Main content

Accessible Board and Card Games

Accessible board games and card games are designed to be inclusive and playable by a wide range of individuals, including those with disabilities or other accessibility needs. These games are created to ensure that everyone, regardless of their physical, sensory, or cognitive abilities, can fully participate and enjoy the gaming experience.
Accessibility in board/card games is important for several reasons:

  • Inclusion: Accessible games promote inclusivity by providing opportunities for people of all abilities to engage in social activities. By removing barriers to participation, these games create a welcoming environment for individuals with disabilities, allowing them to fully enjoy and benefit from the social interaction and entertainment that board games offer.
  • Cognitive Stimulation: Board/card games often involve strategic thinking, problem-solving, decision-making, and memory recall. Accessible board games and card games provide cognitive stimulation for players with different abilities, allowing them to exercise their mental skills, enhance their cognitive abilities, and enjoy these games' intellectual challenges.
  • Family and Social Bonding: board games and card games are an excellent way to bring people together and foster social connections. Accessible games ensure families and friends can engage in shared activities and have enjoyable experiences together. This strengthens relationships, promotes empathy, and encourages positive interactions among players.

You can download a list of the accessible games here as well:

List of Games

Here is a list of accessible board and card games and where to find them.

Mattel Games Uno

Mattel Games has worked with the National Federation for the Blind to make Uno accessible by producing a version where the deck has already been brailled. This can be purchased at many different retailers. You can purchase braille Uno on Amazon.

64 Ounce Games

64 Ounce games make mainstream board and card games accessible to blind, low vision, and sighted players by adapting game pieces with braille and using tactile overlays placed on top of game boards. They are offered as accessible kits with all the parts you need so you can switch out from the original game to make it playable for blind and low-vision players. What this means is that according to the website, “Accessibility Kits require the retail version of the game in order to play.” Combination kits come with the accessibility kit and the game itself. In both cases, initial setup is required by blind and sighted players. To ensure equitable access, we suggest ensuring that games are set up with their accessibility kits before patrons borrow the game.

The following is a list of kits for purchase:

  • My 1st Castle Panic Accessibility Combo Kit
  • Skip-Bo Accessibility Kit
  • Roll For It - Purple Combo Kit
  • Skyjo Accessibility Kit
  • Phase 10 Accessibility Kit
  • No Thanks Accessibility Kit Combo Kit
  • Dos Accessibility Kit
  • Rook Accessibility Kit
  • Diamonds Accessibility Kit
  • 12 Days Combo Kit
  • Brandon the Brave Accessibility Combo Kit
  • Dealt Accessibility Combo Kit
  • Rack-o Accessibility Kit
  • Don't L.l.a.m.a Accessibility Kit Combo Kit
  • Mille Borne - Accessibility Kit
  • Chutes and Ladders Accessibility Kit
  • Five Crowns Accessibility Kit
  • Candy Land Accessibility Kit
  • Sorry Accessibility Kit
  • Apples to Apples Accessibility Combo Kit
  • Bananagrams Accessibility Kit
  • Taboo Accessibility Kit
  • Scattergories Accessibility Kit
  • Apples to Apples Jr. Accessibility Combo Kit
  • Snake Oil Accessibility Kit
  • Can't Stop Accessibility Kit
  • WordSpiel Accessibility Kit
  • Sequence Accessibility Kit
  • Balderdash Accessibility Kit
  • Quiddler Accessibility Kit
  • Encore Accessibility Kit
  • Ticket to Ride Accessibility Kit
  • Catan Accessibility Kit
  • Coup Accessibility Combo Kit
  • Pandemic Accessibility Kit
  • Dominion Accessibility Kit
  • Enchanted Plumes Combo Kit
  • 7 Wonders Accessibility Kit
  • Kingdomino Accessibility Kit
  • Splendor Accessibility Kit
  • Smash Up Expansion Accessibility Kits
  • Secret Hitler Accessibility Kit
  • Tsuro Accessibility Combo Kit
  • Parks Accessibility Kit
  • Double Double Dominoes Accessibility Combo Kit
  • Azul Accessibility Kit
  • Trash Pandas Accessibility Kit
  • Stone Age Accessibility Kit
  • Bohnanza Accessibility Kit
  • Sushi Go Party Accessibility Kit
  • Smash Up Accessibility Kit
  • The Crew Accessibility Kit
  • Jaipur Accessibility Kit
  • Nyctophobia Accessibility Kit(The Hunted OR Vampire Encounter)
  • Citadels Accessibility Kit
  • Boss Monster Accessibility Kit
  • Between Two Cities Accessibility Combo Kit
  • Bang Accessibility Kit
  • Munchkin Accessibility Kit
  • For Sale Accessibility Kit
  • Coloretto Accessibility Kit
  • Tiny Epic Defenders Accessibility Kit
  • Friday Accessibility Kit
  • Imploding Kittens(expansion to Exploding Kittens) - Accessibility Kit
  • Shifting Stones Accessibility Kit
  • Incan Gold Accessibility Kit
  • Castle Panic Accessibility Combo Kit(1st Edition)
  • My First Bohnanza Accessibility Kit
  • Push Accessibility Kit
  • Carcassonne Accessibility Kit
  • Red Dragon Inn Accessibility Kit
  • Colt Express Accessibility Kit
  • The Resistance Accessibility Combo Kit
  • Herbaceous Accessibility Combo Kit
  • Munchkin Expansions - Accessibility kits
  • The Grizzled Accessibility Kit
  • Lost Cities Accessibility Kit
  • Doomlings Accessibility Kit
  • Dominion Expansion Accessibility Kits
  • Red7 Accessibility Kit
  • Tiny Epic Kingdoms Accessibility Kit
  • San Juan Accessibility Kit
  • Power Grid the Card Game Accessibility kit
  • 7 Wonders Duel Accessibility Kit
  • Taco vs Burrito Accessibility Kit
  • Happy Little Dinosaurs Accessibility Kit
  • Star Munchkin - Accessibility Kit
  • Lanterns - The Harvest Festival - Accessibility Kit
  • Smash Up - Munchkin Accessibility Kit
  • Melee Accessibility Combo Kit
  • Kahuna Accessibility Kit
  • My 1st Castle Panic Box
  • My First Orchard Accessibility Combo Kit
  • Hanabi Accessibility Kit
  • Exploding Kittens - Not Safe For Work - Accessibility Kit
  • Cards Against Humanity (Not Safe For Work) Large Print and Braille version FULL GAME

