Reddit reviews Betrayal At House On The Hill

Betrayal at the House on the Hill is included, super great game

I'm surprised no one's mentioned Betrayal at House on the Hill. One of the best games I've ever played. The game is different every time you play it. With 50 different scenarios, and a house that is basically built as you go, it's almost impossible to get bored. It's also published by Wizards of the Coast.

Honestly, this reminds me of Betrayal at the House on the Hill. A sole survivor, fleeing that cursed mansion, as it slowly consumes itself and everything left inside.

I will also take this moment to shamelessly plug this fabulous game.

Amazon.com link for easy impulses shopping.

Amazon sells a kind of pricey replacement piece but it does include a bunch of extra stuff you may or may not need. Still less than the original MSRP.

https://www.amazon.com/Betrayal-At-House-Hill-2nd/dp/B003HC9734

My favorite game is to play with friends is Betrayal at House on the Hill
A great resource if you like games is Wil Wheaton's youtube channel Tabletop

I agree with /u/raisedbynarcoleptic - you need a structured non-threatening activity with the kid. Start with all four of you, don't suddenly take the scared kid out alone.

Honestly, I'd wait six months before bringing up the potential for marriage. Wait until you and he have had a conversation, he's smiled at you, and he's volunteered something positive about you to his mother. Also, STOP TEACHING HIM, if you haven't already. Move him to another teacher or studio. Stop muddying those waters.

I'm a board game person, so here's what I would do:

• Buy 2-3 board games for him for Christmas for his mother to give to him.
  
  
• He and his mother play the games for a few weeks until she knows what his favorite is.
  
  
• You and your son learn that game. (or all the games!)
  
  
• You and she get all four of you together for a tournament over a few weeks with silly prizes. Out of six times, the overall winner gets five bucks and a silly hat. That sort of thing. (NOTE: Some teenagers would flat-out refuse to play cheesy board games with their parents, but it sounds like he is close to his mother and not a particularly brash kid, so you might get some buy-in.)
  
  
• Start having weekly game nights.
  
  
• After a few successful game nights, suggest playing a game that's 2p only and then have the winners play each other.
  
  
• Let the kids play against each other.
  
  
• Once that has been shown as non-threatening, suggest kids against adults - parent v. kid.
  
  
• Finally, suggest mixing it up and have you play against him. Direct interaction, but in the same room as the others.
  
  
• If that goes well, have his mother schedule a multi-hour thing on the same day that your son is busy with another friend. Ask his mother to fret and wring her hands about leaving him alone so much. Volunteer to go to a cafe with the kid and play whatever his favorite game is.
  
  
• First time alone with him! Keep it low-key. No talks about the future. No talks about family or feelings. Just stay in public and play a game together and go home. Maybe buy him some sort of mountain-of-sugar drink.
  
  And so on.
  
  The hobby doesn't have to be board games, of course, but that is the general outline of how I'd recommend handling it with a kid who literally shakes at the sight of you. Excruciating baby steps.
  
  Games I'd recommend for this:
  
  
• King of Tokyo ($33)
  
  
• Betrayal At House On The Hill ($34)
  
  
• Uno ($5ish anywhere)
  
  
• Sorry! ($12ish anywhere)
  
  
• Carcassonne (out of stock at Amazon but usually $25ish)
  
  
• Ticket To Ride (out of stock at Amazon but usually $35ish)
  
  
• Bohnanza ($14)
  
  
• Castle Panic ($22) (Has Star Trek and Zombie versions!)

Betrayal at House on the Hill is down to $30 as well: http://www.amazon.com/Wizards-Coast-266330000WOC-Betrayal-House/dp/B003HC9734/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_T1?ie=UTF8&coliid=I2W6YISAG1FCFB&colid=8UTFGWKKEQL7

a few good games you could start with are, King of Toyko , or Pandemic, or Catan, or Betrayal at House ont he hill.

