Hex Code

2+ players* | 10 minutes

In Hex Code, players take the role of computer hackers competing to break into each others' computer the quickest. Each turn players hack their way into their target's firewall by placing shapes dependent on the roll of dice. Once the firewall grid has started to fill, players can start guessing their target's password. If the player's six-letter guess contains any characters in the correct position, the target must say so; however, if a player's guess shares similarities to their target's security layer or firewall code, they trigger a trap. The target can immediately connect a node on their microchip, eventually allowing them to discern individual letters in their target's password. Overload firewalls, rewire microchips, and catch people in security traps to guess your target's password and prove you're the fastest hacker around!

While a good portion of the team is down for the count from the big C, I rummaged through old work we had done and found this little nugget that was made during lockdown. Two folks could play it over the phone or on a video call, but a large group of people could also play it in a circle, trying to defeat the person tot heir left while defending against the person on their right.

This is an updated version (1.6) with updated rules, particularly the removal of a pesky mechanic that, while cool, slowed things down a lot. If you are curious, the original version remains uploaded on BoardGameGeek.

This is republished and shared here through the permission of the original owners and developers from Story Machine Games.