Board games can also be a source of conflict, as even best friends sometimes argue about rules and the lack of commitment that some people can show. What makes a night of playing board games so unique is how the event serves as an excuse to get together with loved ones and let time slip by. Of course, once things start to get serious, the board game also leads to bickering and heated arguments as the friends pin the blame for their issues on each other. It also helps that Gatlopp is a drinking game, which allows players to lose up and get hooked by the game. Soon, even before the board game reveals its nasty intentions, everyone is laughing at the absurd questions and wacky challenges proposed at each card someone picks from the pile. In the movie, the four friends play a game of Gatlopp to have some quick fun and leave as fast as they can to tend to their own business. That creative choice also allows Gatlopp to capture the magic of playing board games with your friends better than any other movie. So, instead of focusing on the supernatural aspects of the titular board game, Mahoney’s script keeps the story centered on the four friends and their complicated history together.

While the core concept of Gatlopp could lead to wild scenes filled with special effects, the movie struggles with a low budget. Plus, since Klaus was one of Netflix’s biggest hits in 2019, it’s a shame more people didn’t keep tabs on Mahoney’s work as a writer. While Gatlopp and Klaus have distinct audiences, both showcase Mahoney’s ability as a comedy writer. Gatlopp is written by Jim Mahoney, one of the writers behind Netflix’s highly-imaginative Christmas animated movie Klaus. The mystery only increases when we look at the cast and crew involved with the project. With a synopsis as delicious as this, it’s hard to imagine why Gatlopp: Hell of a Game has remained under people’s radar. Of course, the game seems hellbent on keeping the friends’ souls, so the question-based mechanics will force them to confront past traumas and come clean about dark secrets that strain their relationship. What follows is a night of unexpected events, as the game traps the friends inside a house and threatens to take them to hell if no one wins the game until sunrise.

As expected, the story follows a group of friends that decide to play a board game, only to find out it is cursed. Gatlopp: Hell of a Game was quietly released in 2022 as a dark and adult spin on the Jumanji formula.

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