Clue is one of my favorite board games ever. The premise of the game is that all the players are guests to a house, and one of them killed the host. All the characters compete to figure out three key pieces of information: who was the killer, what weapon did they use, and where did they do it? These three cards are selected randomly and placed inside of an envelope which is placed in the middle of the board. The rest of the cards are shuffled and evenly distributed across the players, so that they have some clues to start off with. The rest of the board is composed of rooms and hallways in the house. Once the game officially starts, the players are tasked with making accusations, such as: Was it Mrs. Peacock with the Rope in the Library? If the player to their left has one of those cards, they will have to show them to the person who asked. Interrogating the others allows each player to figure out what cards are in each other’s hands, and then what’s in the envelope in the center by process of elimination.
All of these mechanics build on each other to create a dynamic of challenge; players are competing against each other to see who can make the final accusation faster. Pressure is being applied on them when other players take notes on what other people have on their hands.
This dynamic, in the context of this mystery solving game, creates different types of fun. Primarily, it creates the fun of challenge, as the players are trying to get past the hurdles of figuring out who the characters have. While they do this, they may also experience the fun of fantasy; they are immersed in the fictional world of the game, locked in to figuring out who was a killer, what did they use, and where in the house? They are contained within the circle of magic as they solve the mystery and bring justice to the board.
