It’s a huge deal these days to convince children or teenagers to play anything other than their lovely video games. We know you’ve already tried UNO, Go Fish, and similar standard-card games, so, it’s time you consider our ideas. Each game has a different theme and gameplay, so, after reading the description and considering your kids’ age and taste, we’re sure you’ll pick the perfect one!
- Here To Slay;
- Sushi Go;
- Love Letter;
- Cards Against Humanity: Family Edition;
- Sleeping Queens;
- Doomlings;
- Rat a Tat Cat;
- Hanabi;
- Exploding Kittens;
- Kids Against Maturity
- Not Parent Approved
- What Do You Meme? Family Edition
1. Here To Slay
2 to 6 players | Ages 10+ | 143 cards| Gametime of 30 to 60 minutes;
A game made by the creators of Unstable Unicorns is bound to be awesome. Players create a party of heroes to fight monsters and sabotage each other’s progress, with amazing designs for parties, heroes, and monsters that enhance the experience. You win by slaying 3 monsters or ending your turn with a full party after playing various cards and completing actions.
If you need an in-depth explanation of the rules, watch Here to Slay | How to Play
2. Sushi Go
2 to 5 players | Ages 8+ | 108 cards | Gametime of 15 minutes;
Sushi Go, or its cool edition Sushi Go Party, lets players create the best sushi meals ever. By playing and passing cards, you build sets like maki rolls or sashimi to earn points. Different combinations have different values, and the highest score wins the game!
There are a few extra rules, and you can hear all about them at How to Play Sushi Go!
3. Love Letter
2 to 4 players | Ages 10 + | 27 cards | Gametime of 20 minutes;
Fun fact: this is my 14-year-old sister’s favorite card game! The game involves representing royal characters and trying to get the Princess to read your letter using character cards with special abilities. If you’re the last player remaining in a round, you earn a token of affection, and whoever has the most by the end wins the game and the Princess’ heart!
How to Play Love Letter in 3 Minutes explains all further information about characters and more instructions.
4. Cards Against Humanity: Family Edition
4 to 20+ players | Ages 8+ | 600 cards | Gametime of 30 to 90 minutes;
We’ve gone this far without mentioning Cards Against Humanity, but we can’t any longer. The Family Edition is a great game for kids or teens in the family, or they can play without you. One player, the Card Czar, reads the black cards and picks the funniest white card, and whoever earns the most awesome points wins!
5. Sleeping Queens
2 to 5 players | Ages 8+ | 79 cards | Gametime of 20 minutes;
The concept of the game came from a 6-year-old, so it can’t be bad, right? Twelve queens, including the LadyBug Queen, have fallen asleep, and it’s your job to wake them up by playing a king. While knights and potions make the challenge harder, you can use dragons and wands for protection, and whoever wakes the most queens wins! Although the gameplay is simple, watch How to Play Sleeping Queens for additional information.
6. Doomlings
2 to 6 players | Ages 10+ | 167 cards | Gametime of 20 to 45 minutes;
In Doomlings, each player earns points by playing traits for their species while adapting to catastrophes revealed through the ages. The game unfolds through several rounds, with each age featuring a special rule or effect. The player with the most points at the end of the world wins—just as simple as that. This video explains the rules briefly: How to Play Doomlings.
7. Rat a Tat Cat
2 to 6 players | Ages 6+ | 54 cards | Gametime of 20 minutes;
The name Rat a Tat Cat is very fun, just like the gameplay! Throughout the game, you’ll draw and play cards, sneak a peek at some of them, and use strategy to replace lower-value cards with higher-value ones. After several tries and using power cards, when you believe you have the lowest score, you call out ‘Rat a Tat Cat,’ and if you’re right, you win! All the rules to this super-entertaining game are explained in How to Play Rat a Tat Cat.
8. Hanabi
2 to 5 players | Ages 8+ | 60 cards | Gametime of 20 to 30 minutes;
The game includes fireworks, which the kids will definitely love, and adults too. You’ll work together, under a time limit, to remember hints and play creative card combinations in the correct sequence, creating stunning firework displays. With five different firework colors and included tokens, it’s one of our family’s favorite games to take when traveling, especially during actual fireworks shows. For everyone who needs extra pieces of information, consider watching How to Play Hanabi.
9. Exploding Kittens
2 to 5 players | Ages 7+ | 56 cards | Gametime of 15 minutes;
Exploding Kittens is the perfect game to end this list. Players take turns drawing and playing cards, but if you draw an Exploding Kitten card, you’re out—unless you have a diffuse card. Other cards offer special actions, like stopping players, secretly adding exploding kittens, or making others give you cards. To know everything in detail about this card game, here’s a cool video made by the manufacturers: Exploding Kittens – How to Play.
10. Kids Against Maturity
Ages 10+ | 4+ players | 600 cards;
Kids Against Maturity is one of the kids’ favorite card games. It follows the same rules as Cards Against Humanity and includes a huge deck divided into blue question cards and white answer cards. Kids love it because it has lots of their favorite fart jokes, making them giggle non-stop!
11. Not Parent Approved
Ages 8+ | 3 to 10 players | 455 cards;
Kids love Not Parents Approved because they think it’s not parent-approved, even though it actually is. From not-showering-for-days jokes to making fun of teachers, they enjoy playing it with their mates, favorite aunt, and parents. They’ve even created a few extra packs if you want to check them out!
12. What Do You Meme? Family Edition
Ages 8+ | 3+ players | 365 cards;
What Do You Meme? is what CAH would look like with photos included. The family edition includes appropriate pictures and captions too, so your kids can show their imagination, without you feeling shocked… It’s unbelievable how basic, innocent pictures will turn into the funniest memes ever, because yes, kids are unpredictable. It’s very replayable, and we honestly think it’s good for all kids, once they can read. Played once with a 6-year-old, it went great!
Final Thoughts
The great thing is that these games work amazingly even if they’re going to be played by kids and their peers, but also, at family nights. We’ve tested all of the games we recommended with kids & teens, and turns out they definitely reduce screen time and help social connecting. That’s all we’re looking for, innit?