Alice Is Missing vs Monster of the Week
Compare Alice Is Missing and Monster of the Week side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Alice Is Missing | Monster of the Week | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Modern | Horror, Modern |
| Play Style | GM-Less, Diceless, Narrative, Rules-Light, One-Shot Friendly, Collaborative, Mystery, Investigation, Atmospheric, Drama, Character-Driven, Experimental | Narrative, Horror, Beginner-Friendly, Investigation, Playbook-Driven, Fiction-First, Character-Driven, Theater of the Mind |
| Core Mechanic | No dice, no GM. One player facilitates setup, then all communication happens via text messages on players' phones for 90 minutes. A timed playlist sets pacing — when the timer hits the number on the back of a face-down Clue Card, that player flips it and follows the prompt, drawing a Suspect or Location Card and weaving the new information into the group text conversation. Characters exchange messages in a group chat and in private, building the story of what happened to Alice Briarwood. The 10-minute card determines the ending. | Roll 2d6 + stat. 10+ full success, 7–9 success with a cost, 6 or less the Keeper makes a move. Playbook moves trigger from fictional actions. Luck points turn failures into successes but never come back. |
| Dice | Diceless | 2d6 |
| Complexity | Very Low | Low |
| Accessibility | Medium | High |
| Runnability | High | High |
| License | Proprietary | Generic Games Third Party License |
| Cost | $ | $$ |
| Publisher | Hunters Entertainment / Renegade Game Studios | Evil Hat Productions |
| Year | 2020 | 2023 |
| Best For | Groups looking for a unique, emotionally intense one-shot experience played in complete silence through real text messages on their phones. | Groups who want episodic monster-hunting adventures inspired by Buffy, Supernatural, and The X-Files — investigating mysteries, confronting creatures, and dealing with hunter drama. |
| Highlights | Played entirely in silence through real phone text messages — no speaking after the game begins, timed playlist structures 90 minutes of play with Clue Cards triggered at specific intervals, voicemails recorded during setup are played at the end as a group debrief, won three Gold ENnie Awards in 2021 including Product of the Year | Very easy to learn, mystery countdown gives the Keeper a clear prep framework, playbooks map directly to genre archetypes |
| Considerations | Requires all players to have phones and each other's numbers, designed as a single-session experience with no continuation — replaying with the same group revisits familiar territory, emotionally heavy content including themes of loss and violence requires safety tools and player buy-in, facilitator must thoroughly understand the rules beforehand even though the role is lighter than a traditional GM | No pre-written mysteries in the core book, limited mechanical depth for long campaigns, custom move design requires GM experience, monster creation guidelines are loose |