Given the character of the work that I do right here as Polygon’s tabletop editor, I find yourself enjoying an terrible lot of board video games on my own. Not board video games that you just ought to play by your self, thoughts you. As a substitute of luxuriating with the cardboard equal of the Instances’ Sunday crossword, I look extra like Bugs Bunny playing baseball. That’s why I’m excited to get my arms on The seventh Citadel, among the many greatest trendy solo board video games. It’s additionally fairly nice as a cooperative expertise.
Revealed by Serious Poulp, The 7th Citadel is the descendant of The 7th Continent, a Cthulhu-inspired board recreation that made waves again in 2015 with a €1.2 million campaign. That one I’ve performed quite a bit, and I love its depth and complexity. Gamers tackle the function of explorers who should use their survival abilities to prevail in opposition to otherworldly odds. However the recreation itself is only a huge field of numbered playing cards. The system, impressed by Select Your Personal Journey books, makes use of these numbered playing cards — almost 850 of them within the base recreation — to inform an elaborate story. Then, on the finish of the journey, you find yourself with a desk coated in a captivating isometric map constructed from the playing cards you’ve drawn.
Not solely does the sport work exceedingly nicely as a solo expertise, I’ve additionally performed it kind of hot-seat with different members of my household. Whereas I’ve the eye stage to see it by to the top, I’ll typically be joined at a number of factors alongside the way in which by different explorers. It’s a delight.
In the meantime, Severe Poulp saved on publishing. It blew the doorways of its next campaign in 2018, which included a reprint and an enormous growth. All advised, it earned over $7 million {dollars}. That effort was later adopted up, in 2020, with The seventh Citadel, a darkish medieval-inspired story with almost similar mechanics. That one pulled in additional than €3.2 million.
Now the design staff of Ludovic Roudy and Bruno Sautter are again for one more reprint. This one contains a lavish new version of The 7th Citadel and, just like the reprint marketing campaign for The seventh Continent from 2018, additionally features a hefty growth, in addition to the promise of extra stretch objectives because the marketing campaign progresses.
Right here’s a bit from the press launch about the way it differs from its forebears:
The seventh Citadel differentiates itself from its predecessor by bringing plenty of new parts to the desk. To begin with, it has its personal unique universe to discover: The seventh Citadel’s story takes place in a post-apocalyptic medieval world known as “The Collapsing Lands”. Gamers will step right into a darkish world stuffed with mysterious Necrodruids, monstrous vegetation, and the much more harmful Burrowers, in a battle for survival spanning a number of adventures known as Threats. By way of mechanics, The seventh Citadel presents thrilling new additions reminiscent of an evolving world map, customizable Motion decks, the likelihood for gamers to develop their very own Citadel between eventualities, and far more.
Whereas I could not pony up for the marketing campaign myself, it’s actually on my radar as soon as it hits retail. However for those who’d wish to get yours sooner, transfer quick. The campaign solely runs from right now till June 19. Copies begin at about $54, with supply anticipated by Nov. 2025.