Horrified!

The Stakes Have Been Raised!

Regular readers of my blog know of my great love for the classic Universal Monsters. From the Wolf Man to Dracula, I love them all, so it’s only natural that I picked up Ravensburger’s Horrified game when it was released in October of last year. Between work and family, however, it wasn’t until just this week that I’ve had time to sit down, study the rules, and play the game a few times.

If you’re unfamiliar with the classic films and their monsters that this game is based upon, you’ll have a really fun time teaming up with friends to defeat the monsters and save the village. If you are a fan of Universal’s beloved monsters, you’re going to have an awesome time! There are tons of hints, nods, winks, and Easter eggs from many of the films. They begin as soon as you open the box and look at the folded board.

The object of the game is to move about the village collecting items and executing actions in order to defeat each monster. Along the way you may have to face off with the monsters one on one or watch helplessly as they attack the innocent villagers (who all happen to be characters from the classic films). As heroes and villagers die, the Terror scale goes up. Beat the monsters and save as many villagers as you can before you become Horrified!

The process to defeat each monster is unique. For example, in order to defeat Dracula, you have to destroy his four coffins found at the four corners of the board and then face off against him in a final battle. Each monster also has unique attacks and actions. The Wolf Man, for example, hunts a specific hero until that hero is either killed or the Wolf Man is defeated. These different tasks and abilities creates a unique experience no matter which monsters you decide to battle.

The minimum number of monsters that you can battle is two. Add more monsters to increase the difficulty of the game. Frankenstein’s Monster and the Bride of Frankenstein battle as a team. At all times during the game, one of the monsters is in Frenzy mode. The Frenzied Monster may complete more than one action depending on the card drawn from the Monster card pile. Up to five people can play the game at a time, but for a real challenge, battle the monsters in a solo game! Heroes complete a number of tasks based on their own card and also have Perk cards that they can use if and when needed during the game. I won’t go into anymore specifics, just know that gameplay is clearly explained in the rulebook.

The board, game pieces, and monsters are all brightly colored and quite beautiful to look at while playing the game. Even the box has great graphics on it. I am truly in love with playing this game. I’ll be honest and say that I’ve never been much for these types of board games, but Ravensburger has made a brilliant game here that brings fun adventure and classic horror together!

Thanks for reading my post. If you love board games, you’ll really enjoy Horrified. If you’re a fan of Universal Monsters, definitely give this game a look. It’s really fun to play!