This review continues my series of detailed reviews. I have tried to cover every aspect of the game and as such you may prefer to skip to the bits of most interest.

Summary

Game Type - Board Game
Play Time: 45-70 minutes
Number of Players: 2-6
Mechanics – Co-operative, Combat, Roll & Move, Scenario Based
Difficulty – Moderate (Can be learned in under 30 minutes)
Components - Excellent

This review is obviously for the expansion to Last Night on Earth, and as such I am not going to revisit the basic game play again (which remains mainly unchanged). Please see my review of LNoE: A Zombie Game for those elements -

Last Night on Earth: The Zombie Game - A Detailed Review


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An Overview

Ok there has been a fair bit of history (in a BGG sense) to this expansion already. By this I refer to the heated discussions about the new Growing Hunger boards not matching (in colour and brightness) the first edition boards of the base game.

I don't wish to go into detailed analysis of this territory in this review, although I will outline component quality in the appropriate places. Instead I will be outlining what it contains, how it adds to and/or changes the base game and its general value to the LNoE line.

Essentially Growing Hunger looks to add more of the same to your base game of LNoE - More B-Grade Zombie Horror goodness. If you loved the original then you will be more or less happy with this follow up. Featured are new characters, new boards, new scenarios, new cards, new zombies and new chits and tokens of various types.

It is worth noting up front that Growing Hunger feels more like a 'Toolkit' rather than a fully fledged expansion as it does a better job of enhancing and altering the base game as opposed to offering a significantly different experience.

Let's take a closer look at all those bits.

The Components

Once again Flying Frog Productions have delivered with another big box edition of quality components. They include (numbers in parenthesis denote how many of that component are provided) -

New Boards (2) - Two new boards are featured to mix up the make-up of your favourite 'doomed' little town. This quantity is perhaps a little disappointing given the asking price with 4 being perhaps what I expected.

One board includes; The Factory, Antique Shop and The Library. The Library allows a searching hero to keep revealing cards from the Hero Draw Deck until they find an Event Card (non-event cards are shuffled back into the deck). This is a nice ability for those heroes that have all the weapons they need but are a little short on events. The Antique Shop allows any 2 cards to be taken from the discard pile and reshuffled back into the Hero Draw Deck. This is useful if key items (that can't be searched for) are needed. It is also useful to extend the size of the Hero Deck if the 'Townsfolk' are running the risk of having their Draw Deck exhausted.


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The other board contains the Super Market, Drug Store, Post Office and Freezer, which is located inside the Super Market and serves as a Zombie Spawning Pit - nice way to enhance the theme! The Super Market requires a Hero to discard the top 3 Hero Cards in order to Draw and keep 2 instead of the regular 1 when searching. This is a nice trade off as a Hero has the ability to 'power up' more quickly at the expense of exhausting their Draw Deck just that little bit faster. The Drug Store allows a Hero to take any First Aid Card from the Hero Discard Pile as a search-able item, in effect replicating the effect found in the Hospital in the base game.

I guess the inclusion of the Drug Store is that a playing group who like to select their boards at random now has a 2 in 8 chance of getting a board with a 'First Aid' search ability as opposed to the original 1 in 6 chance.

The boards look great using the same top down view of the original and the artwork is really neat. The one gripe (which I alluded to in the Overview) is that these boards feature a different brightness level and the grass is of a much lighter shade than the original 1st Edition / 1st printing boards.

I won't pass judgement here, there are other forums for that, but I will be taking Flying Frog up on its offer to purchase the original boards in the new format for the sake of completeness. Is it necessary...no...but as a fan I like my stuff to look good (match).

Characters (4) - In all we get 4 new characters to add some new flavour to Woodinvale and they use the familiar template system. The sculpts for these figures are up to the standard of the original character figs. They are -

Kenny - Representing the dark, misunderstood Geek everywhere Kenny is the Super Market Bag Boy (aka whimp) guy. Two wounds and he'll be packing shelves in heaven. His ability 'Clean Up on Aisle 7' is not only downright funny, but it also allows him to take a wound or give up an item in order to kill any zombie beaten in combat without doubles.

