The best Pandemic games and variants⎇ 2024

Looking for a really good Pandemic variant⎇? Then you've come to the right place. We have compared all Pandemic versions and listed the best variants 2024.

What is special about Pandemic board games?

Pandemic is a family of (mostly) cooperative board games designed by Matt Leacock (several times in collaboration with Thomas Lehmann and others) and published by Z-Man Games, Inc. The games are (generally) based on the premise that multiple diseases have broken out in the world, each threatening to wipe out a region. The game differs from most board games in that it is based on cooperation rather than competition. Through the combined efforts of all players, the goal is to discover all the cures before one of several game-losing conditions is reached.

List of best Pandemic variants⎇ 2024

This list was last updated on February 25, 2024. We compared 23 board games for this list and selected the top 20. There's also a print version for this list.
  1. Pandemic Legacy: Season 1

    All details for the board game Pandemic Legacy: Season 1 and similar games

    Pandemic Legacy: Season 1 offers an extraordinary gaming experience as a cooperative campaign game, immersing players in an overarching story-arc that unfolds over 12-24 gripping sessions. The duration depends on your group's performance and the fate of the world. Here's an overview of this thrilling journey:

    Nominated for 21 awards and won 12.

    ⭐️ Nominated for Kennerspiel des Jahres 2016

    🔥 Deal: 8% cheaper than the best Geizhals deal, likely for a short time only!

    More details for Pandemic Legacy: Season 1
    • 2 - 4 Players
    • 60 Minutes
    • 13+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
    🔥 Great price!45€ atAmazon.de*

    Video reviews for Pandemic Legacy: Season 1

    • YouTube Review for the game "Pandemic Legacy: Season 1" by Shut Up & Sit Down
      Video is in English
    • YouTube Review for the game "Pandemic Legacy: Season 1" by Shut Up & Sit Down
      Video is in English
    • YouTube Review for the game "Pandemic Legacy: Season 1" by Shut Up & Sit Down
      Video is in English
    • YouTube Review for the game "Pandemic Legacy: Season 1" by BoardGameGeek
      Video is in English
  2. Pandemic: On the Brink

    All details for the board game Pandemic: On the Brink and similar games

    Pandemic: On the Brink is an expansion for the popular cooperative board game Pandemic. This expansion adds new dimensions to the base game, offering additional challenges and variability in gameplay.

    Nominated for 1 award and won 1.

    More details for Pandemic: On the Brink
    • 2 - 5 Players
    • 45 Minutes
    • 8+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
  3. Iberia

    All details for the board game Iberia and similar games

    Pandemic: Iberia is a historical variant of the popular Pandemic series, set in the Iberian Peninsula during the year 1848. This version of the game introduces unique roles and challenges as players work together to combat historical diseases like malaria, typhus, yellow fever, and cholera.

    Nominated for 2 awards.

    🔥 Deal: 20% cheaper than the best Geizhals deal, likely for a short time only!

    More details for Iberia
    • 2 - 5 Players
    • 45 Minutes
    • 8+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
    🔥 Great price!50€ atAmazon.de*

    Video reviews for Iberia

    • YouTube Review for the game "Iberia" by BoardGameGeek
      Video is in English
  4. Pandemic Legacy: Season 0

    All details for the board game Pandemic Legacy: Season 0 and similar games

    Pandemic Legacy: Season 0 transports you to 1962, at the height of the Cold War, where a mysterious Soviet bioweapon called "Project MEDUSA" threatens global safety. As newly recruited CIA agents and medical graduates, you and your team are tasked with a critical mission: investigate and halt the development of this deadly pathogen. This game stands alone as a thrilling prequel to the earlier seasons of Pandemic Legacy, immersing players in a tense world of espionage and covert operations.

    Nominated for 5 awards.

    🔥 Deal: 7% cheaper than the best Geizhals deal, likely for a short time only!

    More details for Pandemic Legacy: Season 0
    • 2 - 4 Players
    • 45 - 60 Minutes
    • 14+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
    🔥 Great price!45€ 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
  5. Pandemic

    All details for the board game Pandemic and similar games

    Pandemic is a highly acclaimed cooperative board game where players take on the roles of disease-fighting specialists. Their mission is to contain and cure four deadly diseases that have broken out across the globe. The game is set on a board depicting major world population centers and requires players to strategize and work together to manage the outbreaks and develop cures before the diseases spiral out of control.

    Nominated for 29 awards and won 8.

    ⭐️ Nominated for Spiel des Jahres 2009

    More details for Pandemic
    • 2 - 4 Players
    • 45 Minutes
    • 8+ years old
    • Easy to learn
    👍 Good price!33€ atAmazon.de*

    Video reviews for Pandemic

    • YouTube Review for the game "Pandemic" by Shut Up & Sit Down
      Video is in English
    • YouTube Review for the game "Pandemic" by BoardGameGeek
      Video is in English
  6. Star Wars: The Clone Wars

    All details for the board game Star Wars: The Clone Wars and similar games
    • 1 - 5 Players
    • 60 Minutes
    • 14+ years old
    • Easy to learn
  7. Pandemic: The Cure

    All details for the board game Pandemic: The Cure and similar games

    Pandemic: The Cure is a dice-based adaptation of the popular Pandemic board game. It offers a quicker setup and playtime while retaining the core theme of disease control and teamwork.

    Nominated for 5 awards.

