Matthew BaileyToday we’re looking at Disney Villainous Unstoppable!, a brand new spin-off of the Disney Villainous series aimed at younger players.
I must admit I’d never actually played any of the Villainous games, no real reason, but having spent time playing this one with the kids, I’m worried I’m about to develop a whole new Villainous hyperfixation as I start collecting all the other sets.
With that in mind, this review is written without prior experience of the grown-up Villainous. I may revisit it later once I’ve played the original and make it more comprehensive.
You begin by setting up the shared game board and placing your villain’s realm board in front of you. The four characters are Hades (from Hercules), Ursula (The Little Mermaid), Scar (The Lion King) and Maleficent (Sleeping Beauty).
You place your pawn on the starting area of your realm, shuffle your deck, and prepare all realm upgrade tokens. Hero tokens go to one side, and you also set your “evil plan” goal (your win condition) before starting.
Your objective is to collect four specific things to complete your evil plan. Each villain has a different one: Scar must collect four pain tokens, Maleficent must assemble a four-piece jigsaw that becomes a dragon, Ursula must gather four shells, and Hades must move his Titan four spaces. Mechanically, the goals work the same, they are just visually distinct for variety. This version is far more symmetrical than the original Villainous, where each villain plays differently. Here, the characters are fundamentally similar, with the main differences lying in the layout of their realm boards. For example, Scar and Hades start with one goal token placed, while others must earn theirs by completing a task.
Each turn begins by drawing up to four cards. Cards show move values used to move your pawn. You can jump over other players and heroes. Landing on a space lets you collect power gems, and if the cards you used to move match the space’s symbol, you can spend gems to activate an ability.
Abilities include upgrading your realm to gain extra actions, playing a hero token into another player’s realm (using the fate die to determine which hero, which forces them to skip a space), and defeating heroes.
Gameplay is quick and fun. You move in a rectangle between your realm and the shared board, intersecting with others but never entering someone else’s realm. The first to complete their four-part evil plan wins.
Components are lovely. The artwork has typical Disney charm, the sculpted movers are the same as in the adult versions, and the board layout works really well.
I really like Disney Villainous Unstoppable!. I think it will be a go-to recommendation. It is simple, approachable, and a great stepping stone game for younger children to progress to more complex strategy games. Ravensburger seems to have nailed the right level for younger players. Like Minecraft Builders & Biomes Junior, it hits the complexity sweet-spot for its target demographic.
The combination of familiar Disney villains, crisp mechanics such as cards for movement, spatial planning, risk versus disruption, and basic strategy makes it ideal for teaching new players these staples in a family-friendly way.
I strongly recommend it for kids ready to bridge from simple kids’ games to more strategic titles. Although the box suggests 7+, if your child already has a feel for board games, you could easily start younger.
Honestly, I like it so much that I have already ordered a couple of the adult Villainous sets. I suspect I am about to go down a rabbit hole, so do not be surprised if I post another review of an adult Villainous set in the next few days.
Disclaimer: I was kindly sent a copy of Disney Villainous Unstoppable! by Ravensburger for review purposes. This has not influenced my opinion of the game.
*with younger kids looking for a first step into somewhat deeper strategy games.
