Fireball Island Retro Board Game Review
Doug Larson
OCC Editor in Chief
Blast from the Past!
The 1986 Fireball Island is the original “dimensional adventure game of pitfalls and peril!” The game featured a three-dimensional board designed as a topographical map of the island ruled by a sinister idol named Vul-Kar. The goal of the game was to reach the Vul-Kar idol and steal its Firestone Jewel. The player who manages to escape the island with the jewel wins!
Escaping with the Firestone Jewel is no easy task, and your opponents will have plenty of opportunities to sabotage and steal their ways to victory as well! Players must roll a die and navigate their way along the trail to Vul-Kar. Occasionally, they will land on dark gray spaces that allow them to draw action cards. Action cards can provide players with the power to unleash fireballs on their enemies, or even take extra turns! Action cards can be used right away or held for strategic use later, but players may not hold more than four action cards at a time.
Early in the game players will pass by a rune where they can collect a special talisman token. Players can trade this token in during their turn at any time in the game for a full hand of four action cards. If a player retains their talisman token and takes possession of the Firestone Jewel, the talisman protects that player from having their action cards stolen by another player.
Remake of a Remake
The 2021 Fireball Island: Race to Adventure by Goliath seeks to reclaim the adventurous feel of the original game while introducing new elements to attract a modern audience. It is important to note that Fireball Island: Race to Adventure is similar to the no-longer in production 2018 Fireball Island: The Curse of Vul-Kar by Restoration Games. The team at Restoration Games did assist Goliath in simplifying the rules and scaling the size of the game down for their release in 2021.
This 2021 edition of Fireball Island introduces more danger and strategy by abandoning the linear style of the original game in favor of a fast paced treasure hunt. Players now race to collect randomly distributed treasure throughout the island in a mad dash to build the highest score. There are four high value treasures on the map. The jewel at the base of the Vul-Kar idol, now named The Heart of Vul-Kar, serves as the most valuable treasure. Three gold coins serve as the remaining high value treasures, and as the trigger for the end of the game. Once all three gold coins have been found, players race to return to the helipad that they started from. The first player to reach the helipad ends the game and receives a four point bonus. Players tally up the value of their treasure as points, and the one with the most wins!
Though both games offer exciting island adventures wrought with peril, it’s easy to see why the original 1986 Fireball Island holds a special place in many gamers’ hearts. The enormous game box covered in brilliant art coupled with the amazing 3D game board leaves a lasting impression.
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