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Game Info
Year
2019
Players
2-4
Age
12+
Playtime
100 min
Collection
Ratings
Creator Score
Mechanic profile
Not enough video data yet
Vibe profile
Not enough video data yet
Description
Sanctum is a competitive strategy game inspired by hack-and-slash RPG video games. Each player controls one of four unique characters as they journey into the heart of the fallen city of Sanctum, building up their skills and arsenals along the way to prepare for the final fight against the Demon Lord.
Multiple players may survive the fight, but only one may claim the glory of purifying Sanctum. Gameplay is brisk, with the possibility for overlapping turns. The four characters all have unique skill sets, and you’ll level up fast, giving you frequent opportunities to choose new skills. Every decision counts.
Though the game is competitive, the goal is to destroy the Demon Lord, not each other. So player interaction is a race rather than a fight: Who’s furthest along the board? Who will get to choose first when an equipment draft gets triggered? Who will gain the benefit of reaching the Demon Lord first? Who will get to that group of blue demons everyone wants? Who will unlock that achievement and claim the bonus?
On your turn, you choose one action:
1) Move: Advance along the path toward the Demon Lord, and engage some demon minions to fight later.
2) Fight: Fight all the demon minions you’ve engaged. If you kill any demons, upgrade Skills and acquire Items.
3) Rest: Equip some of the loot you’ve won, recharge the resources you use to fight, and buy potions with extra Items you don't need.
The final battle with the Demon Lord is tough. Even surviving can feel rewarding. But only the player with the most health at the end of the boss fight can truly claim the glory of his defeat!
Featured Videos
Review
Sanctum: Discussion
Playthrough
Sanctum Runthrough
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All mentions
Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 8
This page: 8
Sentiment:
pos 4 ·
mix 1 ·
neu 0 ·
neg 2
Showing 1–8 of 8
Video nvv8e-Qgxio
Board Games UnLocked Review at 0:16 sentiment: negative
video_pk 115048 · mention_pk 327350
Click to watch at 0:16 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
negative
Pros
- Leveling up the character is cool.
- Components and board art are pretty.
- The way loot is revealed is nice.
- The idea of health being victory points is neat.
Cons
- So boring.
- Generic theme.
- Meaningless decisions.
- Dice mitigation makes choices non-choices.
- Level cap is reached halfway through the game.
- Feels like going through the motions.
- Final boss fight seems disjointed.
- Cooperative mode might be better, but the base game is flawed.
- The game feels like a tester for CGE.
- It's CGE's worst game.
Thematic elements
- demon lord war boss nameless creatures cannon fodder
Comparison games
- Diablo III
- Adrenaline
- Under Falling Skies
- Lost Ruins of Arnak
- Space Alert
- Galaxy Truckers
- Dungeon Pets
- Dungeon Lords
- Pulsar
- Ruins of Wrath of the Ancients
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Combat — You just roll dice and most likely you're going to get exactly what you need.
- Dice mitigation — You have so many ways to mitigate dice that it eventually just becomes a non-choice.
- Dice Rolling — You just roll dice to get blanket numbers.
- Leveling up — I liked leveling up my character. That is by far the coolest aspect of the game.
- Loot acquisition — When you kill them, you flip them and you get that's the loot. And you can at least see what you're getting.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- So boring.
- For me I just So didn't care about like anything that I was doing
- This is stupid cuz it's entirely meaningless.
- This is Diablo's Splendor. Like you just go through the motions of just same old of just All right, got exactly what I needed halfway to mitigate.
- This is meh game.
- This does not feel like for everything you do for an hour and a half, this does not feel like a final boss.
