5 Board Games That Capture the Essence of Stranger Things

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If you’re like me, you devoured the latest season of Stranger Things.

Despite its length and the excruciating two-month wait, it was the best season yet.

It’s always been a fantastic show that mixes 80s nostalgia with Lovecraftian horror, but the way the last season tied everything together was incredible. I can’t wait to see how they end it next season.

But right now, that seems a long, long way away.

While we wait, we’ve been blessed with a wonderful bit of news from CMON who announced a board game based on the series called: Stranger Things: Upside Down. It will be a cooperative game with designer Rob Daviau at the helm. Daviau’s impressive back catalogue includes Pandemic Legacy, Cthulu: Death May Die, and Unmatched. The only downside is its 2023 release date. Which again, seems a long, long way away.

So what to do while you wait? Play some games of course!

Here are five board games matching the four seasons of Stranger Things. I’ve curated a music playlist as well. Though admittedly it’s just two songs: 10 hours of the Stranger Things theme, and Kate Bush – Running Up That Hill.

Spoilers for Stranger Things ahead!

Season 1

Season 1 took us back to the 80s, including bad haircuts, VHS tapes, and the return of kids on bikes. Everything from the way they dress to the technology used nails that 80s aesthetic.

As someone who grew up during that time, the nostalgia hits you like an ocean wave. However, it’s not just the nostalgia that makes Stranger Things the phenomenon it is.

There is the underlying fantasy/sci-fi element that runs throughout the show, and the first season gives us our first look at the Demogorgon. A monster that slowly picks off people from the town, as the kids look for ways to fight it.

When choosing games to represent this season I looked to capture both the small-town setting and the feeling of travelling from place to place to uncover ways to defeat monsters.

Two games sprung to mind, making it difficult to narrow it down, therefore I’ve added both: Horrified and Arkham Horror 3rd Edition.

Horrified

Complexity: Low

Horrified is a cooperative game where your team travels from location to location picking up items and using them to fight back against the monsters terrorizing the town. Sound familiar?

While the original Horrified game uses classic movie monsters like Frankenstein and the Mummy, there’s a second version of the game that uses American Folklore monsters called Horrified: American Monsters.

It’s a light board game that is fantastic for families or as an introduction to modern board games.

Arkham Horror 3rd Edition

Complexity: Medium

If Horrified is a Demogorgon, then Arkham Horror 3rd Edition is the Mindflayer. While it follows a similar gameplay structure, of travelling around a town, collecting items, and beating monsters. It is a lot more complex.

Unlike Horrified, Arkham Horror introduces a narrative element, where each game you play is one of several scenarios. Where each scenario plays out like a Stranger Things seasonal arc. On your first turn you have no idea what’s going on, or why Will has that horrible haircut, but by the end of the game, you’ll figure out the mystery or be dead.

Additionally, Arkham Horror 3rd Edition captures the action element of Stranger Things. Where even though there are Lovecraftian monsters, you can still shoot them with a shotgun.

Season 2

Season 2 of Stranger Things takes us on a tour of the facility where Eleven was trained. It also has the worst subplot of the entire show: The Lost Sister. But you can’t be too mad, as this season solidifies Steve’s transition into the best babysitter in Hawkins.

Representing this season is Level 7 Omega Protocol which emulates going into a science facility and fighting off an army of monsters.

I’m so thankful there’s not a character named Bob, I can’t go through that again.

Level 7 Omega Protocol

Complexity: High

Level 7 Omega Protocol is a 1 vs many game where all but one player is a member of an elite military squad infiltrating a science facility where something has gone wrong.

The solo player controls the “gone wrong” which turns out to be aliens. Admittedly these aliens aren’t as terrifying as flower-headed dogs with cheese grater teeth, but they come pretty close. As they’ll emerge from cracks and holes in the ceilings and walls, and will hit you like a dump truck.

Often described as X-COM the board game, Level 7 Omega Protocol is a game of squad tactics and teamwork. With a hefty rule book full of intricate rules, it’s not for everyone.

Yet, I haven’t played a better game about cooperative infiltration and tactics.

Season 3

While Billy’s arc from villain, to villain with a heart was amazing. My takeaway from the season was its tongue-in-cheek nature, especially when considering the absurdity of Dustin’s rendition of a Neverending Story. The horror found in the first two seasons disappeared and was replaced with campiness.

While I didn’t enjoy Season 3 as much because of this, it did have Joe Keery in a sailor suit which is equal parts hilarious and arousing?!

I might need to talk to my therapist…

Anyway, Magic Maze is the perfect companion board game, as it also has its tongue firmly in its cheek with its representation of high fantasy tropes. While also taking place in a mall.

Magic Maze

Complexity: Low

Magic Maze is a simple cooperative game of silence and passive aggression. While you’re working together to steal equipment from a fantasy mall, you’re racing against the sands of the hourglass, literally. When you run out of time, security will catch you and call your mum.

Uniquely in Magic Maze, you don’t control a single character, but instead a direction. For example, you’re in charge of moving all of the characters south. This means your concentration is stretched like a rubber band trying to keep track of the four characters. All the while you can’t ask for help, or talk to the other players.

It’s another scenario-based game, however, this time each play rewards you with more rules and added complexity. Thereby, increasing the difficulty and the stress, but this is a good kind of stress. Not that I’m going to jump out of the nearest window stress.

Season 4

Season 4 introduces a new villain in Hawkins and he has a challenge rating of 26. The unravelling backstories of Vecna and Eleven bring the two groups of kids together like the spaghetti scene from Lady and the Tramp. Where despite everything that happens to them, they’re having the time of their lives compared to Hopper.

But it’s the mystery at the core of this season making it so special.

This is why Mansions of Madness 2nd Edition acts as the board game equivalent. While it could have been any of the Arkham series from FFG like Arkham Horror 3rd Edition, or Arkham Horror LCG, Mansions of Madness 2nd Edition does the best job of providing atmosphere and bringing you into the narrative.

Plus it also features a mansion, much like Vecna’s.

Mansions of Madness 2nd Edition

Complexity: Medium

Mansions of Madness 2nd Edition is another cooperative game, only this time you’ll be versing an app. Thankfully, like a dungeon master, this app does a lot of heavy lifting with rules and provides atmosphere through narration and music. This allows you to sit back and “relax”, as you explore the different locations throughout the game.

Whereas Arkham Horror 3rd Edition deals with a problem in town, Mansions of Madness zooms into a more suffocating environment. You’ll find yourselves dealing with a smaller location like a haunted house, a cursed bog, or something even more evil.

Unlike the other games that give you clear objectives to complete, Mansions of Madness only gives you context clues through narrative. Making it feel like you’re solving the mystery, the same feeling you get from watching the latest season of Stranger Things.

Honourable Mention

I couldn’t get away with writing an article about Stranger Things without mentioning Dungeons and Dragons. Because it plays such a significant role within the series as both a game they all rally around, as well as the monsters being pulled from the Players Handbook.

For those interested, there’s never been a better time to try it out. The latest edition 5e, or 5th edition, has streamlined a lot of the rules making it easier than ever to pick up and play. Of course, pick-up and play might be a stretch, as someone will still have to work their way through a 300-page Dungeon Master’s Guide.

However, if you are up to the task check out my top tips for dungeon masters.

That rounds out our board game buffet of Stranger Things-like board games, are there any games you’d add, or remove from this list?