• Designer: Joanna Kijanka, Michał Oracz
• Illustrations: Mateusz Bielski, Hanna Kuik
• Publisher: Portal Games
• Players: 2
• Age: 8+
• Time: 20-30 minutes
• Played with the review copy provided by the publisher

Neuroshima Hex is a tile-placement skirmish game with a very clever initiative system. First published in 2006, it has numerous fans who collect each expansion army as it comes out. This new version is a great entry point because Neuroshima Hex plays best as a two-player game, and this edition comes with two distinctive armies and a neoprene playmat that travels well. If you like it, you can add more armies, or just keep playing it as is.

Neuroshima Hex is played on a hex grid. The goal of the players is to destroy the enemy’s HQ, each of which starts with 20 health. HQ health is tracked on the playmat.  The game can also end with neither HQ being destroyed, in which case, the player with the higher HQ health wins.

To start, each player chooses an army (Steel Police or Beasts), determines which army will go first, separates their special tiles with double-sided art (HQs and a few other special Beast tokens), and in turn order places that army’s HQ on the grid. When the player playing the Beast army places their HQ, they also place their special Cerberus tile next to it. Both sides then shuffle their remaining tokens face down and start the game. 

To compensate for the first player’s advantage, the first player draws only one token to start and places it face up in front of them. They then get to play the tile to the board, save it for later, or discard it.  The second player then draws two tiles, placing them face up in front of them, and may choose those three options for both tiles, so they could play both of them, save them both, or discard one and play the other. From here on out, players play normally, which means you draw up to three tiles, discarding one and then you may play, save, or discard each of the other two.

Tokens come in two types, tiles you place on the board, such as warrior units and modules that buff units connected to them, and instant effects, that are played but not to the board.  Instant action tiles enable the player to move a unit, push a unit back, pull a friendly unit towards you, or even stun an opponent’s unit (terror). Since each army is asymmetric, each of the 20+ armies comes with different warriors, modules, and instant actions.  The two armies included here are great choices, as they feel so different and have clean rules.

Players then alternate taking turns until one player plays a ‘Battle’ instant action token, which all armies have. When a player plays the battle token it is the end of their turn and resolution starts immediately.  The tokens with the highest initiative value attack, either ranged or melee.  Based on those attacks, units with lower initiative are then destroyed or damaged before they even have a chance to attack. Units with the same initiative level hit each other simultaneously and any destroyed ones are only removed at the end of that initiative’s phase. Then all the units with the next lowest level attack, and so on.  After all units that have an initiative value have acted, the game continues. Since all tiles are face up when drawn, unless a player draws and plays a Battle token in the same turn, you will know if they are saving one for future use.

The game becomes more complicated because armies have shields, nets, buffs, and debuffs that can affect how the resolution process unfolds. In addition, once a unit is placed, you cannot assume it will remain in the same location with the same orientation. Some tokens are instant effects that let the player rotate and swap units, so sometimes you can be outflanked or find that the initiative order that was advantageous to you has become disadvantageous.

The iconography is exceptionally clear, and it can be played as a purely abstract game.  That said, the setting is post-apocalyptic America, where armies from the world of Neuroshima (RPG) come alive in the board game. Each faction has a backstory and a reason for existing in the world. You can read about the Steel Police and the Beasts on the excellent player aids provided with the Battle! Edition.

Thoughts

Neuroshima Hex is a well-tested system that is honed and tuned to perfection. It is not chess or Hive because the token draw system means each battle will play out differently, and you might not draw the battle token when you want to press the advantage. 

As the board becomes more full of tokens, you are doing quite a few calculations to determine if a certain token can survive an imminent battle because you have a buff and the opponent played a debuff and if they push this piece here, you lose the unit that was protecting your HQ, etc. I am not sure how to balance quick play with the ripples and implications of each placement, so ended up feeling that going with your gut and seeing how it plays out is best.

The decision of which of the three tiles to discard is agonizing. You want them all, but you cannot keep them all, then of those you keep, you have to choose whether to discard, save, or play the others, and for each one you play, where does it go and what should you do.  Mercifully, it is a quick game, so my advice is to let the AP go and instead play best of three with three quick games rather than one agonizing one.  Easier said than done.

Finally, you might have heard of an older game called Light Speed: Arena. It is a classic quick playing beer and pretzels game where you lay out cards and then the ships all shoot each other in initiative order.  A recent reimplementation of it has the ability to dramatically resolve the fights by taking a photo of the layout, and the phone resolves the battle. I mention this because Neuroshima Hex is wonderful when played online because of the autoresolution. It would be great if the cardboard version had a ‘take a photo and resolve’ system to avoid human errors, such as ‘I forgot that shield meant that it was wounded, not destroyed, which means that other unit would never have been hit, which means my HQ should not have taken damage.’  There is no easy way to retcon Neuroshima Hex, and yet each placement feels so vital that you want to get it right, unlike Light Speed: Arena, which is silly fun.

Note how small it packs down, You could put it in a manila envelope for travel.

If you like abstract skirmish games, you owe it to yourself to try Neuroshima Hex, and this is the best entry point.

Comments from other Opinionated Gamers:

Matt C: I don’t think I’ve played the physical version but played an online version on my ipad. I found it enjoyable and liked how the different armies worked. It’s a bit dry and think-y with real players for me but its a fun, fairly quick game when played against the computer. (Whether the AI is particularly great or not was not a concern as I was playing for fun rather than full-on must win mode…)

Ratings from the Opinionated Gamers

• I love it! 
• I like it.  Matt C., Jonathan
• Neutral. 
• Not for me…