Earn notoriety in the Victorian Era as a mob boss who is committing crimes in Dark Heists from Ashy Feet Games. This deck-building game is all about recruiting scoundrels, monsters, and other criminals as you work up to commit the biggest heists. Will the supernatural twist on one of our favorite game mechanics keep us coming back for more?
Supernatural Meets the Mob
The setting of the Victorian Era with the addition of a spooky theme immediately drew me in. Players begin the game with the same lineup of ten scoundrels. Each round, players will draw five cards to use during the turn and use them in two primary ways. Cards can be used to commit a crime OR sway a card on the central board to be added to your deck.
Cards have a recruitment cost in the right corner that can be paid with sway icons. This new recruit will join your deck and immediately be added to your discard pile. Scoundrel cards can also be used to commit crimes in two different ways. Larceny cards are your common crimes that are easy to accomplish and will gain players a bonus effect. Heist cards take more muscle and require a crew to work together.
Ultimately, players are working to create a deck of cards that will accomplish all the tasks that appear on the heist cards in the central display. But it’s not going to be easy. Some scoundrels will earn you Heat cards which will impact your crime and sway level. These Heat cards will junk up your hand but also decrease the number of crime and sway icons that are available.
Dark Heists lets players lean into building their deck out of the five available suits in the game. Each suit offers something different and it’s up to you with how you build out this crew.
Criminal Enterprise
The Crooked suit will give you opportunities to draw cards, increasing your hand during your turn. Noble cards give you access to coins but may make you a target as players can steal money from their opponents. Ghosts will combo together and allow you to ignore Spector card effects in the game. The Cops suit will combo nicely with other Cops but ruin a deck that is built around other criminal suits. Finally, the Brutal suit works well with Heat cards when you are forced to take these.
Each player is working to find card synergies as they build a deck that can pull of a Heist, which is available on the central board. Each Heist card has a series of challenges listed that have to be completed by the player. Heist challenges require the player to meet a crime or sway number to complete that item.
When you choose to commit a Heist, you’ll pick a basic or advanced card. Using your hand of five cards, you’ll try to meet the first challenge on the card. Some of these will give the player a bonus effect that can be gained. You’ll discard your hand, drawing five new cards to try to complete the second challenge on the card. If you fail a challenge on a Heist card, you’ll mark the last completed challenge, gain a Heat card, and end your turn.
There’s a rhythm to Dark Heists that feels really good once you get to know the five suits of cards. The first player to complete three Heist cards will bring the game to an end. The player with the most notoriety wins the game.
Building a Crime Family
Players who enjoy deck-building will enjoy the round to round gameplay of Dark Heists. As each round passes, you can feel the advancement of your deck as you recruit new members to your team. The central board is a really nice neoprene mat that keeps everything organized and in view of the players.
There’s a tension for players as they work to build a diverse deck while leaning into the strengths of their suit(s) of choice. Building a deck of a couple cards from each suit will leave you cycling through cards, never being able to afford more advanced cards. Heist cards seem unattainable in the beginning, but slowly come into focus as the game advances. How you balance the deck you build matters a lot.
The biggest barrier to Dark Heists is honestly the rulebook. As much as I enjoyed the game, getting past the confusing rulebook structure, incorrect component numbers, and printing mistakes was pretty rough. Our first game of Dark Heists took us far longer than we anticipated, but eventually leveled out. Future plays were much smoother, but the issues with the rulebook are something players need to know about going into their first game. There is also a single page insert for quick reference that helps a bit.
Final Thoughts
Dark Heists feels like a gaming passion project with card art featuring thematic photos and a haunting style. I appreciate the personal touches that went into making this game come alive on the table, but it lacks the polish that some gamers have come to expect in this hobby.
Dark Heists has a unique theme and is doing something fun with the deck building formula. Players who enjoy a little “take that” and player interaction will enjoy this game. There is a more current rulebook in the files section of Board Game Geek which helps with some of the confusion with the one found in the box. Dark Heists is a really enjoyable game that has some great mechanics for those who are willing to look past some of its blemishes.
Dark Heists is available through Ashy Feet Games webstore today.
This game was provided to us by the publisher for review. Read more about our review policies at One Board Family.
Highs
- Haunted Victorian theme feels unique
- Building your deck to pull of Advanced Heists feels really good
- Player interaction is present and a little mean at times
Lows
- Some of the visuals in the game lack polish
- The rulebook in its current state is really rough
Complexity
Time Commitment
Replayability
