Halloween, a time we fill with; trick or treating, Pumpkin Carving, Scary Movies and … board games?! Gather some friends for a night of scary themes and some spooky good times with my top 5 games for Halloween!
Starting off my list we have….
Selfish (Zombie Edition)
Selfish (Zombie Edition) is a 2 – 5 player quick paced game (20 minutes). Players get straight into the action with its easy to read rule book, quick set up time and little to no space required. The goal of the game is to see if any player can survive and flee the zombie apocalypse.
The game is a competitive PVP (Player Vs Player) and PVE (Player Vs Environment), combining both of these aspects really makes this gameplay tense and unpredictable which is great for replay-ability. The mechanics of the game are simple and very effective, players can come to expect luck pushing, card stealing, sabotaging and even zombifying your opponents! The game keeps all players engaged until the last seconds, as players who have turned into an undead zombie are not out, but with a different goal … eating your opponents brains!
The game ends with either players making it to safety or the game wins if you’re all undead zombies, it’s that simple.
The question you have to ask yourself is this Halloween, will you be selfish enough to give it a go?
Our next game we have is….
Disney Villainous
Villainous focuses on Disney villains finally getting the last laugh! You play as one of Disney’s classic villains Captain Hook, Jafar, Maleficent, Prince John, Queen of Hearts or Ursula in this 2 – 6 player game.
Players are in for a fun filled, but challenging game with play lasting from 20 – 45 minutes. Players will have their own unique player board and cards related to the character they have chosen, each with great designs as well as a unique player piece. Play requires a nice amount of space for a smooth play-through as players will be pulling power tokens from the same pot, which is the game’s currency and allows you to progress and get away with your devious plan. All players will be trying to accomplish their chosen characters goal, but watch out this is a Player Vs Player (PVP) game so your opponents will be trying to disrupt you by adding your characters hero’s, who can stop you from completing your goal, so you must be cunning with your tactics but most of all villainous with every decision you make. Play ends when one player has successfully completed their character’s goal, oh it’s fun to be bad!
So this Halloween do you have it in you to be the best Villainous of them all…?
Oh how time flys, third game on my list already!
Betrayal at House on the Hill
We have all seen a spooky house at some point in our lives, but have you wanted to investigate it?
Betrayal at house on the hill, is a 3 – 6 player game where players will enter the terrifying house on the hill, which is filled with omens, haunts and combat. This tabletop RPG has a heavy spooky theme throughout play, lasting 60+ minutes! It’s a game which will keep you coming back again and again with the amount of content available and the high quality pieces. It’s beneficial to have a big area to play as the board is based on tile laying to create your unique path/layout of the house and you wouldn’t want to miss an exit now would you?! Players choose from 12 different characters, who vary in skills such as Speed, Might, Sanity and Knowledge so you choose wisely. Play starts as a co-operative where players enter the first phase of the game called exploration, this is where players start the process of moving characters into the house and building the board layout. As players move forward they will be met with Omens, items cards and a unique layout of house, when out of nowhere just like a horror film the second phase is summoned and a haunt has begun! Depending on play, players will go back to the haunt rulebook and find out what haunt they will face (50 potential options). This is where play starts to get interesting, hearts start to race and the dynamic of co-operative can turn to Player Vs Player (PVP), Player Vs Player’s or Team vs Team. Once the haunt is ready to play not everyone will know exactly what the haunt is, only that it has taken place and a goal is set. During this second phase players will be working out who they can trust as all players are required to reveal what they are doing but the question is why? Along with combat which uses a unique dice system which gives the game tension and depth. Once players have completed the goal and escaped the house or the haunt has been completed this exciting and terrifying game comes to an end.
This Halloween, beware a betrayal is about to happen at the house on the hill….
My second to last game is….
Escape the Dark Castle
Escape the Dark Castle, with its amazing dark artwork and old-timey feel, quick setup and high replay-ability 1 – 4 player(s) are transported into a world where they must cooperatively work together and choose the best possible characters for this, from a Cook, a Tanner, a Smith, a Tailor, a Abbott and a Miller, who have been locked away in a castle, but there is some hope of freedom!
All characters have unique dice to go with their player card which shows all of the characters strengths such as Might, Cunning and Wisdom. Players can expect quick decision making with gameplay of 20 – 40 minutes, RPG style, no particular turn order, choose your own story, roll and write aspects, as well as push your luck tactics.
The game consists of 53 chapter cards, shuffle them and pick 15 to create your unique story, blind pick one of the five bosses and put that card to back of the 15 card chapter deck, turn over the top item cards for each player and as quick as that play starts with player’s being thrown into it a world with tense decision making, intriguing story telling and terrifying enemies! Dice rolling is unpredictable and thrilling, with every roll feeling closer to freedom. The game ends with players escaping the dark castle and defeating the final boss or falling to their demise in their attempt to escape!
Will you be able to Escape the Dark Castle this Halloween?
My final game for my list is….
Zombicide Gear up
This is a great spin-off of the main zombicide game which packs a punch giving 1 – 6 players and taste of that world, but with a twist of flip and write mechanics. This cooperative game is a fast paced zombie slashing good time, with a well thought-out rule book filled to the brim with useful information. The game has two modes, a solo mode and a multiplayer player mode and either way no two games will ever be the same with the amount of content available. There are also different levels of difficulty ranging from easy to nightmare! Players will work through a fun deck of zombies from crawlers to big bosses all with eye-catching colours and great quality. There are 2 rounds consisting of 9 turns in each round, which play in about 30 minutes. During the first round you will be levelling up your character by fighting standard zombies and specialist zombies, if you survive these turns you make it through to the second round where not only are there standard zombies and specialist zombies, there enters a big boss you must fight and defeat! These bosses have extra skills and seem to want more than just your brain! They can bring a power house of damage, so your skills will be tested and if you’re not careful enough you’ll join the undead! The game ends with either the player(s) defeating the big boss zombie or trying and failing!
I think it’s time you gear up this Halloween, and take on the zombies in the zombicide world, don’t you?
And that about wraps up my list for my top 5 games for Halloween, I hope you have enjoyed my content!
Signing off my spooky loving friends, I’ll be back…when you least expect it…and maybe with some more games!
