In a world where it can be disconcertingly hard to disconnect, nothing sets a put-down-your-phone tone quite like an old-fashioned game table. Typically square in shape and occasionally wobbly of leg, this recreationally inclined piece of furniture encourages fellow houseguests to congregate in the name of friendly aboveboard competition. (That means no cheating, Grandma.) The particulars are up to you—rainy days may call for a formidable 1,000-piece puzzle (or dueling puzzles—see below); other nights may warrant more trivial pursuits. Whatever the playing preference—Scrabble, Yahtzee, mah-jongg, Clue—every-one knows that as soon as some-one opens that unassuming storage cabinet (have you ever seen so many faded, decades-old cardboard boxes?), it’s game on. As far as multigenerational pastimes go, there’s simply not much that can rival Friday-night Go Fish—and the reminder that, when…
