Logic skills really do come in handy. Analyzing a situation and finding the best solution to problems is an essential skill. It can get you out of trouble or ahead in life. And on a lighter, fun note, it can also help you win some games.
Board games are a great way to get you thinking outside the box. So how are your logic skills? Test them out with our top picks for the best logic board games for adults.
🏆 Our Top Picks for Best Logic Board Games for Adults
In a hurry? Take a quick peek before you go.
Chess & Go
Players: 2
Playing time: 10-60 minutes
Chess has been around for over a millennium, making it the original logic game.
In Chess, all the information is technically in front of you. Players take turns moving one piece at a time to trap the opposing King — with no possible escape. However, there are many paths to take, and your opponent’s countermoves can throw you off.
Chess requires a good amount of focus, planning, and determining causation. You must analyze the board to decide the best course of action. If you moved your bishop across the board, how would it all play out? How might your opponent respond? What would your subsequent move be?
Plan the perfect attack to take down that King. Once you have, there’s nothing more gratifying than that famous final word…“Checkmate.”
Dominion (+ Any Expansion)
Players: 2-4
Playing time: 30 minutes
Dominion is a deck-building game that tests your analytical thinking skills. The goal is to earn the most victory points through certain cards in the deck. Ultimately, you want to dominate the deck to build the best Dominion!
Hold 5 cards in your hand at a time. Select one more card from the table or play an action card each turn. Set aside the cards in your hand and grab 5 more from your deck every time. You’ll play through your own deck, recycling cards as you go. Analyze which will benefit you in future plays to gather the most Victory Points.
All the added expansions give Dominion high replayability and versatility.
Prosperity is a popular expansion and adds a wealth of fun to the original game. In this version, Provinces get a run for their money from Colonies which count as a whopping 10 Victory Points. You’ll also collect more cash than you ever dreamed to use in creative ways.
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Terra Mystica
Players: 2-5
Playing time: 60-150 minutes
Terra Mystica is a perfect information game. It’s all about strategic thinking without any elements of luck. Winning or losing is entirely in your hands.
Your job is to gain Victory Points by gaining power across the Terra board. You have your own faction board to keep all your resources in place. Use workers, coins, and priests to complete actions. Expand your land with buildings, dwellings, strongholds, or temples. Compete for more landscapes to dominate the most regions on the board.
Terra Mystica is a great strategy game with beautiful artwork to boot. Still, the gameplay is slightly more involved than most on this list.
Azul
Players: 2-4
Playing time: 30-45 minutes
Azul is a logic game that involves spatial thinking and planning. The colorful tiles and personal boards add a nice touch.
Azul is played over rounds with 3 phases each. Gather tiles in the factory offering phase. When all tiles are collected, stock them on your lines. Excess tiles will go to the floor row.
Time to tile your wall! Place corresponding patterned tiles on your wall, scoring points for how you add tiles in relation to one another. Lose points for excess tiles remaining. Whoever scores the most points after 3 rounds wins.
Deciding which tiles to collect and where to place them is critical in this game. Don’t get walled in with these tiles. Think outside the box!
Five Tribes
Players: 2-4
Playing time: 40-80 minutes
Five Tribes plays a bit like Mancala, but with many more components to juggle. The rules are simple, but the strategies can be pretty complex.
There are many ways to strategize, from bidding for turn order to worker placement. When it’s your turn, move your meeples across the board, leaving one in each space as you go — as you would in Mancala.
When you reach the last tile, clear the same colored meeples off that tile. If all the meeples are the same color, clear the tile and claim that tile’s points. Special cards, as well as assassins, add additional rules to gameplay.
Utilizing all the different elements will require critical thinking, problem-solving, and a lot of concentration. Come up with the best route to clear tiles and collect those winning points on the board.
SET
Players: 1-20
Playing time: 30 minutes
This Mensa Select Winner is great for big groups and plays quickly, making it a fun party option.
SET is a card game requiring speed and pattern recognition. 12 cards are laid out on the table. Cards consist of various shapes in different colors, numbers, and shadings. Spot 3 cards that are either the same in one aspect or all different in one way. Your 3 cards might all be triangles but different in color, shading, and number. If you find it first, grab your SET. Those cards are yours to keep for points.
The rules sound simple, but the varying shape features make it trickier than first meets the eye. You’ll need to scan the table quickly while your brain processes all the elements. But don’t take too long, or a player will beat you to the punch!
Mastermind
Players: 2
Playing time: 20 minutes
How quickly can you crack this code? Test your code-breaking skills in Mastermind, the quick-playing logic game for 2 players.
In Mastermind, you’ll be the Codemaster or Codebreaker. The Codemaster comes up with a secret sequence of colored pegs. Take guesses to determine the order of colored pegs. The Codemaster tells you if those colors are present and in the correct or incorrect placement.
Test your hypothesis and use those methods of deduction to decipher the key. But your guesses are limited, so use them wisely.
Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective
Players: 1-8
Playing time: 60-120 minutes
“When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.”
– Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Keep this quote in mind as you solve crimes throughout Victorian-era London. Your cooperative team of investigators has all the clues needed to crack the case. You just need to piece together the puzzle. Who stole the famous painting? Who is behind the murders? Interview witnesses, gather evidence, and use deductive reasoning to find the culprit.
Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective is not technically a board game in the traditional sense but comes with materials one would naturally use in detective work of this time: newspapers, a directory, and a map to track suspect whereabouts. There are ten cases to crack, with expansions available if you crave more.
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Catan
Players: 3-4
Playing time: 60-120 minutes
Catan is a tabletop fan favorite. It uses strategy, negotiation, and resource management all in one.
Catan is played on a base with moveable hexagon tiles, making each time you play unique. The goal is to build up to ten points by having cities, settlements, the largest army, or the longest road.
Exchange resources for roads, cities, or settlements. More resource cards are given based on the luck of the dice and wherever you have settlements. The more settlements, the higher your chances. But resources are limited, so strategize accordingly.
This game allows you to use expert negotiation skills to trade cards with other players. Can you get what you want without giving away too much?
If you haven’t already, try this game night staple and find out what all the rage is about.
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Wrap-Up
We hope you enjoyed our list of the best logic board games for adults! These strategy games help to develop critical thinking, deductive reasoning, and problem-solving skills for board gamers of any age. Have you tried any of the games on this list? Which game is your favorite logical challenge?
Cheryl is a teacher, writer, and board game fan. She likes incorporating games into all areas of her life, from classrooms and family nights to lively parties with friends. While she’s played too many to count, her favorites have always been classics like Codenames and chess.