Arkham Horror - The Rear View

[@3MBG]

This is one monstrously long video. But it includes written interviews with Richard Launius, Kevin Wilson and Nikki Valens. A deep dive into the game and my experiences and 8 short board game reviews. This is part of a new, and very infrequent series I plan to do on deep dives into games. Chapter marks are here Introduction" 0:00 - 0:57 Arkham First ed: -0:57 - 4:44 Arkham second ed: 4:44 - 11:04 The arkham files: 11:44 - 14:44 Arkham third ed: 14:44 - 17:58 Unboxing 2nd ed: 17:58 - 30:06 Enjoying the game: 30:06 - 33:54 The legacy of Arkham: 33:54

[@floodkevin4716]

I'm loving it so far. I love ANY history on these games. I find it so interesting. Thanks!

[@frenchy1138]

A friend of mine recently had a game day where they played two copies of second edition simultaneously, and every time a character traveled through a gate they'd emerge in the other version of Arkham. I missed it, but it sounded like amazing, bonkers fun, with ten characters bouncing between realities to take down Cthulhu.

[@3MBG]

*MIND BLOWN*

[@GrafEisen1]

I really wish there were more deep dives into board games like this, well researched, well edited videos. I've never played Arkham Horror but I found this fascinating.

[@3MBG]

Ironic isn't it. The two video types I most want to see are short summaries and long deep dives by people who've played a game a lot. And they are both quite uncommon.

[@misomiso8228]

Cool vid. Came here after the top 100 vid. You can see it's a labour of love.

[@3MBG]

Cheers. I'd love to do more of these videos, but they oddly enough, take crazy amounts of time. I feel i could do one on battlestar though, now that unfathomable is out.

[@ソルグル]

Let me say a big thank you for this video! Just for the record: 03:55 - Richard might have forgotten about it, but he actually made that addition (among others) back then! He and Keith Herber (yes, that Keith Herber) created a supplement called „Return to Arkham Horror” which Kevin Wilson is referring to at 06:34. Back in 2004, before the release of the 2nd edition, all the material has been made available online.

[@ajaxline]

A fantastic deep dive into one of my favourite games of all time. Great observations, and kudos for getting responses from the game designers.

[@georginatoland]

My college friends and I played first edition sooooo much! We were always fierce competitors in boardgames so it was refreshing to team up and fight monsters together.

[@3MBG]

Awesome. Did you play any of the later ones as well?

[@landladyification]

4:53 if a sound was to describe a board game

[@3MBG]

Black vortex - Kevin Macleod. Great bit of music

[@adriansandoval1366]

Man... This is a great investigation work, thanks for doing it and sharing. I'm a fan of all the Arkham Files games and Im enjoying this video a lot. I would suggest a follow up video with the games that come from this line legacy (Eldritch, AH LCG, Elder Sign). Regards from Mexico.

[@3MBG]

I'm planning on doing recaps for Elder sign, AH LCG and Mansions 2 this year

[@MrSuperphil]

Great video. The 2nd edition is still my all time favourite board game.

[@necrotoaster94]

Just stumbled across this video. As a long time Lovecraft and Arkham fan this was fascinating to watch. Very well done, high marks. :)

[@AstroTibs]

Another subtle note: _Joining the Winning Team_ requires you to sacrifice the allies at those locations _in the order listed_. It's no small wonder that out of the 16k games submitted to the stats site, there were only 13 reported completions of this mission. Less than one in a thousand games. It's also worth mentioning that there's another "light side" mission to complement JtWT that wins you the game if you complete it: "For the Greater Good." For that one, its owner has to dump a load of clues at its locations (in order, by single investigator, as all Missions require), which causes the investigator to sacrifice himself. Number of reported completions? 14.

[@3MBG]

I've also never seen a "For the Greater Good." pulled of either. But yeah, love that they are in there

[@BradLacke]

I just got my hands on the Dunwich Horror and 2e and I love that Joining the Winning Team is used as the example mission in the DH rulebook. I was reading happily along and then was like "Wait Jim Culver has to do WHAT?!" Then I noticed the illustration.

