Board games the perfect holiday diversion, hobbyist says

If you haven't completed all your Christmas shopping yet, a hobbyist says consider board games for family fun this holiday.

This isn't your average Monopoly or Scrabble, says board game reviewer Paul Dean.

"There's so many now ... No matter who you are, there's something for you," he said.

The board game industry has been growing in the past decade with new games being invented every year. Board game cafs have mushroomed across the country, with some calling the popular pastime a return to "human contact instead of texting."

Five-and-a-half years ago, Dean co-founded a web series called Shut Up and Sit Down that reviews brand-new board games.

"The scene is so big, so varied. It's exciting. We wanted to reflect that. To be funny and irreverent. There was nobody doing that sort of thing when we started," he said.

While some people might be intimidated by the gaming scene, Dean said there are plenty of "gateway" games that make it easy for people to get into the hobby.

"There's so much out there that's fun ... War games or economic games, games of deception, bluffing, diplomacy, silliness all of which are great for Christmas."

Paul's top picks for Christmas

Favourite overall: Spyfall

Spyfall is a question game where one person is the spy and everyone else is in a specific location that the spy must guess.

"Everybody does this by asking each other questions," Dean explained. "If the spy flounders and answers a question like "do you like your job?" [with] "yes I do" and they're at the beach, it doesn't link up and people shout you are the spy."

Best game for kids: Ice Cool

"It's about flicking penguins around a school. It's ridiculous," he laughed.

Stocking stuffer ideas: Go Cuckoo!, Codenames

Go Cuckoo! is a simple building game where you try and build a nest out of sticks and put eggs in it. Codenames another espionage game is a team-based game where each team has to guess their own team's secret agents.

With files from The Early Edition

To listen to the interview, click on the link labelled Shut Up and Sit Down web series helps users pick out board games