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Ahhhh, Valentine’s Day! Cupid’s arrows flying. Hearts overflowing. Flowers and cards presented. Oh and all-out cardboard based face-offs. Just what all board gaming beaus want on 14 February!
Whilst we are all game-obsessed here at Zatu, that’s no reason to ignore the biggest excuse for scoffing choccies this side of Easter! Sorry, I mean the nationally recognised opportunity to profess and declare our love for our better halves! And with a special number on our minds, here are 14 top games to play with your partner on 14 February 2023 (Valentine's Day)!
Imhotep: The Duel - Tom Harrod
Are you an über-competitive couple? Is your bond born out of bragging rights you gain over your partner? We get it. Sometimes, there’s nothing sweeter than crushing bae in a battle of wits. The stakes are high, but you always kiss and make up (and make out?) after, right? Sound like you and your other half? Then Imhotep: The Duel could be the ideal ding-dong two-player battle for you! Set in the ancient Egyptian docks, this comes from Phil Walker-Harding. It’s a spin-off from his popular bigger-box game, Imhotep (also by Kosmos Games).
You play as royal couple Nefertiti and Akhenaten, competing to build monuments. Both rivals use worker placement to arrange their workforce on a 3x3 grid. Six ships sit moored alongside the grid; each with set collection goodies on board. They contribute towards pyramids, obelisks, decorative burial chambers and more. On your turn you can either place a worker into the grid, or unload a boat. When you trigger the latter, all workers in that row/column earn the corresponding good tiles on board that boat. Then the workers return back to your supply, off the grid. This is a fiendish, because each worker has the potential to gain goods from one of two boats. (In either its row, or its column.) Often when you unload a boat, your opponent ends up getting something too (if they have a worker in that row/column). Sometimes you can do this to prevent them using that worker to gain a good from the other boat they might have had their eye on! With only so many goods to scrap over, it’s such a direct, interactive experience. Especially since you’re attempting to get inside your partner’s head. How well do you know your partner? Can you double-guess what they want, what they really, really want?
Patchwork Valentine’s Day Edition - Favouritefoe
The 2 player polyomino powerhouse that is Patchwork may have a super sweet wrapper covering its Valentine's edition, but lovers beware; this could seriously chill the heat between you!
In this Valentine's Day edition of Patchwork, you’re piecing together a chocolate box of delights using tiles covered in truffles, soft centres, and more gooey delectableness. It’s a perfect information set up, so all the available pieces are laid on the table for both beaus to see. And the currency here is golden nougat. As you go round the track, you’ll be earning and spending those little treats like Kim K at a Kitson fire sale. But your selection isn’t a free choice. You only get to take from the three tiles laying closest to the cupid meeple nestled within the circle. And when you pick a polyomino, you’ll be paying in time as well as golden delights. Time that pushes you further along the track. Great if you race over a freebie tile or nougat generator. Not so great if you’re now heading towards the finish line leaving your lover to fill up on balls of sweet deliciousness!
With negative points for every empty space left on your chocolate box by end-game, better don your board game beer goggles so that pieces with fewer golden treats look more attractive. But with irregular tiles leaving odd shaped spaces to fill, you’ll just have to hope there’s room for them. As you may be starting to realise, there’s more to Patchwork Valentine than meets the eye. You’ll be faced with tense trade-offs and hate-drafting hi-jinx each turn. And nothing says I love you more than an atmosphere you can cut with a knife!
Paris La Cite De La Lumiere - Dan Street-Phillips
What says romance more than a little trip to (insert dodgy French accent here) Gay Paree! But in this time of penny counting, not everyone can jump on the Eurostar and disappear for a few days. So how about bringing Paris to you?
One of my favourite two player games that my husband and I like to sit down to is 2019’s Paris La Cite de la Lumiere. This beautiful little game is so vibrant in its colour palette, like a Leonid Afremov painting. Which is fitting as this game is all about light.
