Written by Bill Yankosky (aka Yodaman)
Introduction
I Rebel recently completed a survey to gather data from Arkham Horror LCG players. 149 people responded to the survey overall, which was a great response. In a break from my usual writing about the Star Wars LCG, this article will investigate the data that was obtained from the Arkham Horror LCG survey results.
Getting Into The Game
The Arkham Horror LCG was released in 2016. The following shows when players got into the game according to the survey.
Year 1 – 2016: 52 (34.9%)
Year 2 – 2017: 25 (16.8%)
Year 3 – 2018: 22 (14.8%)
Year 4 – 2019: 23 (15.4%)
Year 5 – 2020: 27 (18.1%)
While a little more than a third of respondents started playing the game in its first year, a consistent number of people have started playing the game each year since its release according to the results compiled. Of note, is that the number of survey respondents who started playing in 2020 is actually the 2nd most of the 5 year span of the game. The current global pandemic probably has played a role in that, especially since most people are unable to go to a FLGS to play games with others. Since the Arkham Horror LCG is something people can play in a solo format (either in true solo or multi-handed), that’s not surprising.
Basic Demographics
The following shows the ages of the survey respondents.
0-19 years old: 2 (1.3%)
20-29 years old: 26 (17.4%)
30-39 years old: 74 (49.7%)
40-49 years old: 42 (28.2%)
50+ years old: 5 (3.6%)
In general, the respondents tend to skew a bit older on the demographic side. About 81.2% of respondents are 30 years or older. Over the years, I’ve observed that LCG players tend to be a bit older crowd and this information seems to back that up.
How Do People Play?
Players were asked to list all the ways they played the game. Not surprisingly, people play the game in a variety of ways and many people enjoy playing the game in multiple formats rather than just one. The percentages listed are for the number of respondents who selected the choice as a method of play. As a reminder, people were asked to list ALL ways they played, not just one which is why the totals will not sum to 100%.
Multiplayer with friends in person: 89 (59.7%)
True Solo (one deck): 85 (57%)
Dual-handed (two decks): 79 (53%)
On TTS: 56 (37.6%)
Multiplayer with family in person: 50 (33.6%)
Multiplayer with a local playgroup in person: 17 (11.4%)
Other: 5 (3.4%)
Personal Involvement
Players were asked to look at a list of statements about their involvement with the game and select all which applied to them personally. 149 players responded and the results were quite varied although the vast majority of people have a collection that supports game play for others as well as themselves.
“My collection supports at least one other person”: 106 (71.1%)
“I play other games in the Arkham Horror family”: 96 (64.4%)
“I have all of the retail components currently in the game”: 67 (45%)
“I have “won” every (complete) campaign currently in the game”: 47 (31.5%)
“I have played this game since day 1”: 45 (30.2%)
“I play Custom Content for this game”: 38 (25.5%)
“I have gifted this game to another person”: 33 (22.1%)
“I have played every Investigator currently in the game”: 23 (15.4%)
“I have all of the official promo items currently in the game”: 22 (14.8%)
“I create content for this game (not counting Custom Content)”: 17 (11.4%)
“I am the only person in my close circle who plays this game. I either play online or with people I would not say I am that close to”: 17 (11.4%)
“I create Custom Content for this game”: 14 (9.4%)
“None of the above apply to me”: 14 (9.4%)
What Class Is Enjoyed The Most?
Players were asked to list their favorite class to play and, overall, the results were fairly evenly distributed. Although Rogue clearly was the most popular class among the respondents.
Rogue: 38 (25.5%)
Seeker: 29 (19.5%)
Survivor: 29 (19.5%)
Mystic: 28 (18.8%)
Guardian: 25 (16.8%)
Favorite Solo Investigators
People were asked to list their favorite solo investigator if they play the game solo. 106 people responded to this question. Ashcan Pete and Roland Banks were tied with 11 votes, with Jenny Barnes and Joe Diamond close behind. Overall, 32 investigators received at least 1 vote as being someone’s favorite to play in the solo format.
| Ashcan | 11 |
| Roland | 11 |
| Jenny | 10 |
| Joe | 9 |
| Wendy | 6 |
| Agnes | 5 |
| Ursula | 5 |
| Jim | 4 |
| Luke | 4 |
| Finn | 3 |
| Jacqueline | 3 |
| Silas | 3 |
| Skids | 3 |
| William | 3 |
| Calvin | 2 |
| Dexter | 2 |
| Lola | 2 |
| Mark | 2 |
| Norman | 2 |
| Patrice | 2 |
| Stella | 2 |
| Trish | 2 |
| Other (each only appeared 1x) | 10 |
Favorite Multiplayer Investigators
People were asked to list their favorite investigator if they play the game multiplayer. 99 people responded to this question. Daisy Walker and Jenny Barnes were tied with 8 votes. Overall, 35 investigators received at least 1 vote as being someone’s favorite to play in the multiplayer or multi-handed format.
| Daisy | 8 |
| Jenny | 8 |
| Sefina | 6 |
| Diana | 5 |
| Zoey | 5 |
| Calvin | 4 |
| Mandy | 4 |
| Rex | 4 |
| Silas | 4 |
| Ursula | 4 |
| Ashcan | 3 |
| Carolyn | 3 |
| Finn | 3 |
| Patrice | 3 |
| Wendy | 3 |
| William | 3 |
| Winifred | 3 |
| Agnes | 2 |
| Akachi | 2 |
| Jim | 2 |
| Mark | 2 |
| Minh | 2 |
| Rita | 2 |
| Stella | 2 |
| Tony | 2 |
| Other (each only appeared 1x) | 10 |
It’s interesting to see Daisy’s appeal in multiplayer since she didn’t receive any votes as someone’s favorite investigator to play in solo. But, Jenny was near the top in both lists.
