Best deals right now

Azul is one of those classic board games that’s all about strategy and is very similar to Five Tribes. It involves picking up tiles and placing them in a mosaic that gives you the most points. It’s not quite that simple, though, since you can end up placing too many tiles and losing points, so you have to strategically place your tiles down.

Details

I know that I’m supposed to say my hobby is playing board games, but that isn’t true. My real hobby is buying board games that look awesome and trying to play them with my family. That’s what makes Black Friday so enticing: There are so many discounts you can swell your game library for far less than normal.

Are early Black Friday sales a good time to buy?

Many retailers start “Black Friday” sales as early as Halloween, or even earlier. The quality of deals can vary early on, but as November progresses, many of the deals are as good as the deep discounts you’ll see during Thanksgiving weekend. See the best Black Friday deals we’ve found, and keep up with all the latest deals with our full Black Friday live blog coverage.

There are a lot of great card gamesstrategy games and everything in between, but it all boils down to the fact that there’s a lot of fun to be had.

My family and I love board games, so I’m always on the lookout for the best board game deals. I’ll never be a rich man: Every board game deal I see, I end up buying for my gaming table. Now you too can enjoy the feeling of having more board games than you’ll ever need. You’re welcome. Keep scrolling to check out our roundup of the best board game bargains available, and we’ll keep updating the list as we find newer and better deals.

Board game deals

Azul is one of those classic board games that’s all about strategy and is very similar to Five Tribes. It involves picking up tiles and placing them in a mosaic that gives you the most points. It’s not quite that simple, though, since you can end up placing too many tiles and losing points, so you have to strategically place your tiles down.

Details

Haunted Mansion is one of my family’s favorite Disneyland rides and movie, and now it’s one of our favorite board games too. The game itself is a card management game where you try and get as many of certain types of cards as possible while trying to avoid being haunted by the traveling ghost.

Details

Yes, I know that $2 isn’t a huge saving, but it gave me a chance to add this amazing game to the deals list anyway. 
Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza is like Slap Jack that went Super Saiyan. The aim is simple: to lose all of your cards. To do that, you have to be the first person to slap the cards when the word you say matches the card you see. It feels like it should be simple, but your brain plays tricks on you, making it a lot of fun. It’s been a long time since I’ve laughed this hard at a game, and I think you’ll love it too.

Details

“,”credits”:”Kids Against Maturity”,”imageData”:{“id”:”adba17bc-2fae-4d7c-aa23-96c7ea6a2321″,”title”:”kids-against-humanity-rec”,”filename”:”kids-against-humanity-rec.jpg”,”path”:”https://www.cnet.com/a/img/hub/2023/11/17/adba17bc-2fae-4d7c-aa23-96c7ea6a2321/kids-against-humanity-rec.jpg”,”caption”:”

“,”size”:76970,”width”:1600,”height”:900,”dateCreated”:{“date”:”2023-11-17 14:10:45″,”timezone”:”UTC”,”timezone_type”:3},”dateUpdated”:{“date”:”2023-11-17 14:11:38″,”timezone”:”UTC”,”timezone_type”:3},”needsModeration”:false,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”deleted”:false,”credits”:”Kids Against Maturity”,”alt”:”kids-against-maturity on a red background”,”restricted”:false,”startDate”:null,”endDate”:null,”preferred”:false,”watermark”:false,”doNotCrop”:false,”doNotResize”:false,”primaryCollection”:null,”vanityUrl”:null,”notes”:null,”crop”:null,”cropGravity”:0,”preservedRegion”:null,”isNew”:false,”keywords”:[],”primeColor”:null,”hasWarning”:false,”typeName”:”content_image”},”uuid”:”adba17bc-2fae-4d7c-aa23-96c7ea6a2321″,”imageAltText”:”A blue card box with a stick family on the bottom”,”imageCaption”:”

“,”imageCredit”:”Kids Against Maturity”,”imageDoNotCrop”:false,”imageDoNotResize”:false,”imageWatermark”:false,”imageFilename”:”kids-against-humanity-rec.jpg”,”imageDateCreated”:”2023/11/17″,”imageWidth”:1600,”imageHeight”:900,”imageParallax”:”http://www.cnet.com/”,”imageCrop”:”http://www.cnet.com/”,”imageEnlarge”:false}’ overridecaption=”

