Not All Games Are For Everyone

Let’s get one thing out of the way.

There is no such thing as
“the best board game in the world.”

Just like there’s no single:

• Best movie
• Best book
• Best food

There are only right fits.

Some games work brilliantly with families.
Some shine with friends.
Some feel slow for youth,
some feel overwhelming for adults.

So instead of listing games one after another,
let’s do something more useful.

Let’s talk about five board games
that together cover:

• Family play
• Youth groups
• Adults after work
• Beginners and thinkers

And more importantly —
why they matter.

When You Want Everyone At The Table

Imagine this situation.

A 15-year-old.
A 35-year-old.
A 60-year-old.

Same table. Same game.

Very few games survive this test.

This is where UNO and Sequence quietly shine.

They are not deep strategy games.
They don’t make you feel clever.

But they do something more important:
They make everyone comfortable.

The rules are simple.
Luck balances skill.
Nobody feels stupid.
Nobody dominates.

Their weakness?
If you play them too often, they get repetitive.

But their strength is huge:
They are gateways.

For Indian homes especially,
these games build confidence:

“Okay, board games are not scary.”

When Youth Wants Something More

Now let’s move to a different mood.

College students.
Young professionals.
Friends meeting after work.

Here, pure luck feels boring.
Pure simplicity feels childish.

This is where Catan and Splendor come in.

Both games reward planning.
Both allow interaction.
But they feel very different.

Catan is loud.
Negotiation-heavy.
People talk, argue, bargain.

Its biggest advantage:
It teaches negotiation and trade psychology.

Its biggest drawback:
If one player falls behind early,
the game can feel frustrating.

Splendor, on the other hand, is quiet.
No negotiation.
Pure engine-building.

It’s elegant.
Short.
Clean.

Its strength is balance.
Its weakness is emotional distance —
less talking, more thinking.

Together, these two games show youth something important:
Board games can be social or cerebral.

You choose the mood.

In INDIAN GAME 1: Shasn

Category: Politics, negotiation, strategy
Plays like: Catan + political simulation

Where it fits in Episode 6 logic:

• If Catan teaches negotiation in trade,
• Shasn teaches negotiation in power and ideology.

Why it matters for Indians:

• Familiar themes: elections, public opinion, ideology
• Makes abstract politics tangible
• Sparks discussion beyond the game

Limitations:

• Longer playtime
• Better for adults and older youth
• Needs patient players

Who should play it:

• College students
• Policy / politics curious adults
• Discussion-loving groups

When You Want Thinking Without Stress

Now let’s talk about adults.

After work.
After responsibilities.
After a long day.

Most adults don’t want:

• Fast reflexes
• Loud chaos
• Long explanations

They want engaging calm.

This is where Ticket to Ride quietly works magic.

The objective is simple:
Collect routes.
Connect cities.

But underneath that simplicity is:

• Long-term planning
• Risk management
• Timing

Its biggest strength:
It never overwhelms new players.

Its limitation:
Hardcore gamers may find it too gentle.

But for Indian families and mixed-age groups,
Ticket to Ride hits a sweet spot:

Thoughtful, but not exhausting.

In Indian Game 2: Kurukshetra: The Epic War Game

Category: Mythology, strategy
Plays like: Area control + tactical planning

Where it fits:

• If Ticket to Ride is calm strategy,
• Kurukshetra is dramatic strategy.

Why it matters:

• Uses Indian mythology without being childish
• Appeals strongly to Indian cultural memory
• Introduces strategic thinking through familiar stories

Limitations:

• Less replay variety than Euro-games
• Appeals more to theme-lovers than pure strategists

Who should play it:

• Families with teenagers
• Mythology enthusiasts
• Strategy beginners who want theme support

When You Want To Feel Something New

Now comes a very different kind of game.

Dixit.

Dixit is not about winning.
It’s not about strategy.
It’s not about planning.

It’s about how you think
and how others understand you.

People who love Dixit say:
“I never realised people see things so differently.”

People who dislike Dixit say:
“I don’t like abstract thinking.”

And that’s okay.

Dixit’s strength is emotional intelligence.
Its weakness is that it doesn’t appeal to everyone.

But in Indian families,
Dixit does something rare:
It bridges generations through stories.

That alone makes it special.

What These Games Collectively Teach

Now zoom out.

If you look at these five games together:

• UNO / Sequence
• Catan
• Splendor
• Ticket to Ride
• Dixit

You’ll notice something interesting.

They don’t compete with each other.
They complement each other.

Together, they cover:

• Luck and planning
• Negotiation and silence
• Emotion and logic
• Fast play and relaxed play

They also show something important to Indian audiences:
Board games are not a single genre.

They are a spectrum of experiences.

Why These Five Matter For India

India doesn’t need thousands of games.
It needs the right first few games.

These five matter because:

• They don’t need gaming background
• They don’t need perfect English
• They don’t need long attention spans

They fit:

• Indian homes
• Indian cafés
• Indian social habits

They help people move from:

“I don’t play board games”
to
“Which game should we play today?”

That shift is everything.

Not About Collecting Games

Board games are not about owning shelves of boxes.

They are about owning experiences.

If an Indian home has even two or three games
that people genuinely enjoy playing together,
that home already has something valuable.

Because play is not a luxury.

In today’s India,
play is becoming a necessity

   Ajay A.