Take one of the best storytelling card games out there and add a dash of sci-fi fun. That’s the idea behind Gloom in Space. There’s Star Wars, Space Odyssey, Firefly, Star Trek, and many more inside jokes to bring out the evil laughter as you try to inflict as much Gloom as possible on your crew before their inevitable demise. What could be more fun?
Given that we’re already fans of the Gloom series, it was a safe bet that we’d like this game. What we didn’t anticipate was that it would become our favorite title in the series. That’s right. Favorite. Take that Munchkin Gloom.
The premise is simple. Make your opponents crew happy while devastating your own and try and time their untimely deaths. Sure it sounds dark, but the storytelling aspect is where this game shines. And while it can be played as a straight card game, it wouldn’t be nearly as much fun. If you haven’t played any of the games in the Gloom series, fear not. Gloom in Space is a completely stand alone version – not an expansion. (Although we are hoping for some dark and gloomy expansions on this theme!)
2nd – (2 player rating) This is a tough one. While I would say that we enjoy the 2 player variant on this game a great deal, more storytellers can only add to the fun. 🌟🌟🌟🌟 4/5
S – (setup, takedown, instructions) The instructions are simple. The cards contain all the information you need. This is not a complicated game at all. I will say that one of the things we like about the setup of this version was the ability to choose your crew as individuals instead of choosing a preset family/crew. Made for some interesting combinations. An improvement on the original. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 5/5
T – (tactile, components, artwork, etc) The design of these cards is one of the biggest selling points. Gloom makes good use of its clear cards that allow you to see down into the stack and carry over traits. And the artwork and suggested storylines are full of nerdy goodness and dark jokes. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 5/5
A – (action, mechanics, general gameplay) The mechanics do not change in this version aside from the setup variant that I’ve already mentioned. This is primarily a storytelling game and on each turn you add a card to a character that either adds to their happiness or to their gloom and despair. There are event cards and defensive cards along the way but the beauty of this game is that the mechanics are simple enough not to drag down the imaginative play. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 5/5
R – (replay factor) This game can be very quick or drag out their slow and painful doom. Either way, the story is never the same twice. New cards, new people telling the stories and new combinations. Extremely high replay value. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 5/5
Final Thoughts – Obviously, I’m a big fan of the series. We own four or five versions plus expansions so I highly recommend this. It works quite well as a warm up game or as the main game for the night. The price point is low and the reward is high. Go on and get a copy. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟5 /5 overall 2nd Star Review
