Perfect team strategy
Steeped in tension
Totally engrossing
Very replayable
Can occasionally feel unfair
Theme is a bit on the nose now
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If you've not tried Pandemic before, you need to remedy that immediately. Although it's taken on a new edge for obvious reasons, this remains one of the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:best board games ever made and is a𝕴n honest-to-goodness classic. It's one of the few titles I think should be in every col♑lection.
A co-op race against time for two to four players, Pandemic tasks you with nothing less than saving the world. A clutch of diseases threaten to overwhelm c🐼ivilization as we know it, so the odds are against you from the start. But that's why this game excels. Nail-biting tension and last-minute Hail Marys make winning all the more satisfying, and it's never less than memorable as a result. Strategic, satisfying, 𒆙and strangely moreish, this is the perfect storm of ideas that shows off everything tabletop gaming is capable of.
Price | $49.99 / £39.99 |
Ages | 10+ |
Game type | Area control / cooperative |
Players | 2 - 4 |
Lasts | 60mins |
Complexity | Moderate |
Designers | Matt Leacock |
Publisher | Z-Man Games |
Play if you enjoy | Horrified, Forbidden Island |
Your job in Pandemic is simple - hunt down each cure before it's too late. Although doing so is a matter of gathering the right cards, winning isn't as easy as that would suggest. Coughs and ﷽sneezes answer to no-one, after all.
Namely, you'll draw cards which dictate where new infections are placed each turn. Represented by translu𒁃cent cubes that look like forbidden jelly sweets, these shouldn't be underestimated. When more than three are placed on a city, they'll tumble to neighbouring spaces in a catastrophic do🅷mino effect. This is called an 'Outbreak,' and you'll lose if you have too many.
Whilܫe it's possible to remove cubes by visiting that city, this uses up a precious action that could be spent researching cures instead. Moreover, Epidemic cards that increase the number of cubes placed each turn are hidden throughout the deck. Time really is of the essence as a result; spend too long and you'll be totally overrun. Good communication and clever use of your character's abilities are your only defence.
The game's art helps put you into that mindset. It feels as if it's been cribbed from a CSI drama. Actually, it wouldn't be ou꧅t of place on a screen in some shadowy war room where officials dramatically gasp "my god" whilst watching events unfold.
Each turn in Pandemic boils down to a choice - searching for a cure or removing disease cubes to avoid them spreading. It sounds simple, but is anything but in practice. Focusing on an overall solution may help in the long run, but it's likely you'll be ovꦯerwhelmed before that. Similarly, keeping the infection rate down avoids Outbreaks... but you're treating symptoms rather than the cause so will become stuck in a loop. Tཧhis is where most of the game's drama can be found. What should you do? There's no definitive answer, leaving you with plenty of space to carve out your own strategies. It's proper edge-of-your-seat stuff.
That's why Pandemic is often listed as a frontrunner when it comes to the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:best adult board games; it leaves room to take charge and feel like a hero. More importantly, teamwork is essential. Everyone's got a sk🌳ill that may just turn the tide if used correctly (the Medic can remove all infections from a location at once, for instance), so good communication and planning spells the difference between winning and losing.
You'll never be left twiddling your thumbs, either - everyone stays involved throughout by discussing tactics. You succeed or fail together, and it won't be down to luck. If you're looking for the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:best cooperative board games, it's hard to do much better.
There are numerous expansions for the core Pandemic experience to shake things up alongside a Legacy version where the consequences of your actions carry over from match to match. This is considered by many to be even better than the original. A more accessible version is also available by way of 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Pandemic: Hot Zone - North America, not to mention 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:World of Warcraft Pandemic or Star 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Wars: The Clone Wars Pandemic spinoffs.
This game's got plenty of longevity, too. Besides being playable in a group or as a pair, infection locatio♍ns are randomized at the beginning of each game. That means you never really know what you'll be facing.
In addition, it can be made harder or easier thanks to that clutch of 'Epidemic' cards that are hidden within the main deck. Upon being drawn, these increase the number of i🌃nfections in play. The more you choose to have, the more difficult things will become. Find session🧸s too easy? Add more.
Surprisingly, it never feels hopeless even if you r𓃲atchet up the challenge. Clever placement, your powers, and special event cards can really turn the tide even when things seem dire. This creates a special kind of bond between players, and it's utterly engrossing.
Unfortunately, the downside is that it can be a little unfair. Depending on♚ how the cards are shuffled, you could wind up with outbreaks and cascading infections across the globe quickly. It's actually possible to lose within a few turns if you get an unlucky setup, and that's obviousl📖y frustrating.
Still, this doesn't happen all that often. And even if it does, you'll almost certainly want to try again. Pandemic is the sort of game that keeps ꦓreeling you in.
If you ask me, the Pandemic board game deserves to be on everyone's shelf. It's a compelling chase that'll tease out the best in its players, and an emphasis on teamwork brings you all closer in t🦩he process.
It's true that this won't appeal if you're interested in quick, party-style games. Pandemic can be incredibly tough as well. Nonetheless, I can't think of any other game that's so easy to become inv༒ested in.
Criteria | Notes | Score |
|---|---|---|
Game mechanics | Fewဣ games balance tension and teamwork as elegantly as this. | 5/5 |
Accessibility | Although it may look complicated🐻 from the outside, Pandemic is a lot easier to understand than you'd think. | 3/5 |
Replayability | Because infections are randomly placed every turn, an💝d thanks to and a sandbox of possibilities once you be🌼gin, Pandemic shouldn't become boring any time soon. | 5/5 |
Setup and pack-down | It's not too hard to lay out, but packing away is more 🐷of a headache due to the number of disease cubes likely to be on the board. | 3/5 |
Component quality | Thanks to art that wouldn't be out of p🦂lace on a CSI show, this game excels where visuals are concerned. | 5/5 |
Th♛is review was conducted by a sample provided by the⛎ publisher.
I have been playing Pandemic🍬 for years as a fan with different player counts and a variety of people to get a feel for how it works - to say nothing of its longevity. This is a staple of my collection and I'll often return to it, so I'm very familiar with its inner workings.
For a better look at our process, see this guide to 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:how we test board games or the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:GamesRadar+ reviews policy.
Looking to try something else? Be sure to check out the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:best family board games, or the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:best card games.
I've been writing about games in one form or another since 2012, and now manage GamesRadar+'s tabletop gaming and toy cov🍒erage. You'll find my grubby paws on everything from board game reviews to the latest Lego news.
