
- BGG rating
- 7.7
Grind House: Carnival/Cthulhu
- 2–6 players
- 20–30 min
- 2020

2020
Rules assistance for Grind House
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
For 2 players

What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Grind House is a board game released in 2020 for 2–6 players, 20–30 minutes per game, and ages 15 and up. It was designed by Jon Cohn and Siddarth RG and its main mechanics are Player Elimination, Dice Rolling, and Team-Based Game.
You receive an invitation to take part in a mysterious contest at the “Grind House,” an old mansion that once stood as the largest slaughterhouse in the state. The invitation is signed simply by an individual known as “The Host.” The letter promises you the opportunity to play a game to win a reward greater than you could possibly imagine. You arrive at a decaying mansion on a hill along with five other strangers. A tall, narrow man in a tuxedo opens the huge ominous doors to usher you inside. “Thank you for attending this evening...” The Host says in a deep, ominous voice. “The entertainment will be… to die for!” The Host bursts into a sinister echoing laugh. Behind you, the door slams shut and the sound of a heavy deadbolt clicks into place. You and your fellow guests are trapped at the mercy and whims of The Host. “Shall we play a little game?” Grind House is a narrative horror game for 2-6 players where you would be considered lucky if survival only costs an arm and a leg. While survival is the ultimate goal, each player has a classic archetype with a secret motive. Some characters like the Doctor may try to keep everyone alive, while the psychopath with surely attempt to split everyone apart. Others, like the Pianist, just want to keep their hands intact. For those unfortunate souls who do perish in the house, the game is not over. Players may return as ghosts to haunt the remaining survivors as they try to make it through the Grind House unscathed. After exploring all 5 randomized rooms in the house, any survivors left total up their score to determine the winner.
Grind House supports 2–6 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 Grind House is 20–30 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 Grind House for ages 15 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.
Grind House has a complexity rating of 1.0 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a 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.
Grind House belongs to these categories: Card Game, Mature / Adult, and Dice. Its main mechanics are Player Elimination, Dice Rolling, and Team-Based Game. 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 Grind House are: Jon Cohn and Siddarth RG. 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 Grind House 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.