Ticket to Ride
Tops: "It's familiar (much of the play is based on rummy), appealing (who doesn't love trains?), easy to learn (figure five minutes for explaining the rules, tops) and competitive without being confrontational. Read my full review here" -- defective yeti Matthew Baldwin

The defective yeti's all-time favorite Good Gift Games. These are board games, not computer games. He offers links to other roundups of best games as well, so if you're looking for a new way to bring the family together for fun, this is the place to start.

The yeti -- Seattle programmer and board-game fan Matthew Baldwin -- also points to his annual roundup of good gift games for 2007, now up at The Morning News (2007 Good Gift Games Guide), and to those of earlier years.