There is also a great youtube channel called Tabletop run by Wil Wheaton that showcases a ton of games where you can watch them play and get a feel ahead of time if its a game you think you would be interested in. http://geekandsundry.com/shows/tabletop/

Betrayal at House on the Hill

You guys are bee-you-tee-mous maximus today indeed!! As always, of course :)

If I'm dreaming big, then this is what I would ask for - it sounds like such an awesome game, and board games are my favourite way to spend quality time with my boyfriend. It sounds like a ton of fun, we actually went looking for it for an anniversary gift to each other, but we couldn't find it anywhere locally so we put it on the back burner.

Under $20, this guy - it's an inside joke, there are a group of us who play "minion" to my friend's "mad scientist", so it makes me smile.

C'mon...gimme three cheers for rasta and the numbah man, two of my favourite people in RAOA :)

Here's some concrete examples; they're all on sale right now for some reason so a bit cheaper than expected, but these are some of the games I was thinking of:

1. Betrayal at the House on the Hill
   
   2.Terraforming Mars
   
   
2. Puerto Rico
   
   
3. Pandemic

Lightning Deal: amazon

If you're looking for a completely different type of board game, Betrayal At House on the Hill is great! https://www.amazon.com/Betrayal-At-House-Hill-2nd/dp/B003HC9734/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1478873479&sr=8-1&keywords=haunted+house+on+the+hill

I know that feeling. I bought this a few months back and I've played it once so far.

What kinds of games does he like? Cooperative? Competitive?

One of my favorites right now is Betrayal at House on the Hill. Basically you're exploring a haunted house that you build as you move along and at some point, one of 40-something "haunts" starts which changes the game objectives. Very fun, cooperative for 3-6 players. It has a very Lovecraftian theme, so suggested age of 12+ is pretty accurate I'd say.

Here are a couple of options I have been enjoying:

Betrayal

Small World

Power Grid

Dominion

Most of these are slightly out of your price range, but you get what you pay for. If you are willing to spend slightly more, you open up a whole new world of possibilities.

If you do want to stick to cheaper options, Fluxx or Exploding Kittens is always a good, fun choice.

Interesting idea. There are some good six-player games that might constitute an adventure.

Betrayal at House On The Hill is a game that follows the tropes of horror B-movies, exploring a haunted house until eventually someone at random becomes the bad guy and has to try to kill everyone else. Maybe a little mature for the younger kids, but it's one of my favourite games. Review here, although he's kinda critical of it in a way I think is unfair. It's a lot of fun, it's just more that you're watching the story unfold than actually using great skill to win it. Which is great for new players.

Escape the curse of the temple is a chaotic co-operative game in which all the players are exploring a temple, Indiana Jones style, trying to roll dice to beat challenges. The twist is that everyone's playing at once, rolling dice as fast as they can and getting curses like being unable to talk or keeping one hand on their head. Here's an entertaining review.

Flick 'Em Up is a cross between a western and Subbuteo. You flick your characters and little wooden bullets about in a Spaghetti Western town made of wooden blocks. It's actually probably a fantastic gift because it comes in a lovely wooden box and the whole thing's so tactile. Review here.

> Betrayal at House on the Hill

...psst...it's in stock right now...

Betrayal at house on the hill

Actually in stock at Amazon.

this ok ill go from this game, this game was featured on an episode of table top with Wil Wheaton,Wil Wheatons brother Joss created Dr horrible's sing along blog. one of the characters in this epic tale is captain hammer. i know what you are thinking, " wow Twisty that is a pretty good jump to hammer, but what about squeaky?" and my reply is to hold your pants on cause im getting there :P. in the movie with captain hammer is a girl named penny, penny is a very shy girl some would even say mousey. mouses are known for being squeaky! BUT WAIT THERES MORE!!!!! penny is played by the beautifully nerdy Felicia Day! who just so happened to be on an episode of Tabletop with Wil wheaton, the very same show that did an episode about my chosen item!

I swear to puppies I'm going to throw a psychotic fit.

Going to hijack this to also say that my all time favorite bored game “Betrayal at House on the Hill” is on sale too

If a DM runs a published adventure, the world and monsters therein are built for them.

