Top 10 Gateway Board Games 

I have to say this is the best top 10 gateway video I have ever seen. Great games and great alternatives. There is something for everyone :)

This was an EXCELLENT EXCELLENT list!!! And I love how you added alternatives to the main ones that you mentioned!! I can hardly think of anything else to add maybe Point Salad, and Jaipur? GREAT VIDEO!!!

Great list, loved how you all gave an easier option also. I thoroughly enjoyed watching this video, thank you!

Great list! Love how you manage to communicate the essence of a game in a few sentences. Really relaxing and inspiring to watch. I own and enjoy 14 of these games. I would add the Quest for El Dorado as a great gateway game.

I definitely agree about Camel Up having those great "stand up" moments. One of my favorites!

I own _Ticket to Ride_ , _Pandemic_ , _Forbidden Island_ , and _Harry Potter: Hogwarts Battle_ and I enjoy all of them. I used _Forbidden Island_ as a gateway game and played the absolute shortest game of my life. "Fool's Landing" was one of the initial six tiles to start sinking. Nobody was able to shore it up, and we got a "Waters Rise" card at the end of the first turn. Naturally, "Fool's Landing" was one of the tiles to sink, ending the game. We all laughed about it and put the game away (obviously it was not the time to play it and we were there to role-play). We pulled it out again at a later date and enjoyed a full game of it. I think _Small Worlds_ was my first introduction to the hobby, though I do not own it. My first purchased game was _Machi Kuro_ which we continue to play (and usually one of us wins one move before the other one would have). I consider this to be a good gateway game as its rules are likewise pretty simple.

Fabulous list. Many of these games are favourites of mine!

Prepared, professional, entertaining without waffle, thoughtful, systematic, interesting and useful. Good list and great to idea give a simpler 'equivalent'. Many thanks for the help getting kids (and their friends) to the table!

I love the format for this. I would probably choose some different pairs of games for my own list, but the idea here is great. Many awesome games featured here. Love it.

Oh, wow! I'm surprised (and glad!) you mentioned Las Vegas. I bought it from Walmart a couple years ago for my roommate and I when I was just starting my game collection. We haven't played it in a while, but I most definitely like it.

I love the fact that you put games on the list in line with different mechanisms such as Drafting (#2) & Auctions (#7). In regards to Push-Your-Luck, I'd like to add Coloretto. An enduring classic that's a hit with everyone I played with.

Great video! Really great suggestions for entry level and just good games in general too.

Awesome vid. Wished I had watched this vid when I started & love how you took price point into consideration. Sticker shock is a very real thing when transitioning to the bigger board game world.

Hey thanks for all of these great suggestions. It helps us find games that are family friendly for my bride and our four kids ;) Thanks again!

You guys covered many of our family favorites! You also gave us many ideas to add to our wishlist.

I own a lot of these ! Great list. Love to see parks here . My favorite is Azul . I like it better than ticket to ride especially since it is better for 2 players.

What a great video; this is awesome. Will definitely be looking to get Azul and Ticket to ride; I think the family will really enjoy them. I'm so glad I find your channel! Hanabi looks bunkers and lots of fun; will definitely be getting that one.

I’ve been playing for years now and sticker shock is still a very real thing, lol!

You two are awesome! LOVE the way you explain and Show the game in a way that makes it easy to know if this is right for us! Bravo!

Great topic and great list. It's amazing that I have just about all of these in my collection. I also like to break out Machi Koro then next level to Space Base. Jaipur is quick and easy set collection. Polyomino games like Cottage Garden works well for gateway also.

Fantastic list! I really enjoyed this one. Lots of great suggestions for people. Point Salad is another nice gateway game. If people are familiar with trick-taking, the cooperative nature of The Crew makes it a good choice.

I haven't played Parks yet. But, I absolutely LOVE Trekking the National Parks. To me, that one along with Ticket to Ride are a couple of my must plays.

I'll have to say that we were hooked back into gaming with Ticket to Ride and Carcassonne. Before that we used to play Blokus and Qwirkle. Now we have expanded to play some of the games in your list (Azul, Kingdomino, Pandemic and the Forbidden series). We prefer simple games that play well for 2 players in an hour or less. The most "complex" we play are Viticulture and Castles of Burgundy. Great video.

Awesome list, and great presentation of each game! I own 6 of those, and I totally agree with everything you said about them. So you just earned a subscriber! Well done guys

Very cool! Thanks for the info! These are great suggestions.

AMAZING list! Haven’t seen another video like this on other board game channels. Several games you listed I purchased because of how well you described them in few sentences. This is the video I share to others to watch for those interested in adding a few board games to their collection. I’d LOVE to see a follow up video about a list of gateway games to expand on the board game entry variety that exists in the market.

