Lazy Horse Games board game rental review

In the transition to a digital world, retailers such as Blockbuster, GAME, and Waterstones have all taken substantial hits as physical products are no longer desired. Blockbuster’s DVD and video game rental service quickly became defunct, leading to its eventual bankruptcy in 2010. Physical, it seems, is on the way out.

While you can play the likes of Monopoly and Uno on a games console, board games have widely been averse to the transition to digital. Often featuring complex boards, rules, and pieces, it would be pretty difficult to translate many of these elements into a digital product. As such, the easiest way to play board games remains right out of a box.

That’s where Lazy Horse Games come in.

If you or your group of friends enjoy playing board games, it can often be a pretty expensive hobby, especially with the absence of board game cafes during the Covid-19 pandemic. New games can often set you back over £30 and, if you only play them once or twice, can seem a bit steep. Lazy Horse Games’ board game rental service allows you to access a selection of board games each month, through a simple, streamlined process.

So how does it work?

Once you’ve signed up as a member, you’ll gain access to Lazy Horse’s whole collection of board games. Games are assigned a credit value depending on their size and complexity, and with four credits granted each month, you’ll be able to rent between one and four games per month depending on the games you want.

I’m not going to review the board games I rented this month (Downforce and No Thanks – both were very good) as that is not the point of this review. The collection of games offered by Lazy Horse Games is pretty expansive, stretching across most board game genres, although some of my flatmates were dismayed to find no Monopoly on offer. A few of the games such as, expectedly, Pandemic, were unavailable to rent, presumably because somebody else had these rented, but I can’t particularly fault Lazy Horse here, as the business is still growing in size.

I’d highly recommend Lazy Horse Games’ rental service for any board game fan at university wanting to expand their horizons

When taking into account shipping and protection against lost or damaged games, the pricing of Lazy Horse Games’ subscription is pretty fair. Subscription prices range from £12 to £15 per month – depending on the length of your subscription. Credits do roll over each month, but only if you don’t spend any of them, meaning you won’t be able to rent a Standard Game and save the extra credit left over to rent more games in the next month – something I hope could change in the future.

When my games arrived (which happened quite soon after I ordered them), it came with a detailed set of instructions as to how to both care for and return your games. The level of detail was superbly clear, allowing me to return my games without having to stress about doing something wrong.

Overall, I’d highly recommend Lazy Horse Games’ rental service for any board game fan at university wanting to expand their horizons. It’s a great way to play a variety of different games without having to commit to paying full-price and can easily be split among a student house looking for some fun beyond another Zoom quiz. If you’re still struggling to find a present for someone with a passion for games this Christmas, a board game subscription could be an excellent solution.

Review code provided by Lazy Horse Games