The 5 Biggest Stories In Tabletop This Week

So much happens in the world of tabletop from day to day that it can be hard to keep track of it all, especially now that the genre has grown to encompass so much. While you might have heard about some of the stories on this list, there will likely be some you missed, and now you have them all in one convenient place. Don’t ever say ComicBook.com never gave you anything.

The good news is the industry shows no signs of slowing down and has exploded over the last few years. Not only that, but it continues to expand past just the tabletop, introducing old favorites to entirely new audiences. Pen and paper RPGs like Dungeons and Dragons and Pathfinder are thriving, and those properties are now moving into adventure card games, cooperative board games, and computer games. The industry also continues to churn out highly expandable trading card games (like Pokemon and Magic The Gathering) along with living card games like Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones. Cooperative board games have also taken flight with both original IP (Arcadia Quest, Arkham Horror) and licensed IP (XCOM, Ghostbusters, The Witcher), not to mention the wide net of miniature based games.

Needless to say, the future is bright for tabletop, and this week the industry saw a few new titled announced as well as a popular sequel. It also saw one publisher, in particular, expanding to a new part of the industry with its popular IP while an old favorite gets a brand new skin. Not bad for just one week, so hit the next slide to see the 5 biggest stories in tabletop this week!

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Wayward Board Game Announced

IDW is adding to its successful group of licensed games with a new title based on Image Comics’ Wayward series by Jim Zub and Steven Cummings. IDW has paired the creators with designer Jon Gilmour (Dead of Winter) to create a cooperative game that places players in the roles of Wayward’s heroes as they battle against the Yokai, which are supernatural Japanese creatures.

“IDW Games is ecstatic about working with Jim Zub, Steven Cummings, and Jon Gilmour on a project with as much recognition and fandom as Wayward,” said Jerry Bennington, VP of New Product Development. “As a lifelong tabletop gamer, Jim’s creativity goes beyond just managing the IP. His input and feedback about gameplay and design have been invaluable to us, and will surely produce a product that embodies the soul of the comic series.”

Wayward has developed quite the following, and Zub is excited to bring his hit series to tabletop. Zub said, “Wayward is a passion project for Steven and I, and games are near and dear to our hearts, so getting the chance to bring both of those wonderful elements together with Jon and the rest of the IDW Games crew is an absolute thrill.”

No release date for Wayward has been announced yet.

Paizo Announces Pathfinder: Kingmaker

The world of Pathfinder is coming to PC gaming in the new RPG Pathfinder: Kingmaker. It’s the first isometric RPG based on the Pathfinder license and is being developed by Owlcat Games. It also includes the talents of Chris Avellone, who has had a hand in games like Fallout 2, Fallout: New Vegas, Neverwinter Nights 2, and Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic II. 

“I’m a Paizo fan and a Pathfinder fan. I like the setting, the art style, the adventure paths, the card game, and the iconic characters. I’ve enjoyed playing Pathfinder with my friends (we used to be part of an Ocean’s-11 style game), and I’ve enjoyed the comics, the world, and the overall setting,” said Chris Avellone.”I’m excited by the prospect of bringing Pathfinder to the computer RPG world, and hope gamers will enjoy playing in the Pathfinder universe.”

“I am very excited to be working with Owlcat Games on the first computer RPG for Pathfinder,” said Lisa Stevens, Paizo CEO. “Kingmaker is one of my all time favorite Pathfinder Adventure Paths, and from what we’ve seen from Owlcat Games, it is in good hands and promises to be an amazing addition to the computer RPG field.”

Pathfinder: Kingmaker currently has no release date. You can find out more about it here.

Upper Deck Announces Quest For The Antidote

Upper Deck Entertainment has been releasing more original IP lately in addition to their licensed games, games like the popular Marvel Legendary and VS games. Now they’ve announced a new title set in the medieval realm titled Quest for the Antidote.

The game puts players as subjects of a mad king, who lived up to his name by poisoning all of you (via ICV2). Now it’s up to you to gather all the ingredients needed for a cure, and you’ll be competing against the other players to make it back to the apothecary with all of your ingredients first. Players will have to make it through monster infested locations and special “meddling” cards that other players can put into play, and the first to receive the cure wins.

The box contains 146 cards (Ingredients, monsters, meddling, loot, drop), a rule sheet, 1 six-sided die, 1 ten-sided die, 12 wood tokens (pawns and breath trackers),1 wood cube, and 1 game board. The game is for 2 – 6 players, ages 13 and up, and plays in 45 – 60 minutes.

The game currently has no release date but will be playable at Origins.

CMON Announces Zombicide: Green Horde Kickstarter

Cool Mini or Not (CMON for short) has had a great deal of success in the Kickstarter market, and its latest sequel in the Zombicide franchise now has an official start date.

The new game is called Zombicide: Green Horde, and is a sequel to the spinoff Zombicide: Black Plague game. It is a standalone sequel, so you don’t need the original to play, but it is in the same era as the previous game. You and five friends will once again be up against the undead, but this time it won’t just be against undead humans, as undead Orcs are now joining the fray. CMON is also introducing a new mechanic called “the Horde”, which is described below (via CMON).

A new challenge for the Survivors is the Horde. It represents a growing group of Orc zombies that are ready to enter the board in an unexpected location and ambush the Survivors. As zombie cards with the Horde symbol are drawn, one extra zombie miniature of the same type is set aside, collectively forming the Horde. They will be locked into place until an “Enter the Horde!” card is drawn, spawning the Horde on the board. Any Survivor caught on their own near this roving menace would best beat a hasty retreat. 

Other highlights are new abilities, weapons, and quests, but CMON says it isn’t just for returning players and can be a great introduction to the series. Zombicide: Green Horde hits Kickstarter on May 30.

Hasbro Shows Off Golden Girls Clue

A whole new generation has become fans of Dorothy, Rose, Blanche, and Sofia, thanks to Golden Girls coming to HULU. Now the lovable quartet is coming to the tabletop courtesy of Hasbro and it’s popular series CLUE.

The big mystery this time around is who ate the last piece of cheesecake, and gives players all four characters to play as. It also includes two other characters that oddly look like Miles and Stan. The game will be a must buy for any fan of the show, but it does need to be addressed that the Sophia on the box is not the Sophia seen in the show. Everyone else is accurate, but Sophia’s rendition leaves a bit to be desired. Won’t affect the game at all mind you, but just saying. You can find the official description below.

The Golden Girls Clue® features a custom illustrated game board, where players attempt to solve the crime of WHO ate the last piece cheesecake, WHAT they left at the scene of the crime, and WHICH room they did it in.

Custom Illustrated Game Board

6 Suspect Personality Cards with Custom Gameplay

6 Custom Metal Tokens

Rumor Cards Featuring 6 Suspects, 6 Weapons and 9 Locations

6 Custom Movers

Distraction Cards

Custom Scoring Pad (CLUE sheet & Envelope)

Instructions