Are you wondering what board games are good for 8 year olds? In this review of the best board games for 8 year olds, we have compared over 30 kids games and come up with our top pick and best budget buy.
Considerations When Choosing Board Games for 8 Year Olds
Safety: whether you’re buying a gift for a colleague’s friend or you’re trying to expand your kid’s collection of games, you have to keep in mind that most types include small parts that could constitute a choking hazard for children of any age.
Material: as you can see from our list, children’s games come in different forms and shapes, which means you’ve got plenty of categories and materials to choose from.
Price: it’s always a great idea to decide how much you are willing to spend on new games, especially since some of these games are priced over $30.
Age: all the board activities and games listed in this article are suitable for 8 year old kids, but they can still be enjoyed by everyone in the family. Just keep in mind the safety tips!
Function: most of the games in this list are designed to improve your children’s memory, imagination and concentration skills, all while they’re having fun with the rest of the family.
Gender: although most of these games are designed with both boys and girls in mind, some of them might be more suitable for either one of the genders.
Our Top Picks in 2024
Let’s start with the list of the best board games for 8 year olds.
1. Stare! Junior Board Game
This version of the renowned card game Stare! is the perfect pick for family game nights. Suitable for children aged 8 and adults of any age, this card game is designed to improve your children’s memory, concentration, imagination and attention to detail.
The aim of the game is to stare at the image on a card for thirty seconds, memorize as many details as possible, roll the dice and get ready to answer some questions once the time is over. Each correct answer allows the player to move his/her token on the board for as many times as the number on the dice.
2. Azul: A Plan B Game
This strategy game is great for small groups of people (2-4), and it’s the best pick for family game nights. Winner of the “Game of the Year” title in 2018, the aim of the game is to score points by placing the beautiful and colorful tiles over the board.
This game allows you and your kids to develop critical thinking and strategy skills, all while enjoying the beautiful artistic drawings on the tiles, and it is perfect for a short strategy match.
3.Hedbanz Electronic Card Game
The electronic version of this game promises even more fun and entertainment than the original version. If you’ve never come across it, the rules of this card game couldn’t be easier: each player (or team) is assigned a headband with a name on it, and the aim of the game is for the players to guess what the object/animal/person on the headband is.
In order to do so, they can ask yes/no questions, or ask the other players to describe or imitate it. The electronic host entertains and guides the players through the game.
4. Monopoly Junior Game
If you’re a fan of the original version of the game, this is the perfect pick to introduce your children to the world of Monopoly. The Junior twist on the renowned game presents new kid-friendly features, including adorable junior tokens, new properties (such as ice cream parlor, toy store, skate park and pet store), and single dollar bills, to make the game easier to approach by younger kids.
5. Hoot Owl Hoot! by Peaceable Kingdom
If you’re looking for cooperative op board games for 8 year olds, this is the best pick to develop their team work skills. The aim of this game is to work together in order to help the owls fly back to their nest before the sun comes up, and it is designed to improve your kids’ strategy skills, creative problem solving and decision making, all within a fun environment.
6. Outfoxed!
Are you looking for a crime-solving game similar to the beloved Cluedo, but suitable for your children? Well, Outfoxed! will challenge anyone aged 8 and up to find whichever fox stole a potpie before escaping into the foxhole.
Choosing from suspect cards, each representing one of the foxes, and thief cards, one for each of the suspects, the players must find clues (such as a scarf, hat, or other objects owned by one of the foxes). The first player to identify the thief is the winner, but failing to identify the fox will result in no winners. This board game promotes the improvement of strategy skills and team work within a fun, non-competitive environment.
7. Jackaroo
If you are looking for indoor games for 8 year olds and up, Jackaroo is the perfect choice for family game nights on a rainy day. The aim of the game is to tease and distract your opponents in order to gain their stones, so you can expect a lot of laughter throughout the match. This game features cards, colored marbles and a board.
8. Sequence for Kids
Another kid-friendly version of a game for adults, Sequence for Kids is suitable for children over the age of 3. Instead of numbers, the players are presented with pictures of animals, and the aim of the game is to form a sequence by placing chips over the board equivalent of the cards they pick up. This game is designed to improve your kids’ logical thinking skills.
9. Busy, Busy Airport by Wonder Forge
If you’re looking for the most popular board games, Busy, Busy Airport is the perfect pick, especially if the children playing this are between the ages of 3 and 9. Each player is a pilot flying to destination around the room.
