I roll to move in real life. Got a couple of D6'es, I roll them, and then move that many feet before I roll again. Everyone gets pissed off when I do it, but I tell them it's the rules.
Had this when I was a kid. Just picked up the retail copy yesterday and played with my seven year old daughter. The app to use in place of Zargon is really well done. We had a blast and plan on playing more. All your points are very valid but this is one that gets a pass on all the negatives.
To be honest i think the throw to move is a hidden strategic element of the game. If you cannot move to the orc, because you didn't have enough move point than you need to think what you do instead of attack. (Dagger/hand axe will be more important. House rule if your throw them during combat, after combat you you need to roll with combat dice and if you throw monster shield you lost it). I like the unthread move house rule too. No monster on board you can move 8 square if you have plate mail then 6, but if monster is on the board, you have to throw.
houserules/homebrew: "Evil Wizard Deck" gives Zargon (Morcar) more to do on his turn similar to Space Crusade. exploring means you can search for treasure which you can use to buy stuff. the NA edition added more stuff to buy (potions) but the Remake edition added a few more things from the EU original. nostalgia is a big factor so is playing a beginner fantasy tabletop game. but you can mod to your heart's content as well... ! thanks for sharing your thoughts
WE have plenty of house rules. Also the core game is just way too easy so we did like the first 2 quests from the book and then I created my own. Our last home made quest took me weeks to prepare (about 35 hours or so total) and we played it over the course of 12 hours. This game gives you back what you put in to it.
I feel like I've spent the last 12 minutes being scolded for something I didn't know I did, and I would like to apologize for whatever I did or didn't do then, now, or later. I'm so so sorry. Please don't hurt me. :P Love the review, BTW! Straight to the point. I'm getting the game tomorrow and it's good to know what I'm getting myself into.
Heroquest was never designed for serious gamer's but oddly it got people from traditional board games into stuff like D&D, for me it gets a pass on the negative points, its just a fun game to play and especially with people who don't play 'specialist board game' or playing it with your kids who can just about grasp the rules for this. I collect everything for it, but I think its more about nostalgia than actually buying it as a serious game to play.
I still have my first run HQ that I bought from Kaybee Toys when it was on clearance. Back then retail was $40, and I got it for 10. Same with Dragon Strike.
LOL! Beautiful! Thanks so much for doing this review, for back in the day, I owned the original Hero Quest. Sadly got rid of it many years later, much to my dismay. So I grew quite excited when I learned that they were re-releasing it, only a "beefed" up version. Sounds like the only real thing beefed up here, is the price. Over here in Winnipeg Canada, this sells for about $180. So I wondered if it was worth it. From your review, good sir, I would say that it is not. So thank you for saving me a ton of money. Like you, I still have a soft spot for Hero Quest, but I shall leave it as that. Unless I do want to sail to France in the box...
Id stay where you are at the moment if you know what I mean… Btw. I love Winnipeg. I back packed across Canada back in 1996 and stopped over there. Lovely people.
@@BoardGameBollocks - LOL, aye, good plan to stay where I am! But no way?! You backpacked across Canada?! Dude, that's awesome! Glad you liked our fair city. It's small, but I like it that way. Ah, '96... good times back then...
@@BoardGameBollocks Oh my gosh!!! LOL! In December?! That IS bollocks indeed! That's the worst time to come through Manitoba... winter. I don't know why I still live where the air hurts my face 6 months out of the year...
The space in the box is meant for the expansions, some of which are original (Mage of the Mirror is out in Feb). Also, I believe the rules are an updated version of the US rules and not the UK's "1 body point for every monster", which I didn't like. And lastly the completely plastic furniture and doors should last longer.
@@BoardGameBollocks True, and even the third party inserts can't accommodate future expansions, so its either Ziploc bags or one of those 35 litre ReallyUsefulBoxes which are excellent for storing the D&D Adventure Board Games, if you include some of their Large Tray 6s.
I considered using the box to sail to France after hearing your comment, but then I realized that with your accent, you probably live much closer to France than I do... Oh well, it's a pretty sturdy box!
I played Hero Quest as a teenager with my brothers and sisters. Getting Advanced Dungeons and Dragons was very difficult in New Zealand 32 years ago. I agree with your assessment of the game, they are the same issues I had when my family played it to death.
Gotta say I respect the honest review of this game. I never played it as a kid and I saw it on sale at 50% off and thought it might be something interesting to play but I think I'll still give it a pass.
Glad I picked up a copy of the first edition for $15 unpunched at a yard sale. Played it a couple times with my d&d group. It was fun but we aren't clamoring to play it more.
I don’t think it’s a necessarily a kids game. My kids didn’t like it - the found it too random and lacked meaningful decisions. I avoided this game in the 80s and played Basic D&D instead. This was regarded as a fake rpg and wasn’t very popular at my school.
@@BoardGameBollocks Spot on. Random movement and rolling for action too, two bad rolls and your turn is meaningless and there's no strategy if you can't reliably do something.
Might be an easy fix for movement: Either you move 6, or you roll the two dice for a chance to move more with the risk of getting less. It's a game that provides a very solid framework, perhaps a bit simple compared to newer games but super easy to add little quality of life tweaks like that to which go a long way. If it's too easy, Zargon could just add more monsters to the scenario or more traps. Which would also help with replayability. You are the game master, you should be free to grab a bit more agency there. Improvise. I've looked at this game as well as the D&D adventure system board games. I went with this one, because it's a stronger game at the core that's way easier to tweak and customise. With those D&D board games, you'd need to pretty much write a new rulebook. Here you can just all do it on the fly. Zargon can modify the challenge as the game master, the players don't see the maps of the levels anyway. Can make it harder or easier as you go. This game can be great practice for aspiring dungeon masters.
