So what’s this Hellgame about? Well simply put you control a set of daemons that are attempting to control a complete circle of hell that consists of five sectos – or regions. To do this you will employ ground forces (legions & hellhounds), Magic & Dirty Tricks (Arcana Cards), Diplomacy, Influencing and other generally nefarious devices.

The Game:

First I’ll start with the look of the game. Simply put, the artwork and production of the cards are really impressive. Out of about 200 cards none of them are identical, and there is nothing that looks really cheesy. Now the board is not mounted (as most wargames seem to come these days) but it does look good. The counters, though they could really be more distinctly marked to easily differentiate the players, still look good. The box is the only poor production quality aspect of the game, as it is made up of a thinner paper stock than most other games (though its not horribly flimsy). The dice are cool looking with pentagrams (of course!) for ones. On the whole it really seems to give the impression of the underworld theme, and a number of players stated that they were impressed with the around of obvious research went into the game. Of course... none of this tells you how it plays.

So how does it play? The game play basically comes down to two distinct aspects.

On the one hand you have the area-control mechanism in which legions, hellhounds and commanders (Lieutenants) are bought, bribed, influenced and finally brought to war. The fighting is done with dice with a system that is reminiscent of Axis & Allies or Twilight Imperium. Daemons and Arcana cards can be used which can modify the rolls (or saves). In addition to bringing you closer to victory conquering regions (Sectos) also has the benefit of driving up your wealth, as each provides money (souls) every turn.

However, on the other hand, you have an almost card-driven magic system in which Arcana Cards are used to aid or hurt others with sometimes very powerful results. Without Arcana Cards you are in deep trouble as they are used to do almost everything in the game except recruiting and moving the basic legions. Each card can be used for two different things like many card-driven wargames (i.e. Napoleonic Wars, Successors) so you will often have the agonizing choice of using a card for either the major effect, or the more utilitarian effect - such as a “walk the earth” card which allows you to earn more money (souls) and favors.
These two mechanics/aspects are far from the only parts to this complex game however.

You also have major and minor events (which daemons can conspire to modify) that have both a global and localized effects on the game state every turn. This makes it difficult to plan out far reaching strategies, as the fortunes of the characters will often fluctuate.

Anything is for trade, from the cards in your hands, to legions, to the actual daemons. Also some Arcana cards require players to have other daemons participate in invoking a particularly powerful effect, so negation skills are even occasionally needed.

Another interesting aspect is the rank/pass system. Each daemon takes his or her turn in order with the higher ranked (and more powerful) daemon going before their weaker lower ranked brethren. To modify this (going later is often very important) you must use an Arcana card that allows you to “pass” a number of lower ranked daemons.

I feel as though I’ve just touched on the major aspects to the game, as there is more to it, but hopefully you get the general idea of how it works. The box says games last between 2-4 hours, however I think this is a VERY optimistic estimate. I would estimate normal games go from 3-6 hours depending on the styles of play and the experience of other players.

The Bad:

So now we get down to what works and what doesn’t. I’ll start with what I didn’t like, or what I think others might not like.

I think its safe to say that neither I, nor other players, could really find anything “broken” in this game. It seems to play as intended, though I have a few minor quibbles.

First, I’m not a fan of the dice land combat resolution. It’s not bad, per say, but it takes quite awhile to resolve some battles and the quick battle resolution options provided didn’t strike anyone as really appealing. I would have preferred something that would cause more attrition in battles making them quicker. It’s also hard to keep track (in large battles) of which legions, hounds, etc are targeting which opponents. I think a simpler add and divide based system (a la Mare Nostrum) would be better. Still most of the others I’ve played with didn’t have a particular problem with it, and though I’m not fond of it, it does get the job done.

