And Now, A Big List Of Board Games You Should Buy With Your Tax Return

There is a good chance you’re about to get some money back from the government, maybe! Sure, you could put that towards your future or bills or something else responsible. But why not buy board games instead? You know you want to.

Here is a list of board games that I really like, and think you’ll like too. 

You Should Play Wyrmspan

Name of board game: Wyrmspan

Number of players: 1-5

Length of game: 60-90mins

Teach Your Friends Difficulty Rating: Medium. You might want a YouTube tutorial for this one. The rules aren’t super clear on the first reading.

I fully acknowledge that this entire list was originally an elaborate excuse to tell people to play Wyrmspan, because I really think you’d like it and not enough people are talking about how good it is.

You’ve probably played Wingspan, the bird collecting game that’s taken the world by storm, I know I have. According to Steam, I played well over 550 hours of Wingspan during the lockdowns, and I have played a whole heap of IRL Wingspan too. So, I had extremely high hopes going into Wyrmspan. Wyrmspan is basically Wingspan, but with dragons and is also completely different in significant ways.

The aim of Wyrmspan is to excavate caves, entice dragons and then go on little quests where you (presumably) farm your enticed dragons for resources. The art is absolutely delightful, as you would expect. Some people say that a game of Wyrmspan lasts for about 45 minutes, and those people are wrong. I haven’t yet played a game of it that went for less than 90 minutes, though I have so far only played games with 4 or 5 players. As you get better (and if you have fewer players) it will presumably go faster.

The first game of Wyrmspan does drag on a bit while you get used to the rules, but I found myself getting completely caught up in each subsequent game. I would liken it to getting into a pool: the first few steps are absolutely torture, but then it’s good ol’ summer fun or whatever season it may be.

The way the game flows (once it clicks for you) is really satisfying, and there are so many different ways you can play your strategy that it keeps things interesting. You’ll love it.

Here’s where you can buy Wyrmspan:

I Must Wax Poetic About The Many Flavours Of Ticket To Ride

Fun fact: there is not a single bad version of Ticket To Ride, at least not one that I’ve played so far (there is still time). There are merely short, medium, long and extremely long versions of everyone’s favourite train placement game.

Here Are Some Highlights Beyond The Base Game, Ranked In Order Of Length

Name of board game: Ticket To Ride: New York

Number of players: 2-4

Length of game: 10-15 minutes

Teach Your Friends Difficulty Rating:  Easy peasy

There’s a whole bunch of these little bite-sized maps of Ticket To Ride, featuring a variety of different cities, so there is a lot to choose from. But, given how America-centric Australia still seems to be, New York is an easy pick because many of us have absorbed the layout of this city through osmosis. In this version, there are taxis instead of trains, which is really the main difference. There are still destination cards that will give you points, taxi tickets to pick up and little plastic taxis to place. The other difference is that you also get extra points for completing routes that include major tourist landmarks.

The games go nice and quickly, so you can play a few with a friend while they’re learning without them getting too frustrated on spending so much time on their first Ticket to Ride. It’s a good game to play over coffee because you don’t have to dig into a lore-filled rulebook and pretend to care about a hungry dragon attacking a village or something. It’s easy, and light enough that you can have a conversation over it while a game gives you something to do with your hands.

Name of board game: Ticket To Ride: Germany

Number of players: 2-5

Length of game: 30-60 minutes

Teach Your Friends Difficulty Rating: Easy

Germany has a bit more substance than the city-based games like New York, and it has an extra passenger mechanic over the regular base game, but it’s still simple, classic Ticket To Ride. It’s a good game to graduate to after the city games. The passenger mechanic (where you collect passengers of certain colours on trains and trade them in for points later, which is a slightly awkward thing to introduce in a German map of the game) adds interest beyond just the usual collecting cards and placing trains, and also requires you to be a bit more strategic in your turns. 

Name of board game: Ticket To Ride: Rails and Sails

Number of players: 2-5

Length of game: 90-120mins

Teach Your Friends Difficulty Rating: Medium

Some people hate Rails and Sails because it’s “too long” and “unnecessarily complicated compared to the base game” and “why are there ships in a train game?” Those people are weak and have not truly embraced Ticket To Ride. The games do take a long time, which is why I like them, and the added complication of having two decks (one for trains, one for ships) and two sets of plastic modes of transport add extra interest and more of a challenge. It’s certainly not for everyone, and it does take some adjustment. But I love it, and maybe you will too.

Name of board game: Ticket To Ride Legacy: Legends Of The West

Number of players: 2-5

Length of game: One month – a year depending on how busy your friendship group is (13 1 hour-ish games)

Teach Your Friends Difficulty Rating: Easy-medium

As the name implies, this is a legacy game, which means you play it repeatedly, and the rules change a bit each time. I absolutely loved the variety of Legends of the West. It was super creative, and it didn’t get stale (you can read my full review here). That said, you and your friends should play a couple of games of the base Ticket to Ride US board first just to make sure you like it, because this is a big commitment, and all of you need to be fully on board with it before you play to get the most out of it.

