The Thing: The Boardgame

I'm a huge fan of John Carpenter's "The Thing," so I was incredibly excited to get my hands on this board game. It truly captures the paranoia and dread of the movie, and I love how it brings the same emotions to the gaming table. The game itself is a "hidden role" game where one player starts as the Thing, and the others are humans. The Thing's goal is to infect the others, prevent the survivors from escaping, or even escape with them by pretending to be human.

The game's complexity can be a bit overwhelming at first, with 9 phases per round. But once you understand the flow, it becomes quite engaging. There's a lot of resource management, as humans need to keep the base fueled and fed, while the Thing tries to sabotage things. This creates a tense atmosphere as players must decide what to prioritize.

I particularly enjoy the social deduction aspect of the game. You never know who to trust, and that constant paranoia adds to the excitement. The game truly shines with a larger group (6-8 players), as it creates more opportunities for suspicion and intrigue.

The components are generally well-made, though I'm not a fan of the standees for the characters and monsters. I would have preferred miniatures, as they feel a bit cheap compared to the rest of the game. The artwork is fantastic, perfectly capturing the film's atmosphere. The board is sturdy and the cards are of good quality.

My biggest complaint is the rulebook. It's not very well organized and can be confusing at times. It's definitely worth watching some playthrough videos on YouTube to get a better understanding of the rules.

Overall, "The Thing" is a great board game for fans of the movie. It's complex, tense, and provides a thrilling experience. If you're looking for a social deduction game with a strong theme, this is definitely worth checking out.