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When it comes to board games, this is a classic! First released in 1989, HeroQuest was one of the first of its kind with one of the only big-time board games around being D&D and was the only other real competition within the roleplaying board game genre. This newer version of HeroQuest however, is Hasbro’s revival version of the game, bringing it back from the shadows of the past and giving the game its much needed update into the new age of board games. By what I and many others feel whilst playing this game, this version of HeroQuest seems to still deliver on a light roguelike RPG-inspired fantasy adventure even to this day and is still loved by both older, and newer players alike. The game system comes complete with multiple trays stacked with finely detailed miniatures along with the game board, rules and quest book including all the quests that players can play through. HeroQuest plays at 2-5 players with one on the players being the DM-like character called Zargon, who controls all the enemies as-well as the board pieces and is fighting against the other players to stop them from reaching their goal within each quest.
How It Differs From The Classic
With new versions of games come new changes and improvements and this game is no different. The main improvement being the look and feel of the game as this new version has given the game a fresh new art whilst still sticking almost identical to the old art entirely in every piece from the miniatures to the manuals. The main thing difference is with the cards. The art is different entirely with a whole new look and the names of the cards being changed from being ‘Chaos’ to the new ‘Dread’. Most of the new changes were to keep from infringing in copyright and trademarks owned by the original game but they do it in a way that still pays homage to the classic whilst keeping the game intact and the same as the old fans remember the game.
Alongside these changes is one of the biggest that is slightly controversial within the board game scene which is a solo mode/companion app. Many people disagree with the use of companion apps but I myself quite like the feature when used if needed and when it comes to HeroQuest I do believe that it was a much needed addition as the apps use it to take over as the Zargon(DM) so its possible for all players to play as the adventurers within the game and not have to have 1 player sit out and be the DM, especially if there isn’t anyone who actually wants to do this. Now I know that this can be avoided by just playing when someone is ok with doing that but even with this fact taken into account, the app is still worth using as it also allows for you to play solo too which before the app, was impossible to do so.
Components
Who doesn’t love opening a big ol’ box to see a good mountains worth of beautifully designed miniatures standing Infront of you, because lord knows that I do! The games main components that are used within are a great collection of miniatures that all resemble either enemies, characters, or decorations to be placed around the map when needed during the gameplay. These minis are all in great condition and have been improved with the newer version, improving on design and structure so they’re made to last longer and not be able to easily fall apart after a few play throughs.
You also have the cards, manuals and other small tokens added within this game which are also in great quality and would definitely stand up to time and are a nice thickness and have a great feel to them. The last of the components within this game is the dice. The dice have also been made to have updated face designs and a smaller, sleeker look then the old pieces. They have a great feel and have a nice and satisfying feel when rolling (unless you don’t land any hit points and end up dying! I’m not bitter at all…).
Gameplay
The gameplay for HeroQuest is quite straightforward honestly. Players do 2 actions each, one after the other, DM has all enemies move and attack if possible. That’s it! Talk about an easy experience with learning rules! I know that may make the game seem too easy and boring, but the challenge come with getting the certain tasks for each quest done whilst keeping your players alive as they get progressively harder as you go and each players stats are quite low, so you’ll need to be careful on which actions you’ll take and when you’ll take them. The action is always ramping up too, as every new quest comes with harder enemies and more difficult terrain to traverse, causing you and your team mates to have to work together more as you continue your journey struggling to earn gold, weapons and keep your life points above zero, which is harder then it seems! I say this because each time you finish a quest, your characters stats are all carried over to the new quest and you continue with the exact same loadout as before so if you had 1hp at the end of the previous quest then prepare to play really safe this time round or be prepared to start from scratch again!
Final Thoughts
Overall, I definitely like HeroQuest and it’s a fun play. The game can be challenging at times and has a lot of quests with the base game so there’s plenty of replay-ability to entice people to get this game. It’s a classic and overall and lovely game for adventure game lovers who enjoy a surprising challenge. If there was one thing to pick out from the game as something that needs improvement it’d be the sizing of the miniatures compared to the games board. It may seem like you have a lot of space for all the pieces but each of the enemies and player characters has to be placed within small squares in the map and for most of the minis it’s no issue to do so but with quite a few of the others they can be quite big compared to the spaces and can make it a bit of a squeeze on the board. I wont be judging harshly due to this however and I feel this is just the cause of the old game having this issue and the new creators keeping their sizing rules to stick to the same feel and feel of the original game. End line… it’s fun!!
