Side Quest: Nemesis
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The FroGames Sheet
The ship's computer registers: alien presences. You and your team open the cargo bay door. The silence has never been so deafening.
WHAT IT IS ABOUT
A tabletop escape room set in the cosmic horror of Nemesis
Side Quest: Nemesis is the first title in the Side Quest series designed by Jakub Caban and Bartosz Idzikowski, creators of the successful Escape Tales saga. Published by Board&Dice and lockme in 2023, it brings the claustrophobic Nemesis universe to the table through a system of puzzles, riddles, and narrative choices. It's not a dungeon crawler: it's a cooperative escape room where every decision can open new paths or doom the crew.
Your goal is to locate a missing ship, assess the situation, and ensure the cargo reaches Earth. But the artificial intelligence has detected alien life forms on board, the Intruders. You will have to solve logical and spatial puzzles, manage unexpected events, make decisions under pressure, and, above all, avoid contamination. Silence on board is never a good sign.
What they say abroad
"Captain Jessica Kowalski's crew has been offered another offer from the Corporation."
— Awaken Realms
Side Quest: Nemesis is a proposal that lies between a puzzle game and a narrative game. It promises to bring the alien horror of Nemesis into a more accessible and cooperative format. We are still gathering feedback from the community, but early impressions speak of a good integration between puzzles and thematic tension.
— FroGames
Side Quest: Nemesis
The game officially supports solo play for 1 player. The experience is complete: you manage all aspects of the mission, solve puzzles at your own pace, and face events alone. You lose the group discussion typical of cooperative escape rooms, but gain total control and an even more claustrophobic atmosphere.
FrogScore · FroGames.it editorial rating · based on rules, international reviews and play sessionsWhat's in the box
The tools for survival (maybe)
Puzzle card decks
54 cards that make up spatial, logical, and deductive puzzles. Each solved puzzle unlocks new information or opens new areas of the ship. Some require visual intuition, others reasoning by elimination.
Event cards
Unexpected events that interrupt the mission: alarms, malfunctions, alien signals. Each event changes game conditions and can open new narrative scenarios or complicate existing ones.
Mission sheets
Each scenario has clear objectives and hidden consequences. Your choices determine which areas you explore, what risks you take, what secrets you uncover. Not all missions end as expected.
Contamination system
The greatest risk is not making a puzzle mistake, but being contaminated by the Intruders. Every error, every hesitation, every risky choice can expose you. Once contaminated, the rules change.
Recommended sleeves 54 cards in 1 size ▼
If you play often, we recommend protecting cards with clear sleeves to make them last longer.
| Size | Quantity |
|---|---|
| 63 × 88 mm | 54 |
| Total cards | 54 |
Come si gioca
Video dimostrativo di gameplay.
🎲How to playThe rules in four steps▼
How to play
The flow of each turn
Side Quest: Nemesis has no fixed rounds: it progresses through narrative phases triggered by your choices and events.
The group reads the scenario or event text. Each card describes where you are, what you see, what options you have. Discuss openly: there are no hidden hands, everything is shared.
If there's a puzzle, work on it together: it can be a visual riddle, a logical deduction, a code to decipher. If there's a narrative choice, vote or decide together which path to take. Each solution or choice unlocks new cards.
Some choices or wrong solutions trigger random events. Draw an Event card from the deck: it could be an alarm, an alien encounter, a malfunction. Read the consequences and apply them immediately.
Mark progress, contamination, explored areas. If you have reached an objective or triggered an end condition, read the resolution text. Otherwise, the mission continues with the new situation.
⏱️Your first gameThe chronicle, moment by moment▼
A game in five moments
What happens at the table
Not the rules. The experience.
Briefing and first contact
Read the Corporation's briefing: lost ship, valuable cargo, unsettling last log. Open the first Enigma card and begin to reconstruct the layout of the environments. Someone immediately notices a detail, someone else asks for confirmation. The discussion starts right away.
The first enigma and the first event
Solve the first puzzle: an access code or a logical sequence. Unlock a new area of the ship. Then draw the first Event card: lights go out, biological alarm, movement in the ducts. Tension rises suddenly.
Choices under pressure
A narrative crossroads: proceed towards the cargo or investigate vital signs? Each choice opens new cards, new enigmas, new risks. Someone wants to play it safe, someone else wants answers. The group divides, then decides.