It doesn't have a solid framework, it has a malleable framework. The game provides some scaffolding of rules that are functional, but unbalanced and bland. The players are left to flesh out new rules, balance, and playtest them. One of the reason's it's too easy is because the players can clear a room before the monsters get an activation. There's a bottleneck strategy with the doorways that effectively protects the heroes from all but the luckiest monster rolls. You can throw every monster in the game in a room, and they'll be unlikely to crack the barbarians armor often enough to prevent him from tanking. And, if they do manage that, the dwarf just swaps into the space. Step one is you need ranged enemies to force the players to close group. However, this creates new issues, because characters like the wizard will collapse. So, the overlord has to play a facilitator role rather than an antagonist to keep the party from collapsing. The traps mostly just slow the game down. If you introduce more traps, then that's just more turns where the players are dealing with traps. That means they're either disabling them or avoiding them. The search being separated into 3 actions already bogs down the game. To expand on issues the game has, most of the spells don't scale well. The wizard is like the inverse of a D&D wizard. He's strong at the start of the campaign, and then can barely pull his weight at the end of the campaign. I will give you that HeroQuest functions as an introduction to learning how to DM. But, it's kind of like being stuck with a bike where you can never really remove the training wheels. Great for younger teenagers (which is why so many of us have nostalgia for the title), but there's so many RPGs and dungeon crawlers available these days as alternatives. I love the original game. I spent 3-4 years playing it heavily with friends. We played most of the campaigns that were available in the US. But, it required a heavy amount of house rules to keep it fun. The gameplay eventually wasn't even recognizable as HeroQuest beyond the combat resolution. Why settle for such a poor gaming system unless you're pursuing nostalgia?
@@VaultBoy13Thank you very much for this highly illuminating comment. I *do* have the nostalgia, but this has convinced me to invest my money in something else (for now).
Played this game until it fell apart. SUCH good memories. I almost completely forgive life its harshness over them, it was that good. Designed a ton of new maps. However, it has dated badly indeed. The original box was less than half as high, that's just marketing BS. Also, they lost the Games Workshop license I guess, so I doubt the minis are as nice.
They're more detailed minis that are a slightly bigger, but they've lost all the style. They also suffer from limp-weapon disfunction due to the soft plastic. The game looks like someone decided to 3D print World of Warcraft characters.
This and Space hulk back in the day enjoyed playing. You can tell yer mans old school when he calls it AD&D and it was never the same for me since second edition.
I am so glad you reviewed this. I grew up with the game as a kid, and was considering buying this, but I think I will just enjoy Goonies and AD&D instead.
Granted, i know very little about D&D or RPGs in general, but can these quests be modified on the go to sort of revtify your main issue about the gameplay? You mentioned that the quests aren't very detailed to begin with, and just give a basic over-view.
When I played this game in the early 90s we homebrewed the movement. The Elf could move up to 12 spaces. The Barbarian and Wizard could move up to 10 spaces. The Dwarf up to 8 spaces. This meant that for the entire party to stay together everyone had to move 8 squares. Since 7 was the most common number rolled on two die it put the movement above average speed. This also gave the faster of the three characters the option of moving faster if the situation required it. Even though this game brings up a lot of nostalgia, Gloomhaven has rendered this board game redundant for me. I agree, it’s not worth the price tag. Not when Gloomhaven isn’t that much more expensive.
I just got my own after 30 years. Game was at dicount and was only 114 euros. I disagree about the box. If you really want to keep your set fresh and intact, then this box serves very good. I mean, as an adult I guess we have more disipline to but the figures back on their slots rather than just take the insides out and just throw the pieces in the box in one mesh. Also if you give a little time and paint the figures, then this is worth of the money. Also it is full of potential to develope your own quests as a master and why not some rules about the movement and master play.
Cool review. Ok it has a lot of nostalgia for me but I use the game as a "game system" (as written on the box). House rules, expanded and improved bestiary, additional traps and searchable furniture make it great! Yeah, I know what you'll tell me ("why the f*** aren't you playing D&D instead?")
@@BoardGameBollocks I let them move to the next door and get setup for a good entrance there. There is no sense spending 20 minutes getting 4 characters to walk down a hallway. So I let them setup at the next door. Except I make the first one show their walking path and they will get hit by traps if there are any.
If you allow monsters to open doors and reset or telocate traps Zargon's turns are way more challenging and fun. Goblins may become scouts and alert other monsters in nearby rooms, for instance or trigger "dungeon alert" which arms secret traps. Exploiting the search for traps rules another way to kill the group reliably. The 1st field behind an opened door can be a pit which cannot be found since you cannot search a room dtamding outside. Likewise a monster in line of sight prevents searching as well.
Good review, some fair points, most will buy for nostalgia, it was a great game back in the day though, not sure I will pick up as I tend to spend all my money on Stella nowadays
I initially balked at the £99.99 price tag, but luckily recently GAME shops were selling it for £79.99, which at the time was cheaper than the online prices that I had looked up the moment that I saw that deal, so I was a bit happier paying that than a penny shy of £100. Also, the reason for prices ending in 99p (or sometimes 95p) dates back to the days when cash flow was perhaps not monitored as cautiously as it later would be. By having a price that was not in round pounds it meant that the cashier had to physically open the till and be far less likely to get away with just pocketing the money for themselves after the customer had given it to them (that is the reason that I was always given for, say, £99.99 being used instead of £100.00). Another thing that would also have played a part in the higher price (even allowing for inflation) is that the VAT was only 15% back in 1989, when _Heroquest_ was first released; now it is 20%.
I thought that *initially,* but because of the deal that GAME were doing for loyalty-card holders on board-game purchases exceeding (I think it was) £30 at the time, I got an additional £5-worth of loyalty-card points, so in a way that knocked the price down to £74.99.
Bought it for Christmas 2023. I thought the quality of the components was top notch and I paid about £40 for it brand new. Still yet to have a go with the family yet though.
