/pic4359802.jpg)
Game Info
Year
2019
Players
2-4
Age
10+
Playtime
60 min
Collection
Ratings
Creator Score
Mechanic profile
Not enough video data yet
Vibe profile
Not enough video data yet
Description
In Mutants, 1-4 players have to mix and match genetics to create the ultimate warriors and demonstrate their prowess in the arena. By dominating the arena and freezing the most valuable mutants, you gain Victory Points — and whoever gets most of them wins.
In each round, players take turns until all players have used every card in their hand. At the end of the round, the player whose token is closest to the top space of the arena track scores Victory Points based on the round track. The game proceeds in this way for five rounds, after which players reveal their archives and gain additional prestige based on the freeze value of the mutants they have placed there.
On your turn, you perform three steps.
First, you check to see whether you crushed the competition.
Second, you move your Active Mutant left or right, triggering the Leave ability of the card being replaced by such movement.
Third, you take one action from the following three:
Deploy mutant: Play a mutant from your hand to your active mutant slot.
Breed: Gain a new mutant card to use in battle this round.
Incubate: Prepare a new mutant card to use in battle next round.
The game is also provided with a solo mode called Uprising.
You win Uprising if you defeat the boss. Unlike normal Mutants, you do not win by gaining points. Instead, each time you would gain points you will reduce the life off the boss by the number of points gained. If the Boss ever has zero (or less) life, you win immediately!
Featured Videos
Review
Mutated Runthrough
Playthrough
Mutants Tutorial & Playthrough - JonGetsGames
Ask a Rules Question
All mentions
Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 7
This page: 7
Sentiment:
pos 6 ·
mix 0 ·
neu 0 ·
neg 0
Showing 1–7 of 7
Video 6FkhF2NLYl8
Board Games UnLocked Review at 1:18 sentiment: positive
video_pk 116865 · mention_pk 330364
Click to watch at 1:18 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Engaging hidden role gameplay
- Tense atmosphere due to paranoia mechanic
- Appealing artwork
- Evokes classic sci-fi horror themes
Cons
- Can lead to intense suspicion and metagaming
- Confusion around rules, particularly passing cards and actions
Thematic elements
- survival against a hidden alien threat
- space station
Comparison games
- Palm Island
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Card Play — Players play cards for actions, equipment, or events.
- Cooperative (with traitor) — Humans cooperate to achieve an objective, but must identify and deal with the alien player.
- Hand Management — Players manage cards in hand, deciding when to play them and when to hold them, with limits on hand size.
- Hidden role — One player is secretly the alien, while the others are humans trying to survive and escape.
- Paranoia Track — A track that increases, potentially triggering negative events or consequences.
- Resource Management — Players use resources like batteries to power equipment or weapons.
- Set Collection — Collecting parts for the escape pod is a win condition for humans.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- I'm sorry there mutated card and then this will tell you look like well if we look at previous patterns and just how life has unfolded itself in front of us obviously seth is the alien cuz he's always the truth australian
- This kind of reminds me of like dead space
- I don't trust a single one of you
- The humans win if he has the calculator or the password if I get whatever the bombs have it looks like a canister I think it's a canister which is a bomb yeah well it looks like a bomb
- Can't a lot of these hidden role or trailer mechanism games really they have a knack for making you second-guess yourself because it's like okay well you can almost justify anyone's action
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video YUkH2jX131Q
Getting Games Playthrough at 0:02 sentiment: positive
video_pk 63539 · mention_pk 156967
Click to watch at 0:02 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Engaging deck-building with unique mutants and gene pools
- Rich interaction through breeding, incubation, and dominance
- Multiple strategies and combos, e.g., Nebulon interactions and freeze mechanics
Cons
- Playthrough focuses on a single player's perspective, which may underrepresent interaction compared to multi-player sessions
- Some cards and interactions can be complex and may require more playthroughs to master
Thematic elements
- deck-building with mutant combat
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Breeding — discard two cards from your hand to breed and take an advanced mutant from the breeding pool into the active area
- copy/deploy interactions — some mutants copy the deploy abilities of other mutants or have abilities that copy others' effects
- Deck Building — each player has a reserve set of mutants and builds their own deck to fight through the game
- deck-building — each player has a reserve set of mutants and builds their own deck to fight through the game
- deploy from hand — deploy a mutant from hand to the active mutant spots
- dominance power track — players advance on a power track; the highest position dominates others and affects scoring and turns
- freezing and leaving — mutants have leave abilities and ongoing effects; some cards allow freezing or knocking down opponent mutants
- Hidden Deployment — deploy a mutant from hand to the active mutant spots
- incubation — discard cards to incubate a mutant in the breeding pool; incubated mutants surface at the top of the deck next round
- round-end scoring — points are awarded at the end of each round based on positions on the power track and other effects
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- it's a deck building game where each player has their own specific reserve set of advanced mutants that they can then bring into their deck as they are fighting through the game
- crushing the competition
- the game is gonna last over five total rounds
- you gain to power
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video H8WA7ZBOPVw
Gaming with Edo & Jessica Review at 0:04 sentiment: positive
video_pk 37412 · mention_pk 246593
Click to watch at 0:04 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Engaging yet accessible deck-building with meaningful enter/exit abilities
- Varied setup options including intro decks and drafted packs
- Incubator and top-deck mechanics add strategic flow
- Pacing supports a 45–60 minute playtime and head-to-head interaction
Cons
- Not as information-dense as Strife; may feel light for deep gamers
- Prototype box; production details may differ from final release
- Limited long-term depth; not a true deck-grower like some heavier games
- Rule clarity may vary; teaching can be necessary for newcomers
Thematic elements
- Genetics and mutation warfare with tactical card-driven combat
- A sci-fi arena where mutants fight for control and points through evolving gene-powered creatures
- Mechanics-first flavor with on-enter/on-exit abilities and gene upgrades
Comparison games
- Strife
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- combat interaction — Attack/defend/knockback dynamics with progression of powers.
