Board Game Review: House... Of Danger!!!

My wife and I stopped by a game store over the weekend, and one game in particular peaked her interest...  The Choose Your Own Adventure game, House of Danger.

I had seen this game before and considered it, but wasn't really sure if my wife would want to play.  Turns out the answer is yes, and we got it to the table the very next day.

Now part of this game for me is nostalgia; I remember reading the CYOA books as a kid, keeping my place at that one spot that must be the crucial decision as I flip through to see if my choice was the wrong one.  The game mirrors that "mechanic" but adds a bit more depth along with a variable element as well.

As you proceed through the "book", you read through the chapters and try to find clues that will help you through the game.  They do this because there are times that you are rolling a die to determine the outcome instead of just choosing which path to follow.  There is also a "damage" mechanic in the form of the Danger Meter.  This forms a damage track that also increases the die roll you need to do to perform some of the tasks in the game.  The target number starts at 3+, but creeps up to 6 before kicking back down to 3+ but at a cost.

In this particular game, you are a psychic private investigator.  As you complete different parts of the story, your level on the psychic scale increases but if you take too much damage that level will drop.  Each time you reset the target number on the damage track, you loose two points on your psychic scale which can affect your overall psychic level.

The mechanics and game play are very simple, but we have been having fun with it so far.  The game has five chapters, and we have played through two of them already.  There is some replay possible as you explore paths you might not have chosen, but that does seem to be the one negative that is popping up for me.  Other than that, it's not a bad game and I'm looking forward to finishing to seeming how it ends.  This is definitely a light game, but if you grew up with the CYOA books this could be a fun trip down memory lane for you.  Until next time...