyeh gets very specific about this, asking for the player who has been the closest to 47°9′S 126°43′W / 47.15°S 126.717°W in the southern Pacific Ocean.
In Iceberg, it’s the player who most recently was at the South Pole is the start player. (If none was there, the player who got closest starts.) Contrary to Iceberg, in Nanuk, the starting player in this game is whoever has been the furthest north!
Were you the last person to stand on a balcony (Council of Verona) or the last person to travel to a place with less than 100 inhabitants (Boonlake)? That one sounds exotic, until you remember traveling to your home, which hopefully has fewer than 100 inhabitants.
In a nice reversal of this trope, the game Coney Island states that the player who has NOT been to an amusement park for the longest period of time begins.
As you can plainly see, fellow tabletopper, these starting criteria can get very specific. How specific? Well, check out some of these Who Starts prompts:
The Voting Game: The player who most recently called their mother begins.
Tawantinsuyu: The Inca Empire: The last player to harvest a vegetable begins.
Valentine’s Day: The last player to have been pricked by a thorn begins.
Mech A Dream: The player who has most recently dreamt of robots begins.
Wakanda: The player who last uttered a war cry begins.
These last two deserve their own spotlight for different reasons.
In Tales & Games: The Pied Piper, the player who last saw rats in a bathtub begins. We’ve all been there, amirite?
In Cascadia, the player who most recently saw a bear, elk, salmon, hawk or fox begins. (I love how many options Cascadia allows for!)
Of course, hardcore board game fans know the rules of their favorite games. With some games and their Who Starts rules, this means a devious host might be able to rig who goes first in their favor.
In Railroad Dice, the player who owns the most railroad games begins. Unless you’re in a model train club, odds are the same person will start every time here.
Sucking Vacuum is among the games where the player who owns the game begins. I can see this being a groanworthy moment when trying to decide what game to play, and someone keeps pushing for the game where THEY get to start, heh.
A little bit of foreknowledge comes in handy with these games as well:
Antics!: The player who has carried the heaviest item today (stomachs do not count) begins.
Dragon Farkle: The player who brought the most snacks begins.
Legacy: Gears of Time: The player whose watch is currently set the furthest back in time begins.
Step to it: The player with the most colorful socks begins.
TacTile: The player with the most colors on their shirt begins.
Welcome to Sysifus Corp: The player with the lowest amount of unread emails begins.
Plague Inc.: The player who washed their hands most recently begins.
The Nacho Incident: The player who has the most interesting thing in their pocket begins.
At least with Dragon Farkle‘s rules, you’re guaranteed snacks!
I’d originally intended for this to be a one-post topic, but the field was so overloaded with noteworthy examples that I’ll be continuing this topic both tomorrow AND Thursday, so be sure to come back for more board game-specific fun later this week!
Do you have any favorite Who Starts rules for board games? Let us know in the comments section below! We’d love to hear from you.
Happy Holidays and welcome to the PuzzCulture 2025 Holiday Puzzly Gift Guide!
Each year, we scour the world of puzzles and games for the best, the most engaging, the most creative, and the most enjoyable products we can find, and we think this year’s collection is the best we’ve ever had!
We’ve got three different versions of the Gift Guide for your perusal, each of them absolutely loaded with all sorts of puzzly goodness and designed to make your puzzle and game shopping as easy as possible!
You can scroll to your heart’s content or use our handy quick search links to jump to different sections! The products in this year’s Gift Guide are organized by category, by age group, and by price below!
So, if you’d like to view products sorted by category (puzzle games, board games, puzzle books, etc.), click the wreath!
And if you’d like to view products sorted by price from lowest to highest, click the tangram candle!
A lot of terrific companies and puzzle constructors are taking part in our gift guide this year, and we’re sure you’ll find something for every puzzle lover on your list!
Happy browsing and happy puzzling to you and yours!
Welcome to the PuzzCulture 2025 Holiday Puzzly Gift Guide!
We’re so excited to be bringing you our biggest ever gift guide! There are so many tremendously fun and puzzly products to share with you this year. We just might be your one-stop shop for all things puzzly!
In this edition of the Holiday Puzzly Gift Guide, we have endeavored to strike a balance between the most affordable price we could find for each product and the most reliable outlet to get your gifts to you in time for the holidays!
Please enjoy this assortment of dice games, brain teasers, card games, puzzle books, group & party games, murder mysteries, escape room games, and board games, all organized in price from lowest to highest. We’re sure you’ll find the right gift for any puzzler on your list!
Any amounts in Pounds have been placed where they’d land roughly when converted to dollars. And please note that shipping is not factored into any of these prices.
Since most of the puzzle books, magazines, and puzzle bundles in this year’s gift guide are between $5 and $15, and most subscription services are between $15 and $30 per year, we figured we’d bundle them all up front before we get into all of the games, puzzles, and other terrific holiday treats!
