When comparing Mansions of Madness vs Forbidden Desert, the Slant community recommends Forbidden Desert for most people. In the question“What are the best co-op board games that work best with 4 players?” Forbidden Desert is ranked 4th while Mansions of Madness is ranked 7th. The most important reason people chose Forbidden Desert is:
Using a random board setup and the unique way in which the desert storm can move around and rearrange the board, no two plays of Forbidden Desert are the same.
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Deep RPG immersion
The win condition for the game is basically to get out of the house alive. Any other scenario where one does not get out they either die or go insane, which is what plays into the immersion of this game, it is more about story and experiencing what it has to offer than "winning".
Pro Lots of replayability
The base game comes with 5 scenarios that include 3 different endings each. Add to the fact that the scenario is built based on a series of multiple choice questions before setup, means no 2 games will be the same.
Also there are many expansions available which with many more scenarios.
Pro Amazing board tiles
The house (or cave or wilderness) tiles are made of thick card stock with some beautiful artwork.
Pro RPG experience with the ease of a single session board game
Like all of the Arkham Horror games this pulls in all of the familiar characters and antagonists from Lovecraft's mythos. Unlike the others however it's less about running around closing portals as fast as you can and more about investigating a single scenario in a series of pre-configured locations. It does require a sort of "DM" that the other players play against but it helps that person with the convoluted stuff and lets them enjoy the game as much as the other players.
Pro Excellent story mechanic
One of the few games that can get one involved as a character dealing with a continually challenging and unveiling storyline. A competent keeper (DM) is a must, though.
Pro Very replayable
Using a random board setup and the unique way in which the desert storm can move around and rearrange the board, no two plays of Forbidden Desert are the same.
Pro Rewarding but difficult gameplay
In a game where players can die of thirst, become buried under increasingly deep piles of sand, or be blown away when the storm reaches it's highest level, the only way to win is to race around the board trying to find all the pieces to your airship in order to escape with your lives. Having 3 ways to lose and only one way to win makes Forbiden Desert a very difficult game. However, that difficulty makes every success so much more rewarding. The feeling when you finally find all of the pieces to your airship and escape the desert for once and for all is amazing.
Pro Excellent component quality
From the metal tin that the game comes in to the thick, quality cardboard used for both the location tiles and the sand tiles, all of the components used in Forbidden Desert are top-notch.
Cons
Con Player elimination leaves people out of the fun
This may upset some people.
Con Long set up and play time
Be prepared to spend long hours on this bad boy. Each scenario must be laid out exactly how the book states or you could potentially break the game.
Con Does not always result in a great experience
Depending on how many players there are, the scenario chosen and the full understanding of the game held by the players the game can often result in a non functioning experience. There are many moving parts here and they do not always congeal into a working game.