If you love the game Lockup from Thunderworks Games, then get ready! Its first big expansion is here with Lockup: Breakout and it adds new depths both figuratively and literally to not only the game but to the Kingdom of Nalos itself. Players will discover the catacombs beneath Kulbak Prison offering them treasure, new ways to earn reputation, and even possible freedom! In addition to a whole new board being added to the game, there are new Goon types, items, crew members, and even legendary characters to interact with. Along with new strategies and secrets waiting to be uncovered in the depths below, there are also a few new rules and mechanics that come with these inclusions.

This new expansion for Lockup brings back several familiar names such as game designer Stan Kordonskiy, solo designer John Brieger, and artists Lucas Ribeiro and Luis Francisco. Adding to the artistic team are Gong Studios and Diego Sá. Gong Studios is known for its work on Aeon’s End and Tiny Towns while Diego Sá has worked on projects such as Luna Maris and the upcoming Goblin Vaults. As with the base game before it, Lockup: Breakout is being crowdfunded via a Kickstarter campaign. This Kickstarter preview does use a prototype copy of the expansion so the final product may vary from what is pictured here.

With all that said, let’s get into the meat of what Lockup: Breakout brings to the table. As mentioned above, there’s a new Catacombs board that has been added to the game. It gets placed underneath the main game board and each player will place their corresponding lantern marker on the entrance space. How does one find their way into the catacombs, though? During initial setup, players will take tunnel entrance tokens, shuffle them, and deal one face down to each of the seven accessible rooms of the prison. Be wary, however, as there have been many attempts to escape over the years and quite a few of those tunnels have collapsed! One by one, these tokens are flipped face up and any collapsed tunnel markers are returned to the box. Each crew has a new member: the Seeker! This crew member is the one who will be sent down into the tunnels below. Like all other crew, Seekers can be assigned to a room (preferably one with a tunnel entrance) to help reap rewards. As each room gets resolved during the Lights Out phase, if there is a tunnel entrance in that room the strongest crew that contained a seeker will have the opportunity to move their marker deeper into the underground and gain the associated rewards for doing so. While advancing through the tunnels, there are several paths and possible destinations to choose from. Each has its benefits, but it is important to remember that one can only move forward and it is a race against the clock to try and escape.

In the prisons of Nalos not all inhabitants are equal. Lockup: Breakout adds new legendary characters for players to try to sway and influence for perks. Some of these characters grant everyone a boon, while others reward only the strongest. These new characters are represented by a deck of cards that are shuffled and placed face down near the catacomb board during setup. The top card of the deck is flipped face-up, revealing the character that players will encounter for that round. Once players have placed all but one of their crew members on the main board, their final crew member is placed facedown on the legend card. After all rooms and tunnels have been resolved, the legend card is resolved in the same way. It is important to note, however, that no matter how many trips a player has taken to the library, most of these characters can not be swayed by tomes unless otherwise specified. At the start of a new round, the previous active legend card is discarded and a new one is revealed.

As much as we enjoy playing Lockup, this new expansion makes us love it all the more – especially at two players! The new elements bring new choices and depth to the game play while also causing players to be more decisive with their strategy. While it is entirely possible to ignore the tunnels and their benefits by simply using your crew in other places, those areas with entrances will become all the more fought over as they will now have more than one return for the strongest player there. We really enjoyed the Legends for both their art and their interaction in the game. Lockup: Breakout brings both elements of gameplay as well as imagination to the game table and we love it! We truly believe anyone who enjoys this game and the world it is set in will find new joy with this expansion and encourage them to check out the Kickstarter to follow along and see all that the campaign has to offer.

All photos of Thunderworks Games product were taken and edited by Krista.