Pandemic

Pandemic

Publisher: ZMan Games (2012)

Players: 2-4

Play Time: Approximately 45 minutes

Genre: Board Game, Strategy, Co-op

Price: $39.99

Pandemic is the first of several games designed by Matt Leacock that readers will be seeing here. He seems to specialize in cooperative games, for those unfamiliar with the terminology those are games in which the players play against the game instead of against each other. I really enjoy cooperative games, sure trash-talking your friends can be fun but I have just as much fun hearing the different plans that everyone can come up with to tackle the same problem. I just seems to be a more social experience when everyone is working towards the same goal.

Commonly there are many ways to lose these types of games, and one way to win them. Pandemic is no exception. The players lose the game if the game board suffers through eight outbreaks, if you run out of disease cubes to place on the board, or if the players run out of cards to draw from the draw pile. That's right, even the draw pile isn't not your friend, instead of reshuffling and starting over, the players lose the game when the cards run out. It's a punishing mechanic that forces the players to do something meaningful with every turn, biding your time isn't an option.

It isn't the most punishing mechanic though, that honor is held by the outbreaks that occur in the game. Throughout the course of play infection cubes are placed on cities around the map, when those cities reach three cubes they become a ticking time bomb. If another cube would normally be placed on a thrice infected city that city suffers an outbreak, placing infection cubes on all cities connected to it. The worst case scenario is that an adjacent city reaches the outbreak point due to the initial outbreak, throwing out even more infection cubes (thankfully a city can't outbreak twice as part of the same chain) and making a bad situation downright dismal.

“With so many paths to failure arrayed before the players how do the good guys win the game?” you ask. The players must discover cures for all four diseases on the board. It's important to remember that you DO NOT have to eradicate the diseases to win, you just need to discover the cures. Without keeping that tidbit in mind the players will find the game nigh impossible to win. Believe me, Pandemic doesn't need any help, it's difficult enough as it is.

There are a lot of things to remember during the course of a game. Reference cards are provided to serve as reminders of all of the different things that are possible during a player's turn. Pay close attention to the movement rules regarding the use of city cards for transportation and the sharing knowledge mechanic afforded the players. Getting either of those things wrong drastically changes the way the game plays and you'll be kicking yourself when you realize that your easy victory came from a misapplication of the rules.

Conclusion: Pandemic is an insanely challenging game. I wouldn't recommend it for neophyte gamers unless there is someone very experienced around to help guide everyone through a couple of games. In the same vein, it might not be the best game to wrap up a play session with, as there's a better than decent chance you'll end the game humbled in defeat, staring sullenly at your implacable foe; an unfeeling, remorseless collection of cardboard and plastic. With all that being said; when you do manage to defeat this evil, brought into our world by Matt Leacock, you'll feel an amazing sense of accomplishment...or so I've heard.

Rating: 7.75/10