Pencil-and-paper puzzles are alive and well, and we’re happy to share some of our favorites with you.
Maybe you’re looking for a grab bag full of different puzzles, like their Winter Fun Holiday Pack ($27.95) or a Championship Puzzle Pack of 40 magazines ($33.95)! Or perhaps you’d prefer one kind of puzzle, with the ease of printing at home with Print N’ Solve Magazines and Puzzle Packets (starting at $4.75). Either way, the folks at Penny Dell Puzzles have got you covered.
And be sure to check out their deals on Facebook and Twitter throughout the holiday season. They’ve got bundles and discounts for days!
And while we’re on the topic of puzzle books, some of the best constructors (and many favorites of the blog) have released their own books for your perusal! And with New York Times,Los Angeles Times, and USA Today puzzles to their credit, you’re sure to find some quality puzzlers within these pages!
Many top constructors and organizations market their puzzles directly to solvers, so between email subscriptions and downloadable puzzle bundles, you’ve got plenty of quality choices!
You’re all scientists that have invented time travel, but can you outfit your time machine and outrace your fellow inventors to the day the patent office opens and claim US Patent #1? This strategy game is an all-time favorite and it’s a perfect Print-and-Play joy for friends and family to try out! ($5)
Flip 7 (Eric Olsen/USAopoly, party/group game)
In this push-your-luck card game with the cards numbered one through twelve, the concept is simple: flip over your cards and don’t repeat a number. Problem is, there’s 1 one and 12 twelves, so you’re bound to repeat sometimes. Can you Flip 7 and score extra points? ($7.99)
Math Dice (ThinkFun, dice game)
Can you out-think and out-math your opponents when it comes to addition, division, square roots, and more? That’s what awaits players with Math Dice, a deviously fun game of who can get closest to the target with only their math skills and cleverness! ($7.99)
Coaster Games is a six-pack of games encompassing all sorts of gameplay styles. Counting, word building, deduction, strategy, resource management, and more, and they all fit in your pocket. Perfect for parties or quickplay fun between longer game sessions, you’re guaranteed to find something to enjoy here! (£6.99)
There’s Been a Murder (Pressman, party/group game)
Can you and your friends solve a murder? In this card game, every card can help you solve the crime (or hinder the investigation, if you’re the murderer). It’s amazing how Pressman boiled down all of the elements of a murder mystery into a card game this easy to learn, a game that you’ll happily play again and again. ($8.99)
That’s Not a Hat (Ravensburger, party/group game)
A White Elephant gift exchange is always a fun time, especially watching the gifts getting traded all around. But, if they were still wrapped, could you remember every gift as it moved from person to person? That’s Not a Hat puts your memory to work, asking if you can recall each gift as it is hidden from view and passed around the table. It’s tougher, and more fun, than you think! ($9.99)
Tired of turn-based combat and strategy? Light Speed has you covered. In this real-time card game, you play your ships as quickly as you want until one player runs out of cards, and then you see what happens! With combat, mining, strategy, and speed, this card game is great fun. ($10.95)
FALLING (Crab Fragment Labs, card game)
Some card games go quickly, but FALLING only takes 90 seconds. You’re all falling, and you want to hit the ground last. This game is insanely fast, chaotic, and an absolute riot to play over and over. Give it a shot. Trust me, you’ve got the time. ($10.98)
Get Lucky (Crab Fragment Labs, card game)
In this quick-play card game, you must scheme against your fellow players to be the first to kill Doctor Lucky. But Doctor Lucky is called that for a reason, so it’s gonna take a few tries, even with upgraded weapons, motives, and opportunities. Will you be the one to succeed? ($14.95)
Exit: The Game: Dead Man on the Orient Express (Kosmos, escape room/solve the mystery game)
Exit: The Game products create an escape room experience by combining a deck of cards, a guidebook, a sliding decoder ring, an interactive phone app, and miscellaneous items to be used throughout the game. What sets Dead Man on the Orient Express above and beyond is that there’s a mystery to solve in the background, even as you tackle all the delightful escape room-style puzzles! ($14.99)
All of us have rolled dice in games before, but can you roll what you need as fast as possible? That’s the challenge of Tenzi, a game that pits up to four players against each other in tests of speed and dexterity. Can you roll ten 6’s before everyone else? ($18.95)
It’s a race against time to locate all of your spies before your opponents. But in order to do so, you need to communicate information with a single word. Codenames will put your word association skills to work as you try to find secret agents disguised with code words, while avoiding innocent citizens and dangerous assassins along the way! ($19.94)
It’s hard enough to build a cube out of Tetris-style puzzle block shapes, but imagine trying to disassemble — and then reassemble one — INSIDE a 3-D triangular frame. Egyptian Triglyph bends your brain into new shapes and taxes your spatial awareness in very cool ways. A topnotch reinvention of a puzzly classic! ($19.99)
What’s better than a trivia game? A trivia game with bluffing! Can you convince your fellow players that your fake trivia answer is the correct one? Try your luck and your skill with Sounds Fishy! ($19.99)
