Cards and dice and all things nice
I just spent a bit of time writing up some recommendations for 2-player board games to mail to a friend and thought I might as well add them here too.
BoardGameGeek
Something like the IMDB of the board game world, BGG is a huge, ridiculously well-populated, community-driven database where you're likely to find every game ever published. On the downside it's also a bit ugly and slow, but I suppose you can't have everything. GeekDo is just a re-branded BoardGameGeek with a slightly different nav and the addition of an RPG section.
When browsing game entries, anything with an average user rating above about 7.5 is a good bet, though bear in mind that there tends to be a slight bias toward more complex games.
Some name designers to look out for:
Reiner Knizia, Uwe Rosenberg, Richard Borg
Some name publishers to look out for:
Days of Wonder, Fantasy Flight Games, Z-Man Games
Where to buy in the UK?:
Waterstone's sometimes has the odd bestseller like Ticket to Ride or Carcassonne, but for a proper selection try the nearest branch of Travelling Man (or failing that see the BGG UK FAQ).
2-player games I own and like
Ticket to Ride Colourful, rummy-esque, train-themed, classic gateway game. Loved it at first, but after repeated plays has started to feel slightly shallow to me. The alternate versions with added rules might work around that though.
Carcassonne Another good intro one with nice looking components. Gradually build a map by placing tiles, and lay claim to parts of it as you go by placing "meeples". I like this one a lot and think it's got longevity, but some people don't warm to it as much.
Agricola Only just bought this one. Confusing rules explanation due to lots of components and varying rule sets for different numbers of players. But just off one play it's obvious that it's a winner. Really fun farming theme with lots of character and it's difficult to pick out any clear best strategies which is always important.
San Juan Card game about building a town. Seems slightly dry at first but it definitely grows on you. Has a cool mechanic with lots of strategies to try out, and is quick to play. With the bigger boardgames, the setup time can feel like a bit of a mental barrier to playing, so it's good to have smaller card games like this around to play too.
Memoir '44 Probably my favourite. Takes a lot of setting up, but it's beautifully made, ridiculously fun to play and is always fresh thanks to the booklet of scenarios. Same mechanic is used in other highly-rated games by the same designer: Commands & Colors: Ancients and BattleLore
Pandemic Collaborative game with players working together to eradicate a global pandemic. Clever mechanics and a cool theme, but slightly too hard for my liking. If the players don't maximise the potential of any of their moves you're likely to lose the game.
2-player games my brother owns and likes
- Ticket to Ride (including a couple of the alternate versions)
- Pandemic
- Lost Cities
- Small World
The crossover between our two lists doesn't necessarily mean those are the best ones. I'm actively avoiding some of the things he has, even though I like the look of them, because I'll probably have the chance to try them out and see what they're like first.
2-player games that I've had my eye on
For a second opinion on some of these games and a few others, see Defective Yeti's article, Games For Two.
And finally, a word of advance warning: I've found quite a few games seem a little bit underwhelming on first play. It's only after you've had a bit of time for the rules to settle in that you find yourself craving a game of this or that one and thinking about the strategies when you're away from the table, so try not to be quick to write anything off.
