How to Teach Any Board Game in Five Minutes (Step-by-Step Guide)

Prepared for Success

Providing a clear teach in five minutes requires you to know the game pretty well yourself. You should know the game well enough not to need to refer to the rulebook or other materials while teaching (ignoring setup).

As a side note, if you’re ever handed a rulebook for a new game as the group sits down (something I’m all too familiar with), I highly recommend reading the rules and getting them settled in your mind before trying to explain them. Never just read the rulebook to the group.

There are many great ways to learn a new game, even if you haven’t played it, though that remains my favorite. BoardGameGeek is a great resource for all games, offering links to how-to-play videos, rulebooks, and much more. YouTube also has a host of channels providing game overviews.

You should have players help you set up, but don’t try to get them to remember how to do it. By having the board and components on the table, you can point to and physically move pieces around as you explain the rules, helping people learn more quickly.

The Theme

Often, a core part of what hooks people to play a game is sharing the theme, which helps players get excited about and engaged with the game. It also helps them understand the context for odd terms and descriptions. You don’t need to provide every detail, just enough to draw the players in.

“Pandemic is a game about saving the world. You’re agents of the CDC trying to find cures for four deadly diseases.”

There are abstract games and ones where the theme has no real connection to the actions you take, and in these cases, it’s fine to skip this step.

Game End & How to Win

Let people know what they’re trying to do and when the game ends. Especially if there are several ways to achieve a victory, it is vital for players to know. It enables them to plan their actions and strategy effectively and to judge how close their opponents are to victory.

“In Harmonies, when there are no tiles left to add to the central board, or one player has two or fewer spaces on their personal board, the game ends at the end of the round. You’ll each then score for your placement of tiles and the animal cubes you’ve placed.”

In a few games, the win conditions aren’t known at the start. These can be as random as Fluxx or as story-defining as Betrayal at House on the Hill. In these cases, explain clearly when the victory conditions are set and how they are defined.

Turns

In some games, each player takes a turn separately; in others, players share a turn or take actions at specific times. Whatever the format, this is the meat of the game, where the player interacts with its mechanisms and should take up the bulk of your time teaching.

Explain each step clearly, confirming players understand each as you go. While you should avoid odd interactions or exceptions, you must also go through any important sub-mechanisms, like combat.

“In the Action Phase of a game of Tianxia, players take actions in turn. You may take several free actions and one of the following turn types: Region, Military, Barge, or Pass. Free actions allow you to exchange bonus tiles and objective cards for the resources indicated, or you can discard an action marker for two coins or return a merchant.
During a region turn, you place an action marker in a region and claim any benefit listed. Note that you must pay 1 coin for every marker already present. Then you may install a governor at a building, paying the costs and collecting any bonuses. If it is an income building, you resolve its effect immediately. You may only have one governor at each building. You can also exchange goods at the rate shown or use a shipping action.”

If games contain help sheets or reference materials, highlight them to players, but don’t feel the need to explain everything on them. Equally, if a game has key information printed on the board, teach your players to read the iconography rather than explain each action.

Game End & How to Win Again

To round out your teaching, come back to the endgame and win condition(s). Players really do need this final reminder to pull everything back together and help them focus on the right things as they start the game.

“After the third round in Sushi Go! Players total their points for each round, then the player with the most points gains 6 points, and the player with the fewest points loses 6 points. The winner is the player with the most points.”

Attitude and Interruptions

Don’t underestimate how your attitude while teaching a game can infect other players, for good or ill. If you are enthusiastic and excited, it's likely that others will reflect that. If, on the other hand, you moan about the game and about particular rules or highlight how broken a mechanic is, don’t be surprised if the table isn’t raring to go when you finish speaking.

If you’re lucky and doing a good job, players will begin to interrupt you. This isn’t a bad thing, though it can be frustrating. Thank players for interrupting you; it's a sign they’re invested in learning the game. Then either explain that you’re getting to that rule, or, if you can, make it the next thing you teach so they’ll remember.

Not this game

I’m sure some of you have been working through a list of games that you think can’t be taught in 5 minutes. Why not share your favorite in the comments below?