Descent: Legends Of The Dark From FFG Now Available!
August 12, 2021 by brennon
Descent: Legends Of The Dark, the next step in Fantasy Flight Games' Descent line, is now becoming available for you to snap up and dive into. This is a big ol' box that is packed to the gills with miniatures, 3D terrain and hours (and hours) of Fantasy adventure.
Descent: Legends Of The Dark // Fantasy Flight Games
Descent: Legends Of The Dark is less of a sequel to the existing Descent line but a reworking and reimagining of the game and its systems. In addition to that, the game falls more in line with the Terrinoth presented as part of Legacy Of Dragonholt too. This means a more diverse and fascinating cast of characters and foes for you to face whilst also being tied to the wider lore of Terrinoth.
Descent: Legends Of The Dark Gameplay // Fantasy Flight Games
Gameplay-wise, Descent is still a dungeon crawler with your heroes moving around the 3D terrain, battling monsters and trying to complete their objectives. The twist comes in the addition of the app which controls the flow of the story, the unfolding narrative and offers up surprises and twists as you dive into each encounter.
Descent: Legends Of The Dark Heroes // Fantasy Flight Games
Another "app-driven game" I hear you cry. Well, yes, and that won't be for everyone. But, from the looks of it, the app has actually done some really fascinating things for Legends Of The Dark. For one, it cuts down on all of the paperwork that you need to do when tracking characters and the story. It also reduces the clutter and components that you need on the tabletop. Yes, it moves things in a digital direction but I'm seeing a lot more benefits that outweigh the negatives.
Descent: Legends Of The Dark Villains // Fantasy Flight Games
Beyond the app, the gameplay has also been reworked and tweaked to make it feel more in line with the modern-day. There are still familiar aspects of Descent like surges and fatigue but they have been changed up a little. Fatigue is now more of a resource to be used and analysed, flipping cards to clear fatigue and open up new abilities. Characters also no longer die straight up once their health has been dropped to zero. You get a few "lives" as it were to keep on fighting. It feels like they've balanced the scales a little, especially with an A.I now being in control of your dastardly foes.
Descent: Legends Of The Dark has kinda turned things upside down for me. I thought it was going to be more of the same but it seems like Fantasy Flight Games really have pulled out all the stops with this new design team and built on what an app can down following on from Journeys In Middle-earth.
Are you tempted to give Legends Of The Dark a shot?
"Descent: Legends Of The Dark is less of a sequel to the existing Descent line but a reworking and reimagining of the game and its systems..."
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Ive said it before, this game is way to damn expensive for the amount of content and gameplay it has. They are obviously trying to break into new ground for selling at a much higher price point. However, this game just fails to meet such a justification to do so on so many levels. There just isn’t enough physical content to warrant the price point. Pure and simple. Perhaps if the 3D elements had been plastic instead of cardboard, or if they had added more miniatures. They cut out so so many components with the app, that you end up… Read more »
Bingo. It’s an app game with a very expensive boardgame attached.
Good to know. Definitely post your comments in the BGG ratings section. Reviews are usually written by those who like the game, so I use the comments in the ratings section for other opinions.
We still haven’t finished Gloomhaven, and someone picked up Solomon Kane, so a $175 MSRP game won’t be bought anytime soon.
Could it be that it’s not just the apps’ fault, but the players themselves ? The app might enable this behaviour, but it still is up to the players to not talk …. The amount of work that went into the ‘invisible’/virtual aspect of the game is what makes it hard to judge how fair the pricing really is. At least with rules there is a physical aspect to appreciate however even that is misleading as a fancy booklet with crappy rules still looks like it is worth more money than a bunch of photocopied leaflets for a perfect set… Read more »
> Could it be that it’s not just the apps’ fault, but the players themselves ?
“His feet are the wrong size for his shoes.”
more like : if you pick high heels then don’t complain that you can’t run the marathon … 😉
People still have a brain and should be able to get their eyes away from the screen and interact with other people of the table regardless of how the app functions.
However in the review that brennon posted below it becomes quite obvious how face hugging that app really is and it is awful. So unless players choose to read out the stuff that characters say it works like a videogame that has physical components attached to it.
I was unconvinced too but the recent NPI review changed my mind a little. It is interesting to hear the different experiences with this – not going to be for everyone.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2ae7fOamXI
defenitely not for everyone, but that is ok.
After seeing that video I totally understand why players would stop talking as @slayerofworlds points out.
The app does everything … there is almost literally no need to talk, except for the scenes that explain stuff.
And that is the point where players do have to stop playing it like a video game …
The one thing the review does not answer is : can we create our own custom scenarios ?
I suspect the answer is a big NO.
I’m not sure about the app for the game having to run with the game.
Basically if it’s app driven, I won’t buy it. Even if it’s better integrated / better value proposition than this seems to be.
I want to pick the game up in ten years time and not find it’s no longer compatible with any of my phone / tablets.
If the app is there to hide the work … then you may want to ask yourself why so many tokens were needed to begin with. Reducing the workload of the player means you won’t need an app to keep the table free of clutter. Shoving it in an app means that you can add tons of effects without having to worry about their effect on the game. And that is potentially bad for the game. Heck I’d argue that because an app may be a bit too good at hiding the rules it becomes hard to judge if the… Read more »