Players: 3-5 | Time: 90-120 mins | Ages: 10+

Hako Onna is a game of horror hide-and-seek, translated from the 4th edition of the popular Japanese game. One player plays the “Hako Onna” (the Woman in the Box), and the rest are “Visitors”, who are trying to escape from the mansion. As Visitors, you’ll try not to make noise as you search the shadowy rooms of the mansion for items to protect yourself, for information, and for a way to escape what you do not see, but know is there. But if you stumble upon the Hako Onna, you’re dead.

Hako Onna creates nail-biting tension in two different ways. First, through a disk-stacking mechanism that gets more difficult with each visitor’s turn. When a visitor knocks over the stack, the visitors close their eyes, and the Hako Onna player gets their turn. The game also includes an alternate card system for players who find the dexterity element too frightening. Second, the Hako Onna only attacks visitors when an unlucky one finds her, and can’t attack directly. Every time you turn over a tile, you’ll hold your breath, hoping you tracked her movements correctly…