Playing horror board games is not a bad time. For zombies, ghosts, werewolves, and other nightmares, there are some that are great for swarming around the table with your friends. The horror genre is full of great games. Below is a collection of some of the best games.
Although each game represents a different mechanic, the atmosphere is king in the horror genre, as jump scare is nearly impossible in board games. So get your friends together, dim the lights and get ready to experience the horrors that only board games can offer. These are horror-themed board games that are perfect for playing in 2022.
Unmatched: cobblestone and fog
- Number of players: 3-6
- Playback time: 2-4 hours
Unmatched, a series of games where you can combine mythical and pop culture characters into tactical battles, may not seem like a horror game. However, Cobble and Fog takes action in the Victorian city of London, along with figures such as Dracula, The Invisible Man, Jekyll & Hyde. Each has its own card deck that leverages a simple rules framework with flavorful and fun special effects. For example, Dracula can seduce and hypnotize enemies and shed blood. Between them, the four characters here weave the true atmosphere of Gothic horror. Cobble and Fog is the best set in the entire Unmatched series and a great introduction to its wide range of charms. See the Unmatched: Cobble and Fog review for more information.
Bloody Inn
- Number of players: 1-4
- Playback time: 45-60 minutes
This Bloody Inn boasts one of the weirdest themes in all board games. The player acts as the innkeeper who seeks to make a profit by robbing and killing guests. In fact, this is done by paying with another card from your hand to recruit or kill guests, or to build an annex in your inn to bury the body. This is a classic case of conflicting priorities, requiring all the prerequisites for doing something else, and is quite energized by brutal concepts and ominous art. And there are more strategies that may be revealed first, some annexes and recruited guests give you a discount on paying for future actions.
AuZtralia
- Number of players: 1-4
- Playback time: 30-120 minutes
Real-world Australians may be resentful at portraying their home as a monster-infested island, but it’s a compelling horror game. Players build a train network across the continent early in the game and defeat Lovecraft monsters as they reach valuable resources and build farms. Along the way, monsters begin to fight back, destroying infrastructure and potentially eradicating humanity, further increasing the pace and losing all players. It’s a weird combination, but it works well and offers fun themes, exciting combat, strategic routes, combo building all at the same time, making the game broad and attractive.
unfathomable
- Number of players: 3-6
- Playback time: 2-4 hours
A few years ago, there was a very nice board game based on the Battlestar Galactica TV show. In this game, the player played a hidden role, and the group had to try out the traitor while returning the spaceship to Earth. Now reborn with a horror theme, lovecraft monsters attack steamships as they cross the ocean. Players are either passengers who need to work together to save the ship, or secret cultists who must quietly thwart every effort to avoid the crisis that occurs each turn. The protagonist of the show is a way for players to place cards face down on a pile to boost or undermine attempts to stop a disaster and let a piece of group information guess who is the cuckoo in the nest. The excellent production value expected of the publisher Fantasy Flight also helps a lot. See the immense reviews for more details.
Zombie extermination agent: Black plague
- Number of players: 1-6
- Playback time: 60-180 minutes
The original zombie pesticide released in 2012 plays as a survivor who wants to survive the apocalypse of modern zombies. Black plague changes the formula by bringing to you the fantastic medieval world of magic, dragons, and … well, more zombies. Control paladins, knights, and magicians, among other character types, to combat the evil necromancer’s death magic. This fantasy version of a typical zombie story is refreshing and novel, with lots of available extensions to add new scenarios, player characters, locations, items and more. If you want more similar options, check out our best co-op board game recommendations.
Horrible: Universal Monster
- Number of players: 1-5
- Playback time: 60 minutes
It’s a monster world and we just live there. At Holified, it’s your job to thwart the evil plans of the most famous movie monsters ever. Play Frankenstein and his brides, Wolfman, Dracula, Mummy, The Invisible Man, and Black Lagoon creatures in this easy-to-learn cooperative game. You have to take the streets of a small village under coercion from monsters and take on the role of one of several heroes. When it comes to fighting monsters, each has its own strengths and weaknesses. If you are looking for a showdown with horror’s most iconic monsters, horror is a game for you.
