The box alone is charming to point this is worth a look, as it looks so much like a 80's slasher VHS tape it will fool people fairly easily. The gameplay requires a fair amount of reading, but after getting over the learning curve, it is charming and enjoyable.

If you've played Guillotine this game is very, very similar but reskinned into a delightfully cheesy B-Horror theme and with a few extra elements. (Final Girl, Nemesis, Weapons and Masks etc.) Some of the rules are a bit unclear at times and there are some clunky elements to it with facing off the Final Girl sometimes but with a house rule or two it plays smoothly and is easy to pick up and play a few games. I actually love the art, very evocative of that sweet 80s slasher era, with plenty of head nods and callbacks. My personal goal of every game is not so much win but to be the maniac that has the honor of killing Albert the Hot Tub Daddy. Fun and funny game, definitely worth picking up if you like Guillotine or the old school horror aesthetic.

This is a solid filler game. Mechanically, it's very similar to the old Guillotine game from SJG. Maniac is an improvement, though, as there is a bit more to it. It's still simple and quick, though. The rulebook is less than awesome, but not too bad. Gameplay is very easy and the online FAQ clears things up. The tone is fairly cartoonish, but some of the cards are a tad bloody. Nothing truly R-rated, though. Is it in poor taste? It's inspired by old slasher flicks, what do you expect?

I am a lover of card games. I am also a lover of horror films. This fun card game turns the EACH player into a crazy slasher/maniac whose goal is to capture as many victims as possible and adding them to their killer collection. The game is played in three rounds. The maniac with the most points at the end wins. The game has some fun plot twists too. The game cards are well-made and sturdy. The game directions are fairly easy to understand, and the setup is easy. If you are a fan of the game Guillotine, then you will like this game. Plus the game box is super cool—it looks like an old VHS horror movie box!

I understand the complaints about the game being to simple but I honestly believe that the real target demographic is us older folk that were around in the 80’s and remember the movies this game is clearly based on. The old VHS modeling on the box is a dead giveaway so younger generations will probably not be so charmed and slightly bored by this game. But I love the cards, the art work is fun and I can actually see myself incorporating them into an art project down the road. The victim cards are my favorite they are a direct homage to 70/80’s slasher flicks with the modern addiction of “Hipsters” to the fodder mix and come on - who wouldn’t want to wack a couple of Hipsters?

I'll say this straight off the bat. The rules are HORRIBLE and nearly impossible to decipher. However, if you go to the company's website, they do have an extensive FAQ section for this game and lot of "ohhhh!"/forehead slapping will result. The best part is that once you DO get a better handle on the game, you can implement some of your own "house rules" to make the game function better as you see fit. One house rule that we have implemented, for example, is to ensure that each player has 7 cards at the beginning of their turn - we find that the game can become incredibly unbalanced and difficult to recover from if you have a point deficit if you don't do this. The game itself sets up 12 victims and you, as a maniac, claim them one by one through a combination of maniac cards (which instruct you what to do when you play them, one per turn), weapons and/or masks. It quickly becomes strategic and it's not only a game about claiming victims but preventing your other competing maniacs from getting their own victims either by moving them away from the "kill spot" or by stealing cards from their hand (or swapping an entire hand completely). Each game has 3 rounds (think "a movie with 2 sequels") and each round has a "final girl" that you must claim by using a weapon AND a mask (so don't needlessly use them on other victims as you need to have one of each to get that final girl). Further complications arise when some victims require you to play a plot twist card which may save them in the form of a Nemesis or require you to perform another action, good or bad. Nemeses do not necessarily "save" the victim if you happen to have a coveted "defeat a nemesis" card. Point totals for victims, weapons, and masks are clearly marked on each card and certain cards grant you bonuses for claiming a certain type of victim (athlete, bimbo, etc.) so the scoring can be complex and your need for CERTAIN victims may drive you to pass up on others to rack up the points that you need. I'm glad that I went to their website because the instruction manual is just sooo bad that it nearly rendered this as an unplayable 1-star game for us. But now we enjoy it immensely...it's a great deal of fun and it'll get you trash talking each other in no time. :) The game is for 2-4 players - the first game will probably last you 1 hour (as you learn) and then I'd say that each game you play after you've learned will last roughly 40 minutes.

Fun and funny little game with lots of personality and appropriate slasher flick tropes. Would have liked a little more combos and/or strategy to give it more depth and replay ability but it's great filler between other bigger games for your game nights.

Fun fun game. Cannot recommend enough for any slasher fan!

It's a fun game! I wasn't sure what to expect but it's better than I thought it would be!