” overridecredit=”Kids Against Maturity” usepricing=”false” data-key=”cross_content_listicle__d9fe570b-d8db-4049-9ad9-c95949bb1552″ contenttype=”Deals – Precap” filtershortcodetypes=”http://www.cnet.com/” totalfilteritems=”0″ pagelayout=”Default – Article Page” showdetails=”true” tocheadlineitem=”[object Object]” class=”c-shortcodeListicle c-shortcodeListicle_mini u-flexbox g-border-thin-light-top g-border-thin-light-bottom g-inner-spacing-top-medium g-inner-spacing-bottom-medium g-inner-spacing-left-large g-inner-spacing-right-large g-inner-spacing-bottom-xlarge g-outer-spacing-bottom-large g-border-thin-light-bottom”>

You’ve probably heard about Cards Against Humanity, a party game that’s often too rude for young kids to play. Kids Against Maturity takes the same game premise — the person who makes the judge laugh the most wins the hand — but makes it just a little naughty instead. 

This is a great entry to family night and lets your kids feel like they’re getting away with something they shouldn’t be doing, but with your guidance and consent. It’s a lot of fun for everyone. Just be sure to activate the instant coupon on the product page to get the full discount. 

Details

“,”credits”:”Iello”,”imageData”:{“id”:”56813ad3-f3d9-4765-bc2e-45012f73a2c2″,”title”:”King of tokyo”,”filename”:”king-of-tokyo.jpg”,”path”:”https://www.cnet.com/a/img/hub/2023/10/19/56813ad3-f3d9-4765-bc2e-45012f73a2c2/king-of-tokyo.jpg”,”caption”:null,”size”:910200,”width”:2688,”height”:1512,”dateCreated”:{“date”:”2023-10-19 15:17:26″,”timezone”:”UTC”,”timezone_type”:3},”dateUpdated”:{“date”:”2023-10-19 15:17:26″,”timezone”:”UTC”,”timezone_type”:3},”needsModeration”:false,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”deleted”:false,”credits”:”James Bricknell / CNET”,”alt”:”Two Kaiju rampaging across tokyo in board game form”,”restricted”:false,”startDate”:null,”endDate”:null,”preferred”:false,”watermark”:false,”doNotCrop”:false,”doNotResize”:false,”primaryCollection”:null,”vanityUrl”:null,”notes”:null,”crop”:null,”cropGravity”:0,”preservedRegion”:null,”isNew”:false,”keywords”:[],”primeColor”:null,”hasWarning”:false,”typeName”:”content_image”},”uuid”:”56813ad3-f3d9-4765-bc2e-45012f73a2c2″,”imageAltText”:”Board game with bright green dice and monsters for piece”,”imageCaption”:”

“,”imageCredit”:”Iello”,”imageDoNotCrop”:false,”imageDoNotResize”:false,”imageWatermark”:false,”imageFilename”:”king-of-tokyo.jpg”,”imageDateCreated”:”2023/10/19″,”imageWidth”:2688,”imageHeight”:1512,”imageParallax”:”http://www.cnet.com/”,”imageCrop”:”http://www.cnet.com/”,”imageEnlarge”:false}’ overridecaption=”

” overridecredit=”Iello” techobjectinfo='{“uuid”:”21d44f92-9c94-437b-b1e1-9f97684c7424″,”slug”:”iello-king-of-tokyo-new-edition-strategy-board-game-space-penguin-included-in-the-box-for-2-to-6-players-30-minute-play”,”name”:”IELLO: King of Tokyo, New Edition, Strategy Board Game, Space Penguin Included in the Box, For 2 to 6 Players, 30 Minute Play Time, For Ages 8 and Up”,”productType”:”PRODUCT”,”updateType”:”EZMONEY”,”mod”:1700517209554,”displayDate”:”Mon Nov 20 2023 16:53:29 GMT-0500 (Eastern Standard Time)”}’ usepricing=”false” data-key=”cnetlisticle__69989388-9504-41d1-8f69-2f1a1a3a9382″ position=”5″ contenttype=”Deals – Precap” filtershortcodetypes=”http://www.cnet.com/” totalfilteritems=”0″ pagelayout=”Default – Article Page” showdetails=”true” tocheadlineitem=”[object Object]” class=”c-shortcodeListicle c-shortcodeListicle_mini u-flexbox g-border-thin-light-top g-border-thin-light-bottom g-inner-spacing-top-medium g-inner-spacing-bottom-medium g-inner-spacing-left-large g-inner-spacing-right-large g-inner-spacing-bottom-xlarge g-outer-spacing-bottom-large g-border-thin-light-bottom”>

