Thanks, Mike! I'm a huge fan of your 5 minutes review videos. They always hit the right notes with me. After watching your video, I got the base game and Chalice dungeon from retail and am currently waiting for my preorder of The Forbidden Woods.
@@OneStopCoopShop Yeah, I really hope it's gonna be fun. I haven't played it yet, but the best part is that it comes with 4 new hunters; doubling the number of hunters in the retail base game.
Hi. Enjoyed the review. Just a couple of questions. What was the house rule you used that you mentioned in the game? 2rd. When you play solo due you play just one hero or two? Thanks. It's a game i have not got but have been tempted with.
The most important and pretty much necessary house rule is to not restart a campaign if you lose one scenario. That’s just dumb. We also tend to ignore the final reset spots near the end of the time track, because otherwise we can get into unwinnable situations with bosses. And to your solo question, I switched off. 1 hero is faster and easier to run, but 2 offers more interesting tactical choices.
Thanks Mike! Great video. I've been going back and forth with this game - and it looks like you have as well! It's actually that turn track "reset" that really turns me off, but yeah - that combat system looks like a ton of fun. So yup ... still on the fence!
I THINK I'm keeping mine (but you know how much that is worth, lol), but it's a tough one to confidently recommend to others. I've heard from many who love it, and many who are ho-hum or actively dislike it. And personally, I can't fully separate my love for the IP from the game...
I will say that in the flavor of blood borne it makes sense enemies reset when you die and the bosses go back to full health . It’s exactly the same in the video games so it’s actually amazing flavor wise. Bloodborne the video game is hard and the git gud aspect to the board game makes sense
Awesome review and totally agree! I swore off CMON after pledging for bloodborne Bc of the delays and increased shipping cost. The final product really exceeded my expectations, so I’m back on the CMON train. I house rule the campaign reset by only removing the upgrades I earned during the failed chapter and starting the chapter over. I have the all in pledge, so let me know if you want to try out some of the expansions!
Oh man, that is a tempting offer for sure. I was thinking I might buy the Chalice set next, if only for the extra hunters (I've heard the balance on that mode can be a little rough). And by the way, you do the campaign the exact same way I do! I DO keep the player cards I earned (because I couldn't remember which ones to remove anyway), but yeah, guns and rewards and such go back unless I do that insight quest again.
@@OneStopCoopShop I don’t replace the exact upgrade cards (I can’t remember either), but just the amount of upgrades I earned that chapter. I haven’t tried chalice dungeon. Other games keep popping up lol. Just another reason I love the game - the campaigns are short enough that I can pack up and play another game the next night. Another house rule for the timer could be you only move the track forward for the hunters dream if you choose to go there and not when you die. I haven’t had too much of an issue with the timer, so haven’t tried it. Just let me know if you can’t find chalice for a reasonable price.
Oh interesting idea for not moving it when you die. Especially since you already lose blood echoes. Though I could see some weird strategies coming out of that, like dying on purpose to teleport across the map...
Thanks for the review. What about the components? Some other reviews I've seen mention there are some poor quality components in the game (mostly the tiles). I do wish you'd mention the components in your reviews as for me that is a factor in if I'll purchase something or not.
Ah, sorry about that. As a game designer myself, I constantly play games in a ll forms (on tts, dirty hand-made prototypes, etc.), so components are generally never a focus for me unless they are REALLY bad or REALLY good :). My reviews focus on the game mechanics But to your question, the miniatures are nice and solid. The insert is workable, with spaces for things, though I found it much easier to play with a little plano (easier to get tokens when needed). The card stock seemed fine. I didn't need to sleeve anything. But yes, the player boards, location tiles, and paper/cardboard components in general felt maybe a BIT thinner than I would like, especially the player boards. Nothing deal-breaking, and nothing was damaged for me.
Thank you for the fair review! You certainly redeemed yourself from the Apex Theropod review :) I agree with at least 90% of these points, just from seeing playthroughs on here. And between getting Bloodborne or Dark Souls the Board Game, I'm going with Dark Souls. The extended ruleset that's compiled on BGG is a treasure, and from what I see, corrects many things that people didn't like with the game when it first came out 4 years ago.