Arkham Horror: Card game
- Number of players: 1-2 (1-4, two copies of the core set)
- Playback time: 10-120 minutes
If you’re looking for more lovecraft flavors, Arkham Horror: Card games are easy. The basic game comes with a few scenarios that send you directly to the mysterious jaws of the universe. You can use the proposed starter deck or build a custom deck centered around the special abilities of the investigator of your choice. In gameplay, you’ll move from place to place looking for clues to advance the story while trying to thwart the deadly Mythos deck. Your investigator will inevitably be damaged and gain weaknesses that can affect future games in the campaign, making Arkham Horror: The Card Game one of the most themed games on this list. Also check out the list of the best deck building games.
Winter dead
- Number of players: 2-5
- Playback time: 45-210 minutes
Dead of Winter is like a board game version of The Walking Dead. This game is called “meta-cooperative psychological survival game”, which means that there is an element of competition that goes through the game while being cooperative. Each player controls the survivors of the group during the zombie apocalypse, and everyone must work together to achieve a common goal. In addition, you will work towards your own hidden goals as well. Sometimes it means stockpiling the most medicines and stockpiling the most ammunition. You may also just want to betray the team and ruin the morale of the group. But no matter what, there is no way to trust someone at the table, thanks to the group politics and interpersonal drama that the Dead of Winter brings.
One Night Ultimate Werewolf
- Number of players: 3-10
- Playback time: 10 minutes
One Night Ultimate Werewolf, a game that spreads the entire “secret role” mechanic that has become commonplace in the party game scene, throws blame and insults on your group. The goal is to learn who the werewolves are and publish them, but it’s not as easy as it sounds. There are other characters who can switch roles and see which roles aren’t playing in the round. Each game is a chaotic gust of blame and desperate defense that always ends in good time, as no one can be sure who the werewolf is (including the werewolf himself). With short rounds and a free phone app that makes it easy to set up, One Night is an ideal party game.
Last night on earth
- Number of players: 2-6
- Playback time: 60-90 minutes
A tribute to Camp’s B-movie horror, Last Night on Earth is performed like an early Romero movie. You and your friends control characters that fall into the typical horror archetypes such as cool high school jocks and weird nerdy kids. Each scenario presents goals ranging from escaping the town by truck to killing a certain number of zombies. As you explore the building, you can clean the items and weapons used to reap your enemies. Last Night on Earth is very popular and produces parodies of other genres such as: Old school sci-fi When High adventure.. If you’re a fan of camping horror, the last night on earth is a must-see.
Crazy mansion
- Number of players: 2-5
- Playback time: 120 minutes
Mansions of Madness incorporates dungeon crawls and asymmetrical gameplay. Descent When Star Wars: Imperial Assault And take it to the eerie world of HP Lovecraft. One player takes on the role of keeper and guides the other through one of several pre-made scenarios. As players pass through the mansion, their actions and choices can affect the monsters they encounter. There are several expansion scenarios available to help make your investment more valuable. However, Mansions need to be very careful, so set aside a considerable amount of time. This is the perfect game for an avid group of horror fans.
Heritage of betrayal
- Number of players: 3-5
- Playback time: 45-90 minutes
In the first betrayal at House on the Hill, players explore the haunted house room by room, triggering a nominal betrayal when an unprotected player turns on the rest of the party. In Betrayal Legacy, this formula is extended to a campaign-period legacy game that runs in the prologue and 13 chapters. The story spans decades, with players playing several generations of families who are victims of home haunts. A haunted house simulator in every sense of the concept, Betray Legacy is both novel and eerie.
Dracula’s wrath
- Number of players: 2-5
- Playback time: 120-180 minutes
Dracula’s Wrath is an asymmetrical game in which one player takes on the role of Dracula and all the other are hunters trying to end terrorism. Dracula’s players secretly roam throughout Europe each turn, using their influence to create a new army of vampires. The hunter needs to guess Dracula’s position and take him out before his army grows too large. Although combat is included, Dracula’s wrath is primarily a wit battle. How much can Dracula avoid hunters? How well can a hunter decipher Dracula’s whereabouts? It’s an endlessly playable thrilling cat and mouse game.
