12 Games & Puzzles Gift Ideas (2026)

12 ideas from the games & puzzles area of The Toy Shop. Nothing is sold here — pick anything up and it opens a pre-filled search at the retailer.

The gamemaker's floor is for children's games and puzzles: a board game laid open with its pawns and die, a half-finished jigsaw on its tray, a fan of oversized playing cards and a stack of magnetic tiles with a small house built from them. Games for kids are really a gift to the whole household, because a board game is only fun if somebody plays it with the child.

Match the game to the child's patience. A game with long turns and a lot of reading loses a young player fast, while a quick card game they can win without help keeps them coming back. Puzzles for kids divide the same way: a wooden puzzle with a few chunky pieces suits a small child, and a jigsaw with a picture they care about suits an older one who can sit still for it.

Magnetic tiles are the outlier here: a building toy rather than a game, and a set that relatives can add to later.

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Board Game

A board game is a present for a child and an evening for everybody else, so think about who will be playing it with them. The one on the gamemaker's bench lies open on a looping track, with four turned pawns and a die. For a young child, look for short games with simple turns and some luck in them, so they can beat an adult without anyone letting them. Strategy games suit an older child who likes to plan ahead, and they can carry on being played as the child grows. Check the player count against the household before choosing.

Jigsaw Puzzle

A jigsaw is a quiet gift for a child who can settle into something. The one on the gamemaker's bench is half-done on a tray, with its box propped up behind it. The piece count is the thing to get right: too many and it is abandoned halfway, too few and it is over before it was interesting. The age range on the box is a fair guide here, and a picture the child actually cares about makes up for a lot. Wooden puzzles with chunky pieces suit small children. Brain teasers are for the child who would rather have a problem than a picture.

Card Game

A card game is the small, portable end of the gamemaker's floor, and an easy present to give alongside something bigger. The deck on the bench is a fan of oversized cards with a tuck box. Large cards are not a gimmick — small hands find a full hand of ordinary cards hard to hold. A good children's card game is quick to learn and short enough to play twice in a row. It also travels, which a board game does not, so it gets used on car journeys and in waiting rooms as well as at the kitchen table.

Magnetic Tiles

Magnetic tiles are a building toy young children can actually build with on their own. The edges snap together and hold, so a wall stays up long enough to become a house. The ones on the gamemaker's bench are translucent coloured tiles in a flat stack, with a small house built from them. They suit a wide range of ages, and a set gets more interesting as it grows. Check the age marking and make sure the magnets are fully sealed inside each piece. Magnetic blocks and a magnetic marble run are the extensions for a child who already has a set.

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As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Nothing is sold here — every pick opens a pre-filled search at the retailer, where the real listings, prices and stock live. How this works.