Humans set off into the stars in search of high-powered fuel and found it in the remote corner of the universe on the small planet PK-L7. Their discovery of Xenium — a dark, oily compound deep below the planet's surface — was everything they hoped for. But they found something else, too. The Xenos attack was brutal and unrelenting. While the scientists and soldiers have held them off the best they could, the Xenos are still coming...
Zombicide: Invader is a cooperative game in which 1-6 players face Xenos, an unfathomable swarm of infected Xenos controlled by the game itself. Each player takes on the role of one to six survivors in a sci-fi setting being overwhelmed by these Xenos. The goal is simple: Choose a mission, complete its objectives, kill as many Xenos as possible, and (most importantly) survive!
Survivors will fight Xenos, rescue each other, recover vital data, unveil dark secrets, and much more! Survivors can be civilians or soldiers, each with specialized skills. They all play together as a team, trading equipment, and covering each other. They use whatever weapons they can get to kill Xenos and slow the invasion. The better the weapon, the higher the body count, but the more Xenos will appear, attracted by the onslaught! Survivors must also be mindful of their location as conventional weapons work fine indoors, but the planet’s oxygen-starved surface, they'll need to arm themselves with more specialized weaponry. Lasers, anyone?
Most of the time, Xenos are predictable, but there are a lot of them and they use nasty tactics not encountered in previous Zombicide games. Only through cooperation can players achieve the Mission objectives and win.
12 Days of Giveaways - Ep 1
- The reviewer loves Zombicide.
- Eager to play this new version.
- Zombicide
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- The iconography on the cards and no it's not because my eyes and I can't see it I know the glasses would have helped but some of the icons look very similar on the card so when it says add +2 if you have this icon we were all sitting there even the people with good eyes were sitting it's hard to make out because there were no colors to it
- This is one of the most tense games I've ever played because as you're playing it's like I need these things on my side but Tony you're getting them on your side is it more important that I get the evidence on my side and let you have that momentum or should I wait
- you boys were over there squealing in your pants we squeeze our pants that's right
- this is a perfect game for like me and my buddy who's like we have 45 minutes left in the night and we don't want to play a party game or a quick little card game we can get this on the table have some meat enjoy the and be done in 45 minutes
References (from this video)
- Adds to theme
- Very visual for objective tracking
- Easy and quick to print
- Doors can slide in or have a blasted-through look
- Didn't technically match theme when used for 'Deceased'
- Full walls (from a separate product) caused visibility issues and component overflow
- Dungeon crawl
- Space
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Objective Doors — In Zombie Side, different doors open for specific objective colors (e.g., red doors open with red objectives), and these 3D printed doors can replace them with different colors for visual clarity.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- I'm putting it in here anyway.
- The detail is incredible with those.
- But man, printing's coming so far.
- I fall in love with inserts. Sometimes I'm printing inserts just to print an insert.
- It is incredible.
- Wow, this is fantastic.
- This is the one I wasn't crazy about.
- It's fine, right? It's fine. It doesn't matter. It's not that big of a deal.
- Wow, this feels really good.
- Feels really good, really professional.
References (from this video)
- easy to pick up for casual players
- versatile with many expansion options
- cooperative tension and fun combat variety
- fan-favorite zombies can become repetitive
- table presence requires space
- cooperative horde combat
- space/alien-infected worlds; sci-fi zombie survival
- series of missions with escalating threats
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Cooperative Game — players work together to survive zombie hordes and complete objectives.
- cooperative squad-based combat — players work together to survive zombie hordes and complete objectives.
- modular missions — each scenario presents different maps and enemy spawns.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- tiny epic dungeons
- every time when i reach another envelope and i open it to see what new scenario what new adventure awaited me
- the app adds even more to the atmosphere
- the entire zombie side series for being a dungeon crawler that i can easily play even with completely casual players
- compression of the big version of gloomhaven
References (from this video)
- science fiction zombie subgenre
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- cooperative/competitive hybrid with sci-fi themes — zombie-infested space setting with modular, action-driven play.
