If you’re new to tabletop survival horror, welcome — you’re in good company! There’s already a thriving Resident Evil tabletop community, which you can join right here .

Feeling brave, Survivors? Then let’s head where few others dare to tread. Deep into the darkness, where mutant monsters make their lairs… The only qualm anyone would have is the difficulty identifying the elements on the game tiles, however the theme of these is on point. Red lines are for player’s benefits, everything else is aesthetic! Replay-ability You’ll need to figure that out together, because Resident Evil: The Board Game is a cooperative game. If one of you dies, you all fail. So, expect to be talking with your fellow S.T.A.R.S. about which way to turn next. (And remember this later on.) Action Phase Being young was awkward, when you weren't hiding behind the controller that is! Remember not knowing how to talk to someone you liked? So you'd awkwardly sort of be around them and existed continually, never making progress or effort to let them know you were there? The T-00 Tyrant doesn't. He has no fear. No reservations. He's a successful go-getter and a man on a mission. He knows what he wants, and he wants you. (Dead!)The Murder from Above Expansion was clearly made for the fans; an inclusion of the iconic encounters to truly reflect the video game feel. Resident Evil 2: The Board Game is already a great reflection of its video game counterpart, but this expansion really captures some of those more iconic moments within the story! Now, if all this sounds pretty straightforward so far, it’s because we’ve deliberately kept the rules as user-friendly and intuitive as possible. But don’t let that fool you. The main new mechanic for this expansion is the introduction of Mr X. Unlike other enemies within the game, his pursuit is relentless and he appears in every scenario. His only goal is to kill you and the other survivors, and he is pretty good at his job! The introduction of Mr X into a scenario is done through the encounter table or through specific Tension Cards. Either way, you're not going to be able to avoid him for long!

Once you’ve performed your four actions (or skipped actions, if you like to live dangerously), it’s time for the reaction phase. Reaction Phase Resident Evil 2: The Board Game is a cooperative horror board game based on the popular video game. Just like in the video game, your goal is to get out of Raccoon City by making your way past undead monsters and completing your objectives. Combat is unavoidable at times and ammo isn’t exactly common later on in the scenarios. There is also no guarantee that you will kill the enemy you shoot, like many Steamforged Games, the combat is dice roll-based on a tier system; the stronger the weapon, the higher the tier of the dice associated to it. Many enemies only need one shot on them to kill them, but rolling that double hit marker result isn’t guaranteed, and spending three turns missing or simply staggering the enemy can be infuriating. Fail to escape and you’ll inevitably have the opposition trying to nibble on your insides. On top of that, we had full ammo from the free choice set-up. If you are going to include it in a free play scenario, I’d seriously recommend you don’t allow it to leave its spawn room. In the campaign however, the Giant Moth is far more intimidating as you’ll be going in half prepared and suffering from everything you’ve previously experienced, as was intended! Component Quality and Replay-ability Dare you step into the darkness and take on these two huge new bosses, so big they engulf multiple squares?

This board game is a beautiful homage to Resident Evil’s classic survival horror feel. Whether you’re a fan of Resident Evil or not, if you’re fond of horror or tactical scenario-based adventures, this may very well be for you! For some of us, the main element of this game is nostalgia. Regardless to the survival horror elements, the one thing you’ll feel if you’ve played the original is nostalgia. Based on the 2002 remake of the original Resident Evil video game, this is a cooperative survival horror board game for 1-4 players . Despite these notable flaws, there is an old-school sensibility and simplicity to Resident Evil 2’s gameplay that suits this tribute to a 20-year-old video game down to the ground. It’s probably an experience best reserved for fans, but those who know what to expect won’t come away disappointed. So, that’s the first way in which enemies react. But, that’s not the only way. Remember I said even moving can be fraught with danger? Well, read on…