Otherwise, there are a number of good board games out there that can be played in a few hours, many fantasy-themed. The downside is that roleplaying is often reduced or not present at all. Let me recommend a couple:

https://www.amazon.com/Wizards-Coast-A78490000-Dungeon-Fantasy/dp/078696555X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1485215054&sr=8-1&keywords=dungeon+board+game

https://www.amazon.com/Betrayal-At-House-Hill-2nd/dp/B003HC9734

https://www.amazon.com/Fantasy-Flight-Games-DJ01-Descent/dp/1616611898

Amazon.ca currently has Betrayal at House on the Hill for $40, with free shipping.

I would play board games with youuuuu!


I love both boardgames and The Walking Dead! Whaaaaaaat!? Aw, yeah. :P

This is my favorite boardgame. Its amazing! I'll write out a sentence in a few.

Board games are the best games...! I have a group of friends (about 10 people) that loveee playing board games, so I've tried quite a few..! Though having only 2 people for the board game is really limiting, I think most games are like 3 minimum TqT

I'm not sure what your budget is but I'm going to list a few that I've enjoyed (I'm a gamer that played RTS and TD games too! P.S. you should check out sanctum 2 on steam for an interactive tower defense game)

My first suggestion would be

Betrayal at the House on the Hill: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Avalon-Hill-266330000WOC-Betrayal-House/dp/B003HC9734/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1452695169&sr=8-1&keywords=Betrayal+at+the+house+on+the+hill

• It's ideally for 3-6 players because the premise of the game is to explore the house as much as you can before the 'haunt' starts, and when the haunt starts one of the players will become a traitor that tries to kill the other players. To win the game, the survivors kill the traitor or vice versa.
  
  
  Jaipur is a card game recommendation, but it's for 2 players!
  
  
• http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/54043/jaipur
  
• It's like a merchanting game :D I'm sure as someone who played RTS games you know how to manage resources... this is a testament to learning how to balance trade-offs with rewards
  
  
  Agricola is another good game!
  
  *http://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/31260/agricola
  
  
• It's a bit expensive online though, you might be able to get it cheaper at a local board game store
  
• It's another strategy type game, you get 2 turns per round to act for you and your spouse. It's similar to the settler of catan except you have only 14 rounds before the game finishes.
  
• You have to choose between expanding your house, making babies, collecting food and resources, another fun way to balance your resources :D
  
  Most of these games are pretty short if you want it to be!! Check them out for sure!

Woah I've never seen anyone giving away new tires on here! I loved the burnout series on PS2. Favorite series other than SOCOM back then.

I don't know what kind of table top games youre into but These both are pretty excellent
Shadow Hunters

Betrayal at House on Haunted Hill

Bookmaze does one every Monday. Went once, it was a friendly collection of people and I learned about a lot of really nifty board games. This one was my favorite, lots of replay value actually.

I'd never heard of Night in the Woods but will check it out.

If you have any like-minded people, I might suggest picking up the board game Betrayal At House On The Hill (I know this is a US link, but it's mostly so you can see what it looks like!)

It's tons of cheesy Halloween fun as long as you can rustle up another three people or so.

I completely agree though, October is the best!

Have you checked out Betrayal at House on the Hill? Doesn't get much less linear than randomly choosing rooms to explore from a deck of tiles. It has some character development. It's cooperative for 3-5 players. Each player picks a character and each character has (I think) 4 stats that can be altered by entering different rooms and fighting monsters, and it has a deck of equipment cards you find while exploring the mansion that change the combat and can really make a difference. The big draw is the betrayal half of the game. There are if I remember correctly 30 different betrayal scenarios that play out depending on which room it started in and which Omen card was drawn that turn. I think that meets some of your criteria.

Now I I'm not saying anything. But I would like to direct everyone's attention to this, https://www.amazon.com/Betrayal-At-House-Hill-2nd/dp/B003HC9734/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1539572442&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=betrayal+house+on+the+hill&dpPl=1&dpID=51B5pW%2B2aRL&ref=plSrch

There's actually a good amount of fun games for under $40 on Amazon that I would suggest looking at.

• Pandemic | $28
  
• Catan | $30
  
• Dominion | $30
  
• 7 Wonders | $31
  
• Love Letter | $8
  
• Coup | $8
  
• Sushi Go | $10
  
• Lord of Waterdeep | $37
  
• Betrayal at House on the Hill | $34
  
• Ticket to Ride | $31
  
  These are all pretty popular games and I think they give you a good start into the different genre's of modern board games.