It’s split into two parts. In the first you are laying down the streets of Paris in the form of square tiles. This is important as you will only be able to lay tiles in part two on the streets of your colour. You are also collecting polyomino buildings, which will be what gets you points in the second half. Once this is complete you will then place your buildings one at a time. You will then collect points at the end for how many lampposts are adjacent. It’s a fairly simple game but what spices things up is a series of additional powers that can be nabbed throughout this building process. Some might offer you double points for a certain lamppost while others allow you to use other people’s buildings as your own. It can be quite nasty if played that way but overall is a chilled game of tile placement. We like to put on some Parisian music in the background, light a candle or two and gaze into each other’s eyes as we take that space that we know the other desperately wants. And what says I love you more than that.
War Chest - Rob Wright
Are any of you familiar with Tom Jones? No, not that guy. The book by Henry Fielding? Well, there is a famous scene in it where the two romantic protagonists are eating a sumptuous banquet in a very…suggestive manner. Which leads to….well, I’ll let you read it and find out. Now I am not suggesting Warchest is anything like that, but I would say that playing Warchest is a game best played between two. It has a similar kind of sumptuous sensory experience to an intimate meal such as you would have on Valentine's Day!
Warchest is a bag/deck building asymmetrical strategy game that combines chess, draughts and capture the flag whilst remaining very much its own thing. Each player draws four counters from their bag and takes in turn to either play them face up to deploy, bolster, activate a unit, control a location, pr play face down to recruit, change the first player or just pass.
Each player has different units with different abilities and so each game really can be an intriguing match-up. The first player to control eight locations wins. Now an asymmetrical strategy game may not sound particularly sensual, but Warchest certainly tweaks those sensory sweet spots. The counters are the size and weight of poker chips, and we know how they feel to hold and touch and make dance across your knuckles (note: no matter how I try, I still can’t do this). The bags are embroidered and made out of some velvety material and the counters clink delectably within them. Even the Celtic themed artwork carries a certain amorous mystique. All in all, Warchest is one of those games that makes me feel like a divine being pushing mere mortals around the board to confound and amuse my beloved in equal measure. Togas optional….NO, I DIDN’T MEAN LIKE THAT!
Beer & Bread - Neil Proctor (Board Game Happy)
You stare at each other across the table, there is electricity in the air, no words need to be said as you are both thinking exactly the same thing…… ‘please don’t play the card I have just passed to you, please….’.
Beer & Bread is the perfect Valentine’s Day game to play with your significant other. Firstly, because it is a game all about brewing the best beer and baking the best bread. And as we all know the stomach is the quickest way to someone’s heart. Secondly, the game, just like real life, will cause tension and then heartbreak as your opponent plays the card you were going to play on the next turn. However, there is still time to make up (we all love a bit of drama, right?) when your opponent passes you their excess resources (despite them not really wanting to – that hits right where it hurts!).
Beer & Bread is the perfect two player game. It only lasts 30 minutes but causes such a brain burn that after final scoring, you’ll be seeking out solace in your opponent’s arms. A soothing balm to calm both your nerves and your crushed heart. Then, after a quick cuddle, you’ll be back at it…….No, not that! I mean trying desperately to win this amazing game!
Pandemic Legacy Season Zero - Max Davie
Some games on this Valentine's Day list will be deliberately accessible with an eye to a partner not versed in gaming. But what if you have someone who is willing to go on an adventure with you? Someone who embraces challenge, and is willing to take on the alter-ego 'Patsy Winkelgartner'? In that case a) you have a keeper and b) you should play Pandemic Legacy Season Zero!
For a Legacy game to work, it needs a solid foundation, and what could fit that bill better than Pandemic? It also needs a compelling narrative, and Season Zero nails it most out of the three Seasons to date. Our characters (who we named Henry and Patsy) felt precious to us as they barely survived the perilous final months. To us, the rules layered onto the base game fitted the story and didn't bog down the play, unlike Season Two. And the surprises...well, suffice to say something happened in the Autumn that made me laugh embarrassingly hard.
But I didn't need to be embarrassed, because I was with my keeper. And after we finished the campaign, she kept some components and framed them for me as a Christmas present. And it didn't even have any spoilers!
