Hellapagos | Shelfside Review

In this Shelfside Review, we jump right into the party game Hellapagos, a semi-cooperative game designed by Laurence and Philippe Gamelin for 3-12 players. In Hellapagos, players are stranded on a tropical island and need to escape by building rafts. However, there's only so much food and water, and production usually does not keep up with consumption, so the drama escalates really quickly. Boasting plenty of items with take that mechanics, frequent voting, and even (gasp) player elimination, this island has tons of player interaction for an entertaining party atmosphere.
Is this a party game that is worth adding to the ranks of other cooperative party games? Is this even a true party game? Watch the entire video to find out!
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Table of Contents:
Intro - (0:00)
Overview - (1:18)
How to Play - (1:57)
Pros - (2:34)
Cons - (8:32)
Recommender Score - (10:13)
Daniel's Personal Score - (13:52)
Ashton's Personal Score - (15:51)
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Links to our other stuff:
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Daniel's Channel: / doyduh2
Stuff used: Chee Zee Beach by Kevin MacLeod
Link: incompetech.filmmusic.io/song...
License: creativecommons.org/licenses/b...
#boardgames #tabletop #review

[@boardgametime-lapses2709]

Hahaha this was amazing 😊 during the opening I picture parents with their kids walking by thinking, "what in the world is this guy doing?!?"

[@WatchingYoutubeVid]

Sigh... *opens amazon

[@simong4252]

Thanks for another great review - must have to go with the "small box , high play count" games that go to the pub. Love the channel , definitely best around with great production values and a light but insightful review style and a good variety of game styles!

[@BigLowry]

Really really enjoy the content guys. I get happy when I see a new video in my Sub list. Keep it up.

[@Shelfside]

Glad to hear it!

[@BabyPants420]

Thanks for the video! Great content as always and I’ll be picking this up for the game night!! 💪💪💪

[@FranciscoArena]

Man this is review is amazing! Had a lot of fun watching it and added the game to my wishlist.

[@Shelfside]

ahaha thanks man! We need to whip this out as the holidays come along, it's a fantastic big group game for us -Ashton

[@ashrael37]

Great video!

[@giligan1004]

Love your content, inspired me to grab Root!

[@Shelfside]

Ayyyy good choice! Hope you dig the insane symmetry, I know it might not be for everyone haha -Daniel

[@EakEmk]

The way you say "hurricane" sounds like a street fighter move

[@patrickwall6316]

Hellapagos looks great: did you pick up the expansion in the end? If so, what's the verdict? I can only find the expansion for 34 USD (shipped to the UK) unfortunately; hence I'm wondering if it's an essential add-on/worth it.

[@Shelfside]

hey! We haven't played it, but a trusted friend said that it adds content in a good way overall. Positive/Neutral/Negative events that force group decisionmaking, variable player powers, and more items! If that price isn't that bad for you, and you forsee yourself playing Hellapagos a lot, go for it! -Ashton

[@patrickwall6316]

@@Shelfside Cheers Ashton, I appreciate the input - it sounds like a really fun addition. :D

[@elijahwinston5318]

What player count would you think is okay to play with..because I have only four friends to play this with. Is it still worth buying with only four players?

[@Shelfside]

yo dude, I would say it shines with 5+, but it totally does work with 4. It just tends to lean a little more towards cooperation with less people, and perhaps you won't find the replayability to be the best. But at least try it if you can! -Ashton

[@elijahwinston5318]

@@Shelfside Thanks!

[@nikolavuksanovic7240]

Hello, I just wanted to ask you one question about the rules of the Hellapagos game because I don't understand, so if it's not a problem for you, let me explain it a bit. The game says there are 3 to 12 players, so my question is, what if at one point there are only 2 players left in the game or 1? What happens then? When we played, it happened that there were only 2 players left and we still didn't have enough rafts to escape, does the game continue or does the game end in some way? And also, it happened to us that there was one player left, there was one raft, but there was still not enough food and water for him, does that continue in that case until he dies or what is done then?

