Out of all my hobbies, there isn’t a single thing that I can point to as the “big bang” moment when my interest in it sparked. All with one exception, board games, and that flash of inspiration was the first time I played Arkham Horror 2nd Edition from Fantasy Flight Games, back around 2008. One of my earliest Facebook photos is of me and my friends sitting around the dining room table at my mom’s with our standees lined up facing the Cthulhu's giant card as we made our final stand. Now, that same edition that sparked my love for the hobby has its sights on coming back as Arkham Horror Remastered and its campaign that will help make it a reality is launching in just a few short days over on Gamefound. IGN had a chance to speak with members of Fantasy Flight Game’s team about the project, the first in what they are calling their “Vault Series”.
This revived version of the much beloved Second Edition of Arkham Horror marks the first release in what Fantasy Flight Games has dubbed its “Vault Series”. An effort that looks to bring back and reintroduce classic games from the company’s legendary backlog to modern audiences. In Arkham’s case, this version of the cooperative Lovecraftian series has been out of print for a number of years with a whole other (and rather different) third edition between then and now.
“Arkham Horror 2nd Edition is a cornerstone of the industry that paved the way for many modern gaming experiences. It’s a fan favorite that many people have affectionately called their first entrance into board gaming. It’s actually the first FFG board game I ever played,“ Wesley Mouri, FFG’s brand ambassador says. “Because it has been out of print for some time, we have seen a number of fans looking to complete their collections or eager to experience this classic title for the first time. Balancing those made it the perfect choice for our debut Vault Series title.”
For folks that have spent years wandering the streets of Arkham, closing interdimensional gates and shutting down the nefarious machinations of cultists and cosmic horrors in the 2nd Edition, Remastered will feel like coming home. In fact, the team’s goal is to make it a smoother experience to get new players into this world, taking lessons learned over the course of the past 15 years since the last expansion was released.
Dane Beltrami, the designer who has been working on updating the 2nd Edition for Remastered explains it like this: “Many of the rules have been clarified either via wording or graphic design. Cards more clearly state what they do and require less upkeep/references to other rules. That said, some bigger things did change – such as combining the Arkham Encounter Phase and the Other World Encounter Phase into a single Encounter Phase. Overall, the big focus was to make it so that effects didn’t rely on you needing to look up things frequently throughout the game.” Dane continues, saying: “This was accomplished by having cards more clearly state exactly what they do and by making use of intuitive graphic design to act as reminders for players to make use of during the gameplay. One example of this is that the terror track was given a clearer graphic design so that players know what happens at each terror threshold.”
On the topic of the designs and artwork, Remastered looks to be adopting a similar artstyle to that found in FFG’s incredibly popular and ongoing Arkham Horror: Living Card Game, which saw its own new core set release earlier this year that we reviewed. An observation that Dane elaborated on, “There was a conscious effort to unify the look of Arkham Horror Remastered with the current aesthetic established by the Arkham Horror Living Card Game.
As we have continued to develop the Arkham brand, we have seen the aesthetic evolve significantly. Our primary goal with this updated art direction is to modernize the experience for a new generation of players. By bringing these elements together, we create a more cohesive and accessible look that still feels true to the dark, atmospheric aesthetic of Arkham Horror. We want every player, old or new, to feel fully immersed in this world.”
While the campaign preview over on Gamefound and FFG themselves have already shown off some of the updated visuals Remastered is sporting, one such example of this work we get to share with you investigators, exclusively here on IGN, is “Tulzscha - The Green Flame”, one of the heralds from the Kingsport expansion. The artwork, created by artist Peter Polach, features the mysterious cultists attempting to shield themselves from the menacing green fire, brought to the forefront of the image instead of small in the background, but the skulls and other horrors still clearly shown in Tulzscha itself.
سەرچاوەی فەرمی بە زمانی ئینگلیزی: https://www.ign.com/articles/arkham-horror-remastered-preview-and-exclusive-art-reveal
