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In the classic game of strategy, effective gameplay, and a little luck, labyrinth slowly made its way to every board game lover’s heart.
Its ease of understanding with various themed mazes with the eventual goal of collecting treasure to win the game brought countless people together on fun game nights, quality family time, and competitive game time.
Since 1986, when the labyrinth was first released, several games have taken inspiration and released various games that require the players to journey across various lands, places, and times to collect treasure and thwart their competitors’ moves to win the game.
This blog enlists various games similar to the much-loved Labyrinth board game.
Similar board games like a labyrinth
From sequence to Qwirkle, game lovers are always in search of alternatives or similar games. Labyrinth has received a lot of love and popularity for its easy gameplay that, when used strategically, can turn into an extreme battle of wits. Several other games that are promised to be just as, if not more, fun than labyrinth have been listed below.
1. Rune Stones
In this fantasy game, the player is required to gather as many gems as they can, forge them into artifacts only to bring them together, and combine them to form a rune stone. The player has to be strategic in what cards they buy and play because the cards have to be played in pairs, and the card with the higher number gets removed from the player’s deck.
During every turn, the player has three choices, to summon creatures by using the spell power from the cards in their hands, to play two cards that can get them new resources, cards, and even points, or to forge artifacts by spending gems. While the players can use these only two different colored artifacts to make a Rune Stone, the more artifacts they combine, the more points they get. So the players have to be strategic in their decision to either gain abilities early or save the artifacts to get more points later.
The first player to reach 65 points brings the game to an end. Every player calculates their points at the end of the round, and the one with the highest points wins. This game can be played by 2 to 4 players at a time. The recommended age for this game is 12 and up, and the average playtime is 60 minutes.
2. Alhambra
This game is a contest to envision and construct the most valuable city of Alhambra. Various architects, masons, gardeners, etc., are waiting to get their hands on the project and do their magic to turn this medieval Spain city into a magical land with a grand fortress and palace and a beautiful city.
The player has to plan the city’s architecture, everything from the garden to the pavilions, chambers, and towers, employ various craftsmen, architects, and masons accordingly, and pay them in their native currency.
The player who builds the most lavish and valuable city will win the game. This game includes strategic planning and can be played by 2 to 6 players at a time. The average playtime is 45 to 60 minutes, and this game is suitable for individuals of ages 8 and above.
3. The Golden Journey
This educational board game brings the world to your table. The players go sightseeing, discovering and shopping around the world, testing their luck, expanding their knowledge, and executing challenges.
The players can adjust the level of difficulty of the challenges they encounter to suit their needs. They can either play competitively or just for fun. Every card has information related to the countries the player visits, the capital cities, the famous monuments, native animals, and so on.
The players have to compete in and with various challenges of association, memory, knowledge, and much more. This family game is suitable for all ages, from the young to the elderly, providing a lot of fun and cognitive stimulation all in one board game.
4. On the Origin of Species
In this game of evolution, the player goes on a journey with the great Charles Darwin. The goal of the player is to help Darwin in his discovery and research while going across the Galapagos Islands.
When their turn comes, the player has two choices. They can discover a species by using their acquired habitat knowledge. This gets the player victory points, new characters, and object cards and leads to evolution. The player can also engage in research, advancing their knowledge of the land, air, and water habitat of the place, which will eventually help them in their discoveries.
This educational game ends when the Beagle eventually reaches the last space of its trip, leaving the archipelago through New Zealand. Points are totaled, and the player with the more points in the scoring track wins.
5. Azul
In this game, the player has to accept and fulfill the challenge of embellishing the walls of the Palace of Mvora inspired by the Moorish stylings of the Alhambra palace. The player can take various colored tiles to make the most beautiful patterns.
However, once the player selects a color, they must pick all the tiles of that color and place them in a row on their display board. Every tile they cannot find a place for results in them losing points.
So the task is to strategically pick the tiles in such a way that the player gets the most points and, at the same time, makes it difficult for the other players to pick and place their tiles to complete their designs. This easy-to-learn board game can be played by 2 to 4 players at a time and is fit for ages 8 and above. The average playtime is 30 to 45 minutes.
6. Solar quest: The Space Age Real Estate Game
This space exploration game takes the player on a journey to become a person of real estate and build monopolies across planets. They have to travel to different planets in order to fulfill their quest, all the while building their financial empire and avoiding bankruptcy.
While purchasing property and erecting fuel stations, the players have to be careful not to get stranded on a planet, end up with no money or fuel, or get hit by a laser. The last-standing player with the highest assets wins the game.
This advanced space-age version of monopoly can be played by up to 8 players. It has two levels, one suited for younger players with relatively easy rules and the other suited for adults with the additional threat of their fuel running out.
7. Trekking through History
Created by experts, this game takes the player across various places and time periods to meet different legends. The task is to see it all before the time runs out. Made for history lovers and newbies alike, this game is sure to pack a lot of fun with a total of 108 remarkable events of the world.
The player gets to choose 3 events to visit during their 3 day trek through history, where they spend time finishing their itinerary and collecting points. This game also comes with an expansion pack that can give the players special powers to bend time and gain extra points.
This fun and educational experience are great for the entire family, appropriate for both teenagers to adults alike.
8. Trails
The players take a hike across the scenic and iconic sites and national parks across the United States. The hikers go back and forth collecting resources, taking pictures, and seeing the sights to earn more points and badges.
By collecting rocks, leaves, and acorns and taking pictures, the player gets the chance to convert these into badges at the end of the trail. They can also increase their points during sunset, which happens at the end of every trail. At the end of the game, the player with the highest number of badges and bird sighting points, both in pictures and otherwise, wins the game.
This easy-to-learn nature game can be played by pairs as well as the whole family. The average playtime is about 20 minutes which makes it the perfect pick for some quality family time. Additionally, a portion of every game sale goes into donations for the National Park Service.
9. Enchanted Forest
On a magical treasure hunt, the player passes through this land of various fairy tales trying to find the hidden treasures and win the kingdom.
The players roll the dice to move through the forest and, on the way, encounter several cards that tell under which tree inside the castle the treasure is hidden. The player has to rely on their memory to lead them to the correct tree. The first player to find 3 magical treasures, like Cinderella’s glass slipper, Jack’s magic beans, etc., wins the game.
This magical game that exercises memory skills while taking the players through the enchanted forest and to the castle is fun for the entire family. It’s suitable for ages 4 and up and can be played by 4 to 6 players at a time. The average playtime is about 30 minutes.
10. The Uzzle 2.0
This multi-sensory action-packed game will engage and test various cognitive and physical abilities of the player all at once. At the beginning of the game, each player is given a set of 5 blocks. They have to flip the card to reveal the challenging puzzle and quickly get to work to solve the puzzle using their blocks.
The players have to race against each other while flipping the cards, spinning and merging their blocks to match the pattern revealed on the card. The game has 4 difficulty levels, wherein levels 1 and 2 are more suitable for children and 3 and 4 for a mixed group of adults and/or young adults.
This creative thinking and problem-solving game can be enjoyed by adults and children alike. It can be played individually as well as with up to 4 people.
Conclusion
Labyrinth inspired several board games to involve fantasy lands, vivid stories, treasure hunts, and a capacity for strategic gameplay in their conceptualization. Board games since then have spanned across various lands, times, and places and take the player through a mystical and cutthroat journey of making it through with as much money, gold, or treasure as possible.