[@Table.Fables]

I’ve not played Arkham horror (I do love Eldritch though!) but it’s so nice to see your passion for the game and respect for the creators come through in this video- love it!

[@stefantyler]

Great video very much enjoyed your passion and amazing to see the interaction with the designer's

[@vj7248]

Wow thank you for this deep dive! I didnt realize there was such a big 'arkham files' series and history until i started looking into it recently. Its great to hear the descriptions of all of the games and the design philosophies. Im inspired by how you described your experience with 2nd edition ima do it too here: My introduction to Arkham Horror was with 2nd edition. The power went out in our city. Since i mainly play videogames i had nothing to do so i went to my friends house. He suggested we played Arkham Horror (2nd edition) which i never heard of before but i thought was apt to play in our situation. I was surprised too when he said he played it solo, i didnt know you could do that with a big board game. It was a fun roleplaying time where we got into our characters, but ultimately we lost in the end. Then the power came back on. Poetic no?

[@3MBG]

Ha, that's amazing. Did you play by candlelight?

[@vj7248]

@@3MBG hahah i wish! The power went out at start of day so we had plenty of sunlight.

[@dennisluk5928]

Really enjoyed this video! I am not even an Arkham Horror fan, but after this, I could be! Looking forward to the next video!

[@deathrace8287]

Great video! Thank you for the content!

[@Paul-ro6py]

Wow, this was a great 'rear view ' effort.

[@DanielHolding]

Elder Sign Omens is by FAR my favourite digital board game, and actually the only "Arkham Files" game I have played.

[@FEBear1]

A wonderful love letter to my favourite game, thanks! I made a file (it's on BGG) that helps with the Mythos cards, btw. You say you flip from base mythos to expansion, but my sheet gives you a percentage so you can roll 2d10 which simulates the different sizes of the decks. Again, though; a tremendous tribute to the best there is. Good on ya.

[@3MBG]

Cheers FEBEar1. This one was for the fans like you and I.

[@Krozan]

Omg finally a long one! Cheers! You really are a man of your words 😂. Thanks!

[@3MBG]

ha, cheers. yeah, this one took a bit of doing. So much more work in these long vids

[@AstroTibs]

I should mention that it was FFG's preview of the slider mechanic for this game that convinced me to give it a try.

[@3MBG]

im not sure why they became such a maligned part of the game. I love them.

[@AstroTibs]

@@3MBG I know why. They're a lot of extra fiddly components that are easy to knock around and lose track of your stats, and they add in a layer of required micro-managing. Often a player would say "I was GOING to set my sliders to do ___ but forgot! Ugh..." There's a difference between additional control and additional responsibility.

[@DieNische]

Amazing video. Kudos. Fantastic.

[@Deabru3]

GREAATTT VIDEO!!! Really nice work!

[@TheGibsonSG68]

Great vid mate! I also solve the mythos card dilution problem the same way but with a die roll; on a 5 or 6 draw an expansion mythos card. works brilliantly - neighboring towns having ebbs and flows of activity, which somehow makes the game fell more alive.

[@3MBG]

Yeah, i can see that working just as well.

[@joshuawestlund]

I know you’re a humble dude but that’s a sick collection. Those minis are beautiful and of course you have it beautifully organized.

[@3MBG]

Awww, shucks man. But yeah, my Arkham is one of my Taonga and i'll always look after it

[@kevinfitzgerald9319]

I know the KZbin algorithm rarely rewards this kind of work but wow great video. Thanks!

[@3MBG]

Cheers, this one was a bit of a passion project for me.

[@michaelhill6453]

Fabulous!

[@AstroTibs]

20:10 "And you'll see another small box in there..." And Rhan-Tegoth. Dear God, why did it have to be Rhan-Tegoth...

[@3MBG]

Rhan-Tegoth is right up there for roughest old ones. He's just a monster.

[@3MBG]

I also think Rhan was on top because he was the last one we played, and he awoke and ate us.

[@AstroTibs]

@@3MBG I hate Rhan-Tegoth, and it's not a friendly rivarly. I think he's the most poorly designed and unfair. Seldom a fun match.

