Follow
GamingTabletop

What are the best party card games?

12
Options 
Considered
27
User 
Recs.
Last 
Updated
Related Questions
Activity
Have feedback or ideas?
Discord logoJoin our community
on Discord
Find Awesome Games
Select the tags you're interested in to get a personalized feed of games and help others.

12 Games Considered

12 Options ConsideredPrice# PlayersWeight
One Night Ultimate Werewolf
3-101.41 / 5
Dixit
––
Secret Hitler
––
Codenames
––
Spyfall 2
3-12–
See Full List

One Night Ultimate Werewolf

Add Video or Image
Yonatan
Top Pro

There's an app so no need for a narrator

•••
The app's narrator also explains exactly what each character does which makes it easier for new players.
Yonatan
Top Pro

Gets better with time

•••
As the players learn different strategies to play with different characters the game becomes more and more fun and interesting.
Yonatan
Top Pro

Lots of different characters

•••
Characters have different levels of complexity so the game upgrades as you go.
Yonatan
Top Pro

Quick rounds

•••
Each round takes 5-10 minutes
Yonatan
Top Pro

Has expansion packs

•••
The game has a bunch of expansion packs to add more characters so it doesn't get boring when playing with the same people.
Know any negative aspects of this option?
See 4 more ProsSee 4 more Pros

Dixit

Add Video or Image
Francisco
Top Pro

Game mechanics are simple to explain and easy to learn

•••
Everyone has had the experience of being invited to play a party game, spending half an hour listening to someone explain the rules and still not understanding exactly what's going on when you actually start playing. Dixit is not at all like that: the game mechanics are pretty straightforward a...
Francisco
Top Pro

Amazing illustrations

•••
For many people, this is the main attraction of this game. The cards are simply beautifully illustrated and going through the deck of cards, even if not playing, is a pleasure. The french illustrator Marie Cardouat deserves all the credit for her work creating these dream-like works of art.
Francisco
Top Pro

The way it requires you to read people’s minds through subtle communication cues is thoroughly enticing and completely unique

•••
Unlike many card and board games, the strategy and competitive component in Dixit is almost nonexistent. In fact, the main focus of the game is in being creative and original and in trying to figure out how the other players connect images, ideas and concepts in their minds: this makes the game mu...
Endi Sukaj
Aux Masch
Top Pro

Excellent replacement for Apples to Apples for those bored with it

•••
Francisco
Top Con

Can feel unchallenging and monotonous after some games

•••
Given the simple game mechanics, each game after the first doesn't bring an overwhelmingly new experience, specially after you get to know the cards and/or tend to always play with the same group of people. For this reason, some people start getting bored with the game after a while. However, t...
Francisco
Top Con

It's not uncommon for some players to have an unfair disadvantage or feel left out

•••
Given that Dixit relies heavily on how well you know the other players and on experiences and knowledge you share with them, it's fairly common that, in a group of players where there are people that share a close relationship (couples, flatmates, childhood friends... ), those that aren't p...
See 4 more Pros & ConsSee 4 more Pros & Cons

Secret Hitler

Add Video or Image
Francisco
Top Pro

Good combination of logic and social deduction, with a pinch of randomness

•••
To win Secret Hitler players have to be able to play logically and figure out, using logic and the information they have, how the other players are playing. At the same time, there's a good amount of lying and deception going on, and that social aspect of figuring out who's not being honest...
Francisco
Top Pro

Clever and interesting take on historical events

•••
This is an historical themed game, and one that took a very smart and creative approach to the historical events it portrays: Hitler's rise to power. Even if, admittedly, the setting is simplistic when compared to true history, most will still learn something from the game or at least feel comp...
Francisco
Top Con

The information distribution between the two teams could be more balanced

•••
The way the game is built, while the Liberals have lots of information to figure out and deduce, the Fascists have access to almost all of it. It is true that, in the "hidden identity" family of games, the general setting is an informed minority VS an uninformed majority, but other games...
See 1 more ProSee 1 more Pro

Codenames

Add Video or Image
Francisco
Bryan
Endi Sukaj
Top Pro

Nearly endless replayability

•••
The game comes with 200 double-sided codename cards, of which you use 25 per game. Combine that with the 40 key cards that can each be orientated in 4 different ways and you will almost never play the exact same game twice.
Francisco
Endi Sukaj
Adrian Richardson
Top Pro

