Cardboard Corner: Review of Scotland Yard

Going back to the post that kicked off Cardboard Corner on this blog, there is a shout out to a few games from my childhood that hold relevance to this day. There is Sorry!, Balderdash, and Fireball Island. And there is Scotland Yard. A hidden movement/deduction game originally published in 1983, it holds up well to the mass of games being released in the 21st century.

In Scotland Yard, one player takes on the role of Mr. X, and the other 1-5 players the roles of Scotland Yard detectives trying to capture Mr. X. The board a map of London featuring taxi, bus, and underground routes, players use the relevant tokens to maneuver around the board. Mr. X is trying to survive uncaptured for the number of rounds, all the while the detectives are trying to capture Mr. X before the rounds are up. Mr. X’s movements kept on a hidden notepad, every five rounds he must reveal himself to keep the chase hot. Depending on Mr. X’s evasive skills, a little luck, and the deductive abilities of the detectives, the chase can be over quickly or stretch all the way up to a tense couple of final rounds—Mr. X’s escape a matter of one or two spaces.

Overall, Scotland Yard is a delightful little game of cat and mouse. The rules simple and easy to learn, the whole family can join in. For games which do go the distance, the tension inherent to capturing Mr. X is almost palpable, a great deal of laughter and fun on both sides, regardless whether he escapes or not. Thanks to all the moves being tracked on Mr. X’s notebook, it’s also quite easy to go back and double-check who was where and when. (It goes without saying, the person who plays Mr. X should be the more experienced/rules-savvy person for the first couple playthroughs.)

If there is a downside to Scotland Yard, it would be that Mr. X’s chances of escaping greatly depend on the age and number of players. As a two-player game with two intelligent adults (one controlling all 5 investigators), Mr. X has a less than 50% chance of escaping. With five players, a mix of ages (and no alpha gamer dictating gameplay on the detectives’ side), Mr. X’s chances improve to “fair”. This is another way of saying Scotland Yard should be considered a family game, not a hardcore gamer’s game. Which leads to…

Some of you may want to ask: how does Scotland Yard compare to Whitehall Mystery, Specter Ops, or Fury of Dracula—the other major hidden movement titles on the market. I don’t’ know. I haven’t played any of them. My guess is it’s simpler, which can be a good and bad thing. With the element of hidden movement, complexity increases the risk of rules’ mistakes but satisfies players looking for a more complex space to explore their deductive skills. My other guess is that Scotland Yard is cheaper, and thus for people who have never played a hidden movement game, it may be a good introduction, the decision whether to invest in a more complex game hinging on its interest.

Regardless, Scotland Yard is one of few games from yesteryear gaming which still holds some relevance today. It is an excellent family game, particularly in the way children can sharpen their logic skills in cat-and-mouse style. If Mr. X took a taxi from here, that means he could be here, here, or here. So why don’t I go here to block him from getting to the underground? Such is the conversation around the table—a real chance for parents to encourage kids to think deductively. Again, as stated, the chances Scotland Yard will satisfy a group of adults looking for a hidden movement game depends on the group. But for hardcore boardgamers, it’s likely the interest would be there, but short-lived given the overall lack of complexity.