Hygge Board Game Recommendations
Several years ago, I first learned about the Danish concept of “hygge.” While English doesn’t have a perfect one-word translation, the Oxford dictionary defines it as “a quality of coziness and comfortable conviviality that engenders a feeling of contentment or well-being (regarded as a defining characteristic of Danish culture).”
Being the book nerd I am, I learned about hygge from “The Little Book of Hygge: Danish Secrets to Happy Living,” by Meik Wiking. Hygge — pronounced hoo-ga — is the secret to Danes being the happiest folks in the world, according to the author. I suppose he would know. He’s the CEO of the Happiness Research Institute in Copenhagen.
I’ve sought out hygge — that particular coziness and comfort — in my own life ever since I read Wiking’s book. Any cute, comforting board games are immediately on my radar. Here are the coziest, most hyggelig games I’ve enjoyed.
Everdell - This charming worker-placement game takes place over several seasons as you send your adorable workers to gather resources and build constructions and add critters to your city. A guest at the café aptly described it as “cottagecore.” The game is so good that I’m tempted to go goblin mode and get all of the expansions and editions of the game, but I’m content with the original, because it’s perfectly hygge.
A Gentle Rain - Turn on some meditative music, brew some vanilla comoro tea and clear your mind for a relaxing solo game of placing lake tiles so their edges match color. When four edges match in color, place a lily blossom in the center. Place all eight lilies before the rain ends (you run out of tiles). A Gentle Rain is soothing and peaceful, and placing a lily blossom always gives me a dopamine rush. From the publisher: “Keep score, or don’t.”
Lacuna - This two-person game also concerns flowers on a body of water. You collect flowers in pairs by creating an imaginary line between two flowers of a matching color. When no more imaginary lines can be drawn, you get to collect all of the flowers closest to your pawns. Can’t tell whose pawn is closest to that flower? Whip out the actual ruler that comes with the game to measure it. Collect the most flowers to win. Each component of the game is pleasant, from the flowers to the shiny metal pawns and the silk game board.
Gnome Hollow - You play as gnomes, completing rings and collecting mushrooms and flowers. The player boards are magnetic, so the satisfaction you get as you close a ring and snap a piece into place is extremely gratifying. What’s not to love? Seriously. Fight me. Gnomes. Mushrooms. It’s so adorable I could die on this grassy hill.
Mycelia - The adorable little dewdrops on your field may be eye-catching, but you’ll want to enlist the help of the forest dwellers to remove all of them in this deck-building game. The dewdrops don’t just disappear from the forest into the ether, either. Oh, no. They move onto the Shrine of Life, which, when full, rotates and dumps more dewdrops onto your field. The sound of the dewdrops — er — dropping from the Shrine of Life makes this game a treat for the eyes and the ears.
I’m always on the hunt for more games in the hygge aesthetic. Let me know if you find any that would go well with this list!
