- Publisher(s) : CMON
- Designer(s) : Rob Daviau
- Artist(s) : Giovanna BC Guimarães, Mathieu Harlaut, Giorgia Lanza, Henning Ludvigsen
- Players : 2–4
- Playing time : 60 Min
- Weight BGG : 2.22
What's this?
Stranger Things: Upside Down is a cooperative game for 2 to 4 players in which you play as the iconic heroes of the series (Mike, Eleven, Hopper, Joyce, Dustin, Lucas, Nancy…) in order to save Will and repel the forces of the Upside Down.
The game offers two complete scenarios corresponding to seasons 1 and 2, each with its own board, cards and specific objectives.
How do you play?
A game takes place in successive rounds, with each player performing 4 phases in order.
1️⃣ Getting around
The active player can move from a number of locations depending on:
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the basic movement of his character;
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Action cards played to increase this movement.
The locations are connected by roads, some of which pass through the Upside Down (which grants Fear).
Warning: entering a location containing an enemy immediately ends your journey.
2️⃣ Perform an action
If no enemy is present, the player can perform a location-based action.
If there is an enemy, they must perform a Combat action .
There are two main types of actions:
✅ Uncontested (automatic) actions
They do not require beating a value:
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Calming down : reducing one’s fear.
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Retrieve an item : draw several Item cards and keep one.
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Investigate : reveal tokens to anticipate dangers.
⚔️ Disputed shares (with value test)
Here, you have to beat the value of a stack of tokens by playing Action cards.
Procedure:
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Play Action cards.
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Reveal the total value of the battery.
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Compare :
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If the value played is equal to or greater than → success.
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Otherwise → failure, gain of Fear and the stack decreases slightly.
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These actions include:
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Recruit an ally
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Help Eleven (unlock a unique power)
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Investigating in the laboratory
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Save Will
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Fight (Demogorgon, Patrols or Demodogs depending on the season)
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In season 2: Remove the Vines and Close the Door
3️⃣ Reconstructing his hand
The player draws up to 5 Action cards.
When the deck is empty, the discard pile is shuffled and the Act marker is advanced, making events more dangerous.
If the marker goes beyond the 3rd act, the game is lost.
4️⃣ Revealing Scene Cards
The player reveals a number of Scene cards equal to: Act number + number of Danger icons played this turn.
These cards provoke:
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enemy movements,
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emergence of new threats,
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Increased fear,
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strengthening the batteries to be beaten.
The pressure is constant: the more strongly you react, the more violent the game’s response.
🎯 Conditions for victory
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Season 1 : Remove all the “Save Will” batteries.
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Season 2 : Save Will then close the Door.
Immediate defeat if:
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a character reaches maximum Fear;
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The Action pack must be reshuffled even though Act 3 has already been reached.
Is it good?
Stranger Things: Upside Down succeeds above all in immersing us in the atmosphere of the series thanks to its meticulous presentation, recognizable characters, and well-integrated iconic locations. The game manages to recreate the atmosphere of Stranger Things by offering two distinct experiences via its reversible game board (Season 1 and Season 2), each with its own enemies (Demogorgon, Patrols, or Demodogs) and iconic allies, even though, mechanically, the structure is quite similar on both sides of the board.
Mechanically, it’s quite simple: it’s a form of hand management similar to a light deckbuilding game. The more powerful cards you play to perform important actions, the more Scene cards you reveal, which signal dangerous events, rising Fear, and the appearance of enemies. Furthermore, the more cards you play, the more the deck depletes; and by the third shuffle, if you haven’t fulfilled the objectives, it’s immediate defeat. This tension gradually builds throughout the acts, making intelligent cooperation essential for success. You’ll need to divide tasks, collect items, optimize movement, and engage enemies at the right moment. The system of escalating events via Scene cards is one of the game’s strengths: it creates constant pressure, maintains suspense until the very end, and forces players to manage their timing effectively.
However, it can be criticized for a significant element of chance. The face-down tokens force players to either invest actions to reveal them or attempt “blind” moves, hoping they’ve anticipated correctly. Drawing Scene cards can also make some games more difficult than others, and sometimes even frustrating. Furthermore, while the two seasons offer welcome variation, replayability remains decent without radically changing the experience. We would also have liked more variety in the Scene cards to enhance the replayability.
Ultimately, Stranger Things: Upside Down is a game geared towards families or those already familiar with the genre, with simple and accessible mechanics that may, however, lack depth after several plays. Nevertheless, it remains a highly thematic, immersive, and accessible cooperative game, perfect for introducing friends to cooperative gaming, and especially to fans of the series.
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My review of Stranger Things: The Upside Down
Positives
- Thematic immersion
- Two playable seasons with separate game boards
- Constant voltage
- Accessible rules
- Smooth cooperation
Negatives
- Moderate strategic depth
- Chance, sometimes punishing
- Decent replayability, but nothing new.
- Limited variety in Scene cards
