US2165891A - Game - Google Patents

Description

July l1, 1939. E. H. FREEDMAN GAME Filed NGV; 21, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 BLUE BxivRwM HALL SPAKE FOR STRUCTIDN CARDS J l.- VERANW mmf,

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July 1l, 1939. E. H. FREEDMAN GAME Filed Nov. 21, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ,y y n m E w .l I o l@ f, 5 T im 1. w M T E #E mf w a w u y m T n H 0 `U. .A0 W f T M Pf O O G G F i 04 W Patented July 11, 1939 UNITED STATES Listini PATENT orrics 8 Claims.

This invention relates to games and more particularly to games in which playing pieces are moved about upon the surfaces of game boards on which are depicted certain positions or stations which are adapted to be occupied by the playing pieces either sequentially or in response to the direction of chance devices.

The general object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved game of this type.

A more particular object is the provision of a mystery game in which the interest of the players is greatly enhanced by reason of the suspense involved in working out the objective.

Another object of the invention is to provide a game in which a number of persons may participate, and in which the playing pieces represent certain designated characters of a story, the plot of which is developed or created during the play by the movements and actions of the playing pieces upon the scene or locale depicted upon the game board.

A further object of the invention is to provide a game of this description, in which the actions of the characters of the story and the movements of the playing pieces representing them to and from certain positions on the board are conltrolled by chance, as for example, the drawing of instruction cards; and in which also the revelation of certain of these actions is delayed during play so that the identity of the perpetrator may be concealed pending the ultimate unraveling of the plot.

Another feature is the provision of a game involving the necessity of the coincidence of two or more instruction symbols tov enable the central action of the story to be effected.

Another object is the provision of a story game of this type in which certain of the characters represented by one or more of the playing pieces is a supervisory figure who eXerts a certain control over the actions of the other characters, in addition to the control determined by the chance devices; the progression of the playing piece or pieces representing such supervisory authority 45 being sequential from position to position on the board, as contrasted with the random movement of the other playing pieces, at least in the preferred form of the invention.

Further objects of the invention include the provision of indicator pieces or articles signicant of the action of the characters, which are adapted to be taken up from certain positions on the board by certain` of the characters encountering them and carried by the respective corresponding playing pieces pending the consummation of said action; the provision of hollow playing pieces for concealing these indicator articles; and the provision of certain instruction cards which are determinative of a crucial action in the plot and which are adapted to be passed from one player to another, and of other cards of similar appearance which, being similarly passed from one player to another, will conceal the passing of the said determinative cards.

In its preferred embodiment, the invention contemplates the provision of a game board upon which is shown a geographical area, such as, for example, a dwelling house and its environs and accessory structures, equipment and furnishings; the rooms of the house and certain of the surrounding topographical features comprising positions to and from which the game pieces are moved. A preliminary plot of the story, the remainder of Which is to be worked out during play, is provided, which assigns to most oi the players certain characteristics or past histories which would make any one of them capable of committing the act giving rise to the mystery to be solved. The act to be committed in the illustra.- tive embodiment of the invention is a murder, the articles or pieces to be taken up by the character pieces represent the instruments by which the crime is to be committed, and the supervisory character, whose playing piece may have a regular route or beat, is a detective. The instruction cards include cards which indicate to the characters drawing them the points to which they next proceed, and a murder card which determines the murderer, the victim, and the means by which the crime is to be committed. After the consummation of the crime is divulged, the movements of the character pieces are halted, the detective character takes charge, and by questioning the players, endeavors to reveal the guilty party; the accumulated instruction cards which the individual players have received during the progress of the game serving to substantiate their answers to the questions propounded to them as to their prior movements and actions.

Other objects and features of novelty will be read in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which one embodiment of my invention apparent from the following specification when is illustrated by Way of example.

In the drawings,

Figure l is a plan view of the game board ernployed in the illustrative embodiment of the invention;

Figure 2 is a View in perspective of an instrucbirdbath 3 l.

