Spotlight: A Clever, Flashlight-Fueled Hidden Image Adventure

Work together in this cooperative hidden image board game design where the pictures are hidden in the dark.

Published by Horrible Guild, Spotlight is a 15-minute board game designed for 1-5 players.

Gameplay

Each player is given a board and a flashlight game piece. Each board shows different sections of the scene. The image is printed on dark, see-through material and laid across a black background, making it difficult to see. The flashlight game piece has a round white area at the end of it - by slipping it between the see-through material and the black background, you are able to see the images clearly that are placed against this white area.

Every round, a card is drawn that shows an image. For example, one card might show a monkey. The timer starts, and players all race to see how many versions of that image they can find on their boards. After the time runs out, everyone secretly selects the number they found on their dials, and then their answers are revealed at the same time. Next, the drawn card is flipped to its back, which shows how many copies of that image were actually on each board. Each player moves his pawn forward on the score track the number of spaces indicated by the stars shown on his selected number on his dial. If his answer was too high, he doesn’t move at all. If he finds exactly all the copies of that image on his board, he moves forward an extra space.

Next, the moon die is rolled. This moves the moon token one or two spaces forward on the board or can force players to flip their flashlights over to their ‘low battery side’ for the next round, which has a smaller white area to work with. If the moon reaches or passes a player on the score board, the players lose a rush token and that player’s pawn is placed in front of the moon on the score board. If the players don't have any rush tokens left to flip when required to do so, they lose the game.

After five rounds, players calculate their collective score based on how many spaces are between the moon and the closest player's pawn on the score board, as well as how many rush tokens they still have.

The game can also be played competitively, in which case the moon and rush tokens are not used, and the player in the lead always uses his flashlight on the low battery side.

Review

Spotlight is a creative design that does a good job of turning a hidden image puzzle into a board game format. The components themselves are impressive, with the design of the boards being an excellent way to increase the challenge, while the flashlights introduce a great tactile element for searching for images. It's clever, it's unique, and it's also satisfying to interact with.

The time runs out quickly, and it's probably going to take several plays before players start finding all the images in a round. Each board also shows different sections of the scene, and while some boards do show some of the same sections, no two are exactly alike. This increases the replay possibilities. There are also additional suggestions in the rulebook to increase the challenge once players start to learn the boards and cards.  

This does feel predominantly like a children's game, with even the box cover designed to look more child-centric. But it's nicely balanced for families, enabling parents to play with their children. Adults probably aren't going to be playing this much alone, but we did still have a fun time with it. It's just likely to have more staying power for children than adults.

The scene is fun and crowded, the artwork colorful and bright, and the flashlight is such a well-done mechanic. Playing this in a darker room made for an even more enjoyable experience. If you love the design of MicroMacro: Crime City but want something more family-friendly, this feels different enough to not just be a copy of that game, brings something new to the table, and has some great tactile components that make this equal parts enjoyable and clever.

Pros: Clever components, balanced so different age groups can play together, replay value introduced through time restraints and differing boards

Cons: May not be a good fit for adult game groups

Disclosure: we received a complimentary review copy of this game.