Strategy Tabletop Game Horrified: Universal Monsters Set for a Summer Release

Published: February 19, 2019 10:00 AM /

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Consider taking a page from Gravity Falls and get ready for Summerween this year as the horror monsters from Universal Pictures will get a board game in AugustGame publisher Ravensburger confirmed the io9 announcement of Horrified: Universal Monsters on their Facebook, adding that the game will be released this summer. According to io9, there's an exact date and price: it will be available at retailers for $34.99 on Aug. 1.

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Despite the name and the concept, don't expect to get the chance to play as one of the actual monsters. io9 reports that Horrified will have 2-5 players team up to defeat the cinematic monsters. (Ravensburger's Villainous, a game with a similar focus on iconic antagonists, allowed people to play as classic Disney villains.)

As the horror-focused site, Bloody Disgusting pointed out, Horrified: Universal Monsters also sounds like it could double as the tabletop version of the 1987 film Monster Squad. In that film, a group of humans defended Earth against an alliance of Universal Monsters determined to rule the world. The concept is also similar to the short-lived animated series Monster Force, which had Universal Monsters thwarted by human teenagers.

io9 also detailed that while not every monstrous character will be included—French natives Hunchback of Notre Dame and Phantom of the Opera will not be present—the roster will still be comprehensive, featuring the likes of the Invisible Man, the Mummy, Frankenstein, the Wolf Man, the Creature of the Black Lagoon, the Bride of Frankenstein, and Count Dracula. Each of these fearsome figures will also be depicted as "high-quality sculpted miniatures" that will come with the game.

Though many of these characters existed before they were adapted into movies, the “Universal Monsters” or “Universal Classic Monsters” title refers to their adapted versions in Universal movies made during a period that started in the '20s and lasted into the '50s.

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The Hunchback of Notre Dame and The Phantom of the Opera were both silent films made in the '20s with Lon Chaney playing the lead monster men.

The film adaptations of The Hunchback of Notre Dame and The Phantom of the Opera actually started the line of Universal Monsters, which makes their absence from the upcoming board game even more glaring. But this exclusion may be due to the fact that both those films are now in the public domain.

Excited for a board game about the monsters in Universal movies? Do you have a favorite monster? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

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Alyssa Wejebe
| Staff Writer

Alyssa Wejebe writes about games, reads about games, and plays them too. RPG, hack-and-slash, and fighting games are some of her favorite genres. She loves… More about Alyssa