I grabbed a bunch of things off my various wishlists that were added for being neat and/or kinda weird. Some are silly things to just look at, and others are things I might actually get one day.

Coolest decoration: Senior Woman with Asthma Inhaler Peel and Stick Wall Decal

Coolest Clothing: Surrender Sweater

Coolest Skincare Item: Milky Piggy Bubble Mask or Twoosong Proplis Sparkeling Ampoule

Coolest Board Game: Betrayal at House on the Hill (it's $30.30, sue me)

Coolest Pet Toy: Cat DJ Deck

Coolest Book: The Morbid Anatomy Anthology

Coolest Shoes: Floral Pumps ($30 after shipping oops)

Coolest Food: Gjetost Goat Cheese

>Plus Catan, Dead of Winter, Betrayal at House on the Hill is pretty dope

Get that normie trash outta here

Duh. You have a bunch of fucking nerds in Wall Street now, this isn't the 1980s.

Plus Catan, Dead of Winter, Betrayal at House on the Hill is pretty dope you should try it out faggot

Betrayal at House on the Hill is awesome, and the replay value is incredible. A little expensive, but I don't know if I've ever made a better board game purchase.

Munchkins (original). It's more of a 'make fun of' fantasy theme game. But it is a dungeon crawler and super simple to learn.

Betrayal at House on the Hill. Great game and a group favorite of ours.

• Wish List: Cell Phone because my phone is like 4 years old-ish it does all these odd things and it's annoying and I'd like a new one.
  
• ACCESSORIES!!: Bow I love bows and America.
  
• Arts and Crafts: Rub 'n Buff I need this for an art project I am doing. They are camos and it would make them look nice.
  
• Books!: Venus in Fur: A Play This play looks amazing! When I saw a clip of it on the Tony Awards I wish I could have seen it. I am DYING to read it!
  
• Clothes: Petticoat For my Dalek dress.
  
• Cool nail polish: Hunger Games collection 2012 I just love all the earth tones, I don't have like any of them at home and I love the Hunger Games.
  
• Everything is Awesome!: Prism I want to use it to hopefully get a job that I really want.
  
• Makeup: Black lipstick I don't know where mine is and I really love black lipstick.
  
• Movies: Anchorman 2 I LOVE ANCHORMAN! Have you heard my ringtones?
  
• Table Top Games: Betrayal At House On The Hill THIS GAME LOOK AMAZING AND I KNOWWWWWWWWWW MY FRIENDS WILL LOVE IT! I NEED TO PLAY!!!!!!!!!

>So you like a modular board, player interaction, different win conditions (each viable at different times), and player interaction...

If you like those things, and you also like strong narratives then I'd suggest Betrayal At House On The Hill. It's a fantastic procedurally generated game, whose board and win conditions is different every time you play! The game is semi co-operative, where everyone works together through the first stage of the game before a player is revealed as an antagonist with their own set of win conditions.

The games setting is a mysterious old victorian house, where the players are a "scooby-doo"-esque group of characters investigating it one dark evening. The narrative changes every game based on where players are in the house when certain events happen, and stories range from lovecraftian terror to Stephen King like horror.

It's very replayable and creates some great tension both at the challenge of winning but also among the players themselves. I love this game! Give it a look!

I think you need Betrayal At House On The Hill!

11

For anyone interested in buying this it is available at Amazon yet again for $38 and available as a Prime purchase for the shipping.

It's $34.30 on US Amazon right now.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B003HC9734/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1418917904&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SY200_QL40&dpPl=1&dpID=513Iw7EZ4pL&ref=plSrch

As a huge fan of both board games, and The Walking Dead, I feel obligated to enter! Almost impossible to pick just one game, but I'll limit myself to two:

7 Wonders is a great game, and the expansions add some pretty cool extra aspects to it

Betrayal at House on the Hill i super fun, and is infinitely replayable.

Here is my handwriting!

Scanning over it I can't seem to spot this:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Avalon-Hill-266330000WOC-Betrayal-House/dp/B003HC9734

If you've not got it I would definitely say to pick it up, one of the best games i've played.