Absolutely love this list. I have used a few on your list to introduce friends and family to gaming, and I will check out a few on your list I'm wasn't familiar as well (especially 2 of your children friendly game choices). Thank you.

Thank you for this. Me and family recently just got into playing board games.

Loved, loved loved this. Especially giving an easier option for each game you chose! This is really helpful for families. What got me started that you didn't mention? Dice Heist, Qwixx, Labyrinth, Exploding Kittens, Sagrada, & Zombie Kids Evolution to name a few :)

Very good list, I think if anyone is looking for good board games beyond the standard games like Clue or Monopoly this is a great list to look at!

Excellent list, I really like how each spot has alternatives. I'd like to add that now there's an even more accessible gateway deckbuilder: Abandon All Artichokes. It also introduces the perks of deck-thinning intuitively, unlike Dominion or Hogwarts Battle(the latter barely even has any). Hardback & Valley of the Kings are other good alternatives to Star Realms, both of which are also playable with 3+ players. If you can get it, Heart of Crown might be a slightly better gateway than Dominion, since its +Action effects are made clearer using very readable arrows. Caravan could also be a good alternative to Ticket to Ride

Great list! For me, Ticket to Ride was an opener, so was Tsuro and Qwirkle :)

Awasome selection and I specially like the "alternatives". You should try implementing this in all your TOP videos. Great work!

Great list. I think the main list is spot on, and I liked the alternatives, mixing the classic with the more modern.

Recently I've been using The Crew, The Mind, and Point Salad. These have gone over very well. There's quite a few on your list I use often, I would add Alhambra in there too.

Awesome list ... Thanks I've just recently got my wife to play games with me as I was going insane during this pandemic. This is the first list I've seen with some different options that I might check out to add to the simpler games list of my collection.. Imotep, Karuba, Barenpark, Parks, Asking for Trobits... And based on comments below The Crew and Quest for El Dorado... The one game that my wife understood right away and loves is Stone Age so that would be a good one too for this list.

Great video thanks.

Bardzo dobry film 👍 Dziękuję!

Awesome list! Looking forward to more of your videos. Carcassonne, Ticket to Ride, and Forbidden Island were our first games when we started boardgaming. I don’t think my husband will ever play Carcassonne again. 😭

First game I ever played was Betrayal. And the rest is a very expensive history 😅

I totally agree with this list and I think that this is not only good gateway games, but just a lot of good core games nearly everyone should have in their collection. I think 2 other honorable mentions might be Reef and Imhotep.

Love Karuba!! So fun!!

The first board game i played was either Dungeon! or Solar Quest (both of which i've seen reprinted recently). i'd say that what really got me into the hobby was either Settlers of Catan or Evo.

My wife and i love to pull out Parade, Welcome to, Fluxx (Math), 13 Clues, and Grim Masquerade as our gateway games for friends and family. My introduction to modern games came as Splendor.

I recently introduced my family to Stone age and they managed to pick it up fairly well. Takes a couple of games to come up with a good strategy.

First time here on the channel and automatically subscribed because that Doctor who shirt, btw amazing vídeo

This was very helpful. I love splendor and Jaipur! Trying to find games similar

I like the way you picked one game then offered an even easier game! What a lot of gamers see as gateway is still above & beyond some folks that I play with. I like to have very simple games for those situations like Sushi Go! & Kingdomino. Barenpark is arriving today & I can't wait to try it. Great video!

정말 좋은 추천이다. 내가 재미있게 즐겼던 게임들이 대부분 포함되어있다. From S.Korea.

Fantastic video.

Pickomino, Diamond (from iello), Menara, Celestia, The Mind, Point Salat and Mysterium are also fun getaway games

A fantastic game me and my family started with was roll for adventure. A game that is easy to learn and play and is brilliant fun but rarely seems to get a mention anywhere.

Catan junior should definitely be on here somewhere. It’s not exactly a kids game but it’s just a simplified mechanic and it’s really easy to play. I prefer it over regular Catan.

Bees: The Secret Kingdom is my newest favorite game to introduce to new gamers. You can take only 1 of 2 actions on your turn and it’s basic set collection having the most honey points. Point Salad is another.

There were two games that got me into boardgaming. You already mentioned Carcassonne. The other is North American Rails. This is one of the Mayfair Games crayon rail series. It is a route building, pick up and deliver game. I now own 7 of the crayon rail games and pull one of them out on a regular basis to play.

👍🏻💝 very helpful

Great list. I'm surprised you didn't match Reef with Azul, but perhaps it's because they're made by the same company. Ticket to Ride was in fact the gateway board game for me. Now I'm hooked.