Favorite 2-Handed Team To Play.
The responses were quite varied to this question. That was probably to be expected since people were asked to list 2 investigators rather than 1. 50 people responded to this question and only 7 teams got more than 1 vote, while 30 teams got exactly 1 vote. The teams which got multiple votes were:
Rex & Zoey: 3
Silas & Winifred: 3
Ashcan & Zoey: 2
Joe & Roland: 2
Mark & Rex: 2
Roland & Wendy: 2
Sefina & William: 2
That being said, many investigators appeared as part of a team. Overall, 33 different investigators were listed in a favorite 2-handed team with Rex leading the way as the most popular member of a 2-handed team. 20 investigators appeared more than once on as a member of a favorite team, while 13 investigators only appeared once. The following chart shows how many times an investigator appeared as a member of a favorite 2-handed team.
| Rex | 9 |
| Roland | 8 |
| Zoey | 8 |
| Ursula | 7 |
| Daisy | 6 |
| Mark | 6 |
| Silas | 6 |
| Agnes | 5 |
| Nathaniel | 4 |
| Tony | 4 |
| Carolyn | 3 |
| Joe | 3 |
| William | 3 |
| Winifred | 3 |
| Ashcan | 2 |
| Calvin | 2 |
| Jenny | 2 |
| Norman | 2 |
| Sefina | 2 |
| Wendy | 2 |
| Others (each only appeared 1x) | 13 |
Rankings
The Original Campaigns
Players were asked to rank the 6 complete, original campaigns from 1st to worst. 84 players gave complete responses. The assumption is that the people who didn’t give complete responses were players who haven’t tried all the campaigns yet. Considering a lot of people who responded to the survey didn’t start playing until the last year or two and some product is hard to find, that was expected.
The rankings were compiled using the Borda Count voting method which, for 6 choices, gives 6 points for each 1st place vote, 5 for each 2nd, and so on down to 1 point for each last place vote. The most points is the most popular.
| The Path to Carcosa | 412 |
| The Forgotten Age | 368 |
| The Dream-Eaters | 289 |
| The Circle Undone | 280 |
| The Dunwich Legacy | 268 |
| Night of the Zealot | 147 |
The Path to Carcosa ended up being the most popular campaign overall with the survey respondents. I’ve personally only been playing the game since this past summer and the popularity of Carcosa probably explains why I haven’t been able to track down the products for that campaign. Night of the Zealot (the original core campaign) was last. That wasn’t too surprising since it only consists of 3 scenarios.
The “Return To” Campaigns
Players were asked to rank the 4 “Return to” campaigns from 1st to worst. 79 players gave complete responses.
The rankings were compiled using the Borda Count voting method which, for 4 choices, gives 4 points for each 1st place vote, 3 for each 2nd, and so on down to 1 point for each last place vote. The most points is the most popular.
| Return to the Forgotten Age | 229 |
| Return to The Dunwich Legacy | 206 |
| Return to the Path to Carcosa | 198 |
| Return to Night of the Zealot | 157 |
Perhaps it’s just natural for people to like things that have come out most recently, but Return to the Forgotten Age came in as the most popular “Return to” campaign. I’ve heard lots of people say Return to TFA fixed things that needed improvement from the original and I look forward to playing it when I get the chance.
The Stand Alone/Side Scenarios
Players were asked to rank the 5 Stand Alone/Side scenarios from 1st to worst. 66 players gave complete responses. Note: This survey was sent out before the release of War of the Outer Gods.
The rankings were compiled using the Borda Count voting method which, for 5 choices, gives 5 points for each 1st place vote, 4 for each 2nd, and so on down to 1 point for each last place vote. The most points is the most popular.
| Murder at the Excelsior Hotel | 276 |
| Carnevale of Horrors | 215 |
| Curse of the Rougarou | 176 |
| The Eternal Slumber | 175 |
| The Night’s Usurper | 148 |
Murder at the Excelsior Hotel was the most popular by a fair amount in terms of points received.
The “Epic” Scenarios
Players were asked to vote on which of the 2 “Epic” scenarios they liked best. 74 players gave complete responses and “The Blob” was the clear favorite. Note: This survey was sent out before the release of War of the Outer Gods.
The Blob That Ate Everything: 58 (78.4%)
The Labyrinths of Lunacy: 16 (21.6%)
The Print-On-Demand Scenarios
Players were asked to vote on which of the 2 “Print-on-Demand” scenarios they liked best. 57 players gave complete responses and “All or Nothing” was the favorite. Note: This survey was sent out before the release of Bad Blood.
Read or Die: 33 (57.9%)
All or Nothing: 24 (42.1%)
The Books
Players were asked to vote on which of the 7 Arkham Horror LCG books they liked best. 28 players gave complete responses.
The rankings were compiled using the Borda Count voting method which, for 7 choices, gives 7 points for each 1st place vote, 6 for each 2nd, and so on down to 1 point for each last place vote. The most points is the most popular.
| Hour of the Huntress | 123 |
| The Deep Gate | 120 |
| Ire of the Void | 117 |
| Blood of Baalshandor | 114 |
| The Dirge of Reason | 112 |
| To Fight the Black Wind | 103 |
| Dark Revelation | 95 |
The results were fairly close for the books with Hour of the Huntress taking top spot.
Conclusion
We hope you enjoyed seeing the results of the I Rebel Arkham Horror LCG survey. It was fun to investigate the data. Thanks to I Rebel for asking me to write this article and thanks for reading.
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