Mysterium (Base Game)

The game is great, which is why I want to add a five star review. It's beautiful, and fun to play. It's Clue with psychics, a little more thought, and some rules you can take or leave depending on how complicated you want to make the game. My complaint is that I received this game opened. This was 100% NOT a new game. All the cardboard had been punched out, all the cards unwrapped. The cards were bent, and there was some dinging along the cards and the cardboard bits. The cards were also curved as though they'd been shuffled with a little too much force. It took me forever to sit down and organize everything and make sure I had all the parts. If they're going to re-send already opened boxes, they could at least make a baggie for the cardboard bits, or put some plastic back around the cards. Fortunately, I did receive everything, but it was so badly packaged that some of it had slipped between the plastic packing organizer and the bottom of the box, which meant I was annoyed for a lot longer than I needed to be.

I recently played the Mysterium Board Game for a family game night, and it quickly became a favorite! Combining elements of mystery, cooperation, and a touch of ghostly intrigue, this game delivers a unique and engaging experience. Here’s my detailed review: **Gameplay & Mechanics:** Mysterium is a cooperative game where one player takes on the role of a ghost, and the others are psychic investigators trying to solve a murder mystery. The ghost communicates with the psychics using beautifully illustrated cards as visions, which the players must interpret to identify the suspect, location, and weapon. The mechanics are easy to understand but offer plenty of depth, making each session feel fresh and challenging. **Theme & Components:** The theme of Mysterium is what really sets it apart. The ghostly storyline paired with the stunning artwork creates an immersive experience. The cards are gorgeous, filled with surreal and dreamlike imagery that sparks creativity and conversation. The components, including the ghost screen and tokens, are high-quality and enhance the overall gameplay. **Player Experience:** With 2-7 players, the game scales well for different group sizes. While the cooperative aspect makes it fun for families, it’s also great for friends or casual gamers. The communication and deduction involved encourage teamwork and creativity, and it’s especially satisfying when the group solves the mystery together. **Playtime & Replayability:** At around 45 minutes per game, Mysterium strikes the perfect balance between being engaging without overstaying its welcome. The variability in cards and different combinations of suspects, locations, and weapons ensure excellent replayability. No two games feel exactly the same. **Ages & Accessibility:** The game is recommended for ages 10+, which feels accurate. Younger players might need some help interpreting the abstract clues, but it’s a great game to involve the whole family in a cooperative experience. **Overall Impressions:** **Mysterium** is a must-have for board game enthusiasts who enjoy immersive, cooperative games with a strong theme. It combines beautiful components, intuitive gameplay, and plenty of replayability to keep things fun and engaging. Perfect for family game nights or gatherings with friends! **Rating: 5/5** A beautifully crafted, cooperative mystery game that delivers an unforgettable experience every time!

This is a great game I would recommend to anyone! Make sure everyone gets an opportunity to be the ghost, as I think it helps you better understand what’s going on and how to play the game better. Trying to think like the ghost, find patterns, and make educated guesses is difficult, but also really fun. The combos are also endless, so two games will never be the same. The artwork is beautiful and the whole set is made of quality materials. Definitely worth the price.

We bought this to play with me, my husband and our 8-year-old daughter for Halloween during the COVID lockdowns. We loved it and have played several times since! The game pieces are beautiful and very nice/sturdy quality. They definitely feel like they live up to the price of the game. I also really love that everything has a particular place in the box, so you can put everything back very neatly -- which helps keep the pieces in beautiful condition, and avoids the frustration of figuring out how to cram it all back in and shut the box. The instruction book is very detailed (which I actually love!), and will take some time to read all the way through. The only person who really needs to read it though is the "ghost". Their role is the most complicated, but still not hard once you've played it through once. There are also a lot of variations on how to play for different sized groups, or to make it more challenging. So far we've only played with three of us. And we did modify the gameplay a little to make it easier for our 8-year-old. The game is sort of like Clue in that you need to figure out the who, where, and how of someone's death. In this case the "ghost's" death. One player plays the ghost, and they are not allowed to speak at all during the game. They communicate through giving other players cards with these really random images on them. The players need to use those cards to try to interpret what the ghost is trying to signal to them. They could be trying to tip the players off with the colors in the card, or some shape, or a particular image or theme. It might be that the person they're trying to help ID is wearing a hat and there's a person wearing a hat in their card. Maybe the location was in the kitchen and there is food somewhere on the card. The thing is there's a ton of other stuff on each card too, so it can be very easy to misinterpret what the ghost is trying to communicate. And the ghost isn't supposed to give any facial expression or other indication of whether you're on the right track until the end of the turn when they merely confirm or deny your guess. We have played it with all three of us being the ghost at different times. It is really interesting (and challenging) to have to get into the mind of the person playing the ghost and try to interpret what they might think is meaningful. Even "worse" the other players can talk to each other, and even help each other try to interpret it. Which sometimes helps you figure it out, and other times you're sitting there as the ghost thinking "don't listen to him! He's wrong, and you were on the right track!" but you can't say anything. Which keeps it interesting and engaging no matter what your role. The game has endless playability, especially if you change up the players. After a while, you can start to get a sense of what kinds of clues certain players tend to focus on (for instance, my daughter focuses a lot more on the colors or bigger images, whereas my husband gets ridiculously nuanced). But even then, we love playing it, and every game is different.

