|
Game
|
Publisher
|
Gameplay
|
Length
|
Replay
|
Comments
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Aquire
|
3M/Avalon Hill
|
4
|
45 mins
|
10
|
I've played this game where
each player plays as 2 different players and then adds up their totals
at the end. It is interesting, and a good way to learn some of the
basic strategies and mechanics of the game, but there is definitely something
lost in it.
|
|
Alpha Blitz
|
WotC
|
4
|
20 mins
|
3
|
This word building game (Actually
2 games in 1) just never struck me as fun. In this game, you play
off of cards in the center of the table and anagram them into scoring words.
It might just be me, but if I am going to play a word game like this, I'd
rather be playing Scrabble
|
|
Axis and Allies
|
MB
|
8.5
|
2 - 3 hrs
|
6
|
This Gamemaster classic,
in my opinion, may be best played with 2 people. After all, in a
5 player game, whoever gets screwed with Russia is going to be in for a
long night. Lets face it, the Russia player will spend two to four
turns throwing all of his poor infantry men up against the German tanks
only to eventually lose (as everyone in the game knows). Then as
the first player out, you can go get pizza for the rest of the group or
maybe find the Playstation/N64 as you now have a few hours to kill before
you can get back in the game. However, in the two player version,
I think the strategies are better (as now each side works together better);
this also seems to reduce the Allied edge inherent in the game down to
maybe 60:40. I also think that this game gets a little stagnant after
awhile because I tend to use the same strategies now, and this game is
more a dice-rolling exercise than strategic game.
|
|
Backgammon
|
traditional
|
7.5
|
30 mins
|
6
|
Traditional game
|
|
Battleship
|
MB
|
5
|
20 mins
|
5
|
Classic game that you played
as a child. OK, probably doesn't fit in with the other games here...
but it's good to have some games to play with the kids... And who
doesn't love to hear "Oh! You sunk my Battleship!"?
|
|
Before I Kill You Mr. Bond
|
Cheapass
|
3.5
|
20 mins
|
6
|
This game definitely loses
something with only two players, although the rules try to convince you
it doesn't. This game, for two, suffers because you really only have
one other player to play your cards against, and this lack of choice just
sucks all the fun out of the espionage-mocking card game. (But I
highly recommend it for groups of 4 or more!)
|
|
Ben Hvrt
|
Cheapass
|
6
|
2 - 4 hrs
|
7
|
This game can work for two
players if each player takes the role of two separate chariot drivers.
You have to play a series of races (usually we go for five) and score the
races as following: 5 points for 1st place, 3 points for 2nd place, 1 point
for 3rd, and nada for last place. At the end of the series, total
up the points to find the eventual winner. The only problem with
this is that the bidding is often not as fierce (since there are only two
bidders) - we have sometimes found it necessary to double the base values
of the cards to make them more expensive to buy.
|
|
Bethump'd
|
Mamopaliere
|
2
|
1 hr
|
1
|
This is a "Trivial Pursuit"
like game except all of the questions revolve around wordpower, English
(As in the high school subject) and literature. The game is pretty
fun in larger groups (because hopefully someone will know the answer/have
read the book/have been old enough to have read about this obscure word
in those funny columns in the large print edition of Reader's Digest),
but the difficulty of the cards makes this exceptionally challenging for
just two. And not to toot our horns, but I'd like to think that my
wife and I are relatively educated for this game: I'm in medical
school, she's finished law school, and we are both avid readers.
And we still can't get more than 50% of these questions...
|
|
Big Boggle
|
Parker Bros.
|
5
|
30 mins
|
7
|
Again, the classic problem
of just not enough competition to cancel out your words. Still fun,
but less so. And in case you're wondering, in my opinion, you should
never play regular Boggle.
|
|
Bitin' Off Hedz
|
Cheapass
|
6.5
|
1 hr
|
2
|
Again, the classic problem
of just not enough competition rears its ugly head in a normal 2 player
version. However, try playing that each player gets three dinosaurs
on their team (instead of the usual one). The dinosaurs still have
to take their turn in order (A1, B1, A2, B2, A3, B3) but this adds enough
dinosaurs on the baord to make dodging the rocks quite challenging.
Winner is the first one to have two dinosaurs make it to the volcano to
immolate themselves. It's fun to play 2 or 3 times, but then you'll
never see it again. But it only costs $3, so who cares?
|
|
Bonkers
|
Parker Bros.
|
3
|
45 mins
|
5
|
OK, if you haven't figured
it out by now, my collection still has many of these dumb games we played
as kids (or at least I played as a kid in the early 80s). This game
isn't as much fun with 2; there's less chance that you will be send back
to lose your points before you get back to Start.
|
|
Brawl
|
Cheapass
|
8
|
5 mins
|
10
|
The idea of this game is
great - a real time card game with a CCG twist. I have two of the
six decks - Pearl and Morgan - and they seem to be well balanced.
The game is quick (About 45-90 seconds per hand - 2 out of 3 hands wins
a game).
|
|
Buck Rogers: Battle for the
25th Century
|
TSR
|
3
|
2 - 4 hrs
|
3
|
This TSR game was brought
out to appear and play like the MB Gamemasters. Unlike the MB games,
this one doesn't have two definite sides playing against each other.
