Best Gateway Board Games
I stumbled across the phrase “It’s easier to make gamers into friends, than friends into gamers”. I completely understand the sentiment. Several of my close friends don’t enjoy or want to play board games. They have their reasons but predominantly it has to do with taking the time to learn the game and understand the rules.
As boardgamers, we know “we” can pick up games quicker, the more types of games we play. If I can get my head around a game such as Dominion, then another Deck Builder won’t be too much of an issue. When I understand the game Stone Age as a worker placement game, it is easier to play Architects of the Western Kingdom.
Still, I try. I know I won’t be able to get them to sit through a game like Twilight Struggle or have them commit to a legacy game. That being said, there a number of games that I might just get someone to play. I would need a game that I can set up quickly, is easily teachable, and is fun. What I need are the best gateway board games. Even heavy boardgamers should have a select few for when the opportunity arises to teach a new player.
What makes a good gateway game?
Easy to Learn – This should actually be 1, 2, and 3. If you are going to hold the title of best gateway board game – you had better be easy to learn. Besides being easy to learn for yourself, it also needs to be easy to teach. Ideally, you want the first turn happening within 15 minutes. Anything longer than that – and you’ve lost them. You, as the teacher, need to have a full understanding and not have to consult the rulebook to play the game.
Easy to Play – Easy to learn and easy to play have slightly different meanings – and I don’t mean the game is “easy”. What I mean is that there are a limited amount of actions/components/board detail that a player needs to keep track of. The game can (and should) still be plenty strategic, and still be easy to play.
Timely – Less than 90 minutes – and frankly 90 minutes is pushing it. If you can get two games within that 90-minute window – so much the better.
Palatable Defeats – No one wants to get totally blown out. You don’t want a board flipping episode that can come with Monopoly. Equally disenchanting is a game that produces a slow bleeding defeat – (I’m looking at your Risk). Ideally, the game should come down to the wire, with good play be rewarded over good luck.
These next two criteria are optional. They aren’t unique to just gateway games, they are important for all games.
Scalable – You’d like to find a game that plays great in a small (2-3) player setting up to a larger 4-6 player setting. Ideally, you’ll introduce a game to “Bob’ and he becomes so enamored with it, he wants to introduce it to “Joe” and “Sally” as well.
Has Expansions – If if you’ve got a game that your non-gamers friend enjoy, consider an expansion. That will save you from teaching a new game and has the benefit of having your friends like it. Expansions are also teachable moments. They may show a new mechanic to players, furthering their knowledge.
Here are the Best Gateway Games
Azul hits several of our criteria. The game is easy to learn and is equally easy to play. A single turn requires essentially two decisions and then players score to see how well they did. It is incredibly satisfying when your placement equates to a high scoring round. The main crux of the game is designing your own specific board using tiles available. There isn’t a lot of adverse player interaction which means no one should feel like they are being picked on.
The game itself will generally last between 45 to 90 minutes depending on the number of players. It plays great as two and can handle up to 4.
The game does have an expansion, but in my mind, it is more of a player’s aid than a true expansion to the game.
Pandemic has a very wide appeal, and can almost be considered a mainstream game. The concept is simple to understand. You and your team must stop the spread of deadly disease, lest the 
world crumbles. It is one of two co-ops on this list, meaning you all win or lose together.
Because there are different roles each player can assume, it will take a little longer to explain the game. Once you identify the roles, the game play is straight forward enough. It is a bit tougher to play as well, but since its a co-op game, players can lean on each other to learn the game. If you are teaching the game, make sure you don’t run over the table and call all the shots – let your players play!
The base game is built as 2-4, but with expansions can go up to 6. (You could even play this solo). There are plenty of expansions to choose from. If your game group enjoys it, you could purchase 2 great legacy versions of the game. I would only recommend buying Pandemic Legacy after you have hooked your friends on the original.
Whenever people start talking about the best family game or the best party game – at some point, Codenames named.
The concept is simple enough. You give your team a clue relating to a tableau of cards on the board, and then your team tries to figure out which word or words you are referring to. Your team will then submit their guesses. The first team to hit all their clues wins. Take care though, you can guess your opponent’s clues by mistake. Worse, you may guess the assassin creating an auto failure.
The base game plays great 4 and up. With more than 4 you use two teams. It is a great game that can incorporate family/friends of all ages. There is an expansion to the best game available. There are a number of variations on the theme as well. The variations are all stand-alone games, meaning you don’t mix the versions together. Some of the variations are very thematic in nature such as Marvel or Harry Potter. There is also a two-player variation and some that don’t use words but use a picture instead.
Tons of gameplay and replayability, and found at a price of under $25
Isle of Skye has a very similar feel to another gateway game – Carcassonne. Similar to Carcassonne, this is a tile-laying game. Instead of a shared board like Carcassonne, each player is building their own island. Your goal is to create scoring opportunities using your tiles played.
The gameplay itself is easy to learn and teach. There is a specific round order that you follow that are all straight forward. Learning the various ways to score points will take a little getting used to. It is worth the effort because that is also what makes the game the most rewarding.
