At this time of year, as the days get longer, many of us start thinking about getting away on holiday, breaking free of the dreary English weather to warmer climates or embracing it on a beach in Scarborough! Whether you are travelling abroad or enjoying a week in a caravan, thoughts quickly turn to “How much space do I have for games?” As a board game community, we can never be too far away from dice!
Over the years, I have seen some incredibly ingenious travel solutions. Multiple games are repacked into one standard board game box like an advanced complex puzzle that you will never recreate on the last morning of your holiday. Components are packed around suitcases between layers of pants and socks to protect them, meaning you have to empty everything to find all the pieces later; people will do everything they can to get Terraforming Mars to that campsite in Devon!
What we all crave in those situations is a decent game in a small box. We want fun, complexity, and strategy, and we want it to fit into about 3 inches of bag space. That is the dream! In addition, often, you need a game with a small footprint as table space may be a challenge. You might be worried about components getting damaged or even lost, travelling with games can cause all kinds of anxiety.
We thought we would look at some really good small box games on the market right now that we enjoy. Games that work equally well whether on holiday, meeting friends for a drink, in a restaurant or even at work on your lunch break.
This is not a definitive list, and as always, do reach out to us at Gathering Games for more tips and suggestions on decent small box games. I will also try to add some alternatives!
Table of Contents
Hive
Mechanics: abstract strategy, tile placement, hexagon grid, pattern movement, components that have a great feel and weight and go clink in the bag!
Players: 2
Play Time: 20 mins
Age: 9+
Hive is, in my opinion, a classic travel game that ticks many boxes in this list. To start with, the game components are stored in a travel bag making it really easy to take away with you. The components themselves are solid tactile hexagon tiles perfect for gaming on the go with little fear of damaging them. You could easily set this game up on the grass or beach as much as you could on a kitchen table. Hive does not have a board either, which brings more flexibility and a real bonus when taking this game on the road.
Hive is a beautiful abstract strategy game with a real chess-like feeling. Each player has 11 pieces in either black or white, representing a variety of creatures, each with its unique movement pattern. You start the game by placing a piece on the table in contact with each other. After that, each piece you place may not touch an opponent.
In Hive, you manoeuvre your pieces to try and outwit your opponent with the goal of encircling your opponent's queen bee and gaining the victory. Your ant can move as many spaces as you want around the outside of connected pieces, whereas your grasshopper can jump in a straight line to the other end of a row. Maybe you use the Beetle and, although it can only move one space, it has the unique ability that it can move on top of other pieces, potentially trapping or enabling you to get to their bee a little easier.
This is one of those games that can be learnt quickly but can be mastered over time. A game where your well thought through plan does not account for the inevitability that your opponent will not stick to the same script.
Sushi Go
Mechanics: card game, drafting, set collection, variable scoring, hand management, draft and pass, Sushi, taking cards other people want on purpose even though they don't help you at all!
Players: 2-5
Play Time: 15 mins
Age: 7+
When you are looking for a fun and relatively quick game that can happily entertain children and adults alike and fits into your hand luggage, you can’t go wrong with Sushi Go. Sushi Go is another game that is pretty simple to pick up so quick to teach when you're out and about. The game comes with 108 cards, all related to Sushi in 12 different set types. Each type of card in the game either comes with a unique scoring rule or a special ability. For example each Nigiri card is worth 1, 2 or 3 points, the staple of the game, whereas a Wasabi card triples the next Nigiri card played on it. Other cards like Tempura give you 5 points for every set of 2. In Sushi Go, you are trying to collect the cards you need to score your optimum points. The trouble is, so is your opponent!
The game is played over 3 rounds, after which you score the cards you played that round, except for pudding, which accumulates throughout the game, and the person with the most pudding at the end of the game scores the points. At the start of the round, you are dealt a number of cards depending on player count, for example, 10 in a 2 player game. You choose one of your cards, play it in front of you and pass the rest to the left (other directions are available). In each round, there is a finite number of cards in play, and importantly you don't know how many of each type of card well until you have seen each hand passed to you. You continue to play cards and pass cards until once the last card is played, you end the round.
This is a game of choices and frustration. Do I play that Sashimi and try for the set of 3 worth 10 points? But if you don't get to play 3 by the end of the round, it's worth nothing. It might be that your opponent, in a moment of cruelty, decides to play one just to stop you from getting the points, or there simply were only 2 available in this round. These are the risks you take. Is my opponent collecting Maki Rolls forcing me to try and collect more for the points?
