Chris Reed
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The Arkham Horror universe has a whole lot of games in its catalogue. In fact, there are so many to choose from that we’ve had to separate them into two guides. In this buying guide, we will go through the several families of board games. If you’re seeking information about the many deck-building card games also under the umbrella, you can click on over to our Arkham Horror: The Card Game Buying Guide.
Arkham Horror is an long-running franchise of horror board games. You and your fellow players embark on missions that involve a lot of communication to win. The games each have several pathways that can be taken depending on which roles, expansions, and campaigns you employ. These also make terrific solo board games for when you don't have a group on hand to spend an hour-plus playing a board game.
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Want to skip the blurbs and go straight to the various games and expansions? Scroll through the catalog above. If you're interested in the nitty gritty of how all the items relate to one another and to the broad Arkham Horror universe in general, read on below.
Arkham Horror: The Board Game
- MSRP: $65.95 USD
- Players: 1-6
- Playtime: 2-3 hours
- Ages: 14+
Arkham Horror is a cooperative board game in which player teams work collectively against different sorts of terrors. You can take the journey through Arkham as one of six investigators to solve mysteries and defeat horrific beasts. The game has several campaigns to explore, and given the sizable luck component, whereby you have to roll to see if you pass certain objectives and bosses, along with the chance of chaos and occult trickery, well, the games are highly replayable.
But be warned: this is not an easy game. It takes a bit of time to set up and to teach to your group. The gameplay itself can last for multiple hours, or can be done fairly quickly if you and your ensemble of investigator partners aren’t lucky. (If you or your mates lose and there are fewer players than six, you can select another investigator to play as, but you’ll start over with that one, losing any additional stats that you’ve gained along the way. Dying kinda sucks, to be honest.) My first adventure with friends on the easiest campaign was disastrous. I’ve played it as a solo board game (yep, you can also do that here, too), but that didn’t go well, either. When you complete that first winning game, your whole party will cheer.
Arkahm Horror: The Board Game Expansions
There are three expansions for the Arkham Horror: The Board Game. Each unlocks a different layer of depth to the base game.
Arkham Horror: Under the Dark Waves Expansion
- MSRP: $59.99 USD
- Players: 1-6
- Playtime: 2-3 hours
- Ages: 14+
The largest of the expansions is Under the Dark Waves. As the name suggests, this expansion is about the horrors that exist under the water. This big expansion brings eight new investigators on board for four new scenarios. It takes you out of the city and into the sea.
Arkham Horror: Secrets of the Order Expansion
- MSRP: $44.99 USD
- Players: 1-6
- Playtime: 2-3 hours
- Ages: 14+
This is a medium-sized expansion that includes three new scenarios and three more investigators to travel through Arkham. Secrets of the Order opens up another neighborhood, so you'll explore French Hill while being mindful of the ghosts and monsters that may make your visit the opposite of a quaint French getaway.
Arkham Horror: The Dead of Night Expansion
- MSRP: $32.99 USD
- Players: 1-4
- Playtime: 2-3 hours
- Ages: 14+
Dead of Night is a smaller box expansion with a smaller price point to match. It has two more scenarios to add to your base game, plus four more investigators to help you navigate the horrors in the dead of the night.
Other Arkham Horror Board Games
There are a few other board games that act as their own separate Arkham universes. The games are not directly connected to Arkham Horror, so you don't need that base game to play them. Each of these games allows you and your friends to experience a different, stand-alone adventure within Arkham, using characters you may recognize from other iterations. Some of these titles are big enough to have expansions of their own.
Elder Sign
- MSRP: $39.99 USD
- Players: 1-8
- Playtime: 1-2 hours
- Ages: 14+
Elder Sign was one of the first games in the Arkham Files franchise. It's a dice-rolling board game that can be played by one to eight players. Of all the games in the Arkham Files, it’s the most accessible chance game. It is a separate standalone game with six physical companion expansions.
Gameplay is primarily governed by dice. While it’s not entirely like Yahtzee with monsters, rolling dice is the core driver of the game. You’ll have to roll dice to complete tasks and to work through six encounters. You roll dice depending on the stats of your chosen investigator to fight monsters, find clues, and work toward solving the mystery before time runs out.
Elder Sign Expansions
Elder Sign has six expansions: Unseen Forces, Gates of Arkham, Omens of Ice, Grave Consequences, Omens of the Deep, and Omens of the Pharaoh. Grave Consequences is a standalone deck and can be played with or without the core game. The last expansion was released in 2018. It is currently unknown if there will be any more.
Mansions of Madness (2nd Edition)
- MSRP: $109.95 USD
- Players: 1-5
- Playtime: 2-3 hours
- Ages: 14+
This is an app-driven dungeon crawler board game take on the universe. The second edition is a standalone game that exists in the same universe as Eldrich Horror and Elder Sign. You can play it with one to five players using an app to help you through the narrative. The app guides you through setting up and playing the game. Narrative, roll results, and play direction can all be done in the app.
Personally, I dug playing with the combination of the tactical pieces and the app. And if you have to pause the game experience, the app allows you to come back later to finish where you left off. You’ll still have to set up your physical board game pieces when you play again, however, so you may want to take a picture to remember where everything should be.
Mansions of Madness Expansions
There are two expansions for Mansions of Madness. Both of them are cooperative games that are guided by the app.
