Gift Ideas: Games for Kids Gift Guide 2025
This post may contain affiliate links.
Giving games and puzzles as Christmas gifts is a time-honored tradition in our family. This is why I’ve found the best new games that my kids and yours will love to play.
From card games to board games and dice games, you’ll also discover the best new and classic games from years past that you don’t want to miss to share for birthdays, holidays, or any occasion.
Get ready for some tabletop, card game, and board game family fun!
The Best Games for Kids and Families, 2025
Melissa & Doug Soft Bowling
ages 2+
Develop gross motor skills, balance, and hand-eye coordination with 6 soft animal bowling pins and 4-inch indented bowling ball.
Funko Cranium Hullabaloo
ages 3+
This is an active game for up to 6 players meaning it’s a great family game night game. Play easy or hard puzzles against the timer — and have a ton of fun!
Tongue’s Out
Ages 4+
A matching memory color game for preschoolers with adorable 3D puppies!
Ruby’s Gem Quest Scissor Skills Game
ages 3+
Use the scissor scooper to scoop up gems and fly them into the treasure chest! The first player to collect all five gems wins!
What’s Next? A Life-Sized Game
ages 4+
Interactive and active, this game will get players rolling, moving, and acting.
Monopoly Junior
Ages 5+
This simplified Monopoly game gives players a fun way to play a game with simple math concepts.
eeBOO Woodland Winter (20 Pieces)
ages 3+
Fit together the 20 pieces to make a festive outdoor winter scene!
Fat Brain Toys Heap-O-Sheep
ages 5+
Catapult the sheep into the field. The first player to get them all on the field wins the game.
Cross Spin
ages 8+
Compete against other players by doing these bite-sized crossword puzzles. Easy to learn and fun to play!
Deduckto
ages 8+
Kids love this parent-approved strategy game where you’ll use deduction to put together the clues (animal, disguise, and location) to figure out your secret suspect!
Gamewright Butts on Things
ages 8+
Collect the most matches to win!
Blue Orange Next Station Paris
ages 8+
This strategy game is a flip-and-draw game where you redesign the Paris underground network to make it eve better.
Klask: The Magnetic Award-Winning Game of Skill
Ages 8+
Use the magnetic handle under the table to score on this small foosball table.
Magic The Gathering Foundations
ages 10+
Learn to play this popular strategy game with this beginner box with everything you need!
Doomlings
ages 10+
If you like strategy games, you will love this card game, where you get to build a species of Doomlings that can survive the end of the world. (Hence, the DOOM in Doomlings!) Our family loves card games and this is a new favorite!
Talisman Magical Quest Game
Ages 12+
Set on a journey through magical lands. Be the first player to find the Talisman! The board changes as players layer on the illustrated Adventure cards. This is a fun, fantasy strategy game!
Forbidden Jungle
ages 10+
Work with the other players to discover the secrets of the jungle, position the crystals, activate the portal, and escape the jungle!
NFL Stacker Game
ages 7+
Pull stacking blocks from the tower and strategically place them back on top.
Melissa and Doug 8-piece Chunky Wooden Puzzle
Puzzles are so good for children’s brains. This one with large, chunky pieces are easy to grasp. The colorful scene will help kids learn about African animals.
My Little Pony Matching Game
Ages 3+
If your child loves the darling ponies, they’ll love to play this matching game!
Story Time Chess
ages 5+
Learn to play chess with chess pieces with unique stories and 30 mini-games, all of which teach children the rules of the chess game. (Chess books here.)
Smart Farmer
ages 4+
My kids and I love Smart Games 1 player 3D logic and deduction games and this new choice is no exception. Comes with 60 challenges with horses, pigs, cows, and sheep.
United States Map Puzzle
ages 6+
Help your kids remember their U.S. geography with this educational puzzle!
Mantis
ages 7+
We love this beautifully illustrated card game! It’s a great family game for ages seven and up where players match and steal sets of cards. Even my teenager loves this game!
