- BGG rank
- BGG #3,862
- BGG rating
- 8.2
Mega Empires: The West
- 5–9 players
- 180–780 min
- Complexity 3.2/5
- 2019
- BGG rank
- BGG #17,766
- BGG rating
- 5.8
Vanished!
1990
Rules assistance for Vanished!
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2–6 players
- 20 min
- 8+
- Complexity 1.5/5
For 2 players
Rules assistant for Vanished!
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Vanished! is a board game released in 1990 for 2–6 players, 20 minutes per game, and ages 8 and up. It was designed by Uli Geissler and its main mechanics are Set Collection, Memory, and Betting and Bluffing.
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About the game
A paternoster is a type of elevator that has no doors, you simply step onto a narrow platform on a continuously rotating belt. Apparently they were common on the Continent and are still used in places where lift doors would be unsafe, such as nuclear power stations. Anyway, this game has 9 thick cards showing various odd looking passengers going up or down in the lift, with some only partially shown. Each player has a deck of cards showing the same people, in different poses. The cabin cards are shuffled and laid out face-down in two columns of 5, with a gap and a pawn is placed next to the gap. First player to grab the die rolls it and moves the pawn clockwise to face a cabin. Players call out which person they think is in the cabin and the cabin card is turned up. If you're correct, you dump the matching card from your hand; if not, you keep it. But the cabin card is replaced face-down in the original empty space, not where it was previously. In this way, the cabin cards will be moved around as you play, and you'll have to use your memory to clear your hand to win. There are also tempo chips you can draw for correctly guessing a card you've already dumped. You can use the chips to move the pawn fore or back from the numbered rolled (so it goes to a cabin you remember and want to dump). But get it wrong and you pick the card back to your hand.
Designers
Publishers
- Gibsons
- F.X. Schmid
- Ravensburger AG
- BePuzzled
- Lombard Marketing
- Rentrop Verlag
Questions and answers
Vanished! 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 Vanished! is 20 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 Vanished! for ages 8 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.
Vanished! has a complexity rating of 1.5 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.
Vanished! belongs to these categories: Number, Memory, and Math. Its main mechanics are Set Collection, Memory, and Betting and Bluffing. 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 Vanished! are: Uli Geissler. 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 Vanished! 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.