Flash Point: Fire Rescue 2nd Edition - A Thrilling Cooperative Board Game For Kids, Teens & Families to Save Lives - For 2-6 Players Ages 10+ with 30 Minute Play Time by Indie Boards & Cards

This was a chance purchase. I didn't know what this game was about but it looked interesting so I got it. What a wonderful surprise! I've found that most people that I introduce this to love playing it. Even ones that are scared of thinking games like this one. What I love of this game is that it is a cooperative game. Everybody wins or everybody dies. There are quite a bit of rules but if you take it one step at a time it isn't hard and many people pick it up quickly. If you can read and follow rules then you can play. There is a set of easier family set of rules and game play that is easier for beginners and there are advanced rules that add more dynamics to the game. The advanced game play adds characters with special jobs that help or hinder you. The advanced game play also adds hazardous material that could explode and it also adds the use of the firetruck. Flashpoint has very high replay value. Every game is different. My family has mostly played the Family set of rules because we seem to introduce this to many different people and so those are easier to start out with. One family that was introduced want to play it again because they think of new strategies to play. There are two sides to the board so there are two house layouts. One side is way harder than the other side because there are less doors that lead to outside. This game really makes you think about your own house layout and if it is safe and what should we do in case of a fire. It really gives you a sense of accomplishment when you get to save one of the victims in the house. It can make someone tense and even sad if we lose one of the victims. We really get into the game. It makes us think that we should be grateful that we aren't really in this situation for real and also makes us have deeper respect for real firefighters. The game pieces are nice; the art is amazing. But there wasn't any way to keep them neat after you pop them out of the cardboard they came in. So we have been putting them back into the cardboard holder that they came in. It is a puzzle game after the game to fit them in the correct spot. So that is fine but I don't know what we are going to do when they get too loose to be securely held in place. We always have good fun playing this with varying age groups. My family laughs at me every time because I'm now known as the one that wants to break down the walls. We actually died at least once because I chopped down a wall and the house collapsed on us. Not in that order; there were just too many explosions. Funny tidbit: One time I went to save one of the victims and I turn over the piece to see if it was a victim or not and I wondered, "Why are we saving the coffee pot?" The picture was upside down and it was actually the dog.

We got this game about 1-2 weeks ago and we love it! The game is exciting and fun for everyone. In case you didn't read the description, it's a cooperative board game about firefighters saving people from a burning building. Cooperative means everyone is on the same team playing against the fire. This game involves a lot of teamwork, strategizing and collaboration. To add to the strategy, players can choose a firefighter specialty. One of the nice things in this game is that it offers 4 difficulty levels, so you can start off easy and try for a challenge when you feel up to it. The easiest is the "family" version, then there's rookie, veteran and hero. I will say that the full rules seem a little intimidating at first, but we found progressively adding the advanced rules instead of jumping straight into it made it easier. We played the "family" version the first couple times, then the next time we played with the randomized set up for the advanced game and the rules from the "family" version, next game we added the Specialists and Hazmats, then finally we tried a game with all the rules. I definitely recommend following a similar progression, it gave me a chance to get familiar with a few rules at a time instead of all at once. Now I feel comfortable explaining the full rules to a new group of players. One note about this game's kid friendliness: My 5 year old can't quite grasp the strategies involved, but he loves the firefighter figures that come with the game. I'd say this game is good for ages 7 and up. Overall, I like this game because it offers a great mix of strategy and excitement. No one we've played it with so far has said anything bad about it. After playing through 6 times, the only thing I can think to complain about is that there are a lot of different pieces to keep sorted. For now I've put everything in ziploc bags, but I'm thinking about buying a small, clear plastic tacklebox to keep it all sorted. A nice bonus that surprised me is that the board is actually double-sided, you can play on either side.