- Based off CGE's track record, I'm actually going to give this a four. I think this is this is easily their worst.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video tdwofTtxQEM
Board Games UnLocked Playthrough at 0:17 sentiment: positive
video_pk 115049 · mention_pk 327351
Click to watch at 0:17 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Cool-looking items and armor
- Satisfying progression system with leveling up and equipping gear
- Engaging dice mechanics
- Thematic elements are well-integrated
- The final boss battle is challenging and epic
Cons
- Some players struggle with understanding game mechanics
- Dice can sometimes feel uncooperative or frustrating
- Generic monster names (demon lords)
- Some items might feel less impactful than others
Thematic elements
- Adventurers fighting a demon lord in the ruins of Sanctum
- Sanctum
Comparison games
- Diablo
- Lord of the Rings
- Quest for Camelot
- The Road to El Dorado
- Dragon Age: Inquisition
- Dark Crystal
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- boss battle — The game culminates in a final confrontation with a powerful boss, the demon lord.
- Character Leveling — Characters gain experience and level up, unlocking new abilities or improving stats.
- Combat — Players engage in combat with monsters and enemies using dice and abilities.
- cooperative play — The players work together to overcome the game's challenges.
- Dice Assignment — Dice rolls are assigned to specific slots or actions on the player's board or cards.
- Dice Rolling — Players roll dice as a core action to determine outcomes and available actions.
- Equipment System — Players can equip items and gear that provide bonuses or new abilities.
- Resource Management — Players manage resources such as stamina, focus, gems, and potions.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- She is king Burek's elder sister
- He was a guardsman who dared to speak up you gave up and beat it
- it was friendship the jade sarcophagus has been opened he will come to the aid of sanctum
- the demon lord is what he is called
- it's the generic demon lords
- i think i want to take this pair
- Oh my god cat sorry I was really excited she was really not listening to a single thing we said
- well i literally hate every monster that's out
- wooden dice are ass
- brad's getting his b hole smashed over there
- that's what i'm going for
- the rulebook is weirdly heavy
- I'll be damned it's a plus two or minus two
- you think the sears cowl would look better on the berserker
- that's pretty hot
- I saved sanctum
- he's a sexist and didn't want to hit girls
- cancelled cancelled
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video LUhBt2xIpsY
Getting Games Discussion at 22:49 sentiment: positive
video_pk 91323 · mention_pk 244924
Click to watch at 22:49 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- potentially engaging engine-building with dice
Cons
- not yet played; awaiting hands-on impressions
Thematic elements
- dice-driven exploration/adventure
- Diablo-inspired fantasy engine-building adventure
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- dice chucking engine-building — lightweight dice-based engine-building adventuring
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- Dimension was the one that I ended up keeping
- I'm booked up until January of 2020 because I need to make sure that I have you know my mental health at the forefront of things
- it's a pretty lightweight card game as you're trying to do a little bit of tableau building in front of yourself
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video -YsF4F_IBIM
Getting Games Discussion at 32:54 sentiment: positive
video_pk 91297 · mention_pk 244844
Click to watch at 32:54 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- diablo-themed board game with flavorful combat and loot
- dice-based combat with mitigation and upgrade paths
- epic final boss sequence
Cons
- replayability concerns; may feel repetitive across plays
- balance of hero abilities and potential length
Thematic elements
- heroic dungeon delving, equipment upgrades, boss battle
- diablo-inspired dungeon crawl, overland journey to the gates of Hell
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- boss battle at the end — final battle against the devil/hell beast with multi-phase mechanics
- dice combat with pool management — roll dice to fight monsters; modifiers and dice manipulation to improve results
- equipment and skill tree upgrades — defeated monsters turn into equipment; skills can be upgraded via tokens
- rage tokens and free hits — rage tokens grant a free hit; must refresh after battles
- rest and activation of equipment — resting allows equipping and activating gear to power up hero
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- This is a heavy weight style euro game where each player essentially is on a ship that found this island in the middle of the ocean
- the peninsula was supercool
- we all loved the animal creation process right from the very first moment we started playing
- I would have preferred if the game had been a little more streamlined
