Until today 2020 is a crazy year, due to COVID-19. We all spend a lot more time at home, with a small group of friends or family and travelling is for most people (at least for me in Singapore) still out of the question. To enter Singapore from another country you’ll first have to stay in a designated quarantine hotel for 14 days. Fortunately, I didn’t have to do the quarantine, but in the 3 months lockdown in Singapore, we’ve played a lot of games to get us through the lockdown. And of course, all the games are also great for a rainy day.
This is my top 5:
1. Pandemic
Top of the list during a pandemic: Pandemic – Can you save humanity? It’s not even a new game this year, but it will definitely give you the feeling that you can save the world from COVID-19. There are sudden outbreaks, new infections and you with your disease fighting team trying to treat the diseases before they spread. Each player plays a different role, and you must work together as a team, to fight the diseases. So if you win, you can celebrate together.
Pandemic won prizes in the USA, France and Australia.
Players: 2 – 4 persons
Time: approx. 45 minutes
Age: 8+
Price: about 35 Euros
2. EXIT
The escape room in your living room! Escape rooms are concurring the world lately, but in times that you can’t leave your home – or you just want to be locked up in a room – this game is perfect. EXIT is our top favorite! You only need scissors, paper and a pen. It could take some time to finish this game, so make sure you’ve been to the bathroom, got drinks and snacks lined up and your phone switched to airplane mode.
The only downside of this game is that the games can only be played once, because you’ll know all the answers at the end. And because you have to markup, fold and tear the game materials you can’t pass it on to anyone else (or you’ll have to trace everything over, but that will take a very long time). On the other hand, there are many EXIT games from level 1 to 5. Start with an easy EXIT game and when you manage to get out, level up.
There’s also a Pocket Escape Room card game available. You don’t need any materials for that game. We didn’t play the card game yet, because we saved this one for a tropical island or a long bus ride or flight.
Players: 1 – 6 persons
Time: approx. 2 – 3 hours (it depends on how hints you take)
Age: 12+ (depending on the difficulty level)
Price: about 15 Euros
Necessary items: scissors, pen and paper
3. Clever
My brother told me about this great game during the lockdown. It’s similar to Yahtzee: you throw coloured dice and enter as many combinations as possible in the matching coloured area. The pencils are included. The playing time is only 15-30 minutes, so you don’t need a lot of time to play Clever. This game was nominated in 2019 for “Game of the Year”.
If you’re in quarantine by yourself and don’t have anyone to play games with, you can play this game solo! We even played this game in a Zoom-call with my brother, who was on the other side of the world.
Players: 1 – 4 persons
Time: approx. 30 minutes
Age: 8+
Price: about 15 Euros
Clever 
Also a great game to play on the beach
4. Codenames Duet
Codenames Duet is a fun, short, cooperative game to get to know your partner even better. Your mission as a spy is to connect the words and describe them with one word to your partner. Your partner has to guess the words with one-word clues, so you’ll get to know how the other player thinks. It’s hilarious! If you don’t understand each other, assassins will kill you.
Codenames Duet also won a lot of prizes, for example winner of the “International Games Award” in 2018 and the “Seal of Excellence”.
Players: 2+ persons
Time: approx. 15 minutes
Age: 11+
Price: about 20 Euros
5. Ticket to Ride
This board game isn’t new, but there are new editions every year. You can build a train track accessing the world or choose a Ticket to Ride-edition that zooms into a particular part of the world or country. Of course this game also won a lot of prizes.
In this train adventure you’ll have to collect and play matching train cards to claim railway routes connecting cities throughout the world. The game ends when the trains are all placed on the board, so the game doesn’t last forever. The more players, the better I enjoy playing Ticket to Ride.
Players: 2 – 5 persons
Time: approx. 60 minutes
Age: 9+
Price: depends on the edition
You could take EXIT (especially the cardgame), Clever and Codenames Duet with you when travelling. I also always bring a deck of cards, dice and a noteblock, for example when I’m travelling in Asia and South America. If you would like to know why I started a travel blog in a pandemic, read my blog here.
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