‘Twas the night before Christmas and all through the GeekHouse, everyone was playing their favorite game. It will be a little while before the 2024 GeekDad Game of the Year is announced so, in the meantime, here’s a selection of some of our current favorite games to share with your friends and family this holiday season.
Disclosure: Some of the links below may be affiliate links. This means that the GeekDad/GeekMom contributor may make a small commission if you click through and purchase the item at no extra cost to you. We may have also received the item for review from the manufacturer.
GripMats
Suggested By: Paul Benson
Mfg: Break From Reality Games
Price: $10 – $80
Purchase: GripMats
Description: Board game mats offer players an opportunity to combine expansion boards together with the main board for easier setup. With GripMats, Break From Reality Games goes a step further, offering a surface where the game pieces literally “grip” to the game mat so they won’t slide around if the table is jostled. With dozens of board game favorites available and more always on the way, the high-quality, stitched GripMats can bring something extra to your game nights. Look for a review on GeekDad soon!
Oh My Pigeons
Suggested By: Sarah Pinault
Mfg: Ravensburger
Price: $20
Purchase: Oh My Pigeons
Description: Oh My Pigeons is a fast-paced, card-based game with a die and a plethora of pigeons thrown in for fun. We received this game through an accident at a warehouse, and have since played it more times than any other game we own. To win you must assemble a complete pigeon coop by playing cards to collect and steal pigeons. From one hand to the next, you can be a pigeon away from winning and suddenly in last place. Grandma loves it, the parents love it, the kids love it—Oh My Pigeons is just far more fun than it has any right to be.
Balatro Special Edition
Suggested By: Z.
Mfg: Playstack
Price: $19.99
Purchase: Balatro Special Edition
Description: Over the past few weeks, I’ve purchased Balatro on no less than three separate systems. This unlikely poker roguelike—with its game-changing jokers and psychedelic visuals—is the perfect blend of deep, challenging gameplay and pick-up-and-play wackiness that keeps me coming back whether I’m at home or on the go. My favorite version by far is the physical Nintendo Switch release; not only is it perfectly matched to the hardware but the special edition even comes with 10 physical cards from the game.
Sixem: Sour Patch Kids Dice Game
Suggested By: Sarah Pinault
Mfg: Hootenanny Games Store
Price: $20
Purchase: SIXEM Sour Patch Kids
Description: In our house, there is one candy that rules above all other candies, the Sour Patch Kid. In SIXEM: Sour Patch Kids Hootenanny has produced a new version of its classic game SIXEM with a sweet and sour twist. A dice game in which you race to match the patterns on your board, in this version you can choose to be sour and erase your opponents’ progress or sweet to boost them. There is less individual focus than in the original, and this makes a great family game as you have the decision of being sweet with your littles or sour to mess with your teenagers.
The Jane Austen Game
Suggested By: Jenny Bristol
Mfg: Laurence King Publishing
Price: About $30
Purchase: The Jane Austen Game
Description: Make a prudent marriage match or become a Woman of Independent Mind in this new tabletop game set in the world of Jane Austen’s novels. Players take on the role of one of the six major heroines (one from each novel), and either strive for a good marriage or decide to stay single. The game includes cards for a large number of suitors (including some cads, so be careful with your strategy!) as well as pretty much all of the other book characters. You can increase your chances of doing well by gathering attribute tokens reflecting Book Learning, Common Sense, Compassion, and Victory Points. You’ll get more out of the game if you’re familiar with the storylines and characters of the novels, but that knowledge is not required for playing. Put on the kettle and choose your favorite heroine! Read my full review on GeekMom.
Dungeons & Dragons Player’s Handbook (2024)
Suggested By: Rory Bristol
Mfg: Wizards of the Coast
Price: $44.34
Purchase: Dungeons & Dragons Player’s Handbook (2024)
Description: Just in time for the game’s 50th anniversary, the Dungeons & Dragons Player’s Handbook (2024) updates nearly every part of fifth edition gameplay. From revamped classes, backgrounds, and species to novel weapons, spells, and combat mechanics, there’s something to love for every player. The best part is the game is now easier than ever to understand, play, and enjoy. This is the perfect gift for players who want to use their imagination, tell stories, and spend time with friends.
