Dungeon Derby

It was one of the few games I was considering bringing to Arta, so I absolutely had to find out what it was really like. During the Kickstarter, my thought was, “Fine, it’s cheap, it’ll be funny, let’s go have a laugh.” When it arrived and I looked it over, I had that familiar feeling of, “Well done, genius, you’ve bought another dud.” And yet: two days after playing, I was still laughing about things that happened at the table. That says plenty on its own.

At its core, Dungeon Derby felt to me like a cross between Winner’s Circle and Cheaty Mages, with a generous layer of ameritrash YOLO on top. Its basic idea is more about following the events, betting on the moment, and enjoying the chaos than hunching over a carefully precise plan.

You do not even necessarily need to roll the die yourself: someone else can roll it for you while you discuss, comment on, and experience the drama of the race. The interaction is therefore mostly social and theatrical: teasing, shouting, reactions, and the entire group taking part in the proceedings even when it is not their turn.

If nobody takes it too seriously, the game produces laughs by the bucketful. It might benefit from one or two house rules, simply to give it a little more strategic weight. But honestly, its strength is not proving how clever it is; it is making the group have a good time. And if you suffer from Rokkitis, it is practically treatment.

Updated session

The second get-together confirmed my first impression exactly: with the right group, Dungeon Derby delivers pain—in the best way. After the warm-up, we raised the volume, and from what I could tell both players and spectators had fun—probably less so the people sitting next to us, whose ears we blew out. The only gloomy face was Dr. Rokkos: for an hour and a half he teased everyone, laughed, and set traps, only to close with, “Hours lost from my life.” The most convincing condemnation I have heard from someone who had just spent ninety minutes enthusiastically taking part. Dr. Stavros, who also taught a masterclass in advanced betting, wisely offered no comment.