It may come as a surprise to hear that there is actually a solid slate of Potter themed board games. While there are certainly more than a few soulless licensed products, such as Harry Potter Monopoly, there are several legitimate titles that offer deep and varied gameplay. These aren't just reskins of traditional games, but wholly original experiences with engaging systems.
For my money, these eight titles are the best of the bunch. There are options for kids, as well as casual board gamers and dedicated hobbyists. So put down the broomstick and trade out the quidditch pitch for the tabletop.
TL;DR: The Best Harry Potter Board Games
- Harry Potter: Hogwarts Battle
- Talisman: Harry Potter
- Harry Potter: Hogwarts Battle - Defence Against the Dark Arts
- Harry Potter: House Cup Competition
- Harry Potter Strike Dice Game
- Harry Potter: Mischief in Diagon Alley
- Harry Potter: Unmask the Death Eaters
- Harry Potter: Memory Master
Don't have time to read blurbs? Click the games above to go straight to the Amazon listings.
Harry Potter: Hogwarts Battle
- Ages: 11+
- Players: 2-4
- Play Time: 30-60 min
This cooperative deckbuilding game has players defending Hogwarts castle from the forces of evil. Each player takes on the role of a student - including Harry, Hermione, Ron, or Neville - and wields a personal deck of cards they use to combat foes. Through gaining influence, additional cards can be attained that represent spells, items, and familiar characters. The game-controlled adversaries will attempt to thwart players with attacks and hindering effects. Scenarios progress across all seven movies, featuring key locations and events that are familiar and inspiring. This is a relatively comprehensive and engaging experience that builds across multiple sessions.
Talisman: Harry Potter
- Ages: 13+
- Players: 2-6
- Play Time: 90-120 min
Talisman is a 40-year-old fantasy adventure game that has endured across many editions and spinoffs. This Harry Potter-themed Talisman is a recent release that takes this well-worn engine and iterates upon the core nicely. It infuses a sense of wonder by having players pursue a meeting with Lord Voldemort at the center of the board. A key twist on the Talisman formula is the affiliation system, aligning players with either the Order of the Phoenix or the Death Eaters. As players race through encounters and gain experience, they will either greet Lord Voldemort and present him with one of the Deathly Hallows, or confront him with courage and might. This is a relatively simple game of rolling dice, moving about a linear board, and having colorful random encounters with various locations and people of the Potterverse. With these few pieces it constructs a wild adventure that is memorable and amusing.
Harry Potter: Hogwarts Battle - Defence Against the Dark Arts
- Ages: 11+
- Players: 2
- Play Time: 30-60 min
This spinoff of Harry Potter: Hogwarts Battle (see above) is more inspired by that previous game than merely revising it. Instead of a fully cooperative board game, this one is a competitive head-to-head bout where two players spend turns adding new cards to their deck, launching attacks, and pulling off various tricks. New cards are acquired from a central rotating market making for a variable game state with dynamic options. As new options are added to each player's deck, gameplay opens up and new combinations of abilities emerge. It’s a quicker and tighter overall affair than the original Hogwarts Battle, and its fundamentally different tone due to the competitive structure.
Harry Potter: House Cup Competition
- Ages: 11+
- Players: 2-4
- Play Time: 75 min
The yearly house cup competition is underway as players compete in challenges of wizardry to achieve success. This colorful experience is known as a worker placement style game where players send characters such Harry, Cedric, Cho, and Draco out on the game board to improve their skills and grow in strength. Ultimately, the goal is for players to earn the most points through feats of magic in order for their house to be declared house cup champion. The game is adorned with wonderful components, including fancy test tubes and gems. This helps to elevate play and adds a touch of beauty to the proceedings.
Harry Potter Strike Dice Game
- Ages: 8+
- Players: 2-5
- Play Time: 15 min
Strike is a relatively unheralded dice game of modest distinction. Players take on the roles of gladiators, rolling dice into a central bowl that represents the arena. Any dice that show an “X” are removed from play, but if multiple dice match, they’re instead claimed by the rolling player. This Potter version of Strike uses the same core concept, but adds in the notion of triggering spells with specific results. Just like its predecessor, it’s a surprisingly joyful game that can elicit large moments of drama with the right crowd. It requires a bit of playfulness as it wants rowdy players that can muster enthusiasm. With this mindset, it offers an experience that is much larger than its meager set of pieces.
Harry Potter: Mischief in Diagon Alley
- Ages: 6+
- Players: 3-5
- Play Time: 15 min
The second dice game on this list, Mischief in Diagon Alley is a fast paced game of simultaneous play. As first year Hogwarts students, you’re rushing to Diagon Alley with shopping lists, but the magical items have been cursed and have been scattered among all of the alley’s shoppes. Everyone quickly rolls dice at the same time in order to cast aside useless clutter such as books and broomsticks. It’s a chaotic game that’s in constant motion, but this is also the draw as it’s a delightful flurry of action. There is a real level of excitement that supersedes the basic strategy to produce something memorable.
Harry Potter: Unmask the Death Eaters
- Ages: 11+
- Players: 4-8
- Play Time: 60-90 min
Unmask the Death Eaters is a team-based hidden identity game. Each participant will take on the role of a member of the Order of the Phoenix during the second wizarding war. A portion of the players, however, are actually villainous Death Eaters loyal to Lord Voldemort. As the group works together to battle creatures such as giants, dementors, and inferi, the Death Eaters will attempt to sabotage their efforts while remaining hidden so they may operate in the shadows. Members of the Order will need to deduce who is working against them and out their foes in the game’s dramatic climax. This is a reworking of The Thing: Infection at Outpost 31, a surprisingly successful board game adaptation of the hit John Carpenter film. The Harry Potter setting fits seamlessly over the strong foundation, utilizing these systems expertly to craft a tense outing.
Harry Potter: Memory Master
- Ages: 6+
- Players: 4
- Play Time: 30 min
This family friendly game hinges on memory to produce a hilarious tabletop card game that can be enjoyed by a wide range of players. Each player receives five cards to study and (hopefully) memorize. Then they’re paired with another player, and each switches cards. After studying their new set of cards, each player selects a card that they believe will match the card their partner plays. In practice, it’s about identifying the most obvious match from each set, leaning on intuition and memory to facilitate your selection. It touches on a similar vibe to popular card games Hanabi and The Mind, producing magical moments where you mentally align with another human being. There’s some surprising nuance here and it’s quite a fulfilling game for how few components there are.
