Forbidden Desert is a cooperative game from Gamewright listed at 2-5 players, 45 minutes, ages 10 and up. A storm physically moves the board tiles as you play, so you cannot plan more than a turn ahead. It is meaningfully harder than Forbidden Island.
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Forbidden Desert is usually described as the sequel to Forbidden Island. That framing undersells the difference: it is not a slightly bigger version of the same game, it is the same idea with the one change that makes cooperative games genuinely difficult.
The board does not sit still.
01
The shifting board is the whole design
In Forbidden Island tiles flood in place. The map degrades but it stays where it is, so a route you plan on turn two mostly still exists on turn five.
Here the storm moves tiles physically around the grid. The layout you were routing through has rearranged itself before your next turn comes round, which means long-range planning is not just risky, it is impossible. You solve the board fresh every round.
That single change is what makes this harder, and it is also why it runs 45 minutes against Island's 30. You are re-reading the situation constantly rather than executing a plan.
02
Why it is harder at two specifically
The storm advances on a fixed schedule regardless of how many people are playing. Two players get fewer total actions per round than four, but face exactly the same rate of disruption.
So a pair spends a larger share of its actions on recovery -- clearing sand, repositioning -- and a smaller share on actually assembling the flying machine. That is the opposite of how people expect co-ops to scale, and it is why we recommend starting on the easier difficulty setting at two even if you found Forbidden Island straightforward.
03
Who should skip it
Skip it if you want a short game. Forty-five minutes is the publisher's figure and it is honest, but the constant re-planning makes it feel longer than a 45-minute game with a stable board.
Skip it if you have not played a cooperative game before. Start on Island, learn the vocabulary, then come here -- the jump is meaningful and being crushed repeatedly is a poor introduction.
Skip it if you specifically want a two-player-only design. Gamewright lists 2-5, so this is a Plays at two game.
What we would buy
Picks drawn from the games covered on this site, chosen against the criteria above.
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The sequel that fixes what people find flat about Forbidden Island, at the cost of fifteen more minutes.
A supports-more cooperative game that plays at two. The board physically shifts as the storm moves tiles, so the map you planned around is gone by your next turn.
Players
2-5
Playing time
45 minutes
Age
10+
Designer
Matt Leacock
Publisher
Gamewright
Who should skip it
Skip it if you want a short game. The shifting board means you cannot plan more than a turn ahead, and that stretches the running time.
The cheapest way to find out whether co-op games work for the two of you.
A supports-more cooperative game that plays at two. You collect four treasures from a sinking island of 24 tiles and escape before the water level rises past the exit.
Players
2-4
Playing time
30 minutes
Age
10+
Designer
Matt Leacock
Publisher
Gamewright
Who should skip it
Skip it if you have already played a modern co-op. It is deliberately gentle and you will solve it inside a handful of games.
Plays at two1-4 players · 30-120 minutes · ages 14 and up
The campaign game two people can actually finish, because it teaches itself across the first five scenarios.
A supports-more cooperative campaign widely played at two. A standalone Gloomhaven entry with a 25-scenario story and a tutorial built into the opening scenarios.
Players
1-4
Playing time
30-120 minutes
Age
14 and up
Designer
Isaac Childres
Publisher
Cephalofair Games
Published
2020
Who should skip it
Skip it if you cannot leave a game set up or commit to a run of evenings. A campaign abandoned at scenario four is money spent on a shelf.
+−Is Forbidden Desert harder than Forbidden Island?
Yes, noticeably. The storm physically moves tiles so you cannot plan ahead, and at two players you have fewer actions to recover with against a threat clock that runs at the same rate regardless.
+−How many players does Forbidden Desert support?
Gamewright lists 2-5 players at 45 minutes, ages 10 and up. It plays at two but is not a two-player-only design.
+−Do I need Forbidden Island first?
No, they are standalone. But Island is the better introduction if neither of you has played a cooperative game, and Desert is the better purchase if you have.
+−What comes in the box?
Gamewright lists 49 cards, 48 sand markers, 24 tiles, 6 pawns, 6 meter clips, 4 flying machine parts, a flying machine model and a sand storm meter with stand.