[@3MBG]

I view him as. well, something put it for the people who always win. I've rarely beaten him, but i suspect there are those people who game it to the nth degree who need that bonkers difficulty

[@AstroTibs]

@@3MBG Yeah, but Atlach-Nacha is harder, yet more fun. You have to seriously think about your moves. With Rhan-Tegoth the threat is random, immediate, punishing, chainable, and unable to be mitigated or prevented.

[@TheMartinChronicles]

About a week ago I was at my local shop and overheard a couple asking the clerk whether they should get the AH card game or AH 3rd edition. He told them that the card game could get expensive with all of the new additions coming out but that he hadn't played the newest iteration of AH. When they came in my direction I pardoned myself and gave them my two cents about how awesome the 2nd edition of AH was but it was hard to find and was a bit complex. They had recently been introduced to the fantastic world of boardgames beyond Monopoly and had had a lot of fun playing Betrayal at House on the Hill. So I pointed them to Eldritch Horror and suggested the Forsaken Lore expansion if they found they liked the core game. They grabbed EH and FL and proceeded to purchase them and head out of the shop. I was pretty happy with myself at that moment but a little later in the day I thought geez these folks are going from Betrayal to EH. I just threw them into the deep end of the pool I hope they are quick studies. 😬

[@AstroTibs]

"I like playing Wilson Richards the handyman." Yeah well he's named after you and Launius ;)

[@Table.Fables]

Great video! I like the format of this- a proper deep dive into a single game :). I’ve never played AH but do enjoy Eldritch Horror- do you think there are enough differences between the two to justify buying AH despite the fact I already have EH?

[@3MBG]

I suspect if you love EH, AH would feel a bit more cumbersome and clunky in places. There are some big differences though, mostly in how much control you have over yoru characters in AH and the push your luck mechanic of clues. That said, try before you buy

[@BoardgamesBourbon]

This was awesome.

[@nickvandam1214]

eldritch horror is a favorite for me, but mansions 2nd surprisingy with its repetitive puzzles and lack of replay ability was a big bust.

[@3MBG]

Interesting. I guess i only play each module every now and then, so it hasnt gotten too repetitive for me

[@Supersly666]

Okay you've convinced me, guess I'll have to hunt down all Arkham Horror 2e content now, wonder if that's even possible lol.

[@freekeefox]

Oh my god I loved the Moviebob style intro

[@joshuawestlund]

OMG my man you MUST interview Maxine et al and do an oral history of the LCG. All people involved are great interviews and awesome people.

[@3MBG]

Man, that would be a cool idea. Im suprised one of the many LCG channels hasnt done it

[@turks1966]

2nd edition for me, just wish I had Miskatonic before it went out of print, I had picked up everything else. Maybe some day still one of the first games I picked up when I got back into gaming I really loved playing it. I have no plans to pick up third edition, why? Don't need it and enjoy 2nd edition enough that I don't feel any need to explore 3rd edition. To those who do pick up third edition, have fun and I hope you enjoy the Arkham world as much as I and others have if you never explored that world before. :)

[@Nintendoo]

Awesome video. Here's a short story that you might appreciate. The first time I played this game, I was visiting my friends in Sweden who had recently gotten on to the Coop board game hype. This was probably in about 2012. It took me quite a while to learn and to be honest I didn't understand everything that was going on. But my friend knew it very well and so managed and enforced the rules and conditions very efficiently, for a fun and true experience. I was playing Joe Diamond, randomly selected. Near the end of the game I was doing quite well, I think I remember being in the police wagon most of the game? But then I somehow ended up getting lost in Time and Space when visiting one of the outer worlds. Might have been a random card with a bad dice roll, can't quite remember. Then, for some reason during the other character's go's while I was still lost, the ancient one appeared and happened to be one that instantly devours anyone who's lost in time and space. He hadn't really read the text in detail for the boss at the beginning, so it came as a big surprise. My friend didn't quite know how to break the despairing news to me, as I had been properly getting in to building my character up. It was a hilarious moment of grief that we will always remember, and to this day I've never had the resolve to play Joe Diamond again. RIP.

[@3MBG]

Oh damn, that's rough. Especially as a tooled up Joe Diamond with a bunch of clues can be a real GOO killer.

[@partstash]

I loved this video. It caused me to go back and buy 2nd edition again.

