Space Hulk Board Game (2009) - Games Workshop Limited Re-release

This is the classic, award-winning 1993 game designed by Richard Halliwell. This is a positive review, but you should know a few things going into this.High quality materials construction, beautifully designed packaging and rulebook. Painting the various miniatures is fun and time-consuming in a good way. The paints, however, might put you out $90+ if you want them to look like the box cover. Those who know Games Workshop know this is typical of their marketing - if you're hard up for cash (why are you buying this game then?!) you can leave the miniatures unpainted, or paint them in a simpler color scheme.The first 10 or so plays suffer from Rules Constipation; lots of starts and stops to deal with the complexity of different situations and weapons. The game could be made *perfect* by encapsulating "Quick Start" rules on an 8.5"x11" front-back laminated card, while leaving the rulebook available for a fuller understanding of the game. I think I'll make one.But none of that should stop you from owning this exceptional game from the WH40K universe.

For those lamenting not being able to find full sets of this game on ebay for anything less than an arm and a leg you can do what my friend did. A lot of 40k players bought this game specifically for the fancy blood angel terminator sculpts which I believe are unique to this box. My friend found a copy of the game on ebay without minitures for cheap, he then spent some of the money he would have put into a full box on a couple of boxes of standard 40k terminators and genestealers and called it a day. You could also certainly play with any kind of tokens.

This is a limited release of a classic boardgame intended for "core" fans of the genre. If you really want a copy you might want to get it now, because there is no telling if there will be a reprinting anytime soon. The "Space Hulk" itself is a massive derilict ship drifting thru space that serves as the setting for the game.The pics above show assembled and painted minis. The game itself comes unassembled and unpainted. That is part of the hobby for "Games Workshop" fans. It is a heck of a lot of work to get minis to look that nice, but that's part of what makes it worth it for enthusiasts. Everything about this product is very high quality... the rules and scenarios are very well done, the map tiles and tokens are very heavy duty and once assembled, the minis are fantastic.The game itself is a blast! A fast and brutal 2 player tactical exercise that is complete and devious. One player controls a band of Space Marines attempting to accomplish a mission. The Marines are well armed, but what they start with is what they get. The second player controls hordes of viscious aliens whose sole purpose is to kill the Marines. Each turn more and more aliens swarm into the game making it harder and harder for the Marines. In other words, Player "A" has to do something and Player "B" has to stop him. Space Hulk is about as cutthroat as it gets.The rules are a model of efficiency and the theme and backstories are very interesting. It's actually fun to read the rulebooks. Space Hulk started out costing $99 but now is creeping up to $149. If there isn't a second release the price will keep going up. That's too bad, because mechanically this game is great. It would be fun and well worth playing with cheaper pieces and components if that is what it would take for further releases of the game.

Rarely can it be said that Games Workshop gets a game release 100% right - but in the case of the third edition of Space Hulk, the boys from Britain managed just that.Space Hulk, as a stand-alone game, is a challenging enterprise for two players and intended entirely for veterans of the Warhammer 40,000 mythos. One will command squads of Terminator Space Marines seeking to accomplish objectives within the confines of a ghostly, derelict vessel and the other attempts to destroy these Marines with a never-ending tide of vicious alien monstrosities. The plastic miniatures provided for each side are meticulously detailed, ranking among the best ever put out by GW. As with previous iterations of the game, these miniatures are 28mm in scale and can be used in standard battles of 40K. They're an absolute joy to paint, representing a real challenge for any self-respecting hobbyist seeking to improve his or her skills.The rules are well laid out and significantly better balanced than the previous edition: no longer will the alien player simply steamroll veteran gamers taking charge of the Marines. The game set itself is extremely durable. Unlike the previous releases (which featured relatively thin and flimsy card board pieces) this version of Space Hulk uses thick, heavy sheets of glossy, layered composite board that ensures repeated use will not put significant wear and tear on the set. The array of doors and accent pieces are virtually unique, making them eye candy as much as the miniatures.The shame of Space Hulk is the nature of its limited release: printed only in the latter half of 2009 for a much cheaper price tag than the current (at the time of this writing) $189.99 value, it is an increasingly rare sight with online sellers and completely unobtainable off-the-shelf in Games Workshop stores. Should one have the available cash to spare, this is a worthwhile purchase no dedicated Space Marine or Tyranid player should be without.

I don't understand why gamesworkshop has such small print runs on this game. I would like to buy it, and I look for it every few years. It seems I always miss it when it is in print and I am not willing to pay the inflated prices that occur everytime it goes out of print. If gamesworkshop would actualy keep this in stock I'd buy it in a heartbeat for the original cost. I'd also buy more of their miniatures, but these inflated prices keep me from being their customer.