Enigmas Puzzle Hunt Playing Cards: Midnight edition (David Kwong/Dave Shukan, solve the mystery game)
A puzzle hunt lurking within a normal deck of cards? It sounds impossible, but when you’re dealing with puzzler and magician David Kwong, anything can happen with Enigmas! Can you unravel the mystery hiding amongst these playing cards? ($20)
12 Days (Calliope Games, card game)
A proper holiday-themed game for the holidays? You betcha. This wagering game, based on the 12 Daysof Christmas, has some of the most beautiful art in the entire card game genre. Plus the two ways to earn points — winning each day of Christmas with the lowest card in the pot vs. keeping as many of a certain value card as possible for the end of the game — offer tons of strategic opportunities in a simple card game. What a treat! ($20)
Word Fluxx and Cat Fluxx (Looney Labs, card game)
The chaos and ever-changing rules of Fluxx have taken many forms over the years, from anatomy and astronomy to Star Trek and Alice in Wonderland — and they’ve made their most accessible Fluxx games yet with Word Fluxx and Cat Fluxx. Build your words or delight in your feline friends as you try to win this classic quick-changing card game! ($20)
Up to $30
Alice is Missing (Hunters Entertainment, escape room / solve the mystery game)
Can you and your fellow players solve a mystery without ever saying a word? That’s the challenge offered by the uniquely atmospheric and haunting RPG mystery gameAlice Is Missing.
A game played entirely through text messaging, each player takes on the role of a character in the town of Silent Falls, trying to find out what happened to Alice Briarwood. We promise, you’ve never played anything like it. ($21.99)
Puzzometry (jigsaw puzzle)
For a next-level jigsaw challenge, Puzzometry is tough to top. These beautiful pieces can be combined in seemingly endless combinations, and yet, there’s only one solution. Available in seven different styles — Puzzometry ($22.33), Puzzometry Jr. ($17.58), Puzzometry Squares ($22.33), Puzzometry Hex ($22.33), Puzzometry Steps ($22.33), Puzzometry Six ($22.33), and Puzzometry Jr. 2 ($17.58) — you’ve got distinct challenges appropriate for all different ages!
[Check out the full review of the original Puzzometry by clicking here!]
Fragments of Chaos: An Einstein Tile Challenge (Palmetto Puzzle Works, fill-the-frame puzzle)
Einstein’s influence is still felt today, as we have recently discovered the “Einstein monotile” (a tessellation without symmetry), and naturally, someone clever has turned the idea into a puzzle. Can you place these 23 irregularly-shaped pieces into the hexagonal grid? ($22.50)
Qwirkle (MindWare, board game)
A wonderful mix of Uno and Mexican Train Dominoes, Qwirkle is a tile-placing game where you try to maximize your points while minimizing the help you give to your opponents. With six bright colors and six different shapes to match up, Qwirkle is endless fun that’s so easy to jump into! ($22.99)
The Game of Wolf (Gray Matters Games, party/group game)
In the dog-eat-dog world of trivia, is it better to go alone or with the pack? In The Game of Wolf, trivia and strategy meet as you try to answer questions and double your points! With fresh topics and loads of interesting questions, The Game of Wolf has become my go-to trivia game. ($23.48)
Slapzi (Tenzi, party/group game)
Slapzi will keep you on your toes. In this quick-reaction game, you’ve got to match your picture cards to the clue cards before your opponents. But with clues like “Not sold in a hardware store” or “Two of the same letter together,” this isn’t as easy as it appears! ($23.95)
[Click here to check out our full review of Slapzi!]
Athena (Project Genius, brain teaser)
Put your chess skills and tactics to the test with Athena. A puzzle requiring you to think several steps ahead in order to reunite a statue with its pedestal on a busy archaeological dig site, Athena has over 50 challenging patterns for you to solve! ($24.99)
Cracker Games: The Imp Box (The Dark Imp, party/group game)
Six unique family games in a reusable box that looks like a Christmas cracker? What an idea! Voting, collecting, observation, and trading are among the gameplay styles you’ll find in The Imp Box, and this neat little package packs a lot of variety into a small space! (£19.99)
This advent calendar has no numbers on the doors, and solving a daily puzzle is the only way to figure out which door to open! This clever, festive, chocolate-filled treat is a puzzly twist on a holiday classic! ($27)
Spaceteam (Timber and Bolt, card game)
Can you repair your ship and get the engines up and running before a black hole ends your space adventure forever? That’s the name of the game in Spaceteam, a cooperative, communication-based game where you have to accomplish various tasks with your fellow players while sharing tools. It’s delightful chaos, heightened by the five-minute hourglass timer counting down your dwindling seconds before disaster strikes! A definite favorite around here. ($27.95)
Gloomand Gloomier (Atlas Games, card game)
Do you enjoy The Addams Family or the art of Edward Gorey? Then Gloommight be a strategy game worth checking out. In this tactical game with a sinister twist, you’re trying to make your Victorian family miserable for points and the lives of your opponents’ families better! Yup, misfortune equals good fortune for you! With gorgeous transparent cards you can lay over each other to track your scores, there’s no storytelling game out there quite like it.