If anyone is interested, this game is on sale right now on Cardhaus AND Amazon.

Betrayal At House on the Hill. Kickass board game. Also, Batman Year One and Identity Crisis.

I would love THIS as the start to my Doctor Who comic collection. Barring that, I'd love to finally read Civil War.

I think that you'd probably enjoy this board game, though it is a bit pricey for this contest. I think. Still, something you may want to add to your own list.

For realsies though, this book, it's a sequel to "I Want My Hat Back" and looks to be just as cute.

Betrayal at house on the hill.

https://www.amazon.com/Betrayal-At-House-Hill-2nd/dp/B003HC9734/ref=sr_1_1?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1479207144&sr=1-1&keywords=betrayal+at+house+on+the+hill

You and I share many of the same interests. That being said, This is one of my all time favourite board games. It is really simple to learn and is fun for everyone. Another one of my favourites is this. It is a much more complex game that is different every time you play it. Both of these games come very highly recommended.

Here are some of the games my Movie Night/Board Games group loves:

• Last Night on Earth
  
• Gloom
  
• Once Upon a Time
  
• A Touch of Evil
  
• Ticket to Ride Europe
  
• And my Personal Favorite: Betrayal at House on the Hill
  

Last Night on Earth is an awesome zombie-movie style game with lots of different scenarios and its own soundtrack cd. It's a MUST for fans of classic horror movie tropes...it really feels like you're in the midst of a zombie movie and after four or five years of playing it off and on it still hasn't gotten old for me.

Similarly, Betrayal at the House on the Hill is another awesome horror-themed game. In this one, you and your friends explore a haunted house, placing new rooms as you go, so the house is never the same way twice. Then, "the haunt" starts...it's a randomly selected horror movie scenario that all of you must survive...except for one of you, who is assigned the role of traitor and must bring down the others.

If you liked Cards Against Humanity, I recommend Stupiduel as well, though it's a bit hard to find as it is out-of-print.

I got close, but not as close as Adeno!
Betrayal at House on the Hill comes up at roughly $42.40 depending on the currency converter you use, and since I can't win I'm just using this spot to rec a super fun board game to everyone!

One of my favourite board games is Betrayal at house on the hill - it is just so much fun. You start out working together until you figure out who the traitor is by exploring the house and then you play against the traitor.

It is freaking amazing game.

Betrayal

Werewolf

Coup

Resistance

Pandemic

Anything Munchkin

To start lol

I started out with Smash Up and Eclipse just recently, but have decided that building into cooperative games will be a good idea. Playing against the family to win can get a little old so here you go

Mice and Mystics
http://www.amazon.com/Mice-and-Mystics-Board-Game/dp/B009TNOF9G/ref=pd_sim_t_88?ie=UTF8&refRID=0KNQ99XT8750F8607BXN

Zombicide
http://www.amazon.com/Zombicide-Toxic-City-Expansion-Board/dp/B00DUF0VE2/ref=pd_sim_t_10?ie=UTF8&refRID=04J849JBS2A5T2P71DS9

Arcadia Quest
http://www.amazon.com/Cool-Mini-or-Not-CMNAQ001/dp/B00OZTG1F0/ref=sr_1_1?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1420697185&sr=1-1&keywords=arcadia+quest

Betrayal at House on Haunted Hill
http://www.amazon.com/Betrayal-At-House-The-Hill/dp/B003HC9734/ref=pd_sbs_t_16?ie=UTF8&refRID=0P2B1MF24VSM1S7Z78Z8

Earth Reborn
http://www.amazon.com/Z-Man-Games-7060ZMG-Earth-Reborn/dp/B00408P0Y4/ref=pd_sim_t_17?ie=UTF8&refRID=09Y2SQ87702041CRYXRS

Starwars Imperial Quest
http://www.amazon.com/Fantasy-Flight-Games-SWI01-Star/dp/1616619902/ref=pd_sim_t_18?ie=UTF8&refRID=1SCC3KEAR415S47DTSR0

