The best horror board game of 2023

Unmatched, a series of games in which you can mix and match characters from mythology and pop culture to go head-to-head in a tactical battle, doesn’t sound like much of a horror game. . But Cobble and Fog does the action on the streets of Victorian London with characters like Dracula, The Invisible Man and Jekyll & Hyde. Each has their own deck that takes advantage of a simple rule framework with fun and exciting special effects: Dracula, for example, can lure and hypnotize opponents and drain their blood. Between them, the four characters here weave an atmosphere of true gothic horror. Cobble and Fog is about the best in the entire Unmatched series, and it’s also a great introduction to its broader appeal. View ours Unmatched: Review of Cobble and Fog For more details.

bloody inn

• Number of players: 1-4
• Playing time: 45-60 minutes

This bloody inn boasts one of the strangest themes in all of board games: players take the role of innkeepers trying to increase profits by robbing and killing their guests. In practical terms, this is done by paying with other cards from your hand to recruit or kill guests, or build outbuildings for your inn to bury bodies. It’s a classic case of competing priorities, with everything having a precondition to do something else, dramatically animated by spooky concept and sinister art. And much more strategy compared to the first may be obvious, with several addendums and recruited guests will give you a discount at checkout for future actions.

AuZtralia

• Number of players: 1-4
• Playing time: 30-120 minutes

Real-world Australians might be offended by portraying their home as an island full of monsters, but that makes for a gripping horror game. The player spends the early part of the game building a network of transcontinental trains, defeating Lovecraftian monsters on the way to access precious resources and building farms. About halfway through, the speed increases as the monsters start attacking again, destroying your infrastructure and potentially wiping out humanity entirely, resulting in all players losing. It’s a weird combination but it works well, providing an interesting theme, exciting combat, and strategy and building routes that combine all at once and make the game engaging. widely.

unfathomable

• Number of players: 3-6
• Playing time: 2-4 hours

A few years ago, there was a pretty excellent board game based on the Battlestar Galactica TV show, in which the player had a hidden role and the party had to try to eliminate the traitors while guiding the spaceship back to Earth. soil. It’s now been reborn with a horror theme, with a steamship being attacked by a Lovecraftian monster as it crosses the ocean. Players are passengers who need to work together to save the ship or secret followers who must silently sabotage all efforts to prevent crises from unfolding every turn. The highlight of the show is the way players place face-down cards in a stack that can either boost or undermine efforts to prevent disaster, leaving the team with bits of information to guess who might be. cuckoo in the nest. The excellent production values ​​we’ve come to expect from the publisher of Fantasy Flight also help a lot. View ours confusing review for more information.

Antiseptic: Black Plague

In the original 2012 Zombicide, you play as a survivor hoping to survive a modern-day zombie apocalypse. The Black Plague changes the recipe by taking you to a medieval fantasy world of magic, dragons and… well, more zombies. You take control of a knight, knight, or mage, among other types of characters as you seek to fend off the deadly magic of an evil spirit caller. This fantasy version of a typical zombie story is fresh and new, and there are plenty of expansions that add new scenarios, player characters, locations, items, etc. If you want more similar options, check out our picks for more Best cooperative board game.

Horror: Universal Monster

It’s a world of monsters, we’re just living in it. In Horrified, your mission is to stop the nefarious plans of the most famous cinematic monsters of all time. Take on Frankenstein and his bride, Werewolf, Dracula, Mummy, Invisible Man and Creature from the Black Lagoon in this easy to learn cooperative game. You will walk the streets of a small village under the force of monsters and must take on the role of one of many heroes. Each has their own strengths and weaknesses when fighting against monsters. If you’re looking for a duel with the horror genre’s most iconic monsters, then Horrified is the game for you.

