Roll Play: 19 Family Board Games Mums Recommend

The family that plays together, stays together, right? We don’t know about that, but we do know these board games will have you sharing so many laughs that you’ll never want the kids to grow up and move out!

We’ve quizzed our Grapevine community and plundered the shelves of our favourite toy shops to find the very best family games for staging a fan-tabulous (that’s fantastic meets fabulous) family games night with the kids.

So put down the iPads, gather the troops and prepare for an evening of screen-free fun with these sure-fire family favourites.

The new-age Yahtzee

YAMM’s ($29.95)

Popular toy brand Djeco has transformed Yahtzee for a whole new generation of gamers. The kooky kid-friendly version is specially designed for children aged 4 to 8. It’s just like Yahztee, except the objective is to roll the best combination of animals.

Five-in-a-row fun

Sequence Board Game ($25)

A rip-roaring strategy game for your whole tribe, Sequence is both a card game and a board game. Play a card, place a chip on the board and be the first to get five in a row. This one is easy enough for kids but challenging enough for the grownups.

Charades for Kids

Charades for Kids ($24.99)

There’s a very good reason charades has been around for hundreds of years. It’s hilarious fun. This modern version has cards for all reading levels, making it a great one for the whole family because younger children can play too.

Slappin’ good fun

Slapzi ($29.99)

From the crowd that brought you Tenzi comes the card game Slapzi. Slapzi is all about being the first to match a picture card with a clue. The cards are big and bright, the pace is fast and furious and the clues vary from simple to trickier for the players. This family game is so addictive, you’re going to thank us for telling you about it.

Exploding family game fun

Exploding Kittens ($29.99)

Explosions. And kittens. And laser beams. What else is there to say? Exploding Kittens is every child’s (okay, and adults’) dream come true!

Sketch out

Telestrations ($34.99)

Draw what you see, then guess what you saw. If your little ones like a challenge and love to draw, then this is a great game for all to enjoy.

Race against the clock

Five Second Rule ($12.95)

Can you name three things that you brush or three things that you find under the seat cushion? Can you do it in five seconds? This is the name of the game when playing Five Second Rule, a fast-paced tongue twister of a board game that is sure to leave everyone in giggles.

Bingo for beginners

Ladybird Bingo ($31.95)

Another cute one for little ones. It’s a game that introduces them to the world of bingo and numbers. Sweet ladybug faces will get the kids’ attention and they get to yell at the end. Winning!

Enchanted entertainment

Enchanting Forest ($29.99)

Do your little ones love scavenger hunts and fairy tales? Then they will adore this game – a mash-up of both – which lets them search the forest for treasure beneath each tree.

Tens of fun!

Tenzi ($25.95)

A fast-paced, award-winning dice game that even the littlest game lovers can play (with a bit of assistance). Armed with ten dice each, the aim of the game is to roll the dice until someone gets all their dice on the same number. Easy, energetic and addictive, Tenzi is sure to be a family favourite.

Parents vs kids

Beat the Parents ($44.81)

Competitive families unite! This family board game brings kids and parents together as they go head-to-head in a trivia game. If you’re a family of trivia fans, then this is a must!

Mission impossible

Chrono Bomb ($74.71)

If your kids don’t like sitting at the table to play a game,  here’s your secret weapon. It’s time for everyone in the family to use their secret agent skills to weave through an obstacle course and defuse a bomb without touching the wires. The kids will laugh like loons – and so will you!

Hungry hungry kitty

Feed the Kitty ($32.99)

Forget Hungry Hungry Hippos – Kitty is starving. And mice are on the menu! This multi-award winning game is as darling as they come and will have your kids wanting to play right meow. A great introduction to counting and numbers for the preschool set that’s just as much fun for grown-ups.

Triple play

Triominos ($29.95)

Take your love of dominoes to the next level with Triominos, a tile-playing game with a triangular twist. The big bold numbers on each tile make this a great game for little ones learning number recognition as well as older kids who love a good challenge.

Slammin’ sandwiches

Slamwich ($19.99)

Who knew you could have so much fun making sandwiches? You can with Slamwich, a family card game (similar to SLAP!) that is secretly helping kids perfect their reading skills. A great fast game for filling in a bit of time before bed.

Let’s get articulate

Articulate for Kids ($41.99)

Chatterboxes unite! This board game brings the good ol’ fashion gaming fun of Articulate into the mouths of little ones as young as six. If you can talk up a storm, then you will love this game, where the idea is to describe as many card entries as possible to your teammates in 30 seconds.

Clued into reading

uKloo ($44.74)

We love a board game which is secretly teaching our kids how to read! And this fits the mould brilliantly! Disguised as a treasure hunt, your little one races against the clock to try and solve the riddles, working their mind and body at the same time. The game comes with three levels of clues for different age groups and is great fun for parents as well.

By the blocks

Blokus ($52.94)

Bring your games’ night up a notch with Blokus, an easy-to-learn block game that follows a similar structure to dominoes. Each piece you play must touch at least one other piece of the same colour, but only at the corners. It’s simple and strategic all at once, and suitable for children as young as five.