20 truly bizarre board games you have to see to believe

Some of the weirdest board games are made for children. In Tic Tac Tongue, players are given a chameleon tongue to catch insects. Theoretically, you could use your own tongue, but that seems awfully unhygienic. 

Wingspan is a strange game where you are tasked with creating a reserve that birds would want to flock to. Although strange in concept, many people are huge fans of this game. It’s even been adapted to a video game. 

Let’s Be Safe is a board game designed to teach kids how to be safe. It’s a nice idea, but its execution was a little strange. In retrospect, a board game might not be the best medium for teaching kids about safety. 

If you’re easily embarrassed, Quelf might not be the game for you. This game is all about players doing very embarrassing things, like mummifying themselves with toilet paper. Quelf also might not be the game for you if you don’t like wasting toilet paper. 

The internet brought on a strange fascination with seeing people pop their pimples, and it led to the board game Pimple Pete. But in this version, you don’t encounter any bodily fluids. You just get splashed with water. 

Don’t worry. The burritos you throw in Throw Throw Burrito are soft, so they shouldn’t cause too much harm. Still, it’s unusual to see a board game where throwing game pieces is not only encouraged, but the object of the game. 

Mr. Bacon’s Big Adventure is quite similar to Candyland. Game characters swerve through Meatland hoping to get to the frying pan first. It’s a great alternative for anyone who prefers salty over sweet. 

We Didn’t Playtest This At All is as chaotic as it sounds. When playing this game, you’re given random cards with even more random instructions, and the object is to win as fast as you can. It’s odd, but people love it. 

If you don’t like skeletons and you don’t like worms, there’s a good chance you won’t like Skworms. The object of the game is to get all of your worms into the skeleton’s bones before everyone else. It’s horrific. 

Donner Dinner Party is named after the exact historical tragedy you’re thinking of, and the object of the game is to discover the identity of a secret cannibal. Should game makers make more games after historical tragedies? Is it only a matter of time before we have a COVID-19 pandemic board game?

Perhaps you can use this board game to teach your children to pick up after their dogs? In Doggie Doo, you feed your dog, give him time to do his business, then pick up after him. To be fair, it’s less gross than actual dog poop. 

If your family is really into bathroom humor, channel it into a strange but fun game called Butts in Space. The game centers around butts in space who do evil things like steal toilet paper. 

You know a game is bizarre when it’s named after an onomatopoeia. In Swack, a board game from the late ‘60s, players try to grab pieces of cheese from the trap without getting, well, swacked. It’s a bit wacky. Or swacky. 

Most people try to avoid getting capital punishment, but in the board game of the same name, that’s how you win. Yeah, it’s … a lot. 

Feeley Meeley is another bizarre gem from the late ‘60s. In this game, an object is put in a box, and players are tasked with identifying it from touch alone. Take some time to marinate on that game objective. 

Nyctophobia is a fear of the dark. It’s also a bizarre board game in which players try to get through a maze while blindfolded. It requires collaboration with other players and trust in your own kinesthesia. 

Seriously, what was going on at board game companies in the late ‘60s? Poison Ivy came from that era, too, and it’s strange as can be. The object of the game is to collect as many green stem leaves as possible without getting poison ivy. Don’t worry. The game comes with a first aid kit. 

Do you remember Mr. T? Do you remember that he had his own board game (oh so cleverly) called Mr. T Game? The object of the game is to finish errands and catch a flight. The box advertises it as “an exciting race against time.” Do with that what you will.  

I Vant to Bite Your Finger was released in the late ‘70s, but it reeks of the late ‘60s gamemakers’ handiwork. In this game, players put their fingers inside a vampire’s mouth and hope that he stays asleep. 

War on Terror was released in 2006 amid the Iraq War, and it was named for obvious reasons. Meant to be a satirical commentary on the war, one copy of the board game was actually seized by police because they believed that the ski mask included in the game could be used in criminal acts. The game has been discontinued.