tabletop time machine

Welcome

This time of year always feels like the

BUMP IN THE NIGHT

A hoard of monsters are entering Marvel: Crisis Protocol, and Will Shick is here to offer a deep dive on just what that means…

100% FAITHFUL

A game of Mafia to The Traitors – deception has never been so fun.

TICKET TO TERROR

The designers of Horror on the Orient Express: The Board Game are on board with sharing the journey

SURVIVAL OF THE FUNNEST

It’s one thing to watch a slasher movie from the comfort of your sofa, screaming at the protagonist to get out of that room, it’s quite a not her to be yelling those same warnings to your best friend across the table, as they delve deeper into the eerie mansion. If you’re looking to feel hunted, paranoid, and only possibly alive at the end of it all, here are our recommendation for eight pulse-raisingly good survival horror games across a range of systems, settings and flavours, from deck builders to tabletop roleplaying

YOUR LAST ROLL

A tale of true horror awaits…

LIGHTS, CAMERA, PANIC!

We speak to SHIVER creators about how they put the “AAARGHHHH!!” into “AAAHHH”PGs

SPOOKY FAMILY FAVOURITES

This is the perfect time of year to start playing more board games together as a family. With cold days, dark evenings and wet weekends, we’d all much rather be sat indoors, all warm and cosy with some of our spooky seasonal favourites. Here are five fantastically spooky games for the family to play together

HOW CLASSIC MONSTERS HAVE IMPACTED TABLETOP

George Chrysostomou dives into the harrowing history of monster my thology

SUBLIME DARK

With Sublime Dark launching as this issue goes to print, Gloom of Kilforth designer Tristan Hall offers us a glimpse into its nightmare horror domain…

10 OF THE BESTSCARY RPGs

Roleplaying games are a perfect home for a little bit of fun fear. With everything from vampires to eldritch horrors, this list gives you some famous names perfect for this time of year. Assemble your Mystery Inc. team to face the horror head on, or better yet, dare you face them alone?

DARK NIGHTS, DARK QUESTS QUESTS

George Chr ysostomou highlights some must-play D&D campaigns for the dark nights ahead

A DARK QUEST INA CURSED CITY

Corpse rat swarms, deadwalker zombies, and bloodborn vampires, oh my! A dark adventure for Games Workshop fans…

KIRIBATI

This month our playful jaunt across the globe

tabletop Glossary

Welcome adventurers, to the tabletop – where deck building has nothing to do with the patio, and worker placement isn’t part of a recruitment agency. If the terminology used to describe the games we know and love can feel like trying to learn a new language, let our glossary demystify the terminology, and have you speaking tabletop in no time at all Words by Emma Garrett

RPG ROUND UP

The best of the scene right now

YOUR WORLD YOUR RULES

We’re back with the latest entry into the Your World, Your Rules column. So far, we’ve taken you to lonely planets, magical libraries, and mysterious schools. In each issue, we create a set of ideas and concepts to inspire your next RPG campaign and this month, we’re focusing on all things horror. The darkening evenings are a perfect backdrop for a stellar story, and there are plenty of games out there that lend themselves well to those spookier narrative arcs. Here you’ll find everything you need to create a compelling campaign, which can be applied to most major RPGs with some editorial oversight from yourselves. Make the changes you want to see, to suit your gameplay style

TIME TO SET SAIL

Our monthly look at what’s new in Disney Lorcana

ON THE CARDS

We look ahead at some of the biggest trading card game news of the month and discover what’s on the cards…

TABLE TOP SCOTLAND

The staple of the gaming calendar returns for another successful year

ESSEN-TIAL GAMING

Spiel: Essen is the voice of the games world, and it had a lot to say in 2024

TO BACK OR NOT TO BACK?

Crowdfunding can be a perilous journey, but we’re here to adventure alongside you! This month, we’re looking into and reviewing Nature, the new game from NorthStar Game Studio

PREVIEW NATURE

This review is of a pre-release version of

OH MY PIGEONS!

PLAYED I’m going to go out on a

CARTAVENTURA: VERSAILLES

Cartaventura is a series of narrative card games.

LANDMARKS

PLAYED Landmarks has created some fuss. It’s

EPPI: PART 1 - CALL FROM OUTER SPACE

What would you do if confronted with a

THE PLOT THICKENS: SCIENCE FICTION

Upon first picking up The Plot Thickens, players

CDSK

PLAYED “This is the most exciting–” my heart

9 LIVES

I feel like there’s been an explosion of

CASTLE COMBO

I can’t stop playing this game. I’ll put

NUNATAK: TEMPLE OF ICE

PLAYED A nunatak is the pinnacle of a

DARK DEEDS

PLAYED Dark Deeds feels nostalgic. With its

QUORIDOR PAC-MAN

If you went to UK Games Expo this

MAXIMUM APOCALYPSE: WASTED WILDS

PLAYED The apocalypse is here and all you

GLOBETROTTING

PLAYED This game looks off-the-scale stunning. The box

HIGH TREASON: THE TRIAL OF LOUIS RIEL

How much do you know about late 19th

STALAGBITE!

PLAYED Dungeon diving is a familiar genre, and

SHERLOCK SOLITAIRE

PLAYED Right now, the industry is in a

TWILIGHT OF THE GODS: AGE OF REVEL ATION

When I read through the epic prologue for

ULTIMATCH

PLAYED I know what’s going to put you

MUTANT YEAR ZERO: ZONE WARS

PLAYED Lots of people find miniatures gaming a

BATTLE REPORT: MUTANT YEAR ZERO: ZONE WARS

A squabble over food—par for the course in our post-apocalyptic wasteland! Chris’ Ark Mutants are heading up against Joen’s Genlab freaks, led by Dux and his homemade crossbow. Who can find the missing GPS with the location of a hidden food cache before the toxic gas clouds arrive? Battle report by Chris Lowry