The best Dungeon Crawler games 2026
Dungeon crawler board games are derived from dungeon crawl scenarios in role-playing games.
Dungeon crawlers are tactical, cooperative, explorative.
So dungeon crawlers are tactical-combat, cooperative game with player(s) against environment (player vs. environment) or overlord game with exploration and a story-based goal (e.g. escape, kill a monster).
Common elements of dungeon crawler games:
- Character progress/Leveling.
- Equipment/loot
- Solving puzzles
- Random events
- Traps
List of the best dungeon crawler games 2026
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Clank!: Catacombs
All details & ratingThe catacombs of the skeleton dragon Umbrok Vessna are mysterious and dangerous. Portals lead you through the depths of the dungeon, while shrines offer great riches to fearless explorers. Each trip into the catacombs is unique as you tile the dungeon layout, and you can play with the new dungeon deck or incorporate cards from previous games.
2–4 45–90 min 13+ Easy to learn+ 10 € above the best price71 € at Amazon* -
Cthulhu: Death May Die
All details & ratingCthulhu: Death May Die is an intense, cooperative board game set in the 1920s, drawing inspiration from H.P. Lovecraft's universe. Players take on the roles of daring investigators, embarking on a perilous mission to confront and eliminate Elder Gods.
1–5 90–120 min 14+ Medium complexity -
Slay the Spire: The Board Game
All details & ratingThe board-game adaptation of the popular deck-building video game. Craft a unique deck, discover powerful relics and climb the Spire together.
1–4 30–150 min 12+ Medium complexity -
Karak
All details & ratingBeneath the crumbling walls of Karak Castle lies a labyrinth filled with treasures and monsters. Six brave adventurers enter, each with a unique trick to claim fortune, but they must outsmart their opponents, defeat monsters, and seize the dragon's gemstone. Players uncover the labyrinth tile by tile, engage in battles, and gather treasures, with the most successful adventurer being crowned the true master of Karak!
2–5 45 min 7+ Immediately playable -
Escape: The Curse of the Temple
All details & ratingEscape: The Curse of the Temple is a cooperative, real-time board game that offers an exhilarating and unique gaming experience. The game's theme centers around players working together to escape a cursed temple before it collapses.
1–5 10 min 8+ Immediately playableVideo reviews 1 -
Mansions of Madness: Second Edition
All details & ratingMansions of Madness: Second Edition is a cooperative, app-enhanced board game that combines elements of horror and mystery. It's set in the same universe as Eldritch Horror and Elder Sign, offering an immersive narrative experience.
1–5 120–180 min 14+ Medium complexity -
Zombicide
2nd Edition
All details & ratingZombicide: 2nd Edition revitalizes the beloved cooperative board game franchise, offering both new and seasoned players an enhanced zombie-slaying experience. Since its original release in 2012, Zombicide has captivated gamers worldwide with its thrilling cooperative gameplay, where players band together as survivors in a zombie-infested apocalypse. This new edition breathes fresh life into the game with refined rules, updated mechanics, and new components designed to streamline play and enhance immersion.
1–6 60 min 14+ Easy to learn -
HeroQuest: First Light
All details & ratingAn introductory version of the HeroQuest system, this game offers new quests and compatibility with all expansions. Players embark on a journey as four heroes through dungeon quests, uncovering treasures, exploring impressive environments, and battling evil forces controlled by Zargon, the game master, on a dynamic double-sided game board. With stunning graphics and over 100 components, including a detailed dragon miniature and the ability to create custom quests, this game promises endless replay value and is perfect for fans of cooperative fantasy games.
2–5 14+ Easy to learn+ 9 € above the best price51 € at Amazon* -
The Lord of the Rings: Journeys in Middle-Earth
All details & ratingThe Lord of the Rings: Journeys in Middle-Earth invites players to immerse themselves in the rich and legendary world created by J.R.R. Tolkien. This fully cooperative, app-supported board game is designed for one to five players, offering a unique blend of adventure, strategy, and storytelling set in the iconic landscapes of Middle-Earth.
1–5 60–120 min 14+ Medium complexity+ 60 € above the best price85 € at Amazon* - + 6 € above the best price43 € at Amazon*
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Dungeon Fighter
2nd Edition
All details & ratingDungeon Fighter returns with a brand new second edition, building on its cooperative gameplay and crazy dice rolls. Explore the dungeon, face terrifying monsters, and battle your way to the final boss, utilizing optimized rules, new boards, heroes, weapons, and more.
1–6 45–60 min 8+ Easy to learn+ 8 € above the best price45 € at Amazon* -
Zombicide: Black Plague
All details & ratingZombicide: Black Plague is an exciting board game that takes the popular zombie apocalypse theme and transports it into a medieval fantasy world. This game is a fresh twist on the classic Zombicide series, offering players the chance to battle the undead hordes in an age of swords and sorcery.
1–6 60–180 min 14+ Easy to learn+ 10 € above the best price97 € at Amazon* -
Arcadia Quest
All details & ratingArcadia Quest is an engaging, campaign-based board game where players lead guilds of heroes on a quest to overthrow a vampire lord and take back the city of Arcadia. It's a competitive yet cooperative game, filled with strategic battles against both other players and game-controlled monsters.
2–4 60 min 13+ Medium complexity -
Mini Rogue
All details & ratingMini Rogue is a minimalist dungeon crawler where one or two players venture into a deep dungeon to obtain a mysterious ruby called Og's Blood. Players must strategically manage their resources to survive increasingly difficult monsters and challenges. Randomly generated levels and encounters ensure that each playthrough is a unique experience.
