Elder Sign Board Game - Supernatural Intrigue, Cooperative Dice Adventure! Horror Mystery Game, Ages 14+, 1-8 Players, 1-2 Hour Playtime, Made by Fantasy Flight Games

If you’re a fan of the cosmic horror genre looking for a fun, quick-to-set-up, moderate-length game with excellent replayability & extra options in the form of two decent, mechanics enriching expansions then this should hit the spot, center target. The game play is what I like to describe as “complex farkle” - for those familiar with that classic dice rolling game - in the sense that your main action to complete quests or challenges, defeat enemies, etc. involves rolling specialized dice in an attempt to acquire the right symbols (etched on the dice faces) in the right combinations & amounts, with game mechanics that allow you to store or “bank” certain rolls & re-roll misses. This all happens against the back drop of earthly locations with attached quests goals - represented by cards arrayed in a grid- and where monsters may spawn to increase the challenge at that locale. Additionally, cosmic locations - so called “other worlds” - are also flory introduced & present their own challenges & rewards. All of this is, of course, leading up to either the summoning of an elder god or the heroes prevention of the summoning ritual … or their deaths. The base game has a satisfying roster of ancient ones to choose among, and additional options for increasing the difficulty of challenging them in replay. The two expansions (which I also purchased) add to this roster, as well as introducing new mechanics, new locations, monsters, etc. This is a game that’s perfect for one of those game nights where you want a decent challenge, but also want to maybe have some “hang time” & maybe casually play things out while eating, laughing, & talking. In other words, it’s not going to be the kind of all nighter or beat-over-three-days type of session, but a good tone will be had & you’ll be able to enjoy another game if you’d like or plan other activities without feeling like you missed out on any one kind of thing that evening, if you get my drift. Highly recommended :-)

My wife and I love this game! There are a lot of piece that we keep in small zip locks, but that does not hinder the fun. It did take us a while to read through the instructions in order to get started, and we had to reference them a few times as we played, but it is a relatively simple game to learn. My wife and I are very much into playing co-operative games with each other when we can. The game seems a bit intimidating to set up at first, but the game play itself is very easy: 1. Move your character (or stay put) to any adventure card or the starting card. 2. Attempt to complete an adventure card by rolling the necessary dice combinations. and 3. turn the clock forward. Try to collect as many Elder Signs needed to keep the monster from emerging. If you do, you win, if not, then you have to battle the monster. This would make a great starter RPG-type of game that probably wont scare off newcomers. The first round we played, we won almost too easily. This was partly because we did not follow some of the rules we should have, such as the rule for focusing a roll. We were focusing a die even if we completed an item, which you are not supposed to do. When we played the second time, the monster appeared... very quickly thanks to my lame rolls. The game was much more intense and difficult this time around. There are 16 different characters to play as, and eight ancient monsters to try and keep locked away, which makes for great replay-ability. The art work is beautiful, and the cardboard pieces included with the game a very high quality, and pretty thick. The adventure cards a very large and easy to read. The item cards are small like in Ticket to Ride, or Timeline which are not my favorite size, but there usually is not a lot of information to read, so it works fine. I have not played any other games in the Arkham Horror series, but I look forward to purchasing expansion packs as we go.

I initially saw this played on Wil Wheaton's "TableTop" web series on YouTube and thought "Huh, that looks kinda fun." A friend bought it and three of us have played it 10 times now and LOVE IT. The rules are a tiny bit arcane at first, but once you play through the game once, it becomes second-nature. There's a LOT of strategy concerning which adventures to attempt when, whether to use your items to get the extra red or yellow dice, whether to hold symbols on spells for your friends to use, etc. Warning: the game, much like Arkham Horror, is designed to beat you. Our current split is 4/6 win/loss and in all but one of those wins we were really close to losing. My favorite part of the game is not only the challenge you have beating it, but that it's a cooperative game like Pandemic or Castle Panic; that is, the players vs. the game. Some of my friends aren't very competitive-minded, so playing an adversarial game isn't always fun for them. With Elder Sign, there's no competition between players, which they like. The game plays fairly quickly when you're familiar with the rules; around 40 minutes per game. The materials are very high quality, with cards printed on heavy stock and laminated like playing cards. The tokens are all thick paperboard and also laminated. This game should last a long time with normal care. And since there's no game board to worry about, you could consolidate everything into a box 1/4 of the size of the game box and play it pretty much anywhere. Overall, a great game that has a ton of replay value. This is one that I'll be sure to keep in our regular game-night rotation!

