Welcome to The Dungeon, Push-Your-Luck Elements, Disappearing Equipment, Strategy Board Game, 30 Minute Game Play, 2 to 4 Players, Ages 10 and Up

This game arrived late last night just in time for me and my friends to play it. The first thing I noticed is how gorgeous it is. The artwork is bright, it's vibrant, it's stunning. The style is cartoonish but with such detail that it elevates it. Every time I drew a monster card I had to take a moment to just appreciate the artwork on the cards. The second thing I noticed was the quality. The card stock is solid, just heavy enough that I'm not concerned the cards will show premature signs of use such as bending or wearing. (I can be a little OCD about that, I get sleeves for most of my board game cards). The punchboard pieces are exceptional. Nothing bothers me more than punchboard tokens that come out with some tearing or fraying. When tokens just pop out with the slightest touch it's wonderful. A bit messy when you lift it and a few tumble out, but that's a sign of good quality! And the artwork on the equipment and character tokens is beautiful. Like the box the images are glossy on top of a less glossy background, making them really pop out. It's just a delight. But the beauty of the cards and the quality of the tokens is less important that the actual quality of the game itself. I have fallen in love with these "pocket games" and I often have one with me wherever I go for impromptu gaming. This one will displace Tiny Epic Galaxies for a little bit because it's really fun and quick to learn. The rules are simple, and once you know them (it takes less than 5 minutes to explain the rules to a new player) you never have to check the manual again. The monster cards show what equipment defeats them, and the equipment token say what they do on them, making it very intuitive and easy to pick up. The game is also quick, so if you have more than the max of 4 players it isn't a big problem for a couple people to sit out for a game, then jump in on the next. The only issue I had was with one problem that arose. During one round we ran out of monster cards, and still had 2 people willing to go into the dungeon, so when it was time for the next player to draw a card, there wasn't one to draw. The manual says only "if there are no cards to draw, you must pass" which left me scratching my head a bit. How then is it decided who goes into the dungeon? Because if Player 1 draws a card and there are none left, Player 2 can't draw a card and must pass, it skips player 3 who passed a couple rounds ago, Player 4 has no cards to draw so must pass, goes back to Player 1 who now has no cards to draw and must pass...does it just pass into infinity? The answer that I had to google to discover (and now seems idiotically obvious) is that the rules say when one person is left they go into the Dungeon. So in the above scenario, Player 1 draws the last card and puts it in the dungeon. Player 2 has to pass, Player 3 already passed before, Player 4 has to pass, and once Player 4 passes it means Player 1 is the only remaining player and he goes into the dungeon. For clarity's sake I would have preferred that rules say "if the monster card deck runs out, whoever drew the last card goes into the dungeon." I can't really decide if that one rules issue was my own stupidity or lack of clarity on the game's design. Regardless, once that question was answered there were no more problems and we played for a couple of hours. I didn't win, but that is my curse, to never win games I own.

Bought this game for my brother at Christmas. He and I enjoyed playing multiple rounds. It likely works better with 3 players than 2 but still enjoyable. The artwork is excellent and the gameplay is unique enough to encourage repeat play. Game takes only about 10-15 minutes.

Excellent game. First play through is exciting for the new concept. After a few plays it's more competitive/strategic but only fun if playing with others that know the game. Why you ask? Because knowing the monsters and weapons is crucial. It's mathematical game of knowing how to plus and minus abilities well enough to know if you can beat the dungeon. Then if you think you can't it's about dropping out fast enough to stick someone else with the task to fail. Usually ends up last person standing wins. Maybe 1 of 4 games someone actually gets to victory cards. Everyone plays the same character with the same abilities. And to take some monster not in the dungeon you have to pull an ability. Without pulling any abilites it's really easy to beat the dungeon. So you are trying to scare people out of going in. Why 4 stars? Player elimination. I am 100% against this concept when it's more the 2 players. We tried adjusting the rules, but haven't found a balance way to keep everyone in the game. However, the games are fast enough that it's not a big deal. Everyone plays the same character of four choices.

This is a great quick little game for novice and serious gamers alike. Each round a player gets to pick one of four characters who will eventually enter a dungeon created by the alive players in the game. On your turn you must chose one of thee abilities: draw a dungeon card and add it to the dungeon, draw a dungeon card not adding it to the dungeon while picking one of the character's abilities to remove, or pass. Once a player passes they are no longer contributing to the dungeon building/character nerfing and they will not go into the dungeon as the character. The last player remaining each round who did not pass must go into the dungeon as the character with all remaining abilities. The dungeon is dealt with starting with the top card and going through the cards until either the character dies (hits 0 life with no way to resurrect) or the character successfully defeats all monsters in the dungeon. Beat the dungeon twice and you win. Die twice and you lose.

Do you take the risk of running the dungeon and failing or passing and letting someone else be victorious. This is the crux of this game. You can set yourself up for victory or plan your opponent's failure. This game is most intense when there are two people left in the round and each turn could be the one someone has to run the dungeon. Welcome to the Dungeon is quick, simple, and often thrilling. Walking away with one hit point left when everyone was sure you'd die or your friend thinking they've won, but you know the next monster is the dragon you put in there on round one. There are some really great and memorable moments to be had in this little box.

Fun push-your-luck micro game. Component quality and artwork are exceptionally fantastic. I was surprised to find a small bluffing component as well (Did he just put an easy monster into the dungeon because he knows he can beat it, or a tough monster because he's going to pass next turn and knock me out?). The play is similar to other push your luck and bluffing games like Liar's Dice, Skull, or Cockroach Poker. This one is slightly more complex because of the numerous equipment abilities and symbols on the monster cards. Players can be eliminated but the game time is very short.

its a fun game but players can fall into a cycle and has not been a hit with my group, but we still bring it out now and then

Recommended by a friend on a camping trip. He bought it because of price and compact size (very packable for travel). The game is easy to learn in a turn or two, and very fun to play as you learn what strategies work best against your opponents. Fantasy dungeon escape adventure, but simplified so players with no interest or experience in more complicated RPGs can still enjoy.