Wonderland’s War - Dan Butterworth
Wonderland’s War is a great Valentine’s Day game. Most people I know enjoy the theme of Alice in Wonderland and of course one of the main characters is The Queen of Hearts (she just wants to be loved really doesn’t she!?!?!).
The art in the game by Manny Trembley is a love letter to the Alice in Wonderland world. All of the characters look fantastic, and the board will blow your mind. This is easily the best-looking game on the table. If you play in a public space, you can guarantee that people will walk past and fall in love with the way the game looks. The gameplay is also amazing and fun for everyone at the table.
Wonderland’s War has quickly become my wife’s favourite game due to the fun mechanics, simple loop and combative nature. My wife enjoys co-op games but, not at much as she enjoys beating me in head-to-head games. So, I may let her win a game of Wonderland’s War this year. I say “let”, but she’s actually much better at it, so it won’t require much effort from me haha. I would say that our shared love Wonderland’s War has brought my wife and I closer these past 12 months.
Fungi - Sophie Jones
You may not think a 2-player game of Fungi sounds romantic, but it is! Fungi is a game which will have you and your partner walking down a woodland trail foraging for mushrooms. But don’t get too lovey dovey as this isn’t a walk where you’ll want to hold hands. It’s a competitive game after all, and there can only be one winner.
Ultimately, this is a card game where you will be collecting sets of mushrooms. Once you have a set, you will need to cook them in a frying pan to bank your points. And along the way you will find butter or cidre to make these fried mushrooms even tastier!
To collect mushrooms, players will take it in turns to select a card from the path. After, the woodland will move along and the item on the right will be discarded. With players only being able to hold 10 cards in their hand at once, this game is all about hand management. Go for the cidre before you have mushrooms, however, and you may find yourself in trouble.
To add to this romantic jaunt, you can gather picnic baskets for more storage. Players can even gather night mushrooms in a moonlit stroll. So, if you and your partner like the outdoors, Fungi has you covered this Valentine’s Day and evening!
7 Wonders Duel - Luke Pickles
The first Valentine’s Day I had with my now-fiancée, we played games together. In fact, our first date was spent playing games, but I digress.
On that Valentine’s Day, we played one of my all-time favourites – 7 Wonders Duel (7WD). Based on the classic drafting game, 7 Wonders, 7WD has players drafting from a constructed shape in front of them, made up from the various age cards. In turn, the players will draft a card, either putting it in their tableau to be used later, discarding it for coins or using it to build one of their wonders. What makes a difference in this game to the original is that having the most victory points at the end is not always the victory condition. Reaching the end of the tug-of-war military track and a collection of science symbols are also ways to achieve victory in this game, meaning it may not reach a third age.
What I love about 7WD is how easily it plays and converts a 3-7 player game down to a two-player masterpiece. It’s a wonderful entry level game with added complexity as you add expansions and tactics, that plays in less than 30 minutes. Perfect for when you’re baking dessert.
Fog Of Love - Hannah Blacknell
Have you been with your amore for a little while now and missing the excitement of a first date? What about living a new life with a new career and a new fantasy personality? Bit more extreme, but in Fog of Love that is the whole point. You adopt a character that is completely different to your own, and you and your loved one role play different scenarios in this semi co-operative game.
Fog of Love is a game where you need to embrace the embodiment of a new role. Try to select a character type and career that is different to your own to help with this. During the game you will be trying to achieve your own goals whilst keeping an eye on the happiness of your relationship. After all, a relationship breakdown is not the aim of the game. During the game, you will be placing tokens out onto the board into different personality traits to try to influence the end game condition.
If you fancy trying something new this Valentine’s Day then I really don’t think you can go wrong with picking up Fog of Love. The publishers have printed various versions so you can get a cover that represents you in your relationship. There are also lots of different scenario packs that cover all kinds of aspects of modern life.
