The best board games to give in 2021: Gloomhaven, Arkham Horror, Dune and more – CNET [CNET]

With so many social activities curtailed over the past 18 months, classic tabletop gaming has experienced a huge revival, even with the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and the new OLED-screen Nintendo Switch competing for gamers’ attention.

The industry has undergone a creative renaissance in recent years, with increasingly sophisticated tabletop games capturing a surprisingly mainstream audience. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the themes of the most popular board games are often focused on zombie attacks, sci-fi battles, Dungeons & Dragons-style fantasy and Lovecraftian supernatural hijinks. Some popular board games, such as Lord of the Rings: Journeys in Middle-Earth, combine map tiles, miniature figures and a polished iPad app that handles some of the card and combat management for you. 

Personally, I love games that have a video game tie-in, either a tabletop adaptation of a video game, or a video game version of a tabletop — and both have become increasingly common. I’m also a fan of 3D printing my own accessories to enhance games, from token holders to improved monster miniatures. If you want to get into that whole universe, get started here.