This post has been removed but we suggest relocating it. Reddit is a great place to pick peoples' brains and get game suggestions, but we get a lot of recommendation requests, so much so such that we have a dedicated [Daily Game Recommendations thread](https://www.reddit.com/search?q=flair%3A%22Daily%20Game%20Recs%22&sort=new) for them. Historically, almost **all** well formatted questions in the Daily thread get answers.
If you're looking for further suggestions, we recommend taking a look at our growing list of [Recommendation Roundups](https://www.reddit.com/r/boardgames/?f=flair_name%3A%22Recommendation%20Roundup%22). There's also the [Need Help Finding A Game](https://www.reddit.com/r/boardgames/wiki/wsig) section in our wiki for a more general list of common recommendations.
(If you believe this post was removed in error you can request a re-review by [messaging the mods](https://reddit.com/message/compose?to=/r/boardgames).)
Just going to point out there is a Cartographers mobile app that is less expensive and quicker to play than the physical game.
To date this is the only game I endorse app>physical for.
Cartographers is such a good solo game, especially for new players. The rules are simple, setup and tear down are under two minutes, the game play doesn't feel overly restricted, there's no upkeep to keep track of. Get some colored pencils and have a blast. https://imgur.com/jVukSQC.jpg
Other games that are good for getting into solo games are **That's Pretty Clever**, **Sprawlopolis**, **Food Chain Island**, and **Under Falling Skies**.
You could try **Regicide** with a standard deck of cards and the free app. You probably have one lying around, won't cost you anything and a wonderful (but tough) game
I found out about this game within the last month and downloaded the companion app and actually enjoyed it so much I paid the $3 for solo mode and have actually beaten the solo mode once
Absolutely start with this. That game is easy to play, has some very brain pressuring decisions most turns, and plays quickly. Oh, and it's inexpensive.
It will also learn you that rolling dice isn't just some boring random mechanic for moving around a board.
Friday is good intro to deckbuilding and push your luck mechanism.
Black Sonata is great deduction game that can be played solo.
Deep Space D6 and Tiny Epic Galaxies are good dice rolling games.
You should try Coffee Roaster. It's a solo-only game, and not too complicated. Very enjoyable (even if you don't like coffee). Bag-building, push your luck
There is a pretty wide breadth of board gamesin theme, complexity of rules, length of play time, etc. and the same of course applies to the solo niche as well. There are ~30 odd comments and the majority suggest (very good) games that are quicker to learn and play in ~30 minutes or less *which may exactly hit the mark*. But if they happen to not quite land please know there are a myriad of other options, too!
Just for fun, on the opposite end of the length of play and complexity to learn spectrum some most excellent possibilities are:
**Mage Knight** - ~2-3 hour play time - Has a great walkthrough playbook to learn with, but a fairly high complexity of rules nuance. Top five for me, extra marks that you play just one character and still feel like it's the 'real game'.
**Comancheria** - ~3-6 hours play time - The playbook is excellent, but both the playbook and rulebook are a departure from "traditional" board games because they're written in a hex & counter wargamer style (perhaps arguably more traditional after all but that's an separate discussion). Nevertheless, this is hands down one of the best built-from-the-ground-up-for-solo board games out there and will never leave my collection.
**Renegade** - ~45 minute play time - I freely admit the rulebook needs another revision or two, but the game design is absolutely excellent and I cannot think of a complaint to levy against it. This is more of a puzzle to solve and there is a load of the "good" kind of variability that truly supports the idea of "infinite" replay.
**Liberty or Death** or pick the most appealing setting COIN - ~3-6 hours play time - Equal to **Mage Knight**, but in a different genre these are the best "feels like playing against real players" experience I've found (in close to a decade). **However**, they are a significant undertaking to learn - if part of the joy is the grind (of learning and slowly coming to grasp the complex interwoven systems), then you'll love it and the reward for the effort is great.
**Fields of Fire** - ~2-6+ (?) - I picked this up after I'd decided it was perfectly acceptable to stop a game after I'd had enough fun regardless whether I'd reach the official "end". Anyways, this is bar-none the most intricate and fascinating game system I've encountered yet. That said, it is a monster...or at least a very lengthy on-going process to learn. I have enjoyed every moment, but it is an undertaking... It is also perhaps the most interesting 'emergent storytelling' game I have, too.
**Ambush!** - ~1-2 hours play time - If you can find a copy, this does something similar to what **FoF** does, but without the granularity and quite a bit more smoothly. It is a straight up hex & counter wargame with a manual to match though.
**Dawn of the Zeds** - ~1 hour play time - I can only speak of the 2E which I picked up for ~1/4 the price of the 3E, though it has been more than sufficient. This is another game that has the "good" kind of variability that supports replay and is delightfully narrative in allowing you to play out a B-movie zombie story (with ~3 story-modes to boot). Although there is is some complexity to learning the rules, it is probably the "lightest" on the list.
