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There is such a wealth of great “family” weight games out there that it’s impossible to squeeze them all into the OP! But we all love an expansion that brings more of the stuff we love, so here at Zatu we have created a mini 5 game add-on to make your game night with your gang even more varied! And what’s more, just like all the best ones, we are certain this won’t be the last add-on!
Cities
The power couple of family gaming, Phil Walker Harding and Dr Steve Finn, have come together to design the brilliant CITIES by Kosmos Games. A worker placement game for 2 – 4 players featuring tiles and towers, players are using their meeples to take (and block) resources in order to build the most point-tastic cities possible! Being able to claim only a few of each type on offer each round, you must choose wisely. And often the decision comes down to either taking something to help yourself or whatever will most hinder an opponent! Whilst the actions won’t change from game to game, the variety of scoring objectives (public and private) keeps everyone feeling fresh. Easy to learn, a synch to set up, this is a lovely game for family game night!
Looot
We love tile laying games and LOOOT is a wonderful pattern matching, open drafting game where resources and scoring objectives compete for limited space! You have just 13 turns to send out your Vikings to reap as many relevant resources as possible. But it’s not just you on the central board, and other players will be placing theirs too! Once you have placed and selected a tile, you must then decide where to lay it on your own board. Using a single tree or sheep to achieve multiple Longboat and basic objectives is key, as is maximising the potential of your 3 one-time special powers. You can also take a scoring objective on each turn but beware the generosity on offer. If you fail to achieve these sneakily spatial temptations by end game, you’ll be suffering the consequences in negative points! With some features only available if you place your Vikings in certain ways, LOOOT is a light but really fun game with just the right amount of thinkiness!
The Lord of the Rings Duel for Middle Earth
Family weight games don’t need big families, and this new 2 player game from Asmodee definitely deserves to be on this list! A brilliant twist on Antoine Bausa’s 7 Wonders gameplay, players face off as Sauron and the Fellowship in a race to gain power over Middle Earth or see the One Ring destroyed. Combining set collection, area control, and tactical drafting, you’ll be taking and laying cards that activate powers and special abilities. With military might to strengthen and the loyalty of the Races to gain, every decision counts as you play over the chapters which increase in pace and strategy!
Fairy Ring
Pretty as a picture, Fairy Ring is a new game on the block, and it’s a delight! Themed around mushroom rings that pop up in the woods, these beautiful, tiny creatures need homes before winter strikes, and so you need to build magnificent mushroom abodes. With a limited number of movement points, your fairy will be passing through your toadstool town as well as other player’s bases. As such, you need to decide whether to extend your village to keep guests there for longer (and copy buildings other player have for bonus points!), or power up existing buildings to boost the abilities they provide you. Collecting mana for use over winter is how you gain points, and if you build right and move smart, you’ll be filled to the brim by the time the snow hits!
Nunatak: Temple of Ice
Kosmos have been on fire this year, and NUNATAK TEMPLE OF ICE is a stonking 3D tower building game which will give you chills if you don’t pay close attention to what everybody else is doing! Another easy to learn but tricky to master game, you’ll be collecting sets of cards to place blocks on a central board from which Nunatak will emerge. This game is all about the icons – they tell you what you can place and where, not to mention what you are collecting for points. With a bunch of different public scoring objectives to cycle in,, as well as each resource having its own criteria to satisfy, this is one of our favourite family games this year. Great table presence and an excellent two player mode means Nunatak has rarely been off our table since we started scaling its icy heights!
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