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Unboxed Reviews

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Downforce

Downforce is our restoration of Wolfgang Kramer’s classic. For nearly 40 years, this card-driven racing game has been the delight of gamers and families. Known by many names – Top Race, Daytona 500, Cleveland Grand Prix – we bring it to you now as Downforce.

Auction or Bidding, Hand Management, Moving Multiple Units, Predictive Bid, Race, Track Movement, Variable Player Powers, Betting

King of Monster Island

We have detected irregular movement on the Monster Island. The volcano is erupting like never before. Monsters from all around the world are gathering on the Island, what is happening? They don’t even fight each other anymore! Because is a greater menace is lurking. Something big enough to threaten every monster and make them fight together against the same enemy… Was this in the script? Wait… Is this a cooperative King of game? In King of Monster Island, players will play as giant monsters who must work together to defeat a titan-like Boss before it finishes building an interdimensional portal. Each turn, players will roll dice to damage minions & boss, heal themselves, gain energy and buy cards, move around the island, activate human support, and increase fame. For the Boss’ actions, they are controlled entirely by the game itself. Using the results of the dice rolled into the volcano, the Boss will move, activate their minions, and attack nearby monsters. Their goal: allow their minions to set up the pylons needed to construct the portal. To win, the players must defeat the Boss before they manage to activate the portal or defeat even a single Monster. Otherwise Earth will be demolished!

Dice Rolling, Die Icon Resolution, Open Drafting, Push Your Luck, Re-rolling and Locking

Keep The Heroes Out

An asymmetric, cooperative dungeon defense game for 1-4 players where you play as the monsters protecting their hard earned treasures against invading hordes of looters (so-called heroes) trying to steal it. In their turn players draw 5 cards and play, these cards allow them to move, activate the tiles they are to perform the tiles actions, attack heroes, and move their units around. After each player, draw and perform cards from the heroes deck. Your goal as a team in every scenario is to survive the 3 levels of threat from the invading heroes by protecting the treasures on each room. If the main treasure is taken, the game ends and you lose, but if you manage to protect the treasures for long enough, you all win.

Action Retrieval, Area Movement, Deck Bag and Pool Building, Modular Board, Scenario or Mission or Campaign Game, Variable Player Powers, Variable Set-up

ISS Vanguard

ISS Vanguard is a new major board game from Awaken Realms. It features a 1-4 player co-operative gameplay that immerses you in an amazing adventure among the stars, as you lead the first human galactic exploration effort.

Dice Rolling, Open Drafting, Scenario or Mission or Campaign Game, Storytelling, Variable Player Powers

Aftermath

Created by Jerry Hawthorne, the designer of Stuffed Fables and Mice and Mystics, Aftermath is the latest addition to the Adventure Book Game line. In a world where all humans have mysteriously vanished, take on the role of a heroic rodent working to protect and provide for their colony. Complete a wide variety of exciting actions while completing missions using dynamic card play. Move quickly for the ruins of humankind are full of predators and calamity may arise at any moment!

Area Movement, Card Play Conflict Resolution, Contracts, Dice Rolling, Events, Hand Management, Line of Sight, Movement Points, Multiple Maps, Narrative Choice or Paragraph, Pick-up and Deliver, Player Elimination, Scenario or Mission or Campaign Game, Stat Check Resolution, Turn Order: Progressive, Variable Player Powers, Variable Set-up

Paleo

Return to the stone age in a new cooperative adventure! Paleo is a survival strategy game for 2–4 players, who form a tribe of people working together to explore their surroundings and undertake the ultimate paleolithic quest: completing a cave painting. Each player begins the game with a couple of humans, each of whom have a skill and a number of life points. On your turn, you’ll send them out to explore. While you can guess what you might find there—food, crafting materials, extra help on your mission—you never know what dangers may await you out in the wild. Be careful not to collect too many skull tokens and lose the game before you can cement your legacy!

Memory, Scenario or Mission or Campaign Game, Simultaneous Action Selection, Variable Set-up, Action or Event

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