Gloomhaven - Ep.01: Conception

The developers of the in-development dungeon crawler Gloomhaven are producing a video series that covers the games development. If you would rather read all about it head here.

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Discover the Universe behind the upcoming digital adaptation of Gloomhaven, as the developers walk you through this unique world; learn all about this unforgettable board game adaptation! In Gloomhaven, you play as a team of mercenaries on their own personal quests to go conquer a world of gloomy and wicked decadence. Choose your group members wisely, because in the turmoil of battle you can only rely on your wits, skills and spells to fight your way through the putrid dungeons and forgotten ruins. In this rogue-like dungeon-crawling adaptation of the famous board game, you will journey through terrifying randomly generated dungeons, fight against increasingly horrific and powerful foes…or die trying. Add to your Steam Wishlist now: https://store.steampowered.com/app/78…

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Wow, I hope this turns out as good as it looks.

Me too! Gloomhaven occupies 1st position on BoardGameGeek's Top 100 Board games list, I hope the devs put passion when doing the game.

I've only heard good things about the board game version, so I'm more than a bit intrigued about the computer game.

The board game is quite good… though not in my personal top 10. It could make for a good video game, though I think I recall when they announced the video game port that they were making a couple fundamental changes to the game design that didn't sound that great to me. Can't remember what they were though… might be a thread about it on BGG.

I have played CRPGs for over 30 years and I have not enjoyed board games all that much over the years, only here and there. Gloomhaven is great and I can't say enough positive things about it.

If you're into fantasy/rpg type stuff, yes GH is a very good boardgame. Playing it every couple of weeks the main issue I have is continuity of the campaign. I mean there is a story tying things together but trying to remember it across sessions is difficult. Being able to get on the PC far more often than playing it at game night might help with that. Also GH has a large number of bits and pieces and can be kind of fiddly, letting a PC handle all the nuts and bolts would be welcome also. Have already got it wish listed on Steam, will be watching.

It's a running joke with my group that we'll be old men by the time we get through the campaign, I'm sure this will be released before that happens so despite the steam page saying single player am hoping they can implement multiplayer also (haven't watched the vid yet).

Very looking forward to this one!
Q1 2019 already!? Fine with me.

Originally Posted by SSIGuy
I think I recall when they announced the video game port that they were making a couple fundamental changes to the game design.

Ugh, why though? There are lots of dark-fantasy dungeon crawlers out there. Only Gloomhaven has that tight resource-management gameplay at its core. I'll be super-annoyed if they've dumbed it down.

Before watching the video I was a bit skeptical, but I liked everything I saw there… Thanx to original poster, I hope the game comes as smooth as it looks!!

p.s. Dunno why, but I got some NWN 1 vibes from the video…

"In this rogue-like dungeon-crawling adaptation of the famous board game, you will journey through terrifying randomly generated dungeons"

Says all it has to so not interested I'll pass on this game.

PS: Not getting NWN vides different games & genres.

Well, I'm not sure what changes they are planning, but I definitely wouldn't call Gloomhaven a roguelike. And there is an option to play randomly generated dungeons, but given that the main campaign of designed dungeons takes most people more than a year to complete, even with many dungeon options blocked off due to story choice reasons, most people feel no need to do random dungeons on top of it.

Gloomhaven is my favorite board game of all time. I'm sure it could make a fine computer RPG, but much of the appeal of the board game is how good a job it does of simulating aspects of pen and paper RPGs and aspects of computer RPGs, using only cards and a board, and with no need for a game master. As a tabletop game I consider it a work of art, but as a computer game, I feel a lot of that would be lost. I'm sure it would still be good, but it might not be as revolutionary.

Originally Posted by Hexprone
Only Gloomhaven has that tight resource-management gameplay at its core.

Now *that* interests me.

Originally Posted by fadedc
I'm sure it could make a fine computer RPG, but much of the appeal of the board game is how good a job it does of simulating aspects of pen and paper RPGs and aspects of computer RPGs, using only cards and a board, and with no need for a game master. As a tabletop game I consider it a work of art, but as a computer game, I feel a lot of that would be lost. I'm sure it would still be good, but it might not be as revolutionary.

I sort of feel the same way. I play a boardgame for things that are unique to that experience and don't necessarily want to play a video game version (though I appreciate many will like that - and many will get to play a game they've never tried as a board game).

But there's something uniquely cool about that boardgame experience… My favorite boardgame is probably Mage Knight (which gets compared to Gloomhaven a bit)… and while a video game version would make it easier to play in terms of handling lots for the physical bits and upkeep, I love that part of the game too. I like being 5 hours into a game, getting close to the end with friends, bits and cards everywhere, empty beer bottles on the table, some cold nachos, getting a little punchy 'cause it's 1 AM - and still trying to figure out how to win the last, epic battle.

As to Gloomhaven, one of the things in the digital version that bothered me was that they said it was going to be a rogue like. Not certain how they'll implement that but I certainly don't think of Gloomhaven as a rogue-like either. You can lose a scenario but it doesn't reset the game or change your progress and you can keep playing with your same character, trying that scenario again or going elsewhere.

Originally Posted by SSIGuy
As to Gloomhaven, one of the things in the digital version that bothered me was that they said it was going to be a rogue like. Not certain how they'll implement that but I certainly don't think of Gloomhaven as a rogue-like either. You can lose a scenario but it doesn't reset the game or change your progress and you can keep playing with your same character, trying that scenario again or going elsewhere.

They may be using the term roguelike extremely loosely. When you lose a scenario of gloomhaven you do have to go back to start and try it again (or try a different one). It's not really roguelike, but term has been increasingly poorly defined as the genre has become more popular.

The parts of the game that might need some editing are things like the scenario goals, which would be nowhere nearly as interesting in a single player game. Gloomhaven's difficulty is also designed around players not being able to perfectly coordinate their turns, which wouldn't be the case in single player.

Yeah from what I've heard about the board game, it doesn't strike me at all like a rogue like game, but they could be using a very loose definition of the term. I'll still be checking it out, but before then I might try to lay my hands on the actual board game and share it with family.

Originally Posted by Carnifex
I'll still be checking it out, but before then I might try to lay my hands on the actual board game and share it with family.

Just keep in mind that it's a fairly "heavy" board game, in that there are a lot of rules and things to keep track of. The number of options on your turn can overwhelm some players as well. It's not something I would introduce to players unless they were comfortable with reasonably complex board games.

It's also heavy in the literal sense, given that the box weighs something like 25 pounds.

These Euro games seem to have sparked some sort of renaissance in board gaming (as well as the return of Arkham Horror)



Looks like this is pretty combat heavy. Mage Knight and Near and Far are mentioned at the end.

GH gameplay is almost entirely combat. There's a bit of fluff and then you're setup in a tactical combat situation that you play out by spending/managing your combat action resources trying to complete the scenario before you exhaust said resources.

As you say board gaming has really taken off in the last 10 years. Like the PC it's a case of so many games, so little time these days.

During the first two printings of Gloomhaven it was almost impossible to get a copy of the game unless you kickstarted it. The demand far outweighed the supply. The kickstarter for the second printing of Gloomhaven raised 4 million dollars.

Now it's on the third printing and is a little easier to get, but still not trivial. I got my copy around June, and it cost me about $200. I think the base price is supposed to be something closer to $120, but because it's in such high demand the few stores that have it raise the price.