Daybreak
Suggested By: Jonathan H. Liu
Mfg: CMYK Games
Price: $49.99
Purchase: Daybreak
Description: Work together to fight climate change by switching to clean energy, reducing emissions, and building up resiliency. This cooperative game from the designer of Pandemic incorporates a lot of real-world information and shows the need for major world powers to collaborate—as well as the dire consequences if we don’t. Read the full review here.
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
Suggested By: Z.
Mfg: Nintendo
Price: $59.80
Purchase: The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
Description: Echoes of Wisdom plays with the classic Legend of Zelda formula by putting Princess Zelda in the driver’s seat. Using her new Tri Rod, Zelda can generate echoes, copies of objects and characters used to best enemies and uncover the underlying mystery behind the rifts currently plaguing Hyrule. The growing list of echoes, cleverly enchanting story, and beautiful Link’s Awakening-style visuals give it an inviting, immersive feel, and Zelda’s brand of adventuring—while not wholly dissimilar from that of our regular protagonist Link—adds a fun new wrinkle to the whole affair. (Review materials provided by Nintendo of America.)
Disney Lorcana TCG: Illumineer’s Quest – Deep Trouble
Suggested By: Paul Benson
Mfg: Ravensburger
Price: $59.99
Purchase: Disney Lorcana TCG: Illumineer’s Quest – Deep Trouble
Description: Looking for new ways to play Disney Lorcana? This cooperative set comes with two preconstructed player decks, featuring the sorcerer Yen Sid of Disney’s Fantasia and Mulan. You must stand against Ursula and her entangled glimmers even as her powers increase. You can play with two people, or even try to take on Ursula solo.
Magic: the Gathering Foundations Starter Collection
Suggested By: Rory Bristol
Mfg: Wizards of the Coast
Price: $59.99
Purchase: Magic: the Gathering Foundations Starter Collection
Description: This all-in-one set gives players everything they need to get started in Magic: the Gathering. The entire Foundations set is designed to give players of all experience levels the cards they need to make their favorite decks, and this box takes that a step further by providing specific cards, booster packs, and even some accessories. The crowning jewel for new players, however, is the step-by-step guide to building and playing quality decks. Any Magic: the Gathering fan will be delighted to receive this collection.
Mario & Luigi: Brothership
Suggested By: Z.
Mfg: Nintendo
Price: $59.88
Purchase: Mario & Luigi: Brothership
Description: Brothership, the latest release in the beloved Mario & Luigi action-RPG franchise, is a series highpoint and a late-cycle release on the venerable Switch that’s tailormade for Nintendo’s plucky handheld/console hybrid. From its cartoony graphics with distinct character outlines to its jazzy, ska-infused soundtrack to its judicious use of the system’s HD rumble, Mario & Luigi: Brothership is a holiday must-buy for gamer families everywhere. Join Mario, Luigi, and Snoutlet as they navigate the vast waters of Concordia, reuniting a shattered continent and its disparate peoples, even as enemies old and new seek to undo their progress! (Review materials provided by Nintendo of America.)
Bag of Holding
Suggested By: Paul Benson
Mfg: Rollacrit
Price: $150
Purchase: Bag of Holding
Description: For those of you who play tabletop roleplaying games, you know that you’re hauling a lot around with you to game night. Rulebooks, character sheets, miniatures, snacks, and double or triple that if you’re the game master! Rollacrit’s Bag of Holding is a sturdy, versatile solution for carrying all your TTRPG items. Even better, you can customize it with different accessories like shoulder straps and zipper charms.
Click through to read all of "GeekDad/GeekMom Holiday Gift Guide 2024: Games" at GeekMom.If you value content from GeekMom, please support us via Patreon or use this link to shop at Amazon. Thanks!