The battle system is simply great and is what makes the game for me. That and it's the only game my son has repeatedly asked to play with me in.... years? Also have the Chalice expansion and the Blood Moon box, adds LOTS of key things like new characters to play, new monsters, and a 1 off way to play in the dungeons. Very exciting that there are SO many expansions for this game. Quite pleased with this one, great points in your review for people to consider, thanks Mike!
@@OneStopCoopShop I know that boardgamerants gushed about this game in his review for it. He said it's in his top 10 for 2021. I just don't see it. From the honest review that you gave, it's not top 10 worthy. People can praise the combat system all they want, but it doesn't make the game. You need to see the forest from the trees here.
Great review !! That should summarize perfectly what the game is about. I think I will not like the rushed exploration. I definitely prefer games without a timer and with narrative encounters.
Awesome! Thanks for the review [and the playthroughs] ! Would you say the base game by itself feels like a satisfying and complete experience? Sorta between just grabbing the base box and calling it a day, and going all in and trying to track down all the expansions .
That’s all I have, and there’s a lot of good stuff in there. I might eventually get the Chalice expansion (it has more hunters, which is the thing most lacking from the core), or a campaign expansion, but I expect to be good for a while!
Hmmmm, Street Masters feels VERY different. This is more of a dungeon crawler, that one is more of a brawl, but both could probably fit in that hour timeframe once you know the play.
Thank you for the honest review. This game wasn't for me (even though I played the video game). The true enemy is in fact the turn track. And combat with the minions should be avoided or you loss your live or too much time in the Hunters Dream afterwards. Fewer reset points on the turn track could have helped to flatten the swinginess.
Yeah, I agree about fewer reset points. I also dislike that they get closer together at the end of the track. I get that they were probably going for increases tension, but when they only give you a single turn to overcome phase 2 of a boss... it's not fun to realize victory is impossible :(
This is the biggest problem with this game (and others designed like it). That the real enemy is the timer...not the actual enemy minions or bosses. It kills the immersion. And you can almost instantly tell a few turns off if you are going to lose or not. Bad tile order, high boss health, poor starting hand. You can basically see the writing on the wall. And if you lose in a third chapter you must (by the default rules) reset the entire game to the first chapter. The problem is that the entire game is balanced around the timer. The fan created rule variants without the timer become too imbalanced favoring the player.
If this is the only problem for people (and I get that video gamers especially moving to a board game like this will not like this mechanic but experienced boardgamers know you need something to add the challenge and tension to these types of games) then it is easily house-ruled - cover up some of the reset points, only move the counter for every two Hunter's Dream ... I'm sure there are pretty of simple simple tweaks people can make so they enjoy the best parts of this game.
played a friends copy and yea the turn timer killed the game for me ,just wasnt fun with it so I just didn't use it and gave myself 4 lives.I do enjoy how the campaign happens gonna look for a game that has that type of element.
If you want branching narrative, there are several games that do it in campaign format or one-off play. Like Arkham Horror 3rd does a nice job in one-off.
0:00 - Introduction
0:35 - Hunters and Upgrades
1:34 - Exploration
2:18 - Turn Timer
3:07 - Combat
3:44 - Campaign Structure
4:53 - Final Thoughts
Thanks, Mike! I'm a huge fan of your 5 minutes review videos. They always hit the right notes with me. After watching your video, I got the base game and Chalice dungeon from retail and am currently waiting for my preorder of The Forbidden Woods.
Awesome! I’m really curious about the chalice dungeon myself, since it’s a whole different mode. Hope it’s fun!
@@OneStopCoopShop Yeah, I really hope it's gonna be fun. I haven't played it yet, but the best part is that it comes with 4 new hunters; doubling the number of hunters in the retail base game.
Curious, you still have the game after this 3 years? Love the IP but still fighting if I can diggest that timer track
I do not still have it. And when I was playing it I houserules the time track fairly quickly.
