Forbidden Island vs Forbidden Desert

[dirk2112]

Forbidden Dessert would be better, but today I wanted to talk about Forbidden Desert and Forbidden Island.

Forbidden Island
Forbidden Island came out first.  You and your team search for 4 pieces of treasure and try to make it back to the helicopter pad before the island sinks into the ocean.  Treasure can be earned by collecting sets of cards.  After every turn, tiles become flooded.  You can spend your time shoring up flooded tiles, moving, collecting treasure, or using your character's unique ability.  I'm not sure how exactly you shore up the tiles, I guess everyone carries around an enormous pump and lots of sand bags.  Anyway, if anyone dies or you miss out on treasure everyone loses.  You also lose if the helicopter pad sinks.   

Forbidden Desert
Forbidden Desert is a game about survival.  Your team crash lands in a desert and you have to find the pieces of a flying ship to escape.  During your turn you can unearth tiles, dig up sand, move, or use your character's unique ability.  When unearthing tiles, you can find clues (that create a grid) as to where the parts of the ship are hidden.  While this is happening a storm is moving around dumping sand on everything.  Also, the sun comes out and makes your character drink water.  If anyone dies of thirst, the game ends and everyone loses. 

My Comparison
Forbidden Desert's method of finding the ship parts is much cooler than Forbidden Island's card collection mechanic.  I enjoy the tile art a bit more for Forbidden Island.  Forbidden Desert is a lot more difficult to win than Forbidden Island.   You would have to really play poorly to lose Forbidden Island on Novice, but you can definitely lose on Novice while playing Forbidden Desert.  Luck is a factor on both games, but I feel it is a bigger factor on Forbidden Desert.   The storm moves based on card flips.  Sometimes your team will luck out and the storm will get stuck in a corner several times.  When the storm acts favorably, it is easy to win.  We have played a few games where the storm never got stuck and we didn't come close to winning any of those.  I enjoy the roles more in Forbidden Island as they give you some really cool options (like the diver being able to swim through missing tiles).  The roles in Forbidden Desert can sometimes be limiting.  It is no fun being the water carrier for instance, but it helps everyone else out immensely.  The Desert must be in a 5x5 grid, but there isn't anything stopping you from setting the Island up differently. 

Almost all of my gaming friends have migrated from Forbidden Island to Forbidden Desert.  They feel the game is more challenging, they prefer the part finding mechanic, they like that the parts can be placed on the ship, etc.  I can agree with a lot of that, but I prefer Forbidden Island for 2 big reasons.
1.  The luck factor.   It really stinks when you have 3 water left when you end your turn only to die during other people's turns when the "sun beats down".  As I said earlier the storm can be all up in your business or it can leave you alone most of the game. 
2.  The theme doesn't make sense in Forbidden Desert.   

In Forbidden Island, your team is there to collect treasure.  When you miss out on a treasure or one of your team members die, losing makes sense.  This treasure is really nice, but it wasn't worth Samantha's life... 

In Forbidden Desert, your team is just trying to survive.  Why does everyone lose just because Larry ran out of water?  On several games we had all of the parts and 2 of us were waiting on the launch pad only to have the 3rd one die.  Here we are with a way to escape, but nope game over.  BOOO!

So am I the only one who really likes Forbidden Island, but doesn't care for Forbidden Desert?   My friends think I am nuts.   

Linkback: https://www.carcassonnecentral.com/community/index.php?topic=2534.0

[ooh_jim]

I think I prefer Desert out of the two, but it's a fairly close call. You're right though, Island's art is far more interesting than the big spread of yellows and oranges of Desert.

In fact, thinking about it, I don't think I'very ever won the game; I think that challenge is a big draw for me.

[Decar]

Thanks Dirk - great comparison - these have been on my umm-list for a while

[dirk2112]

I don't think I helped get them off your ummm list.  Definitely try before you buy.  At $18 for one though, you aren't out much if you don't like it.  It may me more expensive where you live though.

 As far as cooperative games go, neither are as good as Pandemic. 

[Decar]

But I only have 6 hours in Thirsty Meeples to try all these games before I buy them?!?!

I've never been grabbed by Pandemic, I'm not sure why - that's another game I've been meaning to try I know everyone loves it.

[ooh_jim]

I was the same. Desert and Island appealed far more to me than Pandemic.. however, once I finally got round to giving the latter ago it quickly surpassed the other two.

I've just this minute ordered Pandemic Legacy from Amazon, and I'm itching to give it a try.

[danisthirty]

I'm not sure which I prefer. I've definitely played both a lot more than I've played Pandemic because the adventure themes appeal more to me than the sciencey "save the world" thing. If you pushed me, I think I'd prefer to play Desert most times because of the extra challenge, even if it is largely luck based. Island is good fun too, but victory seems more formulaic which can spoil it a bit.

I've heard a lot of people talking about how great Pandemic Legacy is, but only really in passing as I've never looked into it in detail. What are the main differences between Legacy and plain old Pandemic?

[Decar]

It's 12 games of pandemic each representing a month is a big story.  If you fail you have to tear cards up and you get different endingd etc.  The point is it adds consequence to you decisions in the game and youre forced to kill characters and deface your game board!

[Halfling]

I enjoy Forbidden Island to a point.  I bought it as I'd not played a co-operative game.  My competitiveness makes me want to beat opponents, not the game.  All players winning/losing isn't my thing I've decided.  Anyone want to buy Forbidden Island!

[franks]

I much prefer Forbidden Island over Forbidden Desert.

Even thought there is more 'game' in Desert, the striped down simplicity of Island just gets more play time. It is a go to gateway game and Muggle (non gamer) friendly ice breaker before we get on with competitive games

We found desert fun but fiddly and will usually reach for another game. I haven't given up on it all together yet!

[Whaleyland]

Of all the co-ops I've played, Pandemic Legacy has been the most fun (I just finished March). However, I like Flash Point the best otherwise. The variety of maps, the feeling of real risk, and the thematic mechanics just all work for me (although not for my partner, who prefers Pandemic). I have not played Forbidden Desert before but I have a lot of hours of Forbidden Island on my iPad. Overall, it is pretty fun, but the sinking island mechanic always ends up bugging me in the end in ways I can't quite explain. I'd take Legacy or Flash Point above either of the Forbidden games.

[danisthirty]

Flashpoint is also a great game. We don't play it enough to have become completely familiar with the advanced rules yet but even with the simple rules it feels like you're part of something as the theme works so well, and that leads to a lot of excitement. Favourite co-op of all time has to be Escape: Curse of the Temple. There's a lot of furious dice rolling but it's intensely atmospheric and everyone plays at once. Highly recommended!

[Hounk]

Only coops, I played to date had been "Andor" and "Robinson Crusoe". (Also twice "Shadows over Camelot" and once "Dead of Winter", if you count in games with traitor possibility.)

Both had been great, but RC is a beast rulewise. You have to struggle through, best in a solo game, at least a couple of games. I was very successful teaching it to two players afterwards. "Andor" is much easier to get into, even has a tutorial, so minimal rule study is necessary and you can start right in your group, but winning the scenarios legends is probably about as tough as with RC.