Zombies, monsters, witches, vampires, all these monsters come out of their mansions and swamps on Halloween. Challenge your fears with this selection of board games. Child, adult, couple or group, there will be something for everyone, but will you have the heart strong enough? Muhahahahaha!!!!
Do you find dressing up too tiring? Exhausted horror series and movies on Netlifx, Amazon Prime and the like? Fear not: the board game makers have you covered. A myriad of card games, board games or role-playing games offer macabre atmospheres to make your hair stand on end. The writing of the Internet has selected a dozen for all ages and all levels
Yoto – collection Halloween :
Yoto, the disconnected interactive speaker has published a selection of tales for Halloween to give goosebumps to children aged 2 to 12. Four cards are to be discovered. The Great Stories, for ages 2 to 8, includes five classics including Bluebeard, The Three Little Pigs and Little Red Riding Hood. The One Thousand and One Stories – Monsters audiobook, for ages 5 to 12, features three stories including The Minotaur. The Witch of the Green Woods, for ages 5 to 8, is based on Grimm’s famous tale. Finally, the card The beautiful stories to shiver contains three stories for 5 to 8 years old. Many stories are also available in French and Spanish.
The Yoto speaker reads smart cards that contain audio books. It also acts as an alarm clock, night light and clock, and avoids any advertising or online tracking.
Yoto player €99.99, cards from €5.99 to €9.99
The Werewolves of Thiercelieux: The Gathering of Villains
For more than 20 years, the village of Thiercelieux has welcomed the most intrepid, courageous and numerous players: more than two million copies of the game have been sold over the last three years… Indeed, as soon as night falls, some villagers of Thiercelieux turn into Werewolves. Charge the survivors to unmask the monster(s) hiding among them. If the game has had several extensions, this is the first crossover with a different universe: here that of Villains, which highlights the villains of Disney works. Play as one of the nine villains or one of his minions and join one of two teams. This new version will delight fans of both worlds.
Game for ages 10 and up, 20-30 minute games for 6-10 players.
The Werewolves of Thiercelieux – The Assembly of Villains ASMODEE, recommended price €13
Zombicide, 2nd edition:
Zombicide is the board game that marked the strong arrival of these games on crowdfunding platforms. This game for experienced players has sold more than two million copies worldwide. Now a classic, the post-apocalyptic survival game returns in an updated version with revised rules (simplified and more accessible), new miniatures and a new function: the black zone. Nearly 25 scenarios promise hours and hours of thrill as you play as survivors in a world overrun by zombies…
Game for ages 14 and up, 45-90 minute games for 1-6 players.
A game created by Jean-Baptiste Lullien, Raphaël Guiton, Nicolas Raoult and illustrated by Eric Nouhaut and Edouard Guiton
Zombicide, CMON Game, 90€
Sticky Cthulhu :
April Fool’s Day of 2020 was not one after all, as the game Sticky Cthulhu et bel is available for purchase. The Lovecraftian cosmic entity Cthulhu has awakened from its long slumber and is hungry. Each turn, a player rolls the dice which define the shape and color of the prey desired by the Elder. Armed with slimy, sticky tentacles, each player tries to catch the matching cards. Be careful not to catch a hunter inadvertently… You will have to be quick and skilful to win. A funny game for the youngest and which allows you to learn about the world of Lovecraft without fear.
Game for ages 6 and up, 15-30 minute games for 2-6 players.
A game created by Théo Riviere and Cédric Barbé and illustrated by Rémy Tornior
Sticky Cthulhu, Iello, 18,90€
The Big Book of Madness :
By joining the school of magic, you expected to be able to cast spells worthy of the greatest magicians and become capable of slaying a dragon with a single incantation. But after a year of study, it is clear that you can barely light a candle… Tonight, everything will change: you have heard of a secret grimoire concealing unfathomable powers and together with your comrades have undertaken to read it . Calamitous mistake! By opening the book, you have just released an armada of monsters… To win in this cooperative deck building game, you have to be attentive to be able to defeat these monsters and keep your sanity, which is put to the test when you manipulate powers. beyond us… Very addictive, some events are real brain teasers that will heat up your neurons.
Game from 12 years old, games from 1h to 2h for 2 to 5 players.
A game created by Maxime Rambourg and illustrated by Naïade.