Tavern Puzzles / Tucker-Jones House Inc. (brain teaser)
These hand-forged beauties are ready to challenge your dexterity and cleverness, as you accept the Tavern Puzzles challenge. Whether you’re trying to remove twice as many pieces in a Collaborative Effort or free the triangle from Tridiculous, you’re sure to put your skills to the test. ($29.95 each)
A trip to the beach in game form, Seaside is all about collecting tokens from the sea and building the biggest stack. This simple game offers surprising depth and strategy, and the tokens are beautiful and environmentally friendly. You could take this game anywhere and set up in seconds! ($31.99)
The Light in the Mist (Allplay, solve the mystery game)
We’ve got puzzles in calendars, puzzle boxes, games, and playing cards, but how about a puzzle AND a story hidden in a tarot deck? The Light in the Mist walks you through the memories of a missing friend and creates a unique puzzle-solving experience! ($34)
Bring your puzzle skills to life as you assemble a working roller coaster from these wooden pieces. Assembling handcranks and gears to operate the machine along with the structure of the roller coaster itself makes this 3-D puzzle more exciting and satisfying than the average 3-D puzzle. ($39.95)
Unlock!Games(Asmodee, escape room / solve the mystery game)
Unlock! games consist of entirely of a deck of cards and your app. The cards provide locations, challenges, helpful items, solutions, and warnings, all identified with numbered or lettered cards in the deck. There are numerous Unlock! escape games to try — covering everything from haunted houses to desert islands — and they’re offered in sets of three! ($39.99)
Wavelength (Asmodee, party/group game)
Can you get your teammates to pick the exact spot on the dial you want… with a single word? That’s the challenge of Wavelength, a literal game of inches that shows where our opinions differ and where they align. A terrific party game you can learn in seconds! ($39.99)
Tsuro: The Game of the Path (Calliope Games, board game)
A path-laying game with tons of style and historical spirit, Tsurocasts up to eight players as flying dragons, and tasks you with laying out your path with special tiles. Try not to meet any other dragons or fly off the board! It’s a simple mechanic with plenty of replay value, and perfect for quick games with large groups. ($40)
Sagrada (Floodgate Games, dice game)
One of the most beautiful strategy games on the market today, Sagrada is a singularly peaceful gaming experience. Compete with other players to build the most beautiful stained glass window, but with dice instead of glass! Unique and challenging, Sagrada is something else. ($40)
Up to $60
Godzilla: Tokyo Clash (Funko Games, board game)
Choose one of these four iconic monsters and let loose your fury all over Tokyo in Godzilla: Tokyo Clash. This tactical monster-vs.-monster game allows you to smash buildings, vehicles, and your fellow monsters on a game board that’s different every time you play! Will you be King of the Monsters by the time Tokyo is in ruins? ($42.99)
[Check out our full review of Godzilla: Tokyo Clashhere!]
Cluebox Escape Rooms in a Box (iDventure, brain teaser)
These multi-stage puzzle boxes are completely self-contained. You need to explore every inch of its surface to find clues and tools to unlock each stage of the puzzle box and reveal further challenges. Whether you delve into Davy Jones Locker ($49.99) or try to unravel the mystery of Schrodinger’s Cat ($44.99), you will definitely find your puzzly mettle tested by these devious devices!
Knot Dice Celtic Animals (Black Oak Games, dice game)
Can you twist, turn, and spin these dice to complete beautiful, elaborate patterns inspired by Celtic knots? That’s the name of the game with Knot Dice Celtic Animals, a dice game as challenging as it is gorgeous. With single-player and multi-player puzzles included, you’ll be tying yourself in knots for days! ($45, available in several colors)
And you can add new wrinkles and patterns to your solving with Knot Dice and Knot Dice Squared! ($40 and $45, respectively)
[Click here to check out our full review of Knot Dice and Knot Dice Squared!]
