Gamewright - Forbidden Island - Cooperative Strategy Survival Board Game, 2-4 Players

Mark JacksonUnited States

Nail-Biting Cooperative Adventure in an Inexpensive Package

*designer: Matt Leacock *publisher: Gamewright *date: 2010 *BoardGameGeek rank/rating: 2090/8.04 *age: 10+ *# of players: 2-4 *print status: in print Maybe it's because I started writing this review during the final few weeks of the TV series, LOST... but the whole "island full of crumbling ruins & ancient secrets" vibe resonates pretty strongly with me right now. But don't take my (admittedly gamer-oriented) word for it: listen to my (gamer-in-training) 8 year old son... or his non-gamer 8 year old friends... or my long-suffering wife (who games because she loves me!)... or even other actual gamers who've played the game. It's been a hit with everyone who has had the opportunity to play! Forbidden Island is a cooperative game for 2-4 players, though since the game is played with open hands, it works just fine as a solitaire game as well, with the player controlling two (or more) pawns. (Another odd Lost reference: this is definitely a "live together or die alone" kind of game.) Regardless of the number of players, it seems to clock in at right about a half hour of playing time. The color text of the game has the players on a search for elemental treasures (The Crystal of Fire, the Statue of the Wind, The Ocean's Chalice & the Earth Stone) created by an ancient civilization. Of course, it's not a simple archaeological expedition - the island is booby-trapped to begin sinking when anyone attempts to steal the treasures... and that's exactly what you're here to do. I could go into a detailed rules explanation... but that seems pretty pointless when a PDF of the rulebook is available online, thanks to the good folks at Gamewright. Simply put, you're using 3 actions per turn to move your piece across an island made of tiles, attempting to collect the treasures, shore up the sinking parts of the island, and generally survive long enough for all of you to grab the last helicopter off the island (is Frank Lapidus the pilot?). At the end of each turn, you draw cards to increase your hand (and potentially increase the rate of flooding) as well to sink more parts of the island. There are lots of ways to lose: *if the helicopter landing pad sinks, you lose *if one of your team doesn't survive, you lose *if you fail to recover all four treasures, you lose *if the island floods completely, you lose But it wouldn't be much of a cooperative game if you won all the time, right? So far, we're doing very well playing at the Novice setting, while we're about 50/50 at the Normal setting. I have yet to convince my son to try it at the more difficult settings. (BTW, a clever game feature - you only have to change the starting level of the water - indicated on a sliding scale - to change the difficulty of the game. No re-mixing the deck, no convoluted alternative set-up.) The components are high quality - nice cards, great chunky tiles with evocative "forbidden island" artwork that reminds me a bit of the computer game Myst, and nifty plastic "treasures" - all packaged in a cool-looking tin with a well-designed box insert. (For those of you non-gamers, the "well-designed insert" may not sound like a big deal, but I can tell you from experience that it makes it easier to transport & keep the game in top-notch condition... and that not all companies think this part through.) A side note: since the designer, Matt Leacock, is best known for his OTHER cooperative game, Pandemic, it's helpful to note that while the games share some mechanics (most notably the Infection/Waters Rise restacking of the decks & the various player roles that allow each person to "break" the rules in a particular way) but that the board play (due to the sinking tiles) and kid-friendly theme make for a very different game experience. Finally, the recommended age of 10 is correct - but only if the kids are going to be playing without any adults helping run the game. With a friendly adult, the game can easily be played by kids as young as 5. The cheap price point (the MSRP is only $15.99) means that Forbidden Island will be likely be one of the best kid gaming investments you're likely to make this year.

