This is a list of board games invented, developed and/or published in Japan.
| Game name | Year | Publisher/Designer (Japan) | Players | Gameplay style | Similar Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Go (囲碁, igo?) | ? | Traditional | 2 | Strategic territory and surrounding game | weiqi in Chinese, baduk in Korean |
| Gomoku (五目並べ, gomokunarabe?) | ? | Traditional | 2 | Strategic abstract game played with Go pieces on a Renju board (15x15), goal to reach five in a row | Renju, Four in a row, Irensei |
| Irensei (囲連星?) | ? | Traditional | 2 | Strategic abstract game played with Go pieces on a Go board (19x19); unites elements of the game of Go with those of Gomoku | Go, Gomoku |
| Jinsei Game (人生ゲーム, jin-sei gēmu?) | 1967 | Takara | ? | Japanese adaption of The Game of Life | The Game of Life |
| Renju (連珠?) | ? | Traditional | 2 | Strategic five-in-a-row game with equal chances for both players | Pente, Gomoku |
| Shadow Hunters (シャドウハンターズ, shadō hantāzu?) | 2005 | Game Republic | 4-8 | Supernatural themed, strategic, secret team play | Bang!, Mafia |
| Riichi Mahjong (リーチ麻雀, Riichi Maajan?) | ? | Traditional | 4 | Chinese Mahjong with Japanese rules | Mahjong |
| Shogi and variants (将棋, shōgi?, generals' chess) Japanese chess | ? | Traditional | 2 | Played on a 9x9 board; can use captured pieces against opponent | Chess |
| Sugoroku (双六?) | ? | Traditional | ? | Race game, two variants | Backgammon (variant), Snakes and Ladders (variant) |
Famous quotes containing the words list of, list, japanese, board and/or games:
“My list of things I never pictured myself saying when I pictured myself as a parent has grown over the years.”
—Polly Berrien Berends (20th century)
“I made a list of things I have
to remember and a list
of things I want to forget,
but I see they are the same list.”
—Linda Pastan (b. 1932)
“I will be all things to you. Father, mother, husband, counselor, Japanese bartender.”
—Mae West, U.S. screenwriter, W.C. Fields, and Edward Cline. Cuthbert Twillie (W.C. Fields)
“She hears me strike the board and say
That she is under ban
Of all good men and women,
Being mentioned with a man
That has the worst of all bad names.”
—William Butler Yeats (1865–1939)
“Whatever games are played with us, we must play no games with ourselves, but deal in our privacy with the last honesty and truth.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)