Hounded

About this board game

Hounded is a two-player pursuit game that plays in about 25 minutes, casting one player as a cunning fox and the other as a determined hunter.

Each player moves their pawns and turns over tiles along the way. Some tiles trigger effects, while others do not, creating uncertainty as the chase unfolds. The fox is alone, while the hunter is supported by a team of hounds searching for the escapee.

The hunter wins by bringing the pursuit to a decisive end. The fox is captured if the hunter’s dogs corner it, or if the fox ends its turn next to the hunter himself. This gives the hunter two different ways to close the net and demands careful movement from both sides.

The fox has a different objective: run out the clock before being caught. Time runs out when the fox finds all three timepiece tiles or when 43 of the 49 tiles have been flipped over. If either condition is met, the hunter must retire for the day and the fox escapes.

• Players: 2
• Playing time: approximately 25 minutes
• Roles: fox versus hunter and hounds
• Key tension: movement, tile reveals, capture threats, and limited time

Released in 2016, Hounded centers on an asymmetric contest in which each side pursues a very different path to victory. The hunter must coordinate the chase, while the fox uses the unfolding tile grid and the clock to survive long enough to escape.