Mouse Trap Game!

Name: Mouse Trap

Number of Players: 2-4 players can participate in the Mouse Trap Game

Recommended Ages: Ages 6 and up

Average Playing Time: Roughly 30 minutes

Overview:

A fun activity that relies on your ability to follow instructions, the game is a classic past time for children who grew up in the sixties but continues to bring new children joy year after year. Revolving around a game structure that involves cooperatively building a device meant to cause your opponents’ demise and ‘trap’ the mice that represent them as game pieces. This Mouse Trap board game will keep you on your toes and fully entertained for hours.

How to Play:

As in many other board games, your first step is delegating game pieces to each person playing the Mouse Trap game before selecting a player to take the first turn. When it is your turn, you will roll the dice and move your mouse the number of spaces as indicated by the dice.

Numerous spaces on the Mouse Trap game board have instructions, which you follow when you land on the space. These space types include:

• Build Spaces - When you land on a build space you will notice that each is printed with a number of players. If you land on a space that is labeled with a number that matches the number of people with whom you are playing, you will use your building plan to assemble one piece of the mousetrap. An example would be if your space says ‘2-3-4’ and you are playing with three players that is when you build. It is important to remember that you can also take a cheese piece from the pile.
• Directional Spaces - The directional instructions that include ‘move forward’ and ‘go back’ are on certain spaces of the Mouse Trap game board. Each of these spaces will compel you to move a certain number of spaces in that direction. If you land on a space of this variety, follow the directional instructions but do not follow any directions given on the space you are required to go.
• Take Cheese Spaces - When you land on one of these spaces, you will be required to gain cheese pieces in a number of ways. If you land on a take cheese space while some cheese is in the pile, take the indicated number of pieces. If, however, no cheese is in the pile, crank slowly to start the trap in motion. If the cage falls over another players pawn that person is ‘out’ and you will in turn take all of their cheese pieces. In the situation when no cheese in the pile, you will need to take the cheese pieces from the player who has the most. In the situation where two people are tied for the most pieces, you can take them all from one player or split the number between both of them.
• Lose Cheese Spaces - Players landing on this space will be required to return a certain number of their cheese pieces to the pile. If the number you are asked to return exceeds the amount you have, just return all that you do have.
• Dog Bone - This space has no consequence. Your turn is over, however, you are not required to take any action.
• Loop Spaces - At the end of the Mouse Trap game board path, a series of six spaces known as the loop spaces serve as the area where mice can be captured. During game play, once a player’s pawn reaches the ‘loop’ they will continue to roll the die and circle that area until they are either captured or win the game.
• Cheese Wheel -Located in the loop is a space labeled cheese wheel. It is when an opponent is in this space that they can be captured. When you land on this space you will be required to gain two cheese pieces from either the pile or an opponent.
• Turn Crank - If your pawn is in the loop and lands on this space you have granted the opportunity to ‘trap’ a fellow players pawn providing that the entire trap is built and that you have an opponent located in the cheese wheel space. If this is the case, turn the crank.

Towards the endplay, once the entire Mouse Trap game board is built, you can use the cheese pieces you have acquired to help move your opponents, making it easier to capture them. To use this strategy, you must be located in the ‘turn crank’ space and have cheese pieces with which to bargain. Simply return a piece of cheese to the pile, roll the dice and then choose an opponent‘s pawn to move the indicated number of spaces. If you can manage to relocate another player’s pawn to the cheese wheel space, you can then turn the crank and attempt to trap it. You may only do this once per turn and only if you have cheese remaining.

Winning the Mouse Trap Game

Once the cage has captured all the pawn pieces of the other players, the last player that remains on the board wins the Mouse Trap game.

Strategies

Mouse Trap is mostly a game of probability and chance and how well you do heavily depends on how well you roll the dice. The only real strategy you can employ is to try to gather all the cheese pieces that you can during game play so that you have them to try to trap your opponents in the end.

Final Thoughts

A fun and exhilarating game for children and adults, the Mouse Trap Game is an excellent way to spend an afternoon or evening with your kids or friends. In a game where no one person has any skills or advantages over another, Mouse Trap the game proves to be a different experience every time you play.

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