Strategic card games like Sequence are hugely popular with families, casual gamers, and seasoned board game enthusiasts. This classic board game, designed by Doug Reuter and released in 1982, is a simple yet exciting take on traditional card games, bingo, and tic-tac-toe.
Working as individuals or in teams, players must attempt to place five chips in a row on a board made up of playing cards. To place a chip, you must discard the matching card from your hand. Sequence is delightfully straightforward but each game is still packed with anticipation and fun.
This list of the ten best games like Sequence will offer simple family favourites as well as more complex, abstract board games suitable for older kids and adult gamers.
10 Games like Sequence
Take 5
Take 5 is the English sequel to Wolfgang Kramer’s popular German card game 6 Nimmt!.
Whether you’re a family or a gaming group looking for card games similar to Sequence, Take 5 is a fun game that players at any level will enjoy. Take 5 is a 2-6 player game and made up of cards numbered 1-98 and with bullhead icons.
Most bullheads are green and the aim of the game is to collect as many of these as possible. Some bullheads, however, are red and act as penalty cards. Depending on how many players are at the table, a number of cards will be dealt to the players and laid out on the table in several rows.
Players take it in turns to play cards from their hand to a row, but the placed card must be a higher value than the last card on the row. When you place the fifth card on the row you collect all the cards and add them to your score pile! Despite its simplicity, Take 5 will create plenty of competition and excitement around the table.
Take 5 is a great alternative to Sequence for families and the perfect filler game for regular gamers.
Can’t Stop
If you love classic board games like Sequence, Can’t Stop is a fantastic, push-your-luck game that all board game fans will enjoy. Released in 1980 and designed by Sid Jackson, Can’t Stop is a family-friendly, 2-4 player dice-roller.
You will roll four 6-sided dice and arrange them into two pairs. The total of each pair will tell you which columns, numbered 1 to 12, you can advance on.
You can only advance on three different columns in a turn, so after each progression you must decide whether to push your luck and re-roll, hoping to get the same numbers, or stop and save your progress.
Like Sequence, Can’t Stop is simple but highly rewarding. Deciding whether to risk losing all your progress as the game advances become tense and creates a fun dynamic for all players.
Onirim
Onirim is a fast, 1-2 player game that kids and adults will equally enjoy. Designed by Shadi Torbey and with spooky art by Élise Plessis, Onirim is a solo or co-operative card game that is light and small enough to be taken on road trips or played quickly before dinner.
Players are dreamwalkers lost in a mysterious labyrinth. You must escape the labyrinth quickly or you will be trapped there forever! To escape you must find 8 ‘Door’ cards before the deck runs out. These are discovered by playing sets of cards from your hand or discarding special ‘Key’ cards.
The deck also contains ‘Nightmares’, which if drawn will trigger penalties and dilemmas. Onirim is an elegant game that will work your mind and inspire your senses as you wander through this eerie dreamworld.
Love family board games? Check out our list of more games like Candy Land!
Deadwood 1876
If you are a regular gamer or a family with teens looking for games like Sequence, Deadwood 1876 is a great game to add to your collection. Set in Deadwood, South Dakota, in 1876, this game will have 2-9 players competing for gold in the Black Hills.
Deadwood 1876 is designed by Travis Hancock, has gorgeous art by Holly Hancock and Sarah Keele, and is part of Facade Games’ ‘Dark Cities’ series, which also includes Tortuga 1667 and Salem 1692.
Combining card-drafting, bluffing, and social deduction, Deadwood 1876 will have you using cards to gain gold, badges, and guns, and will finish with an epic showdown where the last player alive wins.
If you enjoy working in teams in Sequence, Deadwood 1876 offers this but with a twist – you can turn on them at any moment and steal the gold of the Black Hills for yourself.
Tsuro
If you love abstract games similiar to Sequence, Tsuro could be your next favourite. Tsuro, designed by Tom McMurchie, is a quick, 2-8 player tile-placement game. This beautiful game gives each player a token and a hand of tiles with twisting routes on them.
Each turn you will place a tile in front of your token to continue its path around the board. But as the board fills up this becomes more and more difficult. Eventually, players will be eliminated when they can no longer place tiles and the last player on the board wins.
Tsuro is a simple and elegant game with lovely components and a theme inspired by Asian spiritualism. According to its makers, the lines represent the ‘many roads that lead to divine wisdom’ and the game represents ‘the classic quest for enlightenment’.