@OneStopCoopShop Thanks to let know Mike! Guess better to get Unstoppable instead. Already watched you playing twice.
Hi. Enjoyed the review. Just a couple of questions. What was the house rule you used that you mentioned in the game?
2rd. When you play solo due you play just one hero or two?
Thanks. It's a game i have not got but have been tempted with.
The most important and pretty much necessary house rule is to not restart a campaign if you lose one scenario. That’s just dumb.
We also tend to ignore the final reset spots near the end of the time track, because otherwise we can get into unwinnable situations with bosses.
And to your solo question, I switched off. 1 hero is faster and easier to run, but 2 offers more interesting tactical choices.
Thanks Mike! Great video. I've been going back and forth with this game - and it looks like you have as well! It's actually that turn track "reset" that really turns me off, but yeah - that combat system looks like a ton of fun. So yup ... still on the fence!
I THINK I'm keeping mine (but you know how much that is worth, lol), but it's a tough one to confidently recommend to others. I've heard from many who love it, and many who are ho-hum or actively dislike it. And personally, I can't fully separate my love for the IP from the game...
Hermann baby! Anything new coming down the pipeline that could rival Dawn of the Zeds in scope and popularity?
I will say that in the flavor of blood borne it makes sense enemies reset when you die and the bosses go back to full health . It’s exactly the same in the video games so it’s actually amazing flavor wise. Bloodborne the video game is hard and the git gud aspect to the board game makes sense
Yeah except the game also resets on random turns regardless of whether you died or not 😅
Awesome review and totally agree! I swore off CMON after pledging for bloodborne Bc of the delays and increased shipping cost. The final product really exceeded my expectations, so I’m back on the CMON train. I house rule the campaign reset by only removing the upgrades I earned during the failed chapter and starting the chapter over.
I have the all in pledge, so let me know if you want to try out some of the expansions!
Oh man, that is a tempting offer for sure. I was thinking I might buy the Chalice set next, if only for the extra hunters (I've heard the balance on that mode can be a little rough).
And by the way, you do the campaign the exact same way I do! I DO keep the player cards I earned (because I couldn't remember which ones to remove anyway), but yeah, guns and rewards and such go back unless I do that insight quest again.
@@OneStopCoopShop I don’t replace the exact upgrade cards (I can’t remember either), but just the amount of upgrades I earned that chapter.
I haven’t tried chalice dungeon. Other games keep popping up lol. Just another reason I love the game - the campaigns are short enough that I can pack up and play another game the next night.
Another house rule for the timer could be you only move the track forward for the hunters dream if you choose to go there and not when you die. I haven’t had too much of an issue with the timer, so haven’t tried it.
Just let me know if you can’t find chalice for a reasonable price.
Oh interesting idea for not moving it when you die. Especially since you already lose blood echoes.
Though I could see some weird strategies coming out of that, like dying on purpose to teleport across the map...
Thanks for the review. What about the components? Some other reviews I've seen mention there are some poor quality components in the game (mostly the tiles). I do wish you'd mention the components in your reviews as for me that is a factor in if I'll purchase something or not.
Ah, sorry about that. As a game designer myself, I constantly play games in a ll forms (on tts, dirty hand-made prototypes, etc.), so components are generally never a focus for me unless they are REALLY bad or REALLY good :). My reviews focus on the game mechanics
But to your question, the miniatures are nice and solid. The insert is workable, with spaces for things, though I found it much easier to play with a little plano (easier to get tokens when needed). The card stock seemed fine. I didn't need to sleeve anything.
But yes, the player boards, location tiles, and paper/cardboard components in general felt maybe a BIT thinner than I would like, especially the player boards. Nothing deal-breaking, and nothing was damaged for me.
Thank you for the fair review! You certainly redeemed yourself from the Apex Theropod review :) I agree with at least 90% of these points, just from seeing playthroughs on here. And between getting Bloodborne or Dark Souls the Board Game, I'm going with Dark Souls. The extended ruleset that's compiled on BGG is a treasure, and from what I see, corrects many things that people didn't like with the game when it first came out 4 years ago.