Sushi Go is a quick game, but it's so much fun that you'll easily find yourself playing “just one more game” repeatedly!
Sushi Go!
£12.75
£14.99
Description Pass the sushi! In this fast-playing card game, the goal is to grab the best combination of sushi dishes as they whiz by. Score points for making the most maki rolls or for collecting a full set of sashimi.… read more
Ganz Schon Clever (That's Pretty Clever)
Mechanics: Dice drafting, Roll and Write, Puzzle, Chain scoring, Solo rules, will make your head hurt
Players: 1 - 4
Play Time: 30 mins
Age: 8+
When you are creating a list of travel games, roll and write games or variations of the roll and write genre have to make an appearance. This game can be played with 6 dice, a paper pad and a pen. When you're looking for a brilliant game that packs easily, you can not get more spot on than that!
In Ganz Schon Clever, you have 6 dice, (5 different colours and a white dice) on your turn, you will be rolling all the dice and trying to cross off or complete rows and columns on the scoresheet. Each dice correlates to a matching coloured area on the score sheet, each with its own unique scoring rules. For example, the yellow area of the scoresheet is a 4 by 4 grid with each dice value on the grid twice. If you choose the yellow dice you cross off one of the corresponding values on the sheet. The Purple area allows the player to add dice from left to right, and for each space, the value must be higher than the one before unless you enter a 6 then, any number can come next.
Over the course of your turn, you will select 3 dice to play, each time you select a die, you add it to the active dice area of your score sheet, but any other dice you roll with a lower value are put into one side on a silver plate. This is a puzzle about making choices, a die might be perfect for you this time but might mean you have to discard others and roll less the next time. Once you have selected 3 dice or you have no others to select, each other player can use one of the dice you discarded on their own sheet, keeping some interaction on your opponent's turn.
Finally, bonuses across the score sheet bring the game to life. You might finish a row in the yellow area, which allows you to cross off a bonus number elsewhere on the sheet. These combinations can change the game, and playing cleverly (pun intended) can lead to much higher scores.
Ganz Schon Clever is a fantastically simple dice game that really makes you think. I found it simple but highly addictive. Although it can be played up to 4 players, it is just as enjoyable as a solo game when you have 20 minutes to kill. It's great to put in your pack when you're travelling.
Kiri-Ai: The Duel
Mechanics: Simultaneous action selection, hand management, card movement, Samurai Stances, realising your perfect move has been foiled by your opponent stepping back one space.
Players: 2
Play Time: 5-10 mins
Age: 13+
Kiri-Ai: The Duel is a game that seems to have been designed to be portable. I was drawn to the game when I saw it on the shelves at Gathering Games mainly because of the lovely cloth pouch it comes in, which is based on a Japanese coin pouch based on a kind of Samurai wallet. I liked this touch, both a nod to the Samurai theme and a beautiful way to keep the game in a small, very portable package.
The game is a simple tactical standoff between two Samurai on a cliff's edge. Kiri-Ai means “cut to match” or crossing swords. The gameplay is based around limited movement back and forth trying to unlock the right position and stance to strike your opponent. Strike twice, and you win the game.
In Kiri-Ai: The Duel, each player has an identical set of five cards and one special card randomly chosen from the three available. The duel is fought on a battle card with a line of five spaces, with the opponents starting at either end. Each set includes two movement cards that allow you to move forward or back one space, charge 2 forward or change stance.
The game hinges on movement and being at the right place in the right stance to deploy the right strike. Your opponent is always trying to second guess where you might be to do the same. Each player has three strike actions: high, middle and low. Each strike depicts where you need to be in relation to your opponent to strike successfully, it also tells you what stance you need to be in. On your turn, the players place two actions face down in front of them and then simultaneously reveal them, starting with the action closest to the opponent. Any movement cards take priority over strike cards. So, as you play the game you are trying to determine what the opponent might do and plan where you want to be to hit them. This often results in the card game equivalent of a sword slicing through thin air as your opponent almost telepathically chooses to retreat instead of moving forward.
With such a short play time and wallet like case this can easily go in your pocket ready for those breaks in the holiday when you stop for coffee or take a moment before the food comes. Such a great choice for any travelling plans.