I find micro games are good for introductions. In addition to Sushi Go which you already mentioned, I also like Love Letter, Roll For It, 12 Days and Fluxx. But . . . it’s a little weird that we’ve gotten to this point, isn’t it. In the pre-Catan era, you didn’t need specific games to introduce it to people. If you wanted to play checkers, you just set up the checkers.

I'm thinking a good gateway game is Horrified. Great theme, easy to learn/easy to teach, the flow of play, not to mention a great place to teach the little ones about the classic horror monsters. I could play this game over and over again, with a group or by myself in the solo mode

This is a really good top 10 board game video! Subscription is a must!

Kevin - We found a 10th anniversary edition of Ticket To Ride at Good’s Store in Quarryville, PA about two years ago. I quickly scoured their other locations in hopes of finding another one.

a few honorable mentions: mysterium, colt express (a great way to introduce programmable movement). bohnanza

Awesome list, Although I'd choose lanterns dice instead of Lanterns and for sushi go the party edition. What about a list of the best games so far in the first half ot the year?

List was great. I loved Imhotep as a gateway game, and I think that Stone Age could fit in the category. I would also include Lords of Waterdeep, but that one may be a little mean for the standards of the list.

best top ten

Excellent list with lots of great ideas! For me, PARKS is the best game you mentioned, and it costs less that Ticket to Ride, Potion Explosion, and Pandemic, so I don't understand your problem with price point.

I have many of these games. Good lists! I think that Tsuro needs to be added to the list.

Really like ur "alternative/simpler" option w each one. I don't think I've seen that done bfor w a Top 10 List. Maybe others will do that w their Top 10 ??

My gateway board game was Villainous. I assumed it was nothing more than a cash grab by using Disney's and Marvel's name. But than I actually played it and there was much more depth to the game than I expected. I recently fell in love with Icarus by renegade game studios (I guess it's technically not a BOARD game).

Res arcana, modern art and citadel are pretty great gateway games imo

The only game I feel I would add to your list is Skull🖤✌😎

Thanks for the very helpful and informative video. Just a thought: Perhaps consider adding onscreen game info (e.g. show the nr of players, ages and time on the screen)... so it is not necessary to constantly click *back* in the video to check what you guys said about the game requirements 🙂

I would say Quacks of Quindlenberg. Press your luck game that's easy to teach IMO. Sagrada. What about Kingdom Builder. Rather simple idea. place you houses on the terrain that was drawn. trying to focus on 3 different goals to pursue in how you place the houses. example most in one sector, 7 or more in a line, longest connected line of houses (or something like that) We taught it and many grasped it pretty quickly.

I like that you own a Game Toppers topper. Generation 1 Waverly. I have a Gen 1 Holmes. Is yours the same model? Kinda hard to tell from the short side. Watson? I started out years ago with Acquire (Avalon Hill; 1976 edition) and Rail Baron (again, Avalon Hill; 1977 edition). Thanks for the video. Very informative.

I used century golem to introduce my parents and brothers into boardgames

Another thing that would make Splendor a gateway game would be the fact that theres an upcoming Marvel edition. I'm note sure if its just Splendor with a Marvel skin or if it will have new game mechanics. Look forward to the Tantrum House review.

Airlines Europe is also a good gateway board game. Dragon Castle is another good gateway game. Good list, by the way.

Awesome choices. Could you guys in your future videos make more remarks about age? I am really interested if the games play well with younger kids, 6yrs and above

I've always liked cooperative games as gateway games. I've even introduced people through things like mansions of madness. The cooperative nature allows you to help them when needed. Just don't let your alpha players ruin the fun for them. Haha

Hmm, my husband and I play games as a couple almost daily, so I assumed we would not be "gateway" people, but our favorite games are all in your list (or suggested by others in the comments), several of them considered your "even simpler" versions! Perhaps we don't want to strain our brains too much remembering rules? Our #1 fav is Star Realms, #2 is Ticket to Ride (USA), #3 Splendor, #4 Carcassonne, and #5 either Jaipur or 7 Wonders Duel (we like the normal 7 Wonders much better, but it doesn't work well with two players). We also own 6 Nimmt and play with modified rules that work well for two players, but it's pretty one-sided in our case - I'm not good at bluffing and baiting (and don't like that element) and my husband knows me too well, so he almost always wins.

You had me at Zander! (Name of my eldest boy). Now curious to see how many of these 10 I already own... rats. Not the first one.

what made you pick dominon ? its not simple, i have two friends in my board game group, both love it and have many expansions for it, each card that has a special action on it or a special rule on it changes the game. also ascension and thunderstone are simpler and better games, they are simpler because once you understand it, you have got it, you are done but dominon changes with each special card.

