Menu

A mystery box filled with miniatures to enhance your RPG campaigns. All official miniatures and for a bargain price!

Buy Miniatures Box »

Not sure what game to buy next? Buy a premium mystery box for two to four great games to add to your collection!

Buy Premium Box »
Subscribe Now »

If you’re only interested in receiving the newest games this is the box for you; guaranteeing only the latest games!

Buy New Releases Box »
Subscribe Now »

Looking for the best bang for your buck? Purchase a mega box to receive at least 4 great games. You won’t find value like this anywhere else!

Buy Mega Box »
Subscribe Now »

Buy 3, get 3% off - use code ZATU3·Buy 5, get 5% off - use code ZATU5

The Game Of Death Review

GAME OF DEATH

Summary

The Game of Death very much “does what it says on the tin”. An easy game to set up and play, it’s great fun as a party game to break up any more complex/serious games that you might also be playing through. It is perhaps not one to play at family gatherings however, unless you’re comfortable with running the risk of your in-laws turning into drug dealers!

Game Set Up

The Game of Death consists of a game board with a stepwise track that you follow along as your “journey through life”. There are four available tokens (max 4 player game) that are placed at the start of the game board. There are three types of cards that you place beside the board within easy reach of all players and draw throughout the game as indicated on the game board: Job Cards (ranging from the legitimate to the downright obscure!), Family Cards (human babies and fur babies alike) and Death Cards (yes, they are as ominous as they sound!). Rather than a dice, players spin the coffin-shaped spinner to determine the number of steps to progress. Finally, there is a stack of paper money that is used throughout the game as you earn a salary, pay household outgoings and fees to save yourself from your impending doom.

Playing the Game

The aim of the game here is to be the last one to die, with players additionally being knocked out of the game if they run out of money. I played this game in pairs with my husband, my sister-in-law and her partner, and my parents-in-law. It’s fair to say there was a lot of hilarity throughout this game, with the most questionable life choices seeming to come from my parents-in-law!

To begin, player must choose their schooling achievements by either taking the “Dropout Route” or the “Education Route”. Later in the game, those that opted for the Dropout Route must take pick a single Job Card every time they are instructed to do so, meaning that they have a bit more of a “wild card” experience of the game. Those choosing the Education Route have a longer track until their first Job Card and can choose from 3 options every time they are instructed to select a job, but you must pay 25,000 monies in order to progress down this route.

When you hit the first Job Card space is when the real fun begins. In our game, this fell to my parents-in-law first, who had taken the Dropout Route. Much to the amusement of all involved, they immediately drew the “Unemployed” Job Card! The two other teams ended up with “Fitness Coach” and “Doctor” as their first cards respectively, after choosing from the three options available from taking the Education Route.

Having received our first paycheck as doctors, my husband and I then ran into the first Family Card space, following a Change Job Card instruction. Unfortunately for us, my sister-in-law had drawn a

Save for Later Death Card (special cards that allow you to inflict certain actions on other players) and decided that until our next change of job, my husband and I would be porn stars! Thankfully, we landed on the Family Card square in that turn and acquired a cat to make up for our questionable career choices.

The Game of Death progresses along the board, with all players running the gauntlet of Death Cards, crazy Job Card changes and Family Card additions, which could result in the payment of child support or one-off fees for animal purchases. Another comical change along the way saw my parents-in-laws’ reformation from a life of dealing drugs…to babysitting!

Having all survived long enough to reach retirement (phew!), we now had to each choose whether to tough out our old age solo or go into a retirement home. The only losers here seemed to be my husband and I, who through an odd turn of events ended up adopting one of my sister-in-law’s three children. Thankfully, with only the final retirement paycheck left to collect, we were only financially responsible for them for one more turn!

Post final retirement paycheck, things turn into a bit of a game of chicken. Each player must decide whether they continue to move along the track, and risk the looming stack of death cards, or pay out 50,000 of their hard-earned cash per turn to avoid moving. Due to our lucrative careers as doctors, porn stars and assassins throughout the course of our lives (a line I never thought I would say…), my husband and I had ample cash to avoid repeated rounds of movement and managed to be the last two standing at the end of the game. Hooray!

Final Verdict

The Game of Death is a great party-pleaser and would definitely be one that I would recommend as a humorous interlude to a grown-ups’ night in. It’s easy to set up and gameplay is simple enough for everyone to follow along without the need to stop and reiterate rules. For people looking for a tactical or strategic board game, however, this is definitely not it!