The best games set in the Cold War 🧊⚔️ 2023

Looking for a party game set during the Cold War 🧊⚔️? We have a list of the best 30 Cold War games.

What is the Cold War?

The Cold War was a post-World War II state of geopolitical tension between the powers of the Eastern Bloc (the Soviet Union and its satellite states) and the powers of the Western Bloc (the United States, its NATO allies, and others).

Period ca. 1947 to 1989.

Historians do not fully agree on dates, but a common time frame is the period between 1947, (the year the Truman Doctrine was announced, a U.S. foreign policy that pledged to help nations threatened by Soviet expansionism) and either 1989 (when communism fell in Eastern Europe) or 1991 (when the Soviet Union collapsed).

Proxy wars

The term "cold" is used because there was no large-scale fighting directly between the two sides, but both sides each supported large regional wars known as "proxy wars."

Interested in histrorics, politics or war games?

We have created some more lists:

list with the best cold-war-society-games 2023 🧊⚔️

This list was last updated on June 1, 2023. We compared 141 board games for this list and selected the top 30. There's also a print version for this list.
  1. Pandemic Legacy: Season 0

    All details for the board game Pandemic Legacy: Season 0 and similar games
    • 2 - 4 Players
    • 45 - 60 Minutes
    • 14+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
    👍 Good price!50€ atAmazon.de

    Video reviews for Pandemic Legacy: Season 0

    • YouTube Review for the game "Pandemic Legacy: Season 0" by Shut Up & Sit Down
      Video is in English
    • YouTube Review for the game "Pandemic Legacy: Season 0" by Shut Up & Sit Down
      Video is in English
    • YouTube Review for the game "Pandemic Legacy: Season 0" by Shut Up & Sit Down
      Video is in English
    • YouTube Review for the game "Pandemic Legacy: Season 0" by BoardGameGeek
      Video is in English
  2. Twilight Struggle

    All details for the board game Twilight Struggle and similar games

    Nominated for 6 awards and won 5.

    More details for Twilight Struggle
    • 2 Players
    • 120 - 180 Minutes
    • 13+ years old
    • Hard to learn
  3. 13 Days: The Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962

    All details for the board game 13 Days: The Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962 and similar games
    • 2 Players
    • 45 Minutes
    • 10+ years old
    • Easy to learn
  4. Vienna Connection

    All details for the board game Vienna Connection and similar games

    🔥 Deal: 22% cheaper than the best Geizhals deal, likely for a short time only!

    More details for Vienna Connection
    • 1 - 5 Players
    • 120 - 180 Minutes
    • 16+ years old
    • Easy to learn
    🔥 Great price!20€ atAmazon.de
  5. Kompromat

    All details for the board game Kompromat and similar games
    • 2 Players
    • 30 Minutes
    • 8+ years old
    • Easy to learn
    👍 Good price!13€ atAmazon.de
  6. Secrets

    All details for the board game Secrets and similar games

    Nominated for 1 award.

    More details for Secrets
    • 4 - 8 Players
    • 15 - 35 Minutes
    • 10+ years old
    • Immediately playable

    Video reviews for Secrets

    • YouTube Review for the game "Secrets" by Shut Up & Sit Down
      Video is in English
    • YouTube Review for the game "Secrets" by BoardGameGeek
      Video is in English
  7. Gorbachev: The Fall of Communism

    All details for the board game Gorbachev: The Fall of Communism and similar games
    • 1 Players
    • 30 - 60 Minutes
    • 12+ years old
    • Easy to learn
  8. Cold War: CIA vs KGB

    All details for the board game Cold War: CIA vs KGB and similar games
    • 2 Players
    • 30 - 60 Minutes
    • 12+ years old
    • Easy to learn
  9. Iron Curtain

    All details for the board game Iron Curtain and similar games
    • 2 Players
    • 20 - 30 Minutes
    • 10+ years old
    • Easy to learn
  10. 1960: The Making of the President

    All details for the board game 1960: The Making of the President and similar games
    • 2 Players
    • 90 - 120 Minutes
    • 12+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
  11. Space Explorers

    All details for the board game Space Explorers and similar games
    • 2 - 4 Players
    • 20 - 40 Minutes
    • 10+ years old
    • Easy to learn
  12. Confusion: Espionage and Deception in the Cold War

    All details for the board game Confusion:  Espionage and Deception in the Cold War and similar games
    • 2 Players
    • 30 - 45 Minutes
    • 12+ years old
    • Easy to learn
  13. 1989: Dawn of Freedom

    All details for the board game 1989: Dawn of Freedom and similar games
    • 2 Players
    • 150 Minutes
    • 12+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
  14. Days of Ire: Budapest 1956

    All details for the board game Days of Ire: Budapest 1956 and similar games
    • 1 - 4 Players
    • 60 - 90 Minutes
    • 10+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
  15. Angola

    All details for the board game Angola and similar games

    Nominated for 1 award.

