# Need fun board games for two. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 6, 2002, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739 "2002-06-06T21:23:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![GopherGod72](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f0a364/32.png) [@GopherGod72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GopherGod72)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2002, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/1 "2002-06-06T21:23:11Z")
My SO and I are starting to spend too much time on seperate computers and seperate TV’s. I want to buy some board games to get us interacting with each other more. Problem is, I cant find any fun games for only 2 people. Any suggestions? ---
**Author:** ![MachV](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@MachV](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MachV)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2002, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/2 "2002-06-06T21:40:15Z")
Deluxe Scrabble is my most favorit-ist. It rilly helps my speling.(sorry) But seriously, my g/f and I play it all the time. ---
**Author:** ![islandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8491ac/32.png) [@islandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/islandgirl)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2002, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/3 "2002-06-06T21:40:19Z")
Strip Chocolate: a board game that lets you explore your competative and creative sides simultaneously 😉 ---
**Author:** ![BraheSilver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@BraheSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BraheSilver)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2002, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/4 "2002-06-06T21:40:59Z")
Looking for something involved? Heroquest. Don’t get too attatched to your monsters, though. Something a bit shorter? Key to the Kingdom, if you have room for the giant board. There’s always Twister. And if you’re in the mood afterwards, obscenity Scrabble. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2002, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/5 "2002-06-06T21:44:52Z")
I like Stratego. And I’ll second Scrabble. (Considered a contact sport in my family.) stv ---
**Author:** ![Gundy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Gundy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gundy)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2002, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/6 "2002-06-06T21:46:01Z")
Trivial Pursuit, baby! ---
**Author:** ![Podkayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Podkayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Podkayne)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2002, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/7 "2002-06-06T22:09:52Z")
If you like abstract strategy games, even just a little bit, I highly recommend [Icehouse](http://www.wunderland.com/icehouse/Icehouse.html) An Icehouse stash consists of stackable pyramids, five large, five medium, five small, originally desiged for a game called (duh!) Icehouse, but now used to play [a multitude of games](http://www.wunderland.com/icehouse/IcehouseGameIndex.html), with rules available online. Rules to some of the most popular games are available in a convenient but pricey little book. There are several good two-player games. For most two-player games or variations, you’ll only need two stashes in two different colors, but there are some exceptions (RAMbots, Igloo, Icetowers) and if you have other friends you might want to play with, it might be worth waiting for the 5th Ed. four-color boxed set. Some games are played on a chess board, or other boards (most you can draw yourself, or download as PDF files and print.) My favorite two-player games are [Martian Chess](http://www.wunderland.com/icehouse/MartianChess.html) and [Pikemen](http://www.wunderland.com/WTS/Jake/Pikemen.html), both chess-like capturing games, which is kind of weird, since I _loathe_ real chess because I stink at it. ---
**Author:** ![dragongirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b38774/32.png) [@dragongirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dragongirl)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2002, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/8 "2002-06-06T22:09:58Z")
I’ll second Trivial Pursuit. When we don’t know the answers we have fun making up silly ones. ---
**Author:** ![Doubting\_Robert](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e495f1/32.png) [@Doubting\_Robert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doubting_Robert)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2002, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/9 "2002-06-06T22:51:04Z")
Don’t forget the classics - chess, checkers, Chinese checkers, backgammon, go, etc. My (adult) daughter and I enjoy playing Cathedral. This website [http://www.cathedralgame.com/](http://www.cathedralgame.com/) shows wooden and “polystone” sets, but we have a set with hollow plastic pieces which was probably cheaper. My wife and I enjoy a game called Counterpoint, for 2-4 players. If you play with three or four players, it is important that all of them have fairly equal skill; otherwise, the person who plays after the poorest play has an unfair advantage. However, I have not seen this one in stores in a long time, and I could not find it on the web. We also like to play Oh-Wah-Ree, one of the 3M bookshelf games. It came with rules for several different versions of the game, some for 2 players, others for 2-4 players. Unfortunately, Oh-Wah-Ree and the other bookshelf games are no longer produced. But you can still find games with similar rules and equipment (although probably not with so many different sets of rules) by looking for games with names which are other spellings of Oh-Wah-Ree (such as Oware) or games called Mancala. And you don’t have to limit yourself to board games. Many card games are more fun with more than two players, but gin rummy works pretty well with just two players. ---
