Collecting board games is an expensive hobby. The average game comes in at around £35, and that is no price to be sniffed at. On our shelves we have games that have cost us as much as £70, and they sit pride of place in our collection. Other games like Gloomhaven and Twilight Imperium can cost a lot more, and collectable card games can end up costing hundreds of pounds per release. Recently, we backed the Power Rangers: Heroes of the Grid game on Kickstarter to the price of $195. That will be, without a doubt, the most expensive game we have ever bought.

That being said, not every game is an expensive one. Today, we are going to the other side of the market. Yes, there are plenty of expensive games out there – more than I care to think about – but there are also some really good, really cheap games out there. Today, we’re going to look at games on the cheaper side of the spectrum. Today we look at some of the best games for under £10.

Now, a couple of things need to be said as a kind of disclaimer before this article. Firstly, I am British so the prices are in GBP. Secondly, these are games that were £10 upon purchase – so some may fluctuate in price a wee bit. Thirdly, I said board games, but this list actually comprises mainly of card games.

Right – let’s do this – five of the best board games for under £10.

The Game

The Game

Current Price: £9.15

Starting off this list, coming from German board game designer Steffan Benndorf, we have The Game. The Game, which is the hardest game to find on Board Game Geek for obvious reasons, is a puzzle game in which you must discard all the cards from your hand into four central piles. The challenge? It must be done in chronological order.

So, to my knowledge, there are a couple of big things to point out about The Game. The first is that it is a good solo game. I have played it a few times solo, and when you play it becomes more of a mental puzzle than a game. I suppose, in many ways, it kind of becomes like a Rubik’s Cube – you can fiddle with it for hours and a lot of the time you end up with something roughly resembling what you want but not quite getting there.

Secondly, The Game comes with German rules. You will need to find the PDF rules for the English version.

The Game is a good little puzzle and a fine time spender. It keeps you busy and is always a bit of a mathematical challenge.

More on The Game: The Game Review – Logic Puzzles and Skull Faces

Hanabi

Hanabi

Current Price: £8.36

What can be said about Hanabi other than that it is a truly beautiful game? It is a game with such a simple set of rules, and one with such a fantastic legacy, that it is always a joy to pull out of the board game cupboard.

Of all the games on this list, Hanabi is probably my favourite. Hanabi is the Japanese word for fireworks, and that is exactly what the game is about. You, as a group, need to build fireworks, creating the best possible display you can do. The downside is, you cannot see your own hand. Instead, your hand is played facing everyone else, and they have to guide you to play the right cards in the right place. To do that, they can give one of two pieces of complete information. If you have one “red” card in your hand they can say “this card is red”, pointing to that card. If you have a “two” in your hand they can say “this card is a two”. If you have two red cards, they have to point to both (because you have to give that complete information) and say “these two cards are red”. You get the idea.

All in all though, Hanabi is a slick little game. It typically lasts around 20 minutes, and is always a good mind-bending group puzzle. You find that everyone has their own system for trying to keep track of their cards and it is great fun.

More on Hanabi: 5 Reasons Hanabi Rules

Hey, That’s My Fish!

Hey, That’s My Fish

Current Price: £9.99

What can be said about Hey, That’s My Fish! other than that it is a great game for adults and kids alike? In Hey, That’s My Fish! you play the part of a penguin, looking to take as many fish as possible. To collect fish, you need to skate on ice, and that ice begins to disintegrate as you collect your fishy bundles of points.

For the low price of £9.99, Hey, That’s My Fish! is the kind of game that doesn’t really grow old. We’ve played it a few times now and every time we have thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. A game lasts about 10 to 15 minutes and can become competitive as you work out how to use disintegrating ice to trap your opponents.

One of the things that really makes Hey, That’s My Fish! is how much character there is in the game. Each little penguin piece has a pose that emphasises how frustrated these birdy little polar critters are that their fish is being taken away from them. This adds a good humour to the game that makes it a delight to play every time it hits the table. It is a strong contestant in the category of “games for under £10” and one that is genuinely worth considering.

More on Hey, That’s My Fish!: Top 3: Unconventionally Competitive Board Games For Competitive Gamers

Love Letter

Standard and Batman Love Letter Collide

Current Price: £7.99

For a board game blogger such as myself, it feels that since the very first day Love Letter hit FLGS shelves it has been a classic. Love Letter is about being the last suitor standing as you attempt to win over the heart of a princess.

I won’t go into the rules of Love Letter too much; however, they are worth looking at in a little bit more detail. In Love Letter you get given two cards at random. These may be the Baron or the Handmaid, or one of eight other characters. Each one, when played, can do something different to help you reduce the hand size of your opponents. Most of the time, if you successfully play a card on an opponent you will draw a card (there are a couple of gambles). If you get played on, and lose, then you lose a card and don’t draw back up. The last one standing wins.

Love Letter can be played one game after the other; however, it really benefits from being a 5-10 minute filler game. It is quick to break out, incredibly portable (so perfect for queues), and neat to play. Fun fact – the last time we played it, we were at an airport. That’s just how portable it is.

More on Love Letter: Which is the Best Version of Love Letter?

The Mind

Level 3 of The Mind

Current Price: £9.00

The newest game on this list, The Mind is the second game on this list to be nominated in 2018 for the Spiel des Jahres, one of the highest awards in gaming (the first was The Game, in 2015).

Like with The Game, my copy of The Mind is entirely in German; however, like with The Game it doesn’t really affect the game one way or the other (bar the text on the level cards). Instead, The Mind is about numbers.

Well….it’s about numbers and mind reading.

The Mind is a game for 2-4 players in which you work through a series of levels. At level one, you are all (both) dealt one card. Without talking to one another, you have to play the cards in the right, ascending, order. At level two, you are both dealt two cards which you now have to put in the right order without talking to each other about the cards. At level three, you all get three cards – and so on.

The Mind is an ingenious game and will be getting a full review very soon on this blog. It is superb and I fully, wholeheartedly recommend it. We have managed to whittle away a couple of hours at a time playing it, without even realising because it becomes such a psychological game. Absolutely brilliant.

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So, there we have it – five games for under £10 each. I know I found lists like this helpful when I first got into the hobby, so I hope someone else finds it useful moving forward.

Over to you and the comments section. What is your favourite game for under ten bucks? Let me know in the comments below.

Other Top 5 Lists:
5 Story Telling Board Games To Satisfy Your Inner Bard
5 Board Games Like Risk
5 Date Night Board Games To Play With Your Other Half

Published by Luke

Board game nerd, comic book geek, Rubik's Cube solver, Splendor player, and Blogger. View all posts by Luke