14 Board Games from the ’70s That Were Surprisingly Violent
Board games from the ’70s weren’t just about fun and strategy — they often unleashed surprisingly brutal battles and high-stakes violence that made every playthrough a thrilling fight for survival.
- Alyana Aguja
- 5 min read
The board games of the 1970s offered more than just casual entertainment — they delivered intense, often ruthless conflicts that mirrored the era’s fascination with war, survival, and power struggles. Behind their colorful boards and dice rolls lay brutal battles, deadly traps, and high-stakes betrayals that kept players on edge and hungry for victory. Exploring these surprisingly violent games reveals how the ’70s shaped the evolution of strategic gameplay with a thrilling edge of danger and chaos.
1. Deathmaze (1979)
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This dungeon-crawling game drops players into a deadly labyrinth full of monsters and traps that could end your quest—and your character’s life—at any turn. It’s like a brutal early RPG, where every move feels like a gamble with death lurking in the shadows. The tension of surviving a twisted maze gave the ’70s a darker twist on tabletop adventure.
2. Dark Tower (1981 - close enough to the ’70s vibe)
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Though technically released just after the ’70s, Dark Tower was steeped in that era’s appetite for epic battles and conquest. Players fought for control over a fortress while managing armies, resources, and deadly encounters. The game’s mechanized tower even kept track of your progress, making the violence feel relentless and immersive.
3. Battle Chess (1970s inspired concept, actual chess with a violent theme)
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While chess itself is centuries old, the ’70s saw the rise of versions like “Battle Chess,” which visualized the violent clashing of armies through striking imagery and dramatic capture scenes. This added a fierce layer to what was traditionally a quiet war of wits, turning each move into a tiny battle.
4. Nuclear War (1979)
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This card-based game distilled the terrifying essence of global annihilation into a surprisingly fun yet dark experience. Players launched nukes at each other, wiping out entire populations with a grin, all while trying to survive the fallout. It captured Cold War anxieties with a wickedly satirical edge, making “playing with destruction” literally the game’s goal.
5. Cosmic Encounter (1977)
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Cosmic Encounter’s seemingly friendly outer space negotiations hid a brutal core of alien invasions, betrayals, and planetary conquest. Players could ruthlessly attack each other with bizarre alien powers, leading to alliances as fragile as glass. Beneath its colorful facade, it was a strategic battleground full of backstabbing and war.
6. Axis & Allies (1971)
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This iconic war game recreated the brutal battles of World War II, with players commanding armies, tanks, and air forces in a quest for global domination. The violence wasn’t just thematic — it was baked into every calculated move, as entire countries fell under siege and armies were decimated. It brought the harsh realities of war to the tabletop in a way that was both thrilling and sobering.
7. Werewolf (1970s party game origin)
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Starting as a party game in the ’70s, Werewolf involved players being secretly assigned roles, with some trying to kill others under the cover of night. The psychological tension of hunting your friends or being hunted made this a surprisingly violent social game. It was less about physical violence and more about survival through deception and elimination.
8. Dungeon! (1975)
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Dungeon! put players in the boots of adventurers exploring a monster-infested dungeon, fighting for treasure and survival. Combat was frequent, brutal, and often fatal, forcing players to weigh risk and reward at every step. It was one of the earliest games to bring dungeon crawling and death to a wider audience.
9. Stratego (popularized in the ’70s)
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Stratego’s gameplay mimicked battlefield espionage, where players sent out soldiers, bombs, and spies to destroy enemy flags. Each encounter was a deadly duel of wits, and losing a piece could mean a decisive blow to your army’s power. The hidden identities of pieces added a lethal surprise element, making every move a gamble with survival.
10. Talisman (1979 prototype years, though released in 1983)
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Talisman’s early design stages started in the late ’70s, with its core idea rooted in a perilous fantasy world where adventurers faced monsters, curses, and fatal traps. Players risked life and limb chasing magical treasures, with death often waiting around the corner. It captured the thrill and danger of high fantasy quests with a grim edge.
11. Carnage (1978)
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True to its name, Carnage was unapologetically violent, centering on battles between armies with brutal outcomes. Players maneuvered troops with the goal of total destruction, often with graphic descriptions of carnage during combat. It was a game that made no secret of its bloodthirsty intentions, delivering a grim war simulation.
12. Escape from the Aliens in Outer Space (1970s inspired)
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Though officially published later, this game’s roots trace to ’70s sci-fi paranoia. It involved players sneaking and fighting alien invaders in a confined spaceship setting, where betrayal and violence were constant threats. The suspense of who would strike first kept the tension razor-sharp, making every encounter potentially deadly.
13. Survive! (1978)
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In Survive!, players scrambled to evacuate from an island swarming with deadly sea creatures and volcanic eruptions. The violence came from natural disasters and creature attacks that could wipe players out in moments. It turned the survival board game into a tense fight against extinction, with ruthless obstacles waiting at every turn.
14. Dungeonquest (1979)
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This merciless dungeon crawl challenged players to grab treasure and escape before the dungeon collapsed — or before monsters caught them. The game was infamous for how quickly players could be killed by traps or beasts, making every step a heart-pounding risk. It perfected the cruel, high-stakes tension of fantasy survival in a small box.