Warhammer 40k:
http://www.amazon.com/Fantasy-Flight-Games-FFGRE01-Warhammer/dp/161661336X/ref=pd_sim_t_7?ie=UTF8&refRID=0VAXDP387S87HMHRAG1N

Pandemic:
http://www.amazon.com/Z-Man-Games-ZMG-71100-Pandemic/dp/B00A2HD40E/ref=pd_sim_t_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=17TEM60005JS5JRFH1MY

Forbidden Island
http://www.amazon.com/Gamewright-317-Forbidden-Island/dp/B003D7F4YY/ref=pd_sim_t_6?ie=UTF8&refRID=1C8CN9ES44R7428HRT66

Defenders of the Realm:
http://www.amazon.com/Eagle-Games-101253N-Defenders-Realm/dp/B003L5CXW4/ref=pd_sbs_t_27?ie=UTF8&refRID=0BT1ZW81WNGAFS0P3NV7

Battlestar Galactica
http://www.amazon.com/Fantasy-Flight-Games-BSG01-Battlestar/dp/1589944607/ref=sr_1_1?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1420743540&sr=1-1&keywords=battlestar+galactica+board+game

Betrayal at House on the Hill, Say Anything, Talisman - Die Magische Suche (längeres Spiel); gibt so viele coole Spiele

I commented on here earlier, but the thing I recommended was already listed. xD Sooooo Imma suggest some board games!

If you like deck-building games, Dominion is a classic. I didn't think I would like it, but the premise is pretty simple, so it's easy to pick up.

I like the Chinese version of Bang which is called SanGuoSha. It's not always in-stock on Amazon in English; I think right now all the ones offered are in Chinese. I think the characters and items are a little more complex than Bang's, which is why I prefer this version, but Bang is good as well. :)

I also like Betrayal at House on the Hill. It usually makes for a unique experience each time. You explore a haunted house with the other plays, picking up different omens along the way until you trigger "the haunt." The thing is, the haunt varies depending on the character who triggered it, the omen that it was triggered with, and the room it happened in! So there's tons of different haunts making for awesome replayability!

Also, I gotta throw in a recommendation for Lifeboat. Lifeboat is pretty entertaining. The premise is that you're on a lifeboat with the other players. You're trying to get to shore. The person with the most points wins. Each person "loves" and "hates" another player. If the person you love survives, you get bonus points. So you want the person you love to survive and the person you hate to die, but you also don't wanted your loved one to get more points than you otherwise they would win...

Each character has different skills/strength/HP. You get to pick an item card (point items. weapons, health) every round in order. First person gets first pick, but the last person controls the boat. You can choose to switch places with someone, trade with someone or mug someone, or row the boat (you draw 2 navigation cards and pick 1 to add to the stack). If you fight someone (e.g. you want an item but they won't give it to you), all players can join on either side, and the total side with the most strength wins while the other side loses health.

At the end of a round of turns, the navigator picks from the navigation cards drawn from rowers. Those cards dictate who goes overboard and loses health. If a navigation card has a seagull on it, you get closer to shore. 4 seagulls = game over.

It's a super fun game, but be careful who you play with... Some people get REALLY angry or upset when shit goes down. Some people really hate that there's no enforcability... Like if you say you'll trade someone an item but don't go through with your end like a douche, you can do that. Buuuuut I guess if you make too many enemies, people won't take your sides on fights and could work together to kill you first.

Hope this helps!

Not sure if you're still looking for suggestions, but for the guy you could watch some episodes of Tabletop for unique board game ideas. Betrayal at the House on Haunted Hill looks like a lot of fun, link to episode.

As for the girl have you considered a Squishable? They have tons of stuffed animals, almost every girl I know wants one right now. Best of luck!

I see you like board games and table top. I love this game! You build the board as you play and there are like 60 different scenarios. My friends have it, but it'd be cool to have my own copy. You should also check out Munchkin Deluxe and some of those extensions.

Betrayal at House on the Hill works well for exactly 5. It's a storytelling dungeon-crawl-y/exploration-y co-op that usually turns into a 1-vs-all midway through. Running just under $30 right now on Amazon.

Here's the Amazon link.