Thus, for a two player game, it isn't quite as good (mainly due to the
lack of competition). Of course, I haven't played this game since
high school (about 1992) so my memories of the game could be a little off.
|
|
Button Men
|
Cheapass
|
10
|
5 mins
|
10
|
This is probably my favorite
Cheapass game. The strategies are amazingly complex for a little
$3.00 game. Of course, the game could be free; you'll find all the
rules and first set of characters at http://www.cheapass.com.
(But really, if you like the game, send 'em $3 for one pair of buttons
so that they'll keep making fun games for low prices). This game
is a strategic battle between two characters, each represented by 4 or
5 dice (ranging from d4 to d20). At the beginning of the game, each
player rolls all their dice, and whoever has the lowest number showing
goes first. You then use the numbers on your dice to "attack" the
other player and capture one of his dice. You can either Power attack
by using one of your dice to capture one of your opponents; as long as
your die has the higher number showing, or you can Skill attack by totalling
up the numbers on 2 or more dice and using all of them to capture one of
you opponent's dice that has that number showing on his die. (i.e.
you can use a 5, 4, and 9 to capture your opponent's 18). You get
one attack per turn, and then once you're done, you roll any dice that
you used to capture that turn. Then it's his turn to do the same
to you. The game is played until only one player has dice left on
the board. BUT, the winner is not the player who captured all of
his opponent's dice; you still have to score the round - one point for
each side of die that you captured plus two points for every side of die
you have remaining. Thus, weaker characters may lose all their dice,
but still win because they were able to capture some of their opponent's
larger dice. If you are interested in more strategies, I again point
you to the cheapass website where there are more than a few dedicated strategy
pages to this small but intriguing game.
|
|
By Hook or Crook (AKA Adel
Verplichtet)
|
AH
|
2
|
90 mins
|
8
|
This Spiel de Jahres finalist
sucks for two players. Much of the strategy is lost since you are
now forced by the rules to either go to the auctionhouse or gallery on
alternating turns so that both players are always in the same spot.
Also, the excitement of the hidden bid auctions is somewhat lessened as
it is only you and your opponent. In fact, the only time you should
play this for two is if you are trying to understand how the game works
to then later explain it to a larger group. Otherwise, stay away.
|
|
Caesar and Cleopatra
|
Kosmos
|
9.5
|
30 mins
|
8
|
This card game is an excellent
game for two. The theme is fighting for votes in the Roman political scene.
There are five groups of voters and each player influences these groups
by playing cards in front of them denoting how much support that group
will give the player. At the end of each turn, a card is flipped
up to determine which of the 5 groups will vote this turn (or perhaps no
one will vote at all). At this vote, whoever wins the vote gets one
of the politicians of that group into his scoring pile. At the end
of the game, you total up the number of politicians that you have control
over and add in bonuses for controlling a majority (or all) of any voting
group. This is a quick game, about 30 mins in length, and has a very
high replay value.
|
|
Can't Stop
|
Franjos
|
8
|
15 mins
|
10
|
This quick dice-rolling game
is a blast for three or four players as they race to complete three columns
of numbers by rolling dice. With two players, there is a loss of
competition which takes away from some of the tension of the game, but
the spirit remains. A fun little game that dares you to take just
one more turn!
|
|
Carat
|
Queen
|
9.5
|
30 mins
|
9
|
This is a tile laying game
where you try to surround jewels of differing point values with tiles of
your color so that you can capture the jewel. In the 2 player variant,
each player has to play two colors and then the total points are added
up. This game does not suffer with two players however, since each
tile has one side of each color in the game. Therefore, on each turn,
the tile played works for all players and in fact, I feel that this increases
the strategy in the game as now you have to maximize the play for both
of your colors and also worry about blocking the progress of both of your
opponent's colors.
|
|
Cardino
|
MB
|
7
|
30 mins
|
6
|
This 1958 game is a tile
laying game where you score points by how many tiles are adjacent to the
tile just played. The board is a map of playing cards, and where
you can play cards is dictated by the cards in your hand. A good
vintage game if you can find it.
|
|
Careers
|
Parker Bros.
|
6.5
|
1 hr
|
8
|
This classic game (I have
a 1953 version) doesn't really lose much because there is little interaction
between the players in the game. I highly recommend this game for
"Family Games Night" - it's lighter than Monopoly and is better for the
family in my opinion because there is less direct competition (and chance
for mean-ness). Also, there is more excitement in the endgame because
no one is really quite sure what combinaion of money, fame and happiness
the others need to win.
|
|
Castle Arcana
|
TSR
|
8
|
1 hr
|
8
|
This is a set of books that
allows you and a friend to play a basic game of D&D using choose your
own adventure books and a clever combat system involving either 2d20 or
you and your friend calling out numbers at random. We've found this
game is excellent for travelling as you really don't need much else than
the books, one piece of paper and a pencil.
|
|
Castle Risk
|
Parker Bros.
|
3
|
1 hr
|
4
|
I have no idea why they brought
this game out to try to "improve" Risk. All it does is add a large
element of luck into a sorta-strategic game. I don't think this game
is good for any number of players when compared to Risk.
|
|
Challenge Football
|
3M
|
5
|
45 mins
|
5
|
You plan your plays on offense
by seeing what basic defense you're up against, drawing the path of the
runner/pass on the game sheet with a wax pencil, and then seeing when the
defense stops the play (when your pencil path crosses over one of the triangles
on the defensive sheet). It's primitive, but let's face it, the game
is over 30 years old, what do you expect?
|
|
Channel Surfing
|
MB
|
5.5
|
45 mins
|
5
|
In college, this was a fun
"drink beer and kill time" game. Each player/team gets 12 cards each
with a topic/person/place on them (for example: sunglasses, blue shirt,
car, Hawaii, moonlight). Then, the timer is set (about 1 min) and
you are given the remote control. Your job is to flip thru the channels
as fast as possible and call out the topics on the cards as you see them.
