Clue

Clue
Board Game published by Hasbro
No. of Players	2 to 6
Session Time	15-60 minutes
First Publication	1949

Clue (or Cluedo in metric units) is a murder-mystery board game with a roll-and-move and deduction mechanics. It's too simple if you're old enough to have beard on your neck, but like Risk and Monopoly, it is well-known, simple enough for non-gamers, and has produced some memes. Unlike those two games, it can actually be fun to play.

Story

While the names and exact story depend on the edition, they all tend to follow a common pattern: the extremely wealthy Reginald Boddy (or Dr. Black) has been discovered dead in his mansion. The only people who had the opportunity to kill him are the people staying at his mansion at the time:

• Miss Scarlet, an exotic, almost seductive woman.
• Colonel Mustard, a military man with a mustache and beard that would make Castor jealous. Imagine every stereotype of British big-game hunters.
• Mrs. White, Mr. Boddy's maid.
• Mr. Green, a business tycoon with some shady connections. In the UK, he's a crooked Reverend.
• Mrs. Peacock, an elderly aristocrat. Some versions of her depict her as being constantly involved in scandals.
• Professor Plum, an absent-minded professor.
• Dr. Orchid, a secretive Asian biologist, replaced Mrs.White in the most recent edition as a new suspect. This was around 2016; The fact that this happened three years ago and the only one really giving a shit is the couple of indifferent journalists (and the Chinese) trying to hype this up probably testifies her only existence is a marketing ploy.

There is also the question of which of six weapons was used to kill him (the Candlestick, the Knife, the Lead Pipe, the Revolver, the Rope, or the Wrench) (you would think it'd be pretty obvious what weapon was used, but still...), and which of the nine rooms in his mansion he was killed in (the Ballroom, the Billiard Room, the Conservatory, the Dining Room, the Hall, the Kitchen, the Library, the Lounge, and the Study) (and you'd think this would also be obvious). The "master detective" version of the game is exactly the same with a larger board, 12 rooms, 10 suspects and 8 weapons.

It was the Dwarf, in the oubliette, with the mace of disruption.

Rules

"I set Plum on overwatch."
"A candlestick genestealer enters the hallway."

Players begin by placing the tokens corresponding to the characters (a pawn whose color matches the name of each guest) on designated starting spaces. The cards corresponding to the guests, weapons, and rooms are shuffled, and then one of each is drawn and placed in an envelope in the center of the board. This represents the actual combination of who killed Mr. Boddy, what he or she used to kill him, and where he was killed. The remaining cards are dealt to the players.

Each player then rolls a d6 in turn, and moves the corresponding number of spaces. The near-term objective is to get to a room, and then Suggest that Mr. Boddy was killed in that room, by some character (who is moved to that room whether they want to be there or not) and with some weapon (which is brought to that room). The other players then must disprove the suggestion by showing the suggesting player that they have cards corresponding to the room, weapon, or person in the suggestion. Note that some clever/unscrupulous players will make suggestions that they already hold cards for, either to zero in on information faster, drag players into their room before they can reach another, or to otherwise deny information to their opponents.

By keeping track of what cards the other players have (and, more importantly, which cards they don't have, which can be worked out on opponents turns), players try to work out which cards are in the envelope. A player who thinks he or she has the answer may make an Accusation on his or her turn, naming a character, weapon, and room, and check the envelope. The player is allowed to make a Suggestion on the same turn as their Accusation. If the accusation is correct, then the cards in the envelope are revealed and the game is over, with the accusing player winning. Otherwise, the cards are left concealed, and the incorrect player takes no more turns, but still must show cards to other players who make suggestions.

Since the player characters themselves are all suspects, it's possible for a player's own card to be in the envelope. This does not prevent that player from winning the game, or being eliminated due to an incorrect accusation. Some versions have fluff that explains that if that is the case, the player, rather then publicly admitting to the murder, has taken the evidence, and covered up the murder so that he gets away with it (or fails to get away if they were eliminated). Should all but one player be eliminated (a very rare event), that player may enter any room unopposed, and thus wins by default.

Movie

While not directly relevant for gaming purposes, it may amuse you to know that they actually made a movie based on this game. And unlike forgettable garbage like Battleship, or Ouija, or (God help you if you actually saw those) the three Dungeons & Dragons movies, people remember the Clue movie fondly. It wasn't especially great or ground-breaking, but a murder mystery actually makes for a good story that anyone can relate with and enjoy. The movie stays true to the spirit of the game while greatly expanding on all the characters and giving them all credible reasons to want Mr. Body dead, giving it a good mix of intrigue and comedy. Also, Tim Curry brings his A-game as the hapless butler Wadsworth. The movie was also unique in that there were three separate theatrical versions with three different endings, which were tied together in the TV/VIDEO version into one movie with a Wayne's World style "here's how it really happened" ending that is generally considered to be the best version. Seriously, go watch it.

Novels

Mostly unknown to people these days, in the 90s there was a series of children's/young adults fiction books based on Clue, presenting Mr. Boddy as a hapless but good-natured fellow who admits he probably needs a better band of friends. Each book was made up of multiple misadventures, which was basically adapting the Clue formula of deductive reasoning to various silly scenarios; the final misadventure in each book was always the closest adaptation to the actual game, revolving around Mr. Boddy's (apparent) murder and a theft.

Probably most notable for, amongst Clue fans, creating the basic personalities of the characters - Colonel Mustard as a pompous, sabre-rattling military man and ex-hunter with a penchant for bragging and challenging people to duels, for example.

Related Games

The most commercially successful product from Cheapass Games is set as a prequel to Clue, titled Kill Doctor Lucky, where players are competing for the chance to be the murderer. It was popular enough to merit an actual box release. Has spawned a few expansions such as Kill Doctor Lucky And His Little Dog Too and The Secret Lair of Doctor Lucky.

Links

• Boardgamegeek actual link to "Clue" isn't easy to find because...
• Boardgamegeek list of fifty Clue spinoffs games & reskins

Board Games
Classics:	Backgammon - Chess - Go - Tafl - Tic-Tac-Toe
Ameritrash:	Arkham Horror - Axis & Allies - Battleship - Betrayal at House on the Hill - Car Wars Clue/Cluedo - Cosmic Encounter - Descent: Journeys in the Dark - Dungeon! Firefly: The Game - HeroQuest - Monopoly - Mousetrap - Snakes and Ladders - Risk Talisman - Trivial Pursuit
Eurogames:	Agricola - Carcassonne - The Duke - Settlers of Catan - Small World - Stratego - Ticket to Ride
Pure Evil:	Diplomacy - Dune (aka Rex: Final Days of an Empire) - Monopoly - The Duke
Others:	Icehouse - Shadow Hunters - Twilight Imperium - Wingspan