Review: Unfathomable revives the classic Battlestar Galactica board game

Just as modern board games got off the ground in the late 2000s, so too was the modern era of high-end television. Those two worlds collided with Battlestar Galactica: The Board Game, designed by Corey Konieczka. Sadly, it was sold out years ago, with even ramshackle versions now being collectibles selling at a premium.

But the good folks at Fantasy Flight Games turned the corner at the end of this year, reinventing that style of play with a whole new theme. Fathomless it is exceptional and deserves your attention in a crowded field of great new board games.

Fathomless has a simple premise: you and up to five of your friends are trying to keep a cruise ship, its crew and the complement of passengers alive. Conspiring against you are the gruesome Deep Ones, a mother and father team of colossal sea monsters, as well as their brood of wet and dripping monsters. Everything is on deck to repel passengers, keep engines running, and weather the storm to reach a safe harbor.

There is only one problem. One or more of the three or six people at the table are conspiring with the Deep Ones. As a traitor, it’s easy enough to keep a low profile. The many challenges of the game can only be overcome by throwing cards into a common pot. If enough of the correct card suits appear, you have achieved your goal. The cards are randomly assigned before they are revealed so that no one knows who laid which cards. All you need to do is lay down the wrong cards, undermining the efforts of the other players and making the mess worse.

Alternatively, traitors may choose to reveal themselves. Do it at the right time and the damage may be irreversible. Play those cards wrong, on the other hand, and you’ll spend the rest of your journey in the ship’s dungeon.

As in the original Battlestar galactica, there are several locations around the ship that allow players to perform special moves. You can fire up the boiler on your turn to make the ship go faster, or rummage through the hold for weapons and special items. Slowly but surely, the Deep Ones will begin to invade the ship, shutting down those powerful systems one by one. They can even damage the ship, bringing you closer and closer to defeat.

In this way, Fathomless It is a great improvement on the original. In my experience, the Cylons rarely boarded the Galactica, and once they did, it was pretty much game over. Meanwhile, in this 1920s Cthulhu-inspired version of the game, the Deep Ones are constantly in your face. Fathomless He also has a clever mechanic who puts the other anonymous passengers who take the cruise with you at risk. That, plus the subtly revamped seascape design around the ship, greatly enhances the gameplay.

This is not just a reskin of a classic game. It’s a tremendously well-conceived update, and designer Tony Fanchi should be commended for that work.

The only complaint I have is in the art direction and graphic design of the cards themselves. There is a huge amount of text in this game, and the little cards you have to hold in your hand might need more space – room for, say, graphics of any kind. Instead, players are asked to absorb a bunch of words written in an 8-point typeface. Similarly, the backs of the cards do not feel cohesive and do not scan well at a distance on the table.

Apart from those objections, Fathomless he really benefits from the quarterback. As a knowledgeable player and familiar with the rules, it’s easy to step on the pedal and keep the game on track during your two to four hour playing time. If you have a dedicated board game group or an ambitious team of newbies looking to have some fun indoors, I can’t recommend this one highly enough.

Fathomless will be released on November 12, but is already available in some friendly local game shops. The game was reviewed with a final retail copy of the game provided by Asmodee. Vox Media has affiliate associations. These do not influence editorial content, although Vox Media may earn commissions for products purchased through affiliate links. You can find Additional information on Polygon’s ethics policy here.

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