I had this back in the day and we played it a few times but not often. The minis were okay then but the novelty of the dungeon furniture and doors came in more handy for our AD&D combats. Much prefer the D&D Adventure System these days. I know Gloomhaven is more widely regarded but I don't have the time to devote to long campaigns and character advancement. At best all I get time for is an hour or so of kobold slapping for a quick giggle so that scratches that itch nicely.
@@chrisc1625 I only have Castle Ravenloft and the Ghost of Saltmarsh expansion but they work well for me and not needing someone to play GM helps. If you need a GM or Overlord role, why not just play DND or another ruleset and use those combat mechanics?
In my opinion the roll to move adds a bit more drama to the combat, if the heroes had fixed movement as well as the monsters, youd always br able to outrun zombies or mummies so you could essentially ignore them.
Amazon is selling the stater boxed game for $67 USD. This is a good game for what it is. I think the minis are pretty good for the price. Finished painting 12 goblins and 4 Dread Warriors with very good results. I DO NOT like the soft plastic... wish they were hard plastic making them more durable and easier to paint. I play with young people who don't want to play more complicated games.... and what adult has enough time for D&D????... not me.
Never played ad&d but did play advanced heroquest and normal and advanced space crusade. D&d of any format for the casual gamer is just too much as are any of the warhammer universes unless that's your main hobby which for you it obviosuly is. Nice to have a remake from childhood that's been kept with pretty simple rules.
Watching this video 11 months after release Price still at £99 on shops I really would like to support my local games shop, but not for £99 on a game that indeed ends up not offering much
I can see what you're saying. It is a shame though, the game does have a lot of nice looking fancy props. Are there other games that you would say replace HQ? Games with that adventure (or dungeon crawl, or keeper vs players) feel, but are actually more fun and engaging? Something like Gloomhaven, Claustrophobia, Last Night On Earth, Mansions of Madness, Shadows of Brimstone, Conan, Arkham (or Eldritch) Horror, the Hellboy board game, Coma Ward, Fury of Dracula, Return of the Heroes, Search for the Emperor's Treasure, Dungeoneer, or some other gaming itch that HQ fails to scratch (other than its nostalgia tickles)?
The best game I found for scratching the HeroQuest itch is Warhammer Quest: Blackstone Fortress (which, might be a bit hard to find now). It reminds of what it used to feel like to play HeroQuest as a kid, but is actually an excellent game. Descent (although, you're probably not finding this for cheap now) or Imperial Assault are the options if you want an overlord. Shadows of Brimstone isn't a bad match either, but it's got some similar pain points like roll to move. Shadows of Brimstone is more of a sandbox though. It's probably the closest thing to the original Warhammer Quest in regards to rules and gameplay.
Top review. This very much seems like it's aimed squarely at middle aged people that played it as kids, which is funny because the original Heroquest was aimed at kids, not adults. Strip away the nostalgia and there's not much there. I'm sure you can get better board games to play with your kids, or your mates, for less than £100.
Glad I wasn't tempted to get this now. Usually a sucker for any dungeon themed game, but HQ seems to lack something and your excellent review reinforces this. Nice one.
I had this as a kid and I thought the minis were really cool but game game was just okay. I thought "Dungeon" was a lot more fun, had more surprises and variability.
The answer is yes it still is worth it. The game is still unbelievably fun with friends. If you don't think the re-release is good, then you haven't played it properly yet.🤷♂️
@@VaultBoy13For some bizarre reason I still want to play it 😂but the game is quite expensive so I'll probably never get it anyway. Are there any better alternatives to Heroquest?
I definitely agree with your comments and feedback on the New Hero Quest. They really should've made the box and game a little bit smaller, like a mix between Descent and Massive Darkness or something like that. They should've put mythic tier included with the base game set and the board should've been a little different. Two double sided boards or tiles would've been cool, but oh well, they didn't do it like that. The movement can just be house ruled by either using one die or make up how many steps each character can move. It sucks, but I still love this game. I guess I'm a sucka for cheesie games that are basic and or generic sometimes. You're right though. They definitely could've did a better job. Maybe perhaps hopefully they can redeem themselves and come out with a sequel to make it how we would wish it would've been made.
I would’ve liked an option to use tiles instead of a board and an option to remove roll and move. That’s wouldve keep the luddites happy and saved me a lot of grief in the comments of this video.
The worst part is that Restoration Games was actively working with Hasbro to actually modernize the game. Instead, Hasbro decided to crowdfund their own version with no rules updates and bad art.
I loved this game 30 years ago and originally backed the project. I’m so glad I didn’t. If I’m going to get heroquest I’ll look for an original copy with the original and better artwork.
@@BoardGameBollocks hope so. I’ve been trying to get a copy for 30 years. It was always sold out and then the expansions came out and they were selling those but not the original game itself
I have my original copy from when I was a kid. When I got it for Christmas back then, I yelled out "BEST BOARD GAME IN THE WORLD!" A couple of years ago, I pulled it out to play it, started and as soon as we started rolling to move, I said this game now sucks and stopped lol. But it still holds a special place in my heart lol
I feel like a Defence Attorney compelled to make the case for a cause that internally he knows to be hopeless but nonetheless.... Yesterday I took part in a six hour D and D adventure that saw us trek through foul swamps, bargain with Nixies and eventually clean up an abandoned monastery taken over by evil and it felt epic. Could you do that with Heroquest? Probably not. Heroquest is a simple board game for young adults in 1990 and was about as good as it could be at the time. (But Warhammer Quest for the boardgame win, if you are a millionaire). Stuart my regular gaming companion has accumulated a stack of HQ material, scenarios addons and well-painted figures and during the pandemic we played our way through several campaigns, introducing his son to dungeoneering. We had some good times doing this but the enjoyment came through the banter and his GM fudging rather than interesting decisions which usually were nothing more than ‘shall we go right or left?’. Heroquest is a bit rubbish but I will defend it in 1990 as better than Dungeon! Or Sorcerer’s Cave. In 2022, not so much...the reissue seems cynical to me but if Hasbro can fleece idiots so be it.
