“And while the tiny
opera singer strolled through the swamp lands in an attempt to shake the sorrow
of her recent divorce, she strayed too close to the water, and got Mauled by
Manatees!”While a sentence like that may not seem out of the ordinary to a player of games like Munchkin, Gloom diverges in that you are inflicting such cards upon your own characters!
Perchance, good sir,
what is Gloom?
Gloom is a tabletop 2-4 player card game published by Atlas games in
which players try to inflict the most woe upon their chosen gothic Victorian
family before ending their misery with the sweet release of death. It lasts between 45 and 75
minutes depending on your group, and can weave elements of storytelling into
the competitive card game components.
It is immediately recognizable due to it’s transparent plastic cards,
allowing modifiers to interact in a novel way by ‘blocking’ what can be seen
from cards played earlier.
How does one play
this “Gloom”?
At the start of the game, each player gets a set of 5 family
cards. These represent the various individuals in a family and are the ‘bases’ onto
which you play cards. The object
of the game is to have most negative visible point score (which Gloom refers to as "Pathos" points) among your dead
family members at the end of the game. As soon as one set of family members has been killed off, the game immediately ends.
Each player will have a hand of 5 cards, which can include
Modifiers, Events and Untimely Death cards. Modifiers are your bread and butter. They are played on living characters
(including characters belonging to your opponents) and have 3 areas to potentially show positive or negative points: top, middle, and bottom.
Some also show a special effect on the bottom, which can be beneficial
or harmful. When played on a
character, if the points or text box covers the modifier beneath it, the effect
is replaced. However, if the space
is clear (since the cards are transparent) all of the visible modifiers remain
in play.
 |
| A Modifier with -10 on both the top and middle 'spot', worth a combined -20 points. Great! |
 |
| Want to ruin a player's day by making their family happy? That 0 and +15 could cover precious negative points! |
 |
| A Family card. Make his life miserable, then kill him! |
Modifiers include the likes of “Starved in a Storm”, “found Love on the Lake”, and “found Maggots in the Meat”. The scoring areas have varying rarities. The top spot is common, the middle average, and the bottom spot is relatively rare. This adds another layer into deciding the worth of a Modifier card.
Event cards allow you to do one time effects, such as
removing modifiers, drawing cards, or bringing characters back from the dead!
Untimely Death cards kill off characters, which is vital as
only dead characters score points at the end of the game. Also, while they may only be played on
characters with a negative Pathos score (at least something awful must befall
them before they are allowed to die) you can play them on opponents characters
to deny them a scoring zone early on.
During your turn, you get 2 phases, and in each you may play
or discard a card, though Untimely Death cards may only be played in the first
phase. You then draw back up to a
hand of 5 cards and end your turn. Many cards also have a Story Icon (such as the Goblet,
Marriage or Duck) which modify certain cards, and are necessary to allow
certain cards to be played at all.
Play typically has each player frantically trying to heap
negative points on their own characters while putting the dreaded positive
points on opponents cards, then killing off their characters when they feel the
time is right. To kill off your
family members too soon dooms you to an unimpressive score, while waiting too
long gives your opponents more opportunities to throw a wrench in the works.
Pardon, sir, but
wasn’t there mention of a Storytelling element?
Indeed! While
not enforced by any kind of game mechanic, the game encourages a bit of
narration when you play your cards, a snippet of context that ties the
characters together. A surprising
amount of fun is generated from not only describing why Cousin Mordecai was
Wounded by Wasps, but also by an opponent using that misfortune to explain how
their character got into trouble.
“It was only natural
that after poor little Mordecai returned covered in wasp stings that Samson
O’Toole, the bearded man, would want to help. However, the ointments he found seemingly discarded actually
belonged to the local homeless population, and his unintentional theft ended
with him being Beaten by Beggars!”
-Hypothetical Joe, a local Gloom player
Each card is designed to lend itself to a narrative flow,
with each card acting as a reminder of what has happened to the various
characters so far. Each of the
families is unique, as are the individual members. Castle Slogar are the result of necromantic science, with
various levels of success. Hemlock
Hall are a family of potential murder suspects in waiting. Blackwater Watch are a group of related
misfits bound by the scheming matriarch’s iron fist. Dark’s Den of Deformity is a failing troupe of circus
freaks.