If you have a young family, King of Tokyo is an excellent infection vector for board game fever. You get to play as a giant Kaiju out to destroy Tokyo and you must fight each other for supremacy. 

It’s a simple dice-rolling game where you “spend dice” to buy cards and use those cards to power up your Kaiju. It’s fast and, more importantly, it’s engaging enough for young kids.

Details

“,”credits”:”Eggertspiele”,”imageData”:{“id”:”b28176dd-c19d-4fb9-9185-0242c21110a2″,”title”:”Camel Up 2nd edition”,”filename”:”camel-up-second-edition.jpg”,”path”:”https://www.cnet.com/a/img/hub/2023/10/24/b28176dd-c19d-4fb9-9185-0242c21110a2/camel-up-second-edition.jpg”,”caption”:”

“,”size”:503423,”width”:1600,”height”:900,”dateCreated”:{“date”:”2023-10-24 16:38:17″,”timezone”:”UTC”,”timezone_type”:3},”dateUpdated”:{“date”:”2023-10-24 16:38:39″,”timezone”:”UTC”,”timezone_type”:3},”needsModeration”:false,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”deleted”:false,”credits”:”Eggertspiele”,”alt”:”camel-up-second-edition”,”restricted”:false,”startDate”:null,”endDate”:null,”preferred”:false,”watermark”:false,”doNotCrop”:false,”doNotResize”:false,”primaryCollection”:null,”vanityUrl”:null,”notes”:null,”crop”:null,”cropGravity”:0,”preservedRegion”:null,”isNew”:false,”keywords”:[],”primeColor”:null,”hasWarning”:false,”typeName”:”content_image”},”uuid”:”b28176dd-c19d-4fb9-9185-0242c21110a2″,”imageAltText”:”camel-up-second-edition”,”imageCaption”:”

“,”imageCredit”:”Eggertspiele”,”imageDoNotCrop”:false,”imageDoNotResize”:false,”imageWatermark”:false,”imageFilename”:”camel-up-second-edition.jpg”,”imageDateCreated”:”2023/10/24″,”imageWidth”:1600,”imageHeight”:900,”imageParallax”:”http://www.cnet.com/”,”imageCrop”:”http://www.cnet.com/”,”imageEnlarge”:false}’ overridecaption=”

” overridecredit=”Eggertspiele” usepricing=”false” data-key=”cnetlisticle__c232bd43-dbd5-4186-90bb-4c92f4c332f3″ position=”7″ contenttype=”Deals – Precap” filtershortcodetypes=”http://www.cnet.com/” totalfilteritems=”0″ pagelayout=”Default – Article Page” showdetails=”true” tocheadlineitem=”[object Object]” class=”c-shortcodeListicle c-shortcodeListicle_mini u-flexbox g-border-thin-light-top g-border-thin-light-bottom g-inner-spacing-top-medium g-inner-spacing-bottom-medium g-inner-spacing-left-large g-inner-spacing-right-large g-inner-spacing-bottom-xlarge g-outer-spacing-bottom-large g-border-thin-light-bottom”>

If you’re looking for a light-hearted game you can play with up to five friends, Camel Up has you pitted against a set of camels controlled by dice. As the dice are rolled, the camels will randomly move up and down a track, and you all bet to see who will win, so it requires some strategy. There are five rounds, after which the person with the most points gained through correct guesses wins.