My son is really into firefighting right now, and we wanted to introduce "Family Game Night", so... The game is quite simply amazing- there's enough to the family rules to make it fun and exciting (and replayable), and for older players there are a further 3 levels of difficulty which introduce greater complexity. Our 4 year old couldn't wait until Friday night, so we played Tuesday afternoon. As the board set-up (and game play) uses a combination of die rolls (6 sided and 8 sided), he could handle that part all by himself. The mechanics of the game play were simple enough for him to understand, but the strategic aspects were a little beyond him; no matter, he enjoyed fighting the fires, leaving mom and I to rescue the victims. With guidance, he did make some rescues on his own- notably, two victims who were trapped on the other side of the house from us, leaving him their sole means of survival. His pride in extinguishing the fires, rescuing the victims, and saving the day was pure joy to watch. Sure it was only moving cardboard counters around- to him, it was real. This game is really astonishing. The way the fire spread was unpredictable and made for some tense moments. The rules are very simple but allow for complex mechanisms to play out. We were able to play through in about an hour, with little consultation of the rules after about the first 15 minutes or so. For little ones, there are plenty of tasks to keep them engaged, even if they don't understand the whole concept or don't yet grasp the strategy. One final note- the game is completely cooperative: there are no individual goals, and you win or lose as a team. This is great for introducing the concept of working together, reinforcing others' efforts, and making use of others' strengths (especially true when you use the advanced rules with unique firefighter roles). While it's possible to lose a game, no-one will get hurt feelings as a result of another player's actions.

Pros - The game is very thematic. Compared to Pandemic (board game) which is similar, this game really feels like saving people in a burning house - Having a basic variant and advanced variant to play is extremely brilliant! I was able to play the basic variant with a 9 year old and and adult who never played modern board games and it went smoothly. While being able to support a simpler variant, it still has a variant that more advanced gamers can use to play the game. - Asymmetry in the used roles. Each player can have their own role to play. - Having the option to chop walls is a nice twist when strategizing on what you can do in your turn. - The players must strategize and cooperate on how then can efficiently perform things. This is the most fun part of the game. - The game plays fast. Even young players and non-gamers wouldn't feel its length that much. - Well written rulebook Cons - The gameplay is a bit repetitive. - Most turns are not that interesting as you are just moving to your target person. - There is not much tension. In comparison to games like Pandemic or Spirit Island, where you can already predict where things will start to fall apart and thus turns the game to a very exciting race to end the game as soon as possible, here it lacks that factor. I'm not saying that Flash Point doesn't have tension, it has, but not enough to make the game very exciting. - While the game is good, the rating of 4 was because I'm still finding something the game that I wish it had. Probably I'm finding more variance in the problems encountered during the game. Probably events per round. Or perhaps I'm just being unfair to this game and asking too much from it as the recent games I played were Fire in the Lake, Orleans, and Concordia, all of which are heavier and famous for being excellent.

I supervise an after-school game group for teens (mostly boys), and they're pretty good board gamers. (I played the 'Lord of the Rings' co-op game with them and we actually won. If you've tried it, you might know how difficult that is.) We jumped right into the advanced rules of Flash Point (Recruit Level) and it was pretty easy for us, but the boys immediately wanted to play it again at a higher difficulty level, which speaks volumes to me about the fun-factor and replay value of 'Flash Point.' Like most cooperative games, each player has a specific role within the group based on their skill or character. Flash Point is unique in that players can actually change their specializations during the game, so you don't get stuck the entire time with a skill that becomes useless or redundant at some point. I think the player specializations in 'Flash Point' are more thematic than in any other cooperative game. In 'Shadows Over Camelot' (my other favorite) for example, character skills allow you to do things like pass cards between players or look at the top card of a deck - helpful, but artificial. In 'Flash Point,' your skills might allow you to treat wounded victims, dispose of hazmat, or use the truck to spray a large area - things real firefighters actually DO. Most co-operative games follow the formula of "take your actions and then something bad usually happens" on each player's turn. Players then must talk and decide how to utilize each of their skills to slow down the bad stuff while working toward their shared objectives. Nothing new in that area here, but again it's the way the design incorporates things like chain explosions and structural damage to create tension and a sense of urgency that fit the theme of firefighting so well. Currently there are still only a handful of cooperative board games on the market, and they vary in degree of difficulty. I've played nearly all of them, and they're pretty good. 'Forbidden Island' and 'Castle Panic' are great for younger kids because they set up and play quickly and are easier to win. 'Shadows Over Camelot' and 'Lord of the Rings' can be extremely trying even for the experienced, but deeply satisfying. I'd put 'Flash Point' and 'Pandemic' in the middle. I prefer 'Flash Point' primarily for the variety of firefighter specializations, and the greater sense of thematic tension that comes from trying to rescue everyone as fire and explosions tear through the building.

