With the rise of mobile gaming, we have increasingly turned to our phones for entertainment. While these games are fun and often quite addicting, I implore you not to forget that there are a great many games that can be played outside of the world of our phones. It is also important to spend time with your family, and playing a physical rather than a virtual game is a great way to do this.

There are countless games to choose from that can be played by all kinds of people; in this article I lay out a few suggestions for you to enjoy with your family this summer.

Games with Cards

There are a huge amount of card games you can choose from; a simple Google search can reveal enough options to fill the entire summer with entertainment. There are advanced and beginner level games for all members of the family. Many, if not all, card games require sitting in close proximity with others and is a great way to have an unrelated conversation with your loved ones. A few games that my family plays often include Up and Down the River (others use the less child appropriate name Oh Hell), Spades, various forms of Rummy and Pitch. Other classics include Poker*, Cribbage*, Pinochle*, and Kings in the Corner.

Risk

This is one of my personal favorite games to play, though it presents a few challenges. Risk generally takes a tremendous amount of time to play, and for the ultra-competitive families it can get pretty heated. It is also quite complicated, which can be good or bad; there are many ways to play, but is somewhat tricky to pick up for newcomers. These problems aside, it is a very entertaining strategy game. Risk has lost some of its relevance, nation states really do not go to war anymore, but you can always point to the Russian invasion of Crimea to showcase the kind of war you wage with Risk in the modern world.

Chess

Another strategy game for you all, chess is a timeless game that is relatively easy to learn, but takes a significant amount of time to master. If you are stuck wanting to play a game with only one other person, you are somewhat limited in the number of card games you can play and Risk is not as much fun with only two players. Between two competitive individuals the conversation levels can plummet to nothingness, but casual play can be a great facilitator of conversation. Think of the great scenes where Sherlock and Watson or Xavier and Magneto, amongst others, are playing chess and discussing something noteworthy.

Other Board Games

There are almost as many board games as there are card games, just go to the aisle in your local Walmart where board games are found and you will be bombarded with choices. These games include the real estate management (and a whole lot of luck) of Monopoly, Scrabble for the walking dictionaries, Clue lets you solve a murder in your living room (though the living room will not be the crime scene, there are other rooms for that like the Conservatory), Connect Four for the two dimensional strategists in the family, Trivial Pursuit (try to get a copy from a time period everyone will enjoy) for families that enjoy a whole lot of random knowledge, and Sorry for a quick game without spending a good amount of thought energy. Whoever you are, I am confident you can find a board game that you will enjoy playing.

* For these card games you will need more than just a standard deck of cards.