The map tiles are very detailed and fun to look at when they’re placed on the playing surface. The miniatures are fun, if not prone to a little warping, and I like the character cards and their little tombstone sliders. I’ve seen complaints of flimsy cardstock components, but it all seems good to me. Based on our interpretation, our heroes were able to pass around the spell components and the spellbook while in the same room, which meant that we could attempt to cast the game-ending spell against the witch multiple times per round. Aside from these additions and some much-needed clarification in the rulebook, it’s the same game as before.Įven so, we hit some snags with the rules. This is the second edition of the game, which includes new haunt scenarios, a “hidden traitor” mechanic and some new items.
Next time we play, it might be aliens or some hideous Lovecraftian nightmare.
The heroes had to scramble to find a spellbook and a spell component to get rid of the witch’s invulnerability before killing her. We played the Witch scenario, where the traitor aided a witch who wanted to turn all the heroes into frogs and let her cat eat them. You’re never quite sure which one you’ll play, so there’s a ton of replayability in Betrayal at House on the Hill. There are 50 scenarios that take place during this haunting phase. Each new faction develops a strategy to beat the other. That player leaves the room and reads one book, while the heroes stay and read theirs. You get out the Traitor’s Tome and Secrets of Survival and determine who will be the traitor. “Betrayal is the only truth that sticks.”Įventually, the Omen cards pile up and the house comes to life. Omen cards aren’t typically as bad as Event cards, but they push you one step closer to the haunting. Item cards give you (usually) beneficial equipment like dynamite, which lets you attack enemies in other rooms, or an idol that you can rub to add dice to your rolls. Some tiles have special icons that indicate that a card must be drawn.Įvent cards harm your character in some disturbing fashion (hideous shrieking that prompts a sanity roll, or a gaggle of hanged corpses that turn into dust, causing your character to choke). Reach a new door and you can explore beyond it, drawing a new tile from the stack and placing it down on the table. Gameplay begins with character selection–each character has different strengths and weaknesses, as determined by four stats tracks on their cards - and proceeds immediately to the exploration of the haunted house.Įveryone starts off in the main entrance tile and, based on your character’s speed stat, you can move a certain number of tiles. The rulebook is a quick read and the Traitor’s Tome and Secrets of Survival are meant to only be read at a specific point during the game known as “the haunting.” “That creepy old place on the hill…”Īs in all old horror movies, haunted houses were made for breaking and entering. There are a total of 12 characters to choose from, 2 for each miniature. The miniatures are smaller than standard 28mm figures and have the standard less-than-ideal paintjobs. Make sure you have lots of plastic baggies on hand, because you’ll want to separate out the various monsters and polygonal tokens. I’m pretty sure that “over 100 game tokens” is an understatement, because I was punching out game tokens for a solid 15 minutes. 6 pre-painted plastic Character miniatures and corresponding Character cards.If you get caught up in game balance and mechanics discussions, you might have some problems. Who Will Like It? If you dig old Hammer horror films or the oeuvre of director William Castle, you’ll dig the thematic goodness. Rating: Unique gameplay with fun B-movie theme, but some mechanical flaws
Then the betrayal begins and that one player turns against the rest. You and your fellow heroes wander the mansion room by room until the house decides to take one of you over. That’s what you do in this updated version of the fan-favorite board game from Wizards of the Coast imprint Avalon Hill. Overview: There’s an old haunted house on the hill, so naturally you must explore it.