Designer: Andrew Federspiel
Artists: Marvin del Mundo, Adam Taubenheim
Publisher: Knapsack Games
Year Published: 2021
- Play as 1 of 8 mutants in an ongoing war for the mysterious power of mutanite!
- Gain powers and traits to customize your ultimate mutant.
- Combine your powers with environmental objects for devastating elemental effects.
- The last player left standing is the winner!
Review:
Masters of Mutanite – Take that in a Comics-Style – 6/10
Master of Mutanite is Deck Building Versus Game in which you take the role of mutants trying to take down your adversaries by hitting them and throwing whatever you can in their face. Easy to learn and get acquainted with, fun for late night take that in 1v1 or 2v2 modes. #LateNight #Competitive
Long Story Long
The game as such
Master of Mutanite plays in 3 different ways, 1v1, 2v2 or in 3 players 1v1v1. You’ll play as 1 of 8 mutants that need to take turns trying to lower your adversaries HP to 0. This takes place on a board made of 6 to 8 Locations.
In each location you’ll find 2 elements that you’ll be able to throw as well as a pond of mutanite from which you’ll be able to pick up a card to add to your deck as well as some mutanite to increase your passive abilities.
Each turn you’ll be playing 4 cards that allow you to perform a variety of actions :
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Move to another location
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Direct hit to your adversary Health
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Throw something at your adversary (inflicting damage and making the location more dangerous)
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Picking up a new ability to add to your deck
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Cleansing your deck and or location from status changes.
After playing your cards you’ll eventually gain mutanite and buy new traits for your character and « clean » (the board will get messy after a few turns) the place, refreshing cards you might have taken during your turn.
Strategy
Depending on the traits you’ll draft and cards you’ll draw, you’ll have to make up your mind around too axis, melee or range damages will be your first choice and secondly you’ll need to focus on either throwing things around taking advantage of terrain damages or cold.
You can also choose to focus on direct hits with your card, where you’ll be able to take advantages of poison or just high hitting point cards.
In a 1v1 game you won’t draw half of the cards of the game making a card strategy game uncertain and I would suggest to base your strategy on the terrain (its also more fun), I had 85 % win-rate using ice;).
Advantages – Downsizes
It’s easy to learn, get acquainted with and fun to play either 1v1 or 2v2. Team play in a take-that environment really makes it a good late night choice which is fun and visually appealing.
The deck building mechanic and moving on the board are well combined.
The whole universe is nicely constructed and all the pieces fit together, from attacks to traits to even the small details on the location boards. You feel like you’re in a comic book waiting for the supers to fight one another.
The mutants though asymmetric, it feels like a half baked idea. I’d rather have a fully asymmetric game where traits are bound to mutants or symmetric where difference between mutants is only visual (or better, the choice between both). Maybe we’ll get that in the campaign:).
Talking about experience from both Tabletop and Video game 3p « Battle Royal » are a mess, this is no exception to that rule. If you’re seen as the biggest threat you’ll be eliminated first leaving both your adversaries in a 1v1 mode for the last half of the game.
Long story Short
Imagine if King of Tokyo and Sentinel of the Multiverse had a Deck-Building baby, this is it ! If you love both, you’ll love Master of Mutanite too !
Like its rightful parent Masters of Mutanite plays better with 4 and you’ll have fun throwing things at your adversaries and building a perfect deck to destroy them.
Masters of Mutanite is easy to learn and … feels easy to master.
Side note, unless you want to see someone Brutalized in front (or to be Brutalized yourself) you’d better leave the 3p-mode alone. (house-rule it in a 4p and you’ll be fine)
Some Numbers !
Table Top Simulator Mode* : 7/10, Good Mode, easy to learn and get acquainted with, a nice small script for the set up. Rules are pleasant to read and easy to understand. Art style is visually appealing in accordance with the gameplay and the universe of the game.
Fun : I’ll exceptionally cut this in player count :
2p : 6/10 – Fun to play without draining too much energy out of you
3p : 4/10 – If you are three I would rather play 2v2 where one player control 2 mutants, you’ll have fun guaranteed.
4P : 7/10 Team work makes the game work
Strategy : 6/10, easy to learn, feels like a lot is depending on the cards that you play during your turn, you get to pick some though
General : 6/10. You should play it with 4 people, throw things around, don’t think too much, you’ll have fun.
*No material review this time.
It’s all about the money money money …
MRSP : 50$ (41€)
KS Price : 45$ (37€)
What I feel its worth : 32€ (39$)
Conclusion : I feel that buying it on Kickstarter is worth it, especially if the campaign includes surprises. If, in a few months, I find the game in a good state for 20-ish € (30$) I wouldn’t hesitate and definitely would buy it.
Check it out and back it on Kickstarter today!
QuelqunQui- Reviewer
QuelqunQui (literally Someone who in French) is an eclectic who can’t stop doing more than one thing at a time.. Quelqunqui is a harpsichordist and gamer at heart that doesn’t abide by rules he doesn’t believe in. When not playing he’s traveling the world for the Belgian Air force.