This week’s Monday Night Gaming: Pandemic!
Image from Amazon.com. Click to view larger.
Pandemic has to be one of the most awesome and yet overpriced games I’ve ever seen. The game itself it fairly simple in regards to parts–it’s certainly not Eclipse level with a million pieces–yet every time I’ve looked at it on Amazon, it’s been $60.
EDIT: Of course, now that I go look for this article, it’s listed at $32. I guess they’ve re-released it or something. Well, if you need this game, go get it now while it’s cheap!
# of Players: 2-4
General Mechanics: In Pandemic, multiple diseases have broken out all over the world, and of course, this happens all at the same time. Hey, it wouldn’t be a disaster game without chaos, right? Players work as specialists who are tasked with treating outbreak areas while researching for cures of these plagues before they get out of control and kill us all!
Various decks help players research and treat diseases while other cards continue the spread of disease and infection. The difference in this game from others is that the players work together to battle against the game itself. If one player tried to play in a PvP style, everyone would probably lose the game.
How to Win/Lose: If one or more diseases spreads beyond recovery or if too much time passes, everyone loses. If players cure all four diseases, everyone wins!
What I liked: The tension! My husband and I played the older version of this game (apparently the new version includes new characters) and enjoyed the tension of the game itself. Because disease continues to replicate and spread and we were playing against the game itself (and time!), there was a tension level that made the game much more enjoyable. Like a good run through Resident Evil. Also, we didn’t feel like we were “done” or “played out” after one run. Because of the nature of the game, we will have plenty of game play left in this game, not to mention the expansion!
What I Didn’t Like: We won our first game. I won’t call it easy exactly, but it wasn’t as challenging a game as I’d thought it would be. While it’s set for 2-4 players, research shows that the fewer the players, the easier the game. I would have wished for a game that scales a little better with the number of players. Board Game Geeks has some tips on that though, so we’ll definitely check those out before our next play.
Overall Rating/Impression: 9/10. Love this game. It’s fun and holds my interest, but then, I’ve always been a sucker for what my husband calls “disaster-porn.” We haven’t tried the expansion yet, so there is still plenty of play left with this game.
Game on!
Read other Monday Night Gaming posts on games like Firefly, Boss Monster, Munchkin, and more by clicking here.
