<p><by “newer”=“” i=“” mean=“” more=“” recent=“” than.=“” .=“” oh.=“” monopoly=“”> </by></p>
<p>My whole family will be home and out of school Thanksgiving week (hooray!). Two in high school, one in college. I’m thinking a new game would be fun. I got Apples to Apples a few years ago (read about it on CC!) and we’ve loved that.</p>
<p>So–what’s your favorite board game for sitting around laughing with your family?</p>
<p>My favorite is Settlers of Cataan, although it isn’t exactly a “sit around laughing” game. (I like Apples to Apples, too.)</p>
<p>Second SoC.</p>
<p>I try to get a new game every Christmas, and we really like Scattergories.</p>
<p>Bananagrams!</p>
<p>How intense is the family? SoC is a game that introduces many people into strategy gaming, which is a whole other field.</p>
<p>If you like Apples to Apples, Try the New Yorker game. It’s similar in that everyone writes down a creative response and then one is selected as the best answer. </p>
<p>It’s selling for $10 brand new on Amazon, and our family has a great laugh-out-loud time playing it! We still have some answers that are quoted around our house and get a laugh every time. </p>
<p>The game comes with a bunch of cartoon cards - each one an actual one-slide cartoon that ran in the new Yorker magazine, but without the caption. Everyone makes up a funny caption for it and each caption is then read out loud. People take turns being the ‘reader’ who has to match each anonymous response with the person who wrote it, and pick their favorite (which i like better than voting for favorite).</p>
<p>Another good one is Taboo, although it doesn’t make you laugh as much.</p>
<p>We like Blokus - it’s very pretty. Somewhat like Go in that you are surrounding territory, but much easier. And the tiles are very pretty!</p>
<p>More in the Magic vein we enjoyed playing Dominion. You collect collect cards to amass enough points to take over a realm.</p>
<p>Not a board game, but, our family loves Killer Bunnies. It can get really wild with lots of creative deal making.</p>
<p>PinotNoir: You sold me. I just ordered The New Yorker game. I’m hoping it arrives in time for Thanksgiving.</p>
<p>I also just put the New Yorker game in my cart. </p>
<p>There is a deal going on right now that allows our public radio station to benefit from Amazon orders. I don’t know what the payout is precisely, but it is easy to click through the station’s website and I figure every little bit helps. I do at least one quarter of my holiday shopping at Amazon, maybe even half of it.</p>
<p>We love Quirkle.</p>
<p>Amazon is going to have a run on New Yorker…how can you go wrong with $10? I’m sooo tired of playing Clue for family game night, and I just can’t sit through a game of Risk.</p>
<p>Oh boy, Risk. That’s right up there with Stratego for me on the fun scale. And as a mom of three boys, I’ve played plenty of each. LOL</p>
<p>I think you all will enjoy The New Yorker game!</p>
<p>Hands down, Whonu, a cranium game.</p>
<p>Very simple, great for people who know each other somewhat and quick! Anyone who can read (short phrases) can play.</p>
<p>[Amazon.com:</a> Cranium Whoonu: Toys & Games](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Cranium-102040000-100E-Whoonu/dp/B000B6MLJG]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/Cranium-102040000-100E-Whoonu/dp/B000B6MLJG)</p>
<p>Mexican Dominoes.</p>
<p>I’m somewhat obsessed with Ticket to Ride. It’s along the lines of Settlers of Cataan, but much faster-paced.</p>
<p>Gotta go with bulletandpima, Mexican Dominoes. We play it for hours and my D has a set at her college and has introduced her friends to it!
My girlfriends and I have wine and Mexican Dominoes nights…fun for all!</p>
<p>We LOVE Bananagrams but this year we are playing Left, Center, Right or LCR. Instead of chips we play with dollar bills. The college kids have fun with it and who doesn’t like to win some cash! 
Large groups or small groups can play as well as young and old.</p>
<p>Thanks sooooo much for the suggestions! I actually just read about SoC but that’s really not what I was thinking. (I never liked chess much because it seemed like homework. Monopoly was even too serious for me and it could go on forever.) I’ve liked the A-to-A because we don’t really count cards, don’t have winners/losers, play as long as we like and then put it away. I’ll look into all those (non-strategic) ones mentioned. You guys rock.</p>