- this is a hand drafting style game so it's somewhat similar to seven Wonders
- I really quite enjoyed it
- Diablo with the board game
- I loved those video games ... there’s a soft spot in my heart for this overall theme
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video Y_0JkvgE9RQ
All You Can Board Top 10 List at 4:43 sentiment: mixed
video_pk 90412 · mention_pk 241589
Click to watch at 4:43 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
mixed
Pros
- beginner friendly
- reliable performance
Cons
- not the most interesting cosmically; limited novelty
Thematic elements
- defense-focused, armor, heal
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- armor and taunt — creatures with armor and taunt to protect others
- Artifact interaction — destruction of artifacts (gorm vom) and cleansing wave to gain amber
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- they're kind of the mad max style fighting at all costs kind of a house
- untamed came out the gates uh and called the archons as probably the fastest house for gaining amber
- sanctum to me it's very beginner friendly
- shadows is actually a very good house
- they're the underwater house and they've replaced this as like the main kind of control house i guess in dark tidings
- humans and aliens working together
- by far the most upgrades which are the ones that you attach to your creatures to power them up
- Mars would be my number one if they had been around for longer or if they were just a little bit stronger
- i've never ever ever had a deck where logos is the weakest of the three houses
- archiving is one of my favorite mechanics in the game
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video 3OleE_w-Ohw
Game Night Picks - Pair Of Dice Paradise Top 10 List at 1:07 sentiment: positive
video_pk 36599 · mention_pk 109821
Click to watch at 1:07 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- blends RPG progression with Euro-style resource management
- competitive tension with race dynamics for incentives
Cons
- not a pure Euro or Ameri-style experience; some players may prefer a stricter genre alignment
Thematic elements
- Demon-slayer RPG-inspired strategy in a competitive frame
- Heart of the Fallen city of Sanctum
- story-driven dungeon-crawl vibe with a final boss confrontation
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Drafting — players draft and equip gear to prepare for the Demon Lord encounter
- equipment drafting — players draft and equip gear to prepare for the Demon Lord encounter
- race/advancement dynamic — being further along the track yields first pick advantages and benefits
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- this game is not competitive
- communication among the team is going to be essential
- unlocking some achievements and claiming some bonuses in sanctum
- I had a copy of this in my hand at BGG Khan last November
- don't live a life of gaming regret
- subscribe and turn on notifications
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video jSnP3H_-PMw
Drive Thru Games Top List at 14:47
video_pk 27724 · mention_pk 80951
Click to watch at 14:47 · YouTube ↗
Pros
none
Cons
none
Thematic elements
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- looter/dungeon crawl — progression through a dungeon with item collection and enemy encounters.
- video game-inspired translation to board game — attempts to translate first-person shooter vibes into box gameplay.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- I'm really into this now yeah so it's Catan but you know I had my top 50 games of all time list a long time ago a few months ago and I always kind of forget about cities and nights because I really loved that game.
- Catan star farers now this is the sort of a remake of star fares of Catan which is basically to be glib about at Catan in space but this carries with it a lot of the mechanics…
- it's basically that sort of more complex longer winded Catan that I really like but in space and I'm like super all into this now yeah so it's Catan but you know
- Combat Arena... it's set in the 40k universe and it's gonna deal a little bit more with the range combat
- Return to Dark Tower... I remember sitting in it and you know hitting the buttons and the stuff would talk and he'd move around the right moves
- Zombicide Green Horde I really enjoyed it I think it's a really good co-op idea
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video 3Mx3r3qEUAY
Getting Games Discussion at 12:32 sentiment: negative
video_pk 6941 · mention_pk 20553
Click to watch at 12:32 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
negative
Pros
- Mentioned as a game that is being moved on from; implies a decision to part with it.
Cons
- No deeper evaluation provided in the vlog.
Thematic elements
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- unknown — Not discussed in transcript.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- I'm not doing great
- this is my entire income right now
- I miss doing the work I miss the people that I've worked with
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Transcript Navigation
Showing 1–8 of 8