For many years, the Demon King has roamed the land, leaving only terror in his path. If only we had a strong and worthy hero to rid us from his reign! Oh … you would like to give it a try? Well, I suppose we have nothing to lose! All you have to do is navigate dangerous landscapes, traverse the the mysterious whirlpools, and visit the Demon King’s throne to face him once and for all! Piece of cake, right? Please, finally free our shackled kingdom!

What Is It?

Re-implementation – Restores the classic game from the 90s with some tweaks

Dice Rolling – Players roll their die to move around the board and interact with spaces (events, adventures, et cetera). They also roll during those interactions to try and gain companions, special items, or pieces of a key, which they need to get to the Demon King. Players can use items to mitigate these rolls (one item per roll), but once an item is exhausted, they’ll need to un-exhaust before using them again.

Race – There are no points in the game. Players are trying to complete a key for the chance to get to the Demon King board and get through all the layers of the castle. The first player to successfully make it through wins!

Variable Player Powers – Each hero has a simple, unique ability they can use throughout the game to help them, such as giving bonuses to rolls, or letting them use additional items to modify rolls.

Take-That – Heroes can force the “demon die” on to others, which has more unpredictability. There are also some event cards that may have player interact in some way including stealing or swapping items.

Who Is It For?

  • 2 – 5 Players – Works well at any count
  • Ages 6 & Up – Definitely geared at younger audiences. Great for all kids or families
  • Fans of light, lucky, adventure-type games

PROS

  • Aesthetics – Great art, really nice color scheme, awesome table presence
  • Components – Nice quality cards, board, minis, dice, and cardboard tokens – no complaints
  • Rules – Simple, well-written, easy to follow
    • Adventure Atlas is also easy to follow when doing adventures in-game
  • Ways to mitigate rolls, which is nice since the game can be lucky
  • The folding board is super fun and unique
  • Great introduction to adventure games for kids, while also a nice, light experience for gamers who don’t want something heavy

CONS

  • Game can feel a little repetitive turn to turn
    • With that, it can go on a bit long if players are getting unlucky with rolls
  • The Demon Die feels a bit much to me. There’s nothing more disappointing to having to roll a die with a bunch of zeroes on it in a game all about dice rolling

Final Thoughts

I played the original Key to the Kingdom once upon a time, and I remember it being fine, but nothing that really stuck in my mind aside from the folding board. I’m definitely glad to see that the board was kept in this one, and I liked that it definitely felt like a more modern game – giving players way to mitigate rolls instead of being 100% at the mercy of the luck, giving them individual powers, and so on.

It’s not a game I’d personally want to play on repeat because it’s a little too light for my general taste, but I have certainly enjoyed my experiences with it, and I really love that it is something that easy to pull out for people who I game with sometimes who don’t like learning a lot of rules.

It’s definitely a game for kids and families, or players who want something very light with not much strategy. Regardless of which you are, if you enjoy bright colors, fun flavor text, the highs and lows of dice rolling, and epic adventures, it’s time to bring this one to the table!

Additional Information:
My Final Rating – 6/10

Designers – Matthew O’Malley, Ben Rosset
Artist – Andrew Bosley
Publisher – Restoration Games
MSRP – $45.00
Website

*I was provided a copy of this game to do this review*

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