Never be bored again with these games in your arsenal! If you are alone and bored or with friends looking for something fun to do, we’ve got you covered with this list of 40 super fun games to play when bored. These games range from card games to mobile and PC games, so you’ve got a wide variety to choose from when you’re having some downtime. So, without further ado, let’s jump straight into these games so that you’re having fun again in no time!
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GAMES TO PLAY ALONE WHEN BORED
Just because you are alone doesn’t mean you can’t play some games to keep yourself occupied. In fact, there are plenty of games out there that are specifically made with solo players in mind that you can play for hours on end! Here are our favorite games to play alone when bored.
1. SOLITAIRE
All you need to play solitaire is a single deck of cards, which anyone should have lying around in their home somewhere. So, grab the cards and create seven stacks of cards, with the top card of each stack of cards face-up. The first stack should have just one card, the second two cards, the third three… and so on. All remaining cards form the draw deck.
The objective of this game? Move all the cards into four piles in order from Ace to King by suit. To do this, you can move the face-up cards to different piles as long as the face-up card in another stack is an opposite color and a number one value higher. Keep moving cards and flipping over cards from your draw deck if you run out of moves.
For a more thorough guide on how to play this classic card game, head over to our post on solitaire rules.
2. PANDEMIC
- STRATEGY GAME: Players must work together playing to their characters' strengths...
- COOPERATIVE BOARD GAME: Only through teamwork will you keep the world safe from...
- WORK TOGETHER AND SAVE HUMANITY: Four diseases threaten the world, and your...
Surprisingly enough, Pandemic is a board game you can play alone. In this strategic board game, you work hard to find a cure for the pandemic! Try to find the cure before the pandemic spreads out of control!
While this game is generally played with 2 to 4 players, to turn this classic board game into a solo player board game, adopt the below rules:
- Get rid of the “Researcher” role
- Deal out 3 or 4 roles that you will control
- Alternate playing between these roles
3. JENGA
- GREAT PARTY GAME: Liven up a party by bringing out the Jenga game; This classic...
- GREAT PARTY GAME: Liven up a party by bringing out the Jenga game! This classic...
- THE ORIGINAL WOOD BLOCK GAME: The Jenga game is the original wood block game...
Another classic game you can easily play alone is Jenga. Everyone’s played this game growing up. And while you generally play against other players, hoping the tower does not fall on your turn, when you play alone, instead, you play against yourself. Try to get the tower as tall as possible by removing a block from the tower and placing it on top one by one.
4. CASCADIA
- AWARD WINNER: Spiel des Jahres Game of the Year 2022. American Tabletop Award...
- FAMILY-FRIENDLY FUN: exciting strategy board game with family mode for new...
- EASY TO TEACH AND LEARN: elegantly simple gameplay, teach in 2 minutes, plays in...
If you’re a nature lover, one of the best solo board games you should check out is Cascadia. The objective of this game is to build a landscape with habitat tiles and wildlife tokens. On your turn, you draft one of the habitat/animal combinations to add to your tableau. You can place habitats next to any pile and animals only if their symbol is present.
As a single-player game, Cascadia works similarly to games like Jenga, where you try to beat your own score. But there are challenges you can add to the game that make it so that you can only win the game if you beat these challenges!
5. GIN SOLITAIRE
Once you’ve mastered the traditional solitaire, you can then move on to playing other versions of the game, such as Gin Solitaire. This is the perfect game for rummy card game lovers. To play this game, you’ll need a standard deck of cards plus one Joker. The goal? Build your hand into melds and get to 100 points before the Joker!
To play this game, deal yourself 11 cards and then shuffle the rest of the deck with the Joker inside. Then, discard a card from the hand, draw a card from the draw pile, and try to make melds. A meld is either at least 3 cards of the same rank or at least 3 cards of the same suit in consecutive order. Then, discard another card. Keep discarding, drawing, melding, and discarding until you draw the Joker. At this point, count the cards that are not a part of a meld. These are the points you will assign to the Joker!
6. RUBIK’S CUBE
- THE ORIGINAL RUBIK’S CUBE: A combination of math, art, & science- the iconic...
- TWIST, TURN, LEARN: The Rubik’s Cube features 6 colored sides, each made up of...
- GREAT FOR ANXIETY RELIEF: This fidget toy pack is not only a fun brain puzzle,...
Playing Rubik’s cube may not be everybody’s cup of tea, but it’s a great option to play when you’re bored and alone, and you want to stimulate your mind a bit. To play this game, simply grab a Rubik’s cube, scramble it, then work to unscramble the cube and get all six sides of the cube one color per side.