Secondly, there are some rules “issues”. There are so many Arcana cards and Event cards which can create such odd combinations that situations will sometimes occur for which there is no rule for. You need to play this with a group of people expecting to run into a rules conflict/problem that will have to be addressed by the group in a hopefully fair and judicial manor. As time goes on and the FAQ list increases I’m sure many of the questions will eventually be ruled on, but I’ve noticed about 3-4 issues that simply had to be resolved by a consensus being reached by the group per game. It’s hard for me to hold this against the designers as the sheer number of strange developments can be staggering, but gamers who can’t deal with working out rules issues on the fly should be heavily warned.

Thirdly, Hellgame succumbs to a common problem very hard to avoid in these types of games: Bash the leader. If you can’t stand the thought of being number one and then being driven back down to second to last place in one turn this isn’t probably the game for you. I know some gamers don’t like this often-common aspect of these games, so I feel as though I should point it out. Of course… who is really in the lead is often determined by a player’s persuasion ability.

Fourthly, Downtime can be a problem. If you happen to get a faction ranked very close together you will be sitting around watching what is going on (which is important, but not the same thing as being actively involved). Luckily this seemed rather minor as most of the time your daemon ranks are spread out so you only need to wait a few minutes or less between each turn. Combat can be boring watching others duke it out, though there are not as much combat as you might think (due to many players simply fleeing). I also have to add that all the combat Arcana cards are quite amusing so it’s usually not boring watching the daemons slam each other with spells.

Lastly, and my only other warning to other gamers (as I don’t consider it a flaw) is that this game is VERY chaotic. Players who put all their eggs in one basket are likely to be frustrated when it collapses due to no fault of their own. As there are event and Arcana cards that can dramatically affect the board and fortunes of the factions it is very difficult to plan out a long-term offensive strategy. Though steps can be taken to limit the effects of most of the more severe events, much of the game is spent recovering from effects either manifested by other players or from random events. This wasn’t a problem for me (I kind of liked it), but I can certainly see others not enjoying it.

The Good

There is quite a bit to like though.

First the variety of cards and events is staggering as they can occur in multiple different combinations. There are 45 event cards each with two distinct events. These events randomly affect a number of quarters, sectos or are global. Some stay in effect and can combine with others while some are one-turn events. Many are original and quite funny. There are also 109 Arcana cards each with two powers. Some can effect everyone, and others only one daemon or faction. No other game that I have played in recent memory had each game feel so unique. Almost every rule can be broken which I thought was fun (it is a game about rule-breakers after all). Though the sheer number of fascinating events can cause rules problems and a chaotic game, I loved the replayablity and the fact that each player has to adapt at almost every turn to the current status quo. The Hellgame rewards those who can make due with what they have. Even though sometimes it can be frustrating, I can’t say I was ever bored.

Secondly I really liked the balance achieved by the demons. Though some are obviously more powerful the rank/track system is implemented wonderfully causing every powerful daemon to go before all the other weaker ones. Though at first glance this would seem unbalancing, it quickly becomes apparent that going last can be VERY important at times. Holding onto the circle of five Sectos is very hard to do when all the other daemons go after you do. Each demon also has stats for influencing, battle, and magic that are needed to perform all sorts of different important tasks. This balance, along with the passing/rank/track mechanic, really stands out as great and unique features.

Thirdly, as it can be a very chaotic game, it is pretty hard to get yourself into a position where you feel you can never win the game. As long as you are patient and build back up slowly, chances are you will eventually come back as a contender. It is impossible to be eliminated from the game.

The combinations of mechanics are also impressive. From the bribing of units to the negotiations you have to make to play some Arcana cards, this game really throws the kitchen sink at you. However each mechanic seems to blend in with the tone and theme of the game, so it never feels thrown in just for the hell of it (pardon the pun).

The map of hell is also unique in that it features a set of circular rings surrounding smaller rings. Each brings you closer to the center and to Lucifer himself. It takes awhile to really take in the strategic aspect of player’s placements as we, as normal gamers, are not used to seeing regions linked together in circular patterns (check out he picture). Quite unique and (IMHO) cool.