Arkham Horror: Card Game

• Number of players: 1-2 (1-4 with two copies of the core set)
• Playing time: 10-120 minutes

If you’re looking for more Lovecraftian flavor, then Arkham Horror: The Card Game is without a doubt. The base game comes with several mini-scenarios that take you directly into the mysterious jaws of the universe. You can use the recommended starting decks or build a custom deck that focuses on the special abilities of your chosen investigator. The game sees you jumping from one location to another in search of clues to continue the story while trying to thwart the deadly Mythos deck. Your investigator is sure to get injured and suffer from weaknesses over time that could affect future games in the campaign, making Arkham Horror: The Card Game one of the more themed games. top on this list. Also, check out our list of Best deck building game.

death of winter

• Number of players: 2-5
• Playing time: 45-210 minutes

Dead of Winter is like a board game version of The Walking Dead. The game has been described as a “meta cooperative psychological survival game”, meaning that, while it is cooperative, there are competitive elements throughout the game. Each player controls a group of zombie apocalypse survivors and must all work together to achieve a common goal. In addition, you will also work towards your own hidden goals. Sometimes that means stocking up on the most potions or stocking the most ammo. Other times, you might just want to betray the team and ruin the team’s morale. Either way, though, there’s no way to trust anyone at the table thanks to group politics and the interpersonal drama Dead of Winter brings.

Ultimate werewolf one night

The game popularized the entire “secret role” mechanics that are now common to start the game setting, The Ultimate Werewolf one night will have your team hurling accusations and insults around the table. The goal is to find out who the werewolves are and expose them, but that’s easier said than done. There are other characters that can switch roles around and even see which roles aren’t played during the round. Because no one can be sure who the werewolf is (including werewolves themselves), each game is a series of chaotic accusations and desperate defenses that always end at an opportune moment. The short rounds and the free phone app make setup easy, making One Night the ideal party game.

Last night on earth

• Number of players: 2-6
• Playing time: 60-90 minutes

An homage to b-horror movies, Last Night on Earth plays out like an early Romero movie. You and your friends control characters that fall into typical horror archetypes like the cold high school student or the weird eccentric kid. Each scenario offers different goals, from escaping from town by truck to killing a certain number of undead. You can pick up items and weapons that can be used to destroy enemies as you explore buildings. Last night on earth became so popular that it spawned parodies of other genres such as old school sci-fi and high adventure. If you are a fan of the summer camp horror genre, then Last Night on Earth is hard to miss.

Mansion of madness

• Number of players: 2-5
• Playing time: 120 minutes

Mansions of Madness uses the dungeon crawling and asymmetric gameplay of Lower and Star Wars: Royal Attack and transport it to the macabre world of HP Lovecraft. One player takes on the role of Keeper and guides the others through one of a number of pre-written scenarios. As the player travels through the mansion, their actions and choices can affect the monsters they encounter. There are several expansion scenarios available that make your investment more worthwhile. Take your time, though, as Mansions demands no small amount of attention, making it a perfect game for a dedicated group of horror fans.

Betrayal Legacy

• Number of players: 3-5
• Playing time: 45-90 minutes

In the original Betrayal at House on the Hill, the player explores a haunted house, room by room, until they trigger an official betrayal, when an unsuspecting player turns against the survivors. back in the group. In Legacy of Betrayal, this recipe is expanded into a campaign-length legacy game that takes place in the prologue and 13 chapters. The story spans decades and features players as generations of families, all of whom have fallen victim to the haunting of a single house. Simulating a haunted house in every sense of the concept, Betray Legacy is both spooky and novel.

Dracula’s Wrath

• Number of players: 2-5
• Playing time: 120-180 minutes

The Fury of Dracula is an asymmetrical game in which one player assumes the role of Dracula and the other a hunter seeking to end his reign of terror. Dracula players secretly move across Europe every turn, exerting their influence and building a new army of vampires. The hunters must deduce Dracula’s location and take him down before his army grows too large. While there is combat involved, The Fury of Dracula is primarily a mind match; How long can Dracula hide from the hunters? How well can hunters decipher Dracula’s whereabouts? It’s a thrilling cat-and-mouse game that is endlessly replayable.