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Apologies for not releasing this review to you until the 2nd Friday the 13th of 2026 is almost in the books😭.

Quick Look: ETERNAL NIGHTMARE

Publisher: Darkest Day Games
Year Published: 2025

No. of Players: 2-6

Ages: 14+

Playing Time: 60-120 minutes.

Find more info HERE.

From the Publisher:

Rules & Setup:

Theme and Mechanics:

Players adopt a haunted character that has been captured by the Horror who has them in an Eternal Nightmare. Players go on adventures throughout the game trying to find a way out of the Eternal Nightmare and leave the other players behind; only 1 player will escape. Each adventure gets a player closer to escape or further traps them in the Eternal Nightmare. As the rulebook states, “Remember in the depths of darkness, fortune favors the bold. Good luck and may you emerge victorious from the shadows.”

The mechanic of the game is simply roll and move and then perform location actions. Each turn a player rolls dice, moves to another location, and performs the action(s) of that location. Beyond the base mechanic, the game includes strategic choices, knowledge checks, and risk wagers. There is a set collection element to the game, and one of the Final Showdowns involves a dexterity element. Rolling dice includes chance and a bit of chaos. Finally, the Final Showdowns include a real-time challenge element.

Objective of the game from the rulebook:

Dive into the chilling depths of Eternal Nightmare, where your ultimate goal is to outsmart your opponents, amass wealth and unlock the secrets of the sacred talismans. With three of these powerful artefacts in your possession, you’ll have the chance to confront the darkness itself in a final challenge and escape the clutches of the Terror forever.

The turn sequence for the game is simply the active player rolls two dice and moves their character around the board. The place where the token lands determines what the player receives, doesn’t receive, or must do. There are 8 types of locations (a few described below):  Terror Trivia, Monstrous Encounter, Plot Square, Dreadful Destiny, Crypt Keeper’s Toll or Fortuitous Fountain, Haunted Manor, various specific blue squares, and Final Showdown.

On a Terror Trivia location, the player chooses between answering a trivia question or challenging another player to a roll-off. Questions come in Easy, Medium, and Hard. Answering a question correctly earns the player 250, 500, or 2000 Cursed Coin Notes respectively. For a roll-off challenge, the player wages against another player and they each roll a die. The player with the higher roll wins.

On a Monstrous Encounter location, the player draws an Encounter card, which has a success and penalty outcome. The player then chooses to either face the monster alone or square off with another player. If the player faces the monster alone, they roll both dice and the total determines the outcome. If the player squares off with another player, they each roll a die and the player with the higher roll gains the success and the other player pays the penalty.

On a Final Showdown location, the player chooses from 1 of 3 challenges to try to win the game. For the 666 challenge the player rolls the 3 dice twice, writing down each pip value. The player must then use those numbers and create a math formula that equals 666 in less than 2 minutes. For the Build a Tower of Doom challenge the player must build a 3-story triangular tower using the Tower of Doom cards in less than 2 minutes. For the Demon’s Roll challenge the player has 2 minutes to roll 3 dice and either get a triple 6 or 3 double 6’s.

If a player cannot afford to pay a penalty they are knocked out of the game. The winner is either the last player standing or the one who successfully completes a Final Showdown.

I think most everyone will find something in Eternal Nightmare that they like. It is easy enough to teach that you can jump right in and start playing. There are enough things that occur for everyone to have good turns and bad turns without being able to simply run away with the game.

The game does well in making players feel dread, anxiety, and a real desire to escape before anyone else can escape first. Players have to make many decisions that have immediate and future repercussions. Players can choose to attack each other or go it alone to face the terrors in the Eternal Nightmare.

What some may find issue with:

Due to the theme of the game, I found if the players were not in the mood for that kind of theme the gameplay did not bring it. Play was still fun but was so much more fun when the players were in the mood for a more horror themed game. My fellow players who like to control what they do in the game didn’t find the roll and move aspect appealing but did appreciate the choices they were allowed to make throughout the game. Like most trivia games, the more a player plays the more often they can remember the questions and the answers, but luckily there are enough other elements to the game that having players remember does not fundamentally change the game. Overall, a game I will try to get to the table, particularly around Halloween, Friday the 13th, and other dark nights. One that I recommend to everyone looking for a dark themed but thoroughly enjoyable game.

Simple roll and move games, trivia games, action and consequence games, take-that games, and games with real-time and dexterity elements

After reading Thomas Shepherd’s review, if this sounds like a game for you at the time of this posting ETERNAL NIGHTMARE is available on their website. Check it out and get your copy HERE.

Did you back it based on our review? Please comment below letting us know!

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