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S
1983 · 2-6 players · 45min · weight 1.95 · 18,125 ratings
port: BGAdifficulty: Easy
BGGv4 widev4v4 deep5Sources3Rules cardCandidate0.392Deep dive
Bayes
6.35
Users rated
18,125
Owned
31,945
Wishing
1,235
At a glance — v4 wide
Controlled-vocabulary primitives + 8-axis MDA aesthetic vector. Vocab v1.
Core loop (micro)
Move a detective token toward where Mr. X was last seen, deducing his route from transport tickets revealed each turn.
MDA aesthetic vector (0–3)
Sensation
0
Fantasy
2
Narrative
3
Challenge
3
Fellowship
2
Discovery
3
Expression
1
Submission
0
Mechanic-interaction primitives (4)
- [3]partial_observability— “criminal's mode of transportation is nearly always known, but his exact location is only known intermittently”
- [3]info_asymmetry_stable— “one player takes role of Mr. X; his job is to move from point to point; detectives act in concert”
- [2]attrition_clock— “detectives must move into the same space as Mr. X before he escapes”
- [2]area_movement_with_blocking— “move around similarly in an effort to move into the same space as Mr. X taking taxis buses or subways”
discovery_score: -0.292
Archetype fits — v4 deep
How well this game shape maps to mobile archetype templates. Composite is a weighted sum of the 10 fit dimensions.
| Archetype | Composite | LTF | Session | Combo | Arc | Share | 5in | Onboard |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coop detective_coalition_pursuit IS the coop-archetype shape — info_asymmetry_stable is load-bearing for the loop. Detectives plan together; Mr. X is the dungeon master / boss. Strongest archetype fit: pursuit_arc_tightness from the dwindling-tickets escalation. But London-map legibility is the hardest dimension on 5in glass. | 5.50 | 6.0 | 7 | 5 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 5 |
| Snap info_asymmetry_stable plus fugitive_one_vs_many is the strongest possible bluff_info_asymmetry — Mr. X plays open card games with hidden cards. But a 45-min asymmetric session is far from Snap's 3-min match shape, and the London map is unreadable on a 5in screen. | 5.00 | 6.0 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 5 |
| Balatro hidden_movement_periodic_reveal plus point_to_point_london_network is a deduction loop, not a multiplicative engine — combo_scaling_depth is 2. London-board legibility on a 5in screen is poor; transport-ticket inventory is read-against-map, not a tableau. | 4.50 | 5.0 | 3 | 2 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 5 |
| Wordle 45min asymmetric hunt overshoots Wordle by 30x. A daily 'where is Mr. X' single-puzzle deduction reframe could compress, but transport_ticket_economy doesn't yield a clean 6-emoji-row output. | 3.70 | 5.0 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Cozy Tier check: not Hard, not explicitly Open — Hidden Movement is asymmetric pursuit (someone wins, someone loses). Closer to Open semantics, cap 5 on loss_tolerance, but the chase has actual hunter pressure that lands closer to 3. No tonal-cozy primitives. | 3.60 | 3.0 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
Translation candidate
Composite fit_score = bayes×0.30 + wish×0.18 + compress×0.17 + difficulty×0.20 + headroom×0.15.
bayes_norm×0.300.096
wish_norm×0.180.019
compress_norm×0.170.500
diff_norm×0.201.000
port_headroom×0.150.500
fit_score (total)0.392= 0.392
Difficulty reasoning
Hidden movement deduction is well-suited to digital where the app can maintain Mr. X's secret position; Scotland Yard has BGA support.
Closest loop translation
none yet
Sources (3)
Inputs to rules-card synthesis. Click any pill with ↗ to open the original source.
BGG tags
Categories (2)
DeductionTravel