By Stephanie Chan

July is National Family Reunion Month, so why not host a family game night? It’s something everyone can do together so that adults aren’t only talking to adults, and the kids aren’t only hanging out with kids.

Here are some fun and new board games, as well as some classics, that the whole family will love.

1. Blokus - ages 5 and up
Played with colorful tetris pieces, this strategy game will surely keep both kids and adults on their toes. The object of the game is to place all your tiles in such a way that they’re touching both existing tiles and the edges of the board.

2. The Game of Things - ages 8 and up
This game will definitely test how well you know your family members. All you do is select a topic card from the hilarious 300-card set which contains prompts like, “Things you shouldn’t do with glue,” and each player writes their response. Now the fun begins in trying to guess who said what!

3. Clue - ages 8 and up
If your family is into murder-mystery games, then you definitely need this game at your family reunion. The game has up to six players and the goal is to figure out which one of your family members “killed” Mr. Boddy. In order to win, you have to correctly guess the killer, the weapon used, and in which room of the mansion.

4. Apples to Apples - ages 12 and up
A very fun game that’ll definitely keep the entire family laughing. The rules are simple - everyone is dealt their cards that each contain a random word or phrase. Each player will take their turn playing judge by selecting the category of each round. Once everyone chooses a card that they think best fit the category, the judge will choose which card they liked the most. The goal is to have the most category cards by the end of the game.

5. Taboo - ages 13 and up
A great game for some friendly competition. Divide the family up into two teams. One member is given a card with a word that your team members must guess. The hard part? There’s also a list of words you can’t use when giving hints, and you only have about a minute until time runs out.

Although these are great games to play with the entire family, they’re just as great to play any day with your nieces and nephews. Plus, games are something fun to do indoors when there’s bad weather outdoors. Get playing, and good luck!

Photo: familytravelck via Flickr cc
Published: July 14, 2014