Top 10 Casual Two-Player Games
Mike 10 – 06:42
Zee 10 – 10:30
Tom 10 – 13:22
Mike 9 – 15:27
Zee 9 – 18:50
Tom 9 – 20:40
Mike 8 – 22:40
Zee 8 – 25:50
Tom 8 – 28:03
Mike 7 – 31:09
Zee 7 – 33:22
Tom 7 – 35:57
Mike 6 – 38:24
Zee 6 – 40:15
Tom 6 – 42:55
Mike 5 – 45:18
Zee 5 – 49:08
Tom 5 – 51:12
Mike 4 – 53:49
Zee 4 – 56:26
Tom 4 – 59:30
Mike 3 – 1:01:30
Zee 3 – 1:04:05
Tom 3 – 1:06:38
Mike 2 – 1:08:35
Zee 2 – 1:10:36
Tom 2 – 1:12:40
Mike 1 – 1:14:40
Zee 1 – 1:17:11
Tom 1 – 1:20:10
People’s Choice 1:22:22
Outro 1:25:40
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BGG Link:
Need a "games for enemies" list
Very useful top 10, it makes a good list of gift ideas to couples 😊
Can you make a similar top 10 two-player games but for gamers?
I really like the following proper 2 player casual games (not multiplier games played at 2): Codenames Duet, 7 Wonders Duel, Memoir 44, Air, Land and Sea, Hanamikoji, Battleline/Schotten Totten, Patchwork, Lost Cities, Onitama, Targi and Jaipur.
Great pick with Codenames duet. My wife and I call this our dinner game. We are going through the full map and have been at it for over two years now… It is not easy to get some of those though cities, but man it makes it even better. Best code names game hands down and again, excellent choice!!
to me casual does not mean complexity but means a game where you can have a conversation while playing
Great to see Memoir 44 on this list. I love the uncertainty in it and the possibilities it creates. Yes it is WWII. Nothing what we want experience again RL. But some pple don't like Battlelore because it's a fantasy setting. So just play it for the fun of the game with a friend. Two thumbs up for 7 Wonders Duel
All the grief Tom gave Mike about using the BGG complexity scale became a moot point when 7 Wonders Duel came up on his list. Maybe he should have utilized the scale himself. 😆
These top tens are so enjoyable. Thank you.
Herbaceous
Hive Pocket
Great stuff. Good chemistry.
The banter in both these two player top 10 lists is on point!
I gotta add some games to the pile … Forbidden Desert, Hanimakoji, Karuba, Potion Explosion, Jamaica, and . When new players arrive for game night, these are the ones, along with Jaipur, that get put on the table.
I think shotten totten has only numbers 1-9 where battle line has 1-10, so not the exactly same game. Battle Line is my favourite 2 player game, always playing without the special actions or terrain cards.
So much time wasted on arguing what casual means… I think it should have been a combination of simple rules and where player skill level doesn't matter that much. You can't balance Onitama, but you can Santorini thanks to the variable powers. Therefore, in contrast to what they said, I think the advanced powers make Santorini more casual. Like in Battle Line using the wild powers adds a random element which helps the weaker player –> more casual experience (in addition to the card game variance). Maybe rule out overly themed games like Memoir, too. Nice variable lists though and some ideas what to try next. I think Hanamikoji should definitely have been on the lists before Onitama…
Memoir 44 Tom? Really? Yeah its a light wargame, like undauted also is. But in NO WAY its a casuak game. You have to know the deck, so you dont get dose "gotcha" cards by surprise.
Its no a heavy game, but that dosent make it a casual game.
Would love to see a top 10 list of games to play with grandparents too
When Mike turned to the camera and proclaimed "That's Right!", I knew we were getting the DiLisio experience.
Derpy
When Odin dies who gets his ravens? Thor. Shame he celebrates by killing Jormungander and dieing a few steps later.
Zee didn't pick Targi and Tom didn't pick Lost Cities. My mind is blown.
I find the background with all the dice people distracting, can't focus on the picture of the game because it is too busy for me.
Mike and Zee have my same taste!
