CTHULHU FLUXX

Looney Labs had adapted its core game Fluxx -- with Keepers, Actions, Goals, Ungoals, New Rules, and Creepers -- to several genres. Cthulhu Fluxx is their most recent entry in the world of Fluxx, and it works extremely well at capturing the horror, madness, and even humor of the mythos of H.P. Lovecraft.

The basic rules of Cthulhu Fluxx will be familiar to anyone who's played Fluxx before. At the start of the game, players have three cards and draw one, play one. Keepers are played in front of players, Goals present conditions for victory (usually by having the right mix of Keepers), Actions let the players perform, well, actions, and New Rules change the gameplay for all players. There are also Creepers (which are played automatically and prevent a player from winning -- unless the Creeper is part of the Goal) and Ungoals (which result in a loss for everyone). So what's new?

For starters, anyone familiar with Lovecraft's stories will recognize how the Goals reflect his stories. If you read "The Whisperer in Darkness," you'll appreciate that the Goal with the same name requires the Professor and Fungi; likewise, the Reanimator and Tomb combine for the Goal "Meat Market." All of the goals match the Lovecraftian body of work.

Lovecraft's work also has a sense of inevitable doom -- and that's here as well. Bad cards have a number of Doom icons on them, and the Ungoals are met if a certain Creeper or Keeper is in play with a certain number of Doom points. But more positive cards have Anti-Doom icons, and each of these is subtracted from the Doom points in play. Furthermore, some cards give victory if an Ungoal's requirements are met (like the Secret Cultist), reflecting the ebb and flow of Lovecraftian horror and doom, and how some fight to make it happen while others oppose it.

Cthulhu Fluxx does a wonderful job mixing the basic, familiar rules of Fluxx with the Lovecraftian mythos. The numerous Creepers, Ungoals, and potential Doom points match Lovecraft's sense of impending peril quite well, and giving players multiple options to victory (by holding off the darkness or strengthening it) makes this more strategic than most other Fluxx games. This actually improves on the core game very nicely.

Overall grade: A-

Reviewed by James Lynch