Kiri-Ai: The Duel
£13.99
£14.99
Description Two Samurai face each other on the cliff’s edge. Cloudy skies darken the night. The moon breaks through as they strike. A quick and strategic 2 player game where every move could lead to victory or death. Each player… read more
Odin
Mechanics: Hand Management, Ladder climbing, playing sets of increasing value, take that, Vikings, huge numbers
Players: 2 - 6
Play Time: 15 mins
Age: 8+
Odin has only recently been released, so I had not heard much about it, but when the theme is all about Vikings, it's hard not to have a go. I was pleasantly surprised! Like every game on this list, Odin is a portable game roughly the size of a standard card box. The deck contains 54 cards numbered 1 - 9 in six suits, each depicting nicely designed, different Viking roles.
The game itself is played over a number of hands each lasting several rounds where you are trying to get rid of all your cards as fast as you can. Any player left with cards at the end of a hand scores a point for each card remaining. Once someone reaches at least 15 points, the game ends and the player with the fewest points wins. Simple.
In Odin, the game starts with the lead player placing a single card on the table. The next person must beat the value on the table with one or two cards. Importantly, you can only place up to one more card than the previous player played. The twist, though is when multiple cards are played, the value is determined by placing the digits in value order from highest to lowest. For example, player one places a 9 on the table, player two follows playing a 2 and a 7, which becomes 72. When playing more than one card, they must either be the same number or colour. After you place your card, you choose a card from those played previously then discard the rest.
So Odin is a balance of playing just the right cards to beat the value on the table while collecting cards that might help subsequent hands. You can pass at any time and still join in when it comes back around, but if everyone passes on the table, the cards are cleared, and the last person to play starts again.
Odin is a fast paced and fun game to play, trying to work out which cards to play and which to keep in order to outwit your opponents. Watching in disbelief as they play yet another four card set and ruining your next play. With the higher play count, it is another great holiday game for a group or perfect for the pub when you're having a social evening.
Odin
£9.99
£11.99
Description Send your best Vikings into battle! Collect cards with the right characters from Norse mythology to make up your hand and surprise your opponents. Create the best combinations to turn up the heat on the battlefield. With fast-paced rounds… read more
Cockroach Poker
Mechanics: bluffing, reverse set collection, hand management, single loser game, repetitive lying to friends and family about whether a frog is actually in this case a spider.
Players: 2 - 6
Play Time: 20 mins
Age: 8+
Cockroach Poker is a great game to turn to when you want to have a lot of fun. It is also a game simple and accessible enough that it can be enjoyed with family members of all ages. It doesn't however bear any resemblance to Poker except for the fact that you need to be very good at bluffing. This potentially was the biggest challenge for me as I can be read like a book!
In Cockroach Poker, you have a deck of cards with 8 types of “critters'' on them. The simple aim of the game is to force one of your opponents to collect four identical animals, at which point the game will end with them as the loser. A truly wonderful moment when your overly confident friend realises yet again you have tricked them into accepting a stink bug.
The first player in the game takes one of their cards, lays it face down on the table, and slides it to a player of their choice whilst confidently announcing what animal it is. The player receiving the card has two choices. They can accept the card from you and declare if you are telling the truth or lying through your teeth True or false. If they are wrong they keep the card in front of them, BUT if right, the player who gave them the card has to place it face up in front of themselves. This game is about reading your opponents, looking for their tells or taking a punt. Alternatively, they can take a peek at the card and pass it face down to someone else, either declaring it is the animal stated previously or changing the animal. The next player is now faced with the same choice to make.
Cockroach Poker is a game about fooling your friends and family. You lie to them while smiling, knowing full well that this cockroach will be the end of their game if only you can make them accept it. It's also a game about throwing everyone else under the bus and destroying their good name as you brandish them as deceitful and untrustworthy. Don't trust Nan; she's constantly lying—no offence.
Cockroach Poker
£8.99
£10.99
Description Cockroach Poker is a clever and fast-paced card game that challenges players' bluffing skills. The aim of the game is to avoid getting four of the same critters in front of you. The deck contains 64 cards, each with… read more
Oink Games
Finally you can not talk about travel or small box games without mentioning the fantastic game producer that is Oink Games. Oink have a range of small box games that are brilliant to play and worth checking out. Some of their best known games, like Scout which we have talked about in previous articles and Deep Sea Diver as you push your luck looking for treasure and trying not to drown, are brilliant, but they have so many good titles.
I wanted to highlight just a couple of games:
Rafter Five
Mechanics: Dexterity, balance, physics, stitching your friends up by placing treasure in the most precarious places.