The passengers are the children’s favorite Busytown characters, and the aim of the game is to collect as many souvenirs as possible. The player with the most wins! This game is designed to improve children’s picture identification and matching skills, physical movement, strategic thinking and creativity.
10. Sorry! by Hasbro
Competition, luck and strategy are some of the best skills to improve with your children, and this game by Hasbro is the best choice for 8 year olds. The rules of the game are simple: players are expected to draw cards and move their game pieces around the board, and the final goal is to accumulate all their pieces at the final destination.
11. Bears Dice Game
One of the most recommended modern board activities and games for ice breakers, family nights or family trips, Bears is a fast paced dice game that can be played anywhere in the world. The aim of this board game is to survive the bears’ rampage while the players are on a camping trip. How? Just score points by pairing dice and shooting all the bears off during the attacks.
12. Kingdomino by Blue Orange
Another winner of the Game of the Year prize in Germany, this family strategy game is suitable for 8 year olds, teenagers and adults. This game aims to improve creativity and strategic thinking by building your own domino kingdom.
13. Eye Found It! World of Disney
If your children love Disney, this is the perfect board game to gift them! Who wouldn’t like to own a 6-foot game board with most of Disney’s famous characters? Eye Found It! is one of the best board games for girls, and it’s the ideal choice for Disney themed family game nights.
The aim of the game is to find the items on the Search Cards in the least amount of time. This game promotes and develops your children’s cooperation, teamwork, attention to detail and object identification/matching skills.
14. Totally Gross: The Game of Science
Another award winning game, Totally Gross is the perfect games for the younger scientists in the making. This game teaches the funniest and grossest facts about the major scientific subjects: biology, chemistry, geology, astronomy, zoology, anatomy, and physics!
Answer questions and take part in gross (yet fun) challenges to earn as many points as you can.
15. BRAIN GAMES KIDS – Warning! This Game Will Blow Your Mind!
If you’re looking for fun learning opportunities for your kids, Brain Games Kids is another perfect pick for your collection of good board games for 8 year olds. Inspired by the show Brain Games, this game gives your kids the perfect chance to explore and discover new facts and brainy new nuggets.
16. Ravensburger Labyrinth
Labyrinth is, without a doubt, one of the most intriguing games out on the market. This board game contains a playing board, maze cards, treasure cards and playing pieces, and the main objective is to reach all of the treasures through the shortest route. This game teaches your kids planning, recognition and taking turns, and it’s the perfect choice to keep the minds of the youngest active.
17. Magic Maze by Dude Games
Magic Maze is a real time, cooperative game where each of the 4 players can command one of the 4 Hero pawns at any time. The aim of the game is to complete the mission before the sand timer runs out, but the only way to do that is by cooperating with the other players and communicating when the game allows it.
18. Ravensburger Scotland Yard Junior
Scotland Yard Junior is the kid-friendly version of the renowned Ravensburger board game, and it’s designed for children ages 6 and up. The aim of the game is to work as a team to capture the elusive Mr X, on the run across London. This version of the game features a simplified map of London, and it’s the perfect choice to improve your kids’ strategic skills and teamwork.
19. Tile Lock Scrabble
Scrabble is one of the greatest games of all time, and this kid-friendly version holds up to the original game’s success. This version of Scrabble features a board where the tiles don’t move around, making it the ideal choice for a board game “on the go”. Kids ages 8 and up will be able to play this game on a road trip, on the plane or in the comfort of their living room.
20. Jumanji: The Game
“A game for those who seek to find…a way to leave their world behind.” With the release of new Jumanji franchise movies in the cinema, there is no better time to dive into the adventures of one of the most celebrated board games of all time: Jumanji! Be ready to run away from stalking lions, charging rhinos, snapping crocodiles, and other dangerous creatures, and be careful not to get yourself sucked into the board.
21. Spin Master Games Disney Beat the Parents
If you’re looking for the perfect board game to make your family game nights fun and entertaining (and maybe a little bit competitive), this quiz game is exactly what you are looking for. Disney’s Beat the Parents puts kids and adults in a head to head challenge, with two sets of Disney trivia questions (one designed for the parents and one for the children).