HeroQuest can be adapted gor any ttrpg. It is basically just the tt of any ttrpg. The RPG can be fone by players and its rules are so perfevtly dimple that you always can make them more detailed. Likewise you surely can play any dnd adventure with simplified HeroQuest rules.
That's a ridiculously high price! I'll stick with the original game which I bought in the early 90s along with the various expansions. Have to say the doors, furniture etc look better in the new game, entirely plastic rather than a plastic/cardboard hybrid which you kept having to put together. It's not enough to make me want to upgrade though! Regarding movement I always felt it would've been better if the heroes had a mazimum number of squares they could move (as the monsters do) rather than relying on rolls of the dice.
@@BoardGameBollocks lol sorry. Member Berries were a plot device used in an episode of South Park to convey the idea, that businesses/media often rely on nostalgia to re-release old products/media as easy cash grabs. Im not really saying its good or bad. Just laughing about how obvious it is. I am one who is wholeheartedly happy, everything is identical.
Hasbro had no need to crowd find this. They’re a multi billion dollar company. It’s way over priced for what it is. Even adjusted for inflation it’s 51% more expensive than it was in 1990.
You can’t compare Gloomhaven with Hero Quest. That’s just bonkers mate 🤣 If the US rules are better I dread to think how dire the UK rules were. At the end of the day the game sucks in 2022. Even in 1989/90 people mocked Heroquest players… Hasbro using a crowd funding platform has to be the weirdest thing I’ve seen in board gaming in a while. Sorry but I think your judgement has been clouded by nostalgia and the need to justify your exorbitant payout (I know you will vehemently refute this 🤷). I get the same defence from people who drop mega bucks on mediocre KS debacles. Have a nice day 👍🏻
I remember my brother and I playing this to death when we were young (years ago) and saw a demo of this and so glad I didn’t have any FOMO over that as it looks like a load of cack now. I backed Coraquest on their kickstarter and got it in January and must say it pisses all over it. Kids dungeon crawler but got so much value out of it for around £30 😂😂😂
Way overhyped game. Good for keeping kids occupied on a rainy day.. if you can wrestle their cell phones away from them. You would see stacks of them at fleamarkets around 2000.. sold for pennies. I have at least 5 sets, two of them with all the expansions.
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I roll to move in real life. Got a couple of D6'es, I roll them, and then move that many feet before I roll again. Everyone gets pissed off when I do it, but I tell them it's the rules.
Use a D12…you’ll get there quicker
Had this when I was a kid. Just picked up the retail copy yesterday and played with my seven year old daughter. The app to use in place of Zargon is really well done. We had a blast and plan on playing more. All your points are very valid but this is one that gets a pass on all the negatives.
I tried the but it’s rubbish on my piddly little phone
@@BoardGameBollocks yeah, much better on a good sized tablet
Games that don’t require apps that actually require apps don’t generally stay around too long here.
"You could probably sail to France in this box" Ok! challenge accepted.
Bon Voyage 👋
Not since Brexit!
Always one…
I really like this video, even though I totally disagree with you. HeroQuest is 100% awesome, and is absolutely worth every penny :)
Thanks for the video, great summary! I would definitely watch a video of you attempting to sail to France in the box.
Careful what you wish for!
To be honest i think the throw to move is a hidden strategic element of the game. If you cannot move to the orc, because you didn't have enough move point than you need to think what you do instead of attack. (Dagger/hand axe will be more important. House rule if your throw them during combat, after combat you you need to roll with combat dice and if you throw monster shield you lost it).
I like the unthread move house rule too. No monster on board you can move 8 square if you have plate mail then 6, but if monster is on the board, you have to throw.
houserules/homebrew: "Evil Wizard Deck" gives Zargon (Morcar) more to do on his turn similar to Space Crusade. exploring means you can search for treasure which you can use to buy stuff. the NA edition added more stuff to buy (potions) but the Remake edition added a few more things from the EU original. nostalgia is a big factor so is playing a beginner fantasy tabletop game. but you can mod to your heart's content as well... ! thanks for sharing your thoughts
260$ in canada the price is garbage buying for a 5 year old i feel like my old man when he told me no to warhammer
WE have plenty of house rules. Also the core game is just way too easy so we did like the first 2 quests from the book and then I created my own. Our last home made quest took me weeks to prepare (about 35 hours or so total) and we played it over the course of 12 hours. This game gives you back what you put in to it.
I’m sure sure I want a £100 game where I have to put in loads of effort just to have fun with the thing.
Other games give more, cost less, and aren't flawed out of the box.
Good review. I think it is more playable when you use the App now
I feel like I've spent the last 12 minutes being scolded for something I didn't know I did, and I would like to apologize for whatever I did or didn't do then, now, or later.
I'm so so sorry.
Please don't hurt me. :P
Love the review, BTW! Straight to the point. I'm getting the game tomorrow and it's good to know what I'm getting myself into.
Heroquest was never designed for serious gamer's but oddly it got people from traditional board games into stuff like D&D, for me it gets a pass on the negative points, its just a fun game to play and especially with people who don't play 'specialist board game' or playing it with your kids who can just about grasp the rules for this.
I collect everything for it, but I think its more about nostalgia than actually buying it as a serious game to play.
This is the most straightforward, quickly. Informative, and one of the most entertaining board game reviews I've seen. Well done😂
I still have my first run HQ that I bought from Kaybee Toys when it was on clearance. Back then retail was $40, and I got it for 10. Same with Dragon Strike.
LOL! Beautiful! Thanks so much for doing this review, for back in the day, I owned the original Hero Quest. Sadly got rid of it many years later, much to my dismay. So I grew quite excited when I learned that they were re-releasing it, only a "beefed" up version. Sounds like the only real thing beefed up here, is the price. Over here in Winnipeg Canada, this sells for about $180. So I wondered if it was worth it. From your review, good sir, I would say that it is not. So thank you for saving me a ton of money. Like you, I still have a soft spot for Hero Quest, but I shall leave it as that. Unless I do want to sail to France in the box...