Details

“,”credits”:”Dan Ackerman/CNET”,”imageData”:{“id”:”d10a6658-ac29-4b38-9b59-440ad6fcb162″,”title”:”Mansions of Madness”,”filename”:”img-4186.jpg”,”path”:”https://www.cnet.com/a/img/hub/2019/05/17/d10a6658-ac29-4b38-9b59-440ad6fcb162/img-4186.jpg”,”caption”:”

“,”size”:2367344,”width”:3707,”height”:2780,”dateCreated”:{“date”:”2019-05-17 18:10:35″,”timezone”:”UTC”,”timezone_type”:3},”dateUpdated”:{“date”:”2022-06-28 18:51:02″,”timezone”:”UTC”,”timezone_type”:3},”needsModeration”:false,”mimeType”:”image/jpeg”,”deleted”:false,”credits”:”Dan Ackerman”,”alt”:”A collection of figures and dice from the Goomhaven board game.”,”restricted”:false,”startDate”:null,”endDate”:null,”preferred”:false,”watermark”:false,”doNotCrop”:false,”doNotResize”:false,”primaryCollection”:null,”vanityUrl”:null,”notes”:null,”crop”:null,”cropGravity”:0,”preservedRegion”:null,”isNew”:false,”keywords”:[],”primeColor”:null,”hasWarning”:false,”typeName”:”content_image”},”uuid”:”d10a6658-ac29-4b38-9b59-440ad6fcb162″,”imageAltText”:”A collection of figures and dice from the Goomhaven board game.”,”imageCaption”:”

“,”imageCredit”:”Dan Ackerman/CNET”,”imageDoNotCrop”:false,”imageDoNotResize”:false,”imageWatermark”:false,”imageFilename”:”img-4186.jpg”,”imageDateCreated”:”2019/05/17″,”imageWidth”:3707,”imageHeight”:2780,”imageParallax”:”http://www.cnet.com/”,”imageCrop”:”http://www.cnet.com/”,”imageEnlarge”:false}’ overridecaption=”

” overridecredit=”Dan Ackerman/CNET” usepricing=”false” data-key=”cnetlisticle__f34b5f03-0385-4ec6-a1bf-c4738fb22d77″ position=”9″ contenttype=”Deals – Precap” filtershortcodetypes=”http://www.cnet.com/” totalfilteritems=”0″ pagelayout=”Default – Article Page” showdetails=”true” tocheadlineitem=”[object Object]” class=”c-shortcodeListicle c-shortcodeListicle_mini u-flexbox g-border-thin-light-top g-border-thin-light-bottom g-inner-spacing-top-medium g-inner-spacing-bottom-medium g-inner-spacing-left-large g-inner-spacing-right-large g-inner-spacing-bottom-xlarge g-outer-spacing-bottom-large g-border-thin-light-bottom”>

Mansions of Madness is our favorite co-op mystery game on the market right now, and is a great pick if want a more complex game that’s designed for older players. This second edition of the game uses a companion app as the “keeper” so that all players (up to five) can work together as they explore the sprawling mansion, solve puzzles and battle eldritch horrors.

Details

Should you buy board games on Black Friday?

Absolutely. Board games will see a lot of savings over the next few weeks, and while some savings might only be $5 or $10, the savings add up when you buy several games at once. A lot of the larger games, like Mansions of Madness, also receive larger discounts because of how expensive they are to begin with.

Where’s the best place for Black Friday board game deals?

While Amazon might be the obvious choice for board games, there are still plenty of other places you can find great Black Friday deals. Target tends to have a good selection of board game deals, often giving discounts such as “buy one, get one 50% off,” though we haven’t seen any news of that just yet.

It’s also well worth looking out on manufacturer and publisher websites. Asmodee, one of the largest publishers in North America, is very likely to have a Black Friday sale, which I’ll link to here when we have confirmation, as well as the other manufacturers as they come up.

What makes a good Black Friday board game deal?

Remember, a product’s list price doesn’t always tell you the real value, especially as retailers have started offering Day 1 deals on products. Often the list price is artificially inflated to make the deal look more attractive, so you’ll want to check around and see what the true value of a product is. You might also want to install CNET’s Shopping plugin to give you a bit of help with all of that.

More Black Friday deals from CNET