1–2 30–45 min 12+ Easy to learn - + 3 € above the best price34 € at Amazon*
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Zombicide: Invader
All details & ratingHumans journeyed to the stars in search of high-performance fuel and discovered it on the remote planet PK-L7, uncovering Xenium deep beneath its surface. However, they also faced a brutal onslaught from the Xenos, an unyielding swarm of infected creatures controlled by the game itself. Players take on the role of survivors in a sci-fi scenario, aiming to complete missions, defeat as many Xenos as possible, and, most importantly, survive.
1–6 60 min 14+ Easy to learn -
Massive Darkness 2: Hellscape
All details & ratingTen years have passed since the Lightbringers pushed back the hordes of darkness and sealed the portal they came through. Though they believed their task was complete, dangerous new portals have suddenly opened across the land, allowing the darkness to return stronger than ever. Players must journey through these portals into the unknown to eliminate the darkness once and for all, determining whether light will prevail or darkness will consume every being in the world.
1–6 60 min 14+ Medium complexity - + 4 € above the best price24 € at Amazon*
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Descent: Legends of the Dark
All details & ratingIn Descent: Legends of the Dark, players dive deep into the troubled realm of Terrinoth, facing off against demonic barbarians, undead servants, and other dark forces threatening the land. This co-operative dungeon-crawling board game, enriched by an integrated free companion app, invites players to embark on the "Blood and Flame" campaign, spanning sixteen quests that weave a rich narrative full of danger and discovery. With its innovative use of 3D terrain and a host of hero and monster miniatures, the game promises an immersive adventure as players build their legends through strategic combat, exploration, and skillful management of their characters' abilities.
1–4 120–180 min 14+ Medium complexity+ 29 € above the best price129 € at Amazon* -
Shy Monsters
All details & ratingShy Monsters is an asymmetrical bluffing game for two players. One player builds a dungeon while the other attempts to escape from it. The Dungeon Master leads a group of shy monsters that must be respected in their favorite spots, or they won’t attack the hero. The hero must decode the structure of the dungeon and cleverly use its unique actions to escape alive.
2 10–15 min 10+ Immediately playableVideo reviews 2 -
Four Against Darkness
All details & ratingPlayers select four character types from classic classes such as warrior, wizard, and rogue. They embark on solo dungeon-crawling adventures using only a book, a pencil, dice, and grid paper, generating room contents through random tables as they encounter monsters, manage resources, and complete quests. The game emphasizes strategy and progression without the need for miniatures or traditional role-playing elements.
1 45–75 min Easy to learn10 € below the next retailer20 € at Amazon* -
Nemesis
All details & ratingNemesis is a semi-cooperative, survival horror board game set in a sci-fi universe, offering an intense and immersive experience as players navigate a spacecraft infested with hostile alien organisms.
1–5 90–180 min 12+ Medium complexity -
Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion
All details & ratingGloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion is a standalone adventure game that serves as a prequel to the highly acclaimed Gloomhaven. It's designed to be more accessible to a broader audience, with streamlined rules and an integrated tutorial.
1–4 30–120 min 14+ For connoisseurs+ 8 € above the best price50 € at Amazon* -
Wonder Book
All details & ratingOniria is the world of an ancient dragon civilization, described as an idyllic paradise filled with wonders created by dragons and surrounded by a vibrant wilderness. The only portal to this world is the Wonder Book, an ancient tome that lies dormant in a forgotten tower, waiting for you.
1–4 60–90 min 10+ Easy to learn -
Claustrophobia
All details & ratingClaustrophobia is a thrilling, asymmetric miniatures-based game set in the dark, foreboding universe of Hell Dorado. The game pits a team of determined human heroes against a seemingly endless horde of demonic creatures, offering a richly thematic and intense gaming experience.
2 45 min 14+ Easy to learn -
Dungeons, Dice & Danger
All details & ratingGather your courage, grab your sword, and roll the dice as you travel through the realm in search of treasure and glory. Explore deep, dark dungeons filled with treasures and monsters. Will you become a legendary hero?
1–4 45–60 min 12+ Easy to learn+ 2 € above the best price21 € at Amazon* -
Zombicide: Undead or Alive
All details & ratingThe harsh landscapes of the West test a person's courage with threats from cattle rustlers, bandits, and deadly creatures. Now, the recently deceased rise from their graves to attack the living, turning the town into chaos. This version introduces new survivor types like the gunslinger and the townfolk, each with unique rules, alongside fresh mechanics like balconies and trains to challenge players in exciting ways.
1–6 60 min 14+ Easy to learn -
Stuffed Fables
All details & ratingStuffed Fables offers a unique and imaginative adventure where players embody heroic stuffed animals ("stuffies") on a mission to protect the child they cherish from an ominous villain. This game stands out as the first "AdventureBook Game" from Plaid Hat Games, blending storytelling, strategy, and a dynamic game board all within a single, vividly illustrated book.
2–4 60–90 min 7+ Easy to learnVideo reviews 1
Frequently asked questions
Which game ranks first on this list?
Clank!: Catacombs currently tops our list. The ranking is derived from player community ratings and is recalculated continuously.
How many players do the games on this list support?
Most games on this list support 1 to 4 players. The exact player count is listed with each game.
What age are these games suitable for?
Publisher age recommendations on this list start at 7 years. Each game carries its own age rating.
How long does a game take?
A typical game takes about 60 minutes. Each game's playing time is listed individually.
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