The game is played over 6 turns which aren’t too long once you get the hand of it. The average playtime is under an hour. Two to five players can play but it is best with 3 or 4 players.
The game has a nice built-in catchup feature, should a player get too far behind. It prevents the game from getting hopelessly lopsided which helps keep the engagement high.
The scoring objectives change each game. The tiles that you draw, will obviously change with each game. These two factors alone provide a lot of replay value. If that wasn’t enough there are two expansion to seek your teeth into, it provides a load of replayability.
When King Kong and Godzilla start playing Yahtzee- you get the game King of Tokyo.
An easy to learn, fun to play, game King of Tokyo is accessible to a wide crowd. The theme is great. I’ve played it with my 5-year-old son, as well as my regular game playing crew. It is fun having 
your mega monsters beat up each other. It can be played as two players – but the game “wants” more players involved to get the feel of a monster battle.
The game is easy to learn. Each player will roll some dice, keep the results they like, and apply the results. The rule booklet is straight forward. There is some extra reading throughout the game as you have the option to earn some power-up cards to help your monster. I haven’t found that it hinders the game as they are quite easy to follow.
The length of the game is somewhat variable. You could get into a major monster brawl which pushes out the game time to 90 minutes. Then again you could have a quick game where someone scores an early victory. Such is the way games go when it comes to dice.
If you are playing beyond 3 people, and someone goes down early, they may be stuck waiting on the sidelines with nothing to do until the next game. The game could be played with 2 players, but it is much much better with least 3 players. I like it with more than 3 favoring the big monster brawls.
There are two expansions to the base game. There is a game called King of New York, which uses more or less the same dice-rolling mechanic, but adds a few additional bells and whistles.
“My Ninja Pirates will battle your Zombie Dinosaurs and when will see who comes out on top.” That’s more or less the idea behind Smash Up. Each player selects two small decks of cards representing different factions. The factions include groups like Aliens, Zombies, or Ants to name a few. Each faction will have their own set of “minions” (soldiers) and a set of abilities. Often the two factions you choose have nothing inherently in common, ie Ninja Pirates. However, it makes for great fun when you combine your factions and attempt to wrestle control of a variety of bases.
Each faction has a thematic ability that comes through the cards. Zombie cards seem to come back from the dead. Wizard may not have a lot of strength, but are able to play many cards during a turn – Dinosaurs are – well big and strong….
The game is very easy to learn, as the cards you play more or less direct all the action. There can be some tripping points because at times cards seem to contradict rules. The quick answer there is to follow the card. Final base scoring can be a little tricky the first few times you do it. Those small things aside, it is a great game. It’s a good game to show how a card-driven game (CDG) works.
There is quite a bit of player interaction. There are points where it can seem a little cutthroat, as players minions are defeated, moved around, or outright stolen from underneath them.
The game is great fun and easy to learn. The first few times will be a little longer, as you get used to reading the text on the cards. It doesn’t scale as well as other games, not because it hurts the mechanics or gameplay, but it will bloat the time. I like this as a three-player game.
There are a TON of expansions. The expansions all play well with the base game and bring a few nuances into gameplay as well.
Farkle meets zombies in this game. Zombie Dice is a classic press your luck game where you are looking to collect brains to score points. Whoever gets 13 brains first – wins. The premise of the game can be explained within two rolls, and an entire game won’t last more than 15 minutes. It’s almost too fast of a game! It is a great game to open up the night with, or perhaps as a closer, or when your waiting for the whole group to show up.
There are two (well maybe 2 and a half) expansions for the game. The first expansion actually has two expansions in it — anyway – they are fun. The game plays well at 2, is best between 4 and 5, and can go as high as 8.
At a price point around $15, it is a great addition to any gamers collection.
The newest released game on the list. Horrified is another cooperative game where you and your seatmates will work together to defeat the classical monsters of Universal Studios. You’ll be working together to break the Mummy’s curse, or tame Frankenstein, or reveal the Invisible Man to name a few.
The game is card driven, leaving much of the action or what to do on the cards. Each player has a unique ability that is easy to understand. There is a clear guide in turn order to keep the game streamlined. By design, some monsters are tougher to beat than others. You can mix and match the monsters you want to play against – and the more monsters you add the tougher the game.
Since it is a co-op, you’ll all be winning and losing together. The game length will stretch out longer the more monsters that are added. Adding more players doesn’t add as much time as adding more monsters. I’ve enjoyed this game solo through 4 players – It says it can handle 5, but I think it would REALLY stretch the game out between turns.
Currently, there aren’t any official expansions – but you never know what may be coming down the pipeline. I have seen some unique ideas on the BBG boards regarding fan-made expansion.
Summing it up…
Even if you are a hardcore gamer, it is good to have a couple of gateway games on the shelf. Even if they aren’t ever in your top ten games to play they can make it easier to get the ones you want to play on the table. Once you find a game that your friends learn an enjoy, you have given them the gift of confidence. It will become easier to teach a new game, because now then know they can learn them.
Do yourself a favor and take a look at one or two of these games. You never know what it might lead too.