Before I came to NYU, I thought my weekends would be filled with going to bars and dancing in clubs. In reality, my weekends look nothing like that — but I’m glad they don’t. I usually stay in my dorm dressed in pajamas, playing board games with my friends until I can’t keep my eyes open anymore. It may not be what I imagined, but it’s how I bond with my friends — and I love it. 

With the stress of homework and exams, it’s important that we make time to have fun, especially when most dorms have board games available in their lounges. Anxious on a Tuesday night and going out isn’t in the cards? Play a card game instead. 

Whether you’re having a cozy night in with friends or huddling together at The Uncommons for an afternoon, here are seven tabletop games for some unplugged fun.

Dutch Blitz

Dutch Blitz is the perfect easy-to-learn card game during a homework break, no matter how many people you’re with. If you’ve ever played Spit, you will get the hang of this one fast. The game heats up fast as players take their decks and try to simultaneously place their cards into the Post Piles in the center of the table. Hands will fly all over to get cards down and add up points, so make sure to keep calm even if your friends keep blocking your cards. 

If you want to play with more than four people, there is also an expansion pack. While it may take a few minutes to learn, Dutch Blitz is a simple and fun game — once you get the hang of it, you’ll want to play every day. 

The Chameleon

Get all of your Tisch Drama friends together to play The Chameleon, a game that’ll have your group turning on each other to find the imposter among the group. Everyone is given a secret word, except the Chameleon, who must try to blend in as each player says words associated with the secret word. At the end of each round, everyone points to who they think the Chameleon is, and points are awarded based on correct and incorrect guesses. At the end of the game, the person with the most points — or the best liar — wins.

For a group of three to six people, this game is perfect for a chill dorm hangout with friends. Whether you’re looking to hone your acting skills for an upcoming audition or hoping to watch your CAS friends crumble under the improv, this game is sure to have everyone laughing. 

Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza

If you’re still getting to know your roommates and can’t seem to get past that awkward phase, you’ll want to invite them to play Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza. As everyone tries to get rid of their cards, silliness ensues, making even the most reserved person show their goofy side. Going around in a circle, each person must say taco, cat, goat, cheese or pizza as they place a card. The cards will reveal one of the five categories or one of three specialty cards that require a ridiculous movement, like banging on your chest like a gorilla. If you flip your card and the word you said matches your card, everyone has to slap the pile immediately, and the last person to slap gets all the cards in the center. 

Having good reflexes is both a blessing and a curse for this game. You might win, but you also might end up with red hands from everyone slapping on top of yours. This game is awesome for any number of people and any occasion — just make sure to take off all your rings first.

Catan

You’re going to want to get out your thinking cap for this one. While it takes a bit of focus and strategy, this classic game is perfect for a little competition with some friends. As you each build and trade as settlers of the fictional land of Catan, you have to try to get 10 victory points by creating houses, cities, roads and armies, or getting a lucky Development card. 

If you get a bit confused along the way, a quick YouTube tutorial can help, but once you know the rules and the game gets going, you’ll be asking your friends to play a round every night. This game can be challenging to learn, but the payoff is worth it — it’ll have you using your brainpower for something other than homework for a change. If you weren’t a board game enthusiast before, after your first round of Catan, you might be.

Moose Master

Less about winning and more about having fun, Moose Master will definitely test your first-year friendships and get everyone laughing so hard it hurts. The game involves a series of minigames, and during each round, every player must abide by two Moose rules cards like “You must close your eyes when you talk” or “You can’t address someone by their first name.” If you see your friends breaking the rules and call them out, they must take a Penalty Card, and the fewer the Penalty Cards a player gets, the better. This also gives you a great excuse to stare at your crush all night. 

If you want to introduce a bit more competition, you can also eliminate players for having too many Penalty Cards. But, be warned — it’s all fun and games until your friends keep calling you out and you end up eliminated with seven Penalty Cards. After a couple rounds of Moose Master, you and your friends will have made memories you might laugh about at graduation.   

Phase 10

If you’re looking for a chill game to play while you watch your favorite reality show, Phase 10 is for you. It’s excellent for small or large groups and is incredibly easy to learn. Everyone gets dealt 10 cards, and in each round, everyone tries to complete the given tasks by picking up and switching out cards in their hand. There are 10 tasks that each player is trying to achieve, and whoever can complete all of them in order first wins. If you’re already burnt out from exams, you can thankfully keep your brain turned off for this one. Plus, this game can be as competitive as you and your friends want, depending on how much you want to annoy each other. 

Telestrations

Grab your Tisch, or better yet, your Steinhardt Studio Art friends and play a game of Telestrations,  where the goal is just to have fun. Each player gets a dry-erase storybook and has to draw an image based on a secret prompt. Then, a game of visual telephone ensues as you pass your storybook to the next player. They will attempt to guess the drawing and the player after them will draw based on the previous guess, resulting in some terrible drawings and terrifying creatures. At the end, you can look through the pictures and the guesses your friends made along the way. If you are stuck inside with your roommates on a rainy day, Telestrations is easy to learn and guaranteed to make you chuckle at your friend’s artistic abilities or lack thereof. 

So, put down your homework, unplug your Nintendo Switch and get out a board game. Tabletop games are how I found my people at NYU, and I hope they can help you find yours.

Contact Brianna Ly at [email protected].