Customer Reviews

Buffy the Vampire Slayer The Game [Board Game]

5 star:		(29)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I am sure you know how it is: buying board games for your kids in the era of computer games is usually a big waste of money. The bottom of the closet is littered with games nobody wants to play. Now, I fully admit I bought the Buffy the Vampire Slayer board game because it is our favorite television series, despite the fact that we do not get the WB in Duluth and I have to beg a friend to tape episodes in North Carolina and send them to me. But to my surprise, this is the one game that my three kids (F10, F16, M18) love to play. We fight over who gets to be Buffy and which villain variation we should play this time. More amazing, whenever one of my children has their character bite the dust, the other two let them take over one of the other characters. This is unprecedented (but welcomed) behavior in our house.

There are four villains/scenarios to the came: the Master from Season 1, the Judge from Season 2, the Mayor from Season 3, and Adam from Season 4. This game is very up to date in terms of the show's current roster of characters. The various scenarios essentially make this four games in one. We have also started to make up variations on the different scenarios, changing the supporting villains, and even came up with a fifth variation with Angelus at the principal bad person, so you can certainly be creative. While we play the game we almost always end up watching taped reruns of Buffy episodes (often the ones with the villains we are using in the game).

This game takes quite a while to set up and even longer to get through all the rules. But my kids did not mind. I got my money back on this board game the first weekend we had it in the house. They love it almost as much as they love the series, which I consider the best show on television and I've only been teaching television criticism courses for twenty years. This is not an educational game except in how it allows you to discuss the Buffy mythos, but this is clearly the most fun and durable board game in our collection. Of course, if you do not enjoy the Buffy the Vampire Slayer television series you are not going to enjoy this game, which is one of the best television tie-in board games ever.

This board game is easy to learn and has four variations to play. In each, the good players team up to beat the one evil player. There are a lot of parts, which can make the game seem more complicated than it really is once you learn it. Up to four players play the good characters: Buffy, Willow, Xander, and Oz. All four characters must be played, so if there are fewer than four people to play them, one or more players will control two characters. Another player plays the evil team, controlling a main villain (either The Master, The Mayor, The Judge, or Adam, depending on which scenario you're playing) and up to three minions. The board is a layout of Sunnydale, with public buildings, a crypt, a graveyard, and a few houses. There are resource, weapon, and help cards (the help cards are all other characters from the show) for the good characters, and evil cards for the evil team. A moon counter ticks off the phases of the moon, which affect the game in various ways.

Since there are four different scenarios in the game, you can play four times in a row and have a different game each time. Players will enjoy switching characters between games to see how the other characters play out. It takes about an hour to play each game, but the time just speeds right by. There's a great feeling that each roll of the dice is critical, and each player plays his part. There's no competition among the good players, as they need to work together to prevent the evil team from reaching its objective, which depends on the scenario.

I thought Oz was a strange choice to be a main character, but being a werewolf is pretty cool. You can't hold onto stuff worth a darn, but when the moon is full, you're a fighting machine. Willow is pretty good at research, and Xander serves best to bring things from one player to another. Buffy is the best fighter, of course, and does well with a decent weapon in her hand.

There were a couple drawbacks to the game. One down side is that, although there are about 20 seemingly different weapon cards, most of them are really the same. There's no difference between a chair leg and a stake - almost all the weapons are functionally a stake. Another drawback, though many might not think it one, is that it's very difficult for the evil player to win. It can be done, but I think the game is slightly out of balance as it is.

Other than that, the game is great. I hope they come out with an expansion or a second edition soon.

I bought this game as a joke since my husband and I are avid fans of the tv show. I never suspected we'd spend all weekend having an absolute blast playing the game! I don't know how enjoyable this game will be for those who don't like the show since I think part of the fun is being familiar with the characters and the storylines, but for Buffy fans out there it's a "can't miss". Though we haven't owned the game long, it seems like the storylines can be played over and over without growing dull. In fact, I think the game gets more interesting the more times you play the same story because, as you get more familiar with character strengths and weaknesses, it starts to require a lot more strategy. Like another reviewer said, there's some concern about the durability since it is a cardboard game with an awful lot of pieces---but, for as long as the pieces do hold up, the presentation of the game is extremely well done and is part of the appeal/fun. I'd certainly recommend it.