Each family lends itself to a different flavor of
storytelling, and different players will easily bring new ways for the
characters to interact despite the confines of the card based element.
Now, while shaping a narrative is easily my favorite part of playing the game, it is worth mentioning that Gloom works without the
storytelling component. While
playing, a friend (who has a fantastic mind for game analysis) mentioned that
his group never includes any narration, that they prefer Gloom as a card
game. At the time I gave him a
look I reserve for people who say they prefer Oreo’s after scraping the cream
into the trash, but after more thought, I can understand their point of view. The mechanics of the system are very
good, and rather than the narration being a crutch to support a weak game
design, it is instead an enhancement on a fantastic game for those who enjoy a
bit of gothic drama. I'll always prefer to tell the tales as we play, but it is good to know I would still enjoy Gloom without it.
And what would a
gentleman make of such a game?
First of all:
The good and the great.
As mentioned before, the core game mechanics are very
solid. It feels like a game that
has been playtested to death (hehe) and then playtested some more. It is a very simple game to learn, even
for someone new to tabletop games.
No, really, I was able to teach my mother in law and she was good to go
after a couple of turns. This is
important to me, as being easy to learn can be an indication of a well designed
game. I cannot think of any game
which I enjoy, and yet struggle to teach to new people.
For gameplay itself, players can find themselves presented
with delightfully tough choices.
When is the best time to kill off a family member? Is it worth getting a massive score
modifier, missing the next turn… or should you use it on an opponent to skip
their turn but risk them scoring those points? Is a modifier with low points in the rare bottom slot better than
high points in the common top slot?
These are the decisions you have to make each game, and each
game the “right” answer might be different as dictated by the current
circumstances.
Aesthetically, Gloom is simple and quirky. The character portraits do a great job
of lending personality to the characters, the borders maintain the gothic feel
very well and the clear cards work as intended, allowing you to see the
underlying cards even after many have been added. The palette is primarily black or empty space, with splashes
of red to denote the valuable Pathos points and event cards.
 |
| Untimely Death Cards, the only way to kill off family members. |
In terms of longevity, it seems like a bit of a mix. If you discard the narration element,
there is not the strategic depth to entertain a competitive gamer
indefinitely. However, when
crafting a story there is a literally infinite scope for replay value, as each
misfortune can lead people down a different creative path. If you commonly play
with a wide assortment of different people, the game remains fresh for even
longer, as every person will bring a new creative perspective to the table.
Even then, when you have exhausted every possible angle and
told every possible story, there are currently 4 expansions available. Sadly I have not yet acquired the
expansions, so have nothing to contribute on their virtues. I’ll add as an aside, Gloom is pleasantly portable, about
the size of two packets of standard playing cards. Not a worry for many, but handy if you want to keep a game
in your car, pocket or purse.
As for Gloom’s weaknesses, there are very few, and even
those tread the line of being needlessly picky. As mentioned before, this game is well designed but lacks
sufficient strategic elements to make it truly competitive. The main issue for me is the relative rarity of Untimely
Death cards, and how it robs the player of the choice of when to bank their
scores on a character. Players
must always be thinking of whether it is worth holding out for a better score,
but when you could go 5 to 10 rounds or more without getting the opportunity,
such tactical thinking is redundant.
Bear in mind however, that this is a storytelling game played primarily
for fun, so losing the winning edge to random chance isn’t as damning as it
would be in a more competitive game.
Finally, you have to know your group. If someone loathes storytelling games
but everyone else is narrating away, they won’t have a great time without possessing a
great deal of patience. At the
same time, someone used to weaving a story will be left wanting if playing with
those who wish to play in silence.
*Ahem* The final verdict, if you will.
Gloom is a fun and
innovative game with a delightful storytelling element backed up by great game
design. It is not a “must own” for
every group, but will delight anyone who wants to wax narrative over a group of
doomed families with their friends.
If it sounds like your cup of tea, it is well worth the $25 price tag,
and I heartily encourage you to pick up a copy at your earliest convenience!
__
Scott originally hails from Northern Ireland, but in 2013 made Texas his home. Previously a tabletop wargamer, he has only recently plunged head first into the tabletop board games. Much of his new found meeple-fueled passion is thanks to the welcoming nature of the DFW Nerd Night community!
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