Never before have I played a family game that so perfectly combines a narrative story adventure with welcoming game play quite like Stuffed Fables.
If you’re looking for a unique and immersive game to play with your family, this could be it!
Quick Overview of Play
Each time you sit down to play Stuffed Fables, you’ll begin by choosing a story and reading from the storybook. Each story has its own unique objective and the choices you make during the game will impact how you achieve that objective, if at all.
The game itself is played out on the Adventure Book. Rather than a board, players will flip through the pages in a spiral bound book, each with a different board printed on one side and the rules, setup, objective, and story on the other. During the course of a single adventure, you’ll visit several pages as you work to complete your overall objective — visiting different locations in the world of Stuffed Fables.
As you play the game you’ll trigger new parts of the story. These can introduce new characters, villains to fight, or change your scene.
Your Choices Determine Your Story
Because the choices you make in the game will determine your outcome, almost every game you play will be unique. The number of minions you fight or the group challenges you have to complete are all determined on player count allowing the game to scale easily no matter how many are playing.
The one constant from game to game is the order of your turn. To begin, you’ll draw five dice from the bag. The colors of the dice allow players to do different things such as heal, move, attack, search, or special actions. Minions are activated and attack the group when enough black dice are drawn. This brings conflict into the game and players will have to defend themselves and encourage others by sharing dice or stuffing (life.)
Once you’ve used all your dice and the minions have activated (if necessary,) play passes to the next player. You continue like this, following along with the story throughout, until you have either completed your goal and win, or all Stuffies have collapsed and you try again another day.
Our Thoughts
When we played Stuffed Fables it felt alive!
This game is unlike most any other that we have played and one that will most certainly appeal to the family.
The theme and story elements are quite wonderful. While playing I am genuinely interested to read how the story ends, not just in the gameplay itself. Because the choices you make and the results of your efforts during the adventure can impact the story you read, it’s possible to play the same story challenge two or three times and come away with a slightly different story told. Yes, the overall objectives are the same, but how you achieve them, the paths that you take, and the characters you do or do not interact with all make for a slightly different tale told. It’s honestly so clever!
I can see Stuffed Fables being an excellent choice for a family that is looking for a new way to connect together. This would be such a fun game to dedicate a few nights a week to and play each story over the course of a month or so. Each game takes a while, so this is not a game you are going to play in one evening and be done.
Stuffed Fables is the kind of game that sticks with you. Whether you’re remembering an insane time you all banded together and took down a boss villain; had victory snatched from your grasp, or the story you read — Stuffed Fables lives on beyond the game.
I’m always looking for exactly this type of game. The kind that leaves a mark through those memorable moments — Stuffed Fables has that in spades.
Theme & Components
Playing Stuffed Fables feels like playing through a Pixar movie. Or perhaps a video game where each story element you read feels like the cut scene before the control is given back to you.
The stories are lovely and quite enjoyable for both children and adults. Much like how Toy Story 3 was more for the adults than the kids, you are sure to have your emotions tugged on by some of these stories while your kids are oblivious.
There is nothing left wanting in the components. Everything is beautifully made and well worth the price of the game.
Stuffed Fables has a TON of miniatures. Each are detailed and add greatly to the overall feel of play. These would also be so fun to paint if you are into that side of the hobby.
My absolute favorite component in the box, perhaps surprisingly, is the spiral bound game board. This is such an incredibly smart design. Far superior to multiple double sided cardboard boards. It saves space, is easy to play on, and has all of the necessary information on the right hand side for players to read. The storybook also looks insanely gorgeous. The pictures are vibrant, colorful, and easy to read from across the table. The spaces for miniatures to move on are clearly defined without distracting from the gorgeous artwork that sets the scene.
No complaints — 10/10!
Learning Stuffed Fables
Stuffed Fables is relatively easy to play, though it does take a game or two to learn.
Learning Stuffed Fables from the rulebook wasn’t as intuitive as we had hoped. (This could totally come down to our learning styles and may not be an issue for others.) There’s a lot to take in and prepare for in your first game so plan on reading the rules the day or so before you play. I’d also recommend watching the How to Play video from Rodney Smith as well, especially if you are a visual learner.
What makes Stuffed Fables slower to pick up is also what makes it great: each page of the game is a little bit different! This means that you don’t get into a strong groove right away because you are discovering new things for essentially 90 minutes on your first game or two.
I don’t say this as a bad thing! Stuffed Fables shines because of how many different scenarios and encounters players will journey through. It’s just something that new players should be aware of before beginning. To help you, there are QR codes printed on the story book which are quite helpful. You can use your phone to scan those and it will take you to a YouTube video where that exact step of the game is explained for you.
I was so incredibly impressed by this. It helps make your first game go so smoothly.
Educational
Playing Stuffed Fables is an excellent way for students to work on their reading and comprehension skills.
This is a great game for reluctant readers who perhaps struggle finding novels that interest them. It feels both like a book and a video game. The immersive game play combined with the high levels of reading throughout provide an excellent opportunity to encourage reading in the home.
If your child connects to the story, they may also be interested in reading the Toys Go Out series by Emily Jenkins. This is one of my absolute favorite bedtime read aloud books. Book 2 — Book 3
Playing Stuffed Fables also reminded me heavily of the 2010 graphic novel The Stuff of Legend. (truly, the first novel in the series is near exactly like the premise of Stuffed Fables.) This series is quite a bit more intense than the Toys Go Out series however. As with anything, I recommend reading it first before giving it to your child.
Long Play Time
While the game says it’s for ages 7+ be aware that these stories take about 90 minutes to play through. (Or more depending on player count.) Your first games will also take longer as you work through the rules.
For our family, this play time tends to run just a bit too long for the kids’ attention spans.
Stuffed Fables does come with large baggies so everyone can pause the game mid story and keep their character card along with any other stuffing, hearts, dice, or cards earned. This works well so you can pick up where you left off at a later date.
Personally I recommend trying to finish the story in one setting as that made for the best play experience in our home. When we tried to save it for a later date, it was hard to jump back into it from a middle stage and recapture the flow of the game.
Because of the play time, I think Stuffed Fables is actually better suited for the older child; around age 10 or so. If you’re looking to buy this for a younger child, I would hold off. We played this with our boys (5 and 7.) While they followed along, they required a significant amount of help from us during their turn and by 25-30 minutes in they were done.
To that end, it is relatively easy to have a player drop out mid-way through the game due to the ingenious way you set up and trigger minions or group goals.
Summary
Stuffed Fables is an exciting game that will stick with you. I absolutely love the narrative adventure and how each game feels unique based on the choices players make. As a player you are actively excited to get the game back to the table to explore more within the world.
While the playtime at 60-90 minutes does tend to make this a bit too long for families with young children, it is an excellent choice for those with kids ages 10 and up. To be sure, younger kids can play along, but their attention spans may likely be taxed before the game is over.
We highly recommend Stuffed Fables to any family looking for a unique and challenging adventure with heart. It bridges the gaps between Family Games, Dungeon Crawlers, and campaign games spectacularly.
To pick up a copy of Stuffed Fables for your home, click here.
Already played and ready for another adventure? Find the Oh Brother! expansion here.
A special thank you to our friends at Asmodee for sending us a copy of Stuffed Fables for review. As always our thoughts and opinions are our own.
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