Contamination and consequences
A mistake, a risky choice, an unfortunate event: one of you is contaminated. The rules change, time is running out, puzzles become more complicated. Now it's not just about solving enigmas, but doing it before it's too late.
Final resolution
The last enigma, the last choice. Is the cargo safe? Is the crew alive? Have you discovered what really happened on board? The mission concludes, but not always as you hoped. Some information remains hidden, some consequences will be seen later.
🐸To know beforehandThree honest things, from friends▼
To know beforehand
Three things to consider
Puzzles are not for everyone
Some enigmas require lateral thinking or visual intuitions that are not immediate. If no one in the group is familiar with escape rooms or logical puzzles, some enigmas might block you more than expected. There is no integrated hint system: either you solve it or you consult external solutions.
Limited replayability
Like all tabletop escape rooms, once you've played a scenario, you know the solutions. The game offers multiple scenarios, but each is played once. It's not a title you bring to the table every month: it's a narrative experience to be consumed.
Duration can vary greatly
The box states 90-120 minutes, but it depends on how quickly you solve the puzzles. A fast group can finish in 60 minutes, a group stuck on an enigma can exceed 2 hours. There is no fixed timer: the pressure is narrative, not mechanical.
🏆Victory and defeatWhat the ending rewards▼
How it ends
How to win and how to lose
Each scenario has explicit objectives and failure conditions. It's not always black or white: some missions end with partial victories.
Victory
- You have located the cargo and ensured its transport to Earth
- You have solved all critical enigmas and discovered the truth about the Intruders
- No crew member has been contaminated (or contamination has been contained)
Defeat
- The entire crew was contaminated before completing the mission
- You made choices that destroyed the cargo or compromised the ship
- An unmanaged critical event caused the mission to fail
Side Quest: Nemesis is a cooperative thematic escape room for those who want the atmosphere of Nemesis without the tactical weight of the base game. Puzzles, narrative tension, decisions under pressure.
💬Frequently asked questionsQuick answers before checkout▼
Frequently asked questions
FAQ about Side Quest: Nemesis
Do I need to know Nemesis to play Side Quest?
No. Side Quest: Nemesis is a standalone title set in the same universe. No prior rules or knowledge are required: everything you need to know is explained in the scenario cards. If you know Nemesis, you will appreciate the thematic references, but it is not a requirement.
Are the puzzles too difficult for those not used to escape rooms?
Some enigmas require intuition and lateral thinking. If there's at least one person in the group with experience in puzzles or escape rooms, you should be fine. If everyone is a beginner, expect some moments of being stuck. There are no progressive hints integrated into the game.
How many scenarios are there and how long do they last?
The game offers a main campaign divided into linked scenarios. Each scenario lasts between 60 and 120 minutes depending on the group's speed. Once a scenario is played, the solutions are known: it is an experience to be consumed, not repeated.
What mechanics does Side Quest: Nemesis use?
Pure cooperative based on deduction, storytelling and events. There are no dice, miniatures or tactical combat. The game proceeds through narrative choices and puzzle solving. Each solution unlocks new cards, each event changes the conditions.
Is the edition for sale in Italian?
Yes, the MS Edizioni edition is completely in Italian: cards, rulebook, scenario texts. Total language-dependent: puzzles and enigmas require understanding of the texts.
The people behind the game
Who invented it, who designed it, who publishes it — and what else they've done.
Side Quest: Nemesis is a cooperative narrative game for 1-4 players, lasting 90-120 minutes, recommended age 14+. Designed by Jakub Caban and Bartosz Idzikowski (Escape Tales), it combines deductive puzzles, narrative events, and the sci-fi horror atmosphere of Nemesis in a tabletop escape room format. Published by Board&Dice and MS Edizioni, it offers cooperative scenarios based on logical puzzles, decisions under pressure, and contamination risk management. Ideal for those seeking a tense and accessible narrative experience in the Nemesis universe. Available on FroGames.it.
Side Quest: Nemesis
Frequently Asked Questions
The answers you're looking for, no beating around the bush.
📸Do the images match the actual product?
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📦Does the content of the box match what is indicated?
We always strive to provide the correct content, but minor variations are possible due to reprints or updates. The information comes directly from the publishers. If you have any questions, please contact us!
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