This is a great big group game that doesn’t feel like a party game. It’s a little like codenames except instead of using one word clues, you give obscure pictures as hints. It’s cleverly done and it would be fun to play with some spooky lighting. It’s just challenging enough but still doable. I do feel like there are a lot of pieces and it’s a little complicated to get set up to begin play, but overall a very fun game to play with a big group.

This game is so much fun. Really makes you think outside the box when guessing the clues. A little tricky to learn at first but if I can learn it after 2 rounds anyone can. I also bought the circus version too!

As old fans of Monopoly and Settlers of Catan, I wanted to try something new with my family. I spent 3 hours watching reviews/rules of 30+ games in YouTube and decided to give this one a shot. It's great for groups who: • Like to talk and communicate and strategies. • Enjoy burning calories on creativity and thinking. • Want to chill and have fun, rather than strict competitions. • Bonus: wonderful for non-English speakers as the cards don't have any texts. (A big factor for us, that eliminated a lot of other games.) === Neutral Tips === • Forget the crews for the first few rounds. Keep it as simple as "one reset of the 7 vision cards per hour." • While it's a co-op game, the negative clairvoyance tokens can be confusing/disheartening to some folks. We made it a rule that when people put the negative (X side) on the table, they mentions "it's just for the points!" since they have 2 to spare in 3 hours. • To avoid the minds getting biased immediately after receiving the vision cards and one person sharing their opinion loud immediately, we put this rule that no one can speak about it until the receiver of the card made his/her decision first and/or 30 seconds are passed. • When it comes to verifying the guesses with the ghost during the round one, we had one player (captain of the team) put finger on the pieces and look at the ghost. It made communications much easier and clearer. • It's hard to find the "up" side of the cards when the ghost hands them to people. The trick is to look at the back side of the card -- the castle being up is one side only. === Pros === • It's a co-op game, so it's perfect for family/fun gatherings. • The fun on each side of the game (ghost, or detectives) is different. That makes you enjoy being on either side and don't get bored. • No English text is a great fit for people who want it to be this way. • Graphics are great! === Cons === • Rules could be more clear. I still don't know whether clairvoyance tokens should reset at the beginning of the fourth round or at the end of it. (At the beginning means 3 round in total for reset. So average of more than one should be spent per round, which is kinda a lot.) • The counters of the clairvoyance tokens (which determine how many vision cards can be seen in phase 2 by each player) are hard to position and move. I think a better physical design (maybe some lanes?) could really help. • Looking at the game and its progress holistically, I think the objective and the connection between the two phases could improve. You will realize it after playing at least five to ten games. During the first phase, almost everyone gets to two cards for phase two on average. And the thing is, in the second phase sometimes seeing the third can adds more to the confusion (in the first four games we played, people with two cards guessed better than people with three cards, in fact!) So, win/lose result boils down to just phase two which is just one vote. I think ignoring this fact can help you enjoy the game more, but it worth thinking about and wishing the game developers come up with more coherent and connected game play, than just one single vote.

As an avid board game enthusiast, I am always on the lookout for unique and intriguing games that offer a thrilling gaming experience. And let me tell you, Mysterium is one such game that is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish! The game is set in a haunted mansion where players take on the roles of psychics who must solve the mystery of a murder that took place in the mansion years ago. One player takes on the role of the ghost who cannot speak but must use visual clues to guide the other players towards the correct suspect, location, and weapon. It's a collaborative game that requires players to work together to solve the mystery before time runs out. The game comes with beautifully illustrated cards and a board that depicts the various rooms in the mansion. The cards themselves are full of detail, and each one tells a story of its own. The game also includes a wide range of suspects, weapons, and locations, making each playthrough a unique experience. One of the most impressive aspects of Mysterium is the level of immersion it offers. From the eerie music that plays in the background to the intricate artwork on the cards, every element of the game comes together to create a truly immersive and engaging experience. Overall, Mysterium is a must-have game for anyone who loves a good mystery. It's a game that offers a unique and thrilling experience that is sure to keep you coming back for more. So, if you're looking for a game that will keep you on the edge of your seat, look no further than Mysterium!