Chessplus
The first thing you learn in chess is how the pieces move. But what if that could change? What if you could make new pieces that move in unexpected ways? How would that change the game? With Chessplus, you’ll find out, as you mix and match chess pieces in order to capture your opponent’s king. The possibilities really are endless! ($45)
How about the chance to build your own game? Is that puzzle enough for you? Pinbox 3000 provides all the pieces you’ll need, plus valuable advice for brainstorming and creating your very own pinball game. It’s endlessly customizable, so you can make your Pinbox pinball game as simple or as complex as you like! ($49.95)
The Great Dinosaur Rush (APE Games, board game)
Bring the insane real-life rivalry of paleontologists Cope and Marsh to life in The Great Dinosaur Rush! As you collect fossils and discover your own unique dinosaur, you must also steal bones, sabotage other scientists, and more! Show off your cunning and creativity in this game that proves historical truth is weirder than fiction! ($50)
Arcs (Leder Games, board game)
Each player represents a different alien civilization, trying to complete their established goals and rule the galaxy. Arcs is a fairly complex game, and it’s definitely one that takes some time to play. But the art is beautiful, the gameplay is nicely balanced, and there are tons of different choices to make. ($54)
$70 and Over
Leviathan Wilds (Moon Crab Games, board game)
In this exciting strategy board/card game, you must climb one of seventeen leviathans and scramble all over it to heal it while avoiding its attacks. Be both action hero and environmentalist by scaling these beautiful beasts and trying to save them! ($74)
Lightbox (Eric Clough, brain teaser)
A puzzle box unlike anything you’ve ever seen, Lightboxcreates different patterns of shadow and light as you shift and arrange the various plastic plates that make up the box. As you twist and reset them, different electrical connections are made, and different plates light up. As gorgeous as it is challenging, Lightbox is a very eye-catching puzzle that always wows new solvers. ($85)
[Check out our full review of Lightbox by clicking here!]
Simply the coolest marble run builder I’ve ever seen, the Gravitrax Starter-Set XXL offers hundreds of pieces and a terrific base to build upon. Create ramps, loops, and elaborate patterns with ease! And although there are smaller Gravitrax games to start with, the Gravitrax Starter-Set XXL is an absolute wonder! ($129.99)
Thank you to all of the constructors, designers, and companies taking part in this year’s holiday puzzly gift guide! So great to have so many of you back, and so marvelous to welcome so many new faces and new puzzles and games!
Welcome to the PuzzCulture 2025 Holiday Puzzly Gift Guide!
We’re excited to be bringing you our biggest gift guide ever! There are so many tremendously fun and puzzly products to share with you. We just might be your one-stop shop for all things puzzly!
This guide is broken down by age group, so we’re sure you’ll find the perfect gift for puzzlers of any age on your list!
The first thing you learn in chess is how the pieces move. But what if that could change? What if you could make new pieces that move in unexpected ways? How would that change the game? With Chessplus, you’ll find out, as you mix and match chess pieces in order to capture your opponent’s king. The possibilities really are endless! ($45)
A wonderful mix of Uno and Mexican Train Dominoes, Qwirkle is a tile-placing game where you try to maximize your points while minimizing the help you give to your opponents. With six bright colors and six different shapes to match up, Qwirkle is endless fun that’s so easy to jump into! ($22.99)
For Ages 7 and Up
Tenzi (dice game)
All of us have rolled dice in games before, but can you roll what you need as fast as possible? That’s the challenge of Tenzi, a game that pits up to four players against each other in tests of speed and dexterity. Can you roll ten 6’s before everyone else? ($18.95)
Tsuro: The Game of the Path (Calliope Games, board game)
A path-laying game with tons of style and historical spirit, Tsurocasts up to eight players as flying dragons, and tasks you with laying out your path with special tiles. Try not to meet any other dragons or fly off the board! It’s a simple mechanic with plenty of replay value, and perfect for quick games with large groups. ($40)
For Ages 8 and Up
Flip 7 (Eric Olsen/USAopoly, party/group game)
In this push-your-luck card game with the cards numbered one through twelve, the concept is simple: flip over your cards and don’t repeat a number. Problem is, there’s 1 one and 12 twelves, so you’re bound to repeat sometimes. Can you Flip 7 and score extra points? ($7.99)
Word Fluxx and Cat Fluxx (Looney Labs, card game)
The chaos and ever-changing rules of Fluxx have taken many forms over the years, from anatomy and astronomy to Star Trek and Alice in Wonderland — and they’ve made their most accessible Fluxx games yet with Word Fluxx and Cat Fluxx. Build your words or delight in your feline friends as you try to win this classic quick-changing card game! ($20)
