Five new products in the board games department to offer to young and old children at Christmas

“Télérama” has selected five games released in 2024 to have fun, reason or… crush your opponents. From 6 years old.

Space Orbit

Un logic game for children aged 6 and over? Successful mission for Space Orbit and its seven cosmonauts made of wood from sustainably managed forests. In this space puzzle, a sort of puzzle reminiscent of video games Tetris, each toddler must dock their astronauts correctly to their station: except that each of them has a very precise geometric cutout, and that it gets stuck very quickly on the blue space grid. With sixty challenges to take on solo, and four difficulty levels, be careful not to stay in the dark…

By Yoann Levet, illustrated by Patricia Geis, Djeco, €23. From 6 years old.

Courtiers

With its beautiful illuminated cards and easy-to-learn rules, family dinners will quickly give way to this game of the queen’s banquet, where courtiers confront each other who happily assassinate and spy. To obtain the protection of the sovereign, each guest will have to deal low blows to their neighbors, by placing their cards around a table mat (medieval, of course): a little disconcerting when it is empty, they people quickly with, on one side, families in disgrace, on the other, those who have won the favor of the Crown. But be careful, everything can change in one turn in this very unchivalrous court…

By Romaric Galonnier and Anthony Perone, illustrated by Noëmie Chevalier, Catch Up Games, €18. From 8 years old. To be found in our store.

gift

A little party game to give as a gift that will always be a pleasure! With its tiny box adorned with a big red bow that can even save lazy or latecomers the effort of wrapping paper, Kado definitely scores points. Small, cute square cards and very short games – twelve rounds where everyone plays at the same time – for a game where bluff reigns supreme. The goal is precisely to “score”, to obtain the maximum result by receiving… and exchanging gifts between players: you win by stealing away the big teddy bear with an orange ribbon or the plant in a pot with a red ribbon that you don’t want. not.

By Antoine Bauza, illustrated by Gorobeï, Lumberjacks Studio, €11. From 8 years old.

In the extremes

If there are now a plethora of games that talk about ecological crisis, In extremis makes it felt in sixteen frenetic experiences. Developed with the scientist Pascal Lenormand and the négaWatt association which works for a better energy future, they are timed by an infernal application, to be downloaded to your smartphone. Funny and never guilt-inducing, a responsible game all the way, like all Opla games made in France, here between a totem in Jura beech wood, boards and booklets printed on the Lyon side, then put in place box in Drôme.

By Julien Prothière and Juan Rodriguez, illustrated by Stéphane Escapa, Opla, €26.50. From 10 years old. To be found in our store.

365 Adventures. The Dungeon

Not a day without playing in 2025 thanks to the publisher Sorry We Are French, who had the good idea of ​​combining a game with a calendar: this plays the role of a board on which to progress his little magnetic character, Marlow, in a dungeon filled with hairy trolls and grimacing leprechauns… until the final big boss, on the last day of the year. From 1^is January, we roll five dice, with, for each day that passes, a monster to beat, and each month, new rules and new traps to avoid. Simple but effective, with the promise of at least five fun minutes every day, even when everything is gray…

By Juhwa Lee, illustrated by Radja Sauperamaniane, Sorry We Are French, €14.90. From 14 years old.

Books, DVD boxes, CDs, games, children’s books… Find our special Christmas selection on sale on the Télérama store.

Our online store