A really fun game that can keep you occupied for hours. I played all four scenarios with some friends (all avid Buffy fans) one evening. The premise is particulary good and the rules are really quite simple (only a 10 page rule book!). The objectives for the evil player and good players are clearly defined.

I agree with an earlier reviewer, that there is scope for additional scenarios (eg Angelus as the main villain). We're thinking of a sixth where vamp Willow and vamp Xander are the two villains and Buffy's objective is to restore the soul of her friends (without killing either one!). The game really cries out for an expansion set, with more characters (Giles and Riley spring to mind) and perhaps even rules for Spike as a 'neutral' in the 'Adam' scenario. Perhaps even Maggie Walsh could be a villain.

I'm concerned that because a lot of the game is cardboard (and requires folding) that some components will wear more quickly than others. I don't see that there is a lot of educational value apart from building one's knowledge of the Buffy 'mythos'.

Highly recommended, if you're a Buffy fan!

OK, so I'm a huge Buffy fan, no big surprise there. But I cannot prepare you for how fun this game is. It has managed to combine the best elements of role-playing games with an easier set of rules and objectives. The rules can look daunting, and I doubt that a bunch of non-buffy fans trying to play together would ever get past that. But considering the many hours of fun that playing this game brings, a small amount of time invested in learning the rules is an acceptable price to pay. To some people, the creators of the game may have included too many variables... the "phases of the moon" device seems a bit much... but the game is more fun, and more complete with all the strange components. You enjoy having the phases of the moon because in the "real" buffy world, sunrise and the full moon have a profound effect on the characters. I have never played a game where I had to think about my next move more. The characters in the game have skills, limitations, objectives, they get tired, they die, and they can be reborn.

Most of the reviewers didn't consider this a very educational toy. While I agree that it doesn't teach young people any specific useful knowledge, it does provide other educational benefits. There are unintended consequences, secrets, and "unfair" things happen to good people. I think that these aspects of the game help teach teenagers that good and evil are not absolute, and that the world is not always an ideal place. Most objectives involve violence, but specific knowledge, research and cunning are also prized and are critical to achieving goals. The violence involved is basically an expression of how much skill and endurance/strength a given character has... a player makes the decision to fight another, but doen't make a lot of deicisions regarding the "how" of the fight. This keeps the game from getting overly-violent, and eliminates the "blood-lust" that can accompany a video game.

My only real complaint it that Giles is not a character!

Disclaimer: I've only played once, and it was a two player game. I reserve the right to revise my opinion on further experience.

Review: Visually: The game is beautiful. The board is simple, and yet detailed enough to be interesting. There are enough fiddley bits to make it more than just a straightforward board, without junking it up and being cluttered. All the art for the characters are stills from the series, or publicity shots, but they chose nicely.

Premise: There are 4 different scenarios, one from each season. All of the major characters are represented, either as major players, or as cards in the deck, as helpers. The 'Good Guys' as major players include Buffy, Willow, Xander, and Oz. They do not include Giles, though he shows up as a card. The 'Forces of Evil' include: (scenario 1) The Master, Darla, Spike, and Drusilla; (scenario 2) The Judge, Spike, Drusilla, and [Joe Random Vampire]; (scenario 3) The Mayor, Faith, Mr. Trick, and [Joe Random Vampire]; and (scenario 4) Adam, ... oops, I forgot who gets to work with Adam. Anyway, each of the scenarios has a different goal for the 'Forces of Evil' and for the 'Good Guys'. The players playing the 'Good Guys' work together, and if they beat the 'Forces of Evil' they all win.

