COMMENTARY: Family fun will abound with these board games

The Head Elf thinks you know the question and the answer. Both.

The question: With six shopping days before Christmas, what is the recommendation for a final family gift to place under your tree? The answer: A family board game.

Not only that, Head Elf has some recommendations for your consideration. This is the 35th annual Tribune Holiday Game Survey.

Head Elf has eight games in mind. The first four are rated as “outstanding” in 2024, with the ratings from alleged game experts. (There really are “game experts.”) Two are suggestions of classics from the past. And the final two are from retired Tribune reporter and columnist Kathy Hedberg, of Grangeville, who surveyed her grown children and grandchildren, a somewhat annual task that Kathy has accepted.

Consider, please:

The Uzzle 3.0 (Uzzle Games, $49 or less, 6 and older, two to four players). Players race to crack the puzzle on a card by flipping, spinning and merging identical sets of five patterned blocks. The game can be learned in one minute. It’s patterned to improve kids’ problem solving and cognitive skills, requiring sharp eyes, fast hands and quick minds.

Blank Slate (USAopoly, $19.97, 8 and older, three to eight players). It’s a game where great minds think alike in word associations. How well can you put your finger on what everyone’s thinking? Pick a word cue card, write the word you think best completes the phrase and try to match it to another player’s word without giving a single hint. Play time: 20 to 35 minutes.

What Do You Meme? Family Edition (Reliable, $15, 8 and older, intended for three or more players). This is the family version of an original social media game, with an intended group activity for family game night. Compete with friends and family to create the funniest memes. Choose your best caption card to describe the photo card for each round. A rotating judge picks their favorite combination. Included are 300 caption cards and 65 photo cards.

You Can’t Say “Umm…,” (Big Potato, $23, 8 to adult, four to 10 players). One player describes random items to team mates to get points, but the other team gets points if the player says “Umm, Err, Ah” or uses any verbal fillers. The opposing team must listen to the player describing the words to their team. If they hear “Ummm,” they ring the bell and collect a point each time. It’s harder than you think trying to not say the forbidden sounds and even harder with the other team giggling each time they catch their opponents.

The kids’ family classics to consider, from the many? Head Elf suggests:

Candy Land (Hasbro, $13, 3 and older, three to four players). It’s a classic beginner game. On the race to the castle, players encounter all kinds of delicious surprises as they move their cute gingerbread man pawn around the path in a race to the castle. No reading is required.

Connect 4 (Hasbro, $10, 6 and older, two or more). This classic is a contest to get four discs in a row. Get four and you are the winner. One “expert” said she bought Connect 4 for her nephew to try and keep him off video games and to use his brain. It’s a great strategy game for kids.

And two recommendations from Hedberg:

Shocktato (Squirrel Products, $25, 3 and older with three modes and a music-only option for kids, two or more players). The electrifying, shocking potato is passed around. When the music stops, prepared to be shocked (not enough shock to hurt you, but enough to surprise you). See who has the best reaction to the jolt and get ready to laugh.

Secret Hitler (Secret Hitler Board Games, $12 to $15, 14 and older, five to 10 players). It’s a bluffing game involving political parties, corruption, deception and deceit, designed for individuals or groups. It is set in pre-World War II Germany where players assume the roles of politicians and try to pass laws while keeping hidden the identity of the secret Hitler. The game is won by players who pass the most laws while trying to expose and eliminate the secret Hitler.

And some of the staples you may need to replenish or add? Prices, roughly: Jenga, $16, standard Monopoly, $15, Pictionary, $22 and Yahtze, $9.

With that, the Head Elf rests.

Alford is president of TPC Holdings, parent company of the Tribune. He may be contacted at alajr@lmtribune.com or at (208) 848-2250.