When I say you play, I mean you play all those characters. Because no matter how many players there are you will all control the four characters. Oh, and your control of them is limited to direction tiles. Hidden Roles expansion was published in 2018 and presents new challenges……it adds a traitor or two in the game. This expansion also includes challenge cards.

After years of arduous research, you alone have unearthed the complexities of using escalators. When a Hero Pawn is placed either at the foot or peak of an Escalator Space then you may move the Hero Pawn up or down accordingly. Magic Maze was quite an extraordinary cooperative game that brought a lot of unexpected fun to the tabletop. The designer pulled off a great fast paced game here for the right crowd of players. This is the defining moment for your group. Do you decide you’ve had enough already and can’t bear to go on? Or do you fight? You’ve been pretending to be heroes for the past two hours so why stop now?

Magic Maze is not a game of high complexity. It does require tactical moves though and although you might see the next best tactical move (e.g., move a Hero pawn on the timer square to increase time) the player that needs to make that move may not. Play through the beginner scenario first. It allows you to talk and introduces you to the game mechanics. There are various editions in different languages. If you’re English speaking and reading you need to make sure you’re not purchasing another language version. As time of play is around 15 minutes this makes it a time filler game that doesn’t require a lengthy commitment of time from players. This can be advantageous for groups just wanting to enjoy a few rounds of a short game with friends or family.

You, and only you, have mastered teleportation and are able to send the Hero Pawns hurtling through a vortex. When a Hero Pawn is placed on a Vortex Space you can move the Hero Pawn on to any other Vortex Space of the same colour. This is a crucially useful way of covering long distances with speed.

Last year, designer Kasper Lapp re-entered the Magic Maze world with Magic Maze on Mars. A phenomenal standalone sequel that has not received as much on a fanfare and I cannot fathom why. Magic Maze on Mars takes all the good parts from Magic Maze, expands upon them and puts the game into a far more believable and immersive theme. It makes for, in my opinion, a better game. But there are some considerations. Less is more Once the sand timer is flipped, everyone will work simultaneously to move the characters around the mall, but no one can talk. The only way you can communicate is by placing (or tapping) the large pawn in front of the person who you think needs to take the next action. Scenario two is mostly the same as scenario one, with just a slight variation on the end condition. That’s the thing with the scenarios; they are slight rules changes from the previous scenario. Even so, the seventhscenario is such a different game experience than the first. The king was accidentally turned into a frog! Gather your friends, stride across the forest, and find the correct ingredients to prepare a potion that will cure him in Magic Maze Kids ! The rules have been simplified from the full game, but the four characters still have unique powers – the prince can jump over an animal, the witch can take forest shortcuts, the wizard can make use of portals and the princess can travel along rivers. Magic Maze Kids is shaping up to be a friendlier take on an already fantastic game!