    More details for Pandemic: The Cure
    • 2 - 5 Players
    • 30 Minutes
    • 8+ years old
    • Easy to learn
    👍 Good price!44€ atAmazon.de*
  8. Reign of Cthulhu

    All details for the board game Reign of Cthulhu and similar games

    Pandemic: Reign of Cthulhu is a thrilling adaptation of the classic Pandemic game, infused with a chilling Lovecraftian theme. Players take on the roles of investigators, tasked with a daunting mission to prevent the awakening of ancient evils, known as Old Ones, from their cosmic prison.

    Nominated for 2 awards.

    More details for Reign of Cthulhu
    • 2 - 4 Players
    • 40 Minutes
    • 14+ years old
    • Easy to learn
  9. Fall of Rome

    All details for the board game Fall of Rome and similar games

    Pandemic: Fall of Rome is a unique cooperative board game that blends the classic gameplay of Pandemic with the historical setting of the Roman Empire's decline. In this game, players work together as citizens, soldiers, and allies of Rome, tasked with defending the empire against various barbarian tribes like the Anglo-Saxons, Goths, Vandals, and Huns. The game requires players to strategically recruit armies, fortify cities, and forge alliances to halt the onslaught of invaders.

    Nominated for 2 awards and won 1.

    More details for Fall of Rome
    • 1 - 5 Players
    • 45 - 60 Minutes
    • 8+ years old
    • Easy to learn
  10. Pandemic: The Cure – Experimental Meds

    All details for the board game Pandemic: The Cure – Experimental Meds and similar games
    • 2 - 5 Players
    • 8+ years old
    • Easy to learn
  11. Pandemic Legacy: Season 2

    All details for the board game Pandemic Legacy: Season 2 and similar games

    Pandemic Legacy: Season 2 is an epic, cooperative board game that continues the narrative and innovative gameplay of its predecessor. This game is set in a post-apocalyptic world where humanity struggles to survive after a devastating plague. It offers a unique gaming experience, where players' decisions and actions have long-lasting consequences, making each playthrough distinct.

    Nominated for 10 awards and won 3.

    ⭐️ Spiel des Jahres 2018

    🔥 Deal: 14% cheaper than the best Geizhals deal, likely for a short time only!

    More details for Pandemic Legacy: Season 2
    • 2 - 4 Players
    • 60 Minutes
    • 14+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
    🔥 Great price!42€ atAmazon.de*

    Video reviews for Pandemic Legacy: Season 2

    • YouTube Review for the game "Pandemic Legacy: Season 2" by Shut Up & Sit Down
      Video is in English
    • YouTube Review for the game "Pandemic Legacy: Season 2" by Shut Up & Sit Down
      Video is in English
    • YouTube Review for the game "Pandemic Legacy: Season 2" by BoardGameGeek
      Video is in English
    • YouTube Review for the game "Pandemic Legacy: Season 2" by Shut Up & Sit Down
      Video is in English
  12. World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King

    All details for the board game World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King and similar games

    Nominated for 3 awards and won 1.

    🔥 Deal: 19% cheaper than the best Geizhals deal, likely for a short time only!

    More details for World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King
    • 1 - 5 Players
    • 45 - 60 Minutes
    • 14+ years old
    • Easy to learn
    🔥 Great price!28€ atAmazon.de*
  13. Unlock!: Game Adventures

    All details for the board game Unlock!: Game Adventures and similar games
    • 1 - 5 Players
    • 30 - 60 Minutes
    • 10+ years old
    • Easy to learn
  14. Pandemic: In the Lab

    All details for the board game Pandemic: In the Lab and similar games

    Pandemic: In the Lab is the second expansion for the popular cooperative game Pandemic, introducing a unique laboratory setting where players engage in scientific research to find cures for diseases. This expansion adds a new layer of strategy and thematic depth, requiring the base game to play, and in some cases, the first expansion, Pandemic: On the Brink.

    Nominated for 2 awards.

    More details for Pandemic: In the Lab
    • 1 - 6 Players
    • 45 - 60 Minutes
    • 8+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
  15. Pandemic: Hot Zone – North America

    All details for the board game Pandemic: Hot Zone – North America and similar games
    • 2 - 4 Players
    • 30 Minutes
    • 8+ years old
    • Easy to learn
    👍 Good price!15€ atAmazon.de*
  16. Pandemic: Rising Tide

    All details for the board game Pandemic: Rising Tide and similar games
    • 2 - 5 Players
    • 45 Minutes
    • 8+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
  17. Pandemic: Hot Zone – Europe

    All details for the board game Pandemic: Hot Zone – Europe and similar games
    • 2 - 4 Players
    • 30 Minutes
    • 8+ years old
    • Easy to learn
  18. Pandemic: State of Emergency

    All details for the board game Pandemic: State of Emergency and similar games
    • 2 - 4 Players
    • 45 Minutes
    • 13+ years old
    • Medium difficulty
  19. Pandemic: Contagion

    All details for the board game Pandemic: Contagion and similar games

    In Pandemic: Contagion, the tables are turned from the classic Pandemic formula—instead of curing diseases, players become the diseases themselves, vying to outpace each other in a grim race to eradicate humanity. This standalone game flips the script on the cooperative nature of its predecessors, offering a competitive gameplay experience where the deadliest pathogen wins. With no cure in sight, players strategize to spread their contagion far and wide, mutating and evolving to become increasingly lethal.

    More details for Pandemic: Contagion
    • 2 - 5 Players
    • 30 Minutes
    • 14+ years old
    • Easy to learn
  20. Pandemic: Rapid Response

    All details for the board game Pandemic: Rapid Response and similar games
    • 2 - 4 Players
    • 20 Minutes
    • 8+ years old
    • Easy to learn

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