There's definitely been a strong fan effort to fix that game, which is great considering how beloved the IP is.
The battle system is simply great and is what makes the game for me. That and it's the only game my son has repeatedly asked to play with me in.... years? Also have the Chalice expansion and the Blood Moon box, adds LOTS of key things like new characters to play, new monsters, and a 1 off way to play in the dungeons. Very exciting that there are SO many expansions for this game. Quite pleased with this one, great points in your review for people to consider, thanks Mike!
That sounds awesome! I haven’t tried to teach my son this one yet. He keeps wanting to play Exceed, lol
@@OneStopCoopShop huh, might have to look into that. The 2 player fighting game? Any first purchase you'd suggest to try it out?
@@OneStopCoopShop I know that boardgamerants gushed about this game in his review for it. He said it's in his top 10 for 2021. I just don't see it. From the honest review that you gave, it's not top 10 worthy. People can praise the combat system all they want, but it doesn't make the game. You need to see the forest from the trees here.
Just wanted to say.... yeah buddy!
Whose he main these days?
@@Gutock I just got season 2 (when they had the big sale), so it might be changing, lol. But he's been playing a lot of Polar Knight.
Great review !! That should summarize perfectly what the game is about. I think I will not like the rushed exploration. I definitely prefer games without a timer and with narrative encounters.
Yes, this is very much pushing you toward the conclusion at breakneck speed. Not much time to soak in the atmosphere :)
Awesome! Thanks for the review [and the playthroughs] !
Would you say the base game by itself feels like a satisfying and complete experience?
Sorta between just grabbing the base box and calling it a day, and going all in and trying to track down all the expansions .
That’s all I have, and there’s a lot of good stuff in there. I might eventually get the Chalice expansion (it has more hunters, which is the thing most lacking from the core), or a campaign expansion, but I expect to be good for a while!
@@OneStopCoopShop Thanks again! I went ahead and grabbed the base game!
I've got my eye on the Hunters Dream as a potential purchase down the road =P
Thanks Mike! I need a solid dungeon crawler-esque game I can play in about an hour...this or Street Masters or something else?
Hmmmm, Street Masters feels VERY different. This is more of a dungeon crawler, that one is more of a brawl, but both could probably fit in that hour timeframe once you know the play.
Great review as always. Thank you for sharing with us.
Thank you for watching!
Thank you for the honest review. This game wasn't for me (even though I played the video game). The true enemy is in fact the turn track. And combat with the minions should be avoided or you loss your live or too much time in the Hunters Dream afterwards. Fewer reset points on the turn track could have helped to flatten the swinginess.
Yeah, I agree about fewer reset points. I also dislike that they get closer together at the end of the track. I get that they were probably going for increases tension, but when they only give you a single turn to overcome phase 2 of a boss... it's not fun to realize victory is impossible :(
This is the biggest problem with this game (and others designed like it). That the real enemy is the timer...not the actual enemy minions or bosses. It kills the immersion. And you can almost instantly tell a few turns off if you are going to lose or not. Bad tile order, high boss health, poor starting hand. You can basically see the writing on the wall. And if you lose in a third chapter you must (by the default rules) reset the entire game to the first chapter.
The problem is that the entire game is balanced around the timer. The fan created rule variants without the timer become too imbalanced favoring the player.
@@Howard.Stern. Very true. For example: Sword & Sorcery has a timer too and it was much much better implemented and executed.
If this is the only problem for people (and I get that video gamers especially moving to a board game like this will not like this mechanic but experienced boardgamers know you need something to add the challenge and tension to these types of games) then it is easily house-ruled - cover up some of the reset points, only move the counter for every two Hunter's Dream ... I'm sure there are pretty of simple simple tweaks people can make so they enjoy the best parts of this game.
played a friends copy and yea the turn timer killed the game for me ,just wasnt fun with it so I just didn't use it and gave myself 4 lives.I do enjoy how the campaign happens gonna look for a game that has that type of element.
If you want branching narrative, there are several games that do it in campaign format or one-off play. Like Arkham Horror 3rd does a nice job in one-off.