You get one point for each card you are able to find. The game is
played over 3-5 rounds. To add more challenge, we usually would force
the loser of each round to chug whatever was left of his beer (ok, so it's
kind of a downward spiral if you lose the first few rounds)
|
|
Checkers
|
traditional
|
10
|
30 mins
|
6
|
traditional game
|
|
Chess
|
traditional
|
10
|
varies
|
9
|
traditional game
|
|
Condotierre
|
Eurogames
|
4
|
45 mins
|
7
|
This game is based on fighting
for control of Italy. Battles are done using cards - and the winner
of each hand will win control of the city. The object is to have
an empire of connected city-states. There are some special cards
which throw an interesting wrench into the strategies. This game
is one of those cameleon games that totally changes in complexion based
on the number of players playing. I know that many people think that
the strategy in this card game is increased with two players, but I don't.
However, I highly recommend it for 3 -5 players.
|
|
Conquest of the Empire
|
MB
|
2
|
3 hrs
|
9
|
This Gamemaster game pits
players against each other as Roman generals fighting for supremacy in
the Empire. Unlike A&A, each player is on his own in this game,
so the gameboard ends up too large for only two players. The amount
of interaction between the two players can be quite minimal, thus making
for a pretty sorry game.
|
|
Coup d'Etat
|
Parker Bros.
|
4
|
30 mins
|
6
|
This vintage game (1954)
is just a card game in a box. I've only played it once and it was
not that inspiring. But it does have nice bits including a scoreboard
that uses little metal daggers to keep track of the score
|
|
Cribbage
|
traditional
|
10
|
varies
|
10
|
traditional game
|
|
Crossword: NY Times Sunday
Puzzle Game
|
Herbko
|
1
|
45 mins
|
4
|
This game is just not good.
Each player/team takes turns to answer clues on the crossword or challenge
their opponents to answer a clue. Admittedly, my wife and I generally
struggle to finish the Sunday Times puzzle when we put our brains together
- but because of this - the game is too challenging for us when each has
to try to do it on our own.
|
|
Cube It
|
Northern Star
|
3
|
30 mins
|
3
|
This is a boxed-version of
the game "Dots" that you played in grade school. You know -
the one where you have a grid of dots on paper and you take turns connecting
two dots on each turn. Then, once you can close in a box on all 4
sides, you put your initial in it and get to go again... It wasn't much
fun then. The only advantage of this game is that you don't have
to draw out all the damn dots.
|
|
Daytona 500
|
MB
|
4
|
30 mins
|
4
|
Hmm... the real race has
43 cars; in this game, there are only 2... Not much chance for crash-em-ups...
|
|
Devil Bunny Needs a Ham
|
Cheapass
|
8
|
15 mins
|
8
|
This game is a race to get
your pieces to the top of a building. The main obstacle is the Devil
Bunny that will stomp your players down everytime you roll a '6'.
If your token is too high up the building and no one can catch it after
Devil Bunny stomps on it, you die. Luckily you get 6 players in this
crazy game. This game is best with 2-3 players because with more
the board becomes too congested. Another good Cheapass game for two.
(and only $2)
|
|
Diceball
|
Intellijeux
|
9
|
45 mins
|
8
|
This is a quick and simple
baseball game that uses dice for everything. The dice rolls are very
simple and no charts are needed. As far as sports games go, it is
low on reality but high on entertainment.
|
|
Durch die Wuste
|
Kosmons
|
8
|
45 mins
|
10
|
Durch is one of Knizia's
tile-laying trilogy where you place camels down to form caravans and score
points by getting to oases and picking up points throughout the desert.
Each player has 5 different caravns to work with and as is usual with Knizia,
you want to do more on each turn that you are allowed. In this game,
you can only place two camels per turn thus causing you to agonize over
where you should play this turn. This game isn't as good for two
players as more, but the strategy is still quite apparent when playing
with two. In fact, my wife thinks that game is better because you
are now more focused in your planning in how to maximize your score while
blocking off the opponent.
|
|
El Caballero
|
Hans Im Gluck
|
4
|
1 hr
|
7
|
This game is sort of a mini-El
Grande Unfortuately, it's just not good for two. We have found
it to be too dry and analytical. There is not enough suspense in
the game with only two to keep it interesting.
|
|
Elfenland
|
Amigo
|
8
|
45 mins
|
9
|
This game becomes more strategic
with only two players as the interaction between the players is limited.
With two players, the game is more "How do I plan my route so that I can
get all the way around the board" where with more players it is "How will
I be able to adapt to the different route markers thrown down where I want
to travel". I prefer the game with more players, but my wife likes
it better for two... Either way, it's a great game, and Spiel de
Jahres winner.
|
|
Empire Builder
|
Mayfair
|
5
|
2 hrs
|
5
|
This train game (father of
the crayon rail games) is meant usually for at least three players.
