5-Minute Marvel is a cooperative card game for 2-5 players ages 8+. You can play a round in as little as 5 minutes, or try to defeat more than one boss.
Gameplay Basics
In 5 Minute Marvel, each player chooses a Marvel Character. Each character comes with their own, personalized special deck. Additionally, the players also receive an equal share of resource cards.
There are 6 bosses that the players work together to defeat. Each boss becomes progressively more difficult to take down in the five minute limit that is given. To keep track of the time, you can just use a timer, or you can download their free, themed app from the app or play store.
The boss mat shows how many “door” cards need to be defeated before getting to the boss. Once a door card is revealed, players may play their special power cards or specific resource cards to defeat each character they encounter on the other side of the door.
After all the door cards have been revealed, the boss can be defeated. As long as your team completes the mission before the time runs out, you are victorious!
The Dad Review
Lets pop on some spandex and yell at each other, like the real Avengers! Like most cooperative games you may run into a highly heated emotional exchange once in a while, especially when the clock is ticking, and this game is no exception. If you’re playing this game as a family, make sure you have some rules for how to go about beating all of these villains. If you have a stage 5 card tosser, this game will not be as much fun as it could be.
What I mean by that is if someone is always just throwing down their cards and not letting the rest of the team play, this game can become frustrating and wear out it’s welcome quickly. But, if you all synergize and play as a well-oiled team, much like Thor’s biceps in Ragnarok, then this game is a lot of fun.
Pros
I like that each player can play as a unique powered superhero. This will definitely get kids and adults who enjoy the superhero genre involved. The art work is great and I like that the game can be played on different difficulties. Not only by the boss level, but you can also add extra doors or crises that will make the game more difficult. Another advantage is this game will not break the bank. This game is definitely affordable. Finally, when you defeat a villain together, it feels very rewarding, and you’ll want to play again right after.
Cons
One issue is with the bossy pants alpha hero who wants all the glory, like I talked about earlier. Someone can really railroad this game and take over, which is not always great. Two other cons are balancing two decks along with your power. It may be a lot to take on at first. During the game you may ask yourself: What’s my power again? Do I go with the basic deck or the special deck? Do we really only have ten seconds left? Things like this can cause people to stress out. The last negative for me is while this game is fun, you have to be in the right mood to play, and it can become repetitive after a few plays, potentially causing burn out.
For my family ranking it’s a 7/10.
The Mom Review
5 Minute Marvel has a fun theme if you are fan of the Marvel characters. It is also great for a short, quick gameplay experience. If you are new to playing games like this, I would highly recommend trying it once without a timer to get a feel for how the game works. The timer adds another element of stress that you just don’t need if you are trying to figure out how the game works.
It can also be helpful if you are playing this with kids or new players if you talk out strategies for completing the cards as well as choose your special characters wisely. It is possible to get stuck if you don’t have any characters in play that allow you to draw more cards.
The rules are straightforward and simple. Here are pictures of the rulebook:
I enjoy playing this game and recommend it to people who love the theme and are looking for a game that can be both short and fast-paced. Overall, I give 5 Minute Marvel a 7/10.
The Kid Review
I like 5-Minute Marvel. I love defeating the boss and fighting the bad guys with my cards and not running out of time. Also, I like the characters that let you do things and the powers that they give you and the power cards. Hulk, Squirrel Girl and Black Widow are my favorite because they are cool and their powers are awesome. There is one more thing that I like about the game and it is that I don’t get angry when I play it.
In conclusion, I will give this game 10/10.
Overall Impressions
We enjoy playing 5-Minute Marvel, but it’s not a game we would want to play every day.
- Overall Ranking: 8/10
- Setup: Easy
- Rules: Easy
If you enjoy 5-Minute Marvel, another cooperative card game you might like is The Crew. You can check out our review of The Crew here.