We watch TV and movies. We waste hours. Apparently we have a need to waste time, or at least to spend time doing something other than working, even when our work is enjoyable. Games are a better waste of time than TV or movies. Mix it up.
Different games require different skills.
Your partners will be good at some, lousy at others. Play games you think are fun. The games that are likely to do you the most good are the ones you think are fun. If chess isn't fun for you, regardless of its stature in the gleaming world of the sophisticated set, don't start there. YOU DON'T NEED to find games that stretch your mind.