Onitama, Tatsu, Village Green, Jaipur, Odin’s Ravens, Lost Cities are all excellent casual 2-player games.
I’d add;
Claim
Blitzkrieg
Hanamakoji
Konja
Mr Jack
Raptor
Thunder & Lighting
Spirits of the Wild
Neuroshima: Convoy
Hermetica
Glyph Chess
Sorry, Zee, but I just checked and The Game of Life has a complexity rating of 1.17 on BGG, not 5
My wife is not a serious board gamer at all and she plays Memoir 44. Totally Casual.
Casual and gateway are not the same list. Just because a game is casual it doesnt mean it needs to be an introduction to gaming. I have been playing board games for years, but I still love casual games because I dont always have the time or energy for Gloomhaven.
Mandala and Hive have been our most played games, hands down. Great for taking on holiday
Great to see Tatsu getting some recognition. Absolutely love that game – played close to 100 times now and is still our go-to holiday/pub game.
I love "Fox In The Forest" and "Red7"
Looking at these lists I definitely think Tom had the heaviest list, which is totally fine with me. I would say that I'm looking forward to the Heavy Two-Player Game video, but I already watched that 🙂
Great lists — glad you all have re-visited this, as I am one of those who almost always play two-player. Surprised that Fox in the Forest and Star Realms/Hero Realms did not make anyone's list, as they are both excellent introductory two-player games. Learned a couple of new games to track down, which is always a plus. Thanks, you all.
Love Klask!
Mike, you look a bit like Mandy Patinkin. 🙂
BGG crowd sourced wts aside… the original Let’s Make a Bus Route was the first game I played at a con as a new gamer several years ago and that was the game that really made it click for me why I love board games. It is a really simple game with the perfect amount of crunch & complexity. It was addictive and I had to play it again immediately then every day of the con until I was teaching it – my 1st time teaching a game too.
16:19 So it’s basically air hockey, then?!
48:43 Sorry Tom, I have to disagree with you. Just because chess has a “metagame” culture right now doesn’t mean that it can’t be played at a “casual” level. Just because it is played at the club level with a bunch of formalities (punching a clock, playing a tournament, etc.) does not mean that I can’t just invite my friend over so that we can play a game or two.
I mean, you could make the same argument about ping pong. You could say that it is not casual because everyone plays it around the world and takes it seriously (particularly in China) – known as “table tennis” – so therefore it cannot be “casual”.
However, I could also just invite my friend over to my basement so that we can play just a “casual” game of “ping pong” – which is played at a different level (skill-wise, training-wise, competitiveness-wise, etc). Does that mean that you cannot play it “casual[ly]”? (I think I just answered that).
1:25:13 But what about an MD mug for Mike?! The Dr. is in the house! 🙂
yea great trio! good zingers too. im lollin
I was able to play Santorini with my 4 year old (without the god powers). Then my wife and I made some house rules for when we play. The depth of this game is highly variable.
Really enjoyed the chemistry of these three for this list
Original Codenames also works perfectly for 2 players in a cooperative way.
Has someone shown this video to Scott Alden?
Weight would be more useful if it was just a few categories (e.g. light, medium, heavy). The faux precision of 2.2 vs 2.3 is literally meaningless.
NO HIVE!?
by Tom's number 7, I wonder if Twilight Struggle will appear on this list 😀
Come on, Tom! You complain about code names duet not being casual and choose Memoir 44? I really does not understand your “casual” concept!
It's funny that I would have almost entirely chosen abstract strategy games for this, cause so many of them have very simple rules, like Kamisado, Kick It, Blocks, Moeraki Kemu or really most anything from Gerhards
Mechanics Vs mechanisms seems like kind of a misunderstood debate since mechanics refers to the area of study in physics, not the noun referring to someone who works on cars.
It is valid usage and does make sense.
Zee seems to think that it’s hard to teach Memoir 44 because he assumes everyone else’s eyes glaze over like his when the phrase “war game” is said, but that holds true for any genre. If you find the theme or variety of game boring, no amount of elegant design will make the teaching process painless.
Burgo alexandros bakatselos you can check is free andeoid