‘Villainous’: All the Q&As for You Poor, Unfortunate Souls
The princesses are fine—but if you think that Disney villains are the characters to watch, Villainous is the strategy card game for you.
For many people, the villains are the best part of any Disney movie. And I’ll definitely agree that the baddies have most of the best songs, most iconic lines, and most stylish outfits. So if you’re a fan of the Disney villains more than the heroes, Villainous may be the delightfully evil card game for you.
What is Villainous?
First released in July 2018, Villainous is a strategy card and board game. Each player takes on the role of one of Disney’s most fantastic and evil antagonists and attempts to achieve their goals. Whichever player achieves their evil schemes first wins the day.
The game’s first release included just seven of the most well-known villains in Disney history. But since then regular releases have added more and more characters to the mix. Now, the game includes characters ranging from Sleeping Beauty’s Maleficent to The Black Cauldron’s Horned King. And each has a different evil objective.
“It’s called a cruel irony, like my dependence on you.”
– Yzma, “The Emperor’s New Groove”
Even more recently, Villainous has been spun off featuring Marvel villains and again with Star Wars baddies.
How to Play Villainous
To play, each player chooses their favorite villain to play as and collects that character’s unique Villain Deck. Shuffle the 30-card deck and place it to the left of the character’s villain board. Then take the character’s Fate Deck, shuffle it, and place it at the right of the board. It should be shuffled and placed to the right of the board.
Each card has a type indicated at the bottom; types include Allies, Conditions, Effects, Heroes, and Items.
Each character has a unique villain board, and each board has pictures of four locations from each villain’s respective movie and a Villain Mover to move between these locations.
To start a game, players move clockwise, taking tokens, moving their character between locations, and drawing and playing cards in order to fulfill the character’s unique evil scheme. Players are also encouraged to attempt to sabotage their fellow villains.
Villainous Spinoffs
In July 2020 the Marvel edition of Villainous was released with the “Infinite Power” set featuring Thanos, Hela, Taskmaster, Killmonger, and Ultron. In August 2021 the “Mischief and Malice” set added Loki, M.O.D.O.K, and Madame Masque. November 2020’s pack, “We Are Venom” only added Venom. And finally February 2023’s “Twisted Ambitions” included Doctor Octopus, Titania, and Kang the Conqueror.
In August 2022 Star Wars Villainous was released with the “Power of the Dark Side” set and Darth Vader, Kylo Ren, Asajj Ventress, General Grievous, and Moff Gideon. The August 2023 expansion pack, “Scum and Villainy” added Boba Fett, Cad Bane, and The Seventh Sister.
Villainous Decks
To date, there are twenty-two Disney Villain decks to choose from with two more coming in June of this year.
July 2018’s “The Worst Takes It All”
- Captain Hook (Peter Pan)
- Jafar (Aladin)
- Maleficent (Sleeping Beauty)
- Prince John (Robin Hood)
- Queen of Hearts (Alice in Wonderland)
- Ursula (The Little Mermaid)
Marth 2019’s “Wicked to the Core”
- Dr. Facilier (The Princess and the Frog)
- The Evil Queen (Snow White)
- Hades (Hercules)
July 2019’s “Evil Comes Prepared”
- Ratigan (The Great Mouse Detective)
- Scar (The Lion King)
- Yzma (The Emperor’s New Groove)
March 2020’s “Perfectly Wretched”
- Cruella De Vil (101 Dalmatians)
- Mother Gothel (Tangled)
- Pete (a general Disney Villain)
February 2021’s “Despicable Plots”
- Gaston (Beauty and the Beast)
- The Horned King (The Black Cauldron)
- Lady Tremaine (Cinderella)
March 2022’s “Bigger and Badder”
- Lotso-o’-Huggin’ Bear (Toy Story 3)
- Syndrome (The Incredibles)
- Madam Mim (The Sword in the Stone)
October 2023’s “Filled With Fright”
- Oogie Boogie (The Nightmare Before Christmas)
June 2024 “Sugar and Spice”
- King Candy (Wreck it Ralph)
- Shere Khan (Jungle Book)
How Many Villainous Games are There?
There are three separate Villainous games (Disney, Marvel, and Star Wars).
Disney Villainous has seven—soon to be eight—character sets.
Marvel has four.
Star Wars has two.
Is Villainous Okay For Kids?
Officially, Villainous is meant for players ages ten and older, and that feels about right. It’s not a particularly scary game—so if a child is old enough to watch the property the various villains are from and not be scared of said villain, they’ll be fine with the game in that respect.
But this is a card game with a component of reading and understanding instructions, rules, and objectives. While there’s nothing about Villainous that would make it inappropriate for kids under ten, younger kids may have a harder time understanding the rules and strategy needed. Of course, if the kid in question is especially mature or has an adult helping them through it, they could have fun with it. It really varies from kid to kid.
Is Villainous Hard to Learn?
Absolutely not. I learned to play over the course of one round of gameplay. And afterward, I taught my visiting family to play very quickly as well. It’s a game for people who are at least ten years old and for the most part, everything you need to know is written on the game card and boards themselves. It’s not a difficult game to pick up.
Can You Miss Villainous Games?
Yes. You can skip whichever expansions, characters, or games you want and it won’t affect your ability to play at all. As long as you have at least one three-character set, you’re good to go.
Happy adventuring, Villains!