There is a variant in the rules to allow play for two, but it just isn’t
that much fun. I’d really only recommend it if you are dying to play
a crayon rail game.
|
|
Euphrat and Tigris
|
Hans Im Gluck
|
2
|
2 hrs
|
8
|
Another member of Knizia's
tile-laying trilogy. I just don't like it with two; I feel the tension
of the game is reduced too much with only two.
|
|
Fueddal
|
3M
|
9
|
45 mins
|
10
|
This classic Bookcase game
is a Chess Variant. In this game, you are protecting your castle
and nobles from the opponent while you try to capture his castle and or
noble . The board adds the concept of terrain to the game and the
pieces have different moving abilities than your regular chess pieces.
I've only played this game a few times, but the strategy seems as complex
as chess with the innumerable variations. If you like chess, I think
you should get this one.
|
|
Fight City
|
Cheapass
|
5
|
15 mins
|
6
|
This unbalanced game has
a CCG-feel to it, but you play with only 2 fixed decks. All I can
say is that if you are looking at these Cheapass CCG-like games, try Brawl
first.
|
|
Five Crowns
|
SET Games
|
7
|
20 mins
|
8
|
This simple card game is
a variation on Rummy. You make melds with your cards to go out and
then score whatever your opponent has left unmelded in their hands.
The twist is that there is a 5th suit added to the game as well as some
Jokers which affect the scoring of each hand.
|
|
Fluxx
|
Looney Labs
|
8
|
20 mins
|
8
|
This is a card game whose
rules change with almost every play of the cards. You can change
the number of cards you draw, number of cards you play, and victory conditions
with the cards you play. Quite fun, and quick.
|
|
Formula De
|
Eurogames
|
5
|
30 mins
|
8
|
This F1 racing game is perhaps
the best racing game out there in my opinion. For two players, we
found it fun to play with each player getting 5 cars (so that we could
run the race with the full 10 cars in it). Then run the race (we
liked shorter 2-3 lap races) and then score the cards using the F1 scoring
system (10 for 1st, 7 for 2nd, 5 for 3rd, 3 for 4th, 2 for 5th and 1 for
6th). Run a series of races and total up the points for your team.
|
|
Fortress America
|
Milton Bradley
|
8
|
2-3 hrs
|
7
|
Although this is my least
favorite of the Gamemaster games, it translates well into a two player
game as there are two distinct sides in the game. In fact, it's probably
better for two (see Axis and Allies above).
|
|
Fossil
|
Gold Sieber
|
5
|
45 mins
|
9
|
This Games "Game of the Year
Winner" is a nice light strategic game for 2-4. I think this
game is better with more than two because of the game mechanics.
The game has 9 fossils that are split up into 9 fragments each. On
your turn, you are able to pick up one fossil piece. Once a fossil
is completely discovered (all 9 pieces are picked up), you score the fossil
and award points. With two players, the game becomes dry and analytical
because it is too easy to visualize what the board will look like when
it is your turn again. It's much better with 3-4.
|
|
Go
|
Traditional
|
10
|
varies
|
10
|
This Japanese/Chinese game
of strategy is perhaps the most appealing of all the traditional games.
|
|
Guillotine
|
WotC
|
7
|
20 mins
|
8
|
This card game tries to introduce
to CCG concept of following instructions on cards to a regular card game.
The theme is set in the French Revolution and you aim to kill the highest
scoring people you can. The twist is that most cards played have
a special ability that adds changes such as the scoring of that card or
rearrangement the line leading to the Guillotine. It works as well
with 2 as it does with a larger group.
|
|
Hase und Igel
|
Ravensburger
|
7
|
45 mins
|
6
|
This strategy game pits your
rabbits against those of your opponents. You need carrots for food
for movement and you have to pick up some cabbages along the way to win
the game. The game is admittedly a little dry no matter how many
people are playing. For that reason, I have found it hard to find
other players for this game - but I really like it.
|
|
Heimlich and Co.
|
Ravensburger
|
2
|
1 hour
|
4
|
Not interesting for 2, 3
or 4. Run and hide from this game.
|
|
History of the World
|
Avalon Hill
|
4
|
3 hours
|
2
|
This historical game can
be played with two if each player takes two (or three) civilizations per
epoch. Keep separate scores (i.e. each player plays as two or three
different colors in the game). Colors of the same player may pass
civilizations amongst themselves. At the end of the game, add together
the VP totals among the colors of the same person to see who wins.
However, in conquest, walkovers only occur among forces of the same color.
This variant seems to add some different strategies, such as keeping one
of your civs drawing early in order to get first chance at giving one of
your colors the civ it needs to do well. Unfortunately, this variant
still doesn’t solve the main problem with this game – namely the game still
basically revolves around the Civ distribution in the 7th and
final epoch.
|
|
Illuminati - NWO CCG
|
SJackson Games
|
7
|
20 mins
|
7
|
This is a great 2-player
version of Illuminati. The downside is that it is a CCG and the inherent
problems with getting cards and staying competitive. While I don't
own it, I've seen that SJG has released Illuminati NWO - Church of the
Sub-Genius which is a boxed set of 2 NWO decks that provide a balanced
game. If you like Illuminati, or wanted to see what it was all about,
try this one out.
|
|
Intern
|
Avalon Hill
|
5
|
1 hour
|
5
|
This is a Monopoly clone
that is setup in a hospital. Each player is an intern trying to admit
patients, diagnose them correctly, treat them and then discharge them from
the hospital. Instead of money, the interns try to collect hours
of sleep (worth more than money in the hospital). Only interesting
if you are in the medical field (As I am).
