For those who grew up in the 90s’, the Disney afternoon collection of cartoons was one of our first exposures to superhero worlds. Gargoyles not only was Disney’s best new IP in ages but it brought together great actors including the recently lost Ed Asner to give voice to heroic and noble characters like Hudson. It’s good to see a new game try to revive a series forgotten by many but it felt as though it could have done more.
Disney Gargoyles: Awakening
Published By: Ravensburger
Available: Target now and other retailers (Fall 2021)
Gargoyles Awakening is a well-structured cooperative adventure game in which players can team up to take on the show’s most notorious villains David Xanatos and Demona. You can choose to play as Goliath, Hudson, Brooklyn, or their human ally Eliza. Each character will have their own unique abilities and amount of attack/range they can use so picking the right combinations is key. As mentioned, Awakening is a solid game in which luck of the dice roll will determine attack/damage. The rules are simple enough for anyone to understand right away and multiple playable scenarios give the game a good amount of replayability.
The game’s publisher Ravensburger is known for creating budget-friendly games that maximize value in their details. Awakening’s big bright attention to detail is letting players go vertical in its coordinate-based New York City game board. Disney’s Gargoyles was a cartoon whose art style captured gorgeous animated scenery in its New York setting and the game brings that by having players build highrises on the board in which your characters can glide through as only the winged avengers can. When you complete the board it’s one of the best looking landscapes in board gaming under $40.
My one complaint about the game is that it feels too geared towards younger audiences when no one born after 2000 is going to care. With that in mind, despite multiple ways to lose it never felt like a true challenge. Even in scenarios that were supposed to be more difficult never felt as tense as they were intended. I think the game’s “day cycle” when you’re not supposed to move with Gargoyle characters, they heal too much. There were probably a number of things that could have been added to make it more challenging but balancing for the age 8+ label on the box clearly took precedent.
Overall, Gargoyles Awakening is a solid game that makes the most of a property that was great but limited. As a game, it doesn’t outshine others in the same genre which closes the loop of who should own it to those of us throwing game nights for other friends who remember the show.