' of the invention.

tion booklet in which the preliminary date relating to the characters is set forth;

Figures 3 and 4 are views in front and side elevation respectively of one of the hollow playing pieces;

Figure 5 is a view similar to that represented by Figure 3, but showing the lid of the hollow play ing piece removed;

Figure 6 is a View in elevation of a gure representing the supervisory character;

Figures '7, 8, 9, and l0 are elevational views of the pieces representing the instruments by which the crime may be committed;

Figure 1l is a plan view of one of the murder cards Figure 12 is a plan View of one of the so-called refreshment cards, the passing of which is intended to conceal the passing of the murder cards;

Figures i3, i4, and l5 are similar views of cer tain of the instruction cards; and

Figure 1G is a similar View of one of the character identifying or place cards.

Although the principles of the present invenn tion can be applied to a wide variety of particular illustrating stories in which may be developed different plots and situations, as will be pointed out in more detail in the present specification, the embodiment 'illustrated in the accompanying drawings involves a murder mystery story, the action taking place within and around a dwelling house shown on the playing board which is indicated generally by the reference character Hl. Upon this playing board l5 a plan of the dwelling house is shown at I2 and includes the various stations or positions comprising the veranda I3, the hall Ht, living room i5, the dinette i6, the kitchen il, the washroom I8, the blue bedroom i8 and the orchid bedroom 20. Completely surrounding the house is a walk 22. This waik serves to connect certain exterior positions or stations which include the bench 2li, the bushes 25, the well 26, the woodshed 21, the pci-gola 26, garage 29, the car 30, and the Obviously, these stations may be varied in accordance with individual preferences, and are not limited to the illustrative ones disclosed herein. Upon the veranda there is indicated a space 35 upon which the pack of instruction cards used during the game may be placed and from which they may be successively drawn by the players.

In order to advise the players as to the characteristics and past histories of the persons involved in the story, and their relationship to the other characters, a short preliminary plot or rsum is provided and may be set forth in the instruction booklet designated 36, in Figure 2 of the drawings.

In order to better describe the method of play involving the apparatus illustrated, it Will be well to set forth a preliminary plot or situation from which may be developed the particular mystery story involved in the illustrative embodiment This illustrative situation may be set forth as follows:

"The plot thus far In a small unpretentious red brick dwelling almost completely hidden by tall trees and thick shrubs, lived Aunt Cora, a wealthy spinster who, at the time of her sisters death, promised to care for her orphaned niece, Rhoda. Due to a cruel disappointment in her one and only love affair, Aunt Cora was particularly anxious that her niece, Rhoda, marry well. However, Rhoda, a vlvacious girl in her early twenties, had ideas of her own, for she was madly in live with an artist named George--a struggling young portrait painter. George adored Rhoda and was violently jealous of her beauty and affection. Contrary to Aunt Coras emphatic warnings, George persisted in calling on Rhoda.

"Visiting at Aunt Coras home were Mr. Perrin,

a rascally, deceiving man-about-town, and his fiance, Miss Lee, a chorus girl of rather doubtful reputation who loved Perrin in spite of his failings. Perrin, seeing an opportunity to marry into an inheritance, decided to double-cross his ance, and began paying ardent attention to niece Rhoda, thus evoking the sworn enmity of George. In order to more easily accomplish his sinister purpose, Perrin, with the aid of a flattering tongue and a flare for stylish clothes, played up to Aunt Cora, and very soon gained her favor.

To make matters worse, the household was attended by Butler Higgins who was able to conceal his reputation as an eX-convict from the ever-trusting Aunt Cora; and the maid, Beatrice, a faithful servant, though slightly unbalanced mentally.

The local police force, receiving information of the butlers past, decided to keep a watchful eye on the little red brick dwelling, and sent Mr.

Ree, a detective, to patrol the property. With these circumstances hovering over the once peaceful household, it was not surprising that some crime was about to be committed.

With this statement of the situation as a basis, the various movements and behaviour of the characters are enacted upon the game board and give rise to the creation of the plot of the mystery story and its solution. One feature of the game which compels the interest of the players is that the plot and the solution of the crime is never the same; the characters committing the crime, the victim, the instrumentality, and the actual scene of the crime being different nearly every time the game is played.

Each player assuming the part of one of the characters in The plot thus far roams about inside and outside of the house, choosing and concealing the weapons with which to commit the crime, and attempting to arrive at the coincidence of circumstances which will enable the crime to l be committed, all of the movements and actions being controlled and directed by the receiving of instructions from the chance devices-represented in thisl instance by instruction cards-or by the control exercised by the supervisory character which in this case is the detective, Mr. Ree.

