Review: PANDEMIC LEGACY: SEASON 0 Takes Some Adjustments but Is Fun
Pandemic is a popular game in my house. We love the cooperative gameplay that lets us work together. We were a little dubious when we first learned about Pandemic Legacy, but when we actually played it, we loved the first season. Well, Z-Man Games recently released Pandemic Legacy: Season 0 and were kind enough to send me a copy to try out. I’ve played a couple of games (not the full 12+ to tell the story), and it’s turned out to be fun.
If you’ve played the previous Pandemic Legacy titles, you’ll know how these games play like the original Pandemic but with some kind of twist and with an actual storyline. In Season 0, instead of fighting diseases, you’re fighting Russian spies during the cold war. This is the first point to talk about. The theme is incredible, and there’s even a video reading the initial briefing which adds to the fun. Instead of disease cubes, you place enemy agents with great little miniatures. Instead of research centers, you have safehouses. Plus, everything has a subdued tone as if a desaturated filter was placed over everything. It’s awesome.
Playing Season 0, you should know that there are a fair number of changes to the game. While players can move around and defeat enemy agents themselves, teams are really the main mechanic for the game. You can move teams around and at the end of the turn they clear any agents in their space (as long as the team is active). It definitely takes some getting used to. If you fail the prologue, don’t feel bad for trying it a few times. It takes a bit of time to really grasp how to play this version of the game.
Season 0 is really fun when you get used to it. It can be very frustrating the first time or two that you play, but the theme is incredible and once you figure out the new mechanics, they really are great twists on a classic system.
