Puzzle games are among some of our favorites to play with friends and family. Mixing strategy and fun, has been a proven way to let our competitive sides run wild.
So, if you’re like us and after a bit of a brain teaser, look no further. Get ready to put your problem-solving skills to the test, because here, we’ve got you covered with the best puzzle board games on offer. If you can’t wait and need to satisfy your puzzle needs right now, you can always try this jigsaw puzzle site.
Like puzzle games? Why not also check out our best trivia games and best word games to keep you mentally stimulated?
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Table of Contents
Our Top Picks for Best Puzzle Board Games
In a hurry? Take a quick peek before you go at the Best Puzzle Board Games.
Nova Luna
- Players: 1-4
- Playing Time: 30-60 minutes
- Age: 8+
- Complexity: 1.88/5
Nova Luna – which is Latin for “new moon” – is all about being strategic, in planning for the future. The new moon symbolizes a new beginning, where you must optimize your choices based on what the moon wheel has to offer. Your future is at stake, and this game is sure to test your strategic ability.
In every round of this tile-laying game, players must decide which new tile to place from the moon wheel. Each new tile entails a task that can only be fulfilled by placing tiles of the correct color that align with the task to be completed. Once the task has been solved, you can place a marker on it, and the first player to place all their markers on the board wins the game.
Calico
- Players: 1-4
- Playing time: 30-45 minutes
- Age: 10+
- Complexity: 2.18/5
This strategic family-friendly pick is sure to attract creatives at heart. Calico is a tile-laying game where you compete to sew a cozy and colorful quilt. First, you pick a particular pattern for your quilt and must choose patches to complete that particular design.
Throughout the game, you can also earn buttons to add to your quilt and entice cats to come to snuggle up in it, with specific pattern combinations. To win the game, you must score the most points from buttons, cats, and completeness of the chosen quilt pattern.
Azul
- Players: 2-4
- Playing time: 30-45 minutes
- Age: 8+
- Complexity: 1.76/5
Get ready to head back in time to the Renaissance with Azul! During this time, Portuguese King Manuel I, took a trip to Spain’s Alhambra palace. Instantly, he was mesmerized by the beauty of azulejos (blue and white ceramic tiles), that lined the walls of the palace. Awestruck and amazed, he ordered for his own Portuguese palace to be decorated in a similar tile style.
It’s now up to you and your opponents, as some of Portugal’s greatest artisans, to embellish the walls of the Royal Palace of Evora. However, only one mosaic can win. And only strategy and a creative eye will score you the title of the King’s artisan.
Azul: Summer Pavilion
- Players: 2-4
- Playing Time: 30-45
- Age: 8+
- Complexity: 2.05/5
Like Azul, Azul: Summer Pavilion whisks you back to the 16th Century. Summer Pavilion challenges you to complete a task that never began. Right after the Palaces of Evora and Sinatra were beautifully constructed with works from the greatest artisans of the country, King Manuel I sought to build a summer pavilion to honor the royal family. Unfortunately, the king soon passed and construction for the summer pavilion had to come to a halt.
Now it’s time to head back to Portugal and embark on a challenge made only for the greatest artisans of the land. To honor the Portuguese royal family, only the best of the best will compete. Their reward – to be named the master artisan to the royal family.
Karuba
- Players: 2-4
- Playing time: 30-40 minutes
- Age: 8+
- Complexity: 1.43/5
In this puzzle game of exploration, you and your opponents will have to race to navigate through the dense, ancient jungle, and reach the temples. After being dropped on a mysterious island, adventurers are set off to explore with the ultimate goal to discover the hidden treasures within the ancient temples.
To do this, you must race to build the shortest path in order to reach the temple first and claim the ultimate treasure. With dead-ends to navigate through and obstacles to overcome, this fast-paced and addicting tile-based game is sure to excite the whole family.
The Isle of Cats
- Players:1-4
- Playing time: 60-90 minutes
- Age: 8+
- Complexity: 2.35/5
Ready for some competitive, strategic fun? Well Isle of Cats, has got to be at the top of your list.
As a citizen of Squalls End, you have been sent to the Isle of Cats, on a rescue mission, to save as many cats as possible. On the island, you must manage resources as you explore, learn some ancient lessons, find treasures, befriend oshax, and rescue the cats.
The trick is, you have to be fast! There’s a ticking clock and soon the evil Lord Vesh will arrive. Try your best to rescue all the cats, keep their families together, and save them from the evil lord.
Doctor Esker’s Notebook
- Players: 1-6
- Playing Time: 60-180
- Age: 13+
- Complexity: 2.00/5
Doctor Esker’s Notebook is the absolute epitome of a strategic and cryptic puzzle game. It’s an escape room packed within a deck of cards. It’s a mystery to be solved, and it’s accessible for even the faintest of hearts.
Doctor Esker has suddenly vanished and all he has left behind is a mysterious book; one filled with cryptic codes and puzzles written in his own hand. No one has yet to crack the code and find some answers, so now it’s up to you. Are you ready for the challenge?
Dimension
- Players: 1-4
- Playing Time: 30 minutes
- Age: 8+
- Complexity: 1.36/5
After something a little different? Want something more colorful, exciting, and fast-paced?
Have a go at Dimension! This stackable, spherical, innovative game is sure to diversify your game night. With 60 colorful spheres, you’re tasked to position the sphere according to the instructions of specific task cards.
As you race against the clock, earn points by completing the tasks and show off your skills as a master of multi-dimensional thinking.
Sagrada
- Players: 1-4
- Playing Time: 30-45 minutes
- Age: 14+
- Complexity: 1.92/5
Sagrada is a methodical puzzle game, where players can show off their artistic flair while crafting a stained-glass masterpiece! Use your cleverness and creative eye to draft the dice and construct a mesmerizing mosaic. But be careful, there are specific rules and restrictions to follow. Scoring is based on the various glass placements and patterns within your piece, so be sure to think strategically as you bring your vision to life.
Wrap-Up
We hope we’ve helped you find something for the next game night. Whether you’re after a brain teaser, some strategy building, or something to show off your competitive edge, this list of puzzle games is sure to pique your interest.
We hope you enjoyed our picks for the best puzzle board games! What are your favorite puzzle board games? If you’ve tried any of the games we have mentioned or have any favorites that we haven’t included, drop a comment below. We’d love to hear from you!
Like Puzzle Games? You may also be interested in our Word Board Games video, check it out below:
Kendra has always been a hardcore fantasy nerd. Growing up in the worlds of Tolkien, Sanderson, Jordan, and Abercrombie, DnD & board games just came naturally. She and her husband, Bryan, started GameCows.com in 2018 as a fun passion project that just took over their lives. An avid board gamer since childhood and chronic DnD chronicler for more than two decades, she loves to play, write, travel, and learn dead languages. She is also a professional content writer at SlashGear.com