Each of the characters in the story with the exception of the detective are represented by the playing pieces 4i) which may comprise hollow cylindrical bases 4! to which are applied the caps 42, each having the handle and indicator portions i3 upon which the name of the character is set forth, and by means of which the playing piece may be lifted and the lid removed.

The supervisory character, in this case the detective, Mr. Ree, is represented by a playing piece 35, which is preferably of a recognizably different oonguration than that of the hollow playing pieces S0 used by the other characters. In this particular embodiment of the game there is no necessity for the detectives playing piece being hollow, although it may be provided with a substantially cylindrical base (i6 and a top 4l having an indicator and handling portion 48.

The four instrumentalities included in the present embodiment by which the murder may be committed comprise the revolver 50, the knife l, the bottle of poison 52 and the hatchet 53, illustrated respectively in Figures '7, 8, 9, and l0 of the drawings.

In order to designate the players whose game pieces represent the different characters, the identication or place cards 55 are provided, each of these cards being furnished with a picture 55 of the character represented and his name 5l' by which the player may be readily recognized.

Numerous instruction cards are provided, these cards being all of the same size and color so that they may be shufed together and placed in a pile on the game board from which they may be successively drawn by the players. These inm struction cards include the four murder cards, each bearing a representation of one of the in strumentalities 55, 5 l, 52, or 53, one of these cards being shown at 5U in Figure ll. Several cards in the pack are adapted to be passed from one player to another in order to conceal the passing of the murder cards Bil. These cards may be designated refreshment cards and are shown at 5i in Figure l2, each of the cards bearing a representation of common refreshments which may be served to the guests at Aunt Coras home.

Most of the remaining instruction cards are of the type illustrated at 62 in Figure le of the drawings,and merely bear the simple instructions to go to one of the designated stations either inside or outside of the house. Also, certain of the instruction cards as illustrated at 63 of Figure l5 bear the instructions to go to one of the designated stations and take someone with you. Others of the instruction cards are such as illustrated at 55 in Figure 13, and read Go where you please. As will be shown during the description oi the playing of the game, these cards are handled in different ways in order to develop the plot of the story.

The equipment having been described, the method of playing the game will now be set forth and illustratedby appropriate examples.

rThe playing board is placed upon the table, around which the players are seated. The plot thus far preferably should be read aloud to the players in order to familiarize them with their characterizations, and then the instruction cards are shuiiled and placed face down on the allotted space 35 on the game board. The article or indicator piece 5i? representing the revolver may be placed in the livingroom, the hatchet in the woodshed, the knife in the kitchen, and the botn tle of poison in the washroom. The characters of the story may be chosen by chance by distributing the identifying place cards face downwardly among the players, or the players may agree to choose the parts they prefer to play. It is suggested that so 'far as possible the men players assume the male characters and the women assume the female characters, although this is not essential. Each player then places the identifying or character card 55 face upward in front of him and also takes his properly designated token or playing piece 4l).

The detective starts the game by placing his token or playing piece on the path 22 at the lower right hand corner of the house. The player at the left hand side of the detective then draws a card from the pile in the space 35 and examines it without exhibiting it to the other players. If the card reads Go to indicating a certain one of the positions on the board, the player moves his token to that position. Should there be a weapon at the location when the player arrives, the player takes the weapon, and after removing the top 42 of the token, he conceals the weapon within the token and then replaces the top. If the playn er draws one of the cards 53, reading Go to and take someone with you, the player takes another players token along with his own to the designated location. If the card which is drawn reads Go where you please, the player retains that card for future use and is entitled to draw another instruction card in order to make an immediate move.

If the player draws one of the refreshment cards 5l, all of which read Pass this card to anyone you please, the player keeps the card for the time being and is entitled to draw another in order to move his token. Again, if the player draws one of the four murder cards 60, he keeps the card and draws another card in order to make his immediate move. After each token has moved into its proper position, the next player on the left draws a card, and so on around the table.

The detective, upon his turn to play, moves to the next corner of the path 22 which surrounds the house l2. Should he encounter any tokens dll at any of the outside positions along his route, he searches the tokens for weapons, and, upon iinding any, he removes them from the tokens and replaces them in their original places on the board.