Although I've always been a big gaming fan I only recently started getting into the hobby seriously, after taking some time to read several reviews I decided to make Elder Sign one of the first additions to my collection - and I'm so glad I did. Initially I was interested in Arkham Horror because I really love the theme of the game but its so huge and detailed I wanted something a bit lighter that still had the feel and atmosphere that Arkham brings, which is where Elder Sign steps in. This is set in the same Lovecraft universe as Arkham but takes that rich theme and condenses it into a 60 to 90 minute gaming experience instead of the colossal 240+ minute marathon that Arkham delivers. So obviously this makes Elder Sign a much less intimidating game for somebody who is just getting started in gaming but wants a taste of that dark horror/sci-fi vibe, also at a much lower cost. Just in case you don't already know in Elder Sign you and the other players work together as a group of 1920's pulp investigators making your way around an old museum and completing adventures in the many different areas of the building in a collective effort to stop one of the ancient evil gods from entering our world and basically destroying everything. Overall for me this game ticks so many boxes, firstly it sets up quickly and the various cards and components are all beautifully made with great artwork. Secondly its easy to learn and teach which makes it perfect to pick up and play in a fairly short space of time. Thirdly it plays at a good speed and doesn't ever feel boring, thanks to the fast paced dice rolling nature of the game it gets really exciting at times. And finally the whole thing is dripping with that great Lovecraftian theme, everything from the monsters and investigators right down to the items you collect - it's very satisfying going into a creepy old museum armed with The Necronomicon and a tommy gun. So if you're interested in Arkham or Eldritch Horror but like me you want something more accessible then have a look at Elder Sign. Also even if you have no interest in these other games but want a fun cooperative game that plays quickly and has a solid theme then definitely pick this up.

If you are a Lovecraft freak and love to get all Eldritch with your chosen clan of fellow freaks, then you already know that this has a place on your game shelf!! Arkham Horror-Eldritch Horror- Mansions of Madness-and Elder Sign, there’s really not much more I need to say, love Lovecraft and board games,!?, get yourself a copy and start following the Elder Signs, you won’t stay sane so you will not regret it…

Had a great time playing this with a like-minded sister of mine. The faces of the dice are well thought out and the general rules don't over-push the Lovecraftian theme, but has the artwork and mood down pat! We frequently found ourselves discussing what our next room of attack would be, weighing the odds as to whether our characters may just have the ability to clear the room. Now that my sister is back home with here family, I'll be playing it single player for awhile...

Being an avid fan of Arkham Horror, I got this game to see how it compared. I love the setting and this game didn't disappoint. For anyone who has played Arkham Horror, Elder Sign is a much "lighter" version of that game. For those that haven't, Elder Sign is a great introduction to the setting! TLDR Version: Coopertive Game No Board Cards and Dice, dice pools with match and discard mechanics to achieve success. Items and abilities allow you to modify this pool by granting more, re-rolling, or gaining "special" dice with higher probabilities. Great Art, High Quality pieces, tokens, and cards. Fun, Quick, supports up to 8 players. Simple rules, small learning curve. For fans of Arkham Horror: It's Arkham Horror "light" confined to a museum. Details: The game is board-less, making it good for gaming areas that are smaller, compared to Arkham Horror which takes the entirety of a moderately sized dining table. The game pieces are high quality, as expected from Fantasy Flight Games, and the cards are durable. I especially like the Adventure cards that are Tarot card sized instead of playing card sized, much better. The art is fantastic and the feel is very similar to Arkham Horror. The game plays like a story unfolding as a group of investigators work together to stop an ancient evil from awakening within the confines of a museum. A variety of Ancient Ones and Investigators with different abilities lends a lot of replay value. The central mechanic is the dice pool where you roll dice to achieve certain outcomes to succeed at "adventures" and gain rewards. Most coveted is the Elder Sign which will help the players win the game. Each Ancient One can be sealed away by obtaining a certain number, if the Doom Track reaches full before that time then he awakens and the group is offered one last attempt to fight him back in a "nearly hopeless" battle. (Manual's words) The writing and content is great, looking forward to the Expansion rumoured to come out in May 2013!

Nice dice chucking game. Can be quite easy. The expansion will make it harder.