Id stay where you are at the moment if you know what I mean…
Btw. I love Winnipeg. I back packed across Canada back in 1996 and stopped over there. Lovely people.
@@BoardGameBollocks - LOL, aye, good plan to stay where I am! But no way?! You backpacked across Canada?! Dude, that's awesome! Glad you liked our fair city. It's small, but I like it that way. Ah, '96... good times back then...
In december…😐
@@BoardGameBollocks Oh my gosh!!! LOL! In December?! That IS bollocks indeed! That's the worst time to come through Manitoba... winter. I don't know why I still live where the air hurts my face 6 months out of the year...
I remember stopping at a place called Sioux Lookout on the train and someone told me it was -30C
The space in the box is meant for the expansions, some of which are original (Mage of the Mirror is out in Feb). Also, I believe the rules are an updated version of the US rules and not the UK's "1 body point for every monster", which I didn't like. And lastly the completely plastic furniture and doors should last longer.
They don’t fit if you leave the miniature trays in
@@BoardGameBollocks True, and even the third party inserts can't accommodate future expansions, so its either Ziploc bags or one of those 35 litre ReallyUsefulBoxes which are excellent for storing the D&D Adventure Board Games, if you include some of their Large Tray 6s.
As a fantasy games for us to play with our young kids, its ideal.
I agree with this statement
Thanks for the review. Killer end riff.
I considered using the box to sail to France after hearing your comment, but then I realized that with your accent, you probably live much closer to France than I do... Oh well, it's a pretty sturdy box!
"You can probably sail to France that is how big the box is" love it
they re-designed the box in 2022 so it's a little more compact though many copies of the big box still out there!
Still loads of wasted space. No way I’m putting the minis back in the insert each time.
I played Hero Quest as a teenager with my brothers and sisters. Getting Advanced Dungeons and Dragons was very difficult in New Zealand 32 years ago. I agree with your assessment of the game, they are the same issues I had when my family played it to death.
Gotta say I respect the honest review of this game. I never played it as a kid and I saw it on sale at 50% off and thought it might be something interesting to play but I think I'll still give it a pass.
Glad I picked up a copy of the first edition for $15 unpunched at a yard sale. Played it a couple times with my d&d group. It was fun but we aren't clamoring to play it more.
Appreciate the nostalgia filtering. Now the real question is, since this is a kids game, would you recommend it for kids? Like a gateway drug to D&D?
I don’t think it’s a necessarily a kids game. My kids didn’t like it - the found it too random and lacked meaningful decisions. I avoided this game in the 80s and played Basic D&D instead. This was regarded as a fake rpg and wasn’t very popular at my school.
@@BoardGameBollocks Spot on. Random movement and rolling for action too, two bad rolls and your turn is meaningless and there's no strategy if you can't reliably do something.
Might be an easy fix for movement: Either you move 6, or you roll the two dice for a chance to move more with the risk of getting less.
It's a game that provides a very solid framework, perhaps a bit simple compared to newer games but super easy to add little quality of life tweaks like that to which go a long way.
If it's too easy, Zargon could just add more monsters to the scenario or more traps. Which would also help with replayability. You are the game master, you should be free to grab a bit more agency there.
Improvise.
I've looked at this game as well as the D&D adventure system board games. I went with this one, because it's a stronger game at the core that's way easier to tweak and customise. With those D&D board games, you'd need to pretty much write a new rulebook. Here you can just all do it on the fly.
Zargon can modify the challenge as the game master, the players don't see the maps of the levels anyway. Can make it harder or easier as you go. This game can be great practice for aspiring dungeon masters.
It doesn't have a solid framework, it has a malleable framework. The game provides some scaffolding of rules that are functional, but unbalanced and bland. The players are left to flesh out new rules, balance, and playtest them.
One of the reason's it's too easy is because the players can clear a room before the monsters get an activation. There's a bottleneck strategy with the doorways that effectively protects the heroes from all but the luckiest monster rolls. You can throw every monster in the game in a room, and they'll be unlikely to crack the barbarians armor often enough to prevent him from tanking. And, if they do manage that, the dwarf just swaps into the space.
Step one is you need ranged enemies to force the players to close group. However, this creates new issues, because characters like the wizard will collapse. So, the overlord has to play a facilitator role rather than an antagonist to keep the party from collapsing.
The traps mostly just slow the game down. If you introduce more traps, then that's just more turns where the players are dealing with traps. That means they're either disabling them or avoiding them. The search being separated into 3 actions already bogs down the game.
To expand on issues the game has, most of the spells don't scale well. The wizard is like the inverse of a D&D wizard. He's strong at the start of the campaign, and then can barely pull his weight at the end of the campaign.
I will give you that HeroQuest functions as an introduction to learning how to DM. But, it's kind of like being stuck with a bike where you can never really remove the training wheels. Great for younger teenagers (which is why so many of us have nostalgia for the title), but there's so many RPGs and dungeon crawlers available these days as alternatives.
I love the original game. I spent 3-4 years playing it heavily with friends. We played most of the campaigns that were available in the US. But, it required a heavy amount of house rules to keep it fun. The gameplay eventually wasn't even recognizable as HeroQuest beyond the combat resolution.
Why settle for such a poor gaming system unless you're pursuing nostalgia?
@VaultBoy13 so you’re saying there’s no game here and the players have to create one?
@@VaultBoy13Thank you very much for this highly illuminating comment. I *do* have the nostalgia, but this has convinced me to invest my money in something else (for now).
@@VaultBoy13I really want to find a similar board game like this. Which one do you recommend?
Played this game until it fell apart. SUCH good memories. I almost completely forgive life its harshness over them, it was that good. Designed a ton of new maps. However, it has dated badly indeed. The original box was less than half as high, that's just marketing BS. Also, they lost the Games Workshop license I guess, so I doubt the minis are as nice.
