The Best 2 Player Strategy Games
When you want to spend quality time with a friend or family member, it's hard to go wrong with a two-player strategy game. While they aren't as fancy as modern-day video games, strategy games of this sort require a quick mind that's able to anticipate the opponent's decisions many moves in advance. These games not only make for great mental exercises, but they're also fun social tools that set the stage for valuable face-to-face bonding time. Whatever your motivation for seeking out a two-player strategy game might be, we've rounded up a variety of the best ones available to help you find the perfect game for you.
Chess Armory Wooden Chess Set
Classic Competition
The classic mano-a-mano game of wits and deception is just a click away with this option Chess Armory. This wooden chess set folds neatly in half to store each side’s pieces. The 32 wooden figures are expertly crafted and secured to the felt lining with fabric straps for easy transportation. The actual board is constructed from walnut, a hardwood that will retain a vibrant finish for years into the future. If you’re ready to challenge your friends, stimulate your mind, and take the first steps towards becoming a grandmaster, Chess Armory’s wooden set is the pick for you.
Pros:
- The pieces are no more than 3 inches tall
- Excellent game for developing critical thinking
- Fun for all ages
Cons:
- The pieces are not magnetized and can slip on uneven surfaces
Hasbro Gaming Battleship
Sink or Swim
Hasbro’s classic board game Battleship has inspired thrilling movies and hours-long marathons of unpredictable conflict. Battleship consists of four grids for two players, with each primary grid serving as the location of your fleet. Once assembled, players take turns calling out grid locations in an attempt to locate and destroy the opponent’s armada first. This upgraded version consists of the five boats from the original game plus a three-piece plane for added reinforcements. During a casual game night, whip out Battleship for the explosive excitement you’ve been waiting for.
Pros:
- Convenient portable carrying case design
- Mess-free interior storage containers
- You can learn to play in no-time
Cons:
- The ocean grid panel is fragile
Pressman Mastermind Game
Crack the Code
While this may not be a household name for most readers, Pressman’s Mastermind game is a surprisingly challenging contest of logic and reasoning that older children and adults adore. Mastermind consists of a code maker and codebreaker who switch roles after rounds have concluded. Once the code maker has set a pin using four of six colors, the codebreaker has ten opportunities to guess. By supplying limited hints after each guess, this game hones the mind’s ability to analyze increasingly complex patterns. If you want some neural exercise for yourself or your kids, Mastermind’s thousands of combinations will keep your mind racing at every turn.
Pros:
- Instruction manual included
- 108 total code pegs for over 2000 moves
- Intended for ages 8+
Cons:
- Hint pegs are tiny and easy to lose
Nexci Scrimish Card Set
Portable Gaming Glory
Card decks are the minimalist’s goldmine when it comes to strategy games. If you’re looking for a specialized deck for a particularly engaging and fast-paced game, Nexci’s Scrimish card set is the ideal companion for backpacking hikes and beach trips alike. Think of Scrimish as a more complex, strategic version of the card game War. However, instead of winning by acquiring all of your opponent’s cards, you must find the crown card lurking under one of five piles of cards. By overloading one deck with all your powerful units or making your attacks unpredictable, you can use deception and cunning to outsmart your opponent in this timeless game of misdirection.
Pros:
- Two decks of 50 cards included with purchase
- Add as many decks and players as you like
- Average duration of 10 minutes per round
Cons:
- Cards are smaller than a standard deck size
Gamewright Forbidden Island
Solve the Puzzle
Not all game night brain-busters need to be about heightened competition against your fellow gamer. Gamewright’s Forbidden Island is a cooperative two- to four-person strategy game that requires patience and teamwork to escape from a sinking archipelago. Players choose from six distinct classes that determine how you move across the Forbidden Island. As you collect the treasure required before the evacuation, the landscape changes, providing fewer outlets back to the landing zone and forcing the team to leave no explorer behind.
Pros:
- Pick from the treasure and flood cards each round to alter the board
- Highly detailed illustrations and treasure figurines
Cons:
- It may be too simple for adolescents
Frequently Asked Questions
Do strategy board games have competitive leagues?
Many institutions across the world support organized, competitive board gaming today. In formal gaming, two of the most prominent groups in existence are the World Chess Federation, founded nearly a century ago in Switzerland, and the World Draughts Federation, the international body for “straight checkers.” Breaking away from the classics, clubs like the Boardgame Players Association host an array of mind-bending challenges annually in Pennslyvania that encompass brand names and cult classics.
What was the first strategy board game?
Current archaeological evidence points to ancient Egypt as the oldest civilization to construct board games. The two games in question, known as Senet and Hounds and Jackals, are unfortunately poorly understood because no complete rulebook has survived. The oldest living board game, Backgammon, is presumed to have been created within a few hundred years of the Egyptian artifacts, yet is still quite popular today.
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