Video topics + discussion points
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)
- Lots of characters and content
- Fun variation from other Zombicide versions
- Great Kickstarter value
- Different mechanic from original - zombies outside instead of inside
- Less push-your-luck feel than Black Plague
- External door pressure different mechanic
- Cooperative alien zombie survival
- Sci-fi zombie apocalypse
- Campaign-based cooperative dungeon crawler
- Zombicide Black Plague
- Zombicide Undead or Alive
- Massive Darkness 2
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Campaign — Multi-scenario campaign structure
- character powers — Each character has different abilities
- Cooperative — Players work together against zombies
- Defense Mechanic — Zombies start outside base and try to enter through doors
- Dice Rolling — Mechanics involve combining dice rolls for bigger hits
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- you can recruit monsters to your army that give you super powers
- it's a beautiful scary, it's a beautiful looking game
- this game is just a mini explosion, it's great
- gizmos is a lot of fun so we're giving this away our very first giveaway gizmos
- this little box the game when you see it it's not very pretty but it's so fun
- blood rage is a fantastic game
- massive Darkness two is freaking amazing
- the origami zombie side black plague is by far our favorite zombie side
- if you're gonna buy any zombie side game off the shelf Black Plague favorite one favorite one
- Cthulhu death may die is absolutely fabulous
- we can't stop playing this game
- zombie side Gear Up is getting another board game coffee seal of approval this game is so much fun
References (from this video)
- cooperative gameplay
- varied scenarios and replayability
- complex setup and rule-heavy
- can be harsh for new players
- cooperative survival against zombie invaders
- science-fiction zombie invasion with modular map
- Array
- Gloomhaven
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Combat: Dice — combat relies on dice rolls with modifiers
- Cooperative Game — team-based objectives against adversaries
- cooperative play — team-based objectives against adversaries
- Dice-driven combat — combat relies on dice rolls with modifiers
- Modular Board — scenarios and map layouts vary for replayability
- Modular scenarios — scenarios and map layouts vary for replayability
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- start small and make your way up
- be patient with kids' attention span
- let them see you enjoying this
- don't let them win
- let them win sometimes
- don't be scared off by heavy games like Gloomhaven
References (from this video)
- Content-rich with numerous expansions
- Tense and engaging cooperative play
- Missions with randomization provide replay variety
- Can be chaotic and requires strong communication
- Less narrative-driven than some story-heavy co-ops
- zombie containment and base defense in a sci-fi setting
- space-plant/facility environment on a planet; sci-fi zombie outbreak
- scenario-driven with randomization and variable board setup
- Black Plague
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- AI/enemy management — zombies spawn and react to player actions; high-tension play
- character abilities and equipment — each character has unique abilities and gear options
- Combat: Dice — combat resolution via dice with variable weaponry
- Cooperative Game — players work together to complete missions against zombies
- cooperative play — players work together to complete missions against zombies
- Dice-based combat — combat resolution via dice with variable weaponry
- Modular Board — doors and rooms reveal content with each game, creating variety
- modular/randomized board — doors and rooms reveal content with each game, creating variety
- Unique Player Powers — each character has unique abilities and gear options
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- we finally boiled it down
- this is board games for couples
- spirited away is a great movie and Spirit Island is what I'm trying to get ready to play
References (from this video)
- Intense cooperative play
- Thematic setting
- Flexible scenarios for groups
- Setup and rules can be complex for new players
- Can be time-consuming
- zombie apocalypse with sci-fi elements
- modern urban environment facing a zombie invasion
- cooperative, scenario-driven campaigns
- Zombicide (original)
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Character progression — Characters gain equipment and upgrades through missions.
- Combat: Dice — Combat resolved via dice and card modifiers.
- Cooperative Game — Players collaborate to survive zombie outbreaks.
- cooperative play — Players collaborate to survive zombie outbreaks.
- Dice-based combat — Combat resolved via dice and card modifiers.
- Modular Board — Board built from modular tiles creating varied layouts.
- tiles/ modular board — Board built from modular tiles creating varied layouts.
- Track Advancement — Characters gain equipment and upgrades through missions.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- we've partnered with just the bestest of people the most generous of companies the board game publishers to bring you an amazing crisp
- Sick Kids is a hospital where I just can maybe I'm not sure sick kids is a hospital sick his hospital and there's a donation actually sick kids fun story sick kids actually saved my life when I was younger
- spread the love that's what we're here to do
- next week the gift-giving begins
References (from this video)
- tightly designed action
- great for fans of zombie themes
- can be crunchy for new players
- zombie action with sci-fi twist
- space-age zombie apocalypse
- semi-cooperative / competitive waves
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- co-op / semi-co-op — players face waves of zombie enemies with individual goals.
- Scenario / Mission / Campaign Game — different missions shape each session.
- scenario-based play — different missions shape each session.
- Semi-Cooperative — players face waves of zombie enemies with individual goals.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- We the really all we do is give you the toys but the people who make you the toys—the elves there's the really the important ones.
- the more subs we get actually helps us more grow and then if we grow we can do more of these and get stuff to you
- donate to Sick Kids it’d be great help just to help the little ones
- Encore is a rolling right game.
- Star Realms is simple to teach and always fun to play.
- Flick of Faith is a rolling right game.