Combine that with his Youth trait (allowing him to not move and heal) and Kenny is a whimp with 'Incredible Hulk' style undertones. Watch out, Kenny is holding a jar of explosive pickles!

Amanda - Holding true to B-Grade Horror Movies' penchant for stereotypes, Amanda is our Prom Queen. Like Kenny she has 2 health but is backed up by the Youth trait. However, Amanda has the Hide ability, allowing her to cancel any fight on a roll of 4+. In addition she is of course Beautiful, allowing any male character in her space to roll an extra fight dice in combat. This would suggest that the male in question found some extra 'wood' to fight with.

A subtle implication of Amanda's 'Beautiful' trait is that the male Hero's are probably more likely to stick with Amanda, especially when the going gets tough. This will then enhance the likelihood of the Zombie Player using the numerous cards that take effect when more than 1 Hero is in the same space. It's subtle but good game design, as before now I have found myself discarding these Zombie cards more often than not.


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Rachelle - To prove that girls can still be 'bad-ass' and that FFP want to be racially inclusive (I expect an Asian or Latin character in the next expansion), we are given Rachelle the African-American Detective Winters. With 3 wounds, Detective Winters is always 'On Duty', allowing her to start the game with a Revolver and Flashlight. Her 'Intuition' also allows her to cancel any Wound on a 6+. This combination makes her a pretty handy Hero to start the game, requiring only an Event Card or two in order to pose the Zombie Player(s) some real headaches.

Sam - Finally we have a starting 'Tank' character. Sam is our Diner Cook and his bald head, cigar and large stomach suggest that his 4 Wounds are definitely warranted. Sam was made for 'Brawling' and his ability allows him to cancel any Zombie Fight Card on a 4+. This guy is perfect for offering protection whilst other characters search for those all important weapons and events.

In all these new characters are nice additions as they offer something different to what has come before, they cover more 'classic stereotypes' that we know and love and they provide a group of heroes with new strategic options.

Scenario Templates (3)- Whilst 3 new scenarios may seem a little light for an expansion, it isn't too concerning when rules modifications (new zombies and new rules - see below) alter the original game so much. FFP are also getting to grips with the fact that LNoE has a large number of terms and keywords and they've sought to make this a little easier by listing the 'Rules Keywords' right onto the scenario templates as appropriate. This feature is very useful.

I'll cover the 3 of these in the Scenario Analysis section later.


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New Zombies (7) - These figs use the same two sculpts as the original zombies but they come in red. Depending on the scenario they allow the Zombie Player(s) to have up to 21 zombies in the game or they act as Zombie Grave Dead (more on that in the rules analysis).


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New Hero/Zombie Cards - Each deck gets an extra 25 cards to mix up the mayhem. These cards feature the georgeous photographic style artwork of the original game and in most cases the cards feature one of the new characters, although not always. All of the new cards feature a hand icon with the letters GH in the bottom right hand corner. This denotes them as coming from the Growing Hunger Expansion and allows owners to easily remove them from the decks should they wish or need to (Die Zombies, Die! Scenario).


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The highlights for the Hero Deck include new weapons such as Circular Saw, Jumper Cables, Fence Post and Garden Shears. Three new minor characters help flesh out Woodinvale; Lizzie the Shopkeeper, 'T-Bone' the Football Jock and Coach Parker the Gym Teacher.

Some new items are denoted as 'Double-Handed' and they take up 2 of the 4 slots available for items for any single Hero.

It's fair to say that the new Zombie cards allow the Zombie Player(s) more of a surprise factor in movement and combat. The highlights for the Zombie Deck include Caught Off-Guard, Fighting Instincts, Overwhelmed, Scratch and Claw, Knocked Away and Catfight.

Other Bits - The game then comes with a wide range of additional tokens, some of which are needed, but most of which are not. These include a Forklift Template, Stone Statue Template, Arcane Rune Template, Alchemy Table Template, Motorcycle Template, Meteorite Template, Toxic Waste Tokens, Door/Locked Door Tokens, Tokens featuring the letters A-D and several tokens referred to as Money, Toxic Waste, The Briefcase, The Cross, The Safe and The Amulet.

