Dracula: The game to play before the game

3-15-07

Dracula is an Engle Matrix Game about the salvation or destruction of Mina Harker. Six players champion Dracula, Renfield, the vampire Lucy, Jonathan Harker, Mina or Van Helsing. Each turn they pick a question from the game board and answer it. Another player judges how likely the answer is to happen and a die is rolled. Successful actions/arguments become fact. Facts build up to tell the story. Players can interrupt one another with counter arguments that are resolved by dice rolling contests. This is a beginner game that can be played by anyone. It is about vampires though so there is plenty of violence.

The game consists of a 16x21 color laminated sheet. It folds into an 8x10.5 folio for storage. There is a separate laminated rules sheet. The back side of the board has the front and back cover and an example of play. The game side of the board has a game opening blurb, a cast of six characters (each with a picture and short written description) and a large picture with plot driving questions listed on it. One question is the final question - which ends the game. The rules sheet includes all the rules of play including the "argument strength table" that players use to judge arguments with.

The game is available in a PDF and paper version.

Chris Engle
Hamster Press = Engle Matrix Games

7-21-09

This game now comes as a boxed board game with the map being a hard board that is varnished rather than laminated. It also comes with plastic tokens which are used to buy the right to make up the next action. It includes a single die so it can be played right out of the box (though extra dice are useful to have around). It is the same game just with better production qualities but I have to say that this is a hand crafted item so it is not slick like a game from China. It is more of an art product but is quite durable.

Chris Engle
hamsterpress.net