Settlers of Catan is a world building game where players win points based on achieving certain milestones within created civilizations. Catan Universe is an official online multiplayer version of the board game available for Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android. The game comes in card game or board game version for up to three players, with free options available, and includes high definition graphics and seamless animations. You want something easy and breezy: Looking for a simple party game that'll only last for 20 minutes or so? This ain't it, chief. Despite being accessible on the whole, it's still a lot more complex than classics such as Clue. Scrabble is one of the best free online games to play with friends. There are many ways to play the classic word game on the web, including using the app Words With Friends, or DIY-ing your own board in Google Sheets. However, Pogo offers the most seamless online version of the game. You will have to register for a free account and invite your friends to your game, however Pogo does not display as many ads as some competitors, and also includes fun mini games and rewards. You don't have patience for complex rules: Villainous takes a hot minute to get your head around, and if you aren't willing to invest time in learning how it works, you won't enjoy it. Stay away if strategy games aren't your jam.

You're expecting something for families or kids: Despite being based on the iconic, family-friendly movies of our childhoods, Villainous is actually a competitive strategy game with oodles of depth. It's not a good fit for children as a result, and won't jive with family-members who are expecting something casual either.The only thing you do know is that one of the game's scenarios will eventually begin, dictated by the rooms and items you've drawn. This mission turns your allies - or the mansion itself - against you. Seeing as both sides are given secret objectives to follow, the result is an anxious yet exhilarating race against time. The bottom line: So long as you're happy to do a little homework in terms of its mechanics, you'll find that Root has a lot to offer. It's essential for strategy fans thanks to spotless asymmetric gameplay, and being able to boost the experience with a number of expansions keeps that spark alive. Image credit: Fantasy Flight / Avalon Hill / Stonemaier Games / Space Cowboys) What is the #1 board game?

It's also worth persevering with. Honestly, there's nothing quite like the combat of this series. Trying to figure out the best combination of actions to use at any one time is a compelling mini-game in itself, and juggling your limited resources (you'll lose cards as you progress) makes for a challenging puzzle. Seeing as you'll have to balance helping your allies with hunting loot that can improve your hero, there's also a sizzling unease to keep you on the edge of your seat. Can your friends be trusted in a pinch, or are they more interested in helping themselves? Gameplay: All those special powers make the game delightfully unpredictable. Seeing as 51 alien species are included in the base set, there's almost always something new to see, learn, or overcome. You never get a chance to rest on your laurels as a result, and different matchups require different strategies. Simply put, it's energizing. You want something simple: Because it rips up the rules (in a manner of speaking, anyway) and offers lots of unique options, Cosmic Encounter may not be your speed if you want something really straightforward. Words with Friends is a multiplayer word game where players take turns creating words, similar to the way done in Scrabble. While Scrabble and Words with Friends follow similar rules, they are two separate games. Players on Words with Friends can simultaneously play up to 40 different games at any given time. These games are done electronically either on Facebook, the app, or various other web platforms. Players can either choose to play with their friends or family by searching for their username, be randomly assigned a player through “Smart Match,” or find potential opponents using the community match feature. There is also a chat feature included in the game so opponents can catch up while playing a fun game of Words with Friends! In fact, the chat feature has led to a number of romantic relationships and marriages after players have been randomly assigned together. Battleship is a guessing and memory game that has players racing to sink each other’s ships. In the online version of the game from Papergames, you can find a random opponent, challenge a friend, or start an online tournament. Instead of ships, the game uses colorful skulls. Also, if you play the game regularly, then you can earn coins to trade for emojis and custom avatars.

Sites to play board games with friends

The answer to this sort of question comes down to personal preference, but we'd say board games like Gloomhaven (which often feature customizable characters or branching storylines that react to your choices) would come up trumps. Besides keeping you busy for months on end with consequences that follow you from session to session, they allow you to take ownership of things in a way few competitors do. They're often a bit deeper too, with more layered gameplay that'll provide a satisfying challenge.

The game's rapid-fire nature makes it a winner with little ones that don't have much patience, too. Matches don't take long and are easy to set up, so you can happily run an encore without much trouble. Basically? It's more than earned its place on our list of the best board games, and numerous expansions (starring a werewolf or revolving around twisted Christmas tales) should keep that magic alive for even longer. Codenames is one of the best multiplayer online board games. Online game setup is simple. First, create a room and tweak settings and preferences. Then, send friends the game link, join a video call, and start to play. From that point, players follow normal game rules by splitting into a red team and a blue team, receiving hints about codenames from the spymaster, and attempting to identify the codename cards that belong to agents on the correct team. Not that this is only for kids, of course. It'll be a hit with all ages, and is a great warm-up game before moving on to something with more depth.

List of online board games to play with friends

OUR MULTIPLAYER WORD GAME is better and smarter than ever before! Beat this word jumble by unscrambling letters, train your brain and indulge in a plethora of classic word board games and crossword puzzles in Words With Friends 2! Expand your vocabulary and show off your spelling skills as you search for the highest scoring word in our beloved classic free word games. Yes, there's a learning curve. Its scenarios aren't always the most well-balanced either, and a few mission rules could be clearer. But on the whole, you'll have enough fun that those niggles won't matter. This is perfect for game night with your friends. What if the bad guys triumphed for once? And wouldn't that be more fun? As it turns out, yes. Yes it would GamesRadar+ review Gameplay: Pandemic's balance of risk and reward keeps it at the top spot as one of the best board games overall. Is it better to keep disease levels down so that they don't spread from city to city in the short term, or should you play the long game and go all-in on developing cures? There's no right answer. The bottom line: There's a good reason why Pandemic has been on shelves for a couple of decades now - its blend of challenge and elation when you win makes it a classic. While there are countless versions to choose from now, we're still partial to this original game due to how elegant it is. Absolutely nothing is wasted in terms of mechanics and design.

Naturally, all this is pretty fluid and changes regularly. For instance, the recently-announced Undaunted 2200: Callisto has everyone talking right now. This futuristic spin on the classic wargame (which focused on WW2 conflicts before, as seen in Undaunted: Battle of Britain) asks you to choose between blue-collar miners and the mega-corporations that are trying to snuff out their rebellion. It looks set to shake up the formula with that sci-fi setting, a lunar battlefield, and the addition of new units like mechs. What you need to know: If you have a soft spot for fantasy and love nothing more than poring over ye-olde maps while dreaming of adventure, Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion should be on your radar. This dungeon-crawling epic taps into all that with branching storylines more commonly seen in the best tabletop RPGs, and it makes skilful use of 'Legacy' mechanics where the consequences of your actions carry across from one session to the next.

What you need to know: Ever wonder how long you'd last in a horror movie? Betrayal at House on the Hill lets you find out. Setting players loose in a haunted mansion that's quite literally out to get them, it's drenched with tension. It's also unpredictable enough that you're never sure what's going to happen next. Sure, not all of the scenarios are created equal. But if you're hunting down something more mature in terms of both narrative and gameplay, this is one of the top board games for adults. You don't like randomness: This game relies on randomly-drawn board tiles and cards that'll dictate what happens next. If this kind of unpredictability doesn't appeal, Betrayal probably isn't for you.