Arimaa: Arimaa is a game that can be played on a chess board with all the traditional chess pieces, however it plays NOTHING like chess. The rules are simple but the game is rich: the ideal for an abstract strategy game. Pieces push and pull one another around the board and into the centre pit, while rabbits try make a run for it. The gameplay feels unique and intuitive but it can seem a bit slow because of the size of the board and the single-tile movement of all the pieces.
Blokus: A four player game using polyominos and tiles. Super easy to explain to people but isn't very travel friendly. A two player and three player ruleset exists too. Variants have been released but I have not played any of them.
Go: Simple play and very deep. I'm still getting the hang of how to do scoring and I've yet to play this against a real person, but I find this game extremely challenging and fun.
Hive: One of my favourite abstract strategy games. Thoroughly unique in every way, with almost every game feeling different. The game has an active community that's keenly experimenting with new strategies, despite the game not being particularly mainstream. One caveat is that the game is proprietary and has two "expansion packs", which is particularly offensive given the "classic" nature of many traditional abstract strategy games. My hopes are that the game continues to live on as the license eventually expires, and we can stop calling it Hive(R).
Mate: A card game? Without luck? Extremely fun and simple. The game feels like it could be weakly solved but regardless, its simplicity and ability to teach some very transferrable card game skills makes it valuable. Bridge players might find it too watered down, and social card players will find it to be a bit of a brainfuck.
Stratego: In short, similar to chess but with hidden information. One of my favourites as a kid and appears to have extensive variants that I have yet to try.
A classic. The game has been known for so long that the depth of it is well understood. The downside is that unfortunately much of the game appears to be learnt through memorisation of opening moves, and optimising particular strategies. The upside is that many interesting chess variants exist. I love playing chess variants because they can often be quickly explained to someone who is proficient in the basic rules of chess, and creates a challenge that is much harder to upskill due to their unexplored nature. It's silly to imagine everyone only playing one card game ever, so why are we only playing one version of chess? Below are my favourite:
Alice chess: Pieces flip onto a separate "dimension" after completion of every turn. Can be played on a single board, however it requires having a few coins/tokens handy. I've only played this variant twice, however I found it really enjoyable, and it seems to be highly rated by a lot of chess variant fans.
Avalanche chess: After completing your turn, you can move one of your opponents pawns forward one space. A small rule change which speeds up the usual pace of a chess game, creating a much more aggressive play from both sides. This is the variant I tend to introduce people to since the explanation of the rule change is quick, while still having more depth than games like Loser chess.
Fusion chess: Friendly pieces can combine to move as one, and split again as individual pieces. I've only played the poorly named sub-variant of this game known as "Chess Plus" which has very minimal instructions. Chess Plus differs from Fergus Duniho's one described in the link as it does not seem to allow the king to do any fusions. However besides that, the game can be effectively played the same. It seems that everyone I play this with has a knack for it that I don't seem to grasp yet, so I do find it frustrating, but on the upside, games tend to be quick and I lose quite easily. The natural trade-off of combining pieces means that if a single compound piece is attacked, both pieces are removed. Understanding this aspect of the game made it more interesting to me.
Flang: Perhaps the strangest and most underrated of the variants. This one combines many common rule variants (racing kings, amazon fairy piece, buffed pawns) into one, with an original fairy piece and an odd freeze mechanic. While largely unheard of on any websites, I was surprised to find the game challenging and engaging. It can even be played on a traditional chess set and I've found that many others quite enjoy it. The freeze mechanic is maybe its only drawback, as it feels a bit clunky and contrived especially when playing in-person. However it may just be a lack of familiarity, and I get the feeling that there is a depth to this mechanic that I've yet to understand.
Loser chess: Aim to lose, and if you can capture a piece, you MUST capture it. Once again, a small rule change, however this one leads to a weakly solved game which one might argue makes it a less interesting play. However as an exercise, it has some merit for its enjoyability.
Shogi: A historical variant of Chaturanga, and therefore is well explored and known, unlike other variants on this list. I've found this game to have a slow opening but a really fast paced end game which has yet to feel boring (unlike the occasional boring end games that traditional chess sometimes ends up with).
Three-way chess: Multiple board designs exist for three-way chess. Having played only the hexagonal one once, I have to say the game plays tremendously well, despite a few confusions about the centre tiles. The game becomes far more psychological and encouraging discussions amongst players makes it extra fun. I have yet to find a game that can be purchased without using Amazon, if anyone finds one, please let me know.
Le truc: A two-player trick taking game that feels much like poker but without the chips, and much shorter. Easy to play anywhere and carries the same psychology and probability skills as poker.
Wizard: Another trick taking game, this time for groups of 3 or more. Players have to guess how many tricks they can win each round, and lose points if their guess is not correct. Can almost be played with a regular deck, however it requires 4 jokers as well as 4 "new" cards called "Wizards".
I am mostly not a fan of games that require far too much luck (e.g. Monopoly, Ludo, etc.) however I can admit that certain games have quite substantial amounts of luck, more than bluffing games, but not so much as to overpower the skill involved, and therefore can be quite fun. These games tend to be good social games due to the luck involved, but still allow players to feel in control and motivated to improve.
Articulate: Charades with words (describe a word to your teammate without using any part of this word). The luck involved here is purely because the words are chosen at random and at times, a series of lucky draws leads to fast guesses. I also feel that the limited categories also limit some players who are knowledgeable on many topics but perhaps not the particular ones that are covered by those categories. Perhaps a small database of Articulate cards in new categories could be developed by a passionate community...
Cluedo: Deduction game where you try and solve a murder mystery by asking questions to other players. I've played this once and while it was fun, I began to see, as many on the internet seem to have noticed as well, that the board and dice are entirely pointless and the game can be played without them, thus eliminating probably 95% of the luck in the game (I need to play more to determine how much luck is left). The game might become a bit too ruthless towards true deductive logic nerds, hence why it may be wise to keep the board for family Christmas dinners.
Shattered Pixel Dungeon: An open source rogue-like game with immense amounts of chance to such an extent that beating it consistently becomes a matter of skill, that is, skill in dealing with the randomness. The best game available on F-Droid.
Xonotic: An open source arena FPS. The Gold Standard in terms of video games. Besides the probability involved with spawning players (and the shotgun), the game is entirely skill-based, requiring reflexes, mental mapping, psychology, time management, and problem solving. The four game modes worth playing are CTF, Duel, FFA, and defrag. The Vodka Ruleset, although I haven't played it, appears to be the most interesting ruleset for duel players. The only thing missing is to remove the randomness of the shotgun spray.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu: A grappling martial arts that is Incredibly strategic and still evolving. Many different playstyles exist that are deep and have their own balanced pro's and con's. Learning to avoid injury is essential in order to enjoy this game.
Having fun is praxis
Page last edited on 5 May 2024.