Cool Stuff Inc also has it back in stock:


>1:25 PM (12 minutes ago)

>Hello,

>This email is to let you know that the following item(s) are back in stock.

>Betrayal at House on the Hill

> If you find that your item is out of stock, other customers may have been waiting for the same items.

> -Thank You Again

[Betrayal at House on the Hill] (http://www.amazon.com/Betrayal-At-House-Hill-2nd/dp/B003HC9734/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1462064532&sr=8-1&keywords=betrayal+at+house+on+the+hill) is a pretty fun one to play, and I've personally never found it to be as complicated as it seems, though, if the kid is the traitor, I could see this being an issue. This one is about a group of friends who go to explore a haunted house. Eventually, it turns out that one of them was a traitor and may have to kill their friends to win. Naturally it has some pretty creepy stuff in it, but it'd be up to you to determine if that's cool. It's right in the middle of your price range, and lasts anywhere from 30-90 minutes depending on how much you focus on it while playing. It can also get very competitive if you so choose.

Another game that I've gotten my hands on recently is [Tokaido] (http://www.amazon.com/Passport-Game-Studios-FNF001-Tokaido/dp/B00ADNLT8G/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1462064716&sr=8-1&keywords=tokaido), a relatively simple game to learn about a group of people traveling along a road in feudal Japan. These travelers must experience as much culture as possible and taste new dishes, take pictures, and visit hot springs along the road. One thing that may suit your fancy about this one is that there is never anything bad that happens in the game. Every decision you make is choosing between a good or slightly better option, which may make it more appealing to a younger player. Relatively cheap, and a pretty quick play, I've enjoyed the few playthroughs I've had with it. It's also fairly simple to teach. You may find it to be a tad lacking in the competitive side of things, because there is really no way to verify your progress without being a nuisance to the other players. It's more of a do a series of things for a certain period of time and see if you did more than the other players at the end type of game. I joke about it being weirdly comparable to Mario Party.

Personally I would go with Tokaido, and I say that very hesitantly because I flippin love Betrayal.

I should point out, however, that the child's ability to understand a game hinges more on your ability to explain it to him/her and not the relative difficulty of the game. Obviously, the complexity of a game's elements will be a factor, but a younger/newer player will much better be able to understand the game if it is explained well to them. Because of this, the best way to help someone understand how to play a game is to play it before you show it to them for the first time, preferably multiple playthroughs.

Good luck, and happy gaming!

Here's another one:

Betrayal at the House on the Hill
http://www.amazon.com/Wizards-Coast-266330000WOC-Betrayal-House/dp/B003HC9734/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1324230230&sr=8-1

It's fucking terrific. Not exactly the same as Epic duels, but it's party and family friendly.

The setup is you select a character, then start exploring the mansion. As you build the mansion (you are all on the same team), the mansion begins to try to seduce each player. The weapons and artifacts you carry to defend yourself all happen to be haunted/cursed.

After several turns the mansion gets larger and larger much like carcassonne. Eventually, someone gets seduced by the mansion... and here's where the game turns amazing.

The betrayer grabs the betrayal rulebook and goes into another room. The rest of the group open the survival rulebook. Both have independent objective based on what happened to the betrayer.

there are dozen and dozens of scenarios... a little girl may become the pawn of dracula, who arises out of the graveyard and begins stalking the survivors. A shitload of spiders may erupt from the basement and the betrayer be telepathically controlling them. All manner of stuff.

This game is solid up until the shit hits the fan and then it becomes AWESOME. The betrayer usually becomes crazy powerful and has a weakness unknown to them. The survivors generally have an alternative way to win that is complicated and requires teamwork. GREAT party game.

YTA because it's no fun for everyone else if you only stay in a game if you're winning.

But, I'd recommend expanding your games to cooperative games like Pandemic (my absolute favorite!) or Betrayal at House on the Hill. This is a great list of cooperative games and you can read reviews on Amazon.

If you're playing a cooperative game, then you and the people you play with are on one team working together against the game itself. I'm pretty competitive (not one of my more charming traits), and cooperative games have been a great addition to my game nights. They're also built in a way that is much more exciting - things can change for better or worse at any time, and losing doesn't drag out. I have fun even losing with cooperative games.