In Pursuit of Mr. X: A Review of Scotland Yard

This is a fantastic board game that we recommend! Click the pic to buy it off Amazon. :)

Pragmus Stars in Scotland Yard! 

These are the transportation tickets for the game.

As characters in a game set in the modern era, the detectives of Scotland Yard have little time to catch their criminals before they vanish again. Mr. X, the villain, has them on a chase across the entire city, but with the police station's cutbacks, the intrepid detectives have a very limited supply of underground, bus, and taxi tickets at their disposal.  With that, they only receive mere glimpses of Mr. X's whereabouts every 5 turns and are sometimes told what mode of transportation Mr. X used last. And as a player, perhaps you are clever enough to catch the elusive Mr. X., or perhaps you are the Mr. X who can elude capture? Perhaps, perhaps...

So this is how the Pragmus Team got into Scotland Yard: 

Each number is a stop in London's network of transport.

Another pic of the game board, which is a map of London.

One day at a birthday party, we tried out a unique board game none of us had previously known of called Scotland Yard. The game we played is a German detective game that operates on the London public transportation system; the board is even a map of London, so you really get into the spirit of navigating complex transportation to catch the bad guy.  

Although initially more difficult than Clue in principle and practice, Scotland Yard is simple, fast-paced and is, in my opinion, a much more engaging mystery game than Clue. The antagonist player is "Mr. X," who keeps a travel log of every station he visits while revealing his location every five turns to keep the detectives on his tail. The other players are the detectives of Scotland Yard, who must use a limited supply of taxi, bus, and underground train tickets to try and get their playing piece to stand where Mr. X currently is and thus, bring him to justice. And it's thanks to Mr. X being forced to show himself every few turns and his transportation choices publicized on the log that the game remains fair. So the gist of the game is that Mr. X has to be clever about not leaving an easy trail to follow, while detectives use logic to chase the elusive criminal.

Clyde (Omega) as Mr. X. with Logan and Corey (below) as
detectives.

I played Mr. X in our game, so I got to see things from the fugitive's side.  As Mr. X, I had some pretty nice advantages, such as unlimited transportation tickets, double moves, and cards that allowed me to disguise my mode of transportation.  From the detectives' perspective, this can make the game seem difficult and unfair at times because detectives have limited tickets for transport and must make a majority of their moves not knowing in which direction Mr. X. has decided to travel.  However, from the perspective of the fugitive, I thought this was a remarkably balanced game, as the detectives can give Mr. X. a run for his money if they come up with the right strategies.  

When we played, I got lucky and started on the side furthest from where the detectives were. Starting the game requires picking a card with a random location in it and placing your game piece there.  And I as Mr. X. was able to begin the game in an ideal location on the opposite side of the board from the detectives.  My first location reveal was the third turn, and then every five turns after that. As soon as the third turn revealed I was near the palace (see game board), the detectives planned to block both bridges and guessed my most likely next move. I saw all the detectives converge near my invisible position, and then I had to take a risk. I went straight towards the blockade and took some side streets towards an underground station to take me far away from the converging detectives, but then I had to show my position again on turn 8, and they saw I had somehow got behind them and that I was heading towards an underground station. At least three times the coppers had me almost cornered and headed towards the place which would most likely be my getaway point, and I had to use high risk side steps to escape their detection. Ultimately, I was able to escape their capture by throwing them for a loop with some sneaky strategizing.

<<While we played, we listened to some film noir detective music on Youtube, and it was EPIC! I suggest doing the same when you play: find some tunes to fit the mood of chasing a villain through London as a detective of Scotland Yard!>>

Overall, I would recommend this game just as a fascinating alternative to Clue, but I will say it is harder to get started than Clue. This game has some very specific and necessary record keeping when it comes to Mr. X.'s moves, but don't let that scare you off. Once you start the game, it is so much simpler and more fun than you would initially assume. I highly suggest you bring your poker face and your Sherlock Holmes thinking cap to fully enjoy the very balanced, very dangerous game of cat and mouse that is Scotland Yard. Can you bring Mr. X to justice? Can you evade the detectives of London? Will Mr. X escape? Or will he be taken by the strategy and speedy reaction of the dedicated officers at Scotland Yard?  Find out when you play Scotland Yard.

And the villain is victorious!  If you look closely, you will notice
Clyde is wearing a cap.  The cap comes with the game and reads, "Mr. X."
It is meant for the player representing the game's antagonist, Mr. X. 

Clyde Northrup
(Pragmus Omega)
Chief Editor and Co-founder

*Post edited and co-authored by Sigma.