Summary
A common misconception aboutboard gamesis that they’re all super long and boring. That mostly isn’t true. With there being plenty ofshort and sweetboard games on the market, that reputation has to come from somewhere. It’s mostlyMonopoly’s fault, but that doesn’t even crack the top 20.
The truth is that plenty of board games are intentionally designed to last a long time. Some use this to try and create epic experiences nothing can match, while others have designed a way to split a long game into several 2-hour sessions to make them more manageable.
Updated on March 16th, 2024, by kristy Ambrose:Tabletop gamers can look for a variety of experiences in what’s still a popular and thriving market, despite some opinions that tabletop games are outdated. Which game is the best fit all depends on the group of players; some want simple and quick games they can play while they socialize and have a laugh for an evening. Meanwhile, others prefer a much more hardcore experience that dedicates a whole day of their lives to learning, loving, and playing a game. These long games can create deeply immersive playing experiences that will stick with players forever, and there are plenty of them out there, so a couple more have been added to this list.
16Risk
Playing Time: 2 - 4 Hours
One of the more notorious examples of games that not only take a long time but also require a fair amount of gear and space, a typical game ofRiskcan take as little as two hours. It’s a popular party game that up to six people can enjoy.
Since the map is known for taking up a healthy amount of space, it’s ideal for a “party table” that’s big enough to include diversions like snacks and drinks. People can also move freely around the gaming area and, depending on how many people there are, party organizers can also arrange their guests into teams or run tournaments to keep the activity going.
15Through The Ages: A New Story Of Civilization
Playing Time: 4 Hours
Many of the longest board games all carry a similar theme. Historical settings are commonplace in the board game world because they create inherentlydifferent and interesting scenarios. However, the longest pages almost exclusively follow this theme.
The historical period varies, although many seek to cover all of history in one package. This is whereThrough The Agescomes in. This is a card drafting game where players look to build a great civilization by managing food, science, production, and all the things anyCivilizationplayer will be familiar with.
14The War Of The Ring
Playing Time: 4 hours
The name isn’t just derivative, this is actually based on Tolkien’s epic series, but not on any specific stories or legends. Instead, two to four players control either the good or evil forces of Middle-earth in an attempt to either destroy or reclaim the One Ring during the same time period as the Peter Jackson movies.
Given the length and breadth of the lore of Middle-earth, it’s easy to see whyThe War of the Ringwould take a long time to play. The game starts with a political track in which Gandalf must recruit certain reluctant allies into the forces of the Free People, who must then battle the Shadow Armies for dominance.
13The Republic Of Rome
Playing Time: 5 Hours
This is a game whose theme will make most people yawn until they pass out but will make a specific type of history nerd squeal with delight at the thought. The dirty little secret aboutThe Republic of Romeis that, despite presenting itself in a rather boring way, it’s a pretty brilliant game.
Players navigate the fairly complex political system of the Roman Republic during one of the empire’s biggest periods. Players must manage resources to make proposals to the Senate, which others vote on.
The goal is to get the player’s faction in control of the Senate and become Rome’s first Emperor. Resist power grabs and assassination attempts from other players, invasions from foreign powers, and rebellions from the Roman people. It’s a complex mix that forces players to work together while each one is setting up the pieces to put themselves on top.
121830: Railways & Robber Barons
Playing Time: 6 Hours
This game wasoriginally released in 1986, with a new edition released in 2011, which looked to speed the game up somewhat. Regardless, it’s still a game that can stretch on for the better part of a day. On the surface, it looks likeMonopolymeetsTicket To Ride, which is a bad thing meeting a good thing.
It shares some similarities with both games but makes some crucial alterations. For one thing, rather than playing with pure money exchanged between other players, the game’s economy centers around a stock market, which can be manipulated by players to great effect. It’s a complex system, which is why it takes so long, but for players who are all about the numbers, it could be a great time.
11Nemesis
A big one for anyAliensfans here, asNemesisdoes a fantastic job of bringing aboutthat great horror atmosphere. This is a semi-cooperative game where players have to navigate a ship while keeping clear of an alien that can hear players' movements and gets stronger the longer the game goes on.
What’s more, each player has secret objectives that they need to fulfill to win the game. Some of these may be helpful to the group, like restoring power to the ship. Others won’t be so helpful, such as navigating the ship to an unknown planet or getting a specified player killed. It’s a tense mix of strategy and social deduction, full of memorable moments.
10Civilization
There have been a whole host ofCivilizationboard games that have come out over the years. Each has a different take on the game’s format, but the original 1980 version captures the game’s length the best.
Interestingly for aCivilizationgame, players don’t progress through all of history, just from around 8000BC to the dawn of the Roman Empire in the 3rd Century. Which, disturbingly, means that this game was cut short and still managed to be insanely long. It’s reasonably well-regarded as one of the better games for deep dives into ancient civilizations. However, though the mechanics are solid, it could be argued they don’t hold up for a 6-hour session.
9Diplomacy
Diplomacyis a unique game that looks to fully engage each player in becoming a ruler of their power. Players take control of one of the great European powers at the turn of the 20th Century and have to negotiate with their fellow players to win allies and gain territory.
At each turn, players can discuss and negotiate what they will do with their military units. Players can make alliances to overpower and share territory, or players can say they’ll do that while stabbing each other in the back. Players all right down their orders in secret and reveal them simultaneously, which means people always have to gamble on who they can trust and if their plans will succeed.
8Paths Of Glory
Playing Time: 8 Hours
For fans of wargames,Paths Of Gloryis a recognizable name as one of the better games in the genre. It is, however, quite dense for a casual board gamer to get into. Taking place during the First World War, this two-player game sees one player control the allies and one control the central powers.
As one would expect from a game that covers the entirety of World War 1, there’s a lot to do. Managing troops all across Europe means that turns can take some time and the push-and-pull of the game flow can be a bit tiresome.
However, these deadlocks can sometimes make for tense situations, the likes of which are somewhat realistic to how combat was in the war. Board games of this style were so popular that they werethe main inspiration for the video gamesthat would eventually become the modern military shooter.
77 Ages
Unlike that coward of aCivilizationgame,7 Agesgoes the whole hog and covers history from 4000 BC to the modern-day 2000 AD. Modern incarnations of the game have even earlier start times. While this may sound like a game very similar toCivilization, this focuses on gaining & trading cards with fellow players to reach their peak.
Leaders can only be chosen depending on the period the game is starting, and players will be in a constant string of negotiations and trading to help each other grow while still looking to become the most dominant. It is also possible for players to control multiple civilizations to help each other grow, but they will then be splitting their limited actions even thinner.