They're more detailed minis that are a slightly bigger, but they've lost all the style. They also suffer from limp-weapon disfunction due to the soft plastic.
The game looks like someone decided to 3D print World of Warcraft characters.
This and Space hulk back in the day enjoyed playing. You can tell yer mans old school when he calls it AD&D and it was never the same for me since second edition.
Space Hulk still aged gracefully...
I am so glad you reviewed this. I grew up with the game as a kid, and was considering buying this, but I think I will just enjoy Goonies and AD&D instead.
Good move 👍🏻
This is exactly the review i was looking for
Have you tried the D&D adventure boardgames like legend of drizzt and castle ravenloft? Thoughts?
I also have mantics ‘dungeon saga’ being recommended
We haven’t no. I’m not a big fan of the wotc D&D.
@@BoardGameBollocks pretty decent at £40 odd with tile placement, traps, enemies and all that shizz
Granted, i know very little about D&D or RPGs in general, but can these quests be modified on the go to sort of revtify your main issue about the gameplay? You mentioned that the quests aren't very detailed to begin with, and just give a basic over-view.
...Something we "DONT" like is the missing apostrophe in Don't!
Always thought it was pointless as you’re only replacing one symbol for another 🤷
Really enjoyed this video. Just came across the channel..refreshing presentation.
Word up!
When I played this game in the early 90s we homebrewed the movement.
The Elf could move up to 12 spaces.
The Barbarian and Wizard could move up to 10 spaces.
The Dwarf up to 8 spaces.
This meant that for the entire party to stay together everyone had to move 8 squares. Since 7 was the most common number rolled on two die it put the movement above average speed.
This also gave the faster of the three characters the option of moving faster if the situation required it.
Even though this game brings up a lot of nostalgia, Gloomhaven has rendered this board game redundant for me. I agree, it’s not worth the price tag. Not when Gloomhaven isn’t that much more expensive.
Is there a Hero Quest equivalent you would suggest for noobs to this genre of game?
Yea. HeroQuest. It’s generally regarded as a noob game.
I just got my own after 30 years. Game was at dicount and was only 114 euros.
I disagree about the box. If you really want to keep your set fresh and intact, then this box serves very good.
I mean, as an adult I guess we have more disipline to but the figures back on their slots rather than just take the insides out and just throw the pieces in the box in one mesh.
Also if you give a little time and paint the figures, then this is worth of the money.
Also it is full of potential to develope your own quests as a master and why not some rules about the movement and master play.
Cool review. Ok it has a lot of nostalgia for me but I use the game as a "game system" (as written on the box). House rules, expanded and improved bestiary, additional traps and searchable furniture make it great! Yeah, I know what you'll tell me ("why the f*** aren't you playing D&D instead?")
I have Descent 2 with all 41 expansions, plus a few fanmade expansions
HeroQuest is a legend... but have no chance against Descent 2.
=/
I have a house rule that when no monsters are on the board, players don't need to roll for movement.
How far do they move?
@@BoardGameBollocks I let them move to the next door and get setup for a good entrance there.
There is no sense spending 20 minutes getting 4 characters to walk down a hallway. So I let them setup at the next door.
Except I make the first one show their walking path and they will get hit by traps if there are any.
Nostalgia is a helluva drug for some people. In some cases that’s me, luckily not in this instance.
If you allow monsters to open doors and reset or telocate traps Zargon's turns are way more challenging and fun.
Goblins may become scouts and alert other monsters in nearby rooms, for instance or trigger "dungeon alert" which arms secret traps.
Exploiting the search for traps rules another way to kill the group reliably.
The 1st field behind an opened door can be a pit which cannot be found since you cannot search a room dtamding outside. Likewise a monster in line of sight prevents searching as well.
So, basically, put in a bunch of work to make a flawed game fun?
Good review, some fair points, most will buy for nostalgia, it was a great game back in the day though, not sure I will pick up as I tend to spend all my money on Stella nowadays
Hundred quids worth of Stella? 😐
@@BoardGameBollocks maybe a bit of Mel and Griff as well
I initially balked at the £99.99 price tag, but luckily recently GAME shops were selling it for £79.99, which at the time was cheaper than the online prices that I had looked up the moment that I saw that deal, so I was a bit happier paying that than a penny shy of £100.
Also, the reason for prices ending in 99p (or sometimes 95p) dates back to the days when cash flow was perhaps not monitored as cautiously as it later would be. By having a price that was not in round pounds it meant that the cashier had to physically open the till and be far less likely to get away with just pocketing the money for themselves after the customer had given it to them (that is the reason that I was always given for, say, £99.99 being used instead of £100.00).
Another thing that would also have played a part in the higher price (even allowing for inflation) is that the VAT was only 15% back in 1989, when _Heroquest_ was first released; now it is 20%.
Still a bump at £80
I thought that *initially,* but because of the deal that GAME were doing for loyalty-card holders on board-game purchases exceeding (I think it was) £30 at the time, I got an additional £5-worth of loyalty-card points, so in a way that knocked the price down to £74.99.
Back in the day we played it with advanced HeroQuest, put together it was fun, but you might as well play D&D..
HEROQUEST IS THE BEST GAME EVER MADE AND ANYONE WHO SAYS OTHERWISE IS WRONG!
Silly sausage…
What do you think is a fair price for the core game then, 50 quid?
Yea about that. That’s what I paid for it.
I picked up Hero Quest. It was about 70 bucks. I kind of like it.
The original has overall better aesthetics. And as i remember it was costing in Greece like 30€ - 40€ of today's money.
Bought it for Christmas 2023. I thought the quality of the components was top notch and I paid about £40 for it brand new. Still yet to have a go with the family yet though.
Amazon bargain?
Eh....
If you think these componenta are top notch, dunno what to tell you. Compare it to Oathsworn and its very lacking.