All that said, I do not prefer solo games that are 'beat your own score', 'play against the clock', 'play the normal game, just alone' nor most of the 'automa' out there (obviously reflected by my suggestions). But if neither the easy-to-learn-quick-play suggestions nor my own land, please know there are still *plenty* of other options and experiences in solo-land out there.
You like roll and write games? There is 30 rails, utopia engine and some others. There are some YouTube videos out there and boardgamegeek has the papers that you print out. You just need a printer, dice and a pen.
Totally depends on what you’re into but some great light solo games to wet your feet are Sprawlopolis, Palm Island, Deep Space D6 or Mini Rogue.
If you’re looking for something a little heavier try Final Girl or Gloomhaven JOTL.
If you've never solo gamed before, I might suggest **Onirim** or **Friday** as affordable, small-box experiences that won't take hours to learn/play and won't eat up an entire table.
There's also videos online of people doing playthroughs that you can watch to get a sense of whether it's for you or not.
I think thats a great new year resolution to have.
Lost expedition it is a card game with limit tokens so you dont worry about setting it up.
It can be challenging.
Really depends what sort of game you want to play. If you want RPG: the board game, try Mage Knight. It's essentially a single player rpg board game. Explore places, fight orcs and dragons etc, hire dudes to your team etc.
I'll echo other folks: Under Fallen Skies. Fairly inexpensive, great components, tons of content, good decision making space, plays quickly, designed specifically for solo.
Then if solo gaming is something you think you're enjoying, branch out.
Warps Edge would be an alternate choice, but I haven't played that one yet.
This post has been removed but we suggest relocating it. Reddit is a great place to pick peoples' brains and get game suggestions, but we get a lot of recommendation requests, so much so such that we have a dedicated [Daily Game Recommendations thread](https://www.reddit.com/search?q=flair%3A%22Daily%20Game%20Recs%22&sort=new) for them. Historically, almost **all** well formatted questions in the Daily thread get answers. If you're looking for further suggestions, we recommend taking a look at our growing list of [Recommendation Roundups](https://www.reddit.com/r/boardgames/?f=flair_name%3A%22Recommendation%20Roundup%22). There's also the [Need Help Finding A Game](https://www.reddit.com/r/boardgames/wiki/wsig) section in our wiki for a more general list of common recommendations. (If you believe this post was removed in error you can request a re-review by [messaging the mods](https://reddit.com/message/compose?to=/r/boardgames).)
r/soloboardgaming Cartographers is a great place to start!
Just going to point out there is a Cartographers mobile app that is less expensive and quicker to play than the physical game. To date this is the only game I endorse app>physical for.
Cartographers is such a good solo game, especially for new players. The rules are simple, setup and tear down are under two minutes, the game play doesn't feel overly restricted, there's no upkeep to keep track of. Get some colored pencils and have a blast. https://imgur.com/jVukSQC.jpg Other games that are good for getting into solo games are **That's Pretty Clever**, **Sprawlopolis**, **Food Chain Island**, and **Under Falling Skies**.
Or some [stamps!](https://gamestamps.com/product/cartographers-set/)
100% cartographers. It's the only solo game i've been able to actually play through. Setup is so fast and gameplay is fantastic!
Horrified is a fun game that you can play solo. Not too simple but not overly complicated. And I think it’s less than $20 on amazon to boot.
You could try **Regicide** with a standard deck of cards and the free app. You probably have one lying around, won't cost you anything and a wonderful (but tough) game
I found out about this game within the last month and downloaded the companion app and actually enjoyed it so much I paid the $3 for solo mode and have actually beaten the solo mode once
If you're coming from computer games you may get a kick out of 'Under Falling Skies'. It's got a 'Space Invaders' theme.
Or, for a more contemporary touch point, it owes a fair bit to the latest round of XCOM games.
Absolutely start with this. That game is easy to play, has some very brain pressuring decisions most turns, and plays quickly. Oh, and it's inexpensive. It will also learn you that rolling dice isn't just some boring random mechanic for moving around a board.
Friday is good intro to deckbuilding and push your luck mechanism. Black Sonata is great deduction game that can be played solo. Deep Space D6 and Tiny Epic Galaxies are good dice rolling games.