The functions of certain of the various articles used during the play will now be described. The weapons 5l), 5l, 52, and 53 are taken by the vplayers as they arrive at the locations where they are placed, as already described, and they also may be taken from one player when another player makes contact with him, but only one weapon may be taken at a time. For example, should a player possessing a weapon be in the blue bedroom I9 and another player arrive while he is there, the later arrival may take the weapon from the earlier occupant. He then in turn may have the weapon taken from him by some other player overtaking him. It will be readily seen that as the plot progresses, the locations of the weapons become more and more diicult to trace. If a player possesses a murder card, but is unable by the regular drawing of instruction cards to arrive at the location of the weapon designated upon the murder card, and he possesses a "Go where you please card, he first draws an instruction card in his proper turn in order to throw off suspicion, then follows the instructions of the Go where you please card and takes the weapon.

As previously stated, there are four murder cards in the set, each indicating a different weapon to be used, and, of course, there may be as many as four persons possessing murder cards at the same time. rIhe person who, through the development of the plot, is rst able to commit a murder is the murderer about which the mystery tale revolves.

A player who draws a Go where you please card should retain the card as an aid in securing his weapon when he has a murder card,

The refreshment cards 5i, when drawn from the deck must be passed to any other player, face downwardly, upon the drawers next turn to play. Refreshment cards when received from another player must be passed by the player receiving them before drawing a card from the deck. The refreshment cards must always be passedface downwardly, since the passing of the refreshment cards is to conceal the passing of the murder card.

In order to eiect the commission of the crime forming ie subject of the mystery, a certain coincidence of instructions or controls is necessary. That is, the player must have drawn a murder card from the deck, that card indicating the weapon to be used; the player must have the indicated weapon in his possession; and he must, furthermore, be on the same station or location with his victim. An example of the method of the procedure may be as follows: The player has in his possession the hatchet murder card, he also has the hatchet symbol in his playing piece, and iinally, he is in contact with his intended victim and it is his turn to play. I-Ie then passes, face downwardly, any refreshment cards in his possession to any of the players around the table, and he passes the hatchet murder card, also face downwardly, to his intended victim. I-Ie then draws a card from the deck and follows its instructions, which in all possibility will move him far away from his victim, thus making the solution of the crime more dicult for the detective.

The discovery of the commission of the murder comes about as follows: When a player, upon his turn to play, looks at the cards which have been passed to him and discovers among them a murder card, that player utters a groan or shriek and laying his token in a horizontal position on the board, he is considered to have been murdered. 'Ihe detective is then called in to discover the murderer.

In attempting to solve the murder mystery,

"le detective assumes charge of the situation. l-le questions the characters in order to discover the location of the weapon, the persons having had contact with the victim, eye-witnesses to the passing of the Weapon, etc. All oi' the players with the exception of the actual murderer must answer truthfully all questions propounded to them by the detective, the murderer being the only person permitted to lie. In conducting his examination, the detective is permitted only three direct challenges of Did you commit the murder The murderer, however, must truthfully answer the direct question, Did you commit the murder'' Obviously, the surest way is to trap him in a lie, and then apply the direct challenge.

Incidental instructions regarding the playing of the game may include the following: The players should leave their character or place cards face upwardly in front of them so that they may be easily identified with respect to their assumed character. They should also keep the cards which they draw from the board in their and in the exact order in which they are drawn, for they may serve as alibis when being examined by the detective. This also aids in concealing a murder card in the possession of the player. The detective neither passes nor receives cards, his function being, during the development of the plot, to search the players, .vhich he may encounter outside of the house, for weapons, and return any weapons he may find to their original locations in the house. Each of the players should remember to look at the cards passed to him only when it is his turn to play.

It is to be understood that the embodiment of the invention illustrated and described herein is for purposes of example only, and numerous modications, both of the physical apparatus employed and the procedure, may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as dened in the subjoined claims. For example, the scene or location of the story as depicted on the surface of the game board may be a shop or factory, a city or village, or larger territories such as various countries or grand divisions of the globe. Furthermore, the characters of the story may be travellers, workmen, spies, outlaws, police, federal agents, etc. The instrumentalities by which the crucial actions of the plot are indicated could be various stolen articles, maps or documents, jewelry, money, gifts, articles of commerce, or other items involved in the story used. The situation presented by the preliminary statement of the plot may involve a robbery, commercial transactions, international intrigue, exploration, etc. In all of these suggested variations and in others falling within the scope of certain of the claims there would be required cery tain secret dealings between the parties which would be controlled by chance devices, for example the instruction cards, which would involve the meetings between the parties on the same stations or locations, and may involve certain supervisory authority exercised by one or more characters corresponding to the detective in the present case.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

l. In a game of the class described, in combination, a game board having stations arranged thereon in a regular order, a path or denite course connecting said stations, other stations arranged thereon at random, playing pieces adapted to be moved to and from said stations as the game proceeds, certain of said pieces adapted to move sequentially along said definite course through said rst named stations only, and other of said pieces adapted to be moved to and from any of said stations under the direction or control of a chance device, and a chance device for directing the movement of said latter pieces.