It is the inclusion of these bits that are as yet unused that reinforce my comment that this expansion to some degree feels more like a 'Toolkit'. Page 1 of the rulebook highlights that these bits are designed for house rules, homemade scenarios and Official Scenarios to be released in the future. Here's hoping that a rather cheaper 'Scenario Booklet' will be released in the near future to reward the Geeks who have bought both Big Boxes in the system.


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Rulebook - This outlines all of the key additions that not only add new elements to the system, but also rules that change the way the base game scenarios may play as well. The rulebook itself is another classy production, featuring slick thematic photo art, good sized text and borders that feature 'zombie scratched wood' and droplets of blood. The back of the rulebook serves as a good reference point, outlining short summaries of special rules and several important keywords.

Storage - The insert tray is functional without being brilliant. If you're like me and own both this and the original, you will likely decide to put some things in the base game box and others in the Growing Hunger Box, just for convenience and to be space conscious. What it boils down to is the fact that you pretty much need to carry both boxes with you wherever you game.

All in all the components are top notch (compatibility issues aside for those early adopters).


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New Rules - Changing the Game Play

As I've already covered the basic game mechanics in my original review of the base game, I am able to look at all the rules that have been added with Growing Hunger.

As mentioned earlier many of these rules have been included as options, rather than necessities. That means the players can really pick and choose what they want to include in each game they play, making for a really wide variety of play options and styles. I really like how it allows for player customisation as this breathes new life into the game.

Scenario Special Rules

First off we have special rules that are directly related to the 3 scenarios provided in Growing Hunger. These rules are now classified as keywords, so they can be easily found on these GH scenarios and new ones released in the future. These following rules can also be added to any prior scenario as desired by the players.

Hero Specific Rules - In all there are 4 new rule sets that can make things just that little bit easier for the Heroes of Woodinvale. They effect items found in buildings (Well-Stocked Buildings), effects after Heroes die (Heroes Replenish), how many cards Heroes start with (Hero Starting Cards) and the ways in which the Heroes can search buildings (Free Search Markers). All of these new rule variations offer the game something a little different and are solid inclusions.

Zombie Specific Rules - To help balance out the ledger we have 3 new rule sets that assist the Zombie Player(s). By far the biggest game changing rule of them all is the inclusion of Zombie Grave Dead (those new Red Zombies). Sometimes these are featured in specific scenarios like Plague Carriers.

But they can also be included in any scenario as Grave Dead Zombies. Available in a new Zombie Pool these guys can be substituted for regular Zombies at a rate of 2 to 1 and at the start of each game a D6 is rolled to determine a new special ability that they have. Some of these are downright nasty making them harder to kill, faster moving or super spawners!

When you consider that the Zombie Grave Dead rules allow 6 variables to enter the game for each scenario, it really extends the variability and life span of LNoE quite dramatically. For me this rule set alone makes the cost of the expansion worthwhile.

In addition the Zombies also get new rules that affect spawning (Auto Spawning) and how many there can be on the board at a single time (Zombie Horde).

Getting the Balance Right

Flying Frog have been honest enough to admit that LNoE may not always offer a perfectly balanced game if one side is more experienced than the other. To address this they have introduced a rating system for the new Scenario Special Rules mentioned above, that allows handicaps to be applied. This is a neat feature that may not be fully realised at this point, but it is likely to come into its own as new expansions and rule sets are released.

FFP have also designed the 'Free Search Markers' and 'Zombie Grave Dead Rules' to specifically balance against one another. For me they are permanent inclusions every time as they offer so much to the game.

Optional Extra Rules

The following rule inclusions are not as game changing as the Scenario Special Rules, but they really help to add some extra flavour, theme and player customisation.

Door / Locked Door Markers - These round tokens allow players to lock doors as marked on the boards and create new doors in different locations. This allows every board to be customised.

Exploration Markers - Build on the Free Search Marker concept and add real mystery, suspense and tension as each Hero can't help but cringe as they prepare to flip a marker, hoping they haven't unearthed Pandora's Box.

For me the Exploration Markers are a definite inclusion for sure.

New Playing Format - Mini Game: Alone in the Dark

If all of the above wasn't enough, FFP have also thrown in a small but pretty cool addition, a 2-player mini-game.