|
|
Kahuna
|
Kosmos
|
9.5
|
30 mins
|
8
|
This clever 2 player game
pits two players over the control of an archipelago of islands. Control
is gained by playing bridges that connect the islands. Whomever has
the most bridges to an island controls it. You have a hand of cards
which dictate where you are allowed to play your bridges. A very
fun game with much strategy involved. Highly recommended.
|
|
Katzenjammer Blues
|
Rio Grande
|
4
|
30 mins
|
4
|
This is an auction based
rummy variant which says it can be played for two, but lets face it, auctions
with two people suck (unless you're bidding on eBay). For more players,
the auction system (which you use the cards in your hand to bid to pick
up new cards for your hand) and the different scoring system make for an
interesting game. Replay value seems low though - the game just wasn't
that interesting.
|
|
Kill Dr. Lucky
|
Cheapass
|
5
|
1 hour
|
8
|
This game reverses the "Clue"
concept - instead of tryinf to find out whodunit, you instead are tryinf
to kill Dr. Lucky. To do so, you
must be in a room with Dr. Lucky
and have no witnesses (i.e. no other players have a direct line of sight
into the room that you are in.) Then, when you try to kill him, the
other players can try to prevent you from doing so by playing cards against
you. Great game for more than 2 players but with two it is too easy
to isolate yourself and the good Doctor and not enough Failure cards to
be played against you. A member of Games Magazine 100 from 1998.
|
|
Knightmare Chess
|
SJackson Games
|
10
|
45 mins
|
10
|
This adds a CCG feel to traditional
Chess. On each turn, you play a card which may give one of your pieces
a special ability for the turn or may change the entire chess environment
for the rest of the game. Highly recommended. Advanced Knightmare
Chess allows you to build a deck out of the 120 cards in the box to maximize
your strategies.
|
|
Landlord
|
Abacus
|
6
|
30 mins
|
10
|
This card game is like Mille
Bournes but instead of racing, this game is set around building buildings
and then getting tenants to live in those buildings.
|
|
Linie 1 (Streecar)
|
Gold Sieber
|
5
|
1 hour
|
7
|
In this tile laying game,
you lay railroad tracks down to connect your two stations and destinations
along the way. Once your path is built, you then have to move
your train along that path to win the game. With 2 players, there
isn't as much adaptation needed on your part as you only have one other
competitor that is laying tracks on the board; this takes away from the
fun, and also makes this game a little too analytical for what it really
is.
|
|
Lost Cities
|
Rio Grande
|
10
|
30 mins
|
10
|
This card game has players
competing to complete expeditions around the globe. Typical of Knizia
games, the number of choices for each turn far exceeds the number you are
allowed to do. The scoring system is a little convulted (and considered
too "mathy" by many), but it helps set this game apart. One downside
is that the cards are too big to be shuffled comfortably and that the board
that comes with the game is totally unnecessary. But a great 2 player
game
|
|
Magic: The Gathering
|
WotC
|
9
|
varies
|
10
|
The ultimate CCG (IMHO) -
I am now out of the game because of the rising costs, but this is still
one of the best two player games out there based on variety and complexity
of strategy. Of course now, the only way for me to afford the game
is to play in sealed deck tournaments or play from my pool of commons in
an all-commons environment (anything up to 5th Ed.)
|
|
Manhattan
|
Mayfair
|
6
|
45 mins
|
8
|
This game, which was made
for 4 players, can be played by two if each takes two colors. However,
the problem is that the level of competition is greatly reduced.
Invariably, each of the 6 neighborhoods in the game are occupied by only
one of each players colors. While the game is still enjoyable this
way, it just isn't as fun. P.S. I highly recommend the Godzilla variant.
|
|
Medieval Merchant
|
Rio Grande
|
3
|
1-2 hrs
|
7
|
Once again, the lack of competition
makes this otherwise challenging and strategic game pretty dull when played
with only two players.
|
|
Mhing
|
Suntex
|
10
|
20 mins
|
10
|
This card version of traditional
Chinese MahJongg allows two players to play what is traditionally a four-player-only
game. A must have for anyone who plays MahJongg.
|
Monday Night Football
Interactive Card Game
|
Mattel
|
8
|
4 hours
|
7
|
This clever card game has
cards which have printed on them varied occurences in a typical MNF broadcast
(handoff, pass, 5 yd penalty, 10 yd penalty, Boomer Dan and Dave sighting,
coach sighting, missed field goal,etc.) Each of these cards has a
point value associated with its frequency (i.e. handoff is worth 1 point
while punt return for TD is worth 10). It makes some otherwise horrible
Monday night matchups more interesting in the 2nd half.
|
|
Monopoly
|
Parker Bros.
|
4
|
1 hour
|
4
|
Everyone's played it, and
lets face it, not that much fun with 2 (or 3 or 4 or 8)
|
|
Mr. President
|
Avalon Hill
|
10
|
1-2 hrs
|
10
|
This bookshelf game simulates
the race for the presidency. The Presidential and Vice Presidential
candidates vie for votes by campaining in states, debating, raising funds,
etc. A challenging game for two, and with the different candidates
in the game, the game can even be handicapped if one player has a consistent
edge over the other.
