Castle Panic Review

Don’t Panic!

When asked what my favourite board games are, I usually list medium to heavy, headache inducing, resource management wonders with set ups that take longer than most films - Caverna, Ark Nova and Scythe to name just a few. But, there is one light, cooperative little gem with a breezy set up that makes it onto that list also and that is Castle Panic.

Castle Panic is a cooperative tower defence game, designed by Justin De Witt. The aim of the game is to survive long enough that all the tokens are either discarded or defeated. The game can be played with 1-6 people and, in the back of the rule book, the developers list ways to make it more or less challenging. When we play this game, we also adjust the game further, drawing more tokens then we are supposed to to increase the difficulty of the turn. The ease in which you can vary the game keeps it fresh and provides a good level of challenge for both seasoned and beginner players.

The game has also benefited from the release of expansions such as Wizard’s Tower, The Dark Titan and Engines of War. These expansions add new tokens, mechanics and cards (with Wizard’s Tower even introducing a Dragon as a megaboss). I am yet to try these expansions so this review is going to focus on the base game.

What do I love about this game:

- Weight - firstly, I love the weight of this game and I am not just talking about complexity: carrying this board game to my PC desk today did not require a forklift or wrist brace which makes a nice change. But seriously, this game is simple enough that I can play it with board gamers of all levels and is my go-to game for getting new gamers into the hobby. In Castle Panic, you have to defend the coloured rings around the castle from orcs, goblins and trolls by dealing damage with the warrior cards in your hand. Your turn consists of 6 steps (3 of which are purely admin) and when it comes to decision making your options are clear, do you have the correct warrior in the correct colour to do damage to a token? If yes, do damage, if no then maybe use a card swap at the start of your turn to set another player up for success. Simple. Oh and also there is only one way to lose, if the monsters destroy all the ‘Towers’ the game is over; one way to win, one way to lose…how unusually balanced.

- The unexpected - a truly simplistic game would get dull rather quickly but as this game includes a touch of the unexpected, it keeps you on your toes. In Castle Panic you are able to strategise ready for your turn: say three of the monsters will be in the knight ring by the time it gets to Bob’s turn, Bob can prepare for this by having knight cards traded to him in the lead up to his go. A reliable approach…that is until the unexpected happens. The special effect tokens can scupper these carefully prepared plans - seeing the player on his right move green monsters forward an additional ring is a hard reality for Bob to face as it means his handful of knights becomes suddenly useless. Chaos keeps this simple game engaging and ensures a win is satisfying.

- Components - I really love the way the components have been thought through. Firstly, the numbers on the monster tokens allow you to rotate them to show remaining health without needing additional tokens to act as damage - this keeps the game board really clean and clear. Secondly, the cards provide warriors of three colours (green, blue and red) to match the board zones, but they also have warriors which are ‘any colour’ which allows more flexibility. Finally, and these are my favourite components, the fortify tokens can be physically hung over the walls to give them additional health - I enjoy doing this far too much.

- Cooperative - cooperative games are always fantastic for getting new gamers into the hobby as you are able to work together toward a common goal, supporting new players with their turns and strategies. Castle Panic’s simplicity means that new players can take control over their turns very early on, quickly gaining enough confidence to make their own decisions. This game builds independence fast meaning a win really does feel like a win for all.

- That breezy set up I mentioned earlier - when you are a fan of Uwe Rosenberg’s games, having a game which takes 5 minutes to set up is a welcome palate cleanser. There is even space for the towers/walls to stay on their stands in the box, this means that after a quick shuffle of the deck, the placement of a few towers and the drawing of a few monster tokens, you are good to go. Especially when you want to unwind after a long day, a 5 minute set up is just what you need.