I also have to reiterate how well this game gets down the theme of Hell. It’s a great adaptation obviously based on research and zeal. The time and care shown in each Arcana card and the tone of the game really shows. Games that successfully incorporate the theme soundly into the gameplay are few and far between. The Hellgame is a rousing success in this regard - not too “Satanic feely” but still kind of spooky, not really light hearted, yet still funny at times. People who refuse to play this simply because of the theme are really avoiding this for the wrong reasons. There is nothing “evil” about this game and everything is kind of tongue-in-cheek. Don’t avoid this game because simply because you have a hang up on hell, as it’s not near as bad as you probably think it is.

Verdict

It seems as if I wrote a lot more (or just as much) negative thoughts on The Hellgame than positive. I do this not because I didn’t enjoy the game (I really liked it) but because players who really dislike certain aspects of other games should be warned away. This game was not made for people who can’t stand long, complex, chaotic games in which “bash the leader” can occur. If you are one of those people in whom all of those statements apply to you, then you need to avoid this game. If only one or two of those aspects bother you perhaps you should still give Hellgame a shot as it really has a lot of other cool aspects.

I liked this game, as did almost all of the people that I played with. All of us are fairly experienced gamers with history in both the longer wargames and the German games. Knowing what to expect is important so you don’t assume you lost the game because of really bad turn, or get frustrated if your grand scheme gets derailed. It’s a game where ANYTHING can happen and if you put yourself in a good position perhaps you can figure out the perfect card combination that will assure you of victory.

What it comes down to, at least for me, is that it is simply fun. Everyone for the most part seemed to enjoy the general dread the random events seemed to produce before they are drawn. Players would get their Arcana cards and chuckle at the horrible scheme they just concocted or the audacity of their next move. I won’t even begin to count the horrible hell puns and damned jokes that popped up. This is the sort of game where bad things happen… sometimes they are so bad you just can’t help but laugh out loud or at least chuckle at the poor daemon who might have just been the victim of an Exorcist event or was afflicted with Psychotic Madness. Just don’t laugh too hard… because what goes around comes around and before you know it you’ll be the one with the look of horror on your face while everyone else just happens to be grinning.

Rating: 8/10

Tips for playing

For those first timers, here are some tips:

1) Don’t exchange that important first favor at the very beginning for a daemon exchange unless you are stuck with a horrible, horrible batch. The first impression when playing is that going last does not make up for having weaker demons. With time you will see that this assumption is incorrect. I've had players tell me that haveing all strong demons is worse that having all weak demons! The weaker daemons make up for their abilities shortfall quite well with moving last - trust me.

2) Don’t get frustrated if you are in a seemingly bad position or something very bad just happened to you. With just a little luck and patience you can easily bounce back from almost any bad situation.

3) Watch the game board carefully! Due to the unusual nature of the board it’s not that uncommon for the entire group to miss one player closing in for the win.

4) Don’t look like the leader. The leader will get targeted. It is usually best to appear to be in third, maybe second place unless you are going to make a move to win on that turn.

5) If you have a chance to win, go for it… provided it wouldn’t cripple your position if you lose. Chances are you will probably fail, but someone has to win!

6) Don’t put all your eggs in one basket as the events can really change things around. Best bet it to scheme on two circles at a time.

7) Unless you have a very good money making position in hell always try and send an available daemon to walk the earth. Favors can be VERY important and the money sure does help. Just remember that a daemon is more likely to be lost/incapacitated while on earth.

8) When someone makes a bid to win it, now is the perfect time for you to make your bid as well (especially if you move later). The other players will have to split their attention between both of you. You might want to make sure you have more favors (tie-breakers) than your competitor though incase you both hold your circles.

9) Disfavors are very bad. Unless you have tons of favors or special Arcana cards to remove them you should avoid them like the plague.

10) Always be on the lookout for losing units to influential demons. Don’t have the only lieutenant that wasn’t overpaid when six hearts Ashtaroth is prowling in Hell.