Chronicles of Crime publisher reveals its horror board game will launch on Kickstarter this month

The next board game from the studio behind the Chronicles of Crime series, Lucky Duck Games, will be launching on Kickstarter later this month.

Called The Dark Quarter, the upcoming board game will be getting a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter in April. Initially revealed in October, The Dark Quarter is a board game for one to four players set in New Orleans during the 1980s. In the game, players will be choosing from a selection of four different playable characters who are members of a secret organisation called the Beaumont Agency, a group that’s dedicated to dealing with crimes of a more sinister and supernatural nature than the New Orleans Police Department are used to.

Beginning in 1981, the co-op board game will see the players investigating the murder that appears to be no ordinary crime committed by an ordinary criminal, with the members of the Beaumont Agency being called in. As one of the four playable characters in The Dark Quarter, players will work together to explore the city in search of clues and answers.

Julia Paris is a reformed member of the Convent and must fight her insatiable hunger for blood in order to continue working as one of the Beaumont Agency. Alternatively, John Robicheaux is a detective whose sad past had led to him joining the agency, whilst Winter Mullins utilises his unusual ability to talk to the dead to find answers. Finally, Constance Moreau harnesses her efficiency with magic to become a formidable member of the organisation, putting the death of her mother behind her to bring justice to others. Each character in The Dark Quarter has potential to change for good or bad depending on the choices characters make along the way.

As a horror board game, The Dark Quarter will feature content centered around adult themes and mature content, with the game featuring an age rating of 16+. Omari Akil, a cultural consultant, was brought on by Lucky Duck in order to ensure that The Dark Quarter remains accurate to the history of New Orleans, as well as the many different communities that have lived there, particularly members of its Creole community. Whilst there will be physical components included in the game, it will have its own companion app that players will interact with throughout its campaign, similarly to Chronicles of Crime.

The Dark Quarter was designed by Evan Derrick, the creator of several horror board games such as Dark Moon – a game in which players become a spaceship crew that gets infected with a mysterious virus – and Final Girl, a series of solo games influenced by various horror movie tropes.

Apart from Chronicles of Crime and The Dark Quarter, Lucky Duck Games is also responsible for releasing The Grimm Forest. The Dark Quarter is set to be co-published by Van Ryder Games, the studio behind Detective: City of Angels, another board game created by Derrick.

The Kickstarter campaign for The Dark Quarter is set to be launched on April 12th, with pledge amounts and estimated delivery dates yet to be confirmed.