But is it an RPG, with a GM after all? It depends on the company. There is a GM working against other players collectively and adding story-telling elements. If players aren’t afraid to roleplay and immerse themselves into a character, it could feel more like one. The GM does have an adventure script to follow, but there’s leeway for them to embellish the action as it takes place.

Gain a GM Token: These Token can be used to Upgrade Rolls, Draw/Play extra GM Cards, or Defend with an End is Nigh Roll with an Hour glass Card.Special Ability: Use a Special Ability as indicated on a Placard. Data’s Special Ability is his Inventions. Photo by Elizabeth MacAndrew.

Stunned Token: Foes and Goonies may be Stunned. A Stunned Token is placed next to them. Stunned Goonie cannot use Cards, Special Abilities, or give Teamwork. If a Goonie is Stunned during their Turn, that Turn ends immediately. If a Goonie or Foe starts their Turn or Activation Stunned, they skip both their Actions to remove the Stunned Token. A Goonie can use Item Cards, Treasure Cards, and Special Abilities in the same Turn their Stunned Token was removed as long as they don’t require Actions to use. Then, the GM will draw and play cards, most of which involve spawning new enemies or making rooms more hazardous. There are also cards that relate to the specific adventure being played as well as reaction cards that can be played during the Goonies turn if a certain event occurs. Play Cards: The GM can play 1 GM Card for free, but others cost a GM Token each. The same GM Card may not be played twice in the same GM Round. Used GM Cards are Discarded. Wandering Foe Cards can be used for the GM to place one of the Wandering Foes set by the Adventure in any Explored Room without a Goonie. During a Goonie turn, a GM may play a GM Card for the React Effects. These GM Cards are Discarded after use. They can be used whenever conditions are relevant and multiple GM Cards of the same type can be played at once. For an End is Nigh Card, the condition must be met of a GM Token spent. The GM takes 3d6, Upgrades if desired, and rolls. If the result is 2 or more successes, a Sand Token moves to the bottom half on the Hourglass Tile. You get a chance to live this story yourself in The Goonies: Never Say Die, a game for 2-5 players by Prospero Hall and published by Funko Games. It’s best with ages 12+ and lasts about an hour per adventure. Setup But why was it fun? It was fun because it told the story of the movie and added just enough complexity to make it interesting but not bogged down in rules. It’s a family RPG in a Box.Upgrading Dice: Players can upgrade a d6 or d8 with a Wish Token. For each Wish Token, a Die is replaced by one of the next highest value. The GM uses GM Tokens. a d12 cannot be upgraded. On my first playthrough I did it solo. None of my family have the same love for The Goonies that I do. So, I thought I’d step through a game to see how it played. The game plays very simply and is easy to understand. It’s a Dungeon Crawl game which makes perfect sense. You move from room to room, searching for “rich stuff” encountering hazards (pit traps and cave-ins) and creatures (mostly bats and rats). Defeat them and move on to the next room. Similarly, the game is also objectively easier with more Goonie players since the GM only gets a single turn after every hero has gone. It’s not necessarily broken, but the game doesn’t scale very well in terms of its difficulty even if the fun remains the same regardless of player count. (The game comes with five playable Goonies but is not meant to played with more than four of them at a time.)

The gameplay is set in turns where the Goonies go first and do their actions, the GM is next and plays any enemies or actions that they can, then the GM controls the active enemies and tries to take as much health from the Goonies as possible. This is the main chunk of the game really but is always intense and never seems to drag on for long as there are only 2 actions that each Goonie can do, and the GM actions cost GM points so they can’t exactly go crazy with their turn’s actions either. I love that this is the case and that it keeps it from feeling boring or slow, making for a better experience throughout. Prospero Hall games are known for quality production value and game design that captures the spirit of the story. Funko Games delivers that once again in this game. If you are a player or group who loves deeply complex RPG-style games like Gloomhaven, this will seem light to you and may not keep your attention as well. But then, that’s not the target audience.The world's favourite family board game brings you another exciting edition of MONOPOLY – The Goonies!