Here’s where you can buy Ticket To Ride:

Lorcana Is Better Than It Should Be

Name of board game: Lorcana

Number of players: 2+

Length of game: 30-ish minutes

Teach Your Friends Difficulty Curve: Easy-medium

Have you ever wished you could banish Mickey Mouse and use his blood for ink? Because you can kinda do that in Lorcana (not really, it’s super family friendly, but let me have my fun). Lorcana is basically “what if Magic the Gathering and Hearthstone had Disney-themed babies”. It’s less combat-based than MTG, and it has a similar mana mechanic as Hearthstone so you don’t get mana screwed. I love how easy it is to build a deck, and it’s just so approachable. People who bounced off MTG because there’s too much nuance and agro will enjoy the simplicity of Lorcana. Blue MTG players might not enjoy their lack of control, but green/white players who just like to build a big army of creatures and then win will have a great time.

Lorcana is portable and easy to learn. I don’t know if it’s going to be a huge game for players, or just for collectors, but there’s a lot of juice in it and it is absolutely worth paying attention to. I am obsessed.

Here’s where you can buy Lorcana:

A Collection Of Casual Games Even Your Non-Board Gaming Friends Can’t Shoot Down

Name of board game: Racoon Tycoon

Number of players: 2-5

Length of game: 30-60mins

Teach Your Friends Difficulty Rating: Easy

I have waxed poetic about Racoon Tycoon before, and I’ll do it again gosh darn it. Racoon Tycoon embodies the spirit of “what if Monopoly was good”, but with adorable animals as the capitalists. It’s a fun, casual game. We bring it out after dinner parties, and over afternoon tea. I have yet to encounter someone who didn’t like it. Just maybe consider taking out the building that gives a $5 commission on auctions, trust me.

Here’s where you can buy Racoon Tycoon:

Name of board game: Bark Avenue

Number of players: 1-5

Length of game: an hour-ish

Teach Your Friends Difficulty Rating: Easy-medium (the instructions are unclear, but the game is easy)

In this adorable game you compete as dog walkers trying to get the most tip/s and best reviews. You collect dogs, and then aim to take a photo of them, get them to enjoy their favourite activity, and then, if the dice rolls in your favour, make them poo. There are lots of cards with cute dogs on them, and it’s generally just a good time.

Here’s where you can buy Bark Avenue:

Name of board game: Coffee Rush

Number of players: 2-4 players

Length of game: 30mins

Teach Your Friends Difficulty Rating: Easy (but the rules could be written more clearly)

You know those stressful phone games where you work in a cafe and have to get everyone’s orders out really quickly but you can only use a certain number of stations? This is that, but in board game-form. The pieces of sugar, ice, coffee, etc are adorable, the game is easy play and set up, and it gets surprisingly competitive. It’s the kind of game that, once it clicks, everyone just has a good time with it. Perfect afternoon/morning tea game.

Here’s where you can buy Coffee Rush:

Two Interesting Games That I Haven’t Played Yet But Think Are Worth Your Attention

Name of board game: Medical Mysteries: New York Emergency Room

Number of players: 1-4

Length of game: 60mins

Teach Your Friends Difficulty Rating: Unknown

I have watched all 20 seasons of Grey’s Anatomy. I saw every episode of ER. I watched all of New Amsterdam. I have been to the set of House MD. I was born to play this game. Sadly, none of my friends share this sentiment. But maybe yours will? This is a cooperative medical mystery game where you examine, diagnose and treat patients. It sounds delightful. Technically, it’s for 1-4 players, but I’m told 3-4 is the ideal number. Each of the four included cases takes about an hour and ramp up in difficulty. It does appear that you can only play this game four times and get the most out of it, so that’s something to keep in mind when making your purchase, but I’ve spent more money on stupider things that went by faster, so you do you.

Here’s where you can buy Medical Mysteries: New York Emergency Room:

Name of board game: Too Many Cooks

Number of players: 2-6

Length of game: 20mins

Teach Your Friends Difficulty Rating: Easy

What’s great about Too Many Cooks is that it’s a cooperative game, so if you’re in a group where one person gets weirdly competitive and decides to burn every friendship to the ground just to get a momentary high from a win in a boardgame, ignoring the consequences, this might be a good one for you. From what I’ve read, it seems like a cool game about seasoning a broth with secret taste preferences. I love a secret broth. I haven’t had a chance to play it yet, but I want to.

Here’s where you can buy Too Many Cooks: