Rules of Play
Box of Why

Board game · 1958

Why

"Alfred Hitchcock presents...The Game of Why" Once upon a time, six people on their way to a costume party took shelter from a storm in a haunted house...And were never seen alive since. But they still haunt the house. You must…

Players
2 to 4
Duration
45 min
Age
12 and up
Complexity
Beginner

(Uncredited) · Milton Bradley Company · Alga

View on BoardGameGeek Powered by BoardGameGeek

Add to my shelf Sign in to add it to your shelf

Videos to learn

No rules video for this game yet. Know one?

Three ways to move forward anyway:

In brief

"Alfred Hitchcock presents...The Game of Why"

Once upon a time, six people on their way to a costume party took shelter from a storm in a haunted house...And were never seen alive since. But they still haunt the house. You must try to find out who was murdered, by what means and why.

The cards include Motive cards, No Clue cards and a single "It's a Mystery to Me" card. In addition, there are cards that can be assembled side by side to form larger pictures: the six guests (Cleopatra, Napoleon, etc. --they were costumed, you see; in four pieces), four weapons (also in four pieces) and Alfred Hitchcock (in six pieces). Seven cards are dealt to each player, the rest into the house's rooms. You enter a room by exact count, except that a 7, 11 or doubles allows you to go directly to the spot of your choice. When you reach a room, you pick up the top card there and discard either it or another card from your hand to the "Lawn" --off the board. These cards are laid face down without overlapping each other but are shown to the other players as they're laid down. Later, you may try to recover a Lawn card by showing a card from your hand of the appropriate type (a piece of a guest, for example) and then pointing to a Lawn card and picking it up. If you remembered right, you may repeat the procedure. You can also claim cards from other players by meeting them in the house and "accusing them" of withholding a particular card (this is what the No Clue cards are defence for). Once the rooms are empty, everyone gathers in the hall and play is speeded up.

First player to assemble a Ghost, Weapon and Motive OR Alfred and "It's a Mystery to Me" wins.

Contribute to this page

Add a resource, correct information or report a link. Every contribution is gathered here and reviewed before publication.

Suggest a videoReviewed before publication

An account is needed to suggest a change. Create an account

Correct the detailsReviewed before publication

An account is needed to suggest a change. Create an account

Suggest a correctionReviewed before publication

An account is needed to suggest a change. Create an account

Suggest rules or a player aidReviewed before publication

An account is needed to suggest a change. Create an account