A trip to the beach in game form, Seaside is all about collecting tokens from the sea and building the biggest stack. This simple game offers surprising depth and strategy, and the tokens are beautiful and environmentally friendly. You could take this game anywhere and set up in seconds! ($31.99)
Simply the coolest marble run builder I’ve ever seen, the Gravitrax Starter-Set XXL offers hundreds of pieces and a terrific base to build upon. Create ramps, loops, and elaborate patterns with ease! And although there are smaller Gravitrax games to start with, the Gravitrax Starter-Set XXL is an absolute wonder! ($129.99)
It’s hard enough to build a cube out of Tetris-style puzzle block shapes, but imagine trying to disassemble — and then reassemble one — INSIDE a 3-D triangular frame. Egyptian Triglyph bends your brain into new shapes and taxes your spatial awareness in very cool ways. A topnotch reinvention of a puzzly classic! ($19.99)
Coaster Games is a six-pack of games encompassing all sorts of gameplay styles. Counting, word building, deduction, strategy, resource management, and more, and they all fit in your pocket. Perfect for parties or quickplay fun between longer game sessions, you’re guaranteed to find something to enjoy here! (£6.99)
A White Elephant gift exchange is always a fun time, especially watching the gifts getting traded all around. But, if they were still wrapped, could you remember every gift as it moved from person to person? That’s Not a Hat puts your memory to work, asking if you can recall each gift as it is hidden from view and passed around the table. It’s tougher, and more fun, than you think! ($9.99)
Put your chess skills and tactics to the test with Athena. A puzzle requiring you to think several steps ahead in order to reunite a statue with its pedestal on a busy archaeological dig site, Athena has over 50 challenging patterns for you to solve! ($24.99)
Knot Dice Celtic Animals (Black Oak Games, dice game)
Can you twist, turn, and spin these dice to complete beautiful, elaborate patterns inspired by Celtic knots? That’s the name of the game with Knot Dice Celtic Animals, a dice game as challenging as it is gorgeous. With single-player and multi-player puzzles included, you’ll be tying yourself in knots for days! ($45, available in several colors)
And you can add new wrinkles and patterns to your solving with Knot Dice and Knot Dice Squared! ($40 and $45, respectively)
[Click here to check out our full review of Knot Dice and Knot Dice Squared!]
Cracker Games: The Imp Box (The Dark Imp, party/group game)
Six unique family games in a reusable box that looks like a Christmas cracker? What an idea! Voting, collecting, observation, and trading are among the gameplay styles you’ll find in The Imp Box, and this neat little package packs a lot of variety into a small space! (£19.99)
Math Dice (ThinkFun, dice game)
Can you out-think and out-math your opponents when it comes to addition, division, square roots, and more? That’s what awaits players with Math Dice, a deviously fun game of who can get closest to the target with only their math skills and cleverness! ($7.99)
A proper holiday-themed game for the holidays? You betcha. This wagering game, based on the 12 Daysof Christmas, has some of the most beautiful art in the entire card game genre. Plus the two ways to earn points — winning each day of Christmas with the lowest card in the pot vs. keeping as many of a certain value card as possible for the end of the game — offer tons of strategic opportunities in a simple card game. What a treat! ($20)
Slapzi (Tenzi, party/group game)
Slapzi will keep you on your toes. In this quick-reaction game, you’ve got to match your picture cards to the clue cards before your opponents. But with clues like “Not sold in a hardware store” or “Two of the same letter together,” this isn’t as easy as it appears! ($23.95)
[Click here to check out our full review of Slapzi!]
This advent calendar has no numbers on the doors, and solving a daily puzzle is the only way to figure out which door to open! This clever, festive, chocolate-filled treat is a puzzly twist on a holiday classic! ($27)
Leviathan Wilds (Moon Crab Games, board game)
In this exciting strategy board/card game, you must climb one of seventeen leviathans and scramble all over it to heal it while avoiding its attacks. Be both action hero and environmentalist by scaling these beautiful beasts and trying to save them! ($74)
US Patent #1 (Crab Fragment Labs, board game)
You’re all scientists that have invented time travel, but can you outfit your time machine and outrace your fellow inventors to the day the patent office opens and claim US Patent #1? This strategy game is an all-time favorite and it’s a perfect Print-and-Play joy for friends and family to try out! ($5)
Godzilla: Tokyo Clash (Funko Games, board game)
Choose one of these four iconic monsters and let loose your fury all over Tokyo in Godzilla: Tokyo Clash. This tactical monster-vs.-monster game allows you to smash buildings, vehicles, and your fellow monsters on a game board that’s different every time you play! Will you be King of the Monsters by the time Tokyo is in ruins? ($42.99)
[Check out our full review of Godzilla: Tokyo Clashhere!]
