Early Access Release of Gloomhaven Video Game Now Available

Asmodee Digital has released an Early Access version of their digital adaptation of the hit board game Gloomhaven. The "Early Access" version will give players access to a new Adventure Mode that uses roguelike mechanics, creating random dungeons to explore and dangerous enemies to fight. Although the game initially includes only four characters from Gloomhaven's roster of characters, but Asmodee will add more characters, enemies, quests, and items on a regular basis. Gloomhaven's traditional Campaign and a multiplayer co-op mode will be available when the full game is launched.

The gameplay of Gloomhaven remains mostly unchanged from the original board game. Players choose two cards from their deck, each of which contains two possible actions. Those cards are played in a specific initiative order, with modifiers randomly assigned via a separate deck (which, in the digital game, is controlled by AI.)

Gloomhaven was initially released in 2017 as a unique dungeon-crawling game that combined complex strategies, deckbuilding, and a legacy game format that involved permanently altering certain board tiles and opening secret envelopes at set times. Gloomhaven received almost universal acclaim when initially released and is still ranked as the number one board game on BoardGameGeek, which collects fan-generated ratings of every board game published.

According to game developers, Gloomhaven will remain in Early Access for 9-12 months, as the developers want to work with the community to create new features and content in addition to what's found in the original board game. A fifth playable character, the Tinkerer, is already planned for release in 3Q 2019 along with other improvements and new content.

Gloomhaven is available for PC on Steam for $24.99. Those who pick up the Early Access version will not be charged additional money when the final product is released next year.