2020Jared Kaplan, Chris Kincaid
- Videos
- 3
- Creators
- 2
5 - 8 players30 - 60 minMedium weight

2025Jared Kaplan, Chris Kincaid
From BoardGameGeek
Veneficus: The Secret Game of Psychics is a game full of introspect, trust, and deceit where each player takes on the role of a psychic trying to prove they are the greatest of them all. Each turn, one psychic will become the sitter for a reading about their life, but only they know they are the sitter for that turn. A Card of Truth will be revealed that says something about the sitter's life - possibly their past, present, or future. The card will have two choices for the psychics to choose from while making their blind reading of the sitter. The sitter will secretly choose the option that they know to be their truth. Meanwhile, all other psychics will select the option they feel gives them the best chance to match the sitter. Once everyone has selected one of the options, the sitter will reveal themselves along with their truth. Now it is up to the psychics to convince the sitter they correctly predicted their choice and made the proper reading. The sitter will then choose one of the psychics they trust and that psychic will reveal their reading. In early rounds, psychics will likely choose the option they feel a majority of players would select in order to give themselves the best chance of matching the sitter's answer. As the game progresses, there will be fewer possible sitters available which allows the psychics to make more informed selections for each reading. If the reading was correct, the sitter and all of the psychics who made the correct reading will earn a Clairvoyance Card. If the psychic deceived the sitter and did not make the correct reading, then this psychic and all others who had the incorrect reading will earn a Clairvoyance Card instead. Additionally, the psychic who deceived the sitter will earn the Veneficus Token which is worth bonus points at the end of the game. This token can be stolen each time a psychic deceives a sitter. Once all psychics have been the sitter once or twice depending on the amount of players, the game will end and the psychic with the most clairvoyance cards has proven to be the most powerful in the world. -description from the publisher
Veneficus: The Secret Game of Psychics has 4 videos from 3 creators: 1 how-to-play guide, 1 playthrough, 1 unboxing and 1 other video. They date from 2025 to June 2026.
To learn the rules, start with "Veneficus: The Secret Game of Psychics | How to Play" by The Grove, which runs 5 min.
To see it played, watch "This Game Makes You Read Your Friends' Minds | Veneficus Gameplay + Giveaway" by The Grove.
If you like it, try Bank Heist, also by Jared Kaplan, or Wonder Woods, Scales of Fate and Hues and Cues, which share several of its mechanics.
2020Jared Kaplan, Chris Kincaid
5 - 8 players30 - 60 minMedium weight
2025Max Anderson, Zac Dixon, Austin Harrison
2 players30 minMedium weight
From BoardGameGeek:
Veneficus: The Secret Game of Psychics is a game full of introspect, trust, and deceit where each player takes on the role of a psychic trying to prove they are the greatest of them all. Each turn, one psychic will become the sitter for a reading about their life, but only they know they are the sitter for that turn. A Card of Truth will be revealed that says something about the sitter's life - possibly their past, present, or future. The card will have two choices for the psychics to choose from while making their blind reading of the sitter. The sitter will secretly choose the option that they know to be their truth. Meanwhile, all other psychics will select the option they feel gives them the best chance to match the sitter. Once everyone has selected one of the options, the sitter will reveal themselves along with their truth. Now it is up to the psychics to convince the sitter they correctly predicted their choice and made the proper reading. The sitter will then choose one of the psychics they trust and that psychic will reveal their reading. In early rounds, psychics will likely choose the option they feel a majority of players would select in order to give themselves the best chance of matching the sitter's answer. As the game progresses, there will be fewer possible sitters available which allows the psychics to make more informed selections for each reading. If the reading was correct, the sitter and all of the psychics who made the correct reading will earn a Clairvoyance Card. If the psychic deceived the sitter and did not make the correct reading, then this psychic and all others who had the incorrect reading will earn a Clairvoyance Card instead. Additionally, the psychic who deceived the sitter will earn the Veneficus Token which is worth bonus points at the end of the game. This token can be stolen each time a psychic deceives a sitter. Once all psychics have been the sitter once or twice depending on the amount of players, the game will end and the psychic with the most clairvoyance cards has proven to be the most powerful in the world. -description from the publisher
Designers
Jared Kaplan, Chris Kincaid
Artist
Liz Pavlovic
Publisher
Lonely Hero Games
Categories
Mechanics