[@3MBG]

Haha, nice. It also prompted one of my close friends to get the expansions he was missing. Love the game, hope you do to.

[@gidiyaniv82]

Thanks for this! How bad is it if i have just the base and not planning tonstart searching for the expansion due to cost? Is base replayable enough? Missing something?

[@3MBG]

I played the base about 50 times before the first expansion came out, so yes

[@kevinlause470]

Wonderful marvelous overview AND deep dive! AND I have three (brief) comments: 1. I love the original board design for the First Edition. It embodies a charm and sense of adventure that no other game in The Files has ever quite duplicated. Boy, would I love a copy of THAT! 2. The Second Edition is clearly a product of designers who really love the world;the 3rd edition seems (to me at least) like a sort of cranky gamer's attempt to fix something for increased commercial appeal. 3. And, on the dreaded Personal Note, I also suffer from the pain that is Pericarditis...the pain that gets MORE intense when you sit or (gasp!) lie down. I never thought about AH as a potential antidote, but I will now! (And, boy, isn't that Pericarditis just the Worst Horror of them all? I mean, really. What's the saving die roll for that? Please advise.) Cheers! Kevin

[@3MBG]

My Pericarditis eventually went away after a couple of years, it was the "acute viral" form. But, damn, the whole "its worse lying down" thing is so damned true. Do you also get the fatigue as well? I used to get tired real quick with it

[@kevinlause470]

@@3MBG Yep. Fatigue is a powerful 'side-effect.' (Although I was/am never quite certain whether or not that effect was due to the Pericarditis itself or just from having to stand up all the time!) A cardiologist in the ER told me that the increase in pain when sitting or lying down is a way of separating Pericarditis from a heart attack. The same guy told me that most heart attacks are a real piece of cake compared to an average bout of Pericarditis. Glad you got better...but beware: the incidence of repeat infections is off-the damn-charts.) Well, now that you and I have bored the heck out of all the Arkham fans out there....! Cheers...Love your channel.

[@3MBG]

Oh, i got many bouts of it recurring. Ended up back in hospital 3 times for 3-5 days each. The middle one was the worst.

[@kevinlause470]

@@3MBG Here's some more Good News: Each bout you have increasingly hardens the heart until finally you just pretty much either Roll Insane or Get Taken Off the Board entirely, if you get my drift. My doc prescribed Colcrys as a preventive measure...one or two tiny pills as soon as that distinctive flaring pain begins often quells it and prevents a full-blown attack. All best to you...and me and all victims of this and...Jeez, I sound like Tiny Tim! "God Bless Us All......" Cheers!

[@3MBG]

Ah, i got lucky there. After my bouts subsided they did some pretty extensive scans and showed no long term damage. I was on a long term Colchicine programme for it

[@TheDungeonDive]

Very cool! Love it. Been a fan of AH since 2e first hit. I missed 1st edition. Don't know why it never hit my radar. 3rd edition is now my favorite. I think it's FFG's best game, actually.

[@ソルグル]

I really wish they made a 30th anniversary re-release of the 1st edition instead of this so-called 3rd edition thing! It could have been just an updated remake or a partial re-implementation (even with some elements of the 2nd edition like the Clue system or the separate GOO's, maybe some expansions, too). Hopefully there will be a 40th anniversary edition! :)

[@kevinlause470]

Too bad they couldn't license this idea to Restoration Games. They seem to have a good knack for retaining the "feel" and look of the original while adding more 'sophisticated' game play mechanics.

[@bookwormbryan]

What is it that you're saying at the beginning of your videos? Kiora or something that sounds like that? What does it mean?

[@3MBG]

Kia Ora. It is Te Reo Māori for "hello, or welcome" as well as "I agree" or "yep". Closest word i guess would be "acknowledgements". It's a very common way of saying "hi" here. I am from Aotearoa/New Zealand and Te Reo Māori is one of our official languages. So i changed the intro from Welcome to Kia Ora to reflect that part of my heritage,

[@bookwormbryan]

@@3MBG Oh cool! Now I've learned something new, thanks!

[@mbrochh82]

Amazing.