I had this back in the day and we played it a few times but not often. The minis were okay then but the novelty of the dungeon furniture and doors came in more handy for our AD&D combats.
Much prefer the D&D Adventure System these days. I know Gloomhaven is more widely regarded but I don't have the time to devote to long campaigns and character advancement. At best all I get time for is an hour or so of kobold slapping for a quick giggle so that scratches that itch nicely.
Which ones do you have? What is your favorite?
@@chrisc1625 I only have Castle Ravenloft and the Ghost of Saltmarsh expansion but they work well for me and not needing someone to play GM helps. If you need a GM or Overlord role, why not just play DND or another ruleset and use those combat mechanics?
I'm going to wager a guess the cost of the game was raised so significantly to cover the cost of the developing the app. Just a hunch.
The "what" used to play this game?
!!!PLEASE!!!! Do a review of Altar Quest! I’d love to hear your thoughts on this game.
I would if I had it…easy to find?
Why is he acting like he’s a doorman at a Watford TGI Friday’s? Am I missing something?!
Clearly…
@@BoardGameBollocks If your name's not on the door....
@@BoardGameBollocks Clearly what?!
In my opinion the roll to move adds a bit more drama to the combat, if the heroes had fixed movement as well as the monsters, youd always br able to outrun zombies or mummies so you could essentially ignore them.
That’s a novel take on roll and move. Personally I just find it annoying as I can’t strategise against the random roll.
Amazon is selling the stater boxed game for $67 USD. This is a good game for what it is. I think the minis are pretty good for the price. Finished painting 12 goblins and 4 Dread Warriors with very good results. I DO NOT like the soft plastic... wish they were hard plastic making them more durable and easier to paint. I play with young people who don't want to play more complicated games.... and what adult has enough time for D&D????... not me.
I think I have to buy it now, or this guy will kill me
Is Decent better than Hero Quest? Just want to know.
Yea but more expensive for the latest one.
@@BoardGameBollocks I will watch your review to, gather more info. I owed hero quest back in 1992. Wanted something new.
I’ve not done a review for Descent. I owned 2nd edition a while ago but got rid.
Never played ad&d but did play advanced heroquest and normal and advanced space crusade. D&d of any format for the casual gamer is just too much as are any of the warhammer universes unless that's your main hobby which for you it obviosuly is. Nice to have a remake from childhood that's been kept with pretty simple rules.
Basic D&D is simple enough for casual gamers.
Have you given the app a go? I play with my kids using the app, much better than having to be Zargon.
Yea. It’s not great on a piddly little phone.
Watching this video 11 months after release
Price still at £99 on shops
I really would like to support my local games shop, but not for £99 on a game that indeed ends up not offering much
It was £40 on Amazon a couple of days ago…keep an eye out
I can see what you're saying. It is a shame though, the game does have a lot of nice looking fancy props.
Are there other games that you would say replace HQ? Games with that adventure (or dungeon crawl, or keeper vs players) feel, but are actually more fun and engaging? Something like Gloomhaven, Claustrophobia, Last Night On Earth, Mansions of Madness, Shadows of Brimstone, Conan, Arkham (or Eldritch) Horror, the Hellboy board game, Coma Ward, Fury of Dracula, Return of the Heroes, Search for the Emperor's Treasure, Dungeoneer, or some other gaming itch that HQ fails to scratch (other than its nostalgia tickles)?
Descent or imperial assault. Gloomhaven or Claustrophobia are decent
The best game I found for scratching the HeroQuest itch is Warhammer Quest: Blackstone Fortress (which, might be a bit hard to find now). It reminds of what it used to feel like to play HeroQuest as a kid, but is actually an excellent game.
Descent (although, you're probably not finding this for cheap now) or Imperial Assault are the options if you want an overlord.
Shadows of Brimstone isn't a bad match either, but it's got some similar pain points like roll to move. Shadows of Brimstone is more of a sandbox though. It's probably the closest thing to the original Warhammer Quest in regards to rules and gameplay.
Oi! Ya get nicked by da monster and they put you in da borstal! A.C.A.B. Na mean!? I love this game! Great game! Great review!
Top review. This very much seems like it's aimed squarely at middle aged people that played it as kids, which is funny because the original Heroquest was aimed at kids, not adults. Strip away the nostalgia and there's not much there. I'm sure you can get better board games to play with your kids, or your mates, for less than £100.
But they're not Heroquest though
Glad I wasn't tempted to get this now. Usually a sucker for any dungeon themed game, but HQ seems to lack something and your excellent review reinforces this. Nice one.
I had this as a kid and I thought the minis were really cool but game game was just okay. I thought "Dungeon" was a lot more fun, had more surprises and variability.
The answer is yes it still is worth it. The game is still unbelievably fun with friends. If you don't think the re-release is good, then you haven't played it properly yet.🤷♂️
Played it all the way through and it still sucks I’m afraid 🤷♂️
The game aged pretty poorly. Outside of nostalgia (or playing with young teenagers), there's very little to enjoy here.
@@VaultBoy13For some bizarre reason I still want to play it 😂but the game is quite expensive so I'll probably never get it anyway. Are there any better alternatives to Heroquest?
Can you recommend another game that is better that is similar to Heroquest? Besides D&D. I'd prefer a gameboard like this one.
@joshuabourque3009 Arcadia Quest, Massive Darkness 2, Claustrophobia
I can't tell if this guy likes board games or wants to headbutt me over football
Tell us how you really feel lol
I held back…
I definitely agree with your comments and feedback on the New Hero Quest. They really should've made the box and game a little bit smaller, like a mix between Descent and Massive Darkness or something like that. They should've put mythic tier included with the base game set and the board should've been a little different. Two double sided boards or tiles would've been cool, but oh well, they didn't do it like that. The movement can just be house ruled by either using one die or make up how many steps each character can move. It sucks, but I still love this game. I guess I'm a sucka for cheesie games that are basic and or generic sometimes. You're right though. They definitely could've did a better job. Maybe perhaps hopefully they can redeem themselves and come out with a sequel to make it how we would wish it would've been made.