Update after many months of owning this game: This game is still going strong in my house. We don't always play this game on our family nights but it does get played regularly in our rotation of games. We've moved on to more advanced rules and don't always win. I also like to throw in an exercise for my 9 year old niece by saying "okay, you are in charge of this firefighting operation - what is the plan this round?" It's an easy leadership exercise for her that she just loves. All in all, I am still glad I purchased this game. ONE WORD OF ADVICE FOR GAMING EXPERTS: If you play board games regularly and consider yourself a board gaming pro then I'd recommend skipping family rules. They won't challenge you. I'd recommend you skip straight to veteran difficulty. Original Week 1 review: I just got this two days ago, so this game still has that honeymoon period going for it, I'll try and come back after a month and update this review to see if my opinion has changed any. Sometimes you want to sit down with the people you care about and play a game with them. I purchased this game to do something with my niece other then play video games or watch movies with her. I choose this game because I've never played a coop board game before and I know my niece would get a thrill out of working with the adults to win the game. At first the rules seem a little complicated but after a game or two they become extremely easy to follow. That is to say, at least family rules are easy to follow. We haven't graduated to the experienced rule set but given how much we keep playing this game I suspect we will be moving to the experienced rule set very soon. Needless to say my niece, her dad, and I enjoy this game very much so far. Each play through is about 45 minutes total, you're mileage may very given there is a slight random element to this game between the fires and the point of interest. So far at the end of every game my niece asks if we can play it again, which means at the moment we've found something more fun then video games for her. All in all, I do not regret this purchase and I can't wait until my niece gets done with school today so she, her dad, and I can play another round of this game. Side note: I forgot to mention, the game recommends ages 10 and up, but if you focus on the family rule set you might be able to get away with 8 and up. At least my niece is 8 and she seems to be able to follow the game just fine. It depends on your kid, of course.

I bought this for a family of adults to enjoy on game night. So far we've played it at 'Family' level (basic game) and enjoyed it. My son-in-law, who is a paramedic, found it mostly realistic, which is rare in a board game. My son and I have played it at 'Recruit' level, omitting some of the additional rules. That's a great feature of the game: the rules are well balanced so that you can pick and choose which ones you want to play without skewing the game. We like that you can change roles so you don't get stuck with an obsolete role. And, if there's only two of you, you can each control a couple of fire fighters. Although there is a certain amount of luck involved, real fires are unpredictable too. We were within one space of winning the game (just had to get the last victim out the door) when the building collapsed on us. The way in which the game handles fires, explosions, damage, flashover, shockwave, etc, give a degree of realism and suspense to the game. The rules are clearly written and logically laid out, so if you follow them step by step, it makes perfect sense. (I hate games where the rules are so poorly written you spend longer trying to figure them out than playing the game). Flash Point also includes two different maps with one being more challenging than the other. In short, it's enjoyable, realistic, and replayable. Update: We've now played the game at all difficulties levels and I've played it solo a number of times. I'm even more impressed. The game scales well and is flexible enough that if you're creative, you can make up your own hazards, specialists, and victory conditions. This now my absolute favorite board game. I like it better than Pandemic, to which is is often compared, because Pandemic is too abstract for me. (In Pandemic, you're pushing little plastic cubes around the map.) Flash Point is realistic enough that I find myself immersed in the world of the game, almost like a roleplaying game.

