Boss Monster
Today we’re looking at an older title from Brotherwise Games, the same guys that made the game Unearth that we reviewed a while back. Boss Monster released all the way back in 2013, but I’m just getting around to trying it out. Suffice to say, if we’re reviewing something that came out years ago, it is worth talking about. Let’s get to it.
Please note that this is a review, not a comprehensive rulebook. Our reviews are designed to give you the general flavor of the game and help you make a decision on if it is right for you. We will not cover every detail – this is not intended to teach you how to play the game.
Boss Monster is a dungeon building card game in which players take on the role of the boss of a dungeon, rather than a questing adventurer. Your goal as the head honcho is to fortify your lair and lure pitiful herolings to their death, but that isn’t enough for you. You have to be the biggest, baddest baddie around with the biggest, baddest dungeon. This is where the competition comes in. Each player builds their own dungeon, and the first player to collect ten hero souls wins. Don’t misunderstand me when I say Boss Monster isn’t very complicated. The rules are pretty straight forward, but the game is not easy. The problem is, once a few heros test their mettle against you, you begin to draw the attention of even stronger, more formidable foes, and you only have space for five rooms in your dungeon.
The game is played in a few phases. If there is any question about who goes first, it is always determined by which Boss (player) has the highest XP value on their Boss card.. The Beginning Phase involves heroes showing up in town, and players drawing one card each from the “Room Deck”. Next comes the Build Phase, in which players select one room card and either build a new room or upgrade/replace an existing room. Then comes the Bait Phase, when the heros in town decide if there is enough of the treasure they want in your dungeon to entice them to enter (determined by the treasure icons on each room card). If there is, the affected heroes go to the entrance to the dungeon with the most of the treasure they want in it. If a hero is not lured, or both dungeons have the same amount of the hero’s preferred treasure, the hero in question stays in town. This can mean that heros build up in town and swarm a specific dungeon all at once! Finally, we have the Adventure Phase, in which heroes actually progress through the dungeon they are going to enter.
Once you get the hang of the game, it plays really smoothly and usually doesn’t last more than about 20 minutes. We had a few matches last a bit longer, but not by much. I really loved the role reversal in Boss Monster. For whatever reason, playing as the villian and building up a dungeon is actually really, really fun. In one of our matches, Ryan won and lost at the same time. He had 10 souls and 5 wounds. Upon further inspection of the rulebook, we figured out that having 10 souls doesn’t net you a win if you also have 5 wounds.
One of my favorite things about Boss Monster is the art style. All of the cards have a classic 16-bit style that is just dripping with the nostalgia factor. I really felt like I was playing a classic RPG. There are even neat little easter eggs, like references to D&D and Harry Potter (and probably more that I didn’t catch).
The game is designed to allow for pretty much indefinite expansions, and the wise brothers have put out several since the game’s original release back in 2013. We’ve only tried the base game so far, but we’ll be sure to let you know if we get a chance to check out any of the expansions. Even without expansions, Boss Monster is a fantastically unique, nostalgia inducing funfest, and I honestly can’t wait to stop writing this review so I can go play another round. If you don’t already have the game, go pick up a copy – you can thank me later.
Review copy provided by Brotherwise Games
Publisher: Brotherwise Games
Number of Players: 2-4
Age: 13+
Price at time of Review: $35
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Repost of original review from 2019