    More details for Angola
    • 2 - 4 Players
    • 480 Minutes
    • Medium difficulty
  16. 13 Minutes: The Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962

    All details for the board game 13 Minutes: The Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962 and similar games

    Nominated for 1 award.

    🔥 Deal: 27% cheaper than the best Geizhals deal, likely for a short time only!

    More details for 13 Minutes: The Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962
    • 2 Players
    • 13 Minutes
    • 10+ years old
    • Easy to learn
    🔥 Great price!18€ atAmazon.de
  17. Modern Land Battles: Target Acquired

    All details for the board game Modern Land Battles: Target Acquired and similar games
    • 2 - 6 Players
    • 60 Minutes
    • 10+ years old
    • Easy to learn
  18. Quartermaster General: The Cold War

    All details for the board game Quartermaster General: The Cold War and similar games
    • 3 - 6 Players
    • 90 - 120 Minutes
    • 14+ years old
    • Medium difficulty

    Video reviews for Quartermaster General: The Cold War

    • YouTube Review for the game "Quartermaster General: The Cold War" by BoardGameGeek
      Video is in English
    • YouTube Review for the game "Quartermaster General: The Cold War" by BoardGameGeek
      Video is in English
  19. Hearts and Minds: Vietnam 1965-1975 (Third Edition)

    All details for the board game Hearts and Minds: Vietnam 1965-1975 (Third Edition) and similar games
    • 1 - 2 Players
    • 45 - 360 Minutes
    • 15+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
  20. Wir sind das Volk!

    All details for the board game Wir sind das Volk! and similar games

    Nominated for 5 awards and won 2.

    More details for Wir sind das Volk!
    • 2 Players
    • 60 - 150 Minutes
    • 12+ years old
    • Hard to learn
  21. Covert

    All details for the board game Covert and similar games
    • 2 - 4 Players
    • 45 - 90 Minutes
    • 13+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
  22. Fire in the Lake

    All details for the board game Fire in the Lake and similar games

    Nominated for 2 awards and won 1.

    More details for Fire in the Lake
    • 1 - 4 Players
    • 180 Minutes
    • Hard to learn
  23. Europe Divided

    All details for the board game Europe Divided and similar games

    Nominated for 1 award.

    More details for Europe Divided
    • 2 Players
    • 60 - 75 Minutes
    • 12+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
  24. 1969

    All details for the board game 1969 and similar games

    Nominated for 1 award.

    More details for 1969
    • 2 - 5 Players
    • 90 Minutes
    • 10+ years old
    • Easy to learn
  25. 1955: The War of Espionage

    All details for the board game 1955: The War of Espionage and similar games
    • 2 Players
    • 15 - 45 Minutes
    • 13+ years old
    • Easy to learn
  26. LEADERS: The Combined Strategy Game

    All details for the board game LEADERS: The Combined Strategy Game and similar games
    • 2 - 6 Players
    • 120 - 180 Minutes
    • 13+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
  27. Colonial Twilight: The French-Algerian War, 1954-62

    All details for the board game Colonial Twilight: The French-Algerian War, 1954-62 and similar games
    • 1 - 2 Players
    • 90 - 300 Minutes
    • 12+ years old
    • Hard to learn
    🔥 Great price!83€ atAmazon.de
  28. Nights of Fire: Battle for Budapest

    All details for the board game Nights of Fire: Battle for Budapest and similar games
    • 1 - 3 Players
    • 60 - 90 Minutes
    • 14+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
  29. Wir sind das Volk!: 2+2

    All details for the board game Wir sind das Volk!: 2+2 and similar games
    • 4 Players
    • 180 - 200 Minutes
    • 12+ years old
    • Hard to learn
  30. Blue Water Navy: The War at Sea

    All details for the board game Blue Water Navy: The War at Sea and similar games
    • 2 Players
    • 60 - 960 Minutes
    • Hard to learn

Didn't find the game you were looking for?

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