1-99 Players
Designer: Nuka Zombee
Artist: Nuka Zombee
Publisher: Nuka Zombee Games
Another print and play roll and write, this time all about managing time and finding valuable treasures. But are those treasures found or is the value forever lost?
Gameplay
Turns are shared, and on players’ turns, first someone roll a single d6. Players move according to the table, that involve some orthogonal steps, and depending on the roll some diagonal or passing easier through traps.
Things on this game don’t really hurt you. You don’t even have a health bar or something similar. Everything affects your time. Warps halt you in place, enemies get you stuck until you beat them, traps cost you extra movement.
Players go until they run out of turns on the day track on each of three stages of the scenario. There are also a few spots that are for the night that players can extend to, but at the cost of time on the next map.
The goal is to go around collecting coins and treasure. Gems go on their on tracks, chests must be paired with keys, and coins go in a grid to collect resources when rows and columns are complete. However, how each one work varies by character. The apothecary favours blood gems, the Explorer likes the artifact, and the rascal doesn’t even need keys for chests. It’s all very thematic.
Solo Gameplay
There are no differences between the multiplayer and single player game, aside from beating your own score or beating your opponent’s. The track itself has bronze, silver and gold crowns to mark your score for a quick reference.
Components
The game really looks gorgeous. All the dungeons are thematic to their region and have details on their specific version. The characters are also well illustrated and have tons of thematic touches. I mentioned before, each track is different, but also each ability has a name and adds to the personality.
But absolutely none of this interferes with the usability of the game. Icons are clear, things are easy to manage on the gameplay, and nothing adds complexity. This is, after all, a simple game.
But, even though the game is simple, the rules could have been a little clearer. There are some instances that something is implied and can be understood, specially around movement, but I would prefer it to be spelled out.
Conclusion
Treasures Lost is easy to pick and play and very dynamic. I like the fact that they simplified the risks on just time, and everything is about efficiency. Do you risk fighting that monster and getting stuck, or is the way around more guaranteed? Do you count on that movement that leaves you needing a diagonal step to be worth it? I also love how thematic it feels. Each scenario has its own quirks, each character does truly feel unique on its own, but it never gets too complex. Over the first couple of turns you already got what the game is about. But every second I spend on it I feel the tension and the excitement of treasure hunting.
Score: 8.5/10
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