The Universal Monsters have been very important for the horror genre. You can see their presence in horror today in many films. Many directors have claimed that they were an inspiration for their work as well as what got them into the genre in the first place. Now you can play and fight against them in the board game Horrified from Ravensburger.
How to Play!
Horrified can be played with up to 5 players and takes about 60 minutes to complete. The game is meant to be played together. You and however many players work together to defeat the Universal Monsters. Each game can and will be different because you can swap with monsters you face every time. For a more difficult game, use more monsters.
Players all have different special moves and abilities. Players take turns moving around the board and completing different objectives. Each monster has a different specific set of rules that you need to follow to defeat them. Once the player finishes moving and collecting whatever items they need, it is time for the monsters to go.
Some cards indicate how the monsters will move. The monsters can attack the players or random villagers that are all over the board. If the monsters attack too many villagers or too many players, the players lose and the game is over. The game is also over if the monster movement cards run out before all monsters are defeated. If all the monsters are defeated before the cards run out or the kill counter, the players win.
How Fun Is It?
This is legitimately one of my favorite board games of all time. The replayability is so good. With multiple monsters to face and switch out, each game is different.
The fact that each monster has its way of being defeated is such a clever idea as well. For example, to defeat Dracula you have to collect several of his coffins first. Another example is to defeat the Invisible Man, you need to collect an antidote first. Other monsters to choose from are The Wolfman, Frankenstein and his bride, Creature from the Black Lagoon, and The Mummy.
The game is very strategic as well. Each player only has a certain amount of moves before the monster can go. Each time a player finishes their turn, a monster card is used. If the monster cards run out the game is over. So players have to pick and choose wisely which objectives they are going to do. They can switch picked-up items with other players or save villagers as well. It leaves a lot of discussion and is fun every time.
The other thing that is so great about this game is how beautiful it is. The board as you can see above is clearly labeled and the colors pop. The characters and monsters are all designed great; each monster has a character card. The character card describes how to defeat them and gives background information about them.
Overall
Horrified is one of the most fun and creative board games I have ever played. You can tell that it was made by people who have respect and love for the Universal Monsters. It is great for cooperative play and with the many different varieties you can replay it repeatedly. There have even been different spin-off games made based on this one. Horrified: American Monsters has players going against cryptids from around the United States. Horrified: Greek Monsters is another spinoff where you face different characters from Greek Mythology. If you are interested in any of these themes, you need to try out one of these games.
