Review sample of game was provided by Floodgate Games
What’s In The Box?
Wordplay meets adventure in Landmarks, a clever and engaging party game, made by Floodgate Games, where language is your key to survival. Stranded deep in a mysterious island jungle, players must guide their team to safety—and hidden treasure—by crafting strategic one-word clues. Each connection forms a hidden path through the wilderness, challenging players to think creatively and anticipate their teammates' reasoning. With support for 2 to 10 players, Landmarks is a game of wit, strategy, and teamwork. The game includes a double-sided island board, a tracker board, 37 landmark tiles, 150 map cards, a dry-erase marker, and a card stand—everything you need to embark on an expedition of words and wits.
Gameplay
In Landmarks, players take on one of two roles: the Guide or the Explorers. The Guide’s job is to lead their teammates to safety after gathering treasure—but there's a catch. The only way to communicate is through a faulty radio, limiting them to one-word clues at a time. That means every word counts!
At the start of a round, the Guide draws a map card, which reveals the locations of treasure, traps, curses, and exits. The card also provides three starting words that form the foundation of the journey. For example, if the words are Spider, Mouth, and Doctor, the Guide must strategically place landmark tiles by writing a word that connects to one or more of these. Suppose the Guide wants the team to place a tile near Mouth and Doctor—they might write Dentist, signaling that Spider is unrelated. It’s then up to the Explorers to decide where to place the tile. However, misinterpretations (or accidental connections) can throw off the intended path, leading to some hilarious and frustrating moments!
The goal is to navigate the jungle, collect 1 to 4 treasures, and find an escape. But resources are limited—run out of tiles, and you lose! Luckily, if you reach a water well, you can replenish your supply. Be wary of traps, which permanently reduce your max tile count, and curses, which make escaping trickier. With one curse, you must locate an amulet to lift it before escaping. However, if you pick up a second curse in the same round, it's game over—since only one amulet exists!
By default, players need only one treasure to escape, while the rest are for bragging rights. However, at our table, we introduced a house rule: treasure count determines difficulty. Before starting, we set the challenge level—Easy (1 treasure), Medium (2), Hard (3), or Indiana Jones Mode (4)—to ramp up the adventure!
Feedback
Landmarks is a fantastic word-based adventure that keeps players engaged with its clever clue system and strategic teamwork. However, the role of multiple treasures feels somewhat underwhelming. Since only one treasure is needed to escape, collecting more doesn’t offer any real advantage—just a self-imposed challenge.
It would be great if the game provided additional incentives, like bonus tiles or strategic perks, to make going after extra treasures feel more rewarding. That said, this minor drawback doesn’t take away from the overall fun and creativity Landmarks offers.
Verdict
Landmarks is a clever and engaging party game that blends wordplay with adventure, challenging players to think strategically as they navigate a jungle using one-word clues. With its unique communication mechanics and team-based gameplay, it delivers plenty of fun, tension, and satisfying “aha!” moments. While the lack of incentives for collecting multiple treasures feels like a missed opportunity, the game remains an exciting and replayable experience. Whether playing casually or with house rules to ramp up the challenge, Landmarks is a fantastic choice for fans of word games and cooperative puzzles.
Landmarks is available on Amazon or the Floodgate Games website for $24.95.
