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Nemesis has often been compared to the Alien franchise and the influences are apparent. You are aboard an isolated spaceship rife with danger, uncertainty and.. the ever present intruders; gigantic xenomorphic creatures that respond to every movement.
Nemesis is highly regarded, often receiving top scores and there are plenty of reviews and videos raving about its brilliant imagining of deep space terror.
However, after playing this game several times, there’s one part that leaves me uncertain.
Rise and Shine!
The semi-cooperative game is designed up to 5 players, but playable with 6. You take on the role of the ship’s crew awakening from a long sleep to find a dead body.
You start Nemesis with two objective cards, but soon have to choose which to complete to win the game. In larger groups, you may receive an objective which incentivises you to take out another player.
The ship starts unexplored, and you spend your five cards to perform actions and movements; some actions cost more cards than others. Exploration and movement take up most of your actions, and each time you move you generate noise, which leads to the intruders appearing.
Once all cards are exhausted, or some players have passed to hold on to a few for next round, everyone moves through the event phase which acts as the tick of the clock. Fire burns, intruders attack, things happen.
The game loops until everyone escapes or dies.
Channels the Great Sci Fi Visuals
The models and artwork are great. They are consistent with the theme and high quality. Every aspect of the game has been subject to care and attention, which supports why it’s priced so highly. Bringing the imposing adult intruders onto the ship is always a joy just to witness how terrifying they are juxtaposed to the crew and the rooms.
The small pieces are cardboard as you would find in most games, but Nemesis has gone all in on the aliens and it’s worth it.
A Fast and Lean Rulebook
Nemesis is not complex either. Once you understand how taking actions work, the rest of the rules are on the cards or the board. There are some upkeep pieces in the game such as fire, eggs, intruder bag tokens, but if one person has read the rules, or has the book at hand, it’s easy to pick up and play along. The setup is cumbersome, as is putting it away after, due to the numerous small, unique pieces required. If you have a small group to play with, or a large group all confident with the rules, then the game doesn’t last too long either.
Hard As Nails
However, I started by saying that I have been left uncertain by Nemesis, and it’s true. After playing it several times and approaching the objectives from different perspectives, I have only won once, and seen anyone else win maybe two or three times, and I only won through fortune and mistake because it occurred the first time I ever played. I wandered around, unsure how to help, then jumped in an escape pod when they opened, having achieved my objective passively.
The concern I have with Nemesis is that objectives can require cooperation, but Nemesis is, by design, not cooperative. Nemesis doesn’t hide its semi-cooperative design from players, it’s advertised on the box itself, but the chances of success are often truly minimal.
The escape pods are placed as one less than the total players, but after entering an escape pod, you must risk two things, someone attracting an intruder in the room which forces you out, or someone being infected in the escape pod with you and murdering you both
You can eject the escape pod as soon as you jump in too, so.. will you be waiting for your friend to try and hop in too? Would they wait for you?
Secondly, all objectives are unique. There is some overlap, i.e. destinations require engines to work, however, largely, everyone has a different goal to achieve. If you’re stuck with getting the ship to a certain destination, you should pray someone wants to help you do the same. In all my games, no one ever checks the engines because they cost too many cards to check, and you need to trust the person checking them.
Despite my concerns, I should add that Nemesis offers cooperative goals and they are an option to choose during setup. This is not the core game as it is designed which is why I’ve omitted them from review.
Nemesis is a semi-cooperative game, but for me, it leans much more toward competitive.
When Are We Playing Again?
Yet, I will continue to play this game, and I have another evening planned for it coming up already. It is the moments in this game that bring you back. It’s the story that is told indirectly, watching everyone around the table contemplate their next decision, and then witnessing it unfold through the event phase and how one action can change an entire plan.
I’ve seen a last survivor spend two turns dashing the long way around the ship, desperate to escape before it self destructs, and escaping at the last possible moment, winning on a roll of a die.
I’ve been victim to betrayal after joining a trio to cooperate with each other’s objectives; I helped clear out the intruders in the airlock control, just for my companion to use those against me and try to wipe me out.
I’ve seen alliances made and vows of vengeance given over the table because of this game. Quite often, when all hope is lost of survival, players turn to desperate measures to bring others down with them, or, they show their true heroism and give everything they’ve got to help you win. Both become great stories to tell.
Maybe this game is hard as nails, and you will rarely succeed in survival, but you won’t forget the story and the people along the way.
Truly Memorable
Many games have made a reputation for being rogue like; survival is secondary to the experience. I would categorise Nemesis with those games despite its 3 hours play time.
You must be comfortable going into this game knowing that winning is a pipe dream, but through some slim chance, a miracle, it could be yours.
Nemesis is a strong game with great vision and atmosphere. It is unforgettable, and each time you play you will learn more about your friends, and more about yourself.