Yay Trobils!

Great video. I could probably dive right into Mage Knight and just muscle through it, but my family needs to be gently warmed up to game types. This is something I have a hard time remembering. I own Splendor and I was thinking of it immediately when you described Century. I feel like gems are more interesting than spices, for sure. I'm going to have to get Kingdomino. I guess 'domino' in the name should have been somewhat of an indicator. The closest game I have to this is Carcassonne, and I HATE Carcassonne. Carcass. is so boring because there is little to no strategy involved. Its just draw a tile, place a tile, place a meeple, and hope for the best. Odd that you picked it for a pre-game for Baren Park, which I have never played. Love KoT. Its always a hit and even though the rules seem very complicated, I have taught it to 8 yr olds with success. Surprising its so low scored on BGG, given how well its always received when introduce it. We have For Sale. Super easy game, but not too exciting. We have only played it 2-3 times and have yet to come up with a strategy for buying vs selling. Definitely adding Camel Up to my short list. Dominion has been on my list a while. I love deck building games. One of my favorite family deck building games is Marvel Legendary. I look forward to getting Dominion, because so far all your suggestions look fun...except Carcassonne. Pandemic, and other strategy Co-op problem: the 'smartest' person playing kinda dominates the decisions. It can be a bit disappointing for children to play with adults because they are constantly being overruled. Fun game, but you have to try hard to make everyone feel important. We also have Forbidden Desert. Exact same problem. Someone always feels like they are constantly being overruled because their own ideas are 'bad'. One time my wife flipped over an oasis while the rest of us were not on the tile, forgetting the mechanics, and we all died of thirst soon after. Ruined the game for while, for us. We have never beaten Forbidden Desert, where as we never lose Pandemic. Potion Explosion also on my list for family games. Just never pulled the trigger. Azul... what to say? So much hype but, for me, such an uninteresting game. Maybe its because a strategy has yet to click with me, so it just seems like randomness. When I win, its purely accidental. Kids like the bag of tiles, but otherwise, it falls short for me. We also have Sushi Go!. One of our first games. It was fun for 5-10 games, but it rarely gets played now. Learning about sushi was the most interesting part :) Ticket to Ride!?! NO!!!! I HATE this game!! It always leads to arguments and really is about as strategic as Monopoly ie. It doesn't stimulate my brain at all. I actually hid Monopoly, Life and Ticket To Ride from my family, because I hate playing them. We have Hanabi. I think its kinda fun. I thought people into party games would like it more, but they didnt. When we play, we enjoy it, but its hard to convince people to play it. It falls short on presentation, even if the theme is original. QUESTION1: What is the follow up game for each? Id love to find a KoT-like game that is more complex; for example. Please respond. QUESTION2: What about intro to the top 3 ranked games: Scythe, Terraforming Mars, and Gloomhaven? I personally have a hard time convincing myself that worker placement or engine building CAN be fun. Gloomhaven is just so complex that most casuals wont make it past the rule book.

What is the table you showed that looked like old monopoly boards? Is this concrete or lacquer over the boards?

I would add Champions of Midgard and Lords of Waterdeep as well

6 nimmt! Easy to learn and very difficult to master.

This game is interesting! If you enjoy playing complex board games that require a great deal of strategy and detecting the motivations of others, then you should give Lagim Card Game a try. The game is inspired by Filipino folklore and mythology. It is the type of game that will take time to get used to, but it is definitely worth it if you're willing to put in the effort. Visit their page for more info :)

century is brutal deck building, but when you have system, you need only 4-5 cards. i once win game with only 6 cads in hand, but using only 4 of them... :D

Citadels is one of the best gateway board games imho

I think for a gateway game, Horrified is better than Forbidden Island. Horrified is more engaging than Forbidden series. Splendor is also more gateway than Century: Spice Road, because the latter is actually more abstract.

So i have 2 questions, one about las vegas game (cause im into the gambling theme and all) but i could only find the royale version, or is that the actually game? xD also, for the games that have specific notepads and writing, can you get replacements?

All great gateway games🖤✌ Azul works better for adults and not kids and King of Tokyo works better with kids and not adults😎👊

Nice Stargate t-shirt

is there any player interaction in century spice road? i played century golem and it was boring and had no player interaction.

any game you play in the whole world has players involved with it. did you write down what you were going to say ahead of time ? so you could check if it sounded dumb or not ?

Dang, that Pandemic box is old. I seriously thought this video was 8 years old (no COVID references!)

Lots of spiel winners like Camel cup in here, except for Splendor

Do a top 10 party games video

Was there a thunderstorm going on in the background?