I first bought this a long time ago, at least seven years ago, and it's remained my favorite board game since then. The theme is fun and easy to get behind and the gameplay is lots of fun! The basic game has you and your friends exploring a burning building to rescue the occupants, except you aren't sure where they are. You can chop down walls and doors to get through difficult areas, but every bit of structural damage brings the game closer to the end, and every turn the fire spreads and grows. You can put the fire out a little at a time, but it's best to focus on rescuing people. The game even has advanced rules that give your characters special skills and also adds vehicles to help flood sections of the board with water! The rules are a little complex for people who have only played games like Sorry and Uno, but not impossible as long as someone who is on top of things to coach them. I really like how it's a co-op game and you're all working together, too--everyone I've ever shown this game to has loved it! Five stars from me!

Great game

What a great game for the family! Fun for kids (and adults) with the roleplay aspect, and teaches teamwork -- and can scale to a harder game depending on how you play. Not easy to win if you're not trying hard and there's a chance element to how 'hard' the fire is to fight, so communication and strategy is important! We love it.

Super jeu en mode coopératif, dont la mécanique de propagation du feu est très bien réalisée. Attention version anglaise mais on trouve sur le Web la traduction des règles en français. Une fois que l'on a assimilé les règles le jeu peut aller très très vite et on peut enchainer les parties.

I got Flashpoint not with the greatest of expectations. I had heard of the game before but never really looked into it. Then saw the game being reviewed on Youtube a few times and thought I would order it. I was pleasantly surprised by how good this game was and Flashpoint has since become my favourite cooperative game that I own (and I have Pandemic & both Forbidden games). None of them, for me, beat Flashpoint. So what makes Flashpoint great? Well, the theme is fantastic. One of my problems with Pandemic is the theme doesn't suck me in. Whereas in Flashpoint when my firefighter gets knocked down by an explosion or a door blows up in my face I feel completely immersed in the theme. The fightighting theme is one we are all aware of and it works really well. The design of the game helps with this. For example, the way the fire spreads each turn makes sense in terms of how you would expect a real fire to spread (I am not a firefighter so I wouldn't know). Smoke leads to fire, fire leads to explosions, explosions lead to dead victims and damaged walls. It all makes a lot of sense. Other pros: - works very well from 2-6 players (all my other coop games are 4 player, so to have a 6 player game is great for those larger gatherings) - special firefighter abilities means working together doing what you're best at doing (whether that be firefighting or rescuing, everybody has a job to do for the team) - Great family game and even has family game rules to make things simpler - variety of difficulty levels which can be customised completely to suit your own ability - quick games (30-45 min) - double sided board which gives you 2 buildings to fight fire in (one a little harder than the other) - randomness of how the fire spreads really makes for an unpredictable challenge (you may think you have things under control and two turns later half the house is on fire) Cons: - set up can take 5-10 minutes depending on what difficulty you are playing (you have to follow a step-by-step set up routine which becomes familiar but initially will take a few min to go through... not a big issue really) - board is busy (there are lots things on the board which can make it seem quite busy at times but again, not a big problem) - Sometimes dice rolling to spread the fire may result in an easy game, or the opposite can happen (but this is quite realistic of fires I would imagine and I've only had 1 easy game where the dice were very helpful) - the action points each firefighter has vary depending on their skills, and you can save action points for next turns (this takes a little bit of getting used to but again, is not too bad) This is a really great game. The fire theme presents a very realistic danger that needs to be put out and you genuinely feel like you are in a building doing your thing as a firefighter. Great family game, kids would likely love this game. There are already 3-4 expansions out there to get if you want more challenges too. I've just got a few of them. Each brings new boards (new buildings), some new equipment and things like second/third floors to buildings which makes fighting that fire even more challenging. Excellent game, if you're interested in it I would fully recommend making the purchase!

It's a very good coop game which means all players must work together rather than against one another, against the game itself. It is a very entertaining game right till the end and every time it's totally different. It has a lot of replayability so you won't grow tired of it any time soon. Just check out on youtube one of those 'how to play' instructions and you can start right away. It's not complicated and we all enjoy it very much.