Monopoly Dungeons & Dragons Honor Among Thieves
ages 8+
Inspired by the Dungeons and Dragons movie, this Monopoly includes a 20-sided die, monsters, wizards, and rogues.
Monopoly Chance
ages 8+
If you’re like me and you don’t like how long the regular Monopoly game takes, try this new 20-minute game! It’s a card-flipping game of chance. You will get to own properties and build buildings (with colorful buildings) that will feel familiar but also fresh. Hooray for this new, quicker version!
Match Madness
ages 7+
Match the pattern on the card with blocks in this fast-paced, award-winning game.
BOOP
ages 10+
Put your kittens on the bed (boop), and it pushes the other kittens one space away. The object of this logical herding cats game is to line up three kittens in a row to become a CAT! Get three cats in a row to win.
Akropolis
ages 8+
Build your Arkopolis city with houses, temples, markets, and more. Use the titles to build up and increase the value of your districts and win the game.
Wingspan
ages 14+
This game is SO cool — little eggs, beautiful bird cards, food tokens, and more. We bought this for my bird-loving daughter, but so far, we have always been to tired to learn the rules. It’s a bit more involved than a simple card game. Soon, though! It gets high ratings from reviewers.
More Essential Games for Kids to Give as Gifts
Sneaky, Snacky Squirrel Game!
ages 3+
Preschoolers love to play this award-winning game. Parents and teachers love it because it builds color recognition and counting practice as well as fine motor practice. Use the squirrel Squeezers to put the colored acorns into their logs. The first person to fill up their log wins. (Full review here.) A best game for kids under five.
ThinkFun Heads Talk Tails Walk
ages 3+
Can you walk like a chicken while meowing like a cat? Match bodies with heads! But if you make a mismatch, everyone makes the mismatched animal’s sounds and motions! Hilarious! This is one of the best games I’ve seen for preschoolers.
Peaceable Kingdom Fire Truck Pups Floor Puzzle
Ages 3+
Preschoolers love fitting together these sturdy, large shapes into a large floor puzzle.
Monkey Around
ages 2+
From Peaceable Kingdom, this game is a fun game for gross motor skills, hand-eye coordination, imitation, vocabulary, and social-emotional skills through play! Toddlers will do the prompts that include movements like hugs to high fives to simple gross motor skills like balancing, hopping, and marching.
Outdoor Scavenger Hunt
ages 4 – 8
A fun scavenger hunt game for kids to get outside, read, and search! Use the 160 cards to find items indoors and outdoors.
Guess Who?
ages 6+
Two players, deductive reasoning, communication, and fun! Try to guess your opponent’s mystery player. This game will be a favorite choice for YEARS to come.
Yeti in My Spaghetti
ages 4+
What a blast! Start out with the noodles across the top of the bowl with the Yeti on top. Players take turns removing the noodles one-by-one without letting Yeti fall. If it falls, you’re out.
Buildzi
ages 6+
Another game from the makers of Tenzi! This game asks players to study the picture on the card and build it. LOVE it!
Avocado Smash!
ages 6+
A fun avocado twist on the game of Snap for kids! It’s simple to learn and quick to play. Switch and smash quickly to win this fun game.
Tenzi Game
ages 7+
Tenzi is a SUPER FUN yet simple dice game that works for almost all ages (except the ages 0 – 3) which is why it’s one of our top recommendations (aka. the BEST) family night game. Be the first player to get all ten of your dice to show the same number. Full review here.
Sleeping Queens
ages 8+
Help the Sleeping Queens wake up by waking them up with the Kings and be the first player to reach 50 points. We ADORE this game and play it all the time. (My 14-year-old has loved this game since she was little!) It’s easy to play, fun, and great for family game night.
Blue Orange Maki Stack
ages 7+
Aren’t these wooden sushi pieces the best? Pick a card and race to build a matching stack using the sushi, soy sauce, and mat. My daughter and I often play this before bedtime and love it. We like that it takes about 10 – 15 minutes and makes us laugh. A great gift option for 2019. (Full review here.)
Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza
ages 10+
We love this game — it’s great for all ages, including kids, teenagers, and adults. You’ll place cards down with various images, but you MUST say the next word in order of the phrase “taco, cat, goat, cheese, pizza.” It’s fun and funny.
RushHour Traffic Jam Logic Game
ages 8+
Not only does this game provide hours of strategy and problem solving but it’s FUN to accomplish these tricky puzzles. We are big fans.
Mystic Market
ages 10+
Hone your strategy and math skills and learn basic economics, all in a fun card game for 2 to 4 players. You’ll buy and sell magical potion-making ingredients to make sets then make the potions and trade them to earn points! Plus, aren’t the potion vials fantastic?
Blokus
ages 7+
This is my personal favorite family strategy game — mostly because occasionally I can beat my kids. They love this game, too — and let me win sometimes. Isn’t that nice?
Word-A-Round
ages 10+
We laugh so much during this game as we totally butcher words trying to figure them out. In fact, my daughter has started writing down the funny words we invent on accident.) To win a card, you correctly read the word around one of the colored circles. The player with the most cards wins.
Foosball Table
A reasonably priced competition-sized foosball table brings fun to any setting, perfect for home game rooms.
Flipside
ages 8+
Match the colored blocks to the lights using memory and speed! Great for individual play or multiple-player fun.
Gnomes at Night
ages 6+
Work as a team in this fun cooperative search and find maze game. Move the magnetic gnomes around the maze as you chance a thief who is running around the maze leaving clues.
The Settlers of Catan
ages 14+
Players must roll and trade for resources to build roads, settlements, and cities for points. The first to ten points wins. It’s easy to learn but the strategy requires some practice –it’s a very popular game for families and friend groups!
Codenames
ages 14+
Word clues, spies, an assassin, and some deductive reasoning, this game is the total package — and one of the best games to play with a larger group of people.
Dune Gale Force Nine
ages 14+
Along with the (incredible) updated Dune movie, here’s an updated board game based on the Frank Herbert sci-fi novel! Become the leader of one of the factions then fight to gain control of the spice and the planet Dune.
Want more awesome gift ideas?
Best Preschool Games of all Time
The Best Logic & Strategy Games for Kids
Holiday Gifts for Kids: Gift Guide for All Ages
STEM (SCIENCE / MATH / TECH / ENGINEERING) TOYS & GIFTS
STOCKING STUFFERS for KIDS AND TEENS Ages 3 – 13
Best Middle Grade Books of 2023
Gift Guides by Age
Best Gifts for 4 Year Old Boys
Best Gifts for 4 Year Old Girls
Best Gifts for 5 Year Old Boys
Best Gifts for 5 Year Old Girls
Best Gifts for 6 Year Old Boys
Best Gifts for 6 Year Old Girls
Best Gifts for 7 Year Old Boys
Best Gifts for 7 Year Old Girls
Best Gifts for 8 Year Old Boys
Best Gifts for 8 Year Old Girls
Best Gifts for 9 Year Old Boys
Best Gifts for 9 Year Old Girls
Best Gifts for 10 Year Old Boys
Best Gifts for 10 Year Old Girls
Best Gifts for 11 Year Old Boys
Best Gifts for 11 Year Old Girls
Best Gifts for 12 Year Old Boys
Best Gifts for 12 Year Old Girls
I was wondering if you had any suggestions for games for special needs male about 14 years old. Very unsociable and sits by himself at lunch time. Hoping a cool game might attract others to join him.
Ray,
Magic the Gathering is a big hit with many boys. Other longer games that might be of interest are Catan and Ticket to Ride. If those aren’t up his alley, you could go with something like Battleship, Apples to Apples, Blokus, or Five Crowns.
I also wonder about Minecraft servers online — my kids like the Harry Potter server — and for my oldest daughter who struggled with making friends in real life, her online friends gave her confidence.