Mindbug: Beyond Evolution – Expansion Preview

A review copy of this expansion was provided by the publisher; however, my opinions are my own

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Skip to Impressions; Skip to Final Thoughts

Beware, Earthling! The Mindbug has returned for another battle and is eager to show you how much has changed since you last saw it in action. You might just say it has learned to… evolve…

Mindbug: Beyond Evolution is a standalone expansion that has been successfully Kickstarted along with its sister expansion, Mindbug: Beyond Eternity (which I am not covering). Both of these expansions can be played alone, or mixed with each other and/or into the original game, Mindbug: First Contact.

Overview

If you are familiar with Mindbug: First Contact, the premise is the same. This is a two-player duel where players will have nothing but 10 Creature Cards, 2 Mindbug Cards, and their wits. Each creature has some sort of associated benefit, such as a keyword bonus or an action benefit – oftentimes a mix of several of these – and players must use all the creatures at the table to sneak past or obliterate their opponent’s defenses. The goal of the game is to reduce your opponent’s Life Points from three to zero.

It is really easy to hop into Mindbug: Beyond Evolution if you already understand the base game. The main difference is the addition of a new turn option: Action. Previously one of two moves: play a creature, or attack. Now some creatures have special abilities that can be activated instead. In this expansion some of those actions include the ability to evolve, a special action that transforms a fairly weak creature into a mighty being with fantastic powers.

I did not get to experience Mindbug: Beyond Eternity so I cannot cover it, but it is my understanding that it uses the discard pile in clever ways to boost a player’s card power. You can learn more details about this expansion’s mechanics on the Kickstarter page.

Impressions

Mindbug: Beyond Evolution added one new element to the original Mindbug formula. It kept the familiar rules and artwork. Everything blends together seamlessly – as it should. Aside from the slight rule, keyword and setup variations, not much has changed here. So what does it add to the experience?

Sometimes a little change adds a lot, which seems to be the case here. First of all, there are more cards with plenty of new effects. Somehow the designers have managed to use the same system and keywords to imagine a fresh cast of characters that feel even more outlandish than the original set. They can interact with cards within both armies to cause wild situational effects that can be utilized in many creative ways. For example, when played control of the Radioactive Rabbit is given to the opponent. Strange, right? Well, that is fortunate because it also has a defeat condition: it takes out all allied creatures along with it. It seems like the Radioactive Rabbit would be a fun creature to play as a Trojan Horse to sneak into your opponent’s base to wipe out their defenses, but keep in mind – they might use their Mindbug on it and put it right back on your side of the table, putting your own army at risk. Mindbug: Beyond Evolution is full of many mind games and traps such as this, but it seems there is always a way to wriggle away from them.

The new creature action mechanic is powerful and a lot of fun. I have only begun to scratch the surface of the multitude of ways in which actions are used to interact with other cards in this game. And that is just within this expansion alone – I have not even had a chance to mix this into my big Mindbug deck due to time constraints. I will do that eventually, but for the time being I haven’t felt the need – we are having a lot of fun with it as-is. It stands up as a complete game on its own.

The evolveable creatures are an interesting addition to the game, having a delicate balance of vulnerability and massive potential if allowed to evolve. Because of this, they open up a lot of strategic pathways. Having one in hand feels both exciting and terrifying because of its capability. Knowing this vulnerable baby creature may one day grow up to be a mighty powerhouse is confounding – you want to protect it and nurture it so you can have it fight for you. But what if it fell into the wrong hands? Playing evolvable creatures when Mindbugs exist feels a lot like playing with nuclear weapons. Utilizing them successfully requires more strategic planning than other creature cards. They serve to increase the bluffing and mind games already present. Considering their potential once evolved, it would be unwise for an opponent to allow them to survive – extermination or Mindbugging is usually a wise course of action. They can serve as a tool to waste an opponent’s Mindbug and then slated for quick extermination, or you may choose to try to play the long game and set one up with the right conditions for a powerful end-game move. Instead, players might just hold their “nukes” in hand, preferring to ignore them in favor of a game of mutually assured destruction. The beauty of Mindbug is that the possibilities are endless.

Final Thoughts

I have been a fan of Mindbug from the beginning. My son took to the bluffing duel immediately. Every game has had a unique arc, it plays so quickly, and the card art is so goofy it was hard not to be charmed by it. It quickly became one of my favorite games to play with my son.

Mindbug: Beyond Evolution brings more of what we already love to the table. More zany characters, more card interactions to explore, more wild table moments… If you’re already a fan it’s hard to go wrong with more. Fortunately, these cards feel fresh. A lot of creativity has been poured into the same system. Rather than having to spend a lot of time learning a lot of fiddly rules and adding extra bits, there is the simple addition of a few double-sided cards (for upgrading the evolvable creatures) and a few extra Keywords and Triggers to look through in the rules. That’s it. For a very short investment in time, I was rewarded with a renewed interest in the game from my son and a renewed appreciation of the game from my end.

The biggest change in this standalone expansion is the addition of the actions, most notably the evolve action. In our experiences so far evolveable creatures don’t often make it to the table or survive for long enough to reach their full potential, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t adding value to the game. I feel they add quite a bit to the bluffing and decision-making process, and raise the stakes even higher than before. I like them quite a bit. Even though there are only 4 of them in this 44-card deck, they feel significant.

I’ve already touched on all the reasons I think Mindbug works well as a fast-paced card duel, and none of that is lost here in Mindbug: Beyond Evolution. If you’re already a fan of the original, this expansion adds more fun and layers to explore. If you are not familiar with it but are looking for a fast-paced, family-friendly game, this would be a fantastic entry point. My family has been a huge fan from the beginning and remains so, and I’m interested to see what the future has in store for Mindbug!

If you would like to late pledge Mindbug: Beyond Evolution and/or Mindbug: Beyond Eternity you can do so by visiting: https://gamefound.com/projects/marvin-hegen/mindbug-beyond?refcode=OHu-SUPwmESDKgutX0h0EQ