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Released in 2017, Gloomhaven has been around for 7 years and remains popular. Having had two multi-player follow-ups, a solo miniature version and PC and console ports it is clear to see that Gloomhaven has been an incredible success.
I have been playing Gloomhaven regularly with my friends for well over a year and we still have huge amounts to play through, unlock and discover.
All popularity and brilliance aside there are still things about the game that will drive you mad! So here are 5 things I think will drive you mad about Gloomhaven.
#1 Looting
Looting is a core mechanic for gathering treasure in Gloomhaven. There are two ways to loot. You will loot any square you are stood on at the end of the turn and there are card actions that enable a character to loot multiple squares; all good so far. However, the element of looting that will drive you mad in Gloomhaven is that un-looted treasure is lost when a mission is completed. The result of this is can be an unrealistic faffing about at the end of a mission; delaying the completion goal whilst you try and collect as much of the remaining loot as you can before finishing.
#2 Monster Damage Output
The monsters in Gloomhaven can deal an awful lot of damage, more than most of the heroes seem able to do. Add to this that the monster AI means that they will target the nearest enemy, and that one hero is often nearest to most enemies, a single turn for a group of monsters can completely destroy a player’s character; exhausting them out of the mission. The gameplay result is that rather than going toe-to-toe with a group of baddies, you instead find yourselves doing anything to avoid taking damage; it becomes a case of trying to bend the rules to your favour. The strategic nature can add to the challenge but does remove from the flavour of the game sometimes.
#3 Playing “That” Combo Again
The simulated chaos of Gloomhaven combat, where you should only communicate vaguely with your allies and certainly not discuss your initiative order means that synergistic working is really tough. Certainly one person in our group tends not to communicate their intentions at all as this is how they perceive the rules (and they sometimes play greedy and just take a turn looting whilst the rest of us deal with the more immediate threats). This also means that you can end up playing the same combinations of cards over and over again as they minimise the impact of monster actions and allow the most flexibility of response. Add stamina potions to the mixture and it can feel like you and your fellow players are always playing the same combinations over and over again. Gloomhaven does offer solo play/full discussion rules as an alternative that up the challenge level on account of you having more thorough discussions and this did seem to change our play style and overcome some of the issues noted here.
#4 The Non-Linear Story Arcs
The same depth of story that brings you into the world of Gloomhaven can also be its undoing. You get to a place where there are two options that take you in different directions and before you know it you have lost a major story arc that you end up starting off again later. I know that there have been a couple of occasions where we “completed” a story arc and then picked the same tale up again. Whilst I have followed a lot of the stories the same cannot be said of my fellow players that appear to have lost all buy-in to the tale being told. The result of the plot lines deviating so much and interweaving is clever but things can definitely be lost in the telling leaving a very confused narrative.
#5 “Losing” The Card You Need Two Turns Later
A bit of a silly one this but very true… In Gloomhaven player fatigue is simulated through losing cards from your deck. Once you have less than two cards, you are too exhausted to go on. Inevitably this leads to the need to manage your cards. Sometimes a turn can take your friends longer to play out than you simply deliberating the card that you will sacrifice into the lost pile. However, if there is one thing that seems totally true, it is that the card you just put in the lost section will be the one you could have used brilliantly in two turns time! You need a load of movement one turn… where is that move 4 card, in your lost pile. Got a perfect chance to use that area of effect attack that you never seem to use, it just got sacrificed to the lost card gods 😊
With all this said, however, Gloomhaven is certainly a fun and strategic gaming experience that is totally worth the moments of frustration.