|
|
NY Chase
|
Ravensburger
|
9
|
45 mins
|
9
|
This sequel to Scotland Yard
adds some new twists (See the review in the Reviews section of this site)
– overall, adding to the game experience. Highly recommended, but
only for two players. (This game is officially for 3-6, but it kinda
sucks for more than two)
|
|
Outdoor Survival
|
Avanlon Hill
|
9
|
1-2 hrs
|
10
|
This bookshelf game tries
to simulate how one survives in the wilderness. Your player must
always have food and drink (or else he/she weakens) and the game also takes
into consideration that when out in the wilderness, you can often get turned
around and lose your sense of direction. For two players, we have
found it fun to play the Chase the Fugitive scenario where the Fugitive
is trying to escape off the board while the Prison Guard is trying to track
him down.
|
|
Phase 10
|
Fundex Games
|
6
|
1 hour
|
6
|
This card game is similar
to Rummy. In it, you must make a specific meld of cards to move into
the next phase (of which there are 10). If you cannot get the necessary
meld to move up to the next phase, you are doomed to repeat it again (while
your opponent has moved on to better and brighter things). This game
is better with four players, but still quite enjoyable with two.
|
|
Pirateer
|
Mendocino
|
3.5
|
45 mins
|
4
|
A simple little strategy
game, better made for children about 8-14.
|
|
Pocket Football
|
AWV Publishing
|
7
|
20 mins
|
8
|
This set of books allows
you to play football against each other. Using a clever system of
page flipping based on what offensive and defensive plays have been called,
the result of each play is determined. This is especially good for
travelling as nothing else is needed other than the two books, each of
which is about 2.5 inches square.
|
|
Politika
|
Red Storm
|
2
|
2 hours
|
2
|
This game shows why you can't
just put a prominent author's name on a game and expect it to be good.
Anyways, it attempts to be a Gamemaster like game. Like some of those
games, there are not two clear cut sides in this game, thus competition
between sides is lessened with only two players, though possible.
But in the end, I don't think I'd recommend this for any number of players.
|
|
Power Lunch
|
Mayfair
|
3
|
30 mins
|
2
|
This game is another storytelling
game where you try to connect the celebrities that you receive on cards.
Not that it is much fun in a large group, but it is even less so as a two-player
game. Just as in Bullwinkle and Rocky, if you need a game for storytelling
like this, you've got more pressing issues.
|
|
Rack-O
|
Milton Bradley
|
5
|
15 mins
|
6
|
This card game challenges
you to order the 10 cards in your hand (numbered from 1 to 45) in numerical
order. The game is quite challenging for both 2 and four players.
With two players, it is usually better to play a series of games and then
total up the points after they are all finished.
|
|
Rail Baron
|
Avalon Hill
|
4
|
2 hours
|
9
|
Using the Honeymoon Rail
Baron variant included in the rules provides a good introduction to this
prototype of the Crayon Rails series. However, while the variant
is good for learning the rules and mechansims of the game, it just isn't
the same.
|
|
Raise the Roof
|
Henard
|
7
|
45 mins
|
7
|
This game uses the same general
design as Mille Bournes, except you are racing to build a house in this
game. There are 15 specific rooms to be built into this house (slightly
different than simply racing for 1000 miles) but otherwise the games are
very similar. The individual rooms add the complexity of hazard cards
targeted specifically at certain rooms. A nice variant if I do say
so myself.
|
|
Risk
|
Parker Bros
|
3
|
1 hour
|
6
|
This game can be played with
two players if you use the Allies variant where you place the black army
on all territories not occupied by either player at the start of the game.
It at least forces you to have to roll to defeat "enemies" as you move
across the board. However, since the allies don't fortify, there
are easy opposition by the end of the game. Overall, there is just
too much space on the Risk board for only two players to fight for world
domination.
|
|
Rocky and Bullwinkle
|
TSR
|
1
|
too long
|
0
|
This TSR Bookcase game is
really just a story-telling, lets-pass-the-time- with-the-sorta- cool-handpuppets-of-
Boris-and-Natasha game. But for two players, there just isn't any
hilarity. If you need a game to halp facilitate you and a friend
tell stories to each other, maybe you really shouldn't be playing games
at all...
|
|
Safari Jack
|
Cheapass
|
6
|
20 mins
|
7
|
This is a card laying game
where you "build" the jungle that you are exploring as you go. As
you explore this jungle, you look for rare animals to bag and add to your
collection. With more than two players it is an interesting strategic
battle. With only two players, the game is somewhat more linear with
each player developing only the portion of the jungle that he/she is going
to explore. Sometimes the game simply comes down to whoever draws
the better cards.
|
|
Say When
|
Winning Moves
|
6
|
30 mins
|
6
|
This is a family-style party
game where the object is to try to guess the numerical answer to many different
types of questons (i.e. what year certain events happened in, how many
sesame seeds on an average Big Mac bun, number of hairs in one square inch
of human head). Most of the time, no one will know the answers to
the questions. In fact, we have just instituted a rule lately that
if you know the answer to any question, you say so, and the question is
thrown out. Fun for any number of people.
|
|
Scotland Yard
|
Ravensburger
|
10
|
45 mins
|
10
|
This may be my favorite 2
player game of all time -- even though it is meant for 3-5 according to
the box. In this game, one player is Mr. X (a fugitive) and the other
player plays the 5 detectives that are trying to capture Mr. X. The
game is played on a board which has a stylized map of the London streets,
bus paths and underground tracks. The detectives are somewhat limited
in the transportation choices as they have a limited number of tickets
for each type of transport. However, they have strength in numbers
as they form a dragnet to catch Mr. X (who has to reveal his position every
5 turns or so). Mr X, in turn has a few special moves of his own
that allow him to slip away when the detectives get too close -- he can
take two turns in a row and he has access to special modes of transportation
(using the river), and he can occasionally disguise what type of transport
he used. He is not limited to what type of transport he can use,
but he does have to disclose what type of transport he did take to the
detectives. This is an excellent game for two players and provides
a great strategic matchup for two players. If the game gets unbalanced,
you can cut down on the number of detective to four to make it more challenging.