22. The Magic Labyrinth Game
It’s often hard to pick games for boys, but fantasy-related games are always a hit! The Magic Labyrinth board game has stood the test of time, and even adults love playing this. The aim of the game is to navigate the maze and to collect all of the lost items.
However, this magical maze has invisible walls that the players will keep bumping into, forcing them to start all over again. Test your memory and avoid all the invisible walls.
23. Watch Ya’ Mouth
Watch Ya’ Mouth is a hilarious mouth guard card game, perfect for family game nights, or competitive game sessions with groups of children. The aim of the game is to pick a card from the deck, wear a mouth guard and try to read the word or sentence on the card in the most understandable way.
Your team mates have 1 minute to guess the word (or sentence) you’re trying to pronounce, and the team with the highest number of correct guesses wins!
24. Zenteeko Roll-Up
Zenteeko is a roll-up game that will test your kids’ strategy skills. It is played on a 5×5 board, and each player is presented with four markers. The rules of this abstract strategy game are simple: during each turn, one of the markers is placed on the board, and each player has to get the four markers in one of four simple groupings (vertical, horizontal, diagonal or in a square).
The first player to group the markers, wins! Once all the players have mastered all the groupings, the Zenteeko website offers new alternatives to increase the difficulty of the game.
25. Spontuneous – The Song Game – Sing It or Shout It
Family game nights will never be the same, once you put your hands on this amazing game. Do you and your kids like singing? Have you ever find yourself humming in the shower, or singing while you’re busy doing something else? If the answer to any of those questions is yes, this is the perfect game for your family.
The aim of the game is to pick up a card, read out the word and stump the other players by singing the first song that comes into your mind! If you want to succeed at this game, no talent is required: just bring your love for music and karaoke, and you will be victorious!
26. Mouse Trap Game
Mouse Trap is another classic game that has survived the test of time. The aim of this game is to run through the maze while one of three mice (Sneakers Mouse, Nacho Mouse or Pepper Mouse) spins on the cheesy spinner.
Roll the die, advance through the board and build the perfect mouse traps, until you get the chance to catch your friends’ mice. The first player to trap a mouse is the winner!
27. Guess Who?
Guess Who? is the original game where you have to guess the mysterious identities. Does your mysterious character wear a hat? Or does he have blue eyes? Children will have a lot of fun asking questions to find out who the mysterious character is. In order to guess the mysterious character, players can ask “yes or no” questions, for example “Does your character have glasses?”.
If the answer is no, the first player closes the windows of the characters with glasses, leaving the ones still in play open. If the answer is yes, the playwer has to close the windows of the characters without glasses. Whoever guesses the other player’s mysterious identity first, wins!
28. Payday
Do you want to teach your kids how to manage their future finances? Payday is the perfect choice! Teach them how to get froma pay day to the end of the month! The game board is designed to resemble a calendar month, and the aim of the game is to have the most money at the end of the month(s). Pay bills, earn rewards and add up to your savings each pay day to beat the other players.
29. Harry Potter Cluedo Game
If your kids are Harry Potter fans and love crime-solving games, this version of Cluedo is the best choice for your 8 year olds board games collection. The rules of the game are simple: a student has disappeared from the famous School of Magic and Sorcery and it’s up to you to solve the mystery!
Choose which one of the main characters you want to be (Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Luna or Neville), and try to find out who has disappeared, what spell or object he used and where the student was attacked. Was it Draco Malfoy with a Sleeping Draught? In the Owlery?
Move around the rooms of Hogwarts and make your guesses, but beware: the special wheels on the board move around revealing secret passages, hidden stairs and even the Dark Mark.
Latest Educational Board Games
Totally Gross stays true to its name, thanks its Slime track, fun questions and often disgusting facts. This game offers the funniest learning environment for your children.
More Great Picks and Games for Different Kids Age Ranges
Fun games for 8 year olds?
Bears Dice Game plays on the survival instincts and the luck of the players. It’s a fun, fast-paced, quick game, and it can be played anywhere, as it does not require a table.
Popular games for Kids
This version of Cluedo gives your kids the chance to turn into their favorite characters and to explore the magic world of Harry Potter, using their investigative skills to solve the mystery.
Family board games 8 Year olds?
Watch Ya Mouth is a simple, yet extremely funny game. Put your mouth guard on and try to say the words or sentences on the cards: your family game nights will be filled with laughs and jokes!
Best Budget Buy
We also have selected some other worth mentioning board games: