What is a Fun Game?

What is a fun game?  Looks like a simple enough question.  However each person answering it will probably offer a different opinion on which games they consider fun.  Fun means different things to different people.  Fun, used as an adjective for describing a game, is a game which is amusing, enjoyable, or entertaining.  So in order to have fun while playing a game it must provide amusement to those who play.

We all realize a parent who sits down to play Candy Land with a child is not exactly having fun playing that specific game.  Now they are having fun interacting with their child and so they play it. But if you were to ask them ‘what is a fun game?’ Candy Land would most likely not be their number one response.

Age is a main factor in determining which games will be fun for the players.  The level of skill increases with age. Games most often come with a recommended age guideline and many game companies categorize their games into children games, adult games, or family games.

Choosing games only from a  main category is limiting though for adults.  For children, since their movements are often based all on luck, finding a fun game is easier.  But for adults who want to play a game, it isn’t always as simple as picking any adult game. There are so many styles of games to choose from it may be hard to decide which will be the best to play or what will be a fun game for all involved?

There is the question of how many players which will help limit the available choices for games.  The number of players can often decide whether it will be a party game, a two player game, or a three or more player game.

But ultimately the selection of game comes down to choosing what type.  This would seem to be the one question which matters most in picking a fun game for older players.  This is the reason why Candy Land is not much fun for an adult.  Winning or losing is left to pure chance.  Picking cards and moving a piece doesn’t offer much amusement for older players.

There is the other extreme though too.  Many people may not like to play Chess.  It is based all on skill.  If one player of the game is a genius or expert on Chess and the other person is not, fun will most likely not be found by these people sitting across the board from each other.  One will be frustrated in the lack of a challenge while the other may lose before they moved 4 times and wonder what kind of game is this?

Finding the perfect game for all can be difficult at times, but it can be done.  It is like a game in itself.  Recognizing the many variables which determine the fun factor for games is a start in the right direction.  Each person is unique.  They have different personalities, strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes.

So what is a fun game? A fun game is one which provides amusement to those playing the game by creating a balance between the different players.  Knowing who the players are will often decide the best game.  And since I love games, I have made it part of my mission for this site to find the fun games to play for different people.  It’s all about fun and games here.