A fan has made a full Inscryption board game, lovingly recreating the deck-building videogame in physical form. Designer Nathan Hockridge of CrypticCrafter announced the title on social media on October 24, sharing videos of the final product (see below). It’s a stunning adaptation, but the $290 price tag means only the most opulent tabletop gamers will be able to afford a copy.
Hockridge describes CrypticCrafter as “a small Australian business making bespoke games”, and the Inscryption adaptation is its first title. This isn’t an official board game, but CrypticCrafter says in a TikTok comment that it had the blessing of Inscryption creator Daniel Mullins.
In Act One of the original Inscryption, players repeatedly face off against Leshy, gradually improving their deck of cards after every successful game. Hockridge had to change a lot of the game to make it a suitable two-player board game. This includes offering infinite squirrels (think mana, if you’re a Magic: The Gathering fan) and cutting some of the best Inscryption cards.
The video below shares more details on these changes:
To recreate the visual style of the videogame, Hockridge has created a range of high-end physical components:
- A wooden scale and resin tooth for tracking player health
- A playmat to show players where to place cards
- A vintage brass bell to announce the end of your turn
- Bone tokens and heart tokens to place on cards
- LED candles to represent player lives
- 204 Inscryption cards and a printed rulebook
All this comes in a custom wooden box with stylized brass details and the buyer’s choice of vinyl decoration. It’s a collector’s item for sure, which is why its full price is $290 ($448 AUD / £239). Right now, this board game costs more than the colossal Frosthaven.
CrypticCrafter is offering a 10% pre-order discount until October 31. And each component can be bought individually from CrypticCrafter’s website – so if you can do without a playmat, brass, bell, and candles, you can whittle down the price somewhat.
Don’t forget about shipping, though. CrypticCrafter estimates it costs $65 to ship the full box set to most countries, including the United States. If you’re just buying smaller items, the cost will depend on their weight.
All products are made to order, and CrypticCrafter estimates the first deliveries will be made in November 2023. Due to high levels of interest, Hockridge can’t guarantee that all pre-orders will be fulfilled by Christmas.
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