Nemesis adapts Alien-style body-horror and player betrayal for tabletop

Nemesis is a tabletop board game from Awaken Realms that channels what the reviewer calls strong, unofficial echoes of Ridley Scott’s Alien, bringing alien impregnation horror to the gaming table. Ars Technica’s Ars Cardboard review notes the game raised millions on Kickstarter and concludes the design largely succeeds at its aims.

The game leans heavily on tension and uncertainty: players awaken with a partially unknown ship layout, must scavenge and repair components, and contend with alien “intruders” whose behaviors are driven by card draws. Nemesis includes player elimination as a deliberate design element and uses a noise-token and draw-bag system so encounters and weapon effects can be unpredictable.

Players also receive two goal cards—one personal and one corporate—and must later choose between them, a mechanic that fuels mistrust. The review describes ways players can indirectly harm or betray one another, from locking doors and sparking fires to venting crewmates into space, making social paranoia a central part of the experience.

The Ars Cardboard review judges Nemesis to be evocative rather than elegant, calling it one of the most carefully arranged storytelling games of the year and warning that the aliens’ aura of threat is never fully dispelled even after multiple plays.

Key Topics

Culture, Nemesis, Awaken Realms, Kickstarter, Player Elimination, Noise Tokens