You will notice the lack of Angel/Angelus in the mix. This is because he is one of several characters that can be summoned during the game to work for one side or another. Also, the 'Forces of Evil' can, under the right circumstances, turn Buffy, Willow, or Xander into vampires. Oz cannot be turned into a vampire because of his werewolfishness (which led me to wonder what the show's mythology would do with a werewolf being bitten by a vampire). There is a moon clock of sorts, which determines a few things I won't get into, but one of them is Oz's werewolf manifestation.

Play: Game play is fun, and straightforward. There are a few rules that you need to get used to before you can put the rulebook away and just play, but for the most part, they're clear enough once you start. Each of the villains gets a turn, then each of the heros. Movement is like the game Clue, and the board shares some similarities with the Clue board as well. All actions generally happen after movement, though most can be done before. Some stop your turn when they're done, so this is one of the parts that's handy to keep the rule book around for. Combat is also straightforward. Whoever's turn it is gets to attack. The other doesn't. The attacker rolls the right number of attack dice, and tallies the results. Very clear.

One thing game play might be missing is depth/complexity. I'll have to play some more to see, but it seems that there are two pieces to game play: Find the widgets, kill the other side. I'd like to see some more depth, maybe a hide-and-go-seek factor, or something like that.

There's no way to remove items from people meaningfully. If Willow has a rocket launcher, the only way to make her not have it is to kill her (it goes in the discard pile), Vamp her (it goes in the discard pile), or have her get something even cooler to put in that card slot. Artifacts, of which there are 4 per game, that belong to a character who dies, get put back into the limbo from which they must be rescued.

Balance: This is where the game has flaws. I feel. On the show, it is appropriate that the good-guys always win. In a board game, it isn't. The game balance seems to be slanted toward the good guys fairly heavily. First, the good guys have 15 card slots, where the bad guys have 4. Second, the good guys have a heck of a lot of variety in types of cards available to them, where there are basically 4 types of cards available to the villains. Third, the card powers are a lot stronger for the good guys than the villains.

First, I'm going to play the other scenarios. Then, I'm going to start fiddling with the rules to add the depth that is missing, and hopefully get the balance where it needs to be.

I'm also hoping that they'll come out with a season 5 expansion next summer, or so. (Or else I'll have to do it myself.)

"From now on we're gonna have a little less ritual and a little more fun around here." --Spike

While going shopping a walked past the board game isle. Same old, same old. Monopoly, Clue, Sorry!, and yada yada. Then I see the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Board Game. Being the huge Buffy fan I am (my screen name is xanderslayer1 for god's sake), I decided to pick it up. I raced home and immedeatly opened the package. I took me a while to set up and learn how to play but I soon found out it was worth it. The game is basically a Buffy version of Dungeons and Dragons. And to my suprise, unlike the series the bad guys can win! I think they represented each season well. And for all you non- Bufsters the game will definately educate you on the basics of Buffy 101. Although the one problem is, is that the peices are easily losy so try not to misplace them or it could through the game off. But the makers of this game did put some extras. I recommend this to all Buffy fans and even non fans. The game is great fun.

I really enjoyed receiving the Buffy game for my birthday, even though it was intended as a joke. I read the rules without understanding, and almost gave up on the idea of ever playing, because I assumed it would be really stupid anyway. I was very surprised when I finally did get through the rules that the Buffy game was not only entertaining, it was a strategy game as well!! Now I play all the time, or a lot of the time anyway, and I never feel silly that I am playing a game designed for children. I am so glad I got this game, and I would recommend it highly for anyone who enjoys the show.

I bought this game because I'm a fan of the show. Little did I know I would enjoy playing it as much as I do. Since I've recieved it yesterday, I've played about seven times with my sister. I've been evil all but two times, and have only lost once as the good side. That's my only complaint; it's easier for the evil to win than the good, at least in my experience. That or maybe my sister is really bad at the game, or maybe I'm just good at being evil.:) Either way I really recommend this game.

I bought this game as a gift for my friend (an avid Buffy fan). It only takes about an hour to play. It's about 60% skill, and 40% luck of the dice. It's a great game because we both win equally, no matter who is good or evil. Hours & hours of good, clean Buffy fun.