A to Z 2015 : THE RESISTANCE

It's time for another party game! This one is compared a lot to Mafia and Werewolf, both of which I haven't played, though I've played and highlighted the lighter version of Werewolf — One Night Ultimate Werewolf. Actually, this game is getting a "One Night" installment as well. It's currently on Kickstarter.

So it's time to find out if you are an Imperial Spy or a member of...

The Resistance is a hidden role, deduction party game. Depending on the player count, there are a certain number of spies in the game and a specific Scoring Tableau, or board, used for each game session.

Everyone receives a pair of Voting tiles, one marked "Reject" and the other "Approve". A Starting Player is chosen randomly and they receive the Leader tile. The Imperial Spy and Resistance Character cards are then shuffled together and handed out randomly. All players secretly check their Character cards and once everyone knows their role, someone narrates some simple script.

The script asks for everyone to close their eyes. Then only the Imperial Spies are asked to open their eyes and identify one another, before, once again being told to close their eyes. The script ends with everyone being asked to open their eyes.

At this point the Leader goes about choosing players (the quantity specified on the Scoring Tableau) to send on a mission (there are 5 total missions in the game), passing them Team tiles. Once their selection of members is made, a vote is called to see if the mission is approved or not. During a vote, players secretly select either the "Reject" or "Approve" Voting tile. As soon as everyone has made choice, all of the tiles are revealed simultaneously. If the majority approve, the game proceeds to the Mission Phase. If not, then the Leader tile is passed clockwise and the process is repeated.

NOTE: If a mission is rejected 5 times in a single, the game is counted as an automatic loss for Resistance members and a win for the Imperial Spies! That would be one fast, uneventful game!

The Scoring Tableau for 5 Players. Each tableau dictates how many spies there are, how many members go on any given mission, and how many fails are needed for Imperial Spies to be successful on an approved mission (explained more below). The Vote Track is what was explained above, recording how many Teams are rejected in a single round.

When a mission is approved, the members of the Team each receive one "Fail" Mission card and one "Success" Mission card. Team members secretly select one and place them in a pile, the unused cards are set aside in a different pile. The Leader takes the chosen Mission cards and shuffles them, before revealing them.

If all of the cards are "Success" cards, then the mission was completed and Resistance members receive a win (represented by a blue marker placed on the Mission spot). If there is at least one "Fail" Mission card revealed (and only 1 fail is needed for the Imperial Spies to sabotage a mission) the mission has not been completed and the Imperial Spies receive a win (represented by a red marker placed on the Mission spot).

Play continues this way until either the Resistance members or Imperial Spies win best out of 5!

Full Review Forthcoming

Have you ever played The Resistance? If so, did you enjoy it? Have you ever played similar games? If so, which? Any favorites? Does this sound like a game you'd like to introduce to your playgroup?