- Deck Building — Players build and customize a deck of mutant cards to power their abilities.
- deck-building — Players build and customize a deck of mutant cards to power their abilities.
- discard-to-free-zone — End-of-turn moves from discard to a zone for bonus points.
- draft/pack selection — Players choose from three gene packs to influence their evolution.
- enter/exit triggers — Abilities trigger when a mutant card enters or leaves the central play area.
- genetic upgrading — Genes level up to unlock stronger effects and more powerful cards.
- incubator/top-deck — Cards can be incubated to cost and then enter the top of the player's deck next turn.
- parity starting decks — All players begin with the same 12 basic mutant cards to ensure balance.
- scoring by placement — Rounds award points with first place highest and last place zero.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- this is mutants the card game
- it's a interesting take on deck building and variable card powers in a way
- it's a light game
- it's not heavy that you feel like yet that this long-term commitment to the game
- the core mechanics are pretty neat
- you can incubate it
- you can stack on top of players and insta win
- it's not like magic where you constantly you're sort of in this fixed system
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video aJCOE1DJpNg
Game Night Picks - Pair Of Dice Paradise Top 100 List at 6:12 sentiment: positive
video_pk 34381 · mention_pk 102360
Click to watch at 6:12 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Asymmetrical card pools
- thematic genetic customization
Cons
- Artwork controversy and licensing considerations
Thematic elements
- genetic mixing to create the ultimate warriors
- arena of battle with mutated fighters
- deck-building with story-driven mutant characters
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Area Control — Position on arena track to score
- area_control — Position on arena track to score
- deck_building — Build and manage a deck of mutant cards
- Hand Management — Play cards to upgrade your mutant arsenal
- hand_management — Play cards to upgrade your mutant arsenal
- Set Collection — Collect experience/prestige to win
- set_collection — Collect experience/prestige to win
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- it's like the matrix the only way to understand it is to experience it for yourself
- what does that mean
- stay alive period get harder
- the social train is a new type of social network, and it's also an actual locomotive
- dragons who live inside of an active volcano what do they eat unsuspecting samurai
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video AaFI-rLHrQg
BoardGameCo Analysis at 11:00
video_pk 13260 · mention_pk 38881
Click to watch at 11:00 · YouTube ↗
Pros
none
Cons
none
Thematic elements
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Mechanics unknown.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- What enters my collection is a whole another story.
- I'm absolutely hooked on it. I love Primal.
- If I add something to my collection, ideally I want to see it there a year from now, at least a year from now.
- It is such a good implementation of the Glass Road system.
- It's not forever, but it feels like a forever game for me.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video UF0IpPSFWEM
Board to Death TV - Board Game Reviews Review at 0:05 sentiment: positive
video_pk 6913 · mention_pk 20486
Click to watch at 0:05 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Easy to learn but with deep strategic options
- Excellent deck-building engine that scales with player choice
- Artwork is very nice and components are appealing
- Variant play modes (drafting and constructed) add replayability
- Appears to support expansions and additional content
Cons
- Rule explanations are not deeply detailed in the excerpt; rely on play to reveal nuances
Thematic elements
- Mutant faction competition with deck-building mechanics
- Arena-style, five-round power race where players maneuver mutants to gain power on a central track
- Mechanics-driven experience with minimal narrative framing; theme conveyed through gameplay
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- area interaction / center placement — Mutants occupy a central area; placement ordering influences activation and effects.
- breed action — Discard two cards with matching gene icons to breed a new mutant and reveal the top card.
- combat / knockout — Attacking opponents' mutants can KO their card(s), disabling certain abilities and ongoing effects.
- Deck Building — Each player starts with a personal deck and expands it via the gene pool/market to optimize actions and synergies.
- deck-building — Each player starts with a personal deck and expands it via the gene pool/market to optimize actions and synergies.
- in-play abilities — Cards have 'come into play' effects that trigger when placed on the board.
- incubation — Place a card in incubation to draw it next round; only one incubating card allowed.
- Once-Per-Game Abilities — Cards have 'come into play' effects that trigger when placed on the board.
- power track scoring — Players gain power on a shared track; end-of-round scoring benefits the top player and disadvantages the bottom.
- round-based structure — Five rounds total; after each round, cards cycle back and players draw anew.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- Mutants is an excellent deck building game
- super easy to learn but hard to master
- the artwork is very nice
- this one comes with variant play modes like drafting and constructed
- expansions too
- lucky bug games created another deck building hit
- if you liked Mutants, check it out on Kickstarter
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video K8GCx6Vavdc
Chairman of the Board Top List at 7:27 sentiment: positive
video_pk 239 · mention_pk 116703
Click to watch at 7:27 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- streamlined euro with depth
- engaging engine-building and map traversal
Cons
- name ambiguity might confuse some players
Thematic elements
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- euro engine with deck-building — Deck-building elements used to drive movement and engine growth on the map, accumulating knowledge.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- mind was a big hit for me in 2018
- this is the second Wolfgang Warsch game
- Gloomhaven really did blow me away
- absolutely genius mechanisms
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Transcript Navigation
Showing 1–7 of 7