Alone in the Dark offers a short but tense format that, in my experience, is always a close run thing. It uses 2 randomly selected L-Shaped Boards and pits 1 Hero against a small set of Zombies. Both sides have a set objective to achieve in the 10 turn limit before morning.

It may sound simple and in theory it is, but 1 Hero working alone is tough work, especially when the Zombie player has 2 spawn pits in what is a tight area.

I didn't expect too much from Alone in the Dark but having played it several times I am really impressed with what it offers. Its greatest strength by far is the fact that it plays in roughly 10 minutes, allowing it to really punch above its weight.

Another really cool idea is that Alone in the Dark can be used as the intro to a larger scenario. By playing the mini-game 4 times with different players, it can act as the intro to a B-Grade Zombie Movie, with only the survivors moving on to one of the bigger scenarios.

Also hats off to FFP for the name, Alone in the Dark, which to me is a nice tip in the direction of a classic PC game from the 90's, which was dripping with atmosphere also.

Scenario Overview

Finally we get to the 3 new scenarios offered in Growing Hunger.

Scenario #1 - Zombie Apocalypse

The Zombies literally go insane here and need to destroy 6 buildings before morning. To destroy a building, every space within the building must contain a Zombie and no Heroes may be present. Once destroyed, all Zombies present there are removed from the board. Newly placed Zombies cannot be used on the same turn to destroy a building.

This scenario is great fun as it uses the Zombie Horde and Auto-Spawn Rules. On the Hero side of the equation they start with 2 Hero Cards, Heroes can Replenish, Free Search Markers are used and all buildings are Well Stocked.

All this equates to a fast and furious scenario as the Heroes can get 'itemed' up quickly and there will be plenty of Zombies to target from the get-go!

Scenario #2 - Burn it to the Ground!

This scenario uses the Manor House and 4 Zombie Spawning Pits are placed in the middle of the Manor. The Heroes must burn down this 'House of Evil' using Gasoline to douse each of the 4 Spawning Pits and then use a 'Fire Item' to ignite them. The Zombies must simply kill 4 Heroes like usual or survive the 17 turns till Morning comes.

This scenario is neat as getting to those Spawning Pits with the Gasoline is anything but easy as Zombies continue to pour out of them. This one has a real 'cat and mouse' feel to it tactically as the Heroes seek to draw the Zombies out of the Manor in order to create a window of opportunity for a fellow Hero.

Scenario #3 - Plague Carriers

Woodinvale is in for a tough time here as 7 Specialised Zombies have come to town carrying the Plague!

The 7 Red Zombies are used to represent the Plague Carriers and are set up in 7 random buildings. They cannot move with the exception of Zombie Hunger (at a range of 2) but they attack using 2 dice and turn killed Heroes into Zombie Heroes.

The Heroes must kill all 7 Plague Carriers in the 18 hours before Morning and they start with 2 Hero Cards each, in the center of town.

This is another tense scenario as the Zombie Player(s) can still spawn regular zombies to support their special brethren.

The Final Word

On initial inspection the 2 boards, 4 characters and 3 scenarios may seem rather light on for the asking price. But when you get down to the nuts and bolts of the rule-set, there really is a lot of game on offer in Growing Hunger.

My initial view was that Growing Hunger is more of a toolkit, allowing for great customisation, but relatively little new meat. Upon reflection as I edit this review, I suspect this may be a little harsh on Growing Hunger as credit must also be given for the added value it provides to the base game, thereby increasing the longevity and fun factor of the system as a whole.

In the end of course most gamer's views will tend to be black or white.

Those that found LNoE to be merely ok or dull - Your minds won't be changed dramatically by this offering. Nothing to see here.

Those that liked the game but felt it all to be a little 'same-ish' - Definitely worth a look as the play can vary so greatly with each new game now.

For Fans of the game - Growing Hunger is a must buy, providing countless hours of new fun and experiences. You will love the ability to tinker and the promise of new rules and scenarios to use those 'as yet unused tokens' will keep you salivating.

I can happily say I am in the last category! Until next we meet in Woodinvale, may all your fence posts be hefty ones with wickedly crooked rusty nails and splinters the size of a donkey.

Links

Last Night On Earth: The Zombie Game - A Detailed Review