Board Games for Couples

Below I have handpicked games that are great for ANY two players, but I believe are more fantastic for couples specifically. Games that made this list are either relaxing, allow casual chatting, require cooperation, or build intimacy for one reason or another.

*For anyone interested, I will add links to anything that I purchased online.

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Bottom of the 9th:

1-2 players, Ages 13+, 5-20 min.

- Even though it's a small box game, Bottom of the 9th has a lot of depth. Two players choose a small team of baseball players and then face off on this little baseball diamond by trying to predict one another's actions. This is the core mechanic as the batter attempts to match the pitcher's pitch type. The results of this, plus a dice roll determine balls, strikes, and hits. Pitchers have ace pitches and a fatigue tracker, batters have a favored pitch, and all players have special abilities.

- Game summary: It's the bottom of the ninth inning, the game is tied, and it's down to the home team to score one run to win it all. Unfortunately, the home team is staring down the league's best closer. A dice and card game for two players, Bottom of the 9th brings all the excitement of the final three outs of a baseball game into a compact (less than 20 minute) game session. Bottom of the 9th includes the possibility of 2 added expansion packs and rules for Advanced League and solo play.

- This is indeed a "versus" game, but I still recommend it for couples for three main reasons. First, it's quickly played so there's plenty of time for re-matches. Second, even if one person doesn't know baseball well, they can choose from a fun and diverse group of players without being penalized for their knowledge level. Lastly, trying to predict and read each others' minds can be intimate and a fun skill to "put to the test".

- The Feel Good Factor: As the batter, this is simply when you perfectly match the pitcher's pitch or smash the ball for a good hit. As the pitcher, this feeling is purely when outsmarting the batter, methodically choosing your pitches because you know the type of person they are.

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Chronicles of Crime:

1-4 players, Ages 12+, 60-90 min.

- To fulfill a mystery board game need in our board game collection, I researched as many mystery games as I could. The main attraction I looked for was a cooperative game that had the most replay value. I found many games that were fantastic but didn't allow any replay at all; and then many other games that had replay but only because they lacked story and had random elements. In the end, Chronicles of Crime was my top choice due to its fun crime investigating, amazing app support, and multiple scenarios.

- In this cooperative game, players move around town, search crime scenes, interview suspects/witnesses, and attempt to catch a killer. The strongest mechanic is the 3D crime scenes done through your phone app where you actually turn the screen in every direction to view the scene while giving clues to your teammates. The next best use of the app is to scan every suspect, witness, location, and item card as the app describes to you their meaning and if the clues are relevant to your case.

- The game also has an interesting timer mechanic, where each card scanned progresses the time line. This means you could be in the middle of one crime scene when you're approached about a second crime taking place. The dynamic game-play that evolves from this mechanic is fun and interesting.

- I've found this to be an amazing couples game for me and my wife. It provides very interesting stories, strange characters, fun game mechanics, and a real sense of cooperative decision making. With multiple scenarios and stories, full game expansions, and the possibility to play user created scenarios, Chronicles of Crime should easily provide many hours of content.

- The Feel Good Factor: Obviously this is when you've solved a case! But the next best feeling is whenever you scan clues and the app reassures you by saying your guesses are correct.

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Patch Work (Americana Edition):

2 players, Ages 8+, 30 min.

- Patchwork is a wonderful quilt making puzzle game that captures the magic of needlework and sewing fabric together into designs. Players compete to build the most aesthetic quilt possible on their 9x9 game board. Not knowing what patch they’ll be able to claim on their turn, players will have to lay out their board carefully. Creating a beautiful quilt requires effort and time, but some patches just don't fit together.

- This game may sound simple, but requires a lot of strategy and planning to win. As one of my favorite couples game to date and probably the most played with my wife, it easily made this list. Although it requires strategy, we can casually chat and be relaxed while playing. Even when foiling each other's plan, we never get angry with this one.

- The strongest mechanic is the tile drafting. Your choices are always dependent on the opponent's turn and the number of buttons you have collected thus far. And of course I have to mention the endorphin boost you get whenever placing a tile perfectly into a difficult shape on your quilting board.

- The Feel Good Factor: Do I even need to say it? When your board starts filling up and you manage to snag that one piece that fits just right, bringing your beautiful quilt into existence and granting you buttons!

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Trails:

2-4 players, Ages 10+, 20-40 min.

- Seeming like a watered down version of the Parks board game, Trails is a fantastic and relaxing game focused on exploring nature to collect resources that may put you in the lead. In this small-box game, you will take a hike across iconic sites, gather resources, go birding, and earn wilderness badges.

- The core mechanic here is managing your resources and movement. If you move to the end of the trail faster, you may get to earn the badge you want, but you may pass up valuable resources to do so. The Canteen is a great mechanic as well, helping you quickly jump ahead of your opponents, but only being usable once per trail crossing. As players move from the trail's end back towards the trail's start, they flip the site tiles to the dark side which also makes landing on them more valuable as their payouts increase.

- Although I believe this game is better with 3-4 players, I still find it extremely relaxing as a couples board game. Personally, we try not to constantly track each other's points and with the birding bonus being kept secret, we never really know who will win until it's over.

- The Feel Good Factor: Spending your canteen to whiz by your opponents and grab the badge you've been collecting resources for. Another good feeling is when you roll the bear die well and utilize its bonus in the best way.