Mansions of Madness: Path of The Serpent Expansion
- MSRP: $69.99 USD
- Players: 1-5
- Playtime: 2-3 hours
- Ages: 14+
This expansion takes you to the depths of the jungle, where serpents and other Lovecraftian horrors will bring peril and pain to your adventure. Like the original, it is guided by an app, and you do need the base game to play it.
Mansions of Madness: Beyond the Threshold Expansion
- MSRP: $39.19 USD
- Players: 1-5
- Playtime: 2-3 hours
- Ages: 14+
This expansion is significantly cheaper than the other one above. Beyond the Threshold opens two new investigators, two new scenarios, and an insanity gameplay element. Its low price point makes it the most accessible expansion to add to your game.
Unfathomable
- MSRP: $64.99 USD
- Players: 3-6
- Playtime: 2-4 hours
- Ages: 14+
Unfathomable is about escaping a sea of monsters on a boat. It can be played with three to six players, though it’s best suited for groups of five or six. This game has a social deduction component, making it an immersive experience for larger groups. Someone is designated to be a traitor, and you won’t know who. It has Battlestar Galactica vibes to it, but in a Lovecraftian mythos atmosphere. Sessions take multiple hours while you navigate the game trying to figure out who among you is there to help and who wants you dead, while simultaneously trying to escape alive.
Unfathomable is a completely different experience than other games in the Arkham catalogue, making it sort of a love-it-or-hate-it type of deal. If you like Battlestar Galactica or other social deduction games, this may be a good option to explore.
Unfathomable: From the Abyss Expansion
This expansion introduces new prelude cards that offer varied starting conditions, as well as three new monstrous horrors (Shoggoth, the Drowned Spirit, and the Grasping Tendril), plus new skills, items, and boon cards.
Eldritch Horror
- MSRP: $59.95 USD
- Players: 1-4
- Playtime: 1-3 hours
- Ages: 14+
Edrich Horror is a different, more worldly experience than the Arkham Horror board game. While Arkham Horror primarily exists in neighborhoods within the city proper (and the sea), Edrich Horror has players navigating cooperatively around the globe to complete objectives. Some have said that Eldrich Horror is like a sequel to a movie.
Some things have been changed and adjusted in Eldrich Horror that make it more accessible to beginner and mid-range gamers. It involves a far quicker setup than Arkham Horror does, which is an immediate plus for gamers who want to get things out and get playing quickly. Eldrich Horror also has simpler rules than Arkham Horror, making the "teach" a bit more entry-level-friendly.
That said, Eldrich Horror is more about strategy and solving puzzles. Its first in the series was released in 2013.
Eldritch Horor Expansions
There are eight expansions possible to play in Eldrich Horror. Those expansions are Forsaken Lore, Mountains of Madness, Strange Remnants, Under the Pyramids, Signs of Carcosa, The Dreamlands, Cities in Ruin, and Masks of Nyarlathotep.
Other Ways to Play
There are a couple of other ways you can play in the Arkham universe outside of these standard board games. You can play a couple of the board games online. You can also try the franchise's first foray into the world of tabletop roleplaying games.
The Arkham Horror: The Roleplaying Game
Arkham Horror released its first TTRPG late last year, with a starter set followed by a rulebook. I recommend trying the starter set first. Once you’ve gotten a feel for the rules and the game, you can choose to grab the rulebook to start your own journey.
Arkham Horror: The Roleplaying Game - Hungering Abyss Starter Set
- MSRP: $34.99 USD
- Players: 2-4
- Playtime: 1-3 hours
- Ages: 14+
The core starter set is super accessible for beginning players. It has a sample campaign to play through for folks who may be new to the TTRPG world, and does not require an experienced Game Master.
Arkham Horror: The Roleplaying - Game Core Rulebook
- MSRP: $49.99 USD
- Players: 2-6
- Playtime: 1-3 hours
- Ages: 14+
Once you've taken the starter set for a spin with your gaming group, you can pick up the Core Rulebook if you want to keep going on new TTRPG adventures in the Arkham Horror universe.
Video Game Versions
A digital version called Arkham Horror: Mother’s Embrace was released on Steam in 2021. It’s a single-player game that some might find similar to the Mansions of Madness board game expansion. Unfortunately, it only plays as a solo game. If you're open to solo treks into this universe, you can get this digital adventure on Steam or on Switch for an MSRP of $19.99.
Solo or not, the digital version has gotten mixed reviews. IGN's Arkham Horror: Mother's Embrace review scored it a 5 due to lacking story execution. It fumbles with some heavy topics, which may deter some players from enjoying the Lovecraftian mythos.
There is also a digital version of Elder Sign available on Steam and mobile platforms. Elder Sign: Omens was released in 2011, but has received mostly positive reviews on Steam. It's quite affordable at only $5.99.
The Bottom Line
If you are a fan of Lovecraft mythos-themed games, as I am, Arkham Horror is absolutely worth exploring. One awesome thing is that you can play several of these games solo as well as with friends. They are each different and offer a unique presentation of the Lovecraftian worlds.
That said, these games are on the more difficult side. They have quite a bit of chance, which can drastically increase replayability as well as frustration. Setup and learning time can also take some time. You’ll find that the card games are easier to set up than the board games, even without expansions.
Jennifer Stavros is a contributing freelancer for IGN, covering everything from comics, games, technology, and nerd culture. She has over 15 years of experience in the gaming industry, including testing and writing for Wired, Inverse, and more. Follow her on Twitter or watch her on Twitch under the handle @scandalous.