Can be played by a lot of players

•••
With an official player count of 2-10 players, there really isn't an upper limit to the number of players that can play Codenames together. To play, players divide into two teams with each team having 1 Spy Master who gives clues to the rest of the team. This means that adding more players does...
Inguna Gudareva
Endi Sukaj
Aux Masch
Top Pro

Players can easily drop in and out of the game without actually hurting the game

•••
Codenames is a deduction game, where players guess words based on one clue from the Spy Master. There is no plot, no intricate mechanic that needs to be explained to people before they can play. You could even switch the players after every turn, and it wouldn't change the gameplay.
Inguna Gudareva
Endi Sukaj
Aux Masch
Top Con

Requires some higher language comprehension, so it may not be best with children and non-native speakers

•••
This wouldn't be the best game to play with people with a limited vocabulary, such as children or non-native speakers. The whole game is based on guessing various words, so players need to be able to understand the words in order to play.
See 2 more ProsSee 2 more Pros

Spyfall 2

Add Video or Image
Inguna Gudareva
Adrian Richardson
Top Pro

An interesting twist on the Mafia game

•••
The spy doesn't try to kill anyone, but to find out where he or she is, and to blend in with others. This allows the spies to be creative in how they ask and answer questions. If they are found out, they lose and the round ends. If they can guess the correct location first, then they win, and t...
Inguna Gudareva
Adrian Richardson
Top Pro

Allows for really big parties (12 players max)

•••
For each location there are 10 occupation cards and two spy cards, allowing it to be played by 12 players. In contrast, the original Spyfall game has 7 occupations and 1 spy card per location.
Inguna Gudareva
Adrian Richardson
Top Pro

Can be mixed with the original Spyfall

•••
Because Skyfall 2 uses the exact same mechanics as the original Spyfall, the location cards can be mixed together, in order to increase the number of locations and make guessing harder for experienced spies.
Inguna Gudareva
Adrian Richardson
Top Con

Not suitable for people who dislike roleplaying

•••
People who are not very playful or don't like role-playing might find the game to be dull, or to make it less fun for other players. Role-playing is an important element in Spyfall, because most of the fun happens when you see unexpected interactions between players in different occupations. If...
Inguna Gudareva
Adrian Richardson
Top Con

Too easy for small teams

•••
It is very easy to reveal the spy in small teams of 3-4 players. This game would be best played by a team of at least 6.
See 3 more Pros & ConsSee 3 more Pros & Cons

Mysterium

Add Video or Image
Inguna Gudareva
Top Pro

A fun way to get to know how people think

•••
Mysterium is a deduction game, which helps to reveal the subtleties of how the other players think. The person playing as the Ghost is not allowed to speak, so the psychic investigators have to try and find any connection between the vision cards they've been handed and the correct choice from...
Inguna Gudareva
Endi Sukaj
Aux Masch
Top Pro

Beautiful artwork

•••
An excellent example of the heights this medium has reached. All the components and cards look like miniature paintings that are a joy to observe.
Inguna Gudareva
Top Pro

Excellent value for money

•••
You get a lot of high quality components in the box. Various cards, two sets of tokens, sleeves, cardboard templates, a sand timer, and other bits and pieces. The design fits in to the mysterious theme, and nothing looks out of place. This can easily be a game around which you can center an intim...
Inguna Gudareva
Top Pro

Incredibly thematic

•••
All pieces and mechanics of this game work together in favor of a unified theme, and it works really well. The ghost is not allowed to give any verbal or non-verbal clues apart from the intended Dream cards. The psychic investigators have to get in to the mind of the the ghost in order to guess cor...
Inguna Gudareva
Top Con

Can get stale if overplayed

•••
Mysterium is built for one story only- finding the culprit of a murderer using visions from a ghost with amnesia. Though there are expansion packs that provide a larger variety of choices, they don't change the story or add any new mechanics. You would have to give plenty of time in between gam...
Inguna Gudareva
Top Con

Takes a lot of time and space to set up

•••
There are many components to this game that need to be set up beforehand. The majority of the table is occupied by the three levels psychics have to advance on. A number of options is laid out for the psychics going from finding the culprit, to room, to murder weapon. The cards are large, so they q...
See 4 more Pros & ConsSee 4 more Pros & Cons

Exploding Kittens

Add Video or Image
thermoplastics
cubethethird
Top Pro

Simple rules

•••
There are very few rules to the game, which makes it both easy to pick up and for new people to join.
Inguna Gudareva
thermoplastics
cubethethird
Top Pro