Players: 1-6
Play Time: 20 mins
Age: 7+
In Rafter Five, you are trying to build a raft from wood floating in the sea around you and doing so in such a way that you can maximise the treasure you store on it.
Rafter Five is a game that uses everything that comes with the game to create a great little game. You start by turning the box and lid upside down and stacking them. This becomes the central platform of your raft. On the first turn, you take a piece of wood from the sea, place it so it overlaps the platform and use one of the five rafters to weigh it down. You then place a piece of treasure on the wood you have just placed. With each subsequent turn the wood must be placed overlapping in part at least one other plank of wood. The Rafters are a group with mixed physiques, some smaller, taller or rounder than others. Every time you place a piece of wood, you must move a rafter.
As the game progresses the raft becomes a highly stressful web of wood, treasure and rafters just waiting for someone to tip the balance, place a treasure chest in the wrong place or move the wrong raft only to see some treasure fall into the sea. Every piece of treasure that falls on your turn that doesn't belong to you becomes a penalty, and once you receive five that do not belong to you, you're out of the game! Nothing brings more joy than watching your son lift one rafter and realising it had become the central anchor for the whole raft, time slowing down as the whole thing comes crashing down!
This game brings so much fun and is a great time filler when looking for something more tactile and dexterity based to add to your small game collection.
Rafter Five
£16.99
£20.00
Description You supported it ALL? 5 rafters are collecting planks of wood to make their raft bigger. Try your best to instruct them to load the cargo into the raft. But be careful, the balance of the raft extensions is… read more
Order Overload: Cafe
Mechanics: Memory, Co-operative, increasing difficulty, terrible waiter service, failing to remember one order on level one!
Players: 2 - 6
Play time: 20 mins
Age: 6+
Order Overload is a great game for a group of people that will have you laughing as you try and remember just one thing you heard that round.
In Order Overload you play a waiter/coffee shop assistant trying to keep your jobs whilst remembering increasingly more complex customer orders. The game comes with a large deck of drink and food orders you might receive in a cafe, everything from milkshakes to iced tea to apple crumbles. On the game's first level, you draw one card per player and read them aloud to the whole group. You then shuffle the cards and deal one to each player. Play then proceeds which each player trying to remember one order they just heard read out and isn't the card they have been dealt. Once you have successfully recalled the right number of orders you pass on to the next level. Well, that sounds easy, right? It will amaze you how often you can forget absolutely everything you have just heard, even when trying everything in the book of memory training!
In a similar fashion to games like The Mind, level 2 is exactly the same, except this time, you draw 2 cards for each player and now read out double the orders. Then 3 cards, 4 cards and so on. This a game that will have you racking your brain for just one order before finally shouting “latte” in the vain hope that was one of the cards in play. This leans into the higher player counts for the best experience. I reckon 4-6 would be its optimum.
This is another game that brings a huge amount of fun into a small box.
Wrapping Up & Special Mentions
As with all of our lists, I have tried to put together a range of mechanics, player counts, and themes to give some real variety and hopefully spark interest. When preparing for this blog there were some games that were a particular highlight. Kiri-Ai: The Duel had a nice and simple game system put together in a lovely samurai coin wallet. I can see myself just putting that in my pocket when heading out to grab 10 minutes over a drink. Odin was easy to pick up and felt quick and easy to play in a larger group. I felt it had a nice twist on a popular mechanic and enjoyed the Viking theme. Rafter Five has a great design, using the box and all its contents to create a challenging dexterity game out of a small box.
There were plenty of games I could have added if you are looking for other recommendations: Next Station Tokyo provides a great alternative in the flip and write category, and Faraway (read the Faraway review here) provides a really lovely game in a small box format, Scout from Oink Games provides a variation on Odin with a really interesting hand mechanic where you can not change the order of your hand. In fact, just look through the Oink Games collection! For excellent 2 player options, you could look at the brilliant Sky Team, a game we are huge fans of at Gathering Games, or why not try Fugitive, a 2 player, card based hidden movement game that has you tracking your opponent as they try and make their escape.
More importantly, if you are still not sure and you are looking for the perfect game to take on your holidays, why not get in touch with us here at Gathering Games? We love board games and we love sharing our own favourites with you. Why not drop us a message or give us a call? We would be more than happy to help.
Check out our full collection of board games here at Gathering Games.
