Too Many Bones is a game that fuses elements of role-playing games (play one character, work as a party, go on an adventure to take out a Big Bad) with elements of Euro games (more structured encounters, curated rules systems that don't require anyone to act as "game master"). And dice. (Or "bones.") So many bones. Too Many Bones -- over 100. Player characters have custom dice to represent the various powers they can level up into (over a dozen unique abilities for each character). Evil "tyrants" have custom dice to represent their powers. There are dice for initiative, dice to track negative effects, dice for attacking and defending... dice, dice, and more dice!
Honestly, there's so much in the box that the game comes on a bit overwhelming at first. It feels hard to learn, harder still to teach, and once we started playing it for the first time, my initial reaction was that the game was capturing the more tedious elements of RPGs -- the bookkeeping and player-aid consultation -- rather than the cool storytelling parts. I hung in there, though, and soon the game's charms began to show.
In the manner of so many sophisticated games, Too Many Bones does make sense and seem not so complex once you've gotten into it. And those complexities aren't without purpose. Each of the four player characters that comes with the game is completely different in terms of what it can do, and what strategies to focus on when playing it. It gives everyone a distinct role in what turns out to be a reasonably compelling RPG simulation. No, the story elements are not remotely as sharp as what a real RPG can provide, but the sense of accomplishment and teamwork is very similar.
The stark differences in characters adds a lot of replayability to the game. It'll take you several playthroughs just to figure out how to play one character well -- and even then, there are three others in the box. The differences also help cut down on too much "quarterbacking," when a cooperative game is dominated too much by one player dictating strategy to the group. No one knows your character better than you (at least, until you're all experts at the game), so everyone has a valuable contribution to make.
There's also nice mitigation for all the randomness of the dice rolling. Failed results earn you "bones" symbols you can save up and use for other effects during a battle. The more you strike out when attacking or defending, the more powerful the special ability you can trigger by spending your bones. Plus, many dice aren't even rolled at all in the course of play -- they're just counters you use to track things (and easier to use than separate piles of tokens would be).
I've played the game a few times, and it has grown on me every time. I admit, though, that one hesitation I have remains: it is a long game. Depending on the strength of the "tyrant" you must defeat in your playthrough (and the number of players involved), the game can reportedly run anywhere from 1 to 4 hours. We have yet to complete a game in under two. For many groups, this isn't a drawback at all. In our group, this is a lot of time to devote to one game.
Also, some systems within the game feel more robust and replayable than others. There are, for example, a wide variety of monster powers, and an even wider variety of different loot cards you can earn as rewards during your adventuring. But the 4 x 4 grid on which combat takes place doesn't really feel like it gives much room for tactics. And an interesting lockpicking mechanic peters out partway through most playthroughs of the game, once everyone has unlocked the one locked item they start with. (There's no inherent way to get more.)
Still, Too Many Bones stuck with me longer than any other similarly epic game I've played in a while. A game I'm open to playing again, knowing it could take three or more hours when I do? That's a true rarity. For the moment, I'd grade the game a B... but I could see that rising if indeed we do get to play it more.
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