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Wizard's Academy
- 1–6 players
- 90–180 min
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Escape the Nightmare
2016
Rules assistance for Escape the Nightmare
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 3–7 players
- 1–15 min
- 12+
- Complexity 2.0/5
For 3 players
Rules assistant for Escape the Nightmare
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Escape the Nightmare is a board game released in 2016 for 3–7 players, 1–15 minutes per game, and ages 12 and up. It was designed by Gregory Carslaw and its main mechanics are Hand Management, Set Collection, and Trading.
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About the game
A challenging fifty four card cooperative real time trading game (With optional singing). You play as a group of friends inhabiting a shared nightmare. Your hand consists of nightmarish aspects and you goal is to trade these with your friends. If someone can get a collection of similar aspects then they can master that part of the nightmare and contribute to your eventual escape - however each card that you receive in trade can force you to undertake certain actions, restrict who you trade with or limit how you can communicate. To make matters worse something is chasing you through the nightmare and you have to trade its card every ten seconds or be devoured. It's coming. Run. During set-up players choose a collection of nightmare types based on the number of players. This choice allows a group to include or exclude certain mechanics - so whether your nightmare will be an all singing all dancing nightmare is down to the exuberance of the players rather than luck of the draw. Escape the Nightmare is a challenging experience, with the average group losing a fair few games before their first victory. However the play time is quick and resetting for another go takes seconds. There are six difficulty levels to make the game accessible for groups of any level of skill and selecting different types of nightmare allows players to set the tone of their game to suit their preferences.
Designers
Publishers
- 3DTotal Games
Questions and answers
Escape the Nightmare supports 3–7 players according to the catalogue. This range comes from the publisher’s listed player count, so the game can be set up for any group size within it. Some setups, rules and scoring details may still vary by player count, so check your edition’s rulebook for the exact configuration.
The listed playing time for Escape the Nightmare is 1–15 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists Escape the Nightmare for ages 12 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Escape the Nightmare has a complexity rating of 2.0 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-light game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Escape the Nightmare belongs to these categories: Horror and Real-time. Its main mechanics are Hand Management, Set Collection, and Trading. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Escape the Nightmare are: Gregory Carslaw. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Escape the Nightmare as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.