Best Strategy Board Games for Beginners

Strategy board games are the best choice if you like a bit of thought when you’re playing. Winning depends mainly on planning, decision-making, and resource management rather than the luck of the roll of a dice (although that might come into it too). 

You’ll have difficult choices to make every turn, and every one of those decisions can have far-reaching consequences. 

Classic examples of strategy games like Chess and Go are notoriously difficult to get into. Modern strategy games are much more accessible, but with plenty of depth too.

In the 20th century, there was a new movement in strategy games that came to be known as the Eurogame movement. It originated in post-war Germany, where designers and players wanted to avoid war and conflict themes, focusing on cooperation and unity instead. Through the 1970s and 80s games evolved to become more inclusive with shorter play times, less randomness and rules that avoided early elimination so everyone could stay involved. 

Then in 1995 a game called Die Siedler von Catan (later to be known as just Catan) was launched. It became a global sensation and introduced the rest of the world to Eurogame play mechanics like trading, non-confrontational play and changeable board setups. 

Ravensburger was a huge player in the growth of the Eurogame movement. Although we were primarily known for puzzles and children’s games, we helped to change the gaming landscape forever. 

As early as 1964, our head of game publishing - Erwin Gloenegger - started to treat board games like literature, instead of toys. He sent out free copies of important games to journalists, which helped to legitimise games as serious cultural artifacts. 

Later, we were one of the first companies to feature designer names on the front of boxes, which gave game designers the recognition they deserved - and helped gamers to pick the games they wanted to play. 

Then in 1999 we created a brand new boutique sub-label called Alea. We gave Alea games proper big boxes, which made them stand out from other games. And we used it to launch some genre-definining masterpieces like Ra, Puerto Rico 1897 and the legendary Castles of Burgundy, some of which you can still buy today. 

Not all of our strategy games are on the Alea imprint nowadays - some of them sit under the Ravensburger brand. But whatever the label on the box, one thing remains the same - Ravensburger make some of the best strategy games around, whatever your play style.

Strategy games are a great way to play. They do away with a lot of the randomness of dice-heavy games, and they really make you think, so the more you play, the better you’ll get. 

But there are many different types of games to choose from, and as a beginner, it can be hard to know which will suit you best. So, let’s have a look at some of the different types of strategy games, and what they’re like to play.

In a cooperative strategy game, the players work together against a common challenge. That means there’s no pressure of competition - because you all win or lose together - and it’s great for mixed-skill-level groups, because expert players can help beginners without feeling patronising.

They sound complicated, but asymmetric board games are actually pretty simple. All it means is that each player has a different role, objective or set of powers in the game. And that means there’s a huge amount of variety in the game, because the combination of characters or factions transforms every playthrough.

Lots of the strategy board games we make are suitable for ages 10 and up. But what if you have younger family members who want to get involved? You need strategy games with simpler rules, shorter play times - but still enough depth to keep older players engaged.

Like we mentioned at the beginning, the Eurogame movement was the beginning of a big change in how we play games - and Ravensburger was a part of that movement. Eurogames emphasise planning, resource management and efficiency over luck and conflict, so they tend to be quite slow-paced and very deep. The rules might be simple, but as you play them more, you’ll discover more and more layers of complexity in the gameplay.

So what’s the right game for you? Well, with so many to choose from, there’s no one-size-fits-all answer to suit everyone. But by asking yourself a few questions, you can narrow it down to a few options. 

First up, who will be playing? If it’s a group of adult friends, you can pick a more complex strategy game and work it out between yourselves. If you want a family game that will suit younger players too, you might be better with something a bit simpler. It’s worth considering how many players you’ll have too - different games work best with different player counts. 

Then it’s worth thinking about the time you have to play. Are you planning on long, extended sessions, or will you be squeezing in a quick game here and there? Of course you can break a long game into shorter sessions, but that means leaving the game set up somewhere. 

Consider what kind of gameplay you want, too. Do you want to be competitive or cooperative? This can be really important especially if you have a mixed-ability group - like a family with children - as they can easily feel left behind in competitive games. 

Then you’re ready to browse our full range of strategy games and find your perfect jumping in point.