| Cluedo Viaggio Con DeLitto (Travel with Crime) - Italian Passport to Murder - 2000 |
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"June 1926. The eminent anthropologist and man of letters Dr Black is on his way east to visit Cairo. Joining h im aoard the legendary Trans-Continental Express from London are a number of fellow travellers, close friends and new acquaintances rounded up by Mrs Peacock to celebrate his birthday on the great train.
The celebrations, like the journey, will have to be cut short. Soon after the train pulls into Istanbul's Sirkeci Station three days later, Dr Black is found murdered..." - Instruction booklet introduction. |
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Born, July 16, 1901 in Cambridge, England |
Born June 29, 1890 in Lahore, India |
Born, November 1, 1867 in Harrogate, England |
Born, June 18, 1878 in Stanton, St. Bernard, England |
Born, January 5, 1885 in Chelsea, London, England |
Born, August 31, 1894 in Dundee, Scotland |
| All Aboard! Passport to Murder has far surpassed any other Cluedo edition to date in terms of artistic beauty and atmosphere. Based loosly on the 2000 Cluedo edition artwork (note the similarities in the suspect's "passport" photos and the 2000 edition suspect cards), the game plays nearly the same as the Super Cluedo Challenge game of the late 1980's. Players must travel between the Trans-Continental Express and the Istanbul Sirkeci station (and "Subways"/Secret Passages) to figure out which of the usual six or three additional characters are guilty of Dr. Black's murder! Players may search luggage pieces scattered throughout the board, interrogate station attendants (and station employees), or locate weapons to find clues to help them along the way (and reveal critical information below the shutters of the three solution envelopes). Another twist is that if your playing piece lands next to another player, you can move the other player anywhere else on the board - allowing for a bit of good-natured strategy. The artists seem to have kept the storyline cohesive and fun. The board and cards are extremely detailed. For instance, each station attendant on the board is individualized - the one in the engine room is even sweating! The lost luggage area includes a wooden leg! The weapon cards even show how they might be found in the scenario of the game. The revolver in a drawer might be in the desk of the ticket office, the blunderbus is seen on the shelf in the lost property office with the rope and lead pipe. The wrench is in the engine room's tool box, etc. The suspect cards seem to give more insight into the character's identities. For instance, Professor Plum is examining the workings of a machine while Mrs. White looks distraught as she's relegated to a lower class coach with rowdy passengers. The plastic character tokens are extremely detailed and, unlike other Cluedo games, actually matches the suspect cards. The weapon tokens revive the original form of the Clue Master Detective game with the exception of the revolver which is less chunky. The horseshoe has also been replaced with a Blunderbuss and Axe. One negative aspect of the game is that the starting spaces of certain characters gives them an advantage. For instance, Reverend Green only needs a starting roll of two to find a clue whereas Mrs. White needs a seven. Another disappointment is that players can only play the original six suspects and not the three additional. The cardboard station employees also seem a bit out of place against the plastic molded suspects. Otherwise, however, the game is a almost perfect and well worth the Cluedo name - as evidenced by the exorbitant prices it tends to achieve in the secondary market. |
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Like Clue Master Detective, this expanded edition provides more details in the instruction booklet to help flesh out the suspects and the story:
A postcard addressed to Tody Hutchinson Esq., 24 Lower Sloan Street, London SW ENGLAND reads: Darling, This is the greatest adventure! I'm sure you should have come along. The food has been exquisite and the views across the Alps were magnificent. I wish I could say the same about some of the company - one or two of them seem a little queer... Constantinople is neat! Can't wait! Send my love to your mama. Love and Kisses, Peaches XXX Next to Mrs. Peacock's picture: 'The Insular and Trans-Continental Passenger Railway Company Limited' Mrs. Peacock read out the gold lettering emblazoned on teh carriage's resplendent livery as Professor Plum helped her up onto the train. The satisfaction in her voice bore all the hallmarks of someone having arrived, despite the fact that the train's departure was still some minutes away. 'You never told me if you approved of the idea," she went on, catching her breath. 'It just struck me that men like Dr Black have everything they could want. I thought we could all get together to celebrate his birthday and enjoy a little jaunt at the same time.' She let go a coquettish laugh which appeared to leave Plum quite indifferent. Next to Professor Plum's picture: 'Yes, Doctor, Stamboul is indeed a fascinating city. Your invitation was the perfect excuse I needed to return and complete my paper on the Ottoman Empire.' - 'Where will you be staing, Plum old chap?' quizzed Dr Black. 'They say the Pera Palace has quite the finest view across the Bosphorus.' - 'I will return to the Tokatlian,' Plum retorted, looking a little vague. 'The people you meet there are so much more interesting,' Professor Plum focussed through his small, tortoiseshell spectacles, and eventaully blushed, stuttering 'I... I didn't mean you weren't interesting, Doctor. What I meant was...' Next to Mrs. White and Colonel Mustard's pictures: 'Truffles is only good enough for pigs in my opinion,' grunted Mrs. White. 'I won't have them in my kitchen.' - 'Looks like the Reverend has a taste for them' whispered Colonel Mustard, casting a furtive glance across the dining car. 'Now please enlighten me, Mrs White. What the devil do these French people mean with Sell dee Chevril ah-la Duchess?' - 'Selle de Chevreuil a la Duchesse, Monsieur.' offered the head-waiter, appearing as if out of thin air, causing the Colonel to eat his words. Next to Reverend Green's picture: 'He seemed perfectly pleasant to me,' confessed Reverend Green. - 'Earl (Count) Grey takes Dr Black and the rest of us for granted, if you ask me,' Mrs White went on. 'No manners. That's what. Probably bought his title, I shouldn't wonder.' Next to Miss Scarlet's picture: 'Isn't this just so exciting! It reminds me of one of those school trips down to London' squeaked Miss Peach, clutching a copy of Baedecker's to her bosom. - 'Yes, darling. I suppose it is,' sighed Miss Scarlett, drawing a long breath and pulling impatiently on her string of pearls. 'Are you quite sure you want to leave us and follow that dreadful man Brown to Athens?' - 'It was Earl Grey's idea. He's getting off at Belgrade, the stop before ours. I promise I'll make it up to you. Honest.' |
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