The Queen's Gambit: The Board Game (2021)

About this game

Can you visualize chess games like Beth Harmon in The Queen's Gambit, thinking multiple moves ahead of her opponents? In The Queen's Gambit: The Board Game, you can try to outwit your fellow players by playing with as much foresight as she did. Each of the 2-4 players has their own gambit piece that moves across the chessboard, and your turns are always planned three moves in advance by laying down cards upon which chess pieces are depicted. On your turn, you reveal your first card; move the gambit piece according to what's depicted on that card, ideally capturing chess tiles in the process; then refill your row by placing a third card in your personal queue. Once all the chess tiles have been captured, the game ends and whoever has collected the most tiles wins.

Does it fit your group?

• Group size. Works with 2 to 4.
• Rules load. At 1.5/5 this is a light game — explain it in a few minutes, good for a table that has not played much.
• Age. The publisher suggests 12 and up. That rates the rules rather than the artwork, so judge the box yourself for younger players.