Sounds Fishy (Big Potato Games, party/group game)
What’s better than a trivia game? A trivia game with bluffing! Can you convince your fellow players that your fake trivia answer is the correct one? Try your luck and your skill with Sounds Fishy! ($19.99)
Light Speed (Crab Fragment Labs, card game)
Tired of turn-based combat and strategy? Light Speed has you covered. In this real-time card game, you play your ships as quickly as you want until one player runs out of cards, and then you see what happens! With combat, mining, strategy, and speed, this card game is great fun. ($10.95)
Pinbox 3000 (Cardboard Teck Instantute)
How about the chance to build your own game? Is that puzzle enough for you? Pinbox 3000 provides all the pieces you’ll need, plus valuable advice for brainstorming and creating your very own pinball game. It’s endlessly customizable, so you can make your Pinbox pinball game as simple or as complex as you like! ($49.95)
Unlock!Games(Asmodee, escape room / solve the mystery game)
Unlock! games consist of entirely of a deck of cards and your app. The cards provide locations, challenges, helpful items, solutions, and warnings, all identified with numbered or lettered cards in the deck. There are numerous Unlock! escape games to try — covering everything from haunted houses to desert islands — and they’re offered in sets of three! ($39.99)
Bring the insane real-life rivalry of paleontologists Cope and Marsh to life in The Great Dinosaur Rush! As you collect fossils and discover your own unique dinosaur, you must also steal bones, sabotage other scientists, and more! Show off your cunning and creativity in this game that proves historical truth is weirder than fiction! ($50)
Spaceteam (Timber and Bolt, card game)
Can you repair your ship and get the engines up and running before a black hole ends your space adventure forever? That’s the name of the game in Spaceteam, a cooperative, communication-based game where you have to accomplish various tasks with your fellow players while sharing tools. It’s delightful chaos, heightened by the five-minute hourglass timer counting down your dwindling seconds before disaster strikes! A definite favorite around here. ($27.95)
One of the most beautiful strategy games on the market today, Sagrada is a singularly peaceful gaming experience. Compete with other players to build the most beautiful stained glass window, but with dice instead of glass! Unique and challenging, Sagrada is something else. ($40)
For Ages 11-12 and Up
Enigmas Puzzle Hunt Playing Cards: Midnight edition (David Kwong/Dave Shukan, solve the mystery game)
A puzzle hunt lurking within a normal deck of cards? It sounds impossible, but when you’re dealing with puzzler and magician David Kwong, anything can happen with Enigmas! Can you unravel the mystery hiding amongst these playing cards? ($20)
FALLING (Crab Fragment Labs, card game)
Some card games go quickly, but FALLING only takes 90 seconds. You’re all falling, and you want to hit the ground last. This game is insanely fast, chaotic, and an absolute riot to play over and over. Give it a shot. Trust me, you’ve got the time. ($10.98)
Puzzometry (jigsaw puzzle)
For a next-level jigsaw challenge, Puzzometry is tough to top. These beautiful pieces can be combined in seemingly endless combinations, and yet, there’s only one solution. Available in seven different styles — Puzzometry ($22.33), Puzzometry Jr. ($17.58), Puzzometry Squares ($22.33), Puzzometry Hex ($22.33), Puzzometry Steps ($22.33), Puzzometry Six ($22.33), and Puzzometry Jr. 2 ($17.58) — you’ve got distinct challenges appropriate for all different ages!
[Check out the full review of the original Puzzometry by clicking here!]
Get Lucky (Crab Fragment Labs, card game)
In this quick-play card game, you must scheme against your fellow players to be the first to kill Doctor Lucky. But Doctor Lucky is called that for a reason, so it’s gonna take a few tries, even with upgraded weapons, motives, and opportunities. Will you be the one to succeed? ($14.95)
Exit: The Game: Dead Man on the Orient Express (Kosmos, escape room / solve the mystery game)
Exit: The Game products create an escape room experience by combining a deck of cards, a guidebook, a sliding decoder ring, an interactive phone app, and miscellaneous items to be used throughout the game. What sets Dead Man on the Orient Express above and beyond is that there’s a mystery to solve in the background, even as you tackle all the delightful escape room-style puzzles! ($14.99)
Gearjits Roller Coaster (Gearjits, marble puzzle)
Bring your puzzle skills to life as you assemble a working roller coaster from these wooden pieces. Assembling handcranks and gears to operate the machine along with the structure of the roller coaster itself makes this 3-D puzzle more exciting and satisfying than the average 3-D puzzle. ($39.95)
For Ages 13-14 and Up
Words Apart by Aimee Lucido, illustrated by Phillippa Corcutt and Rachael Corcutt (puzzle book)
Olive and Mattie are sisters, two years apart, but in the same grade. While Olive expresses herself with an impressive vocabulary and a love of wordplay, Mattie struggles with reading but finds comfort expressing herself through cartoons, sketches, and comic strips.
This wonderful coming-of-age story mixes poetry, prose, comics, and crosswords to tell a lovely story that everyone will find relatable. ($9.99)
[Click here to check out our review of Words Apart!]