The Big Book of Madness, Iello, 42€
The Mad Mountains:
Adapted from the eponymous short story, one of H.P. Lovecraft’s most famous, The Hallucinated Mountains depicts a scientific expedition to Antarctica in the early 1930s, a still unknown territory that holds many surprises. A very original cooperative game where each player has different constraints imposed by the madness cards. The heavy and strange atmosphere that is set up over the games is incredible – and although we are afraid, we keep coming back to it. Only downside: the first part is a bit complicated because you have to understand the rules. But then the fun is endless.
Game for ages 12 and up, 45-60 minute games for 3-5 players.
A game created by Rob Daviau and illustrated by Miguel Coimbra.
The Hallucinated Mountains, Iello, 35€
Exit – The Sinister Manor
Finished watching The Haunting of Hill House on Netflix and want to experience the same kind of oppressive atmosphere? Look no further: the Exit cooperative escape room series is for you. Each game contains a unique scenario, playable only once and is reserved for experienced players. The object of the game is to succeed in getting out of the mansion in a set time in order to avoid a sinister fate. Armed with your judgment, a decoder, discover the clues, solve the machiavellian enigmas. We lose track of time as the game atmosphere is engaging.
Game for ages 14 and up, 1-2 hour games for 1-6 players.
A game created by Inka
Exit – The Sinister Manor, Iello, €14.95
King of Tokyo – Halloween
The game King of Tokyo has established itself as a classic of the last decade, very strongly inspired by the video game Rampage, in which the player embodies a giant monster and knocks down the buildings of the Japanese capital. This expansion – which requires the base game to run – adds two monsters: Jack O’Lantern and the Boogie Man. But above all, it introduces the notion of costumes, which allow monsters to dress up as witches, space clowns, pirates, etc. Which adds a new dimension to this already very interesting game. Especially since you can now steal another player’s costume and even combine them. Who hasn’t dreamed of playing King Kong dressed as a zombie clown?
Game for ages 8 and up, 45-60 minute games for 2-6 players.
A game created by Richard Garfield and illustrated by Régis Torres.
King of Tokyo – Halloween, Iello, 14,95€
Smash Up: Holy Monsters
The fourth expansion for the dueling game Smash Up, the Sacred Monsters overhaul, features four classic monster factions: Vampire, Werewolf, Mad Scientists, and Giant Ants. Draw your cards and assemble multi-faction armies of the most unlikely strengths and powers to conquer the world. Very accessible and highly addictive card shuffling deck building game, its replayability is endless. And, above all, the combos gain in depth if we add the previous extensions. And if we play more players…
Game for ages 12 and up, 45-60 minute games for 2 players.
A game created by Paul Peterson and illustrated by Harald Lieske.
Smash Up: Sacred Monsters, Iello, €15
Castle Adventure
This very accessible role-playing game, inspired by text adventure video games such as Manoir de Mortevielle, Monkey Island or Day of the Tentacle, is an ideal initiation medium for discovering the wonderful world of roleplaying. One player becomes the game master and guides adventurers through one of 12 pre-scripted stories. Save a princess or face zombies, the choice of atmosphere is the most varied. It is preferable to start with the first adventures, very didactic, then to be transported in the neat and varied narrative universes.
Game for ages 10 and up, 45-60 minute games for 2-10 players.
See game authors and illustrators.
Adventure Castle, Iello, 25€
The Tyrants of the Shadowlands:
Forgotten Realms is one of the two main sagas of the Dungeons universe.
Favorite of Marilys Vallet, journalist specializing in board games:
“I discovered Tyrants of the Shadowlands thanks to the magnificent illustration on its box, representing dark elves – or Drow – from the Dungeons universe
Game for ages 14 and up, 90-120 minute games for 2-4 players.
A game created by Rodney Thompson, Peter Lee and Andrew Veen.
The Tyrants of the Shadowland, Matagot, €44.95
Monsters:
Joan Sfar is a talented and prolific comic book writer and filmmaker. Fan of role-playing in 2020, he created with Black Book editions a role-playing game in the universe of his albums called Monsters. In an interview he explains his desire to create a fantastico-horror game in a realistic universe where players embody monsters and face everyday problems. A very accessible role-playing game with five initiation campaigns, with a Lovecraftian atmosphere, completely scripted by Tristan Lhomme. Intrigue, fights, horrific, grotesque and funny situations await players who dare to brave the adventure…
A game created by Laurent Bernasconi and Tristan Lhomme and illustrated by Joan Sfar.
Monsters – role-playing initiation box, €34.90, Joann Sfar, Black Book Editions.
