Gloom Review

   Gloom is a depressingly fun card game! The whole point of the game is to see who can make their family the most depressed before they die. Wait! Don't stop reading. It really is a great game! The cards are a lot of fun. They are made from plastic and are see through which I think makes them even more amazing.

 

   There are five family members in four colors. Each player chooses a family.

 

   Shuffle the cards and deal five to each player. Place the draw pile in the middle where everyone can reach.

 

   There are a couple different kinds of cards:

   There are Modifiers that have either positive or negative Pathos Points on the left side. Some of them have  a story icon on the right. These only have an effect if they interact with another card. They also have a story line on the bottom. Some cards have special effects that can do things such as give you extra cards or make it so you draw less cards.

   There are  Event cards that have special effects.

   The last type are Untimely Deaths. This is how the characters die.

 

    The player that had the worse day starts. You take turns playing cards out of your hand. You get to play two cards. You can make your family miserable or try and cheer up another player's family. If you want to play an Untimely Death card, that must be your first play.

 

   The Modifier Cards are played on top of each other. Some of them will cancel out the cards that are under them. When you add up the Pathos Points, you add up the ones you can see. This card is only a -5.

 

   When you use an Untimely Death card, flip the character card and place all of the cards back on top. Once they are dead, you can not play any more modifiers on top. Characters must have negative Pathos Points to die. Once on player's whole family has died, the game is over. Add up the points of the dead characters only. Whoever has the most negative Pathos Points wins!

 

   This game may sound a little depressing, but it is rather fun. I really like this game! One of the ways to play this game, is to make it a big story. You have to continue the story from what happened the previous round and keep your story line going. This could be a lot of fun as you explain how they went from being so happy to suddenly being sad. This game is easy to learn and full of imagination. I think it is a good addition to anyone who enjoys playing card games!