[@emmaplaysgreen2849]

Another excellent production. I really want to buy one of the games to play solo, I am very wary of AH LCG as it seems like a money pit so perhaps AH 3rd edition may be better?

[@ソルグル]

Nope, AH3 is the worst of all. You are right about the cardgame being a moneypit, but it has some replayability, at least. In my opinion, the 1st edition is the very best of all, but it's OOP and you probably wouldn't want to spend a fortune on that. So, your best choice is still the 2nd edition or Eldritch Horror (from those 2, I prefer the latter). Don't trust the BGG rankings! Read and watch a bit of each, until you can decide.

[@3MBG]

Its tricky, as they do require a fair bit of investment for the most part, as they are prone to expansion mania. Based on current supply i'd say Mansions of Madness 2nd and Eldtricth Horror are probably the best start points. Buy both games have huge costs to complete.

[@ソルグル]

@@3MBG Yes, MoM2 is quite good, too. However (while not a oneshot roller-coaster like AH3), it's way overpriced with its limited replayability. Also, the app tends to be a bitch sometimes! I'd suggest to give them a try before buying.

[@3MBG]

I'm a big fan of "try before you buy" as a general idea.

[@nathaniliescu4597]

Arkham LCG for for the win! I really want Arkham horror 3rd edition but I've heard it's not as good as expected....

[@3MBG]

The LCG is exceptionally good. And unique

[@Janshevik]

is there any webpage that contains rules and components for 1st edition?

[@3MBG]

Not that I know of sorry

[@revritt2]

This video makes me glad I became a Patreon backer!

[@lawrencesolis7727]

Now I saw this after I just traded my AH 3rd edition. Sad. Amazing work by the way. Should I re-buy it or buy something else like Eldritch Horror or Mansion of Madness 2nd edition? I'm still new to Arkham story.

[@3MBG]

Depends. What made you trade AH3. What didn't work for you?

[@lawrencesolis7727]

@@3MBG I've read that the designer is no longer part of ffg?

[@3MBG]

That shouldn't be an issue. FFG have a lot of designers who will pick up the work on it. Most of their big games have other designers other than the leads working on them. Half of Arkham horror second editions expansions were designed by people other than the lead designer.

[@DieNische]

I sold Arkham 3 after several plays. So dull and boring. All the depth of Arkham 2 is gone. Obvious decisions which result in very repetitive turns. So keep it where you put it. ;)

[@floodkevin4716]

@@DieNische disagree, I haven't played 2nd and this game is great for me. I always want to try another scenario

[@stevegeorge7773]

Personally 3rd was a blaaa! It’s just the LCG with a board. I’d rather play the LCG.

[@3MBG]

Yeah, but a narrower, more boring version of the LCG as well. I felt so much of the game was busy work. Not much fun

[@Gaaaark]

You don't sleeve your cards!!!!!

[@3MBG]

I did. But that set is 15 year old and has been played 400+ times. It really doesn't need to be sleeved as it rarely gets shuffled and its well looked after. I only sleeve cards that get a high amount of handling

[@Duxa_]

Ah, so Nikki is responsible for ruining AH with the 3rd edition. She may have created "a game that needed to exist", but existence of that game that needed to exist also killed off 2nd edition printings. In order to get the game and expansions right now you need to fork over north of $1,000

[@3MBG]

A little harsh. FFG are a game design factory where designers get briefs and make the game the company wants them to make. Well, at least they are now.

[@Duxa_]

@@3MBG Yeah, perhaps a little harsh. But 2nd edition was a hands down an upgrade to first edition. 1st edition being out of print did not matter. They should have made 3rd edition as such. So that 2nd edition would no longer be desirable. But they did the opposite. Plenty of games out there that release new editions that surpass previous editions. For example from your video Mansions of Madness. or something like Robinson Crusoe. Considering how similar Eldrich Horror is. it al comes off as some sort of marketing scheme to make people rebuy a bunch of stuff.

[@3MBG]

Yeah, i'm of the firm belief a new edition should be basically, the same game, but with refinements and improvements learned from years of play. AH3 is really a new game as its so very very different.

[@floodkevin4716]

2nd edition fans are so unnecessarily pissed at Nikki and 3rd edition. It's hilarious. I love 3