Mensa's annual board game judging marathon has wrapped, and the high-IQ society has handed its 2026 Mensa Select seal to seven games. If you've ever wanted a shortlist curated by people whose hobby is solving puzzles for fun, this is the one to bookmark for your next club meeting or game cafe visit.
Stop juggling Meetup, WhatsApp, and spreadsheets. One platform for your gaming group's events, RSVPs, and member management.
See how it worksThe winners cover the full spectrum, from family-weight puzzles to chewy euros. Topping the list is Fromage, the simultaneous worker-placement game from Matthew O'Malley and Ben Rosset where 1-4 players make and age cheese on a rotating board. It already grabbed an Origins Award and multiple Golden Geek nods, so the Mensa seal feels well-deserved. Sitting at 7.69 on BGG and playing in 30-45 minutes, it is one of the best "we have time for one quick euro" picks of the past two years.
The full list, per BoardGameWire:
Looking for board gamers near you? Browse local communities and find your next game night.
Find events near you- A Place for All My Books (Smirk & Dagger), Alex Cutler and Michael Mihealsick's clever puzzle of shelf organisation
- Critter Kitchen (Cardboard Alchemy), co-op cooking from Alex Cutler and Peter C Hayward
- Fromage (R2i Games), the cheesemaker euro
- Galileo Galilei (Capstone Games), Tomáš Holek's astronomer-themed family weight
- Got Five (Blue Orange Games), Yoann Levet's quick number game
- Things in Rings (Allplay), Peter C Hayward's deduction party hit
- Twinkle Twinkle (Allplay), Ammon Anderson's gentle family game
Allplay scoring two of the seven seats is worth a mention. The publisher has been quietly stocking the indie shelves with thinky family games for a couple of years and is now getting the recognition to match.
The selection criteria are aesthetics, instructions, originality, play appeal and play value, judged by hundreds of Mensa members across four days in Herndon, Virginia. Submissions need to play in 90 minutes or less, which keeps the list approachable.
If your group is hunting for the next "one more game" night, any of these will do. Find or start a group and put a couple on the table.
Sources: BoardGameWire | Mensa Mind Games | BGG: Fromage