The Mind - Rachael Duchavony
It’s the end of the night. You have talked for hours and now you are staring into your partner’s eyes wondering if they are thinking the same thing as you. You keep your face neutral, trying not to give yourself away, hoping that they can see the thoughts going through your head. You start to get nervous, thinking maybe you were wrong and you aren’t as in sync as you thought. Then they play a 98 when you were holding a 99 and your heart leaps! They do get you!
The Mind is a great little card game that can put the compatibility of any couple to the test. You deal out hands from the pack of cards numbered 1-100. Then without communicating in any way, everyone tries to place them down in numerical order. It is a simple but fiendish concept. Only the couples who are most in tune with each other will make it through all of the different levels. This game can be played with up to four players, so it works on solo or double dates.
The Mind is a true test of your relationship. Are you willing to take the risk?
Star Crossed - Camille Hindsgaul
This Valentine's Day, step out of your real life romance and into a fictional one in Star Crossed, the game for role players who love revelling in stolen glances and forbidden love.
One character is the Lead who starts scenes, openly touches the other character, and openly reveals stuff about themselves. The other is the Follow. They end scenes and while they touch and reveal information too, it is usually unintentional. These two characters are drawn to each other. And pursuing that feeling would be a very bad idea. The tension felt by the characters is built into the gameplay, making Star Crossed an exceedingly immersive and, potentially, quite intimate game.
Whenever your character speaks, you must touch a Jenga tower. Whenever your characters touch or reveal something, you tick a star and pull a brick from the tower. If the tower falls, your character immediately acts on their feelings. Your combined stars determine how well that goes.
You can play through a full romance in a couple of hours, from the initial introduction to the epilogue that wraps everything up. It’s a very special experience to create a fully rounded story together in one sitting and a super satisfying use of an evening.
Targi - Favouritefoe
This is a bold move on my part for Valentine's Day but bear with me. Targi’s brilliant designer and publisher have called it “the marriage killer”. And the gameplay is like tangoing in a telephone box in terms of how tight and tense it becomes.
But that is precisely why my husband and I absolutely love Targi! Part of Kosmos Games’ excellent 2 player range, it’s a lot of game in a little box. Essentially, it’s worker placement mixed with a little engine building and card drafting, but it’s so much more than that. The goal is to get the most VPs by creating a tableau of up to 12 Tribe cards. The worker placement mechanism is, however, really unique. Each round, you take it in turns to place three workers on cards placed around the edge of a tableau of Goods cards and Tribe cards. The edge cards themselves either give you goods or abilities. But where your workers intersect on the rows and columns within the central tableau are the cards you get to activate in phase 2 of that round. And ooft, that’s a tense moment. Seeing your better half place their workers in precisely the spots you wanted, nay, needed, is cheek squeakingly tense. And if you know they know it…. If they smile at you whilst doing it….. Well, my friends, guaranteed they’ll be cuddling up to the dog this Valentine’s Night!
The Fox In The Forest Duet - Craig Smith
A couple of years ago I went on a third date with my now partner, and we went to Symonds Yat for a picnic. The weather was gorgeous, so we found a nice beer garden at the riverside. As well as picnic food, I also packed a copy of The Fox in the Forest Duet.
He knew about my board game obsession before we had our first date, and said he was keen to try. A two-player only cooperative game seemed like a nice idea. Yes, communication is restricted, but it felt like a nice introduction into the hobby.
We played it once and absolutely tanked, but then upon re-reading the rules realised we’d made a mistake. We decided to play it again… and again… and another four times before heading home for the evening. It became a gateway game on so many levels!
Whenever we go on holiday, or even just go to the pub, we take that same copy of The Fox in the Forest Duet with us. It’s one of our favourite games. Whilst the mechanisms and gameplay might not necessarily be as interesting as other games we play, this little trick taking game will always hold a special place in our collection.
Well there we have it. How do I love thee? Let me count 14 ways! And when we say ways, of course we mean great games! Happy Valentine’s Day 2023 everybody!
That concludes our list of 14 Valentine's Day Games. Is there any we missed? Let us know your thoughts and tag us on social media @zatugames.