Hooked on a board game

If board games could be made into films, I would want this one...

Not that the game has any deep story, just purely because the character art looks so profound, you can believe that they each have a great backstory.

But I am getting beyond myself. What is Rising 5?

It's a simple co-op game where players control a team of space-fairing heroes in a quest to stop a evil villainous monster, coming into their dimension through a portal. Exciting, eh?

Game play comes in two simple parts. Point allocation, to move characters and collect items. And scanning the gate to solve the combination and win

At the beginning of the game starts with a scanning of the "Rune Gate." Yes, in true Start Trek fashion, you will get out your Tricorder and scan four runes placed in the center of the board. And yes, this game requires an a smart device.

Afterwards, the app will tell you if these runes are in the right place or the wrong place, or that they shouldn't be there at all. Sound familiar? Well it should. this game resembles the Parker Brothers game, Mastermind. In which you are trying find the matching colors to the ones set up by the "Mastermind." In this case, the app. But there is a twist...

The app displays the response in the form of astrological star signs. So another puzzle for you to solve is, which star sign represents which rune. The only way to deduce this is to scan a different arrangement of the runes. And that is where the other part of the game comes in. Your characters are going to have to do some foot work to collect some Silk Cubes on the planet. Only when you have obtained four and placed them on their alters, you can re-scan the Rune Gate.

Some of the allies and enemy's you encounter on the planet will give you those Silk Cubes. Going over to meet them or attack them will give you the chance to collect this precious items as well as some relics and artifacts. 

A hand of cards is all the players need to preform actions on the planet. Moving, Encounters and Sealing the Gate. You play a set of one type of hero card, for example three Eli cards give Eli three actions. Or one card, one action. Move, encounter and scan up to those limits before ending your turn and redraw more cards. Drawing cards is a timer mechanism of the game. Obliged to draw at least one card at the end of your turn keeps the game tense and flowing. As well as the chance to draw a card that works against you...The Red Moon card.

During set up, you will add a number of these cards to the draw deck depending on the level of difficulty you want in game. Adding more Red Moon cards makes the game challenging. For once one is reveled, at the end of the next turn, all enemy's attack. Or something to that effect. The other thing that is working against the heroes is an eclipse. Marked on the board, each combat lost or big attack forced by a Red Moon cards, pushes the sun behind the Red Moon. If this eclipse happens it is also "game over."

With all these odds stacked against you, you may think that this game is extremely hard. But what are heroes with special powers. Each character has the ability to do something cool when activated. Eli can pull back the sun, preventing the eclipse. Nova can attack monsters anywhere on the planet without the consequence of bring the eclipses closer. And most importantly Orakl, who is the only one that can switch runes in the Rune Gate (a very important responsibility). 

The game is aimed at family's and plays very quickly, which is great for kids with short attention spans (and adults). And is quite easy to beat, so everyone is a winner. The game encourages team work, collecting items at the right moment, puzzling out the runes and dealing with combat. As combat is a luck of the dice thing, there are ways to bolster the attack, giving more chances to be successful. Placing another hero in the same area can help as well as players sacrificing cards of the same active hero.

The nature of the co-op game makes it susceptible to "Alpha Gamer Syndrome" but at the same time, is a great gateway game for those new to the hobby. Playing openhanded and also being taught while playing are great advantages. And if you have no friends...you can play solo.

All in all, a fantastic production (10/10) from a Holy Grail Games Kickstarter.
But lacking a little in replay-ability, even with 11-12 mini expansions.
This is a game for almost everyone...and their inner child.

Get more information about the game in this video