Despite these spiritual themes, the game itself is very light and will certainly be enjoyed by families and casual gamers.
Azul
Azul is a popular, artistic tile-placement game. If you’re looking for board games similar to Sequence, Azul is a fun alternative and adored by families and experienced gamers alike. 2-4 players take on the role of tile-laying artists and are tasked with decorating the Royal Palace of Evora.
You will take turns drafting colourful tiles and placing them on your player board. Points are scored by creating specific patterns or matching sets and wasted tiles give penalties. This beautiful, abstract game is designed by Michael Kiesling and has stunning art by Philippe Guérin and Chris Quilliams.
The rules are simple enough for kids and beginner gamers to pick up quickly but the gameplay is complex and rewarding enough for adults and seasoned gamers too. Players at all levels will appreciate the beautiful simplicity of this game and admiring their artistic masterpieces.
Already know this game? Check out our list of games like Azul!
Sushi Go!
Card games like Sequence are quick, light, and accessible. Another game that ticks all these boxes is Sushi Go!.
This adorable, speedy game is designed by Phil Walker-Harding and it would take a heart of stone to dislike its cute cards, designed by Walker-Harding along with Nan Rangsima and Tobias Schweiger. Sushi Go! is a 2-5 player pick-and-pass card game.
The ‘menu’ will determine what sort of sushi will be on offer and over three rounds players collect these cards and try to create point-scoring sets.
Collecting the most maki rolls or a set of sashimi will score you points, but the pick-and-pass mechanism means you will need to watch out for other players and try to block their sets.
Families will love Sushi Go! and I can say from personal experience that it will be popular at adult games nights too. And if you are playing with a larger group, you can always get Sushi Go Party!, which has more cards and allows up to 8 players.
Already love this game? Check out our list of games like Sushi Go!
Karuba
Karuba is a tile-placement race game that anyone looking for games like Sequence is sure to enjoy. Players will explore the island of Karuba, laying tiles to create paths through its dark jungles in search of its ancient temples.
Along the way, you will pick up crystals and gold nuggets and discover treasure in the temples. Designed by Rüdiger Dorn and with fun art by Claus Stephan, this light, 2-4 player game is perfect for families looking for games like Sequence that have a bingo element too.
Karuba is simple but addictive and the tile-placement mechanism makes each game feel fresh.
The Fox in the Forest
The Fox in the Forest is a straightforward but rewarding 2 player game designed by Joshua Buergel. Couples or families looking for light card games similar to Sequence will find plenty to love in The Fox in the Forest.
Players have a hand of ranked and suited cards and each round they will attempt to beat the other player’s card – making this a trick-taking game. There are also special cards, such as fox and witch cards, which allow you to manipulate your cards by changing their suit or rank.
But The Fox in the Forest isn’t just a majority-win game – if you win too many tricks you will receive penalties. The balance of luck and strategy makes The Fox in the Forest an elegant, challenging game but simple enough for beginner gamers and kids over 10 to pick up.
In addition to this, the components and art by Jennifer L. Meyer and Keith Pishnery are delicate and endearing and will be loved by fans of folklore and fairytales.
Seikatsu
If you’re looking for more abstract strategy games like Sequence then look no further than Seikatsu. Matt Loomis and Isaac Shalev’s 2-4 player game, with lovely art by Peter Wocken, has players creating a beautiful garden by laying colourful tiles.
Before starting, each player will select a ‘pagoda’ on the board, which will help them score points at the end of the game. Then the tile-placing begins. These tiles have beautiful birds on them and laying tiles next to matching birds will score you points.
At the end of the game, you will also score points for rows of matching flowers from the perspective of your pagoda, giving this game an additional visual scoring element. Seikatsu is simple and easy to learn but is still packed with strategy.
Families with kids aged 10 and above will adore Seikatsu!
Games like Sequence are popular because of their simple yet fun gameplay. Combining pattern-building, tile placement, and card-drafting, Sequence is enjoyed by families and regular gamers for its sleek design and easy rules.
This list of the ten best board games like Sequence offers a range of games to pique your interest. From abstract tile-placement games to elegant card games, fans of Sequence will love these unique board games.
Are you looking for more games like Sequence? Have any recommendations that didn’t make the list? Let us know in the comments!
