If you’re looking around the living room and seeing everyone scrolling their phones and wondering if you can find something fun for everyone to do together instead, board games are a great solution.
Of course, the trick can be finding a game everyone can agree on, which can be challenging for multiple generations.
That said, there are a variety of options we’ll outline below, and holding regular games nights can be a great benefit for everyone, especially older adults in your family.
In addition to just being fun, playing board games can actually help older adults with their cognitive health.
As noted in that blog, “…researchers found that those who played more games later in life had better cognitive function in areas including memory, thinking speed, problem solving, and general cognitive ability than those who didn’t engage in game playing. This research offers evidence that cognitive decline doesn’t have to be inevitable. The relationship between playing board games and sharper thinking and memory abilities adds to current knowledge about what people can do to protect their cognitive health.”
Builds Camaraderie Between Generations
It can sometimes be difficult to bridge the generational differences – many grandparents won’t understand TikTok trends or Fortnite references, while the grandchildren likely won’t relate to their elders’ taste in music or popular culture.
But playing games together can create an atmosphere where none of that matters, and the point is to just… play.
If the game involves teams, it can be a good idea to pair the youngest and oldest players together, giving them a shared goal to work towards and cause to either celebrate or commiserate together afterwards.
Game Night Ideas
From trivia challenges to building train routes (seriously – we’ll explain), there are a wide variety of options that can appeal to multiple generations so that everyone has a great time on game night.
Here are a few options to consider:
Mind The Gap: Trivia can be a tricky option for game nights with people having so many different reference points, but Mind The Gap leans right into it. It offers trivia aimed at Boomers, Generation X, Millennials and Gen Z. The idea is to pair players from each generation into teams and advance through the board by answering questions for each age group. In this game, everyone can play a part and help their team win.
Ticket To Ride: While not a team game, in Ticket To Ride each player is given train routes throughout the U.S., and has to collect cards that allow them to build their railroads before being blocked by others. There’s a bit of a learning curve, but once you play a round or two it’s easy to grasp.
Loaded Questions: This game can offer some unexpected insight into its players! Each turn someone asks a question off a card and everyone else writes down an answer. One player collects each answer and reads them out loud, and the person who asked the question has to guess who said what. Whether with true answers or goofy ones, it’s sure to create laughs and inside jokes you’ll share afterwards.
Blokus: This is a four-player game where each person has a variety of uniquely shaped game pieces that have to place adjacent to each other on the board. Players have to build out their pieces while avoiding getting blocked in by other players. While maybe not the best game for adults struggling with fine motor skills, it’s a great mental workout to watch the game develop and try to outwit opponents by thinking a couple moves ahead.
Taboo: The first of a couple classics we’ll look at, Taboo is a game where you work with a partner to guess a mystery word, name or item, while not using common words associated with it. For instance, if you had to make your partner guess the word “baseball”, you couldn’t use words like “infield”, “bat”, “glove”, etc. This game is great cognitive exercise for older adults, who need to quickly think of words and terms to help their partner guess correctly.
Monopoly: The legends of all legends when it comes to board games. There’s a reason that it’s still being played by new generations today, nearly a century after it was created. The classics never go out of style, and no matter how old you are, Monopoly is a game that spans generations. If you don’t quite have the time for a full game, Monopoly Deal is a card game version that can be played in under 15 minutes.
Fun and Games at Prestige
Prestige communities always have games on the go to bring friendly competition and camaraderie to residents. From board games to card games, even video games on the Wii, we bring the fun to our communities.
We encourage you to schedule a visit so we can tell you more about all the fun we have. Find a community near you and reach out!