[@Shelfside]

Sure! Happy to help. I think by the game being "3-12 players" means that that number is how much you need to start the game, not continue playing. So if there are 1-2 players left, you keep playing as usual. If you have 2 people left and not enough rafts, you keep going until you can escape at a later round, or you all starve to death. Same goes for 1 player, if he doesn't have enough food/water in the escaping raft, he dies. Shoot me any more questions you have! The rulebook can sometimes be a bit confusing there -Ashton

[@nikolavuksanovic7240]

@@Shelfside Okay, thank you so much.

[@jamesbrock7908]

There's an expansion that adds more to it.

[@ivanmarinski8891]

Ok, so I have 3 questions: 1. Who turns the weather card? Is it always the first "First player" (with the totem card) or is it the next "First player"? 2. When you play the card to force someone to do specific action, does that person do it immediately or he should wait for his turn? 3. Can your trade all cards except the permanent ones or only resources like food and water cards?

[@Shelfside]

Heyo! 1) We typically just had whoever turn it over, I don't believe there was any card in base game that was influenced by that flip 2) The person typically only does actions on their turn unless the game says otherwise. In the case of Pendulum, you would play it on someone else's turn, and then the action they do counts for the pendulum. 3) You can trade all cards, we've played with being able to trade permanent cards, even when played. Let me know if anything else comes up! -Ashton

[@ivanmarinski8891]

@@Shelfside Actually yes there is something else. So in the rulebook it says you take turns clockwise, but you give the "First player" card to the person on the right does that means that the person who is before the first player plays 2 times in a row?

[@Shelfside]

@@ivanmarinski8891 you're correct, someone would go 2 times in a row. Cheers!

[@ivanmarinski8891]

@@Shelfside Thanks

[@12345678abracadabra]

Interesting, very different score from BGG averages.

[@Shelfside]

The nature of this chaotic gunslingin' party game can be pretty polarizing, there really isn't any clear incentives to cause chaos as we pointed out in the rec score. And also it has player elimination which can be a little nasty sometimes. Cheers! -Ashton

[@cammie9766]

I already bought suburbia and tigris and euphrates, idk if I should keep watching your videos 😂😂😂 jk

[@-sistermaboardgame1860]

interesting！ you guys should open a new channel on Bilibili :)

[@mistuhbear]

why are you trying to get me to regress back into BUY BUY BUY :U

[@Shelfside]

The secret is to SELL SELL SELL every so often

[@mistuhbear]

@@Shelfside *hiss* my preeeeciouuuusssssss

[@naveedfarbakhsh8453]

How does it compare to Secret Hitler?

[@Shelfside]

I've only played secret hitler a handful of times at college, but to me they feel like completely different games because in secret Hitler there's so many different roles and inferences going on whereas Hellapagos has actual actions you do on a turn and freeform politics with no roles.

[@joegarcia9729]

Great family again, but couldnt agree more. The rulebook is awful, it has a lot of unanswered questions.

[@diegolopezpena3156]

Not sure if I shoukd like this video and make those 69 likes 70. Im conflicted

[@rubesqubes1997]

Really like the content. I think you guys have something here. If I may give some criticism, even though the jokes are funny in writing, they kinda fall flat on delivery. There needs to be set-up and punchline structure, or at least proper timing. The jokes kinda pass by without much note as if you are embarrassed by them, but you really shouldn't. Most of them are clever and should be highlighted. This might include pauses, emphasis, or longer set ups. I think you will do nothing but improve your craft and I wish you luck.

[@lukedavis3953]

Shelfside, I greatly enjoy your content. Personally, I find what appears to be an actual pistol entirely unnecessary for the purpose of this review. I don't feel that this video promotes proper firearm safety and use. I know it's not a firearm instructional but I firmly believe anywhere guns are seen or used should show proper use of them. Again, love you guys and your content despite this complaint I enjoyed the review.

[@Shelfside]

hey, thanks for the feedback! So this is actually a prop pistol, despite it looking and functioning a lot like a real one. Gave us a scare for sure the first time we were looking at it!

[@lukedavis3953]

@@Shelfside I did decide to pick up the game and appreciate you clarifying. Thank you.

[@Shelfside]

Lmao meanwhile I'm out here practicing trigger discipline on a nerf gun ahahaha -Daniel

[@codename0018]

Oh, interesting feedback. Yeah, if they had used the guns in Ca$h 'n Guns (Second Edition) it might have worked better for the comedic purpose.