Let me just start out by saying this: I loved Accomplices. I loved the premise, the artwork, the execution—everything. It also didn’t hurt that this is a true two-player game, a rare and precious find, if you ask me. Sure, a lot of great games have a two-player option, but we don’t get nearly enough that are designed purely for the dynamic duo.
So, picture this: you and your partner are planning a high-stakes heist. You’ve got your black masks, your leather catsuits, and your slightly dubious night-vision goggles. There’s just one problem: the target doesn’t want you to steal their stuff, so they’ve installed fiendish laser defences to stop you getting your greedy little mitts on their valuables.
And here’s the kicker: your goggles only let you see lasers of one colour, while your partner’s only see the others. You’re going to have to communicate flawlessly to avoid tripping the alarms and having the Old Bill called! That’s the premise of Accomplices. Only one of you has the dubious honour of being the one to break into the mansion with the pen, while the other is the crucial set of eyes.
Nitty Gritty Stuff
Each turn centres on a single room displayed on the map. You and your sneakiest friend get 30 seconds to plan the heist. You can talk about the path you want to take, the shinies you want to aim for, and the path to get back out again.
Once those 30 seconds are up, you each don your stylish glasses (think old-school 3D specs but with an elastic back) which will block you from seeing either the red or the blue ‘lasers’ on the board. The person who is drawing has two minutes to rob the place and get back out again.
The biggest challenge is communication. You’re not allowed to point to areas of the map; you can only discuss. And crucially, you can only see half the defences!
If you cross a laser, the first time you cross it, you lose a coin from your loot, but that laser has been tripped now, and repeated crossings won’t cost you any more. You can also snag a treasure chest on the level which grants a once per heist bonus (like a smoke maker that temporarily prevents lasers from being tripped in its area of effect). Once the thief is out, you tally up your illicit gains back in your lair.
What makes Accomplices hilarious is the sheer panic of it all, especially when you introduce the debuffs (one being if triggered, the person drawing can’t talk at all!) and the great components. All in all, the premise and the execution are just great.
Tips and Tricks
· Plan Properly: Make sure you spend your 30 seconds planning properly. Take the time to notice the ‘furniture’ of the room, as this will help your instructions greatly. Instead of saying “I am going left” or “go left here,” saying “I’m heading towards the armchair” gives a much clearer idea of what’s happening and saves precious seconds.
· Don’t Be Greedy: You only have two minutes for the whole thing (or you lose three coins bribing the guard), so you don’t need to get every coin. It’s better to be safe and leave a coin behind than to rush, pass through a laser, and lose more money than you gained.
· Remember the Blind Spot: Don’t forget you can only see half the picture. The path might look clear for you, but your partner can see a deadly red laser right in the middle of it!
Likes & Dislikes
Likes
· Everything. No, seriously. I don’t know if you, dear reader, have noticed, but I really liked this one.
· Ease: There’s nothing complicated here; the rules are simple, but the execution is challenging.
· Communication is paramount and hilarious when it goes wrong.
· It’s designed with two people in mind. Me and my missus are fairly introverted, so a true two-player game is a proper little Brucie bonus for us.
· Plenty of different maps that are even double-sided.
· Even if you had played every map, you could replay them to try and get a better score, and each ‘run’ would be different anyway.
Dislikes
· The only dislike I had was that the sand in the egg timer was hard to see with the glasses on. That being said, the developers have made some music that you can download that is meant to time the phases for you (we just didn’t use that, I’m afraid), or you could just use a timer on your phone, so this is really a non-issue.
Final Verdict
There are no surprises here. If you’ve read this far and think I’m going to say anything other than Accomplices was great, you’ve not been paying attention. This was a blast to play. I would like to personally shake the hand of whoever came up with this idea and float to their boss that they clearly deserve a raise. Accomplices was a fun, easy, and quick game that we will definitely be playing again.
