Stonemaier Games - Red Rising - Board Game, Mixed

I picked up this board game as it was cheap and looked somewhat-interesting. My partner and I have shelves full of games, and we fancied something new with no real expectation/commitment. Red Rising has since become one of our most-played games, often doing back-to-back rounds for a few hours. The quality of the pieces is good - nothing outstanding but better than expected for the price. The art is beautiful, and there is a clear love for the source material. Gameplay is easy to learn, but deceptively deep - the first game seemed a bit basic but after a few rounds we were picking up on the nuance and strategy and really enjoying it. This is one of those games that I would recommend to every board game fan, especially at such an affordable price.

Being something of a fan of book series and a board gamer I couldn't, not purchase this. The basic aim of the game is to end the game with a solid 'point' scoring hand of cards to beat your opponents scoring hand. The cards themselves are all coloured around specific 'castes' (Golds are the leaders, Reds miners/underdogs, Obsidian's assassins', blue fleet commanders and so on.) The components themselves are very high quality and Stonemaier have been very generous with baggies to help keep things organised in the box. Set up time is quick and learning the game is pretty straight forward as you only do one of 2 actions on your turn - Lead or Scout, then its on to the next player. The rules I felt are very straight forward and only encompass 5 or 6 pages. My main advice for the game is try not to get too bogged down over analysing all the different point scoring methods with your hand and options that become available during the game. In my first game I decided early on I was going to go for a strategy for having a combination of Reds, Pinks and Obsidians in my hand by the end of the game. Whilst it was tempting to switch up my strategy based on cards on the table, my original plan worked and took me to a comfortable win despite thinking it was the wrong plan mid way through. I would really stress this to people who may suffer from analysis paralysis and really bog the game down trying to calculate their end game score constantly in advance. You can do things to mess around with other peoples hands by giving them extra or banishing cards but its not quite as obnoxious as other games. You'll also want to keep an eye on the colours other people are picking up and perhaps make plays to deny them. Very much looking forward to play it again, and definitely something you'll learn new strategies for, the more you play! Small edit - the reviewer below giving this 1 star - the images have only ever been of the standard version and what was delivered to me. No where in the title or description does it say collectors edition.

A very easy game to pick up & play. Based loosely on the Red Rising books, but you don't need any knowledge of the novels in order to play this. Fun deck building with a typical Stonemaier Games twist. This is a very enjoyable game to play either on your own or with a group of friends. Games last approx 45-60 mins. If you're a fan of Stonemaier Games or deck building games, then definitely get this game added to library. It's fun, addictive and easy to play. The quality of the pieces & artwork on the cards are very high. The box also comes with a nice storage tray.

Good game with easy to learn mechanics. Would say the game is better if you have read the Red Rising series of books and understand the factions more.

Made out of good sturdy material with amazing imagery on the board and cards. It takes a while to get your head around the rules but it's fun to play.

Great for Red Rising fans. Good game which I enjoy pulling out and usually play 1-2 times in a row when I do. Some deck-building and scoring mechanics can be a little confusing for new players to boardgames, but once you get your head round them it is actually really enjoyable. Online reviews made the gameplay seem lacklustre to me, but I can vouch it is much better than it might seem initially!

My mates and I are casual board-gamers and Red Rising has fully taken over our board game nights. Easy enough to pick up but great re-playability as you learn the cards, combinations, tactics etc. The character cards themselves are stunning, as are the metal cubes and collectibles. For under 20 quid it’s a steal. I even picked up a set of companion organisers on Etsy… that’s how serious things have gotten

Absolutely made up with this. Thought I was buying the normal game but the collectors edition arrived. Its amazing, easy to learn and fun to play. Very Happy 😊