Looking for more of a challenge? Besides the standard Rubik’s cube, you can find puzzles in all sorts of shapes and sizes that can be even more challenging!
7. SUDOKU
Another classic puzzle game we highly recommend playing is Sudoku. You can either play the pen-and-paper version of the game or find some puzzles online with a quick Google search. All you need to know to play Sudoku are the following rules:
- Every square must have a number between 1 and 9
- Every 3×3 box must have every number between 1 and 9 with no repetitions
- Every horizontal line must have every number between 1 and 9 with no repetitions
- Every vertical line must have every number between 1 and 9 with no repetitions
Now that you know the rules, simply fill out the puzzle to the best of your ability! We recommend starting with easier Sudoku puzzles before moving on to the harder ones.
8. TERRAFORMING MARS
- Terraforming Mars: Big Box is both a storage option for all the Terraforming...
- 24 city tiles (four each of six designs) and 40 forest tiles (eight each of five...
- 9 ocean tiles and 14 special tiles (the original eleven, plus three new ones)
Without a doubt, one of the best solo board games out there is Terraforming Mars. In this super interesting sci-fi board game, your objective is to turn Mars into a liveable planet. While this is also a fun game to play with friends, you can easily play it alone. You will play many rounds, or generations, in this game, during which you will play cards, use actions, covert plants to raise oxygen, covert heat to raise the temperature, claim milestones, fund awards, and more… all to terraform the planet!
9. ONLINE CHESS
It’s pretty common knowledge that chess is a two-player game, but did you know that you can easily play this classic board game alone, thanks to the internet? You can play online chess in one of two ways:
- Against a computer
- Against another person
Whoever you decide to play against, you and the opposing player take turns moving game pieces on the chess board with the goal of checking the opposing player’s king! Each of the game pieces moves in specific ways. But try not to get your game pieces killed by the opposing player, as this will make it more difficult to protect your king!
Check out our chess rules for an in-depth look at how to play this game.
10. LITTLE SPIDER SOLITAIRE
Here’s yet another solitaire card game you’ve got to play if you’re bored at home alone. Just like standard solitaire, there are four foundation piles. However, two of them are in ascending order from Ace to King, whereas the other two are in descending order from King to Ace. You can pick which color of suits will go in ascending order, and the two suits in the other color will go in descending order.
Place two rows of four tableau columns with enough space between the two rows for the four foundation piles. Then, start playing solitaire as normal, trying to build the four foundation piles.
GAMES TO PLAY WITH FRIENDS TO BEAT BOREDOM
Even if you’re not alone, you may still be bored at some point. So, it’s good to have a few games up your sleeves so that everyone has a good time, no matter where you’re at. Here are our favorite games to play with friends when you’re bored.
Check out our full list of the best fun games to play with friends if you’d like to check out more games!
11. BOCCE BALL
- Full-size bocce balls measure 100mm each
- Set includes 4 green balls, 4 red balls, 1 white pallino, and 1 measuring device
- Poly-resin composite for long-lasting strength
The great thing about bocce ball is that you can play this game wherever you want. Plus, it’s the perfect game to play when it’s nice and sunny outside. Divide the group into two teams. One team throws the smaller white ball. Now, the goal of the game is to get your ball closer to the white ball than the other team’s balls.
The two teams then take turns throwing their balls until all 8 balls are thrown. The team that has the ball closest to the pallino wins points according to how many of their balls are closer to the pallino than the opposing team. The first team to get to 12 points wins the game!
12. CODENAMES
- Work together to contact all of your agents before the other team
- A perfect party game experience for game nights
- 2-8+ player (in two teams)
Codenames is a super competitive team game that will test your communication skills. In this game, divide everybody into two teams, with one player from each team acting as the “spymaster.” The spymasters from each of the teams have access to a keycard that shows them which words are their team’s words, which words are the opposing team’s words, and which word is the “assassin” you do NOT want to uncover.
The spymasters take turns saying a one-word clue along with a number. The members of their team must use this word and number to guess which of the words on the tableau are their team’s words! The first team to uncover all of their team’s words wins.
13. SCRABBLE
- CLASSIC CROSSWORD GAME: Get family and friends together for a fun game night...
- WOODEN TILES AND RACKS: This edition of the Scrabble game features 100 wooden...
- RACK UP THE POINTS: Scrabble letters are worth points, and premium squares on...