The Game of Wolf (Gray Matters Games, party/group game)
In the dog-eat-dog world of trivia, is it better to go alone or with the pack? In The Game of Wolf, trivia and strategy meet as you try to answer questions and double your points! With fresh topics and loads of interesting questions, The Game of Wolf has become my go-to trivia game. ($23.48)
There’s Been a Murder (Pressman, party/group game)
Can you and your friends solve a murder? In this card game, every card can help you solve the crime (or hinder the investigation, if you’re the murderer). It’s amazing how Pressman boiled down all of the elements of a murder mystery into a card game this easy to learn, a game that you’ll happily play again and again. ($8.99)
Arcs (Leder Games, board game)
Each player represents a different alien civilization, trying to complete their established goals and rule the galaxy. Arcs is a fairly complex game, and it’s definitely one that takes some time to play. But the art is beautiful, the gameplay is nicely balanced, and there are tons of different choices to make. ($54)
The Light in the Mist (Allplay, solve the mystery game)
We’ve got puzzles in calendars, puzzle boxes, games, and playing cards, but how about a puzzle AND a story hidden in a tarot deck? The Light in the Mist walks you through the memories of a missing friend and creates a unique puzzle-solving experience! ($34)
Gloomand Gloomier (Atlas Games, card game)
Do you enjoy The Addams Family or the art of Edward Gorey? Then Gloommight be a strategy game worth checking out. In this tactical game with a sinister twist, you’re trying to make your Victorian family miserable for points and the lives of your opponents’ families better! Yup, misfortune equals good fortune for you! With gorgeous transparent cards you can lay over each other to track your scores, there’s no storytelling game out there quite like it.
Cluebox Escape Rooms in a Box (iDventure, brain teaser)
These multi-stage puzzle boxes are completely self-contained. You need to explore every inch of its surface to find clues and tools to unlock each stage of the puzzle box and reveal further challenges. Whether you delve into Davy Jones Locker ($49.99) or try to unravel the mystery of Schrodinger’s Cat ($44.99), you will definitely find your puzzly mettle tested by these devious devices!
Wavelength (Asmodee, party/group game)
Can you get your teammates to pick the exact spot on the dial you want… with a single word? That’s the challenge of Wavelength, a literal game of inches that shows where our opinions differ and where they align. A terrific party game you can learn in seconds! ($39.99)
Tavern Puzzles / Tucker-Jones House Inc. (brain teaser)
These hand-forged beauties are ready to challenge your dexterity and cleverness, as you accept the Tavern Puzzles challenge. Whether you’re trying to remove twice as many pieces in a Collaborative Effort or free the triangle from Tridiculous, you’re sure to put your skills to the test. ($29.95 each)
Codenames (Czech Games, card game)
It’s a race against time to locate all of your spies before your opponents. But in order to do so, you need to communicate information with a single word. Codenames will put your word association skills to work as you try to find secret agents disguised with code words, while avoiding innocent citizens and dangerous assassins along the way! ($19.94)
A puzzle box unlike anything you’ve ever seen, Lightboxcreates different patterns of shadow and light as you shift and arrange the various plastic plates that make up the box. As you twist and reset them, different electrical connections are made, and different plates light up. As gorgeous as it is challenging, Lightbox is a very eye-catching puzzle that always wows new solvers. ($85)
[Check out our full review of Lightbox by clicking here!]
For Ages 16 and Up
Alice is Missing (Hunters Entertainment, solve the mystery game)
Can you and your fellow players solve a mystery without ever saying a word? That’s the challenge offered by the uniquely atmospheric and haunting RPG mystery gameAlice Is Missing.
A game played entirely through text messaging, each player takes on the role of a character in the town of Silent Falls, trying to find out what happened to Alice Briarwood. We promise, you’ve never played anything like it. ($21.99)
For Ages 18 and Up
Fragments of Chaos: An Einstein Tile Challenge (Palmetto Puzzle Works, fill-the-frame puzzle)
Einstein’s influence is still felt today, as we have recently discovered the “Einstein monotile” (a tessellation without symmetry), and naturally, someone clever has turned the idea into a puzzle. Can you place these 23 irregularly-shaped pieces into the hexagonal grid? ($22.50)
Most puzzle books would probably fall in the Age 9-10 and Up range, but oftentimes, the cluing is geared toward an older audience, so to avoid confusion, I’ve bundled the majority of the puzzle books here.
Maybe you’re looking for a grab bag full of different puzzles, like their Winter Fun Holiday Pack ($27.95) or a Championship Puzzle Pack of 40 magazines ($33.95)! Or perhaps you’d prefer one kind of puzzle, with the ease of printing at home with Print N’ Solve Magazines and Puzzle Packets (starting at $4.75). Either way, the folks at Penny Dell Puzzles have got you covered.
And be sure to check out their deals on Facebook and Twitter throughout the holiday season. They’ve got bundles and discounts for days!
And while we’re on the topic of puzzle books, some of the best constructors (and many favorites of the blog) have released their own books for your perusal! And with New York Times,Los Angeles Times, and USA Today puzzles to their credit, you’re sure to find some quality puzzlers within these pages!
Many top constructors and organizations market their puzzles directly to solvers, so between email subscriptions and downloadable puzzle bundles, you’ve got plenty of quality choices!
Thank you to all of the constructors, designers, and companies taking part in this year’s holiday puzzly gift guide! So great to have so many of you back, and so marvelous to welcome so many new faces and new puzzles and games!
PuzzCulture 