Islebound / Similar games
18 games like Islebound
The best games like Islebound are Merchants & Marauders, Nemo's War (Second Edition) and Dead Man's Doubloons — the closest of 18 ranked alternatives, scored by shared mechanics and category. Merchants & Marauders shares nautical, pirates, area movement with Islebound.
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Every alternative below links to its own Islebound-style fact page, drawn from MeeplePick’s nautical / pirates shelf.
Ranked by shared category (3 pts) and mechanics (2 pts), bonus within 0.7 of Islebound’s 2.7 weight, then BoardGameGeek’s Bayesian rating — one entry per series, 18 shown.
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1. Merchants & Marauders (2010)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Pirates, Area Movement, Dice Rolling · 4 shared tags · 2 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (33%)vs Islebound: overlaps at 2–4 players · ~90 min longer · +0.5 heavier
2. Nemo's War (Second Edition) (2017)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement, Dice Rolling · 4 shared tags · 3 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (50%)vs Islebound: overlaps at 2–4 players · plays solo · about the same length · +0.4 heavier
3. Dead Man's Doubloons (2018)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Pirates, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement, Dice Rolling · 5 shared tags · 3 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (50%)vs Islebound: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 6 · ~45 min shorter · 0.2 lighter
4. Forgotten Waters (2020)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Pirates, Dice Rolling · 3 shared tags · 1 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (17%)vs Islebound: overlaps at 3–4 players · scales to 7 · ~90 min longer · 0.6 lighter
5. Rum & Bones (2015)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Pirates, Area Majority / Influence, Dice Rolling · 4 shared tags · 2 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (33%)vs Islebound: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 6 · ~30 min shorter · 0.4 lighter
6. Francis Drake (2013)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Pirates, Dice Rolling · 3 shared tags · 1 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (17%)vs Islebound: overlaps at 3–4 players · scales to 5 · ~15 min longer · +0.2 heavier
7. Manilla (2005)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Pirates, Dice Rolling · 3 shared tags · 1 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (17%)vs Islebound: overlaps at 3–4 players · scales to 5 · ~30 min shorter · 0.7 lighter
8. Victory in the Pacific (1977)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement, Dice Rolling · 4 shared tags · 3 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (50%)vs Islebound: both play at 2 · ~210 min longer · 0.4 lighter
9. Dead Men Tell No Tales (2015)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Pirates, Dice Rolling · 3 shared tags · 1 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (17%)vs Islebound: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 5 · ~22 min shorter · 0.2 lighter
10. The Pirate Republic (2018)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Pirates, Area Movement, Dice Rolling · 4 shared tags · 2 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (33%)vs Islebound: overlaps at 2–4 players · plays solo · scales to 5 · ~15 min shorter · +0.2 heavier
11. Wooden Ships & Iron Men (1974)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Pirates, Dice Rolling · 3 shared tags · 1 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (17%)vs Islebound: both play at 2 · ~30 min shorter · +0.4 heavier
12. Serenissima (Second Edition) (2012)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement, Dice Rolling · 4 shared tags · 3 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (50%)vs Islebound: overlaps at 2–4 players · about the same length · +0.2 heavier
13. Antike (2005)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Area Majority / Influence, Area Movement · 3 shared tags · 2 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (33%)vs Islebound: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 6 · ~30 min longer · +0.3 heavier
14. Endeavor Age of Sail (2018)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Area Majority / Influence · 2 shared tags · 1 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (17%)vs Islebound: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 5 · ~15 min shorter · same complexity
15. Raiders of the North Sea (2015)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Dice Rolling · 2 shared tags · 1 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (17%)vs Islebound: overlaps at 2–4 players · ~20 min shorter · 0.2 lighter
16. Aquatica (2019)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Drafting, Increase Value of Unchosen Resources · 3 shared tags · 2 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (33%)vs Islebound: overlaps at 2–4 players · plays solo · ~45 min shorter · 0.5 lighter
17. Viking Fury (2004)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Area Movement, Dice Rolling · 3 shared tags · 2 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (33%)vs Islebound: overlaps at 3–4 players · scales to 5 · ~30 min shorter · same complexity
18. Dreadfleet (2011)Shares with Islebound: Nautical, Pirates, Dice Rolling · 3 shared tags · 1 of Islebound’s 6 mechanics (17%)vs Islebound: overlaps at 2–4 players · scales to 10 · ~30 min shorter · +0.2 heavier
Frequently asked
- What game is most like Islebound?
- Merchants & Marauders (2010) is the closest match to Islebound, sharing nautical, pirates, area movement. It rates 7.4/10 on BoardGameGeek.
- What should I play if I like Islebound?
- Merchants & Marauders, Nemo's War (Second Edition), Dead Man's Doubloons are the top-ranked alternatives to Islebound in the MeeplePick database, matched on medium complexity as well as mechanics. All 18 are ranked on this page with the shared mechanics shown for each.
- Is Merchants & Marauders harder than Islebound?
- Compared with Islebound, Merchants & Marauders is +0.5 heavier and ~90 min longer (3.2 vs 2.7 complexity on BoardGameGeek's 1–5 scale).
Narrow it down
best 2-player board games · best 3-player board games · best 4-player board games · area majority / influence games · area movement games · dice rolling games · drafting games
Looking for the original? See the full Islebound fact page — players, play time, age and complexity.