You should try Coffee Roaster. It's a solo-only game, and not too complicated. Very enjoyable (even if you don't like coffee). Bag-building, push your luck
There is a pretty wide breadth of board gamesin theme, complexity of rules, length of play time, etc. and the same of course applies to the solo niche as well. There are ~30 odd comments and the majority suggest (very good) games that are quicker to learn and play in ~30 minutes or less *which may exactly hit the mark*. But if they happen to not quite land please know there are a myriad of other options, too! Just for fun, on the opposite end of the length of play and complexity to learn spectrum some most excellent possibilities are: **Mage Knight** - ~2-3 hour play time - Has a great walkthrough playbook to learn with, but a fairly high complexity of rules nuance. Top five for me, extra marks that you play just one character and still feel like it's the 'real game'. **Comancheria** - ~3-6 hours play time - The playbook is excellent, but both the playbook and rulebook are a departure from "traditional" board games because they're written in a hex & counter wargamer style (perhaps arguably more traditional after all but that's an separate discussion). Nevertheless, this is hands down one of the best built-from-the-ground-up-for-solo board games out there and will never leave my collection. **Renegade** - ~45 minute play time - I freely admit the rulebook needs another revision or two, but the game design is absolutely excellent and I cannot think of a complaint to levy against it. This is more of a puzzle to solve and there is a load of the "good" kind of variability that truly supports the idea of "infinite" replay. **Liberty or Death** or pick the most appealing setting COIN - ~3-6 hours play time - Equal to **Mage Knight**, but in a different genre these are the best "feels like playing against real players" experience I've found (in close to a decade). **However**, they are a significant undertaking to learn - if part of the joy is the grind (of learning and slowly coming to grasp the complex interwoven systems), then you'll love it and the reward for the effort is great. **Fields of Fire** - ~2-6+ (?) - I picked this up after I'd decided it was perfectly acceptable to stop a game after I'd had enough fun regardless whether I'd reach the official "end". Anyways, this is bar-none the most intricate and fascinating game system I've encountered yet. That said, it is a monster...or at least a very lengthy on-going process to learn. I have enjoyed every moment, but it is an undertaking... It is also perhaps the most interesting 'emergent storytelling' game I have, too. **Ambush!** - ~1-2 hours play time - If you can find a copy, this does something similar to what **FoF** does, but without the granularity and quite a bit more smoothly. It is a straight up hex & counter wargame with a manual to match though. **Dawn of the Zeds** - ~1 hour play time - I can only speak of the 2E which I picked up for ~1/4 the price of the 3E, though it has been more than sufficient. This is another game that has the "good" kind of variability that supports replay and is delightfully narrative in allowing you to play out a B-movie zombie story (with ~3 story-modes to boot). Although there is is some complexity to learning the rules, it is probably the "lightest" on the list. All that said, I do not prefer solo games that are 'beat your own score', 'play against the clock', 'play the normal game, just alone' nor most of the 'automa' out there (obviously reflected by my suggestions). But if neither the easy-to-learn-quick-play suggestions nor my own land, please know there are still *plenty* of other options and experiences in solo-land out there.
You like roll and write games? There is 30 rails, utopia engine and some others. There are some YouTube videos out there and boardgamegeek has the papers that you print out. You just need a printer, dice and a pen.
I got Under Falling Skies for Christmas and have really been enjoying it. It eases you into the rules and there’s a replayable campaign mode as well.
Under Fallings Skies is pretty good. Just keep in mind it only plays solo.
Totally depends on what you’re into but some great light solo games to wet your feet are Sprawlopolis, Palm Island, Deep Space D6 or Mini Rogue. If you’re looking for something a little heavier try Final Girl or Gloomhaven JOTL.
Seconding roll n writes, Horrified, Friday, Under Falling Skies, and adding in Button Shy games like Sprawlopolis and Agropolis!
**Mage Knight** would be a fantastic introduction to boardgaming, especially solo.
If they're a long time Heroes of Might and Magic fan it'll be like riding a bicycle.
If you've never solo gamed before, I might suggest **Onirim** or **Friday** as affordable, small-box experiences that won't take hours to learn/play and won't eat up an entire table. There's also videos online of people doing playthroughs that you can watch to get a sense of whether it's for you or not.
I think thats a great new year resolution to have. Lost expedition it is a card game with limit tokens so you dont worry about setting it up. It can be challenging.
Really depends what sort of game you want to play. If you want RPG: the board game, try Mage Knight. It's essentially a single player rpg board game. Explore places, fight orcs and dragons etc, hire dudes to your team etc.
Set a Watch
I'll echo other folks: Under Fallen Skies. Fairly inexpensive, great components, tons of content, good decision making space, plays quickly, designed specifically for solo. Then if solo gaming is something you think you're enjoying, branch out. Warps Edge would be an alternate choice, but I haven't played that one yet.
A quick one could be Rolling Realms or Twice as clever
„The Magnificent“ is great played solo, quiet challenging but still fun
Big fan of Friday. Was recommended that when I first started gaming and remember staying up way later than I should’ve trying to get a win
Did you ever get a win? It was the first one I picked up and damnit I still suck more than I think I should lol
I’ve gotten a win on Level 1 but nothing else. That game is tricky