More skill than meets the eye (Cluedo)

Member Name: Linnyg

Product:	Cluedo
Date:	06/10/09 (24 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Fun interaction

Disadvantages: Too simple for some

Cluedo is a fun little game of deduction and logic where you have to discover the who, where and how of the murder of Dr Black. You have to deduce between nine rooms, six suspects and six weapons. At the beginning of the game one of each is removed unseen and placed in the middle of the board. the rest of the cards are then shuffled and dealt to each player.

The game continues as you move about the board and each time you come into a room you can bring a suspect and weapon into that room and put this assertion to another player. They must then show you if they have one of these cards, thus eliminating that one from your enquiries. The game continues until one player is ready to guess. They go to the room in question and make their accusation. They check the cards in the centre and if they are correct they win. If they are incorrect they are out and the game continues.

I do enjoy playing Cluedo but don't get to that often as other people find it boring, and it can become a little formulaic once I worked out the best way to play. However, there is more to it then meets the eye and you are unlikely to win just by getting all other players to show you all their cards.

The best way I have found to play is as follows. Head to the nearest corner room. Jump back and forward between this and the opposite room using the secret passageway until you have eliminated both these rooms, or even better discovered that it is one of them. Then head to the opposite pair of rooms and do the same. If you still haven't found the room, move to the nearest and so on. The rooms are the most important to find out as you have to travel between them, thus wasting gos, whereas you can find out about suspects and weapons in any room. So I never show a room card if I can show another card. You can force a player to show you a room card if they have it by asking about a suspect and weapon which you have, or you know another player has. Be careful though as if you always do this players will know you have the other two.

You can keep a record of each request and whether a card was shown but this becomes very complicated. I normally keep a simple record of who I have shown what, so I can show them the same card again if the opportunity arises. I also record who showed me each card and whenever a player couldn't show any cards. This can enable you to make cleverer choices about who to ask what and deduce things from what other players do.

If another player clearly is about to guess and is heading for the right room it may be worth trying to get there first and make a guess even if you don't have all the information.

Summary: Be clever!