I would’ve liked an option to use tiles instead of a board and an option to remove roll and move.
That’s wouldve keep the luddites happy and saved me a lot of grief in the comments of this video.
@@BoardGameBollocks Hahahahahahahaha 😂🤣
@@BoardGameBollocks So I'm guessing you're not keeping the game. 😂🤣
I’m going to play through the expansions with my kids and then ditch it
The worst part is that Restoration Games was actively working with Hasbro to actually modernize the game. Instead, Hasbro decided to crowdfund their own version with no rules updates and bad art.
I loved this game 30 years ago and originally backed the project. I’m so glad I didn’t. If I’m going to get heroquest I’ll look for an original copy with the original and better artwork.
Original may be cheaper now this has droppes
@@BoardGameBollocks hope so. I’ve been trying to get a copy for 30 years. It was always sold out and then the expansions came out and they were selling those but not the original game itself
What’s the difference
Tha ks for the honest review. Happy I didn't pick up the reprint in 2021
We found it in a bargain bin so I’m not too upset. Had I paid retail price I’d be livid.
BROADSWORD!
Better or worse than the Legend of Zagor boardgame?
Better
that is a big box if it can get to Calais!
I’m setting sail on Thursday
I have my original copy from when I was a kid. When I got it for Christmas back then, I yelled out "BEST BOARD GAME IN THE WORLD!"
A couple of years ago, I pulled it out to play it, started and as soon as we started rolling to move, I said this game now sucks and stopped lol. But it still holds a special place in my heart lol
Should have come
With an advanced module. Something to move on to.
I feel like a Defence Attorney compelled to make the case for a cause that internally he knows to be hopeless but nonetheless....
Yesterday I took part in a six hour D and D adventure that saw us trek through foul swamps, bargain with Nixies and eventually clean up an abandoned monastery taken over by evil and it felt epic. Could you do that with Heroquest? Probably not. Heroquest is a simple board game for young adults in 1990 and was about as good as it could be at the time. (But Warhammer Quest for the boardgame win, if you are a millionaire).
Stuart my regular gaming companion has accumulated a stack of HQ material, scenarios addons and well-painted figures and during the pandemic we played our way through several campaigns, introducing his son to dungeoneering. We had some good times doing this but the enjoyment came through the banter and his GM fudging rather than interesting decisions which usually were nothing more than ‘shall we go right or left?’.
Heroquest is a bit rubbish but I will defend it in 1990 as better than Dungeon! Or Sorcerer’s Cave. In 2022, not so much...the reissue seems cynical to me but if Hasbro can fleece idiots so be it.
Just a reminder that the fence you’re sitting on probably needs treating after 30 years 😐
HeroQuest can be adapted gor any ttrpg.
It is basically just the tt of any ttrpg. The RPG can be fone by players and its rules are so perfevtly dimple that you always can make them more detailed.
Likewise you surely can play any dnd adventure with simplified HeroQuest rules.
Purple, veiny helmet? 😂😂
Thanks, for an honest review! Thank goodness I watched your video otherwise I would have wasted a lot of money.
👍🏻
It is worth it
Hell no
That's a ridiculously high price! I'll stick with the original game which I bought in the early 90s along with the various expansions. Have to say the doors, furniture etc look better in the new game, entirely plastic rather than a plastic/cardboard hybrid which you kept having to put together. It's not enough to make me want to upgrade though! Regarding movement I always felt it would've been better if the heroes had a mazimum number of squares they could move (as the monsters do) rather than relying on rolls of the dice.
Doors are a pain in the arse. Keep getting in the way of the minis. Prefer a cardboard token tbh.
Purple helmet 😂
I believe sir, you have missed the entire point of this game.
… Member berries
?
@@BoardGameBollocks lol sorry. Member Berries were a plot device used in an episode of South Park to convey the idea, that businesses/media often rely on nostalgia to re-release old products/media as easy cash grabs.
Im not really saying its good or bad. Just laughing about how obvious it is.
I am one who is wholeheartedly happy, everything is identical.
What a shame, they didn't make any changes... so lazy of Hasbro and overpriced.
Money grab
Hasbro had no need to crowd find this. They’re a multi billion dollar company. It’s way over priced for what it is. Even adjusted for inflation it’s 51% more expensive than it was in 1990.
You can’t compare Gloomhaven with Hero Quest. That’s just bonkers mate 🤣
If the US rules are better I dread to think how dire the UK rules were.
At the end of the day the game sucks in 2022. Even in 1989/90 people mocked Heroquest players…
Hasbro using a crowd funding platform has to be the weirdest thing I’ve seen in board gaming in a while.
Sorry but I think your judgement has been clouded by nostalgia and the need to justify your exorbitant payout (I know you will vehemently refute this 🤷). I get the same defence from people who drop mega bucks on mediocre KS debacles.
Have a nice day 👍🏻
I didnt read any of that as I’m done with this…feel free to keep wasting your time though…have a nice day 👍🏻
✊🏻💦
Brode swode
You win the spotter prize 😂
I remember my brother and I playing this to death when we were young (years ago) and saw a demo of this and so glad I didn’t have any FOMO over that as it looks like a load of cack now.
I backed Coraquest on their kickstarter and got it in January and must say it pisses all over it. Kids dungeon crawler but got so much value out of it for around £30 😂😂😂
It pretty much cack. If I hadn’t found it in a bargain bin I would never have picked it up
true
Way overhyped game. Good for keeping kids occupied on a rainy day.. if you can wrestle their cell phones away from them.
You would see stacks of them at fleamarkets around 2000.. sold for pennies. I have at least 5 sets, two of them with all the expansions.
pure nonsense....heroquest is the best game ever... I even replace my furniture with heroquest furniture...
Can I ask how tall you are?
@@BoardGameBollocks yes you may :) thanks... i am like a typical elf
Word!