
Quick Takes: 2-6 players
60-90 minutes
Ages 10+
Level 2 (slightly more complex or takes longer than the classics we all think of)
This cooperative adventure board game takes place in the Lord of the Rings universe, set sometime between The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Choose between members of the Fellowship (like Legolas or Gimli) or expanded universe characters like female Ranger Beravor, each with special abilities and an exquisitely formed miniature (player token). Journeys is a campaign based game, with action driven by a free (required) app. The campaign nature of the game allows you to increase skills and abilities, upgrade equipment, and change the deck over time.
Each player controls their chosen character using their player deck. Available player actions are dictated by the hand drawn from the player deck, while the outcome of encounters is usually driven by the app. The app gives a storyline for the campaign and dictates how to set up the modular pieces of the board to begin the game. As players move around the board and interact with tokens and miniatures, the app drives the outcome of those encounters and triggers new actions. This means the game plays like a combination video game and board game.
The app makes teaching and learning the game easy. Just like the old-school Nintendo games, the app allows you to choose from Easy, Medium, and Hard mode when setting out on your journey. The app has additional campaigns available for purchase and is always expanding, which makes the replayability high for this game.
Love campaign games? You might also like Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion or The King's Dilemma. Or if you're looking for a different kind of adventure board game, we highly recommend Legends of Andor.
- LoTR: we love the books, the movies and now the game
- Re-play: unlike other campaign games, replay is really high here with the app
- Speaking of the app, Fantasy Flight Games put a lot of money into developing this. It works well, looks great, and even has LoTR-ish music and art!
- They have a cave troll! The cave troll miniature is our absolute favorite. And as a bonus, you can kill time between rounds by knocking all the miniatures over with the cave troll! (Not that we do that.)
- Golden Geek Best Thematic Board Game Nominee - 2019
- Golden Geek Best Solo Board Game Nominee - 2019
- Golden Geek Best Cooperative Game Nominee - 2019