2. In a game of the class described, in combination, a game board having a plurality of stations depicted thereon, playing pieces adapted to be moved to and from said stations under the control of a chance device, and having means to receive and conceal certain symbolic articles, a symbolic article adapted to be taken up and carried by certain of the playing pieces under Control of the chance device, and a chance device for determining the courses of movement of said playing pieces and the articles taken up and carried thereby.

3. In a game of the class described, in combination, a game board having a plurality of stations depicted thereon, playing pieces adapted to be moved to and from said stations, in irregular courses which may intersect, under the control of a chance device; articles adapted to be distributed about the board, each at a certain one of said stations, and taken up by said playing pieces when encountered thereby during movement of said playing pieces about the board, carried along by said playing pieces, and intel'- changed between the pieces at points where the courses intersect; said playing pieces being structurally arranged to receive and carry said articles; and a chance device for determining the courses of movement of said playing pieces and consequently the articles taken up and carried thereby.

4. In a game of the class described, in combination, a game board having a plurality of stations depicted thereon, playing pieces adapted to be moved to and from said stations under the control of a chance device; said playing pieces being structurally arranged to receive and carry said articles; articles adapted to be taken up and carried by certain of the playing pieces under control of the chance device; a chance device for determining the courses of movement of said playing pieces and the articles taken up and carried thereby; and other playing pieces adapted to follow a regular course on the board and to deprive said first named playing pieces of articles which they may be carrying upon encountering them as their courses may intersect.

5. For use in connection with a game of the general class described, a hollow playing piece provided with a cover and adapted to be moved irorn station to station on a game board, identifying" means on said piece, and an article symbolic oi possible denite future moves of said piece adapted to be concealed Within said hollow playing piece.

6. In a game of the class described, in combination, a game board having an area thereon depicting the scene of a mystery story, a plurality of stations on said area, certain of said stations arranged in regular order about the area for accommodating the sequential moves of certain of the playing pieces, others of said stations occurring at random, a plurality of readily distinguishable playing pieces representing characters in the story, certain of said pieces adapted to move sequentially through said first named stations on said area, and others of said pieces adapted to be moved to and from said random stations under the direction or control of a chance device, a chance device for directing the movement of said latter pieces, a plurality of Small articles symbolic of certain actions in the story, each adapted to be initially disposed at one of said stations, certain of said playing pieces being provided with means for the reception and concealment of said articles when encountered at said stations, and additional chance devices governing the relinquishment ci said articles and ltheir transfer among the playing pieces in iurtherance of the plot of the story.

'l'. In a game of the class described, in combination, a game board having an area thereon depicting the scene of a sequence oi events', a plurality oi stations distributed over said entire area, a denite course or path of movement delineated upon said board and traversing a certain number of said stations, a plurality of playing pieces, each representing a character involved in the sequence of events and adapted to be moved at random from one of said stations to another under the control of a chance device, another playing piece representing a supervisory character and adapted to move sequentially along said regular course or path and to exercise a certain control over any of the other playing pieces which it may encounter at said stations which occur on Said regular course, and a chance device for determining the moves of the first named playing pieces.

8. In a game of the class described, in combination, a game board having an area thereon illustrating the scene of a sequence of events; a plurality of stations marked on said area; and playing pieces adapted to move to and from said stations during progress oi the game; a sub-area forming an inner portion of said area and embracing some oi said stations, a path or marked course surrounding said sub-area and connecting certain of said stations, certain of said playing pieces adapted to follow random courses, which may include any of said stations under control of chance devices, and certain other of said pieces adapted to follow the regular course or path outside of said sub-area; said stations being distributed over said sub-area and also upon said regular course; and a chance device for directing the movement of said first named pieces.

EDWARD H. FREEDMAN.

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