Completing a full game doesn't take much time

•••
Due to the way the game is designed, a full round will require that you use (at most) the entire deck, which is not substantially large. This means you won't end up with situations like other games, where a round will end up taking over an hour to play. This makes it a good warm-up game.
Inguna Gudareva
Patricia Q
resqcreeper2
Top Pro

Fun at parties

•••
The game is very fast paced and chaotic, making it more fun for parties. The illustrations are very humorous and original, likely to be the source of much laughter.
Inguna Gudareva
Top Con

Limited replayability without buying expansions

•••
Much of the fun in Exploding Kittens comes from the illustrations on the cards. If you play it regularly then this aspect might become dull due to frequent exposure. There are expansions, such as an NSFW (Not Safe For Work, aimed at an adult audience), that you can get to mix things up a bit.
See 2 more ProsSee 2 more Pros

Cards Against Humanity

Add Video or Image
Francisco
Top Pro

Audacious and funny concept for those who enjoy dark humor

•••
The creators of CAH took already used game mechanics (using cards with words to form sentences - see "Apples to Apples", for example) and gave it an audacious twist. The game's cards potentiate the vile and sordid corners of our brains, making us use them to make humorous and reprehe...
Francisco
Top Pro

Straightforward and easy to explain

•••
The mechanics of the game are pretty straightforward and it's easy and quick to get someone who has never heard of CAH before playing and enjoying him/herself. Of course, they have to appreciate this kind of humor.
Francisco
Top Pro

Crazy, long list of expansion packs

•••
CAH is one of the card games currently on the market that has more expansion packs (just over 20 as of Nov. 2016 ). And there are expansions with themes for all tastes: there's the "90s Nostalgia" Pack, the "Jew" Pack, the "Vote for Trump" Pack, the "Post-Trum...
Francisco
Top Con

A kind of humor that's not for everyone

•••
Not everyone finds CAH's humor funny. Many will find it crude, distasteful and disrespectful. On top of that, there are many scenarios where players need to have knowledge on some pretty shady subjects to understand the cards and the sentences they form.
Francisco
Top Con

Simplistic gameplay

•••
As original and fun as this game can be, and even challenging, the gameplay itself is very simplistic. It really is basically an "Apples to Apples" with different words. Those used to more demanding and complex games may be disapointed with this.
See 3 more Pros & ConsSee 3 more Pros & Cons

Snake Oil

Add Video or Image
Adrian Richardson
Top Pro

Creating convincing pitches for ridiculous products rewards creative thinking and often leads to surreal, yet hilarious, situations

•••
Whether they're selling Story Pajamas to the Teacher, a Pocket Toilet to a Couch Potato, or the ever-handy Baby Shield to some Aliens, it is the sales pitches of the players that elevate Snake Oil above similar games like Cards Against Humanity or Apples to Apples. Being able to sell their prod...
Francisco
Laura Kyle
Adrian Richardson
Top Pro

Tons of replayability

•••
With 56 possible customer roles and 336 product cards, there's already a large amount of variety built into the game, but the 30 second pitches allow everyone's creativity to keep each game fresh and new.
Adrian Richardson
Top Con

Players need to commit to the concept of making short sales pitches for the game to really shine

•••
If players aren't willing to really try and sell their products the game can quickly grow stale as people simply play cards and hope to get picked. Now use that silver tongue to get out there and sell some Snake Oil!
See 1 more ProSee 1 more Pro

Joking Hazard

Add Video or Image

Fluxx

Add Video or Image
cubethethird
Top Pro

Tons of themed versions

•••
From Monty Python to Adventure Time, there's an edition of the game for everyone. Regardless if all players understand the references and inside jokes, they're still fun to play.
cubethethird
Top Pro

Ever changing rules

•••
Unlike many games, the purpose of this one is to change the rules as the game goes. This results in very creative strategies, as well as sudden game changers.
cubethethird
Top Con

Games can get long

•••
With more players, it can sometimes take a lot of time to get to your turn. Players often want to read the description of the card(s) they draw to make sure they understand how they're used, which often slows the progress of the game.
See 1 more ProSee 1 more Pro

Superfight

Add Video or Image

27 Community Recommendations

Michael Porreca
resqcreeper2
Adrian Richardson
Inguna Gudareva
Francisco
Rashaad
Monika
Yonatan
Ryan
Kristaps
Aux Masch
+4
Community Icon
Request recommendations from the community
No highlighted recommendations.
I Recommend...
Help millions of people find awesome games.
Each month, over 1.7 million people use Slant to find the best products and share their knowledge. Pick the tags you’re passionate about to get a personalized feed and begin contributing your knowledge.
undefined