Solo Board Games: How Playing Alone Works

Solo board games are tabletop games designed or adapted for a single player, where the challenge comes from the game itself instead of from another person across the table. Whether you own a game built only for one player or a large multiplayer box with a hidden solo mode, playing alone usually means following a few extra rules that turn cards, dice or a scripted “robot” opponent into your competition. This guide explains how solo play works, the main systems you will meet, what you need to start, and the mistakes that trip up new solo players.

What are solo board games?

Solo board games are games you can play by yourself from the first turn to the last. They are also called one player board games, single player board games, or games with a solo mode. The term covers two different things: games created specifically for one person, and ordinary multiplayer games that include extra rules so a single player can still get a complete experience.

The key idea is that the opposition is built into the game. Instead of a human rival making decisions, the game supplies a challenge through a timer, a scoring target, a deck of cards, a set of dice, or a scripted opponent that follows fixed rules. Your job is to beat that system. If you are new to the hobby, it helps to understand the general flow of a game first; our beginner’s guide to how to play board games covers components, turn structure and reading a rulebook, all of which apply to solo play too.

How does playing a board game alone work?

Playing alone works because the game replaces the missing players with rules. A multiplayer game normally relies on opponents to create pressure — taking the resource you wanted, blocking a space, or racing you to a goal. A solo game recreates that pressure mechanically so the tension still exists without a second person.

There are four common ways a game does this:

• A scripted opponent (automa or bot): a deck of cards or a dice routine stands in for a rival and “makes moves” against you.
• A scoring target (beat your score): you play the game and compare your final score to a chart or to your own previous attempts.
• A cooperative challenge (beat the game): the game attacks you with its own systems, and you try to survive or win before it overwhelms you.
• A puzzle built for one: the whole game is designed around a single player solving it.

The sections below explain each of these in plain terms.

What is an automa or bot system?

An automa is a set of rules that simulates an opponent so one player can enjoy a competitive game alone. The word “automa” is Italian for automaton, and it was popularised by the publisher Stonemaier Games, whose solo systems are built by a dedicated designer (Morten Monrad Pedersen) for titles such as Scythe and Viticulture. Many people now use “automa” and “bot” loosely to mean any rules-driven artificial rival.

Crucially, an automa is not artificial intelligence. It does not think or plan. It is usually driven by a small deck of cards or a dice roll that tells you what the fake opponent does this turn — how many points it gains, which area it claims, or how aggressively it acts. The designer tunes those cards so the opponent feels credible and offers different difficulty levels, without you having to make decisions on its behalf.

A good automa aims to recreate the feeling of racing a rival while keeping your own upkeep light. Weak automa systems feel like extra bookkeeping; strong ones disappear into the background and simply apply pressure. Because an automa only follows rules, two solo plays can still differ a lot depending on which cards come out.

What are beat-your-score solo games?

Beat-your-score games set a numerical target and ask you to reach it. This is the oldest and simplest form of solo play, common in competitive games that added a solo variant: you play through the game by yourself, total your score, and check it against a ranking table — for example, “90+ points is excellent, 70–89 is good.” The reward is improving on your last attempt, much like chasing a high score in an arcade game.

The strength of this format is replayability: there is always a higher score to chase. The weakness is that, without an opponent reacting to you, the experience can feel like optimising a routine rather than facing a live threat. Modern designs often combine a score target with a timer or a shrinking deck so the clock creates tension. If you enjoy squeezing more points out of the same system, the general principles in our board game strategy guide — tempo, resource efficiency and risk management — translate directly to beating your own best score.

How do cooperative games work as solo games?

Cooperative games adapt to solo play more naturally than any other type, because every player is already on the same side fighting the game itself. Remove the other players and the game still provides the opposition — spreading threats, drawing event cards, or advancing a doom track — so you simply face it alone. Cooperative play is one of the core genres explained in our overview of board game genres and mechanics.

There are two ways to play a co-op alone:

• One-handed: you control a single character or faction, exactly as if you were one player at a multiplayer table. This keeps the game simple but can be harder, since you lose the combined abilities of a full team.
• Multi-handed: you control two or more characters at once, making decisions for each. This restores the team’s full toolkit but increases the mental load and removes the hidden information that some co-ops rely on.

Some cooperative games publish official rules that re-balance the challenge for a single player or add dedicated solo scenarios, so you are not simply playing shorthanded. Campaign and legacy co-ops, where you progress through a connected story, are especially popular solo because you can play at your own pace over many sessions.

What are true solo-only games?

True solo-only games are designed from the ground up for one player, with no multiplayer mode at all. Because the designer only has to balance the game for a single person, these often feel the tightest and most puzzle-like. Many are compact card games that pack a full challenge into a small box — a format you can read more about in our guide to card and dice games.