Braille Superstore

The Braille Superstore offers a selection of accessible board games that can be purchased. These do not require visual assistance to set up. However, some games are much more expensive than the store-bought version. The following is a list of games for purchase:

  • Chess Set, Classic (Tactile)
  • Checkers Set, Classic (Tactile)
  • Checkers Set, Travel (Tactile)
  • Chinese Checkers (Tactile)
  • Tic-Tac-Toe, Wooden (Tactile)
  • Connect Four (Tactile)
  • Shut the Box (Brailled)
  • Racing Crown (Tactile)
  • Snakes and Ladders (Tactile)
  • Nine Men's Morris (Tactile)
  • Parcheesi (Tactile)
  • Othello (Tactile)
  • Backgammon (Tactile)
  • Braille Monopoly
  • Braille Scrabble

Online Resources

Here are some online resources to help you find accessible board and card games. 

QuentinC's playroom

The QuentinC's playroom is a free online gaming platform specially made to be accessible to visually impaired people. There are 33 games available, with more coming: Uno, Poker, Monopoly, 1000 miles, Scopa, Rami, Bouillabaisse, Dominos, Jass, Spades, French tarot, Cribbage, Yahtzee, Farkle, Shut the boxes, Battleship, Connect four, Reversi, Chess, The little exam, 6 takes, Scientific war, Black Jack, Ninety nine, Backgammon, Belote, Quiz Party, Zanzibar, Hearts, Citadels, Mexican train, Duck racing, and Barbu.

Lichess

Lichess is a free (really), libre, no-ads, open-source chess server. While the mobile apps are not yet accessible, the web client has good screen reader support.

RSGames

Since 2009, RSGames has developed online board, card, and dice games accessible to the blind and visually impaired. Over 20 games are available, including Monopoly, Uno, Blackjack, Yahtzee, 1000 Miles, Shut the Box, and Scrabble.

Ancient Board Game Collection

The Ancient Board Game Collection, and iOS app, offers a variety of historical games such as Hnefatafl and Latrunculi. Players can enjoy a variety of challenges with nine different games, including Konane, Nine Men's Morris, and Gomoku. The collection provides various gameplay options, including online multiplayer, local multiplayer, and AI opponents. The games are fully accessible through VoiceOver and Voice Control, and the collection is set to receive updates with additional games in the future. Note that this app is only available for IOS.

Dice World

Dice World offers six dice games. They currently include Farkle, Yatzy, Threes, 1-4-24, Balut, and Pig, with plans to add more. You can play against an online opponent and track your stats through leaderboards. It is accessible to both blind and sighted players. This app is available for IOS, Android, and Amazon devices.

Wordvoyance

Wordvoyance by Themis Games is a multiplayer crossword-building game combining Scrabble and Words With Friends elements. The game is designed to be accessible to players with disabilities, including blindness. It offers various accessibility features and is compatible with popular screen readers. Players can form words by dragging and dropping tiles on the game board to earn points. Wordvoyance is the first game of its kind to prioritize accessibility, focusing on mobile accessibility, inclusive design, and adaptive gaming features. It is suitable for individuals who are blind, visually impaired, or use screen readers, providing a user-friendly interface and seamless compatibility with different accessibility tools. Note that this game is available for IOS, Android, and web.

Slay the Spire

"Slay the Spire" is a single-player deckbuilding game that combines elements of card games and roguelikes. The objective is to climb a tower called the Spire by crafting a powerful deck, battling strange creatures, and discovering powerful relics. The game features dynamic deck building, where players choose from hundreds of cards to strategically defeat enemies and progress. The Spire's layout changes with each playthrough, offering different paths, enemies, cards, relics, and bosses. Players can find powerful relics throughout the Spire that enhance their deck but may come with a cost. The game includes four characters, over 350 cards, 200 items, unique combat encounters, mysterious events, daily climbs for global comparison, and a custom mode with various run modifiers.

This game and mod require the Steam version and “Say the Spire” to make it accessible to screen reader users. The "Say the Spire" mod is free and can be downloaded here.

Additional Resources

Here are some addiitonal resources to help choose accessibel board and card games for your library. 

Audiogames.net

Audiogames.net has a great list of accessible computer games, where the main output is sound rather than graphics. 

Board Games for Braille Readers: How to Retrofit Classic Games

The "Board Games fro Braille Readers: How to Retrofit Classic Games" article by Erin Jepsen, provides resources and tips on making any game accessible with simple adaptations.

Apple Vis

Apple Vis is a community website offering a place for discussing Apple products with a focus on accessibility. They provide blogs, podcasts, and a directory of apps with information about their accessibility. This directory is updated frequently and includes listings of accessible games.