**Author:** ![FlyingDragonFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c89c15/32.png) [@FlyingDragonFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlyingDragonFan)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2002, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/10 "2002-06-06T23:01:49Z")
SCRABBLE!!! Get the hint? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2002, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/11 "2002-06-07T00:16:31Z")
Get a ouija board, and ask a friend to throw pebbles at your window/make loud spooky moaning sounds outside your front door when you try it the first time at night. Don’t tell your SO that you asked a friend to do the ghost impersonation. ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2002, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/12 "2002-06-07T02:04:19Z")
Taught my wife to play cribbage a few years ago. She has gotten pretty good lately. She even beat me once and a while. ---
**Author:** ![BoBettie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@BoBettie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BoBettie)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2002, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/13 "2002-06-07T02:06:43Z")
Rummy is fun, Scattegories, Kismet, Yahtzee, Michigan Rummy, Scrabble, Word Yahtzee, Trivia, Uno, Gin Rummy, Wordsters, Monopoly, Dominos, Tri-ominos. I’ll think of more- we play a lot of games together 🙂 Zette ---
**Author:** ![Big\_Kahuna\_Burger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e0b2c6/32.png) [@Big\_Kahuna\_Burger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Big_Kahuna_Burger)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2002, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/14 "2002-06-07T02:13:30Z")
Battleship rules. My friend and I take a writing class that’s thoroughly useless. Luckily, it’s in a computer lab, so we made a battleship board in Excel. High quality fun. Also fun is Risk. ---
**Author:** ![CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crankyasanoldman/32/11670_2.png) [@CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrankyAsAnOldMan)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2002, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/15 "2002-06-07T02:41:34Z")
There is a game called Sequence that is pretty interesting. It doesn’t look like much, but don’t let the lame packaging fool you. ---
**Author:** ![Squish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8797f3/32.png) [@Squish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squish)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2002, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/16 "2002-06-07T04:13:59Z")
Scrabble, definitely. I also second rummy, backgammon and Yahtzee. I’m a dunce at chess, but a lot of people love it. Spite and Malice is a sort of double solitaire where you’re out to screw your opponent–great for being able to talk smack to each other. ---
**Author:** ![lolagranola](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ea5d25/32.png) [@lolagranola](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lolagranola)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2002, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/17 "2002-06-07T04:59:23Z")
Card games are good too. We often play [Spite and Malice](http://www.pagat.com/patience/spitemal.html) or [Hand and Foot Canasta](http://www.pagat.com/rummy/handfoot.html). As with many of the posters above, I also find that the classics are classics for a reason. Backgammon, chess, chinese checkers, and the rest are all really great for an evening. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Griffin-Kentzel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larry_griffin-kentzel/32/14787_2.png) [@Larry\_Griffin-Kentzel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Griffin-Kentzel)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2002, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/18 "2002-06-07T05:20:29Z")
I’ll move this to **IMHO** for you. * * * **Cajun Man** - SDMB Moderator ---
**Author:** ![GopherGod72](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f0a364/32.png) [@GopherGod72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GopherGod72)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2002, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/19 "2002-06-07T05:40:36Z")
Y’all! Every single one of you, these are some GREAT ideas! I’m so excited. I couldn’t be more please with with the answers, I cant wait to go get some of these games and a deck of cards. I think this is just what we need. We’ve been living together for almost 5 years but we’re starting to slip away into our own ruts. Dont get me wrong, everyone needs there alone time, but sometimes we want to be together but we dont like the same tv shows ect. ---
**Author:** ![Alma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecd19e/32.png) [@Alma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alma)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2002, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739/20 "2002-06-07T07:16:48Z")
My dearest and I used to play a game called Brain Strain. It’s a lateral thinking game, and kind of tough but pretty cool. We’d only play with each other because nobody else had the patience for it. Eventually we went through all the questions, and I don’t think there are newer versions. If you like those kinds of puzzles, I highly recommend it. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-fun-board-games-for-two/112739.md?page=2)