Two well-known examples show the range. Friday, the first dedicated solo design by Friedemann Friese, is a solitaire deck-building game loosely themed on the Robinson Crusoe story, in which you fight hazards and gradually improve your deck of fight cards. Onirim is a card game playable solo or cooperatively, where you race to collect eight door cards before the deck runs out. Both are examples of how a single-player puzzle can be fully self-contained; they are illustrations here, not recommendations.

What do you need to play solo board games?

In most cases you need nothing beyond the game itself, a table and the solo rules. If a game ships with a solo mode, the rules and any extra cards or tokens are already in the box — there is usually no separate purchase. Learning those rules is the same skill as learning any game; the fundamentals in our guide to board game rules apply directly.

You may need one of the following, depending on the game:

• The game’s solo rulebook or solo section — many boxes include a separate booklet or a few extra pages for one-player rules.
• A fan-made or official downloadable solo variant — if a game has no printed solo mode, players often design one and share it on BoardGameGeek. The 1 Player Guild there is a long-running community that catalogues solo variants and monthly “what I played” lists.
• A little extra table space and a quiet spot — solo play rewards concentration, so a calm setup helps.

Time commitment varies widely: a small card game might take 15–20 minutes, while a campaign box can absorb dozens of hours spread across many sittings.

How do you get started with solo board gaming?

The easiest way to start is to use the solo mode of a game you already own and understand. Learning solo rules is much simpler when you already know how the base game plays, so you can focus on the new systems rather than everything at once.

A sensible path looks like this:

1. Pick a game you already know and check whether it has a solo mode in the box or an official variant online.
2. Read the solo rules fully before setup — solo modes often change the setup, scoring or turn order.
3. Play your first game at the easiest difficulty to learn the automa or challenge system without pressure.
4. Record your result so you have a baseline to improve on, especially for beat-your-score games.
5. Raise the difficulty once the routine feels comfortable.

If you are completely new to the hobby, starting with a cooperative game is often the gentlest entry, because its solo rules are usually the lightest to learn.

Common mistakes when playing solo

The most common mistake is skimming the solo rules. Solo modes frequently alter setup, hand size, scoring thresholds or how the game ends, and missing one line can make a game feel broken or impossibly hard. Read the solo section completely before your first turn.

Other frequent pitfalls:

• Playing the multiplayer rules by mistake: using the standard rules without the solo adjustments usually makes the game far too easy or unbalanced.
• Taking on too many hands at once: in a cooperative game, controlling several characters can overwhelm a beginner. Start one-handed and add characters later.
• Starting on the hardest setting: many automa systems have difficulty levels for a reason. Begin low and climb.
• Cheating the automa or ignoring its triggers: it is tempting to skip the opponent’s steps when no one is watching, but that removes the challenge the designer built.
• Not tracking scores: without a record, beat-your-score games lose their main source of progression.

Who are solo board games for?

Solo board games suit anyone who wants the depth of a tabletop game without needing to gather a group. They are popular with people who have irregular schedules, who game late at night, who want to learn a complex game before teaching it to friends, or who simply enjoy a focused puzzle on their own. Parents, shift workers and students often use solo modes to fit gaming into small windows of free time.

They are less suited to players who value the social, table-talk side of gaming above all else — a solo mode can recreate the mechanical challenge of a game, but not the banter and shared reactions of a group. Many hobbyists happily do both: group games when friends are around, and solo play when they are not.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Can you really play board games by yourself?

Yes. Thousands of board games can be played by one person, either because they were designed for solo play or because they include a solo mode. The game supplies the opposition through rules, cards, dice or a scripted opponent, so you still have a real challenge to overcome without a second player.

What is an automa in a board game?

An automa is a rules-based system that simulates an opponent for solo play. It is usually driven by a deck of cards or dice that dictate the fake rival’s actions each turn. It is not artificial intelligence and does not make its own decisions — you simply follow its instructions while playing your own game against it.

Are cooperative games good for solo play?

Cooperative games are often the best starting point for solo play, because all players already work together against the game itself. You can play one-handed, controlling a single character, or multi-handed, controlling several. Many co-ops also include official solo rules that re-balance the difficulty for one player.

Do you need to buy a special version to play solo?

Usually not. If a game includes a solo mode, the rules and any extra components are already in the box at no additional cost. If a game has no printed solo mode, players often share official or fan-made solo variants online, so you can frequently play alone with the copy you already own.

How long does a solo board game take?

It depends entirely on the game. A small solo card game may take 15 to 20 minutes, a medium game around an hour, and large campaign or legacy games can run for dozens of hours spread across many separate sessions. Solo modes are often slightly faster than the full multiplayer game.