HKUnited States

I thank and blame Wil Wheaton

Not long ago I spent a few days binging on the web series Table Top (in which Wil Wheaton plays a boardgame or other table top game with various guests), and I purchased this specifically because of the Forbidden Island episode of the series. (There is a link to the episode in the questions and answers section above -- spend the time to watch this and it will give you a pretty good idea of how the game works and should give you a pretty good idea of whether or not you'll enjoy it.) The box is metal, and comparable in size to an especially thick hardcover novel; the tray inside organizes the pieces/tiles/cards quite well. The tiles are sturdy. The cards are a bit thinner than standard playing cards; my husband was afraid to shuffle them the way you'd shuffle a poker or pinochle deck. A standard card table is fair estimate of the area needed for layout (and should allow room for drinks or snack plates). I suspect the tile layout would fit on the table of a camper or RV, but might be cramped. The description here says ages 10-12, and the box says 10+ -- my husband and I certainly enjoyed it as adults. The cooperative nature makes it work well as a family game, even young children can likely join in and still have fun (depending a bit on the individual child). Our 5yo felt involved and had a blast. He didn't fully grasp the details or strategy, but he followed the general plot of the game and was quite happy to flip tiles, draw cards, move pawns, and listen to his parents and 13yo brother handle strategy, and was excited when his pawn got to do important things. The game seems to have a good mix of chance and strategy, and allows for starting at varied difficulty ratings. The artwork is beautiful; the names of individual tiles (parts of the island) are evocative. The premise of trying to collect treasure and escape before the island sinks appeals to a sense of adventure (especially for those of us whose own childhoods included Indiana Jones movies). Because it's cooperative, it fosters a sense of teamwork and shared accomplishment/responsibility, and encourages collaboration; players take turns, but the rules explicitly encourage everyone to discuss the best options regardless of whose actual turn it is. It might be a great way to get a break if your usual group of board game friends can get competitive. It's definitely a great game for people who'd rather not be competitive.

Garret J. StausUnited States

Fantastic Co-Op Game for Everyone!

My wife and I enjoyed Pandemic a lot and after hearing that Forbidden Island is similar in many ways (but different in important ones), we bought it and tried it out. I will say that anyone already familiar with Pandemic will feel right at home with Forbidden Island -- and for those who aren't, this serves as a fantastic introduction to the frantic mind of Matt Leacock, who designed both games. Forbidden Island starts with a randomized map of tiles, or islands. Each island is suspect to flooding, and if they flood again, they will sink off the map entirely. Players travel from island to island in order to capture treasure, shore up the islands, and fly away once all the treasure is in their hands. It's a simple game to learn and is a little bit easier than Pandemic. Each turn plays like this: First, your character has three actions to use during their turn. They can spend these actions moving from one island to another, shoring up an island, giving a card to another player, or turning in four treasure cards for a treasure (provided they are on the correct island). Then the player draws two treasure cards, which are *usually* helpful cards that help you capture one of the four treasure, fly players across the map, or immediately shore up a card. Lastly, they will flip over island cards, which cause islands to flood. Each card contains one island on it, and that island is flooded or sunk based on it's current status. The rub is that the treasure cards occasionally contain "Water Rises" cards, which cause the discard pile of the island cards to be shuffled and placed back at the TOP of the stack. This means islands which have already flooded are now ripe to flood again. As islands sink, those cards are removed, causing the remaining islands to be even more likely to be flooded. The result is a brilliant escalation of trouble which typically culminates in a frantic and close ending. It is definitely simpler than Pandemic, occasionally for the better, sometimes not. I think the greatest change in Forbidden Island is the replayability -- not only does every character receive a random role which lets them do unique things, the map layout changes every game and so every game presents a unique challenge. That alone makes Forbidden Island a great play, and if you enjoy Pandemic or other co-operative games, consider this a must-buy.

Hannah M.United States

Cooperative and fun game!

I got this game to play as a two-player board game primarily. My husband and I needed a break from trying to assault, destroy, and otherwise obliterate each other in other games. Sure, we have lots of fun and can be pretty competitive, but sometimes you want to play a game where you aren't attacking each other endlessly. This was the perfect solution because it is a cooperative game. Basically how this game works is that each person plays a different (randomly selected) character with unique abilities. Your objective is to collect the treasures on the island and escape before the island sinks (or sinks enough to cut off your escape route!). The game begins fairly leisurely but can feel quite frantic toward the end as more and more parts of the island are lost and you see your hope of escape dwindling. There are several starting difficulties to choose from and we have thus far only played the most beginner difficulty. Game play is the same for all difficulty levels except that your island will begin sinking more quickly sooner, making you be more strategic to prevent the loss of essential areas of your map. Game play for us has typically last 20-30 minutes, which makes it a reasonable game to play in most circumstances. The best part of the game though, is the discussion and planning that you do together, as a team. Rather than trying to sabotage your opponents, you are working with the other players toward a common goal. Sure, sometimes there is disagreement as to how to proceed and ultimately the person taking the turn gets final say in how the turn is played, but it's all working together against the island rather than working against each other. You all succeed or fail as one. My husband has, on occasion, talked about taking turns in such a way that would sabotage our success, but that's just how he plays when he's frustrated with how things are going. In general, everyone will be working together. This is a fun game for two players and I think it would be interesting to have more people just to have some of the other character abilities in the same game. I would certainly recommend it for two players! This has definitely found a permanent spot in our game playing rotation due to it being quick to play, cooperative, and without a lot of complex rules to remember.