In the vast majority of cases, board games are inherently social gathering activities. While there are some great solo board games, many of the best, most fun-filled gaming experiences I’ve had are from consistent, larger play groups. And while it isn’t always that easy to get six players to find time to get together, that magical moment when you do is always memorable. In this list we offer some of the best six-player board games around, ranging from various age recommendations and levels of difficulty. While a full group isn’t necessary for many of these, these games shine when you do have a group of six players at the table.

TL;DR Best 6 Player Board Games

• Age of Wonders: Planetfall
• Dune
• One Night Ultimate Werewolf
• Zombicide: Black Plague
• Munchkin
• Toil and Troublez

Age of Wonders: Planetfall

Based on the sci-fi real-time strategy video game, Age of Wonders: Planetfall is a competitive resource management game played over seven rounds, and each round has players exploring a different planet. The game ends once all seven planets are explored and your precious resources are added up, earning you Empire points. The player with the most Empire points wins. Sporting a unique card drafting system and six playable unique commanders, this is perfect for ongoing gaming groups.

Dune

If your entire personality isn’t Dune in 2024, what are you even doing? Gale Force Nine’s Dune is an asymmetrical conquest and diplomacy game set on the titular desert planet Arrakis of Frank Herbert’s creation. Players take control of one of the six available factions, including the Atreides and the Harkonnens, as you fight for control of the planet and the precious spice. Played over 10 rounds, each lasting nine phases, you’ll manage resources, avoid the dreaded sandstorm, and battle opposing armies. The play time is admittedly above average, but rounds will go by in no time due to how much fun you’ll be having.

One Night Ultimate Werewolf

A fast-paced secret role game, One Night Ultimate Werewolf can be played with up to 10 players, and is a much more entertaining experience with more players involved. Each player takes a role card, noting it without telling other players, then the night begins. Throughout the night phase, each player closes their eyes, then the moderator will give specific instructions based on your role card. In the day phase, players will have conversations to determine who to kill. If a werewolf is killed, the villagers win, and if a villager is killed, the werewolves win. Each round lasts around 10 minutes, perfect for kids and parties.

Zombicide: Black Plague

Zombicide: Black Plague is a cooperative RPG board game with light campaign elements. Play is done with various miniatures and item cards, with each player taking control of one of six survivors as they work together to escape the hordes of the undead in multiple scenarios. Be warned: you will die. A lot. Luckily, with a full party of six players, breaking down doors and taking out Abominations is a much less daunting task. Featuring detailed miniatures, a robust level up and skill system, and an extensive scenario book, Zombicide is the perfect ongoing game for consistent play groups. It’s also a great board game for teens. Be sure to check out their other themes as well.

Munchkin

A silly fantasy-themed game, featuring cards like the Horny Helmet or the Peanut Butter and Orc Guts Spreader, Munchkin is a D&D-lite card game that pits players against each other as they delve into the dungeon, nab loot, and backstab their friends to level up. The first player to level 10 wins the game. Another one that’s best enjoyed with a full group, the 168 card base set offers a ton of variety for multiple rounds, with the option of eventually adding some of their numerous expansions later on.

Toil and Troublez

The ultimate test of risk and reward, Toil and Troublez is a simple card game of pressing your luck. The game determines who goes first by the players discussing who most recently ate a mushroom (yes, really!). That starts by revealing a card from the top of the deck and trying to match it up with a card from one of the three rows, referred to as the Enchanted Forest, and can either end their turn there or risk it all by continuously playing more cards. Their turn also ends if the drawn card cannot be played. Then, in clockwise order, the remaining players pick a card from the Enchanted Forest and try to create matching sets of cards to earn points, goldfish style. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins.

For more, check out our picks for best 3-player board games, as well as our favorite dexterity board games.

Developer Strange Scaffold’s third-person neo-noir shooter, El Paso, Elsewhere, is heading to the big screen, per Deadline.

LaKeith Stanfield (Judas and the Black Messiah, Sorry to Bother You) is currently in talks to star and produce the project alongside Lorenzo di Bonaventura’s Di Bonaventura Pictures and Colin Stark. The adaptation is said to follow protagonist James Savage as he navigates a monster-filled world in order to bring an end to his vicious ex-girlfriend and his own inner turmoil.

We finally have the first full trailer for Tales of the Shire: A The Lord of the Rings Game, an upcoming single-player life simulation set in the Middle-earth universe inspired by the books of J.R.R. Tolkien.

Tales of the Shire, published by Take-Two-owned Private Division and developed by Wētā Workshop Game Studio, lets you live life as a Hobbit in the idyllic town of Bywater, which is not yet established as an official village in Hobbiton. The idea of the game is to help bring the community together and achieve official village status by throwing the greatest Bywater Festival the Shire has ever seen.

Expect plenty of wholesome, Hobbit-centric gameplay, including creating and personalizing a Hobbit with an array of customisations, decorating a cosy Hobbit home, and venturing outside for cooking, fishing, foraging, gardening, and more relaxing activities in the Shire.

According to Private Division, the Embracer Group-owned Middle-earth Enterprises has licensed the literary works of The Lord of the Rings series, providing Wētā Workshop Game Studio with “the broadest creative license to interpret the underlying lore of the books.”

Here’s the official blurb:

Toss your lure to catch trout from the glistening waters of Bywater Pool, gather wild mushrooms, and then use the collected ingredients to bake a succulent pie to serve for luncheon. With a full belly, stroll back outside to explore the Shire and build relationships with the Bywater locals by helping them to build a garden, sharing one of the many daily Hobbit meals, and more.

There’s also word that you’ll meet “iconic characters and familiar Hobbit families” to trade for upgrades to skills, clothes, home, and more. Private Division failed to say which characters, although the trailer shows a glimpse at a famous wizard.

Tales of the Shire: A The Lord of the Rings Game launches in the second half of 2024 on the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Steam.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.