Scrabble is a classic family board game that everyone enjoys playing. In fact, it can be even more entertaining if you play with friends as everyone will roughly have the same amount of vocabulary, which makes this game more interesting.
In this game, players take turns creating words to place onto the Scrabble board, with the objective of earning the most points to win the game. Each of the letters is worth a specific number of points, plus you can use the tiles on the board to double or even triple the number of points you can win. This is the perfect game for the wordsmiths out there!
14. EXPLODING KITTENS
- THE LEGENDARY ORIGINAL MADE FOR TWO TO FIVE PLAYERS: The card game that gave...
- HOURS OF HILARITY: There’ll be lots of chuckling. Rib-cracking outbursts. More...
- EXPAND THE SMILES: The Original edition is a recipe for hours of fun. But those...
Looking for a super funny card game to play with your friends when you’re bored? Check out Exploding Kittens! In this hilarious card game, players take turns drawing cards from a deck. But beware of the black Exploding Kittens card! If you draw this, you need to have a green Defuse card, or you’ll be out of the game. Players will get eliminated one by one as they draw card after card. The last player remaining wins the game!
15. CARDS AGAINST HUMANITY
- A party game for horrible people.
- Comes with 500 white cards and 100 black cards for eternal replayability.
- Includes a booklet of sensible game rules and preposterous alternate rules.
Cards Against Humanity is the perfect, hilarious card game for groups of friends with a horrible sense of humor. In this game, players take turns acting as the Card Czar. The Card Czar of the round picks up one black card and reads it out loud. Every other player must pick a white card from their hand of 10 and place it down on the table. The Card Czar then shuffles these white cards and reads them out one by one for dramatic effect. Finally, the Card Czar picks their favorite white card, and the player who played that card wins one Awesome point and that black card!
If you’ve played a couple of rounds of Cards Against Humanity already, you should take a look at getting some expansions. There are SO MANY expansions you can pick and choose from to keep this game fresh, but why not get the Ultimate Expansion of nearly 2,000 cards?
Want to play other similar games? Here are 14 other games like Cards Against Humanity!
16. BEER PONG
Since you’re amongst friends, why not play a drinking game? The most classic drinking game to play with your friends is none other than Beer Pong, of course! To play this chaotic drinking game, you’ll need one long table, 20 plastic cups, 2 ping pong balls, and a lot of beer or another alcoholic drink of your choice.
On either side of the long table, set up 10 plastic cups in a pyramid formation. Then two teams of two play against each other, throwing ping pong balls into the opposing team’s cups. If a ping pong ball lands in a cup, the opposing team must drink the contents of the cup and remove it from the pyramid formation before continuing the game. The first team to sink all 10 of the opposing player’s cups wins!
Looking for other fun drinking games? Check out our list of the best drinking card games, best drinking board games, drinking games with cups, and drinking games with no cards.
17. TRUTH OR DARE
Feel a bit daring? You’ve likely played Truth or Dare at some point in your life, whether at a slumber party or college party. To play this game, players take turns picking either truth or dare. If they pick truth, they must answer a question. And if they pick dare, they must do a task.
Not sure what to ask your friends to answer or do? No worries! Here are 250+ truth or dare ideas you’ve got to check out!
18. WOULD YOU RATHER
Another extremely simple but equally fun game to play when you are bored is Would You Rather.
In this game, you’ll take turns asking other players “A or B” questions. The point of Would You Rather is to make the questions difficult so that players have to really think about their answers. For example, “would you rather give up the internet or showers for a month?”
19. WEREWOLF
- Werewolf is a party game of lies, deceit, & accusations. Are you devious enough?
- 20 Villager Cards, 10 Werewolf Cards, 8 Wild Cards, 2 Seer Cards, 2 Doctor...
- Play with up to 35 people (or two 20 person games!)
Werewolf is one of the best games to play if you have a larger group of friends. This game may seem simple at first glance, but it gets more and more complex with the more players you add.
Werewolf is a hidden role deception game, and during each game, you’ll be assigned a specific (and secret) role. The basic goal of the game is for the group to correctly determine who the Werewolf is and vote to “kill” them. The goal of the Werewolf is to deceive the other players into killing a different player.
20. NEVER HAVE I EVER
A classic drinking game, Never Have I Ever, is a great way to learn new things about your friends. To start off, each player holds up 5 fingers on one hand. Then, one player starts off by saying something they have never done. For example, you could say: “Never have I ever gone skinny dipping.” If any player has done this, they must clap and put one finger down. If you are the only player to clap, it’s “story time”! The first player to run out of fingers must finish their drink!
