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18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good game updated..., December 25, 2000
This review is from: Deluxe Illuminati (Toy)
This is one of the classic games from Steve Jackson's company that can be found being played at most any gaming convention. Friends of mine once even reprinted the game onto aluminum cards to increase the ambiance and look of the game, it's that popular.The update includes new art for all of the cards and the addition of many groups from the CCG version I:NWO. There is an expansion to follow soon with even more cards. For those of you new to the game, the setting is thus: You are one of the mysterious 'illuminantis' who wish to rule the world. You have a goal all your own in addition to the generic 'take over the world' goal as well. For example, the Discordians wish to control five 'wierd' groups. To this end each of the players struggles to control any of the hundred or so groups that are available to take over. Everything from the 'Boy Sprouts' to 'Empty Vee' and 'Moral Minority' are in there to use as puppets. Take over the world if you can... "The UFO's, with assistance from Texas will attack to destroy the Congressional Wives..."
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10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
I like it, but it's not for everyone, May 14, 2006
Durability:4.0 out of 5 stars Fun:3.0 out of 5 stars Educational:3.0 out of 5 stars
This review is from: Deluxe Illuminati (Toy)
I've played both the new and the old versions of Illuminati, and I can say that this version is an improvement over the old one. My main problem with the game, though, is that, when I've played, it devolves into long sessions of slap-around-the-leader. ( I'd use stronger language, but this is an Amazon review. )
Every time one player gets near winning, all the other players procede to, more or less, destroy his power structure and his chance at winning. While a strong Illumanati will fend off two or three attacks, after eight or nine, you just don't have anything left to resist with. So, you're back to nearly square one and, while you're trying to rebuild, you're helping everyone else do the same thing to whomever else might be nearing the win. Games can last three or four hours until someone manages to squeak out a victory.
Now, if you like that kind of game, that's fine, but that gets a little long for me.
Also, and this is another minor issue, I have never seen any player manage to win by the standard victory conditions. For those who've never played, a standard victory is controlling a certain number of groups, with the number depending on the number of players. For a five player game, for example, I think it's somewhere around a dozen groups.
Each Illuminati, though, also has its own victory condition: The Gnomes of Zurich need to collect a certain amount of money, The Assassins need a certain number of Violent groups, The Discordian Society need a certain number of Weird groups, and so on.
Since I've never seen a standard victory, everything can depend on the right groups becoming available for each group. If you're the Discordians, and no Weird groups come up, you've got no chance at winning, in my experience.
Don't let me discourage you from buying this game, I'm not trying to. I am saying, though, that it can be so irritating that you'll throw it on the shelf and never look at it again.
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
I just finished playing this game!, November 7, 2004
This review is from: Deluxe Illuminati (Toy)
On a whim, I got a few friends to get together and play this game through.
I, frankly, will soon be adding this gem to my game collection! While there is currently an absence of Magic: the Gathering players, you can play this with a few buddies. And there aren't $300 cards to add on, either. I recently finished up a 5 hour game with three buddies, and the satirical humor was the only thing keeping us up other than the sheer manipulation, deceit, and crazy power struggles it evolved into. I found myself performing twists and turns that I could never imagine myself doing in any strategy game.
This is a game about conquest, plain and simple. Manipultions, wheeling and dealing, and all of that come attached. By amassing a horde of money to stock your Illuminati faction's treasury, and by building a structure of carefully organized power, you must aim to accomplish one of two goals: gain control of groups in proportion to the number of people playing, or complete your faction's "secret goal"; be it summoning Cuthulu to destroy the Earth, amass the world's greatest treasury, build the biggest power base, etc.
I will tell you right now that this game is not "nice and friendly", and there are some imbalances. I feel that the imbalances were meant to be there, in order to force the other players to wield strange politics, and work together to keep each other from getting too powerful - while chasing their own goals at the same time! It gets very crazy, and can keep you up until 3AM playing.
My only slight beef is that the instructions were written a bit obscure, in like, two places. However, through game play, we did sort out misunderstandings. There were no errors or inconsistencies... they even have rules on "cheating", written in a rather sardonic and humorous fashion. :)
I also like the blurbs on Illuminati trivia and history, about the Gnomes of Zurich, the Society of Illuminated Seers from Bavaria (or something), and others. A bibliography has also been included for additional Illuminati referencing and amusement.
I would love to write some more, but alas, it is 3:45 AM, and my forehead is about to bang into my keyboard. :)
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by Steve Jackson
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