|
|
Scrabble
|
Selchow & Righter
|
8
|
45 mins
|
8
|
This is the grand-daddy of
all the word games. With only two players, you can really try to
plan a few moves ahead in your word-building making the game even more
strategic than its four-player variety.
|
|
Settlers of Catan
|
Kosmos/Mayfair
|
4
|
45 mins
|
10
|
This game was really meant
for 4. There are a few vairants for two, most notably Intimate Settlers
http://www.virtual-cafe.com/~tdewey/diesiedler.html
, but it's just not the same. If you only have two and want to play
settlers, may I suggest the Kartenspiel?
|
Settlers of Catan:
Card Game
|
Kosmos/Mayfair
|
9
|
45 mins
|
9
|
This is the long awaited
two-player conversion of the Settlers board game into a two-player only
card game. In this game, you still have cities and areas of land
that produce commodities based on dice rolls, but it is certainly a different
game. This game is a race to 10 points (1 for twons, 2 for cities,
1 for point cards, 2 for the Knight token and 2 for the Comerce Token).
The Knight token and the Commerce Token take the place of the Knight card
and Longest Road card in the boardgame. The Knights are totally different
in this game (both scoring points with the Knight token , but allowing
you to draw commodities when the Competitons take place (the analog of
the Robber in Settlers). Overall, this game helps draw people
into the atmosphere of Settlers, but yet provides a game that is different
enough that it has merits of its own.
|
|
Shakespeare
|
Avalon Hill
|
2
|
30 mins
|
1
|
This game, at its basic level,
is Parchessi. At its advanced level, it is Shakespeare trivia hell.
In this version, if you can correctly answer a trivia question about Shakespeare
or identify from what play a quotation comes from, you get to go again.
Basically, if you play this with an English major, you won't get a chance
to play after their first turn. Just not fun.
|
|
Sirocco
|
TSR
|
8
|
45 mins
|
7
|
This two player wargame simulates
a WWII battle in the deserts of Africa. In many respects, it is just
a variant of Chess with different pieces having different moving capabilities.
|
|
Speed Circuit
|
3M
|
6
|
30 mins
|
9
|
This racing game was built
to alllow strategic racing for 2-4 players. It also has really nice
bits including metal cars. A nice feature of the game allows you
to customize the capabilities of your car helping to add to the replay
value.
|
|
Star Wars CCG
|
Decipher
|
4
|
10 mins
|
4
|
Being a M:tG fan, I just
don't get this CCG. While it is neat because it has Star Wars ties,
the rules just seem too convoluted. I think the system of using your
deck as your life points is neat, but I just don't really like the gameplay
personally. I also wasn't a big fan of the deck system where your
cards can be be in any one of three places. I just don't like not
being able to get to the cards.
|
|
Starbase Jeff
|
Cheapass
|
4
|
30 mins
|
4
|
This is a tile-laying / trading
game for 2-4 players. It's just not as much fun without enough people
to engender good competition.
|
|
Stix
|
Piatnik
|
8
|
20 mins
|
8
|
This neat little game has
deck of cards each of which has a figure made by adjacent lines on a grid
which is 1X2 in size (think of an '8' on a digital calculator). The
game also provides 5 sticks which you use to form these shapes. The
sticks are placed in an initial setup by forming whatever design is on
the top card of the deck. Each player then is dealt four cards.
On your turn, you are able to move any one stick and move it, as long as
it is placed adjacent to at least one other stick. If you are able
to form the design on one of your cards (or the mirror image on one of
your cards), you discard that card from your hand. The first player
to discard all of his/her cards wins the game.
|
Stock Car Championship
Racing Game
|
McGartlin
|
7
|
45 mins
|
7
|
This is a card game that
simulates a NASCAR stock car race. It is both realistic and fun.
Check out their site at http://www.coolracinggames.com
for a more detailed explanation as well as a downloadable set of rules.
|
|
Stock Market Game
|
Whitman
|
5
|
45 mins
|
6
|
This vintage 1970s game provides
a somewhat realistic recreation of the stock market. Using an interesting
mechanism of having the stock market fluctuate based on what squares the
playing pieces land on, you buy and sell stock trying to parley your initial
$5,000 into a cool $100 grand.
|
|
Stocks and Bonds
|
3M
|
7
|
45 mins
|
6
|
This classic bookshelf game
provides a more realistic view of the market. Again the idea is to
buy and sell stocks to increase your wealth. I would recommend using
the suggested variant in the rules where you roll separately to determine
the fluctuation of each of the 12 stocks in the game. Also, adding
the option of using margin buys adds both to the realism as well as the
competitiveness of the game.
|
|
Stratego
|
Milton Bradley
|
8
|
30 mins
|
8
|
This is the wargame-esque
version of capture the flag mixed with a little bit of Memory thrown in
for good measure. I'm sure everyone has played it as a kid.