Not sure what to say on your turn? Check out our guide on some awesome and intrusive Never Have I Ever Questions!
PHONE GAMES TO PLAY WHEN YOU’RE BORED
If all you’ve got is your phone, here are some super fun phone games to play when you’re bored, either alone or with friends.
You should also check out our post on the best games to play over text.
21. GARTIC PHONE
One of our favorite phone games to play with friends is Gartic Phone. If you’ve played paper telephone, you’ll be familiar with this game already. One player should create a room and a link and send it to all the players. Once all players access the room, it’s time to start playing!
Players start off by writing a random phrase. Then, all of the phrases are passed onto another random player who must draw the phrase given to them. For the third round, players receive a random drawing from another player and must write a phrase to describe this drawing. And so on. Players keep writing phrases and drawing pictures until everyone has written or drawn on each player’s original phrase.
In the end, all is revealed! You’ll be able to see how far the original phrase has evolved over the several rounds, ending in some pretty hearty laughter!
22. WORDS WITH FRIENDS
Another phone game you can play with friends is Words With Friends, which is the mobile version of Scrabble. You can add your friends and play online against one another or play against other random people through the net.
Just like normal Scrabble, you take turns placing words on a tiled board with the objective of getting the most number of points possible. Unlike standard Scrabble, Words With Friends does give you the possibility of giving hints so that you can score bigger words you may have never been able to think of on your own!
23. THE WIKI GAME
The Wiki Game is one of the best mobile games for playing alone or with friends. Get to know Wikipedia on a deeper level and test your general knowledge with the help of this game. Before you begin, choose two random articles. It could be an animal, actor, historical event… anything you can find on Wikipedia.
Your objective is to get from the first starting article to the other article with as few clicks as possible. Start at the first article and use the blue links within the article to move on to other articles and eventually get to the target article.
You can play this game timed or simply try to get to the target article with as few clicks as possible.
24. CANDY CRUSH SAGA
Probably one of the most classic mobile games of the past decade or so is Candy Crush Saga. In this free mobile game, you complete different levels by matching colored pieces of candy and swapping the candies around. The goal is to make a match of three or more candies of the same color. This is a very addictive mobile game that will have you occupied for hours on end!
25. NYT CROSSWORD
If you’re a big fan of crosswords, specifically the NYT crossword, you’ve got to download the NYT Games app on your phone! This app features various games you can play daily, including the famous Wordle and mini crossword. Once a day, you can complete the mini crossword while competing with your friends to see who can complete the crossword faster! If you pay the monthly NYT subscription, you’ll also get access to the full daily crossword.
26. 2048
Up for a bit of a challenge? Download the 2048 game on your phone! This is a very simple game in theory but very difficult to actually master and win. In this game, you move the tiles on the 4×4 board. If you move the tiles in a way that allows tiles with the same number to merge into one another, they will add up to a single larger number tile. Keep merging tiles in this manner until you get up to 2048.
27. POKEMON GO
Remember when Pokemon Go took over the world several years ago? Well, this game is still alive and well today. Download Pokemon Go onto your phone to catch hidden Pokemon around the world. Catch Pokemon by throwing Poke balls. In the game, you can even collect items when you visit PokeStops and Gyms. Gyms are also the battleground for Pokemon battles!
28. GEOCACHING
Another fun mobile game that makes use of your actual surroundings is Geocaching. On the Geocaching app, you’ll find plenty of hidden “caches” in your surrounding area. Your objective is to find these hidden caches.
Don’t forget to bring a pen along with you, as you may be able to pop your name down on a mini logbook found within the hidden cache you find!
29. AMONG US
Among Us is another fun mobile game you can play with friends or alone. In this virtual hidden role game, players are each given a role. Then, when the game begins, the crew will need to complete certain tasks while the player given the “imposter” role must murder other players. Continue playing until the crew finishes their tasks and finds the imposter, or the imposter kills all of the crew!
30. TETRIS
If you’re a big fan of puzzle games, you’ve likely played Tetris before. There are plenty of Tetris apps you can find on the app store that you can download.
In this game, blocks of various shapes come down the screen. Your goal is to arrange these Tetris blocks in a way that forms horizontal lines across the screen so that the line disappears, giving you more space to play. Once the Tetris blocks reach the top of the screen, you’ve lost!
COMPUTER GAMES TO PLAY WHEN BORED
If you’d rather play on a bigger screen, here are some of the best computer games to play when you’ve got nothing else to do to keep you occupied.
31. MINECRAFT
Arguably, one of the most iconic computer games of all time to play when bored is Minecraft. Minecraft is a sandbox game that allows players to explore, build, and create in a blocky, pixelated world. There’s really no limit to what you can do in Minecraft. You can gather resources, craft items, and build various structures. There are two modes to play in: Creative or Survival mode. To add another dimension to the game, you can even play on multiplayer servers so that you can play with your friends!
32. WORLD OF WARCRAFT
One of the most iconic massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG) is World of Warcraft (WoW). In this video game, players create their own characters and explore the world of Azeroth while completing quests, battling monsters, and even battling against other players! WoW is one of those video games that has players coming back for more due to its rich lore and engaging storyline.
33. GTA 5
- The biggest, most dynamic and most diverse open world ever created and now...
- Grand Theft Auto V blends storytelling and gameplay in new ways as players...
- Grand Theft Auto V also comes with Grand Theft Auto Online, the Dynamic and ever...
If you want to play in a world where you can do pretty much anything you want without any actual legal repercussions, Grand Theft Auto V (GTA 5) is the game for you! In this action-adventure game, you explore San Andreas while completing missions and, of course, engaging in criminal activities, such as stealing cars, shooting guns, and so much more.
You can even play a multiplayer version of this game if you want to build criminal empires with your friends and other GTA 5 players!
34. ROCKET LEAGUE
Who would have thought combining two super fun sports (racing and soccer) would result in one of the best PC games of all time? In Rocket League, you play as a rocket-powered car to hit a giant ball into the opponent’s goal in order to score points. Besides simply playing soccer with your rocket-powered car, you can also customize your car and play various modes so that you never get bored of the game!
35. THE SIMS 4
- Create unique sims: A variety of sims are yours to personalize, each with...
- Build the perfect home: Construct the home of your, and their dreams by planning...
- Explore vibrant worlds: Travel between locations, discover amazing and...
If competitive PC games are not for you, The Sims 4 is a much calmer game where you can create and control characters in a life simulation. There’s nothing you specifically have to do in The Sims 4; you simply play god, guiding your characters through the different stages in life, including work, relationships, pregnancies, and so much more. There are countless expansion packs and updates if you’re starting to get sick of the core game. But since you have full control, no single The Sims 4 game will be like another, offering plenty of variety to keep you occupied for hours, days, and months on end!
36. HADES
If you’re after an action-packed game set in the Greek underworld, look no further than Hades. In Hades, you play as Zagreus, the son of Hades, who tries to escape from the underworld and go to Mount Olympus! Following a super engaging story, as you play, you will encounter various gods, combats, and some magic to help you defeat your enemies.
37. FORTNITE
A famous battle royale game that is perfect to play on PC is Fortnite. In this chaotic game, players are dropped onto an island and must fight to be the last one standing! Players can gather resources, build structures, and find weapons to defend themselves. You can either play solo or team up with friends. There is also a creative mode of this game, in which you can build your own world.
38. IT TAKES TWO
- Invite a friend to join for free with friend's Pass, and experience a thrilling...
- Gleefully disruptive gameplay - from rampaging Vacuum cleaners to suave love...
- Discover a touching and heartfelt story of the challenges in getting along. Help...
One of our recent favorite computer games is It Takes Two. This is a great introductory PC game for those who want to play with someone who doesn’t have too much experience with video games in general. It Takes Two is a cooperative action-adventure game in which two players control a couple who turns into dolls and must work together to fix their relationship. All of the levels require cooperation and teamwork to some level!
39. STARDEW VALLEY
Does the idea of growing your own farm intrigue you? If so, you should check out Stardew Valley! In this classic farming simulation game, you inherit a rundown farm that you must work hard to restore. To do so, you’ll grow crops, raise animals, fish, mine, and much more. You can even start a family if you so wish! This is a super relaxing game that is perfect to play to wind down after a long day at work or school.
40. PLANTS VS. ZOMBIES
- Battle 26 types of zombies including pole-vaulters, snorkelers and Zomboni...
- Tower defense gameplay playable on both PC and Mac platforms.
- Play five game modes: Adventure, Mini-Games, Puzzle, Survival, plus the...
Looking for a super fun PC game with a humorous style? Look no further than Plants vs. Zombies. As you might be able to guess from the title of the game, you work hard to protect your home against waves of zombies using strategically placed plants with unique abilities. Each plant has its own strengths and weaknesses, so think hard about creating the right combination to fend off the unwavering zombies that’ll keep coming at you again and again!
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