For many board game players, the biggest hurdle to getting a game on the table isn't complexity or length, but finding the right group at the right time. Solo board games solve this problem by offering deeply engaging experiences designed to be just as tense, strategic and emotionally rewarding as their multiplayer counterparts.
6 Board Games You Can Play By Yourself
We've selected six excellent board games that are either designed for solo play or offer a one-player experience.
These five solo board games are so immersive, so rich in decision-making and atmosphere, that once you start playing, everything else on your shelf fades into the background. Whether you're surviving a city under siege, shaping the fate of a fantasy world, or uncovering cosmic horrors one card at a time, these games prove that playing alone doesn't always make for a less immersive experience.
This War of Mine: The Board Game
Make difficult moral and practical decisions in a city under siege
This War of Min: The Board Game is based on a survival video game This my war from 11bit studios. Just like a video game, This War of Mine: The Board Game throws the player into a brutal city under siege where players must make difficult decisions – both practical and moral – in order to survive.
In order to survive, the player must clear rubble, grow vegetation, build flower beds and workshops, defend against dangerous raiders and bandits and perform many other tricky tasks. Colorful characters in the middle of a desolate gray world, challenging decisions and an immersive environment make the game so immersive. Like the other games on this list, This War of Mine: The Board Game can also be played with friends, although finding out what decisions your friends would make in life and death situations is one of the many reasons why the game is best played alone.
Gloomhaven
A massive legacy campaign that rewards long-term commitment
Whereas the above This War of Mine: The Board Game is a video game adaptation, Gloomhaven is a board game that became so popular that it was adapted into a video game.
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Gloomhaven was designed by Isaac Childres and is a campaign-based dungeon crawler with nearly 100 playable scenarios and 17 playable classes, giving players an incredible amount of variety to get lost in. The fantasy game has a Legacy format, which means that each session can greatly influence the ones that follow, which can lead to unforgettable stories with shocking twists that will keep the player engrossed. Gloomhaven also stands out from other dungeon-crawler games thanks to Eurogame's modern mechanics.
The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game
Challenging Middle Earth journey
Board games are another medium lord of the rings has several popular releases. The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game is a Live Card game that is a variant of trading card games without the gambling aspect, as players know exactly what cards they are getting when they buy. The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game and its extension.
The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game challenges players to complete scenarios by sending their heroes and allies to complete tasks or fight against the growing strength of enemy forces. Those who enjoy the game have no shortage of extra content, as a plethora of expansions have been released over the years, offering hundreds or even thousands of hours of entertainment.
Ghost Island
A strategic solo game with escalating tension and depth
Ghost Island is a Euro-style strategy game where players must defend their island by fending off colonizing invaders. In order to fend off the attackers, the player must acquire abilities and power cards, while the attacker deck will see them exploring, building and/or ravaging areas.
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The player's goal is to destroy the invaders and their settlements. Initially, victory can only be achieved by eliminating every invader and settlement, but as the game progresses, players can lower the win criteria by generating Fear. Ghost Island is another game on this list with a video game equivalent, thanks to the Handelabra Games 2020 PC and mobile game of the same name.
Arkham Horror: The Card Game
A narrative-driven descent into cosmic horror
A list of impressive board games would seem incomplete without some good space horror. Lovecraftian Arkham Horror: The Card Game it's like a live card game The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game and from the same publisher, Fantasy Flight Games. Arkham Horror puts the player in the shoes of an Arkham investigator and leans heavily on role-playing, with the player having a lot of choice in how they proceed as they delve into the mystery.
Like many of the games on this list, Arkham Horror: The Card Game features a multi-scenario campaign where players will struggle with their character's inner strengths and weaknesses, load up their packs with allies and gear, and fight enemies that can cause them to lose their minds in classic Lovecraftian fashion.
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