And I have to admit, there is no better feeling than taking out the other
guy's general with your Spy.
|
|
Strat-O-Matic Baseball
|
Strat-O-Matic
|
10
|
30 mins
|
10
|
This is the ultimate in baseball
recreations. It can be as simple or as complex as you want.
And each player's statistics for the previous year are in the game to make
it as realistic as possible. I highly recommend this game for
any baseball fan. It also plays great as a solitare game.
|
|
Ta Yu
|
Rio Grande
|
9
|
30 mins
|
9
|
This tile laying game challenges
two players to try to get water to flow (from the center of the board)
to the edges of the board. Bonus points are scored if you can channel
the water into one of three specific harbors. This is a very challenging
game because you never know if you should use your turn to further your
own cause or if you should use it to try to stop your opponent's plans.
I think this game is probably better for 2 players than it is for 3 or
4.
|
|
Take It Easy
|
FX Schmidt
|
8
|
10 mins
|
8
|
This game has often been
called "German Bingo". You are given a hexagon (think Settlers layout)
which you fill out with smaller hexes. Each hex has three lines running
through it. If you are able to connect two exterior sides with a
line of a single color, you score points (the point value of
the line multiplied by the number of hexes in the length of the line.
For two players, we often give each player 3 boards and have the stipulation
that on any given turn, no tile can be placed on the same hex on any of
the three boards (thus guuaranteeing thateach player has three distinct
boards).
|
|
The Big Cheese
|
Cheapass
|
2
|
20 mins
|
4
|
Although I am a big fan of
the Cheapass line, this one just doesn't do it for me. It has some
neat mechanisms in the game, such as having to wait a number of turns to
have your cards mature into coring possibilities, but overall the game
is just not good.
|
The Very Clever
Pipe Game
|
Cheapass
|
10
|
20 mins
|
10
|
This is the first Cheapass
game that I ever had, and it still may be the best one. You and your
opponent are in a battle to connect pipes together of your own color.
If you managed to make a completed chain of pipes, you then take those
cards off the playing board, scoring one point for each card you remove.
A wonderful strategy game, that also has a CCG feel to it that allows you
to build a custom deck of pipe cards based on your strategy. Furthermore,
there are really 4 games included in this one package (although most people,
myself definitely included, don't have the visual perceptions / spatial
relations to really play them without having a brain meltdown).
|
|
Totem
|
Queen
|
4
|
1 hour
|
8
|
How many times am I going
to say it - not enough players to make competition, thus the game is disinteresting.
|
|
Tribond
|
Big Fun
|
4
|
30 mins
|
6
|
This is a Trivial Pursuit
Like game where you try to find the common denominator between three seemingly
unrelated words. It's a good game to play at parties. With
two, it's an acceptable way to pass an evening, but there are plenty of
other things I'd rather do.
|
|
Trivial Pursuit
|
Horn Abbot
|
4
|
30 mins
|
4
|
Really only great if you
are trying to relive the 80s. For extra challeng, try playing the
Sports edition (try answering a bunch of “who holds the record…” questions
even though many of those record have already been broken)
|
|
Tutenchamun
|
Amigo
|
7.5
|
30 mins
|
7
|
This game of picking up tiles
that represent treasures is somewhat similar to Fossil in mechanism except
that the pieces are in linear order rather than in an array. This
game is a little better for two players because of this linear arrangement;
the player is forced to choose what he wants to go for and what ho should
leave behind. Of note, this game is also excellent for PBeM.
|
|
Twelve Caesars
|
Game Works
|
2
|
20 mins
|
4
|
This is a simple card game
that is just hiding under the Roman Empire guise. It’s really not
that good. Sorry, it just doesn’t merit any more discussion.
|
|
Twixt
|
Avalon Hill
|
9
|
30 mins
|
9
|
This is an abstract strategy
game where you try to connect opposite sides of the board with your pieces
before your opponent does. If your pieces are placed in an L arrangement
(think of the typical Knight move in Chess), you are allowed to connect
your pieces together and thus prevent your opponent from going between
those posts. An excellent strategy game for two.
|
|
UpWords
|
Milton Bradley
|
7
|
30 mins
|
6
|
This is another word building
game that adds a twist to the Scrabble that you were expecting as you can
place tiles on top of other tiles to form new words. Probably my
second favorite word game.
|
|
USAC Auto Racing
|
Avalon Hill
|
2
|
45 mins
|
5
|
This simulation of the Indy
500 is OK, but only if you have all 33 cars running. Admittedly,
it’s a bitch trying to keep 16 or 17 cars moving on each turn, but then
again, when are you ever going to get a group of 33 friends together to
play this game? It’s not bad if you have a bad bad bad racing fix,
but then maybe you should get Formula De.
|
|
Weapons and Warriors
|
Pressman
|
5
|
varies
|
2
|
This is a remake of the Crossbows
and Catapults of the 80s, but with a pirate theme. It’s fun to just
get down and blow the other guy’s ship up, but the fun quickly wanes and
you realize you’re playing a kids game.
|
|
Wrasslin'
|
Avalon Hill
|
8
|
45 mins
|
7
|
This card game takes you
into the world of professional wrestling. You can choose to be either
a good or bad wrestler. Then you take the other guy on in a card
battle royale. You can play offensive cards on your turn, but these
can of course be countered by cards from your opponent. As you weaken,
you abilities to perform moves of your own diminishes. It’s a lot
of fun as long as you both like wrestling (but who doesn’t). And
remember, don’t try this at home because everything you see in wrestling
is real.
|
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|
|
|
|
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